It’s time for the 2024 PRPLI Awards!
Each year, notable Long Islanders are honored by the Public Relations Professionals of Long Island (PRPLI) at a celebratory Awards Luncheon. The upcoming event, held May 15, 2024 from 11:30am to 2:30pm at The Westbury Manor in Westbury, will be a day to remember for honorees and their supporters.
The 2024 Honorees
- Jack Rettaliata Lifetime Achievement Award – Hilary Topper
- Long Island Achievement Award – Long Island Health Collaborative (LIHC)
- Howard M. Blankman PRPLI Mentor Award – Nina McCann
- Outstanding Media Award – James Madore
- Rising Star Award – Lola Rivera
- PR Campaign of the Year –
The Nomination Categories
Jack Rettaliata Lifetime Achievement Award
A lifetime achievement award presented to an industry leader who has helped shape the public relations landscape on Long Island.
Past winners include Mark Grossman, Valerie Zurblis, Laurie Bloom, Melissa Kane Connolly, Julie Gross Gelfand, Louise Cassano, Kevin Ryan, Terry Lynam, Jeffrey Morosoff, Don Miller, Robert Zimmerman, Steve Haweeli, Patrick Calabria, Lyn Dobrin, Reginald Tuggle, Hilary Hartung, Ed Grilli, Beverly Boyarsky, Dr. Adrienne O’Brien, Gary Lewi, Bert Cunningham, Michael DeLuise, Edith Ialeggio, Gene Turner, Hank Boerner, Katherine Heaviside, Howard Blankman, Richard Dunne, John Renyhart, William Gibney, Ed Smith, Jack Rettaliata.
Long Island Achievement Award
Presented to a Long Island leader who may or may not be a public relations practitioner, but who has effectively promoted Long Island through special events, issues, and other notable activities.
Past winners include Jaci Clement, George Gorman, Jr., Larry Levy, The Long Island Ducks, Lane Reinheimer, Discover Long Island, Randi Shubin Dresner, Michael Harrison, Cynthia Scott/Sandy Oliva, Adrienne Esposito, Eric Alexander, Teresa Rizzuto, Jim Morgo, Dr. Robert A Scott, Dr. Ann-Marie Scheidt, Marianne Garvin, Michael Watt, Richard Kruse, John Caracciolo, Mitchell Pally, the Long Island Wine Industry, Robert Lipper, Robert MacMillan, Jack Russell, Joe Gergela, Gene Bernstein, Monsignor Tom Hartman, Michael Davidson, Dr. James Shuart, James Larocca.
Howard M. Blankman PRPLI Mentor Award
Presented to a public relations practitioner who exemplifies the tenets of PRPLI – Advance, Learn, Share, Network – and is an inspiration and source of encouragement to others in the field.
Past winners include Janine Logan, Diana Bassett, Theresa Jacobellis, David Chauvin, Kali Chan, Flo Federman, Ellen Frisina, Sharyn O’Mara, Donna Rivera-Downey, Hilary Topper, Jeff Morosoff, Debra Scala-Giokas, Luis Portiansky, Daniel Kellachan, Mindy F. Wolfle, Louise Cassano, Laurie Bloom, John Hanc.
Outstanding Media Award
Presented to a media or journalism professional or organization that pays particular attention to Long Island issues and topics and understands the value of Long Island’s public relations industry.
Past winners include Carolyn James, Liza Burby, Jamie Herzlich, Adina Genn, Elizabeth Hashagen, Scott Brinton, Joe Dowd, David Winzelberg, Greg Cergol, Carolyn Gusoff, Kristine Wolf, Bernadette Starzee, Deborah Herman, Nada Marjanovich, Donna Vaughn, Ed Lowe, Carol Silva, Carl Corry, David North, Mike Graham, David Weiss, Christine Sheahan, John Kominicki, Lea Tyrrell, Frank Brinka, Vicki Metz, Irene Virag, Susan Murphy, Doug Geed.
PR Campaign of the Year
Presented to a campaign that demonstrates creativity, strategy, ethical standards and a positive outcome, in one of the following three categories: agency, in-house, or nonprofit.
Past winners include Corbett Public Relations, Karen Thomas, ZE Creative Communications – Bethpage Water District Public Awareness Campaign, Zimmerman/Edelson, Inc. (Agency), Lessing’s Hospitality Group (In-House), Camille Koorey/Judith White, CJ2 Communications; Julie Gelfand, Marcum LLP; Kathleen Caputi, Epoch 5; Theresa Statz-Smith, Long Island Alliance and Audrey Cohen, Epoch 5 Public Relations.
Rising Star Award
Presented to a public relations newcomer (3 years or less) who exhibits exceptional promise and professionalism.
