Baldwin Herald 08-08-2024

Graduates celebrate with school spirit

Baldwin High School graduates and their families celebrated their upcoming departure for college with a breakfast at Applebee’s, showcasing their school spirit, last Saturday.

Story, additional photos, Page 10.

What to know about the ERA League of Women Voters brings awareness ahead of general election

By JoRDAN VAlloNE jvallone@liherald.com

This November, voters in New York will have the opportunity to vote on an amendment to the state’s constitution, aimed at ensuring equal rights to all under law.

The current equal protection clause in the state’s constitution already prohibits discrimination based on “race, color, creed or religion.” The amendment will allow New York voters to include additional classifications that people cannot be discriminated against, such as ethnicity, national origin, age, disability, sex, pregnancy and pregnancy outcomes, sexual orientation, and gender identity.

Wfrom discrimination,” she said. “We will continue to do everything in our power to protect these rights and ensure everyone can live safely and freely in the great State of New York.”

Advocacy groups at both the state and local level are beginning to spread the word about what the amendment entails.

e want to take action.

The League of Women Voters of Central Nassau recently held an “Appetizer & Postcard Party,” aimed at educating neighbors on what the ERA is at the Baldwin Coach Diner.

SUSAN CUShMAN League of Women Voters

The decision to include the amendment on this year’s ballot came in mid-June. New York’s Attorney General Letitia James said it was “a huge victory in our efforts to protect our basics rights and freedoms.”

“The ERA was advanced to protect access to abortion care, enshrine this basic right in our constitution, and protect people

The League of Women Voters is a nonpartisan, grassroots organization working to protect and expand voting rights. It empowers voters and defends democracy through advocacy, education, and litigation at various levels of government, and there are several chapters on Long Island.

Susan Cushman, the advocacy chair for the Central Nassau division, said the idea was to bring people together at the Appetizer & Postcard Party, so the community and members of the league could learn about

Continued on page 13

Maureen Lennon/Herald

Baldwin School District launches ‘Senior Experience’

Baldwin school district launched “Senior Experience”, an innovative course that provides Baldwin High School seniors with a real-world professional experience. This program integrates internships with Social Studies and English Language Arts curricula, meeting New York State Graduation requirements and aligning with the district’s 2035 initiative.

“Blending practical experience and academic studies not only deepens students’ grasp of the subject matter but equips them to be more knowledgeable, skilled, and engaged contributors to our community,” Shari Camhi, superintendent of schools, wrote in a news release.

Students in the Senior Experience course alternate between in-person classes and internship experience during the day, selecting internships that offer comprehensive insights into a particular career. They maintain a journal to document their experiences to eventually complete a capstone project incorporating their internship and academics together.

The program’s first year concluded with the inaugural “School2Career Showcase,” where students presented their capstone projects to families, administrators, and professionals. Baldwin High School teachers, Chris Soupios, Chris Russo, and Joe Chiaravalloti played a role in implementing the course and organizing the event showcase.

“Seeing our students present their work in such a professional and confident manner made me very proud,” Franza wrote. “I look forward to working with our faculty and staff to continue to expand on these real-world learning opportunities.”

In addition to Senior Experience, the district offers a Senior Internship course, open to all students, which was also highlighted in the showcase event. Forty members of the Class of 2025 have already registered for next school year’s course.

— Cameron Brown

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Courtesy Baldwin school district

During the past school year, the Baldwin school district launched ‘Senior Experience’ a course that provides seniors in the high school with a real-world professional experience.

NUMC opens new suite for mental health care

Renovations possible, thanks to generous donations

By JORDAN VALLONE jvallone@liherald.com

The Nassau University Medical Center in East Meadow has opened a newly remodeled mental health clinic — a state-of-the-art facility designed to provide comprehensive mental health services to some of Long Island’s most vulnerable populations.

NUMC, which is overseen by the Nassau Health Care Corporation, previously housed its mental health facilities in the J Building, which is one of the many buildings on its campus. The medical center and NuHealth, the health care network that the hospital is part of, has provided adult outpatient psychiatric services to Nassau County residents for 42 years, including comprehensive psychiatric care and psychotherapy, delivered by both psychologists and psychiatrists.

The mental health clinic has played an important role in the county’s health care services for decades, Meg Ryan, the medical center’s interim president and chief executive, said at a ribbon-cutting ceremony on July 23.

“We receive referrals from all over Nassau County — the courts, the correctional center, division of social services,” Ryan said. “It has the largest training program in Nassau County for both psychiatric residents and psychology interns and externs.”

After touring the mental health clinic in the J Building, Ryan said she felt the hospital could “do better.”

“It was immediately clear to me that we could do better for our patients, and we certainly could do better for our staff,” she explained.

The building lacked an elevator, central air conditioning and was in poor physical condition, and the estimated cost to repair the J Building was $2 million, hospital officials said.

