Rehoboth Beach Main Street names Bette Gallo citizen of the year

As the cornerstone of Rehoboth Beach Main Street’s Community Unity Dinner, set for 4 to 7 p.m., Sunday, Dec. 6, at the Rehoboth Beach Convention Center, the spotlight is focused on one Rehoboth Beach citizen of the year. The Main Street board of directors selected Bette Gallo for the honor in 2009.

Gallo was asked to be a member of the board of directors of Rehoboth Beach Main Street in 1995. She served as treasurer for several years and had been an active board member up until April 2009. In the formative years of Rehoboth Beach Main Street, Gallo was very influential in educating business owners on the value of the Rehoboth Beach Main Street organization and encouraged membership from those who were skeptical.

Gallo was also a great help in influencing business owners to upgrade their outdoor signage to enhance Rehoboth streetscapes.

She has played an active role in the community for more than 30 years. Although Prudential Gallo, Realtors is celebrating its 30th year in business this year, Gallo’s Rehoboth Beach business experience goes back to 1973. She and her husband Sal created many firsts in the beach community. They introduced subs to the area when they opened the Yellow Submarine in the ocean block Rehoboth Mall on Rehoboth Avenue. As is true for all of their businesses, the Yellow Submarine was truly a family affair, and all the children pitched in. Sal Gallo’s mother even made the homemade cannolis, which was another first for the beach resort.

Always thinking ahead, Bette and Sal then opened the L&S Clothing Outlet, a precursor to Tanger Outlets, selling manufacturer overstocks. In the years following, they also ran an ice-cream shop, a jewelry store and were partners in creating the California Sunshine shops, all of which they gave up when they opened Gallo Realty and began focusing on real estate in 1979.

With experience in all types of resort businesses, it was natural that Bette Gallo’s niche turned out to be commercial leasing and sales in downtown Rehoboth. She became the go-to person for anyone thinking of buying, selling or leasing in Rehoboth Beach. With many years of successful businesses under her belt, Gallo knew what worked and what didn’t. Her purpose is to ensure her customers and clients are successful in their endeavors.

She believes that filling downtown Rehoboth’s streets with viable and successful businesses and restaurants is what makes the city a place people want to visit, live and work.

Although not a native, she spent every summer in Rehoboth Beach. She and her family are visible supporters of all types of organizations in Rehoboth Beach and the surrounding resort. The following are just a few ways she, her family and firm positively affect the Cape Region: Prudential Gallo is part of the Adopt-A-Beach program, and the firm regularly cleans the beach from Rehoboth Avenue to the Henlopen Hotel.

The firm regularly financially supports Rehoboth Beach Main Street events like the annual fireworks display and Community Unity Dinner, St. Edmond’s Church, the Sussex Family YMCA, Sussex County Association of Realtors’ annual auction that benefits hundreds of needy children in the city and county, Rehoboth Summer Children’s Theatre, Rehoboth Beach Independent Film Festival, Jefferson School and Comedy at the Beach, The Children’s Beach House, Lower Delaware Autism Foundation, Meals on Wheels, Taste the Fruit of the Vine fundraiser, Special Olympics Delaware Polar Bear Plunge and Beebe Medical Center. Additionally the firm financially supported capital campaigns for Beebe Medical Center, the Rehoboth Beach Museum, CAMP Rehoboth and Lewes Canalfront Park.

Bette Gallo’s award will be presented at about 6 p.m. Residents and visitors are invited to the dinner from 4 to 7 p.m. Tickets are available at the door and are $8 for adults and $5 for seniors; children under 12 eat free when accompanied by a paying adult. Holiday music will be provided by the Tim Laushey Trio. Santa will be on hand, and Nicola Pizza will provide the spaghetti feast. Visitors are encouraged to bring canned goods for a food drive benefiting Casa San Francisco, Sussex County Food Bank, Jusst Sooup Ministry and more.

For more information call Rehoboth Beach Main Street at 302-227-2772 or goto Rehoboth Main Street »