Past winners include Anthony Lambroia, Dan Schaefer, Kevin Wilkinson, Ashley Fresca, Carley Weinstein, Peter Guaraldi, Diana Ziskin, Brett Spielberg, Kalli Dionysiou, Victoria Tringone, Sandra Choi, Melissa Rose, Theresa Weston, Kimberly Alarcon, Christopher Bastardi, Lee Peretz, Laura Nuzzolo O’Connell, Lisa Becker, Gina DeGregorio, Heather Boudreau, Flo Federman, Roseanne Modugno, Laurel Factor, Jennifer Cline, Dianne Baumert, Susan Shattuck.
Our 2023 Honorees
Jack Rettaliata Lifetime Achievement Award
Mark J. Grossman
Founder, Mark Grossman Public Relations
Mark Grossman is one of the most sought-after communications professionals on Long Island and in the Metro-New York City area.
He served as former-New York Governor Mario M. Cuomo’s Regional Director on Long Island, a time where he built strong ties to local governments, civic groups, educational institutions, organized labor, and the business community. He later served as a deputy town supervisor in the Town of Brookhaven, a municipality of 480,000 residents on Long Island, the State Labor Commissioner’s Long Island Regional Representative, and the field director at the Governor’s Office of Storm Recovery, a near two-year redeployment in the wake of Superstorm Sandy.
In the private sector, Mark founded and managed Grossman Strategies, now Mark Grossman Public Relations, an award-winning public and government relations firm whose clients have included major national and regional corporations including AT&T Wireless, Hess Corporation, The Home Depot, Pathmark Stores, Publishers Clearinghouse, Duke Energy, Solar City, and Invenergy. He’s also worked with a myriad of Long Island-based non-profits, labor groups, and trade associations.
Mark is an Adjunct Professor of Communication at Suffolk County Community College and Nassau Community College. At Nassau, he serves as the Communication Department Representative to the Adjunct Faculty Association. Mark formerly served on the faculty at New York Institute of Technology where he developed a special course in “Media and Politics.” He currently presents a corporate seminar he created, “Marketing to Government: The Art and Science of Political Salesmanship,” to a national audience.
Twice elected by overwhelming margins to the South Country School District Board of Education, Mark was a co-founder of the Long Island STEM Hub, is a board member of the Gestalt Center of Long Island, and has served on other non-profit boards and advisory councils. Mark was also a board member of the Mastic Beach Hebrew Center where he served as a teacher in their religious school.
A 2017 graduate of the highly acclaimed Stand-Up University at The Brokerage comedy club in Bellmore, NY, Mark can now be found on-stage at various comedy clubs and dive bars on Long Island performing his stand-up routine that centers on the challenges of online dating at an advanced age.
Mark earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts from School of Visual Arts in New York City. He then attended New York Institute of Technology in Old Westbury, NY as a Graduate Fellow on full scholarship, earning his Master’s Degree “With Distinction.”
Howard M. Blankman Outstanding Mentor Award
Janine Logan
Vice President of Communications and Population Health at Suburban Hospital Alliance of New York State
Janine Logan is Vice President of Communications and Population Health at the Suburban Hospital Alliance of New York State (SHANYS), an association that represents 50 hospitals and works to ensure that reasonable and rational health policy and legislation prevails. She is also Director of the Long Island Health Collaborative.
Janine manages all communications, media relations, and marketing efforts for the Suburban Hospital Alliance and its regional associations – the Nassau-Suffolk Hospital Council on Long Island and the Northern Metropolitan Hospital Association in the Hudson Valley.
She launched Alliance Health Communications, a marketing/communications service assisting not-for-profits and public health agencies, in 2021 as a service of the Suburban Hospital Alliance. Janine combines expertise in health communications and public health initiatives. She offers 25 plus years’ experience and has been recognized regionally and nationally for her evidence-based approach to designing, implementing, and evaluating health education and cause-related awareness campaigns that resonate with audiences of all levels. She is adept at fashioning a compelling narrative around data points, while drawing upon communication theories that are based in social science concepts.
Janine is an adjunct assistant professor of community health at Farmingdale State College and has spoken at numerous conferences and symposia about health communications and marketing, nonprofit advocacy, and how to effectively engage the media. She is a member of New York State’s Prevention Agenda committee and sits on a statewide Community Health Taskforce overseen by the Healthcare Association of New York State. Janine holds a master’s degree in health communications from Boston University, a Bachelor of Science degree in mass communications from St. John’s University and national accreditation from the Public Relations Society of America.
When not writing about health policy or community health, Janine writes about living on Long Island, raising children, and achieving balance in a hectic world on her blog, FirstNarrative.com.