Hospital administrators said they then decided to convert the space in its

The mental health clinic was previously housed in the J Building on the hospital’s campus. It has now been placed in a suite, which is part of the main hospital building.

main building that previously housed its Covid-19 vaccine clinic during the height of the coronavirus pandemic. The suite was large and useful at the time, but was no longer being utilized, Ryan said. In addition, the cost to make the space work for its mental health services was only $62,000.

The enhanced space features upgraded security, air conditioning and modern amenities, providing a more comfortable environment for patients and staff. The cost of the renovation was offset by donations of $25,000 from the law firm of Abrams Fensterman, and $1,000 from the Kiwanis Club of East Meadow.

Matthew Bruderman, chairman of the board of directors for the Nassau Health Care Corporation, reminded those attending last week’s ribbon-cutting ceremony that NUMC is one of three “safety net” hospitals in New York, serving all patients, regardless of their ability to pay.

The hospital has made great strides in fixing its financial state, Bruderman said, and its work is reflected in new spaces, such as the mental health clinic.

“It’s about patient care, it’s about employee care,” he said. “It’s about caring about the community. This team, this hospital — I think it’s just an amazing organization.”

Bruderman called mental health “fundamentally important.”

“The opening of this clinic marks a new chapter in NUMC’s long history of serving the needs of our community,” he said. “We are proud to provide a space that is not only modern and welcoming, but also equipped with the resources necessary to offer comprehensive mental health services to people in crisis.”

Dr. Constantine Ioannou, the chair of psychiatry in the health care corpora -

Dr. Constantine Ioannou emphasized that the mental health clinic’s move to the main building will de-stigmatize psychiatric care.

tion, said the new suite de-stigmatizes psychiatric care.

“It is the first time that our patients with complex psychiatric diagnoses are part of the main hospital — they walk through the same entrance as everyone else, they are treated exactly the same way everyone else is treated,” he said. “Every place I have been, the psychiatric clinic is further away from the main building, and the only one that is even further away from that is addiction services.”

Ioannou said the work to reopen the new clinic was “lightning fast,” and he thanked everyone who worked hard to make that happen.

“I think this makes a very big statement that behavioral health and psychiatric care is an integral part of the mission of NuHealth and NUMC,” he said. “I think it will help us provide a better and less stigmatizing source of care for our patients.”

Meg Ryan, interim chief executive and president of the Nassau Health Care Corporation, said Nassau University Medical Center decided to move its mental health services to the main building to provide a better experience for patients and staff.

Matthew Bruderman, chairman of the board of directors for the Nassau Health Care Corporation, said mental health care is “fundamentally important.”

Jordan Vallone/Herald photos

Dr. Constantine Ioannou, chair of psychiatry at the Nassau University Medical Center, cut the ribbon on the newly remodeled mental health clinic on July 23.

Waistin’ away again in… Eisenhower Park

Parrotheads transformed Eisenhower Park into a seaside paradise on July 25, as Barometer Soup performed their hit Jimmy Buffett tribute show. Fans from all over Long Island came to attend the one-of-a-kind-show as a part of the Eisenhower Park summer entertainment series sponsored by NYU Langone at the Harry Chapin Lakeside Theatre.

Barometer Soup is a Jimmy Buffett tribute band, that seeks to embody the music and lifestyle of Jimmy Buffett and his beloved fans. The band is composed of veteran musicians from Indianapolis, who have been traveling the country for three years, looking to keep Jimmy Buffett’s spirit alive.

Buffett, perhaps best known for songs like “Margaritaville,” “Come Monday” and “Cheeseburger in Paradise,” died last year at 76, following a battle with skin cancer. He was also known for his business ventures, including Jimmy Buffett’s Maragritaville restaurant chain, and ventures in hotels, casinos, liquor and retirement communities.

Barometer Soup had Parrotheads from all over Long Island flocking back to the heart of the county for a great night filled with a lively performance, entertaining vocalists, talented musicians, vibrant shirts and smiles.

Eisenhower Park will continue hosting various entertainment events, including concerts, movie nights, and international nights throughout the remainder of the summer. In a flier shared with Nassau County residents, Bruce Blakeman, the county executive, said “From thrilling performances to family-friendly movie nights under the stars, there’s something for everyone to enjoy.”

For more information on upcoming events, visit NassauCountyNY.gov/parks or call Parks Administration at (516) 572-0200. For more on Barometer Soup, visit the band’s website, BarometerSoup.rocks.

— Brian Norman

Tim Baker/Herald photos

Barometer Soup, a Jimmy Buffett tribute group, performed at Eisenhower Park on July 25.

Eileen Dumlao, a member of Barometer Soup, performed on stage during the concert at the Harry Chapin Lakeside Theatre.

Nora Staker, 4, is a young fan, who attended the concert with her dad, Keegan.

Parrot Club member Teresa Benatti from Farmingdale danced to her favorite songs by the famous beloved American singer-songwriter.

