'A Momentous Event To Celebrate:' Levittown Nonprofit Honors Co-Founder With 5K/10K Fundraiser

LEVITTOWN, NY. — New Year’s resolutioners across Long Island will have the chance to get their cardio in for a cause next week, as Levittown nonprofit MOMMAs House holds its first virtual 5K/10K fundraiser. The funds raised in the race will benefit the nonprofit’s programs, which provide housing and support to young mothers at multiple locations across Nassau County. The race is also being run in honor of MOMMAs House founder Pat Shea, who is celebrating her 85th birthday and the 40th anniversary of the nonprofit she founded by boarding a young mother in her own house.

Orchestrating the race is Saudah Tung, a volunteer with MOMMAs house and a mother to two young children of her own. For Tung, the chance to volunteer with MOMMAs House came about when she moved to Seaford a couple of years ago, eager to get involved in her community and already passionate about helping young moms make life work.

“I have young kids...And I wanted to get involved with a local charity, so as I was researching charities, I thought of what I did a couple of years ago, just before COVID, where I also, when I was pregnant at the time, I did a small fundraiser for a local charity in New Jersey to support young moms," Tung said. "So, that was just really close to my heart...I see the challenges of raising kids, and I can imagine what it's like for somebody who may not have their financial situation sorted out or their career sorted out. I just wanted to use this opportunity to get involved in my community or something that I cared about.”

When asked about the work MOMMAs House does, Tung said she was struck by the long-term boarding offered by the nonprofit, which allows young mothers and their children to stay for up to two years. Work like that long-term boarding, Tung said, has only become more pivotal as families become more scattered across the country and young women who grew up in the high-pressure environment of social media become mothers. With that in mind, it’s MOMMAs House’s guidance efforts that Tung said were of particular import.

“You might live here, but your mom doesn't necessarily live close to you, so you don't necessarily have that guidance when you're having a child,” Tung said. “If you're having a child at that younger age? The resources that are available, people in that age group, ages 18 to 24, may not be aware of what exists. And on social media, there's a lot of pressure, in addition to labeling and bullying, and all of those negative influences don't foster that supportive environment.”

As for the virtual race, interested runners are able to register at this address, choosing their own fundraising goal and running at any point within a one-week window, from Jan. 5 to Jan. 11. The funds donated, Tung said, won’t go to any individual cause, instead going to benefit the nonprofit’s operations throughout the year. While the virtual race will be run within a one-week window, Tung said there is no limit on where the race can be run.

“It is going towards the charity and helping benefit their programs in general,” Tung said.

Tung added that, while the virtual race is a fundraiser, the opportunity to celebrate Shea as co-founder of MOMMAs House is special to her as well.

“I'll share a little bit of what I know about Pat…when she started this all, she boarded a young woman in her own house, so her daughter grew up being exposed to, at a very early age, what these young moms were going through. And Pat Shea really instilled that true sense of being a good Samaritan and setting the example to her family directly, because they share that responsibility of taking care of this young mom and the baby in their own home,” Tung said. “So it's just amazing to look back that, you know, for so many years, Miss Shea has devoted her life to creating this foundation. And she recently had knee surgery, so this was also a momentous event to celebrate. You're making it to 85, you're going to recover from surgery, good motivation to focus on health and well being, and to set a goal… 2026 is 40 years of MOMMAs House being in operation as well. So it was just remarkable, that timing.”