Joe Nasso, a well-known New Jersey high-performance powerboat enthusiast and a familiar face on the poker run scene, has been named president of the board of directors for Shore Dreams for Kids, the charity that provides an annual summer Saturday of go-fast boat rides, food and fun—including a carnival—for mentally and physically challenged children and adults. Nasso began his association with the event 18 years ago when it was called Day on the Bay.

From left, the Shore Dreams board of directors Geralyn Monroe, John Marotta, Brian Meade, new president Joe Nasso, outgoing president Pete Mazzo and Dave Patnaude. All photos courtesy/copyright Tim Sharkey/Sharkey Images.

“It’s an honor to be president of Shore Dreams,” said Nasso in a telephone interview this afternoon. “We are going to run the event this year, and our challenge is finding a new location because our former location, the Municipal Dock in Seaside Heights (N.J.) was destroyed by Hurricane Sandy and half the bay is polluted. But we are going to have the event, and we’ve even added a casino night as a fundraiser for it.”

Nasso replaces outgoing president Pete Mazzo, who will be honored for his ten years of service at a New Jersey Performance Powerboat Club banquet this coming weekend. Nasso’s new position creates a vacancy on the Shore Dreams board, but the remaining directors have opted not to fill it at this time.

“We brought on John Marotta last year as another director,” said Nasso. “Right now, we think we have all the directors we need in place to manage the organization. We have an excellent group.”

Joe Nasso and his mother, Maria.

“Joe was brought on the board of directors of Shore Dreams three years ago, and there’s definitely no one more worthy than him to take the reins,” said Dave Patnaude, president of the NJPPC and a board member of Shore Dreams. “He is going to bring Shore Dreams to its next chapter.”

In addition to selecting Nasso as president, the Shore Dreams board of directors is creating a “junior board,” according to Patnaude.

“We’re forming a junior board of directors made up of the 20-somethings we have worked with at Shore Dreams so when us ‘older folks’ retire Shore Dreams will continue to flourish,” said Patnaude. “”We’re bringing in the new generation to show them the ropes, and hopefully Shore Dreams will go on forever.”

Shore Dreams exists because of the generosity and dedication of volunteers.