Crime Brief

Bridgeport man arrested for fatal Freeport shooting

Tyrone Williams, 23, of Baldwin was fatally shot and killed in Freeport on Aug. 1.

Freeport village police responded to shot spotter activation near W. Seaman Avenue around 2 a.m., where they found Williams with a gunshot wound.

He was taken to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead early Thursday morning.

The shooting allegedly occurred outside 164 West Sea-

man Ave. with a 9mm handgun which has since been found by police - a few house down from a house party at 159 West Seaman Ave. that the victim had been in attendance since around 5 p.m.

Kyzer Langley, 20, of Bridgeport Conneticut, was arrested by police. He has been charged with murder and criminal possession of a weapon.

Officers state that the alleged shooting followed an

argument between Langley and Williams. The investigation is continuing.

Langley was arraigned at First District Court in Hempstead on Friday, Aug. 2.

Nassau police ask anyone with information on the incident to call Nassau County Crime Stoppers at 1 (800) 2448477 or call 911. All calls are confidential.

The shooting allegedly occurred outside 164 West Seaman Avenue

Three arrested for assault on security guard

Davian Campbell, 26, Danny Daniels, 26, and Ariel Sariah Gangadeen, 25, were arrested on July 27 following an alleged assault at Ultra Lanes, 2407 Grand Avenue in Baldwin, according to police.

At 1:23 a.m., police responded to a call about an assault on a security guard. The men allegedly refused to leave the establishment and proceeded to

punch, kick, choke, and throw bowling balls at the guard. They also reportedly stole the victim’s phone and fled in a white BMW.

The suspects were later located by police, and a loaded firearm was recovered from their vehicle.

Campbell, Daniels, and Sariah have been charged with robbery, criminal possession of a weapon, and

criminal possession of a loaded firearm. Daniels faces an additional charge of criminal possession of a weapon due to a previous conviction, while Gangadeen has also been charged with unlawful fleeing a police officer in a motor vehicle and reckless driving. The trio was arraigned on July 28 at First District Court in Hempstead.

— Mohammad Rafiq

Courtesy of Google Maps

Kyzer LangLey

in Freeport.

BALDWIN HERALD — August 8, 2024

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Proudly Serving The Church of St. Christopher

Beach wrestling returns to Long Beach

By TONY BELLISSIMO tbellissimo@liherald.com

Sunbathing, surfing and maybe even a few sandcastles took a back seat last Saturday as a wresting tournament with nearly 250 participants dominated a steamy summer day in Long Beach.

The [Reggie] Jones & [Paul] Gillespie East Coast Beach Wrestling Tournament, the second of its kind on the sand at Edwards Boulevard Beach since Superstorm Sandy in 2012, honored those two legendary coaches and “ran smoothly,” organizer Miguel Rodriguez said.

“It was such an incredible day and the city of Long Beach was a huge help,” said Rodriguez, a longtime member of the Long Beach High School wrestling program coaching staff who competed for the Marines from 1997-99 and took part in a handful of beach wrestling events himself.

“We were hoping for 100 wresters and ended up with close to 250,” he added. “It was a lot of work and took a lot of people to make it possible. The day turned out just perfect. We hadn’t hosted one in nine years, but this was the best-run tournament we’ve had in a long time and honored some special people.”

In addition to coaches Jones and Gillespie, the tournament was dedicated to late Long Beach wrestlers and graduates Lazar LaPenna, Joshua Encarnacion and Michael Berube. Three of the event’s four wrestling rings was named in their

honor, Rodriguez said.

While there was no shortage of high school varsity and JV, and middle school-aged competitors, Rodriguez noted the ages ranged from kindergartners through 55.

Dylan Martinsen, a 2019 Long Beach High School graduate, won the 172-pound weight group. His father, Kevin, 55, also competed. “I hadn’t wrestled since high school and it was really cool,” Dylan said. “Everyone did a great job putting it together, and honoring the memories of the guys we’ve recently lost was touching.”

Each match consisted one of three-minute period and began in the neutral position — both wrestlers stood opposite one another in the center of the ring and waited for the referee’s whistle to start grappling. That was also the case for any restart, Rodriguez said. The first wrestler to score three points advanced. In the event of a tie at the end of three minutes, the wrestler who scored the last point was declared the winner.

“Most matches didn’t last the full three minutes, but one of the finals did,” Rodriguez said. “We had 14 different categories and about 50 first-place medals handed out.”

The goal moving forward, Rodriguez said, is to take the tournament up a notch on the beach wrestling stage. “Not only do we want to make this an annual event, but we’re hoping it can be a qualifier for the Beach World Series,” he said.

Arianna Balsamo, left, and Matthew Sarro were two of the nearly 250 wrestlers to flock to Long Beach to grapple on the sand in the East Coast Beach Wrestling Tournament named after legendary coaches Reggie Jones and Paul Gillespie.

Michelle Ebel/Herald photos

Gregg LaPenna, left, and Kevin Martinsen were two of the elder competitors in last Saturday’s beach wrestling tournament.

