Memorial Fund Created For Former Track And Field Athlete, Suffolk County Champion

KINGS PARK, NY — The siblings of Brian Venti, an all-state track and field athlete from Kings Park, created a memorial fund to honor him.

Venti was a Suffolk county champion in the 400m hurdle and 50m indoor hurdles. His brother, Artie Venti, and Artie's wife, Loni, are planning a not-for-profit organization that will benefit rising track and field athletes with scholarships, equipment, uniforms and more.

A link to the Brian Venti Fund on GoFundMe can be found here.

Brian died at the age of 39 on Feb. 28.

"Brian fiercely fought a rare and aggressive form of cancer for two years," Artie told Patch. "He had multiple surgeries, including one to remove a soccer-ball sized tumor and rebuild his sacrum. It was a long and painful and heartbreaking journey and we’re so proud of how bravely he fought."

Artie's favorite things about Brian were his kindness and loyalty.

"He always did things in his own way, but with love and generosity driving it," Artie said. "He was such a unique person and unapologetically himself—for better or worse. As most of his friends and family would say, he was 'so Brian.' As cliche as it sounds, he truly was the life of the party, usually befriending the band at every concert or the DJ at every club. He had a bold and quirky fashion sense—including handlebar mustaches, lots of hats, and ties, bow ties, or suspenders paired with Converse Chuck Taylors. There’s no one like him. He lived an unconventional life, but a very full one."

Brian Venti wasn’t married and didn’t have any children, but he has two nieces (Jessica and Chloe) and a nephew (Leo) who he spent lots of time with and "loved very very much," Artie said.

The Ventis' goals for the memorial fund include:

• An annual scholarship for the top performing Kings Park HS track runner.
• Hurdles for Kings Park HS with Brian’s name on them.
• An annual race/fun run in his honor (start training now!).
• Other equipment, uniforms, training and opportunities for the Kings Park HS track team.

The family, upon creating the fund, wanted to maintain Brian's legacy. The Ventis knew he had so much more to give but didn’t get the opportunity.

"Brian was an exceptional all state track and field athlete and was very proud of his track accolades," Artie said.

Brian had the Kings Park High School record in hurdles. He didn’t do a traditional college route after high school, but he did take classes and continued winning races at the colleges he studied at too—even in his late 20s.

"He loved telling stories about his track accomplishments to anyone who would listen, so we think that starting a non-profit that would benefit rising track stars at his alma mater and the surrounding community is a great way to keep him here with us," Artie said.

Brian's cancer caused massive tumors on his sacrum which impaired his ability to walk, according to Artie. He was wheelchair-bound for about the past year and a half.

"In a way, creating a fund in his honor that benefits track, is sort of a way for us to help Brian run again," Artie said. "It’s just a GoFundMe now, but we eventually hope to grow this into a full non-profit org with a scholarship for a rising KPHS track star, hurdles at KPHS with Brian’s name on them, equipment and uniforms and training opportunities and more. We see this as a community moment too, with annual or biannual fun runs and other fundraising events that will bring people together to celebrate and connect in fun, festive ways—which are all things Brian loved."

Giving back in Brian's honor is helping to give his family productive ways of maintaining his legacy and process their grief, Artie said.

"When you lose someone it’s difficult to think about a future without them," he said. "Like how you won’t see them at holidays and milestones and that your children won’t have them as they grow up. This is a way we can keep him with us. He will always be in our minds and in our hearts, but now in a sense he can still be within arms reach."

Brian, even as a 29-year-old at Suffolk Community College, was still winning races and breaking records, according to his brother.

When Brian died, everything happened "so fast," Artie said. People wanted to be generous and do something in his honor. So the Ventis came up with the idea of a memorial fund, which they said is still in its infancy.

"But we wanted to give everyone an opportunity to contribute to it and help us get it off the ground," Artie said. "We were literally on the car ride from Brooklyn (where I live now) driving to Kings Park to plan Brian’s memorial service. I was driving and had the idea and asked my wife Loni to set it up. We’re excited to get it started and keep honoring my brother, and so grateful to all who have contributed and are helping us celebrate him."

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