A Gateway cocktail party, sponsored by Bellport Arts & Framing owner and chamber co-president LuAnn Thompson, with food catered by Avino’s, took place last week in Thompson’s empty storefront. One hundred guests poured into the former gallery space as Gateway executive artistic director Paul Allan, board chair Ken Searles, and trustee Diane Giattino explained the need for support. Other trustees, including vice chair Terry Tuthill, Gale Edwards and Joseph Minutillo, were present to answer questions. Brookhaven supervisor Dan Panico pledged help with town media, specifically on their Brookhaven channel; village mayor Maureen Veitch also pledged inclusion in the village newsletter and a Gateway heads-up to new residents. It was pointed out that many of the 75,000 attendees last year who attended Gateway shows and the Haunted House utilize the Main Street restaurants and shops. There’s also the Acting School, where parents drop off their kids and pick them up, sometimes allowing time in the village. Nick Sekela, founder of Oasis Realty Group, brought some of his team. Sekela’s group developed a video with Isabella Rossellini expressing Gateway support.