Jack O’Grady, top, tussled with Tristan Doughertyse.

Mount Sinai South Nassau Recognized for Excellence in Emergency Nursing Mount

Mount Sinai South Nassau’s Emergency Department has been selected as a recipient of the prestigious Emergency Nurses Association’s 2024 Lantern Award for outstanding patient care and reducing wait times, and for excellence in nurse retention, achieving a zero vacancy rate and one percent turnover rate.

The Lantern Award also recognizes nursing sta commitment to ongoing education and training and fostering an environment of learning and professional growth.

We congratulate Mount Sinai South Nassau’s Emergency Department nursing sta for their commitment to patient care, quality, safety and a healthy work environment.

Learn more at mountsinai.org/southnassau 877-SOUTH-NASSAU.

AI helps level the educational playing field

Embracing

new technologies like ‘adaptive learning’ is proving to be key to keeping kids engaged

By Nicole Wagner & Danielle Schwab

Continuing a series exploring the presence of artificial intelligence in our schools — and, over time, in society as a whole. Thoughts? Questions? Ideas? Email us at execeditor@liherald.com.

While some educators have gotten acquainted with artificial intelligence hesitantly, many school districts across Nassau County have embraced the technological tool in the classroom. It’s no secret that AI is changing the academic landscape. Educators, parents and students are in a race to keep up with its abilities, and especially about how it can — and will — be used in education. A helpful visual representation of just how AI can help students is a ramp. Ramps are used in buildings to make different levels accessible to people who can’t climb steps. But many of those who can take the steps use ramps as well. AI can be seen as a tool that all students can use to make education more accessible and to serve their individual needs.

Meeting students where they are

The Franklin Square school district has embraced AI as a way to help individualize education for students from pre-K through sixth grade. District Superintendent Jared Bloom spoke with the Herald about the multitude of ways AI can help keep students engaged, tai-

loring lessons to their interests.

One tool that district students and parents have used is Goblin.Tools, an AI-powered site that can identify an essay’s key points if a student need to create a Power Point or poster board for a given assignment.

“You can even break those chunks into smaller chunks,” Bloom said. “So it really becomes manageable, and you can really understand what are the key components of that assignment.”

Another way in which AI can help teachers and students is by varying the reading level of a passage. This has been a welcome change for educators in Franklin Square, Bloom explained: 20 years ago, teachers had to find a handful of different reading passages for the various skill levels in their classrooms.

student’s interests, whether it be music, sports, art or anything else. “We know that when students are interested in a topic, they’re going to be more engaged and more open to learning,” Bloom said.

Nassau County BOCES’ Special Education Department, which serves 1,800 students at 10 Nassau BOCES schools, is exploring AI’s potential in special education. Ken Kroog, assistant director of the department, said that AI can help students through what’s known as “adaptive learning.” During online assessments, AI tailors questions based on a student’s performance in real time.

“Now you can take one passage and run it through AI, and be able to hand that reading out to kids all on the same topic without having to go out and get new material,” Bloom said. “And that’s very helpful for students.”

The promise of personalization in any subject excites Bloom about AI. A fourth-grade math problem can be plugged into AI and personalized to a

“So let’s say if I answer correctly or achieve a certain level of proficiency, the subsequent questions will challenge me at a greater level,” Kroog explained. “So you get a real clear picture of where, exactly, I’m performing across the different skill areas.”

Students who are visually or audibly impaired can use tools like Otter.ai to transcribe a lecture to better understand what is going on in the classroom. Katherine Lewis, a disability counselor at Nassau Community College, said she uses this tool to help students. AI can be a great help for students who are strug-

gling to understand a topic — and for families who can’t afford a home tutor.

“To be able to sit with your child and utilize some of these tools that are out there, free of charge, helping support an understanding of a particular topic, is pretty magical,” Bloom said.

Students at NCC can benefit from AI when the college’s learning centers are unavailable. Genette Alvarez-Ortiz, vice president of academic affairs, said she hoped it could be used around the clock to help students when staff are not accessible.

“In terms of availability, there are challenges with the evening coverage and weekend coverage,” Alvarez-Ortiz said of the college’s learning centers. “We may be able to look at AI as a possibility to help support our learning centers.”

Benefits that AI offers educators Staff in the Franklin Square school district have reported that personalization and customization of lessons for students can “support students in new and different ways that we wouldn’t have been able to do as easily” without AI, according to Bloom. These tools help teachers save time when creating lesson plans.

“I’m really hopeful that we’re going to be able to get to that point where we’re utilizing AI to make everybody’s life a little bit better and easier,” he said,

Courtesy Nassau BOCES

Nassau BOCES staffers have embraced the power of artificial intelligence to enhance student learning.

AI is changing education in so many ways

“and as a result of that, we’re customizing and personalizing for kids in ways that we wouldn’t have been able to do as quickly before.”

