Woman of the Year Award

TERRI CARR MURAN came to New York at the age of 26. A native of Yorkshire, England, Terri stared singing at an early age and was entered into many British music festivals. She danced competitively and was a lead actress in the Normanton Operatic Society playing lead roles in Bless the Bride and The Quaker Girl. Her first work experience, at the age of 17, was with a Theater in Education Team which toured the Northern part of England in which she took the lead role in The Roses of Eyam and Oh! What a Lovely War. During her college gap year, Terri was hired by British Caledonian and British Airways to fly the world; her fluency in Spanish placed her in First Class. Soon after, Terri was trained as a graphic designer and PR person for British Airways, appearing in British TV commercials and advertisements. In New York, she studied at Parson's School of Design. In 2000 she co-founded York Design, a marketing/PR company, and has since developed a private consultancy firm. As an advisory board member to the Gold Coast International Film Festival, Terri participated at every level and was instrumental in organizing the Isabella Rosellini event at NYIT Auditorium on Broadway, as well as the film animation event with Bill Plympton at the NYIT de Seversky Mansion. Philanthropic work is extremely important to Terri; she currently sits on the board of Save the Children, North Shore East Norwich Rotary as well as Kids and Cars. Terri is married and has three wonderful boys.  

Rising Star Award

ALEXA RAY JOEL is a singer/songwriter/multi-dimensional performer and is the daughter of singer Billy Joel and supermodel/actress Christie Brinkley. As an independent artist, Joel is known for creating music in a variety of genres. Her most recent single, “Notice Me”, released on May 24, 2010, was listed as a “Hit-Bound song” on the Sirius XM Hits 1 satellite radio channel in August, 2010. Newsday described the single as having a “carefree braininess” and “bouncy guitar riffs and an instantly hummable chorus” that made Joel’s work “sound like Regina Spektor crossed with Katy Perry.” Joel also appears in the acclaimed Billy Joel documentary, The Last Play At Shea, which opened October 21, 2010 nationwide.

Alexa is working on honing her acting chops and is currently enrolled in the famed Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute studying acting and musical theatre under the direction of Anna Strasberg. She is making her voiceover debut in an episode for hit comedy, Family Guy this winter. In addition to her music and new endeavor as an actress, writing is another natural outlet for this multi-talented artist. In 2010, Joel was chosen the new spokeswoman for Prell Shampoo, with Joel’s songs to serve as background for the commercial. ABC News' 20/20 interviewed Joel about “moving out of [the] shadows” of her “two megastar parents,” and about recovery from her December 2009 crisis with depression.

Joel has appeared and performed on national TV since 2006 including The Today Show, Ron and Fez Show on XM Satellite Radio, Good Day New York, Jimmy Kimmel Live, The Wendy Williams Show, ABC’s 20/20, Good Morning America, Rosie Radio, LX New York, The Real Housewives Of New Jersey, Access Hollywood, E.T. and Extra.  

Artist of Distinction

BILL PLYMPTON is considered the King of Indie Animation and is the only person to hand draw an entire animated feature film.

Born and raised in Portland, Oregon, he graduated from Portland State University in Graphic Design. Bill Plympton moved to New York City in 1968. He began his career creating cartoons for publications such as The New York Times, National Lampoon, Playboy and Screw.

In 1987 he was nominated for an Oscar^® for his animated short Your Face. In 2005, Bill received another Oscar^® nomination, this time for a short film Guard Dog. Push Comes to Shove, another short film, won the prestigious Cannes 1991 Palme d’Or. After producing many shorts that appeared on MTV and Spike and Mike’s, he turned his talent to feature films. Since 1991 he’s made 9 feature films; 6 of them – The Tune, Mondo Plympton, I Married A Strange Person, Mutant Aliens, Hair High and Idiots and Angels – are all animated features.  

Gold Coast International Film Festival Pioneer

EILEEN AND ALAN SARROFF have been supporters of the Great Neck Arts Center’s film series since its inception. After watching the Furman Film Series expand and grow, they were thrilled to take part in the Great Neck Arts Center’s inaugural Gold Coast International Film Festival in 2011.

Eileen is a board member of the Great Neck Arts Center and a member of The Lake Success Parks Commission. She graduated from Stony Brook University with a BA in English and later worked in Employee Benefits and Human Resources at Philip Morris, Inc. Eileen volunteered in the Great Neck Public School libraries for eleven years and served on Shared Decision Making committees of the Great Neck public schools. Eileen is a film enthusiast. She also enjoys gardening and is a participant of Project Feederwatch at Cornell Lab of Ornithology.

Alan began working for the specialist firm H.L. Goldberg & Co. at age sixteen while still attending Forest Hills High School. In 1971 he became the youngest member of the New York Stock Exchange while working for Sandford C. Bernstein & Co. Alan founded his own company in 1978, where he continues to work today. He takes joy in mentoring young professionals and can be spotted on either the basketball courts or football fields of Nassau County most months of the year.

Together, Eileen and Alan have resided in Great Neck for 28 years. They have two children: Andy, a PhD student in the Computer Science Department at Dartmouth College; and Amanda, a graduate of The Courtauld Institute of Art in London. The Sarroffs remain committed to supporting not-for profit arts initiatives and enriching cultural life on Long Island.   

Special Presentation

J. LEONARD SAMANSKY, became Mayor of the Village of Saddle Rock in 1991, after having served as a Trustee and earlier as a member of the Board of Zoning and Appeals as well as practicing law. As mayor, Leonard Samansky involved himself in activities and projects that not only enhanced his Village and which went far beyond Saddle Rock, including the Xeriscape park, the Great Neck Library, Nassau County, committees to benefit the Town of North Hempstead, Kingsbrook Medical Jewish Medical Center and Temple Israel, and the Saddle Rock 9-11 Memorial Bridge, among others. He served three terms as President of the Great Neck Village Officials Association; and he was President of the Nassau County Village Officials Association. Mayor Samansky was a founding member of the Great Neck Arts Center, which he cared deeply and worked diligently to help develop, serving on the Board of Directors from its inception. He was honored with the Arts Center’s “Inspiration Award”, given to those public officials whose dedication to the enrichment of the communities they serve inspire others to do the same. He and his wife Shirley have four children and six grandchildren. His recent death is a loss to all those who sought a champion for a good cause.

Performances

Alexa Ray Joel

The Alessi Brothers

Ursula Parker

Kate Steinberg

For reservations contact Ronni Berger

at 516.829.2570,

via e-mail at ronni@greatneckart.org,

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