Community
Below is a list of community groups we feel everyone should know about! We all pitch in to make Sag Harbor and environs the great and unique place it is, and we salute the hard work of all these organizations.
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Bay Street Theatre and Sag Harbor Center for the Arts
Bay Street is a professional not-for-profit theatre where Mainstage productions of new and classic plays are presented June - August. Bay Street also offers special performances, comedy, music, workshops of new theatrical ventures, and various educational programs which serve our community year round. Bay Street is looking for volunteers who are friendly and outgoing. They are the theatre’s ambassadors and often the face the public encounters most often when attending the various performances. In return, the volunteers are able to see the Mainstage productions for free as well as the various other offerings subject to availability. Contact: Bay Street’s volunteer page |
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Canio’s Cultural Cafe
Housed within Canio’s Books at 290 Main St., the Cultural Café promotes community interest in literature, arts, culture and current events through lectures, workshops, and seminars that include a diversity of writers, artists, educators, and community members who might not otherwise be heard. Its focus is on the intersection of literature, art, nature, spirituality, inclusiveness and sustainability. Call 631-725-4926 or write info@caniosbooks.com |
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Christ Episcopal Church
Established in 1845, this was the first Episcopal parish east of the Shinnecock Canal. The present church, built in 1883, has two Tiffany stained-glass windows which were added to the sanctuary in 1917. Around the same time, the church’s Parish House became the largest gathering place in Sag Harbor. Later, it served as a canteen during World War II, and in the 1960s as a movie theater. It is intentionally a community of diversity and historic activity offering a range of cultural and artistic programming. Rev. Karen Campbell, info@christchurchshny.org |
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Dark Sky Society
The goal of the Dark Sky Society Is to protect the night sky and our nocturnal environment by using night lighting sensibly. Volunteers are needed to contact local officials to enforce local lighting laws. Susan Harder, Founder, East Hampton and NYC. Contact: Darksky.society@gmail.com |
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Defend H2O
Defend H2O was formed in June, 2014 to protect and restore the environmental quality of groundwater, surface waters, wetlands and beaches on and around Long Island. The organization’s goals are achieved by scientific analysis, education, participation in the regulatory and legislative review of projects, programs and other actions that affect water quality and habitat values. Contact: Kevin McAllister mac.waterwarrior@icloud.com |
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East End Hospice
The East End Hospice is always in need of volunteers. It provides home health care, with short term hospital stay when needed, for the people of the Hamptons and surrounding Long Island towns. Contact: Faith Tiner, 631-288-8400 or write info@eeh.org |
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Eastville Community Historical Society of Sag Harbor
The Eastville Community Historical Society’s mission is to collect and disseminate information about the history of the working-class community of Eastville, and the development and growth of the communities East of Eastville. The Eastville Society needs volunteers to “baby sit” our twice yearly exhibitions, answer telephones, and man the small gift shop weekends only from May 30 to October 1, 2:00 to 4:00 P.M. Saturdays and Sundays. Heritage House - 139 Hampton Street Contact: Telephone: 725-4711; P.O. Box 2036, Sag Harbor, NY 11963 |
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Edible East End
Edible East End looks at ways to encourage people to support the sustainable and artisanal foods and goods produced right here on the East End. Their website list events, has fascinating articles (both historical and contemporary), and even a wonderful GUIDE to available sources of these tastier, more sustainable, more local sources! Sign up for their free online newsletter here! |
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First Presbyterian (Old Whalers’) Church
Designed by architect Minard Lafever, the “Old Whalers’ Church” was built in 1844 when 63 whaling ships called Sag Harbor home port. The structure, located at 44 Union St., combines elements of both the Egyptian Revival and Greek Revival styles, was originally topped by a magnificent 185-foot steeple, which crashed to the ground during the hurricane of 1938. In 1994 the church was named a National Historic Landmark. The church provides a venue for many artistic, cultural and community events throughout the year, including AA and other meetings. Call 631-725-0894 for more information. |
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Friends of the Long Pond Greenbelt