BOCES educators have not only used AI tools as time-savers when creating lesson plans, but have also used them as “thought partners,” Kroog said. “It allows special educators to differentiate learning for students, customizing instruction for specific learning needs and leveraging their strengths to give them a very personalized, individualized learning experience,” he said.

This helps teachers in the Special Education Department at BOCES as they work on time-demanding aspects of their jobs, such as report writing and individualized education programs, or IEPs.

kind of both.”

Student

reception

As an elementary-focused school district, Bloom said, Franklin Square’s students are using AI differently than a kindergarten-through-12th grade district would. However, the students who are able to use AI prompts have been very excited to embrace the tool. The district has been trying to give students a variety of opportunities to learn how to program, prompt AI, design video games and more to increase their exposure to different technologies.

W e know that when students are interested in a topic, they’re going to be more engaged and more open to learning.

JAred Bloom Franklin Square superintendent

Rockville Centre school district Superintendent Matthew Gaven said he also believes AI can be used to tailor lessons to students’ needs.

“Computers and teachers have always given the diagnosis, but not always the prescription,” Gaven said. “Like, ‘How do you get better?’ So AI is

“That’s the world that they’re growing up in,” Bloom said. “We have to be preparing our kids for their future, for their tomorrow.”

In Rockville Centre, students in middle and high school have the chance to enroll in an elective AI course that uses the coding program kidOYO. Gaven said that students have embraced the elective courses that teach AI research at the middleschool level and prompting at the highschool level.

“Our students are going to have these tools embedded in their lives,” Gaven

said. “They need to know how to use them responsibly. They need to know what they’re good for and what they’re not good for. And then they need to know, you know, how do you take the stuff that AI generates and add value on top.”

What are its limitations?

AI does have its limitations. Teachers still need to vet its output to see what’s applicable and what’s not. It’s a process that Kroog believes requires human expertise to navigate.

The technology must comply with New York State Education Law 2-D, which protects students’ and teachers’ personal information.

“Educators need to know how to use them right for their own instruction, and then teach students how to use them responsibly to support their learning,” Kroog said. “And with that comes a lot of learning, a lot of training on our part, and then a lot of understanding of what AI can do and what it can’t do.”

Maintaining academic integrity while using AI is something Bloom is passionate about. “I believe that with enough support and with enough training, just like with the calculator, we’re going to be able to help students to see how it is a tool to improve learning, and not a tool to just get you the answer,” he said.

As Gaven sees it, the future looks

■ ChatForSchools.SkillStruck.com

■ Diffit.ai

■ Goblin.Tools

■ Firefly.Adobe.com

■ Canvas.com

■ Chat.Openai.com

■ Claude.ai

■ Gemini.Google.com

■ Perplexity.ai

■ Otter.ai

bright for the ways AI will be used to help students in the years to come. “If AI truly allows individual pathways for students — you know, really specifically tailored instruction, with the resources that support it,” he said, “then I think it’s going to be a tremendous help for all of our students, particularly our students with special needs.”

Breakfast is served at Applebee’s

Applebee’s in Baldwin buzzed with excitement on Aug. 3 for the Flapjack Fundraiser presented by the Baldwin Civic Association. The event brought together incoming college students and their families to celebrate their upcoming college adventures over breakfast.

Keturah Rodriguez, Faith Wright, Darielle Miller, and Kayla Anderson enjoyed their breakfast together before heading off to college.

Maureen Lennon/Herald photos

Baldwin High School graduates gathered together at Applebees in Baldwin on Aug. 3.

Members of the Baldwin Civic Association, Marguerite Keller, Karen Montalbano, Kimberly Malone, Sheree Lindsay, Elissa Kirchner and Colette Carrion.

Montalbano, Malone Bobb, and Lindsay serve breakfast to Bob and Margarita Grasing and Marguerite Keller

BY Vincent Kish SPECIAL TO THE BALDWIN HERALD

I have an excellent memory. But sometimes it fails me, or perhaps more accurately, tricks me. I don’t forget things. But occasionally I remember them very clearly but unfortunately, incorrectly. When many people share a false memory, usually consistently in most details, it’s a syndrome known as The Mandela Effect, so named for the mistaken belief that Nelson Mandela had died in prison. (A fellow South African activist, Steve Biko, did die in prison in 1977). I sense that Mr. Mandela would not likely want to be associated with a memory syndrome any more than retired pitcher Tommy John wanted an arm operation named for him. So I’m going to stick with Collective False Memory.

Anyone who has ever played the board game Monopoly is familiar with the mustachioed Milburn “Rich Uncle” Pennybags, more commonly referred to as Mr. Monopoly. He wears a formal suit, a top hat, and sometimes carries a cane. But he does not wear a monocle. That affectation belongs to Bartholomew Richard Fitzgerald-Smythe, Mr. Peanut.

