Community connections thrive at Workshop in Wantagh with creative classes for all

Workshop, a new gathering space in Wantagh, offers classes and social activities for all ages. It’s a business with a mission to "inspire meaningful connections,” per its homepage.

Launched in April, the venture is rooted in its owners’ own personal and powerful bond. Co-founders Kristen Estela and Amanda Spillane met and clicked as PTA moms whose kids attend Wantagh Elementary School.

"We became very fast friends. We’re both creative and share a passion for planning and hosting gatherings,” says Estela, 42, who has two daughters with her husband Julio, a certified public accountant.

Spillane, 38, whose wife is a member of the New York Police Department, has two sons. She put it this way about her Workshop cohort: "We feel like we have the same brain. Our similarities and differences all work together.”

Estela, who’s from Oceanside, worked in corporate event planning and ran her own wedding organizing company. Spillane, who grew up in Connecticut, worked in human resources at Edible Arrangements as well as The NPD Group, a Port Washington-based consumer-research firm.

Along with their vibrant enthusiasm and entrepreneurial spirit, past job experience comes in handy as they curate the lineup of workshops taught by outside local instructors and business owners.

The slate is diverse — classes include art and music, crafting, and health and wellness. "One of our goals is to make it all ages and all different types of people and different experiences,” says Spillane.

All the classes posted on a monthly calendar at workshopli.com are designed to inspire a sense of community. Classes are held midweek. Special private parties can be arranged on weekends.

Creativity and inclusivity are hallmarks of classes. So far, the most popular workshops include a toddler music class, a self-expression kids' art class and poetry for adults. Prices cost from $20 to $100, or more for multiple-session workshops.

Some events on the schedule — a mom’s lunchtime meetup group, for instance — are free. "We wanted to create a place where people can meet with their friends and new people,” says Estela. "A place to share in their joy.”

Workshop, 1869 Wantagh Ave., Wantagh, 516-218-4253, workshopli.com.