Westhampton Resident Wins Patchogue Theatre's Guitar of the Stars Raffle

On Thursday, Jan. 15, Patchogue Village Deputy Mayor Jack Krieger presented Westhampton resident Kathy Warno with a brand new Fender acoustic guitar signed by various performers from the 2014 season at Patchogue Theatre for the Performing Arts (PTPA). Prior to Patchogue Theatre's "Laughter in the Lobby" show, a monthly live comedy series featuring comedians from Long Island, the New York City comedy scene and around the country, Deputy Mayor Krieger and PTPA board members met with Guitar of the Stars Raffle winner, Kathy Warno, in the theatre lobby to gift her the autographed acoustic guitar."Year after year, the [Patchogue] Theatre audience continues to grow and boost the economy of our downtown and that's good for everyone," said Patchogue Village Deputy Mayor Jack Krieger who also serves as the village board liaison to the theatre. "Promotions like the guitar raffle generate even more enthusiasm for what we are doing here and I congratulate Kathy for being the lucky winner." Instated by PTPA's Board of Directors in 2013, the annual Guitar of the Stars Raffle was developed in alignment with the theatre's mission to provide a broad spectrum of performing arts at affordable prices. Ticket sales from the raffle directly benefit the seasonal lineup at the performing arts venue. The signed guitar is protected in a glass case in the theatre lobby where it can be viewed throughout the year. Each year, a brand new acoustic guitar is donated by local musical instrument store, Family Melody Center in Patchogue, N.Y. "I am so excited because I never win anything," said Westhampton resident Kathy Warno. "It's always great to support music and the arts in any way that I can."Warno's new Fender guitar featured signatures from: Brenda Lee, Mac McAnally, Bo Bice, Suzanne Vega, Jana Kramer, Shawna and Keifer Thompson, Amy Helm, Paula Poundstone, Danielle Bradbery, Dustin Lynch, Kelleigh Bannen, Will Hoge, Lindsay Ell, Chuck Wicks, Glen Burtnik, Canaan Smith, Easton Corbin, Billy Currington and Amber Ferrari.

Tickets for this year's Guitar of the Stars Raffle are now available at the the box office and can be purchased for $5.

(from left to right) John Cassese, PTPA board member; Ryan Murphy, PTPA board member; Kathy Warno, raffle winner; Kathleen Zguris, owner of Family Melody Center; Jack Krieger, Patchogue Village Deputy Mayor; Christopher Searles, PTPA board member.

The autographed Fender acoustic guitar features 20 signatures of performersfrom the 2014 season at Patchogue Theatre for the Performing Arts.
ABOUT THE PATCHOGUE THEATRE FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS (PTPA) The Patchogue Theatre first opened in 1923 as the largest theatre in Suffolk County. It still is, with almost 1200 seats. Saved by Village of Patchogue in 1996 and lovingly restored it to its original grandeur, this beautiful facility was in use 195 days with over 140,000 in attendance in our 2013-2014 season. PTPA is an independent not-for-profit organization that leases the building from The Village of Patchogue and covers all of the operating costs without any subsidies from the Village. Our leadership is a volunteer board of directors with a professional staff and we are thriving thanks to hard work by dozens of volunteers, companies, funding agencies and individuals who support what we do by contributing their time or their money. The Patchogue Theatre for the Performing Arts is located at 71 E. Main St., Patchogue, N.Y., and can be reached at 631-207-1313 or by visiting patchoguetheatre.com.