Speaking of peanuts, there is no peanut butter named Jiffy. It’s Jif. Despite the pronunciation in its commercial jingles,

I remember… I think guest column

Mayer, not Meyer. Toucan Sam’s favorite cereal is spelled Froot Loops. Pikachu has black on the tips of his yellow ears, but not on his tail. Curious George doesn’t have a tail. In 1952, a song was written about Smokey Bear. To maintain the rhythm of the tune, “the” was added to his name. But officially, he remains Smokey Bear.

In addition to her other problems, the evil queen Grimhilde in 1937’s Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs needs to regularly be assured that she is the fairest one of all. When she summons the man in the mirror, she does so by asking, “Magic mirror on the wall.”

1991’s The Silence of the Lambs, Hannibal Lecter’s greeting to Agent Starling is “Good morning, “ not “Hello Clarice.”

These next two examples don’t quite make sense to me. The word toon is an informal, but typically accepted abbreviation for cartoon. Yet the adventures of Bugs, Daffy, and the other Warner Brothers characters are called Looney Tunes. The 2019 biopic staring Tom Hanks as Mr. Rogers is titled It’s a Beautiful Day in The Neighborhood. Yet the first line of the song, correctly sung by the Hanks character, is “It’s a Beautiful Day in This Neighborhood.”

In the 1932 film Taxi, Jimmy Cagney’s character, Matt Nolan, tracks down the man who murdered his brother Danny, finding him in a locked closet. Matt says, “Come out and take it you dirty, yellow bellied rat, or I’ll give it to you through the door.” He never says, “You dirty rat. You killed my brother.”

Despite the title of Woody Allen’s movie from 1972, no one in Casablanca says “Play it again, Sam.” Ilsa says, “Play it Sam. Play ‘As Times Goes By’”. Rick says, “You played it for her, you can play it for me. If she can stand it, I can. Play it.” In

For the underwear dance scene in 1983’s Risky Business, many people remember Tom Cruise wearing a while shirt and sunglasses. It’s actually a pink shirt, and he doesn’t don sunglasses until later in the movie.

As interest in reading about Collective False Memory has increased in recent years, lists of examples of the phenomena are popping up all over social media. In what seems to be a contest to see who can have the most examples, many of these lists are throwing in references that have nothing to do with the syndrome, or are clearly made up. One of they more questionable claims is that large numbers of people are convinced that Benjamin Franklin and Alexander Hamilton were both Presidents of the United States. I guess it’s possible in a few people’s minds that if your face is on currency, and you sang and danced on Broadway (Ben in 1776 and Alex in Hamilton), you probably deserved to have been president. But the other 99.9 % of us knows that they weren’t.

The adult human brain has a memory capacity of 2.5 million gigabytes. That sounds like I have plenty of room up there and, even if I could, I won’t need to delete any files to make room for new memories.

In the 1939 film Only Angels Have Wings, Carey Grant plays Geoff Carter and Rita Hayworth plays Judy MacPherson. Grant’s character does refer to Hayworth’s character a number of times in the movie as Judy, but never says her name three times in a row. Some years later, Larry Storch, Corporal Argon of F Troop fame, was doing an Impression of Grant during a nightclub act when Judy Garland arrived. Still mimicking Grant, he addressed her as “Judy, Judy, Judy.” That would become a standard line for impressionists, but one that Grant never actually said.

Vince Kish has lived in Baldwin since 1995.

Mount Sinai’s emergency nurses are honored

By MELISSA BERMAN mberman@liherald.com

The Emergency Nurses Association has awarded the prestigious 2024 Lantern Award to Mount Sinai South Nassau’s Emergency Department.

The department staff received the award for reducing wait times and for demonstrating commitment to exceptional and innovative leadership, practice, education, advocacy and research.

The award is named in honor of Florence Nightingale, a trailblazing nurse and the founder of modern nursing, who was known by the nickname “Lady with the Lamp.”

MSSN’s Fennessy Family Emergency Department, along with emergency departments at Mount Sinai Morningside and Mount Sinai West, are three of only 94 emergency departments across the United States that met the Lantern Award criteria this year, according to the hospital.

Colleen Schaefer, quality operations coordinator for South Nassau’s Emergency Department, submitted the application and the necessary data.

“This was brought forward by our former director, Christina Salucci, and another Mount Sinai emergency department received the award last year,” Schaefer said, “so we really pushed and came together as a department to apply for the award this year.”

Berman/Herald

For its teamwork and an enduring commitment to service excellence, Mount Sinai South Nassau’s Emergency Department was awarded the Emergency Nurses Association’s Lantern Award for reducing wait times and for innovative leadership, practice, education, advocacy and research.

The Emergency Department nurses found out they had won early last month.

“I think for both leadership and staff, it just signifies how hard we’ve worked together as a department, and we experience growth and change,” Schaefer

We are Zionists.

