Families across Long Island will be ringing in 2024 at Long Island Children’s Museum’s (LICM) annual “Noon” Year’s Eve celebration, “Countdown to 12!”. Sponsored by Bank of America, the annual family-friendly event invites visitors to take part in all the traditional elements of the holiday, including confetti-filled ball drops on a schedule designed for children… and exhausted parents.
This year’s theme, “Let Your Light Shine in 2024”, is inspired by the lighthouse symbol in the Museum’s logo and continues LICM’s celebration of 30 years of community impact. The day’s celebration starts and ends with Times Square-style ball drops (noon and 4 p.m.). In between the opening and closing ball drops, families will make themed crafts and enjoy a DJ-led dance party.
Activities throughout the day carry out the event’s theme as families create party items, treats and take-home items to remember a special day at LICM. Guests will make lighthouse hats and night lights, design a beaming, gleaming necklace and a “sparkle and shine” noisemaker. Then they can grab some extra energy as they enjoy a sunny snack before showing off their dazzling dance moves while they wait to join in the countdown to confetti-filled ball drops.
“‘Countdown to 12’ has become a true Long Island tradition,” notes LICM President Erika Floreska. “We’re delighted to offer families all the excitement associated with the year-end celebration with the simple substitution of ‘mid-day’ instead of ‘midnight”. Floreska notes the memories the Museum staff have made over the years, “We’ve watched children grow up and families expand over the years as we ring in the new year together.”
Bank of America returns as the sponsor of this special year-end event, culminating two weeks of programming support at the Children’s Museum.
“Cultural institutions, including our longtime partner Long Island Children’s Museum, are vital for engaging our local communities,” said Marc Perez, president, Bank of America Long Island. “Bank of America is committed to partnering with museums to help drive access to educational resources and programming for Long Islanders of all ages. We look forward to ringing in 2024 at the Museum’s ‘Countdown to 12!’ celebration.”
LICM created “Countdown to 12!” in 2005 to provide families with the opportunity to celebrate this special occasion together. Family-focused New Year’s celebrations were lacking in the area, but families looking to celebrate certainly were not. “Countdown to 12!” has become an immensely popular visitation day on the Museum’s calendar. LICM will honor the 30,000th visitor to ring in the new year at LICM during this year’s “Countdown to 12!”. The lucky guest will be rewarded with a special gift package.
“Countdown to 12!” is typically one of the busiest days in the Museum’s calendar. LICM recommends that visitors purchase admission tickets online (www.licm.org/gettickets) to avoid admission disappointment. All “Countdown to 12!” activities are included with Museum admission on Sunday, December 31.
Holiday Giving & Receiving Lessons
Bank of America and Long Island Children’s Museum are further partnering to provide cold-weather gear to children in need in our area. Each child who brings a pair of new, unused gloves or mittens to the Children’s Museum from Tuesday, December 26 through Saturday, December 30, will receive a special thank you -- a $5 Donation Dollar card from Bank of America that can be redeemed for future purchases at the Museum (general admission, theater or workshop tickets), as well as purchases made at the Museum Store or Nunley’s Carousel. Donated gloves and mittens will be distributed by Long Island Cares to children in the region. Help us reach our goal of 2,024 donated gloves or mittens to ring in the new year and keep Long Islanders warm this winter!
All activities are held at the Long Island Children’s Museum, 11 Davis Avenue, Garden City, NY. For the safety of our visitors, adults are not permitted in the Museum without children; Museum visitors under 18 years of age must always be accompanied by an adult.
About the Long Island Children’s Museum (www.licm.org)
The mission of Long Island Children’s Museum (LICM) is to connect all our communities’ children, and those who care for them, to a life of wonder, imagination and exploration. At LICM, children discover their passions and their relationship to the world we share. The 40,000-square-foot museum serves over 300,000 children and adults annually. The private, not-for-profit institution chartered by the New York State Board of Regents, offers museum-based educational programs and cultural experiences, as well as an extensive community outreach program offered in schools, libraries and youth centers across Long Island. Additionally, the Children’s Museum operates the historic Nunley’s Carousel in association with Nassau County, one of three intact Stein & Goldstein carousels still in existence.
Recognized with several honors, including the National Medal from the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), LICM is accredited by the American Alliance of Museums (AAM), the gold standard of museum excellence. It is currently the only accredited children’s museum in New York State and is one of only 16 accredited children’s museums nationwide. LICM has earned 4-stars on Charity Navigator and has Platinum Transparency on Candid.
About Bank of America
Bank of America is one of the world’s leading financial institutions, serving individual consumers, small and middle-market businesses and large corporations with a full range of banking, investing, asset management and other financial and risk management products and services. The company provides unmatched convenience in the United States, serving approximately 68 million consumer and small business clients with approximately 3,900 retail financial centers, approximately 15,000 ATMs and award-winning digital banking with approximately 57 million verified digital users. Bank of America is a global leader in wealth management, corporate and investment banking and trading across a broad range of asset classes, serving corporations, governments, institutions and individuals around the world. Bank of America offers industry-leading support to approximately 4 million small business households through a suite of innovative, easy-to-use online products and services. The company serves clients through operations across the United States, its territories and more than 35 countries. Bank of America Corporation stock (NYSE: BAC) is listed on the New York Stock Exchange.