LONG ISLAND, NY – Long Islanders are coming together once again in a big way. On Wednesday, more than 300 pizza shops across the region will donate proceeds to the family of Officer Patricia Espinosa, who police said was killed in a crash involving a drunk driver.
Pizzerias from Nassau County to the East End will participate in Long Island Pizza Strong’s fundraiser on Feb. 25. For every pie sold at participating restaurants, $5 will be donated to Espinosa’s family — including her husband, NCPD officer Francisco Malaga, and their two-year-old daughter, Mia — while also raising awareness about the dangers of drunk driving.
One of the three organizers of LI Pizza Strong, Alyssa Guidice of Hicksville, said the initiative began in September 2023. Their first fundraiser benefited the families of the Farmingdale bus crash, raising more than $100K.
The group now has a network of more than 400 pizzerias: “Restaurants are here for the community.”
Guidice handled a good portion of the outreach but said she could not do it alone. Members of the public helped by spreading the word on social media, handing out fliers, and even visiting local pizzerias — including her grandfather, who stopped by several shops in Queens.
She said someone close to Officer Espinosa reached out to LI Pizza Strong. Although they never want to host fundraisers born out of tragedy, the events are important, she said.
"We really love to bring the community together in these times," she said. "It's something that we feel we have to do. It's so worthy."
A full list of the participating pizzerias can be found on LI Pizza Strong’s Facebook page or website.
When asked why they felt it was important to participate in the fundraiser, individual pizzerias each had their own reasons, but there was a common thread between them: A desire to give back in honor of a beloved community member.
Villa Maria Pizza in Bethpage’s owner opened the pizzeria about 13 years ago after Hurricane Sandy destroyed the catering facility where he worked. Owner and Babylon resident Michael Goldsborough was the executive chef at the South Street Seaport at the time, and decided to turn to the local pizza shop path.
Owner Goldsborough and his children. / Courtesy of Michael Goldsborough
"What started as a difficult moment turned into an opportunity to build something of our own and become part of the community here," Goldsborough said.
Giving back to the community, he said, is a no-brainer.
"We always try to step up when there’s a meaningful fundraiser that benefits local families and organizations," he said. "This community has supported us from day one, so giving back and showing up whenever we can is simply the right thing to do. We are proud to be a part of it."
The owner of Papa’s Pizza in Farmingdale, a family-run pizzeria, said he couldn’t imagine not participating in this fundraiser.
Orlando Fuentes opened Papa’s Pizza three years ago and, before that, owned a business for 30 years in New Hyde Park. Fuentes has lived on Long Island, currently in East Meadow, for 37 years. This is the fourth Pizza Strong that his restaurant will participate in.
“We just want to give something back to the community and help people who need it,” he said. “We are thankful for our customers, and we want to support people.”
For David, an employee at Francesca’s of Freeport, part of the desire to step up and join the fundraiser was a connection to law enforcement among the staff and management.
“My owners are fully with the police force, and all police officers throughout. I know I have family in the police department, if I’m not mistaken, one of the owners also has family in the police department,” David said. “It’s something we would do every time it’s offered.”
For one of the managers at Mario’s Pizzeria of Levittown, the motivation was simple: Supporting a young family as they grieved the loss of a loved one.
“We’re supporting a family,” she said. “They just lost the biggest piece of their family. And on top of that, it's a police officer. I mean, it speaks for itself. Of course, we want to participate; you get emotional just talking about something like that.”
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