(Editor's Note: Judi Lombardi is Executive Secretary to the Hicksville Chamber of Commerce.)

To name an honoree for the Hicksville Chamber of Commerce's Businessperson of the Year Award is not an easy task. He or she must be an active member of the Hicksville Chamber, an owner or manager of a business in our community and last, but not least, he or she must have made a significant contribution to the local economy and the advancement of the chamber. The person must also have made a meaningful and important contribution to the general welfare of his/her local community.

This year, the Hicksville Chamber of Commerce has chosen Luz Rosenthal, manager of the Bank of New York's Plainview office, as their recipient of the Businessperson of the Year Award. The chamber will announce Rosenthal's selection at their annual Installation Dinner Dance on Tuesday, Sept. 24 at the Imperial Manor and she will be honored at the 2002 Small Business Person of the Year awards breakfast sponsored by the Nassau Council of Chambers of Commerce. Rosenthal will also be honored by the Nassau County Legislative Committee in October.

Born Luz Moriano in Guayaquil, Ecuador, she attended elementary and junior high Catholic schools and earned a degree in business administration from the University of Guayaquil. In the late 1970s, Rosenthal moved to New York and attended Queens College. She began her career in banking in 1980. Rosenthal joined the Bank of New York's Hicksville office in 1990 and worked as a branch manager and assistant vice president for 11 years before transferring to Plainview.

Rosenthal joined the Hicksville Chamber of Commerce in 1992 and has been a board member for the past seven years. She has participated in every committee of the chamber and has taken part in the festival at Kennedy Park, the 350th anniversary celebration, the Culinary Festival, the annual Business Expo and several other events.

Rosenthal is also actively involved in the Bethpage Rotary Club, presently serving as treasurer, and is a member of the Plainview-Bethpage Lions Club. She has also taken an active interest in the Rotary's Gift of Life program where under privileged children from other countries are brought to the United States to receive lifesaving heart surgery. Rosenthal was also a member of the Bethpage Chamber of Commerce.

Rosenthal's work has been recognized by each organization she has been involved with. She received the Champions Award from the Heart Center at St. Francis Hospital for her tireless work with the Gift of Life Program and in April 2000 received the highly regarded Women Trailblazers of the New Millennium Award from the Nassau County Legislature. According to Legislator Edward Mangano, Rosenthal "consistently contributes her time and is a source of inspiration for others."

Over the years, Rosenthal has given her time and effort to unselfishly assist the Hicksville Chamber of Commerce and the Hicksville community. She embodies an altruistic spirit and has never strove for personal gain.

Rosenthal and her husband, Rick, live in Wantagh. In her spare time, she enjoys playing the piano and listening to music.