Camp Anchor Remembers its Fallen

Scores of family, friends and supporters shared their loss – and their strength – at the Tommy Brull Foundation fundraiser held in honor of Jamie and Paige Malone and Mike Mulhall at Cannon's Blackhthorn in Rockville Centre on Sunday night.

On the morning of July 15, Jamie, 22 and Paige 19, were killed along with Mulhall, 22, in a tragic one-car accident on the Meadowbrook State Parkway. The three young adults were heading to their counselor jobs at Camp Anchor in Lido Beach. Two others, Michael's sister Justine and Kelly Murphy, 20, survived the accident.

For more than 20 years, Camp Anchor has provided fun and love for children and young adults with special needs. For this event, the Tommy Brull Foundation — named after another lost member of the Camp Anchor extended family — worked in concert with the families of the accident victims to raise money for the Camp Anchor Building Fund, and establish scholarships in the names of the Malone sisters and Mulhall.

"They were all just good, good people with explosive personalities," said Keith Luccehsi, a Camp Anchor executive who helped organize the fundraiser. "They exemplified why we do what we do (at Camp Anchor) to make other people's lives better."

A large contingent of Mulhall's relatives were in attendance. His aunt, Denise Coughlin, spoke about Michael's impact on both his family and the Camp Anchor family at large.

"Michael loved Camp Anchor," Coughlin said as she choked back tears. "He gave it 1,000 percent every single day because he truly believed in the cause. He's inspired the entire family."

She waved her hand around the room, pointing to a large group of teenagers. "These are all of Michael's cousins," she said. "Every single one of them is either volunteering at Camp Anchor now or wants to as soon as they're old enough."

As she went on, Coughlin had to gather her composure. 

"There are not enough kids out there who are willing to donate their time," she said. "To treat these special needs children they way they deserve to be treated – with dignity, respect and love. These kids did that. And if you can do that, you're a special person."

Camp Anchor group leader Kevin Richman echoed  Coughlin's sentiments when remembering the Malone sisters.

"These girls had smiles on their faces every single day," Richman said. "Working with large groups of kids with special needs is not easy. But they made it look easy."  

While the Camp Anchor family lost three of its shining stars, those they left behind are determined to make sure their memories live on. Luccehsi distilled the entire tragic passing of events and their hope-filled aftermath down to one key ideal.

"We just want to keep good memories and keep their spirit going," he said.