The 9th day of the Hebrew month of Av (Mon. night and Tues., Aug. 12-13) is the saddest in Jewish history, commemorating the destruction of the Jewish Temples (which were on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem, now occupied by the Dome of the Rock). The Western [retaining] Wall, the Temple’s remnant, is the holiest place accessible to Jews today. Through the millennia, Jews have recited Psalm 137: ‘If I forget you, O Jerusalem, let my right hand wither; let my tongue stick to my palate if I cease to think of you, if I do not keep Jerusalem (Zion) in memory even at my happiest hour.’ Jews are not ‘settler colonial’ interlopers in the Land of Israel; Jews are the indigenous nation of the Land, having returned home to the Jewish state of Israel and to Zion (which is Jerusalem).

said. “Our staff is adapting excellent to that, and we’re making sure that we’re growing our team and providing safe patient care for all our patients.”

Dr. Jay Itzkowitz, clinical chair of the department, helped implement a series of innovations that led to improvement

in a key measurement of patient satisfaction and performance.

“This is a testament to the ED staff, especially the nurses, for the amazing work they do on a daily basis,” Itzkowitz said. “Talk about the care they provide to all the patients, the patient experience and the patients who want to come here. We are providing a service to the community that they want in that area.”

MSSN’s emergency room simultaneously reduced the “left without being seen” patient rate to below 2 percent and handled a significant increase in post-pandemic patient volume.

“It goes without saying how proud I am and excited to be part of this,” Itzkowitz added. “We know the amazing team that we have — it’s just a matter of time till we’re recognized for the amazing work that the nursing team provides.”

The Lantern Award also recognized the ongoing education and training of the nursing staff to provide the necessary skills and knowledge to adapt to societal needs.

Dr. Adhi Sharma, the hospital’s president, who is an emergency physician by background, said he was immensely proud of the ED staff and leadership.

“It’s very rewarding to see it — it’s a good reflection on the culture in the ED and organization,” Sharma said. “This award is a great milestone, but the best is yet to come.”

Leaving a Vacation Home to Family

We all know the road to you know where is paved with good intentions. Nowhere is this more true than leaving a vacation or beach home for the children to share after the parents have passed. We have often advised that if they are all happy and get along well this might very well lead to the end of those good feelings and relationships.

Inevitably, some will do more work on the premises than others, some will use the premises more than others, there will be disagreements as to maintenance and repairs. Some may never visit or use it at all.

Initially, all expenses tend to be shared equally, since all are equal owners. The foregoing issues, however, will quickly arise and then it will often be difficult or impossible to determine what each child’s fair share of the expenses should be. The one living across the country who never visits may insist that they be “bought out” or, if that’s unaffordable to the others, that the house be sold so that they can get their share.

Sooner or later, one of the siblings dies

and their share goes to a sister-in-law or brother-in-law who may remarry and bring a stranger into the shared arrangement. Or let’s say an owner of one-third of the house dies, and now their share goes to their four children. How is that going to work?

Vacation homes are an excellent example of why good estate planning is often more social work than legal work. In these cases we anticipate the problems and spend the time to figure out who wants and uses the home and perhaps leave it to those children only and compensate the others with money or other assets. If they all use and enjoy the home, we sometimes require that it be held jointly with the right of survivorship, allowing the last of the joint owners to decide who to leave it to.

While the possibilities are endless, each case should be looked at and thought through so as to keep harmony in the family by preempting any potential conflicts. Otherwise, it’s often a case of the old adage that “no good deed goes unpunished”.

&

Melissa

Voters can approve expanded amendment

the amendment, and if they support it, write postcards that were mailed to addresses, provided by New Yorkers for Equal Rights, a coalition that supports the amendment.

At the event, which took place at the Baldwin Diner last month, attendees wrote on their postcards: “On Nov. 5, don’t forget to ‘flip the ballot’ and vote on the new NY ERA for all New Yorkers.”

The event was successful, and 500 postcards were written.

Cushman, a professor at Nassau Community College, where she teaches English and women’s and gender studies, said the amendment is not an abortion access measure.

Background on the Equal Rights Amendment

■ In New York, residents are protected from discrimination based on race, color, creed, or religion, according to the equal protection clause in the state’s constitution.

■ The Equal Rights Amendment, which will be listed on ballots as Prop 1 in November, will expand the scope of protection. If approved by voters, it will also prohibit discrimination based on ethnicity, national origin, age, disability, sex, pregnancy and pregnancy outcomes, sexual orientation, and gender identity.

“Pregnancy outcomes suggests that if women have unexpected issues or problems with their pregnancy, they’re not going to be criminalized for it,” she said. “They have access to services that include protecting their future fertility. That’s really important for people to understand.”

Cushman said she feels people are supportive to the amendment, once they learn what it entails. But, she added, that is the problem — not many people even know about it. Several new people joined the league at its last meeting, Cushman said, it served an important educational purpose for other attendees.

