Mount Sinai South Nassau brings back 'Soirée Under the Stars'

Tickets on sale for Sept. 17 event

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Supporters of Mount Sinai South Nassau are set to gather once again at The Seawane Club on Saturday, Sept. 17, to help raise funds for hospital projects that are expected to expand services along the South Shore.

For the first time after a two-year hiatus, "Soirée Under the Stars" returns with an outdoor gala event that honors Peter Cannuscio, executive vice president and chief operating officer of Axis Construction Corp. Cannuscio's company has been an instrumental part of an array of capital improvement projects at Mount Sinai South Nassau, including plans to convert a vacant 60,000-square-foot building in Wantagh into a multi-specialty medical office center.

Axis also has built a dedicated bi-plane imaging suite in the hospital's emergency department for stroke patients, and expanded the modernized Mount Sinai's pharmacy department. 

Other notable projects from Axis include the urgent care center in Long Beach, the expansion of Long Island's first free-standing emergency department, and the restoration of the hospital's outpatient dialysis center after suffering significant damage through Hurricane Sandy. 

"We are so please to be able to get back together in-person to celebrate and support the hospital as we expand our mission to provide high-quality care, close to home," said Anthony Cancellieri, co-chair of the hospital's board of directors, in a release. 

Rita Regan and Felix Nazario also will be honored at the soirēe. Regan, a registered nurse who is the patient experience and care coordination vice president for the hospital, will receive the Mary Pearson Award. Nazario, the administrative director of environmental services, will receive the Cupola Award. 

The Mary Pearson Award is named in honor of the hospital's founding administrator, and is presented annually for extraordinary effort and individual contributions that significantly advance the hospital's commitment to the community. The Cupola Award was first handed out in 2015, and honors a deserving hospital employee who goes above and beyond their duties, and lives by the hospital mission to promote excellence in health care.

Regan and Nazario were among the leadership team who helped guide Mount Sinai South Nassau's response to the coronavirus pandemic.  Regan has spent 50 years in health care, joining Mount Sinai in 2012 as a performance management director.  Nazario has spent 25 years in the industry, taking over environmental services at the hospital in 2018.  During the pandemic, Nazario and his team of housekeeping and environmental services staffers overcame daily challenges in their relentless effort to keep patients and employees safe from the virus.

Funds raised at the soirée will support the hospital's $400 million long-term strategic growth initiative, designed to improve services for patients across the South Shore. That includes a new four-story patient pavilion — the J Wing — as well as the $35 million medical arts pavilion in Long Beach, and the new Wantagh medical arts building.

The expansion of the hospital's emergency department will nearly double its size to accommodate more than 80,000 patient visits each year, and feature dedicated treatment areas for pediatric and behavioral health patients.

An outdoor reception begins at 6:30 p.m., at The Seawane Club, 1300 Club Drive, in Hewlett.  Entertainment will come from Broadway stars Orfeh and Andy Karl, who have individually appeared in productions from "Pretty Woman: The Musical" to "Groundhog Day." 

Guests will be required to have had full coronavirus vaccination. To purchase tickets, or to buy a sponsorship, call Mount Sinai South Nassau's development office at (516) 377-5360