Long Island Achievement Award
Jaci Clement
Chief Executive Officer, The Fair Media Council
Jaci Clement earned her first byline in a daily paper when she was in the fourth grade. She’s worked in news and with news ever since. Now, she is considered one of the country’s most influential media scholars.
As CEO and Executive Director of the Fair Media Council, Jaci is noted for her visionary leadership of the 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, which is now a prominent U.S. platform for thought leadership in news and media. The Fair Media Council advocates for quality news and works to create a media-savvy society. She also hosts the award-winning podcast, FMC Fast Chat. A native of Youngstown, Ohio, she came to Long Island to attend Hofstra University, where she earned a B.A. in communications and journalism. Today she lives on the North Shore, is owned by a large dog, and drives a small car.
Outstanding Media Award
Carolyn James
Editor and Publisher of the Amityville Record, Babylon Beacon, and Massapequa Post
Carolyn James is editor and publisher of three weekly newspapers, the Amityville Record, Babylon Beacon and Massapequa Post.
She and her husband purchased the Post and Record papers in 1991 and the Babylon Beacon in1999.
Prior to that, Carolyn worked as an editor and reporter for the Babylon Beacon under the founding owners Ed and Jane Wolfe of Babylon. She also worked for weekly newspapers covering Nassau, Suffolk and Queens and freelanced for the New York Times Long Island section. She is a member and former regional director for SPJ and past president of the Press Club of Long Island. She currently serves as New York State FOI Chair for SPJ.
She also teaches journalism as an instructor at Hofstra University and is a member of the New York Press Association.
She and her husband have five children, eight grandchildren and live in Bay Shore.
PR Campaign of the Year
Bill Corbett, Corbett Public Relations
Paws of War Campaign
In 2022, Paws of War played an integral role in providing aid to Ukranian citizens and refugees when military conflict first broke out. The organization had dispatched volunteers to the Romanian border of Ukraine to set up an emergency relief shelter to aid refugees and their pets. The organization also teamed up with Alamal Animal Rescue to provide refugees with shelter, food, medical assistance and basic necessities, dog and cat transport crates, temporary shelters, food and treats. As time went on, Paws of War’s volunteer rescue team soon moved into the frontlines of Ukraine to go in and rescue hundreds of animals that were left behind. They were able to rescue these animals and return them to safety, some of them even finding new homes here on Long Island. Paws of War is a 501 © (3) nonprofit organization that provides critical support, assistance and a wide range of programs to active, retired and disabled military members. Paws of War was established in 2014 with the mission to support Veterans who were struggling with PTSD and TBI illnesses. This was accomplished by placing rescued pups that were trained as service dogs with Veterans in need; hence their motto, “Helping Both Ends Of The Leash”. Through the years, the Paws of War initiatives have grown and evolved, now meeting the needs of all our service men and women. They have five main programs including their War-Torn Pups and Cats Program, Veterinarian Mobile Clinic, Training-Pet Therapy, Animal Rescue and Helping Heroes Program.
The goal of the campaign was to secure media coverage for Paws of War, drive traffic to the organization’s website, and raise funds to support efforts and initiatives in Ukraine. This campaign garnered media attention around the region and was covered by WPIX 11 News, FOX 5 NY, News 12 Long Island and local the local Patch.
Through this campaign, Corbett PR strengthened the Paws of War brand in the region and nationally. Web traffic spiked and donations were received to support Paws of War and their initiatives to support Ukrainian refugees and their pets.
Rising Star Award
Anthony Lambroia
Account Executive at Corbett Public Relations
Anthony Lambroia is an Account Executive for Corbett Public Relations, Long Island’s leading PR and personal branding firm. During his year and a half with the company, Lambroia has successfully secured over 200 media placements for his clients in over five different markets. As an account executive, he serves as the promoter and protector of his clients’ brands and businesses. Having developed strong relationships with journalists and media professionals, Lambroia has enhanced his client’s brands by positioning company executives as leaders in their respective industries, making them go-to experts for media outlets and further strengthening the company’s reputation.
In addition to his work at Corbett Public Relations, Anthony is also pursuing a Master’s degree in Public Relations at Hofstra University. He is passionate about learning and staying up to date with the latest trends and best practices in the field, and his dedication to his studies has earned him high praise from his professors.
Lambroia attended The University of Scranton, where he excelled both academically and athletically. He was a standout athlete, serving as the varsity catcher on the baseball team for four years. Here, Lambroia helped lead them to the program’s first-ever conference championship and NCAA tournament appearance. Lambroia was also a member of Lambda Pi Eta, Communications Honor Society.
Outside of work and school, Anthony is also an accomplished martial artist and instructor at Tiger Schulmann’s Mixed Martial Arts.