Friends of the Long Pond Greenbelt is an all-volunteer environmental organization established in 1997 to promote the preservation, stewardship and public appreciation of the spectacular Long Pond Greenbelt. Volunteers needed for all aspects of organization: habitat restoration, web and print publications, educational projects, trail and roadside clean-ups, community outreach, events planning. What you do, we need! Contact: Sandra Ferguson, President, 631-537-3752 greenbeltnews@aol.com |
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Fighting Chance
Fighting Chance is the first free-of-charge cancer counseling and resource center of its kind established on the East End of Long Island, New York. We are independent from any hospital and funded solely by charitable contributions, providing patients and their caregivers a better chance- a fighting chance - to beat cancer by helping them to take informed action. Free access to hard hard-to-find resources and professional counseling is available from the time of diagnosis through treatment and survivorship. Contact: 631-725-4646 |
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Group for the East End
Group for the East End protects and restores eastern Long Island’s environment through education, citizen action and professional advocacy. We inspire people to embrace a conservation ethic. Volunteers needed for habitat restoration and osprey platform maintenance! Contact: Kate Schertel for more information at 631-537-1400, ext. 208 |
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Habitat for Humanity
Habitat for Humanity has built houses for refugees and others in our neighborhoods. For information on participating in their organization, please Contact: volunteer@habitatsuffolk.org |
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John Jermain Memorial Library
The John Jermain Memorial Library provides a full range of library services to the residents of the Sag Harbor School District, including research and reference assistance; access to print, non-print, digital and archival materials; free internet access and public computers; a wide range of programming for children and adults including computer classes, jobsearch workshops, writing workshops, and story times. The library is currently looking for volunteers to help with our weekly English conversation classes for adults. Additionally, in cooperation with Literacy Suffolk, the library is looking for volunteers willing to complete literacy training to work one-on-one with a literacy and/or ESL student at John Jermain. Contact: Catherine Creedon, Director 631.725.0049 x23 |
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Ladies Village Improvement Society (LVIS)
The Ladies Village Improvement Society is an organization dedicated to maintaining the aesthetic and historic integrity of Sag Harbor Village. The LVIS invites you to join in beautifying Sag Harbor. Contact: Esther Ricker, 631-899-3811 |
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Ladles of Love
A group supporting all the food pantries of Eastern Long Island is Ladles of Love, spearheading efforts to make sure that pantries remain stocked through the spring. Contact: 631-267-3312 or email them at info@ladlesoflove.com |
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Founded by the late Harry Chapin, Long Island Cares brings together all available resources for the benefit of the hungry and food insecure on Long Island and, to the best of our ability, provides for the humanitarian needs of our community. Our goals are to improve food security for families, sponsor programs that help families achieve self-sufficiency, and educate the general public about the causes and consequences of hunger on Long Island. Our vision is “A Hunger Free Long Island”.
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Long Island Trail Lovers’ Coalition
Adding to the natural beauty of our area, including the Long Pond Greenbelt, is the Long Island Trail Lovers’ Coalition. Their object is to preserve trails for experiencing the beauty of Long Island by foot. You can go to their website and get lots of information on where to hike, and you may also visit Hiking Long Island, which also promotes the preservation of our wild places for the enjoyment of all, and provides hiking maps. Contact: Ken Kindler |
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The Long Island Nature Organization was established in 2012 to support education and research about the natural history of Long Island.
Projects include: • creating a web-based clearing house for information about Long Island’s flora and fauna to be shared by Long Island naturalists, both professional and amateur • publishing guides to Long Island’s natural world • promoting Long Island nature studies by sponsoring specific research projects • hosting an annual conference devoted to Long Island Natural History. Contact: mike@mikebottini.com |
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Mashashimuet Park was a gift from Mrs. Russell Sage in 1910 to provide healthy and wholesome recreation for the youth and young people of Sag Harbor, especially those working in the factories. Upon her death, the Park was deeded to the Park & Recreation Association of Sag Harbor, NY, Inc. Mashashimuet Park is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization.
