HEARTS Port Washington is set to celebrate the arts at its annual HEARTS in the Park: A PortFest Event community event on Saturday, May 18. The distinctive event not only marks the arrival of the spring season but also highlights the importance of arts education and the appreciation of student excellence.

Now in its 14th year, the event, previously known as Port Fest, has been rebranded with a new name and location at the John Philip Sousa Memorial Bandshell Sunset Park, home of Port Washington’s Community Concerts. HEARTS welcomes lovers of the arts, residents and guests alike to join in on the festivities from 12- 5 p.m. free of charge.

“We’ve been reaching out to a lot of our community members and longtime partners and everyone has been enthusiastic about the change,” HEARTS PW Board President Eric Gewirtz said. “A lot of people feel very positive and very excited about some of the new things that we can do in utilizing this space in this great community center location near the water.”

The day will feature performances from students and groups across Port Washington, including musicals, theatricals, dance routines and singing acts from elementary through high school levels. Students from local dance studios Dance Arts Centre and Fairest Dance Center are set to showcase their talents with special performances and local groups Port Summer Show, Bach to Rock, Hat Trixx will round out the entertainment.

“I grew up as a musician primarily and  it’s still a very big part of my life,” Gewirtz said.
“And I was lucky to have experiences, lessons and opportunities to perform. And I never took that for granted. We want to make sure that other students, other community members have access to those kinds of things.”

HEARTS Port Washington is an independent, not-for-profit 501(c)3 community organization built to support, promote and enrich arts curriculums in Port Washington for children and public schools. Since its founding in 2011, HEARTS has funded over 250 grants in the arts across the district and has hosted a number of after-school programs, classes and fund-raisers through its partnerships with a number of key figures and organizations within the local area and beyond.
“Arts education is so vital for any community, especially here in Port Washington,” Gewirtz said.

“Our nonprofit was set up to help augment arts education in our communities and provide further enrichment both to school programs across all grade levels in the public schools, but also to community organizations. People know that by donating to hearts that we’re able to provide grants that provide incredible and enriching experiences.”

The festive event will also include another new addition, as Gewirtz introduces a fairly unique opportunity: guests will be able to participate in a silent disco party and listen to music with headphones on.

“They can actually listen to different songs,” he said. “There are multiple channels on the headphones, so people can choose what they want to listen to and have different options. But it’s fun and everyone can just dance however they want to dance.”

Local businesses and organizations have also rallied behind the event, with key sponsors and partners including The Gersh Family Foundation, Gold Coast Chiropractic, Long Island Dermatology, Berest Dance Center, Northwell Health Dental Medicine and countless others community groups and members.

Many of these organizations will also be featured with their own tents in the park, encouraging both children and adults to participate in hands-on activities. Vendors and entrepreneurial merchants will also be invited to sell items from their local businesses to community members.

Above all, Gewirtz notes that the HEARTS honors the contributions of these community groups who make the occasion possible through their dedication and donations that benefit children and families who participate in arts programs.

“Our board feels very strongly about the vitality and significance of the arts and the way that creativity and imagination can be unlocked by so many different kinds of experiences,“ Gewirtz said.

“It’s important to provide those experiences. This event that we’re hosting, which is one of our main events of the year, is a free event, but we do ask for donations at the event and across the year because it helps us raise money for our grants. Having people attend the event and supporting us goes a long way to what we can do to further support the community.”