Sag Harbor Partnership To Honor Diane Schiavoni

Diane Schiavoni, one of Sag Harbor’s most dedicated volunteers, will be awarded the 2021 Sag Harbor Partnership’s Community Service Award in honor of her outstanding commitment to the pressing needs of the village.

Mrs. Schiavoni has thrown her support behind a number of community fundraising efforts, most recently working to raise more than $51,000 for the restoration of the historic grandstand in Mashashimuet Park. She could be found every Saturday morning this past summer and early autumn, soliciting donations from a table she set up in front of Schiavoni’s Market. She has also lent her support to fundraising efforts to restore the Civil War Monument trough and iron fencing, and the lanterns on Main Street.

Her decades-long roster of volunteer positions include Girl Scout leader, president/treasurer of Ladies Village Improvement Society for 25 years, president/treasurer of the Sag Harbor Historical Society, member/treasurer of Friends of the John Jermain Memorial Library for 30 years, member of Columbiettes, the women’s association at St. Andrew Catholic Church for 30 years, Bay Street Theater volunteer for 20 years and member of the Village’s Board of Historical Preservation and Architectural Review for eight years.

Mrs. Schiavoni and her husband, Gabe, were both raised in Sag Harbor and have lived in the village their entire lives. For more than 35 years, Mrs. Schiavoni was the bookkeeper for the John Jermain Memorial Library as well as for other local organizations.

The Sag Harbor Partnership annually recognizes and honors a member of the community. The presentation of this year’s Community Service Award to Mrs. Schiavoni will take place on Thursday, October 21, at 5 p.m. Out of an abundance of caution to prevent COVID-19 transmission, the invitation-only event will be held outdoors at the home of Sag Harbor Partnership’s executive director, John Shaka (only two houses down from where the honoree grew up) at 97 Hampton Street. Light refreshments will be served.

The partnership is committed to preserving the natural, historic, and built environments of Sag Harbor; supporting its cultural life; and addressing social concerns. It is also dedicated to maintaining the unique character of Main Street with its locally owned small businesses. Through community engagement and fundraising activities, it assists projects and organizations whose work furthers its stated purposes. By partnering with local government, the private sector, and concerned citizens, it strives to protect and enhance Sag Harbor for future generations.

Past recipients of the Community Service award include: Evelyn Ramunno, executive director of the Sag Harbor Food Pantry; April Gornik, artist and community organizer; Ed Hollander, landscape architect; Nada Barry, Wharf Shop owner; and Gregory Ferraris, CPA and former Sag Harbor Village mayor and planning board chairman.