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The Nature Conservancy
This international organization is very active on Long Island. They sponsor programs to increase funding for preserving land, working to save the Pine Barrens, the Piping Plovers, and the health of the Long Island Sound, and also run the beautiful Mashomack Preserve on Shelter Island. Contact their website for volunteer opportunities! |
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Peconic Baykeeper
We work to protect and sustain the South Shore and Peconic bays of Long Island. We accomplish this by working to improve water quality and productivity in these ecosystems, emphasizing the intrinsic connection between our bays and our communities. As a public charity, we must operate strategically on a modest budget. Whether coming to our aid in fundraising, public education, or advocacy campaigns, volunteers are a crucial part of our overall success. Contact: 631-653-4804 or info@peconicbaykeeper.org |
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OLA (Organización Latino-Americana) was founded in 2002 as a nonprofit agency committed to promoting social, economic, cultural, and educational development within Long Island’s East End Latino and Hispanic communities.
OLA (Organización Latino-Americana) fue fundada en el 2002 como una organización sin ánimo de lucro comprometida a promover el desarrollo social, económico, cultural y educacional de las comunidades Latina e Hispana del Este de Long Island. OLA website |
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Peconic Community Council/Maureen's Haven
The Peconic Community Council is a coalition of organizations and individuals dedicated to the promotion and preservation of the highest level of health and human services for all people in Eastern Suffolk County, of Long Island New York. It includes Maureen's Haven. The goal of Maureen's Haven is to provide safe, warm temporary housing to those who are homeless from November through April. Transportation to and from the many houses of worship is included in the services provided. Dinner, breakfast, and encouraging support are provided by volunteers. Contact: Maureen's Haven Director Denis Yuen, 631-727-7973 |
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The Peconic Land Trust
A 501 (c)(3) nonprofit organization, the Peconic Land Trust was established in 1983 by John v.H. Halsey and a small group of local residents to ensure the protection of Long island’s working farms, natural lands, and heritage. Since its inception, the Trust has worked diligently with landowners, communities, and municipalities to protect more than 9,500 acres of land, conserving more working farms on Long Island than any other private conservation organization, and securing millions of dollars from the public and private sector for land protection. Contact: their volunteer website, or call 631-283-3195 |
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Quiet Skies Coalition
The Quiet Skies Coalition (QSC) is comprised of citizen volunteers, based in East Hampton, NY, whose collective experience as residents neighboring the East Hampton airport compelled us to action, to reduce or eliminate the noise and air pollution this facility imposes on surrounding communities. Contact: quietskies@optimum.net |
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Sag Harbor CAC (Citizens Advisory Committee)
The CAC is a group of Sag Harbor-area residents appointed by the Southampton Town Board to advise the Board on issues related to our community. Guest speakers are often featured at the meetings, which are open to the public. Whether you are a year-round resident, or here for the summer, this is your chance to help shape the place where you live. Contact: Robert Malafronte |
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Sag Harbor Coalition
The Sag Harbor Community Coalition seeks to prevent alcohol, tobacco and drug use by kids. They are a group of parents, students, police, health professionals and other concerned members of the community who have come together to engage everyone to help reduce alcohol and other drug use by Sag Harbor kids and to encourage healthy alternatives. Contact: sagharborcoalition@gmail.com |
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Sag Harbor Community Food Pantry
The Sag Harbor Community Food Pantry provides food for needy families in our area at no cost. The Food Pantry is dedicated to making a difference with their motto “Neighbors Helping Neighbors.” Volunteers are needed to collect, organize, and distribute food that is received, and the Food Pantry thanks everyone for their support this past year. Contact: Barbara Wolfram, 631-725-4237 |
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Sag Harbor Custom House and SPLIA
The Sag Harbor Custom House is one of three historic houses owned and interpreted by the Society for the Preservation of Long Island Antiquities (SPLIA). Open seasonally for guided tours, the house and furnishings portray the life and work of Henry Packer Deering, Sag Harbor’s first United States Custom Master, who occupied the house with his family from 1794 until his death in 1822. Contact: 631-692-4664 |
