Long Island Writer's Guild Honors Bellmore Writer

Winning an award is often an event included in a person's memoirs. Ironically, for long-time Bellmore resident Florence Gatto, writing her memoirs - as well as helping others do so - is a major reason she recently received an award. Gatto is this year's recipient of the Diamond Leader Award from the Long Island Writers' Guild (LIWG).

This annual award recognizes an LIWG member who has been an exceptional leader and role model within the organization, as well as providing outreach to the Long Island community on its behalf.  

"I was very excited and honored to be recognized by the Long Island Writers' Guild for some of the things I do," Gatto said. "It's really a nice group."  

The not-for-profit LIWG is a writing organization established and dedicated to fostering the development of its members and their talents. Found in 1993, LIWG strives to cultivate literary excellence among Long Island writers by providing a supportive and educational environment, giving published and non-published writers the opportunity to present their works-in-progress, receive and provide critiquing, and explore publishing opportunities. The organization also sponsors free, informal writing workshops. 

A member of LIWG for 16 of its 17 years in existence, Gatto currently serving on its board of directors as Education Director. Together with fellow member Beverly Koch of Merrick, Gatto hosts ongoing memoir-writing workshops titled Saving your Memoirs in Poetry and Prose at libraries in Bellmore, Merrick, East Meadow and Commack.

"The memoir class Florence co-hosts is amazing," said fellow Guild member Joan Behan-Duncan. "People bring things they write, and we gently critique them," Gatto explained, adding that the items are not limited to memoirs, but "can be anything".

Gatto's first book, "The Scent of Jasmine: Vignettes from a Sicilian Heritage" is a memoir of her Italian heritage and upbringing, Behan-Duncan recounted.  Gatto is also a columnist for the "Golden Lion," the Order of the Sons of Italy in America New York newspaper. Her work also has been featured in "Newsday," "The St. John's Alumni News," "Bellmore Life" and "Sweet Lemons Writing with a Sicilian Accent," as well as in several anthologies. She is the recipient of several awards, including L'Esperienza Magazine Star Award, (2009); an Arba Cicula Grant, as well as two previous LIWG Diamond Leadership Awards (2007-2008) and LIWG's Lifetime Achievement Award (2004). 

Gatto is a retired New York City bilingual educational evaluator, ESL teacher and Adult Education Spanish teacher.  She was honored with a Fulbright Grant to study in Perugia, Italy and a New York State Teacher Study Grant in Siena, Italy.

For more information about upcoming workshops, including those being held in at the Merrick Library, visit http://www.liwritersguild.org/.