A Staten Island indoor track: An idea born in 1996. Her business savvy got it done | Staten Island Advance Woman of Achievement Lorraine Lettieri

It was a dogged pursuit that, perhaps, ranks among the best this neighborhood has ever seen.

And for those who know Lorraine Lettieri, it certainly wasn’t a surprise.

Twenty-nine years ago, an idea was hatched to get an indoor track & field facility built on Staten Island. The borough’s contingent of track & field coaches were gung-ho.

But it needed a point person to get the immense project off the ground.

They needed someone with a background in coaching, but most importantly, someone who understood the business aspect of getting that type of venue built.

“Track coaches jumping up and down, saying ‘I want a track, I want a track,’ is not going to get you a track,‘’ explained Lorraine.

”For [Staten Island Track & Running Community] SITRAC, it was bringing my business acumen, to helping them forge forward with the vision of building a track in a way that could be interpreted and understood by the business community.

“(Having a track built) was a dream of all the track coaches. They did not know how to put it forward, they needed me to do that for them.‘’

And, boy, did she ever.

The Southeast Annadale resident is quick to credit a plethora of others for making the Ocean Breeze Track & Field Athletic Complex dream a reality, including, but not limited to, guys like Bob Orazem, Bill Welsh and Pete Whitehouse.

But the 68-year-old Lorraine’s mammoth contribution to the indoor track project is undeniable. And when you consider the Bensonhurst native’s advocacy for special needs and association with Lifestyles for the Disabled (board of directors), her position with son Greg’s company, Recycle Track Systems (executive VP of sales and business development), the Staten Island Sports Hall of Fame (board of directors), SITRAC (president), and the Triple Crown of Road Racers on Staten Island (chairperson), it’s no wonder Lorraine is a 2025 Staten Island Advance Woman of Achievement.

Lorraine, who coached track & field at St. Clare’s in Great Kills and had the good fortune of watching son Greg star as a sprinter and long jumper at both Manhattan’s Xavier High School and Syracuse University, said having a indoor track built on Staten Island stemmed from a desire to see her son and other student-athletes have such a facility to call their own.

When she went all in, Lorraine and the board of directors encountered numerous road blocks and red tape, from Day One. Money, more often than not, was the focal point, but there were also different government administrations.

And there were tragic events. There was 9/11, and then Hurricane Sandy, that caused significant delays.

Although she admits modifications were often made, she never drifted far from her vision on what the business aspect of the project needed to be.

“When you have a dream like this, it’s not just executing on a dream, it’s about executing on a plan,‘’ said the former Lorraine Angerami. ”The fact we had to win over not just the city of New York, we needed the support (of local politicians to get this job done).

“You have to have a business plan. Just like your job, at work, what is the plan?‘’

Lorraine left no stone unturned and secured the cooperation of then-New York City Parks Commissioner Adrian Benepe and Staten Island Borough Parks Commissioner Tom Paulo.

“There were so many questions that needed to be answered,” she said. “How do we keep these kids on Staten Island? How do we utilize the facility? So it was really proving to people that we can make a business out of this — that we can make money through it, that we can rent out the facility," said Lorraine.

“Everything that the Parks Department is doing today, we forecasted.”

“It was like, ‘if you build it, they will come,’ she added. ”And I don’t use that term lightly. Bringing the National Championships to Staten Island is an incredible accomplishment for the Parks Department and for the administration that’s running it now.

“We designed it, down to the millimeter, of how that track would operate and it allows them to have a world-class facility.‘’

PROUD OF THE PRODUCT AND A FUTURE HOPE

Nearly 10 years after the facility opened, Lorraine said it’s as good as advertised.

“It is very well run, we’re very proud of the people in the Department of Parks. They took our vision and have done everything we have dreamed of. We had a business plan that had every single business aspect of this from the health center, to the senior center to the exercise facility to a world-class track facility,‘’ she said.

”We designed that track down to the specifications with [architects] Sage & Coombe. They embraced us, they let us take a pencil, move the long jump pit, the shot put, put a cage here, they let us design it with them — every aspect of that building had SITRAC in it.

“However, my only regret is, nobody knows that,‘’ added Lorraine, who was dubbed the ”Iron Lady of Island Track" by late former track coach and Advance sportswriter George Kochmann.

”The truth is, there were 25 people, which I led, who were a part of the design and built that track.

“My next goal is someday, there’s a small plaque that reads, “The House that SITRAC built” so people know this was not a Department of Parks facility without the vision and hard work of all of us, that advocated and worked so hard for it for so many years.’’

