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The Nature Conservancy 2007 Earth & Ocean Gala a Success for Long Island

Celebration Honored Russell C. Albanese, Albanese Organization, Inc. for Green Building

Cold Spring Harbor, NY — May 15, 2007 — Over 500 guests joined The Nature Conservancy to celebrate the fifth annual Earth & Ocean Gala on Thursday, May 10, 2007 at the Conservancy's flagship Long Island preserve, Uplands Farm Nature Sanctuary in Cold Spring Harbor.

The gala honored Russell C. Albanese, President of Albanese Organization, Inc. (www.albaneseorg.com), a Garden City-based real estate development organization best known for its pioneering work in environmentally sustainable building. 

Founded in 1949, the Albanese Organization is a privately held, full-service real estate firm dedicated to creating commercial and residential buildings of distinction, quality and architectural merit, which optimize value, are environmentally responsible, and enhance the communities in which they are located. The Albanese Organization is widely credited with introducing environmentally advanced urban living to the United States. 

The event was chaired by Richard C. DeZego, senior executive vice president, HSBC Bank USA and co-chaired by John H. Westerman, managing partner, Westerman Ball Ederer Miller & Sharfstein, LLP. The Journal Chair was Russell G. Matthews, executive vice president, Albanese Organization.  Mark W. Hamer, principal, Harvest Real Estate Services, Inc. served as the gala Master of Ceremonies. The gala raised more than $525,000, including $30,500 from an auction, facilitated by Nassau County Executive Tom Suozzi. 

The Earth and Ocean Gala was attended by individuals and supported by the community, and members of the corporate and political sectors. The Nature Conservancy appreciates the support of everyone who attended and is particularly grateful to the following contributors:

• Albanese Organization
• Castagna Realty
• Cronin, Cronin & Harris
• Don and Mary Eversoll
• Esther Fortunoff-Greene and Joshua Greene
• Gregg Rechler
• HSBC Bank USA
• Joan and Don Axinn
• Advantage Title
• KeySpan
• Loeb & Loeb LLP
• Harvest Real Estate Services
• Mitchell Rechler
• Pall Corporation
• Peri and Martin Wenz
• Ruskin Moscou Falitschek, P.C
• Roger Tilles
• King Kullen
• Turner Construction Company
• United Homes of New York

Funds raised from the gala will help The Nature Conservancy further its most ambitious conservation effort to date – Long Island’s Last Stand – a 10-year plan to preserve and protect the most significant remaining 25,000 acres of critical habitat, and restore and protect hundreds of thousands of acres of parklands, harbors and bays, in Nassau and Suffolk counties. To learn more about this program or to make a contribution visit The Nature Conservancy on Long Island at www.nature.org/longisland.

The Nature Conservancy is a leading conservation organization working around the world to protect ecologically important lands and waters for nature and people. To date, the Conservancy and its more than one million members have been responsible for the protection of more than 15 million acres in the United States and have helped preserve more than 102 million acres in Latin America, the Caribbean, Asia and the Pacific. Visit The Nature Conservancy on the Web at www.nature.org.