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Sag Harbor Fire Department
The oldest volunteer Fire Department in New York State! Volunteering with the Sag Harbor Fire Department saves lives and property and is one of the noblest concerns with which you can concern yourself. Contact: Thomas Gardella, or 631-725-0252 |
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Sag Harbor Historical Society
The mission of the Sag Harbor Historical Society (SHHS) is to promote and encourage public education and appreciation of Sag Harbor history, to work for the preservation of historic buildings and sites, and to foster the preservation of the historic character of the village. Looking for historical information about your house, your family, an old Sag Harbor business? We welcome volunteers to serve as docents at the Annie Cooper Boyd house and the Little Historic Jail house during the summer. Sign up now for the best time slots. There is always a need for someone to help with indexing of both old family photographs and family documents, and is a wonderful opportunity to learn about your village. Contact: Call 631-725-5092 or email info@sagharborhistorical.org |
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Sag Harbor Tree Fund
The history of Sag Harbor can be seen in its waterfront, its houses and its urban forest. There are trees in Sag Harbor that are older than its houses by many generations. The Sag Harbor Tree Fund is a volunteer group devoted to stewarding the history and future of Sag Harbor’s street tree stock, an effort with environmental, economic, historic, and aesthetic implications. Since 1994, we have planted over 320 commemorative and celebratory trees and cared for them for three years, when they come under the care of the village. Membership on the committee is an opportunity to learn about all the variety of trees on village streets, to visit local nurseries, learn how to make tree selections, and how to plant and care for new trees. Contact: Adrienne Harris |
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Sag Harbor Volunteer Ambulance Corps
The Sag Harbor Volunteer Ambulance provides Emergency Medical Service for the community. Join to better serve the community. Contact: Ed Downes, 631-725-0826 |
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Sag Harbor Whaling and Historical Museum
The mission of the Sag Harbor Whaling and Historical Museum is to collect, preserve, display and interpret the history of our village and surrounding locales, and to place this within the broader context of the region’s history. Our Board of Trustees are all volunteers, and we depend upon countless individuals throughout the year to help maintain the building and grounds, create and staff events, and provide educational programming. We collaborate with other non-profit, educational organizations in delivering our programs. Contact: Greg Therriault, 631-725-0770 |
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Sag Harbor Youth Committee and Sag Harbor for Kids
The Sag Harbor Youth Committee is dedicated to publicizing, facilitating and planning constructive and enlightening activities to enrich, entertain and educate youth in Sag Harbor. The Youth Committee needs volunteers to help update the “Sag Harbor for Kids” brochure and fundraise. Contact: 631-725-1159 or write Nada Barry |
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Save Sag Harbor
Save Sag Harbor™ was started as a community-based effort to keep Sag Harbor from becoming overrun by big chain stores, and to make sure that family-and locally-owned businesses can continue to thrive here. We want to protect the sustainability of Sag Harbor's many small stores and the social, cultural, and environmental aesthetics of the Village. Their proprietors are our friends and neighbors, and if they are pressured to close their doors, the character, and in fact the "brandable" nature of our village, will change irrevocably. This realization has evolved into the larger goal of maintaining the scale and quality of life in and around the village in both commercial and residential terms. Save Sag Harbor's first public meeting was held on July 15th, 2007. Contact: info@savesagharbor.com |
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Slow Food East End
We are a chapter of SLOW FOOD USA and fortunate to be in an area where Slow Food principles are lived by our neighbors: farms, dairies, wineries, cheesemakers, artisanal food producers, fishers, beekeepers and more. Contact: volunteers@slowfoodeastend.org |
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SpokesPeople (of Eastern Long Island)
SPOKESPEOPLE’S Mission Statement: “To enhance the quality of life on Eastern Long Island by promoting and facilitating road and trail cycling among citizens of all ages and all physical abilities for both recreation and transportation.” Our goals are to improve cycling routes, develop bike paths and improve bike trails, to educate cyclists and motorists to coexist safely, and to increase the numbers of bicycle riders on the East End. Volunteers are needed for assistance with our events (mountain bike festival, kid’s obstacle courses, cycling instruction programs, future community bike rides, trails maintenance in East Hampton and Southampton trails systems), development of a bike-train to school program, as well as with organizational tasks (secretarial, web site, fundraising, and press releases). Contact: Dennis Loebs, (631) 613-6100 |
