Mercy Ball Raises $130K

The 75th Annual “Diamond Jubilee” Mercy Ball recently held at Carlyle On The Green in Bethpage State Park, raised $130,000 for , an increase of more than 35 percent from the previous year.

Nearly 900 people attended the black-tie gala sponsored by the Friends of Mercy, the 77-year-old organization of men who volunteer their time and efforts to support projects that advance the medical and surgical care provided to Mercy’s patients.

The proceeds from the event, chaired by Andrew E. Healey, of Rockville Centre, will support a recently-constructed Friends of Mercy Physicians Center for members of the medical staff, along with expansion and upgrades to the hospital’s medical education programs and facilities.

Daniel Des McCarthy, a five-decade resident of Rockville Centre and past chairman of Mercy’s Board of Trustees, received The Bishop John R. McGann Lifetime Achievement Award, which is presented to a distinguished individual dedicated to volunteering time and effort in support of the Friends of Mercy.

The Ball also included a special tribute to the memory of the founder and first president of the Friends of Mercy, the late Thomas J. Cuff, a Justice of the Supreme Court of the State of New York, who established the group in 1935. In conjunction with that tribute, a bronze plaque bearing Justice Cuff’s name and likeness is being installed the hospital’s Patient Access reception area.

Justice Cuff, who passed away in 1953, founded the group as an organization of men dedicated to volunteering their time and efforts to raise funds for the construction of a new hospital building and the advancement of medical and surgical care.