'He's just an incredible man'

To truly understand the kindness and generosity of Niall Gunn, the Rockville Centre Herald’s 2016 Person of the Year, one need look no further than what he did for the Cuevas family six years ago.

In 2010, the Rockville Centre St. Patrick’s Day Parade Committee was searching for three charitable groups to march in the next procession. Debbie Cuevas, president of the village-based Greater New York Chapter of the Families of Spinal Muscular Atrophy, gave a presentation for Gunn and the other board members about why her charity should be chosen.

Cuevas explained that her son, Dylan, who was 7 at the time, suffered from SMA, and described how the disease has made it difficult for the family to go out or find a suitable caregiver for him. SMA is an incurable disease that affects the muscles used for walking, crawling, swallowing, and head and neck control.

The board selected her charity to take part in the parade, but that wasn’t all. Gunn, who owns Monaghan’s Irish Restaurant, approached Cuevas afterward and offered to host the family at his eatery or send food to their home any time they wanted for free — or any other assistance they might need.

No one in the family had met Gunn until that day.

“I can’t describe this feeling that my husband and I had when he said that,” Cuevas recalled, choking up again as she told the story. “It wasn’t a scripted thing or anything. You could just tell it was from his heart. Niall always goes above and beyond to try to make our family feel special and try to make our son feel special. He’s just an incredible man.”

The 54-year-old Gunn, a 13-year resident of Rockville Centre and a real estate agent with Daniel Gayle Sotheby’s, has lent a hand to friends and strangers alike in their times of need. Eight years ago, Robert Sullivan, a family friend, was diagnosed with cancer and needed blood transfusions. For the next seven years, Gunn helped organize the Robert Sullivan Blood Drive at Mercy Medical Center. Each donor was rewarded with a card to present at Monaghan’s for a free buffet dinner and drinks.

Sullivan died last year. Gunn, whose son, Dylan, was good friends with Sullivan’s son, often checked on the family in the days after his death, and opened his restaurant early so they could have a post-funeral reception. “They were just wonderful,” said Sullivan’s widow, Suzanne.

Suzanne, a former village trustee, has worked with Gunn on the parade committee since joining it in 2006, and is now on the event’s board of directors. “He’s the first person that people go to if they have some kind of fundraiser,” she said. “He will really step up and help with any charity that comes their way.”

Many of Gunn’s peers express similar sentiments. Mike O’Hare, who has known him for 25 years, recalled Gunn’s thoughtfulness and generosity during and after Hurricane Sandy in 2012. Monaghan’s did not lose power during the storm, so he put power strips at each table so people could come in and charge their cellphones. Phone lines were down, but customers who could only pay with credit cards were simply told by Gunn that they could reimburse him whenever they could. That year, he opened the restaurant on Thanksgiving, and fed first responders and anyone affected by the storm free of charge.

“He is someone who never says no,” said O’Hare. “Niall always has a smile on his face and is genuinely glad to see you. Niall makes everyone feel welcome. Monaghan’s has that feeling of being home.”

O’Hare said that Gunn constantly thinks of ways to raise money for the parade committee through such events as pub quizzes, guest bartender and comedy nights and the bi-annual RVC Olympics. For the Olympics, Monaghan’s and seven other bars host events such as cornhole, Jenga, darts, blackjack, basketball, bowling, bar dice, darts, trivia and Scrabble for competing teams. The “athletes” rotate through the establishments and enjoy free food. The games on Dec. 4 raised $12,500.

“Niall believes in paying it forward,” O’Hare said. “He is actively involved in giving back to the RVC community.”

Gunn came up with the idea for the recent Elf Yourself fundraisers, when village residents dressed as elves and gathered to try to break the world record for most elves in one place. Though no records were set, the events raised thousands of dollars for charity.

“He’s really big about bringing people together,” said Keely Collins, who has been a member of the parade’s board of directors since it was first formed. “He’s just good to everybody.”

Collins also credited Gunn with creating a more family-friendly and homey restaurant amid the underage drinking issues that some Rockville Centre establishments are facing these days. “I don’t want to compare it to Cheers, but you walk in there and everybody knows your name,” Collins said. “There are plaques there for people that have sat there for years or maybe passed away. The people who work there are like family to him. He takes care of them. He’s just an all-around good person.”

According to Pat McGuire, a St. Patrick’s parade board member, Gunn oversees many of the functions that help raise money for the three charities that are chosen to march in the parade — one national, one local and one that represents Irish heritage — and presents each one with a check at a special ceremony. McGuire said that the first 20 parades raised over $1 million for charity.

In January, Gunn organizes the Taste of Rockville Centre, in which people pay a fee to sample food and drink from local restaurants at the St. Agnes Parish Center. All of the proceeds go to the selected charities.

He also sponsors Little League, softball and youth basketball teams. “He doesn’t just take money from running a restaurant and a bar,” McGuire said. “He gives things back to the community, and he offers himself up all the time.”

When he isn’t raising money for charity, Gunn spends time with his wife, Kathleen, and Dylan. Suzanne Sullivan described him as a doting father who can also bring out his inner child.

“He’s a great dad,” she said. “Dylan’s last birthday had a paintball party, and Niall was right there, playing paintball with all the kids.”

Family — whether it’s immediate or the Rockville Centre community — clearly means everything to Niall Gunn.