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The Old Burying Ground Committee
The Old Burying Ground Committee is a volunteer group devoted to the care and preservation of the oldest cemetery in Sag Harbor. Through the efforts of one of Sag Harbor’s pre-eminent historians, Dorothy Zaykowsky, and her committees (including Susan Rowland, Andrea Meyers, Adrienne Harris, Oliver Peterson, Barbara Schwartz and others) going back nearly 15 years, this group has documented all the graves in the Old Burying Ground. Currently partnering with the John Jermain Library to get online records and photos of the graves and the inscriptions, this committee would love to have volunteers interested in preservation, local history, and education. The OBG is an amazing site for learning about history, local history, social life, the aesthetics of tombstone carving, the impact of the whaling world, war, early deaths for women and children, segregation and slavery. Contact: oldburyinggroundcommittee@gmail.com |
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The Retreat
The Retreat is a 501(c)(3), not-forprofit, domestic violence organization with offices based in East Hampton and Riverhead, NY. The Retreat is the only full service (with safe housing) domestic violence organization serving the five East End townships of Long Island. Services and programs include a 24-hour emergency hotline, legal advocacy/crisis response, an 18- bed residential shelter, individual and group counseling, as well as in-school and community-based educational programs. The Retreat also has an anti-violence, re-education program for batterers of family violence. Volunteers from the community are welcome and appreciated. Contact: Kathy Schad, Office Administrator & Volunteer Coordinator, 13 Goodfriend Drive, East Hampton, NY 11937. Main Number: (631).329.4398, ext 100 and fax (631).329.2944 |
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Youth Advocacy and Resource Development or Y.A.R.D.
Y.A.R.D. is a non-profit recreational program providing free activities to teens in the Sag Harbor area. Programs include the Safe Summer Beach Program, three evenings a week at Long Beach, for 10 weeks during the summer, the Community Room after-school program, bus trips during school holidays and many special teen events throughout the year. Volunteers welcome. Parents and teens are invited to steer the program by joining the Y.A.R.D. Board or Y.A.R.D.’s Youth Advisory Board. Contact: Debbie Skinner 631-725-5302, ext. 750 |
...and then there are our fellow creatures!
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ARF (Animal Rescue Fund of the Hamptons)
ARF welcomes donations of many kinds, from monetary donations to cat toys and dog agility equipment. There is a wish list on their website, or you may call them at 537-0400. Volunteers walk the dogs they house, and come play with the kittens and cats to maintain their socialization. Call 631-537-0400 or email info@arfhamptons.org |
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East Hampton Group for Wildlife
In East Hampton, the East Hampton Group for Wildlife "promotes respect for all species of wildlife and explores humane solutions to human-wildlife conflicts," and "dedicated to helping East Hampton become a national leader in humane wildlife population control." Contact: 631-668-3384 |
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Southampton Animal Shelter Foundation
The mission of the Southampton Animal Shelter Foundation is to provide for the welfare of animals and reduce the number of homeless pets. The Shelter is located in Red Creek Park, 102 Old Riverhead Road in Southampton. Contact: 631-728-PETS or email info@sasfinc.org |
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Wildlife Rescue Center of the Hamptons
The Evelyn Alexander Wildlife Rescue Center of the Hamptons' goal is "to preserve and protect the region's native wildlife by providing rehabilitation services and public education concerning the factors that threaten its abundance and diversity." HOTLINE: 631-728-9453 or call 631-728-4200. Send an email by clicking HERE. |
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Love being outdoors? There are wildlife refuges in our area that always need volunteers to clean trails, animal cages, and more.
The Morton National Wildlife Refuge, on Noyac Rd, may be contacted at 631-286-0485. Further afield is the Quogue Wildlife Refuge, at 631-653-4771. |
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The Riverhead Foundation for Marine Research has an excellent marine rescue program for seals, turtles, and other sea creatures. You can "adopt" a rescued marine creature via their website!
Contact: volunteers@riverheadfoundation.org |