ADVOCATE FOR SPECIAL NEEDS AND WORTHY CAUSES

In addition to her son Greg, Lorraine and husband Rudolph are parents of another son, Jordan, who they adopted at birth.

Jordan is a special needs person and it is no surprise that Lorraine is not only an advocate for the cause, but has a direct involvement with one of the most prominent programs on Staten Island.

In fact, she’s on the board of directors for Lifestyles for the Disabled and raising money has always been among her top priorities.

“Having a special needs son, you talk about challenges, the track is nothing compared to what it is to raise a boy into a man who has a life,‘’ said Lorraine. ”One thing that Lifestyles for the Disabled does for the special-needs community is to give them the opportunity to live their best life.

“So the track was my passion, Lifestyles is my heart,‘’ she added matter-of-factly, noting how proud she is of her husband for the work he does as a job coach at Lifestyles.

”Everything I do for Lifestyles for the Disabled is to help and improve the life for the physically and mentally challenged.

“My love and passion is really to fundraise, to support Lifestyles and all of its programs and I want to be a part of keeping that organization going into the next century,‘’ Lorraine said. ”Again, the problem is money today, just like every other organization, there’s not enough money to support recreational activities and taking these young people to games.‘’

Lorraine said her husband and son often donate tickets, while the Yankees have donated up to 50 tickets for kids so they’d be able to attend a baseball game.

“The joy I get in my heart is really seeing these young people and older people — because there are some older people as well — smile and have a life that supersedes just a day-to-day, mundane lifestyle. It really gives them something to work for and to really have a career and opportunities.‘’

Lorraine, who graduated high school at Fontbonne Hall in Brooklyn before earning a bachelor’s (biology) and master’s degree (marketing) from NYU, doesn’t limit her volunteer work to Lifestyles.

In addition to SITRAC, which she founded with Orazem in 1996 and has been president of for 25 years, she has been on the board of directors for the Staten Island Sports Hall of Fame, as well as chairperson for the Triple Crown of Road Racing on Staten Island.

“I love the Staten Island community and it means a lot to me to see the impact I’ve made in a small way,‘’ said Lorraine, who has lived in this borough since 1980. ”It also means a lot to see the friends and the relationships and the respect that I’ve earned through the people.‘’

DILIGENT, EXPERIENCED ADMINISTRATOR

Despite countless hours volunteering, Lorraine, who spends winter months in Hillsboro Beach, Florida, has always maintained a full-time occupation.

She worked in telecommunications for Sprint for 35 years and, after investing in Recycle Track Systems — a business co-founded by her son, Greg — she is currently the executive vice president of sales and business development.

Simply put, the company offers better ways for recycling and its clients include Barclay Center, Citi Field, Javits Center and a host of universities and colleges.

Look no further when it comes to where Lorraine honed her craft in business.

“I have been very successful in business and very successful the last 10 years in helping my son build this incredible business,‘’ the one-time Great Kills resident said.

”We’re a sustainability waste management company. We’re using business as a force for good. We’re helping customers divert waste and eliminate waste and not put waste in landfill. Having lived on the Island for 40-plus years, I lived with landfill.

“My entire existence in the business world today is to help customers eliminate waste so that we don’t have a landfill anymore, that we are reusing materials, helping customers save the planet and each and every one of my clients is doing their part in eliminating waste, whether it’s recycling cups, consulting on how to separate composting materials, organic materials, helping in reduction of waste by reusing materials.

“So everything I do, whether it be my incredible career — I say incredible, that I lasted this long — and/or all the work that I’ve done for SITRAC, I hope it’s made a difference in somebody’s life.

“When you face it each day and you know you’re making a difference, you have a lot of self-satisfaction.’’

And rightfully so.

Honor this Woman of Achievement: Attend the luncheon on May 15, 2025. More information and tickets >>

More about Lorraine Lettieri

Favorite restaurant: The River Cafe (Brooklyn).

Favorite place to visit on S.I.: Fort Wadsworth.

Favorite sport: Track & Field.

Favorite track star: Steve Prefontaine.

Favorite track event: 200-meter dash.

Favorite music: Broadway.

Favorite song: "Nessun Dorma" (from the opera “Turandot” by Giacomo Puccini).

Yankees or Mets: Yankees.

Giants or Jets: Giants.

Burger and fries or salad for lunch: Salad.

Favorite season: Summer.

Favorite pizza place: Brothers Pizza on Port Richmond Ave.

Cats or Dogs: Dogs (she has three).

Last vacation: Tanzania and Kenya (went on safari).

Favorite movie: “Gone With the Wind.”

Favorite holiday: Thanksgiving.