Old Bethpage resident honored by Town for cancer initiatives

BY GARY SIMEONE

Ten years ago, Jennifer Biren, a resident of Old Bethpage, noticed there wasn’t a lot of support or funding for the Plainview-Old Bethpage Relay for Life initiative. The initiative which partners with the American Cancer Society, helps communities fight cancer through donations, fundraisers and other activities.

“I saw at the time that there wasn’t a lot of support and that made me upset enough that I wanted to take over the event,” said Biren.

She ended up becoming the Volunteer Event Chair for the Relay for Life, and has helped it to become one of the more profitable endeavors for the American Cancer Society.

“Through the years we’ve done different fundraisers for the schools and gotten the community involved on multiple levels through various initiatives. The first year I took over we raised $80,000 for cancer research and haven’t gone under $60,000 any year since.”

Biren, like many other people, has been effected by cancer on a personal level. Her father passed away from the disease several years ago and her mom was recently diagnosed with kidney cancer.

“The disease has definitely hit me close to home and the more we have money for research and cancer-fighting treatments, the quicker we’ll be able to eradicate this terrible disease,” said Biren.

The 49 year-old Biren was recognized by the Town of Oyster Bay Board on July 18th, for her charitable efforts on behalf of Relay for Life, as well as for her remarkable community service work.

Oyster Bay Supervisor, Joseph Saladino, presented her with a citation and offered kind words for her charitable efforts in the community.

“Along with her team, Jennifer helped raise hundreds of thousands of dollars for the American Cancer Society and has spearheaded several creative cancer-related fundraising initiatives,” said Saladino. “She is constantly looking for ways to volunteer her time to help those in need every single day to make a true difference. She is an incredible woman who does amazing work in our community.”