Beer, Beats, and Bicycles: Honoring Ed Hahne

Over 200 people packed into the main room of Bobbique in Patchogue, New York, on Saturday, June 20, to snack on brunch bites, hoist a pint for a good cause, and to share memories of Ed Hahne, for the Ed Hahne Memorial Beer Brunch.

Ed Hahne, music educator for over 40 years, Long Island Beer & Malt Enthusiasts (LIMBE) treasurer and cycling enthusiast, tragically passed away last July. His loss was deeply felt within the Long Island beer community, where his presence and friendly smile welcomed everyone at breweries and events.

Spearheaded by LIBME, Eric Rifkin, owner of Bobbique, and Andy and Lynda Calimano from Starfish Junction, the proceeds of the brunch and silent auction brought just under $7500 for two great causes: The Ed Hahne Memorial Scholarship, presented to a student and marching band member from Ed’s alma mater, Stony Brook University; and, Recycle-A-Bicycle, an organization helping “to foster youth development, environmental education, community engagement, and healthy living.”

The recipient of the Ed Hahne Memorial Award and Scholarship for 2015, Dan Wood, played during the brunch. Dan was chosen from a pool of eleven nominated students, and exemplified, as the Ed Hahne Award site states:

… [The] band member who best captures the spirit of Ed Hahne, a music educator for 41 years. The recipient should be one whose enthusiasm and humor are contagious, whose friendship transcends class time, and who encourages and inspires dedication to superior performance.

Lee Ann Hahne, Ed’s widow, spoke at the event, saying her husband felt he was the “luckiest guy in the world” to be apart of this community. The memorial brunch was one of the ways that the community showed how lucky we were to have Ed. Encouraged by the substantial turn out, the organizers are hoping to make this a yearly event.