“I do think people are receptive to it,” Cushman said of the amendment, “and I agree that people generally don’t know a lot about it. They think we already have a New York ERA, and that’s enough.

the League of Women Voters has been spreading word about the equal rights amendment that will appear on the november ballot in new York. attendees at a meeting last month at the Baldwin Coach diner wrote out postcards, which were sent to addresses provided by new Yorkers for equal rights, a coalition that supports the amendment.

“We want to take action, we want to spread the word — and that’s why we thought the postcard party would be such a great idea,” she went on. “We could put it on our website, or we could email people, but it doesn’t bring a community together.”

On November’s ballot, the amendment will be the first proposal on the ballot, labeled as Prop 1. The current ERA, Cushman said, does not cover the full scope that the new one would, if approved by voters in November.

“That’s why when I try to explain it to people, it’s a pro-health care measure,” she said. “It’s not just about

women in pregnancy outcomes — it also protects your discrimination in these other areas, like age, ability, LGBT issues. It’s the 21st century. It’s time to have a stronger New York Equal Rights Amendment.” Voters interested in learning more about the Equal Rights Amendment, the League of Women Voters of East Nassau will hold a meeting on Aug. 21 at 7 p.m. at the Levittown Public Library. The library is at 1 Bluegrass Lane, Levittown. For more about the league, and to find local chapters, visit LWV.org.

Courtesy Susan Cushman

Matthew J. Fritz, Manager/Funeral Director

Unreserved

From the looks of things

Growing up, there was magazine that I guess was supposed to compete with Life that was called Look.

I never quite understood whether the title was a description of what the publication did (i.e. “look” at people and events) or demand that its readership (or in this case, lookership) “look” at the magazine (after, of course, paying for it.)

Anyway “look” is one of those things we do while incorporating the various aspects of what “look” really means in our daily lives.

Thus, all of us, profess to have an outlook on life, even as we aspire to look good, date the good looking and marry the “looker.”

The cautious stop, look and listen; the suspicious look over their should, and the wise don’t look back (“because they could be gaining on you”). The curious take a look around, labor looks for the union label, the mischievous look for trouble and the discrete look before the leap.

each had “lookouts” of their own.

In response to complaints or suggestions, smalltime politicians and bureaucrats will promise to “look it over” or “take a look at it” or “look into it” (thought they rarely do).

While bakers, china shop owners and fashion models admonish us to look with our eyes and not with our hands, the three words retail merchants hate the most are, “sorry, just looking.”

Alice had her looking glass and I would know what author wrote “Look Homeward Angel” if only I could look it up.

The impatient began with “now, look here … ,” Southerners sing “Look Away Dixieland,” while if looks could kill many of us wouldn’t be here.

Generals demand their troops look sharp and lively, while bombardiers and generations of water-balloondropping-little-boys have warned, “look out below,” just as mountain tops, private ships and bank robbers have

Critics look you up and down; snobs look down their noses; the deliberate take a long, hard look; optimists insist things are “looking good” and very, very often we encounter look-alikes (like me and Brad Pitt).

Even more often, however, we find looking to find fault and looking to catch you at something. When they look around they don’t like the looks of this or that, unless something looks fishy and then they look the other way.

But, you know, when you look beyond those who would forever look askance, you find wonderful folks with a positive outlook looking out for one another. These are people who look up to parents and teachers, overlook mistakes and always look for the silver lining.

They look within, and find the strength to look ahead and look forward. For them (and their onlookers) things are continuously looking up and that is a wonderful thing to … see..

© 2024 Ron Goldman

Baldwin Middle School raises $1200 for children’s home

Baldwin Middle School’s Student Interest Organization, or SIO, organized an end-of-school-year Carnival and Penny Wars fundraising event, collecting more than $1,200 for the Kajiado Children’s Home and School in Kenya, equating to over 155,000 Kenyan Shillings.

“I learned long ago that true generosity is found not just in what we give, but in how we inspire others to give,” Baldwin Middle School Principal, Erica Taylor, wrote in a news release. “My heart overflows with pride knowing that our students and staff have come together to support those who are less fortunate and lack educational resources. Witnessing their compassion fills me with hope for the future.”

Inspired by Taylor’s mission trip to Kenya, the SIO and club advisors suggested organizing a virtual meeting between Baldwin Middle School and the children in Kenya. The middle school students then approached Taylor about hosting a fundraising carnival for Kajiado Children’s Home.

In June, roughly 75 Baldwin Middle School students engaged in a Zoom session with their peers at the Kajiado Children’s Home, sharing the news about the funds raised. The session included a cultural exchange and concluded with a song performance by the Kajiado children.

“I believe this act of kindness will ignite a wave of compassion, embodying Baldwin’s pride and bringing about meaningful change,” Taylor wrote.

— Cameron Brown

THE #1 HOSPITAL IN NEW YORK * . AGAIN.

Recognized for exceptional care in 9 specialties, Northwell’s North Shore University Hospital is proud to be at the top of NY’s list of impressive health care options for the second year in a row. From heart to brain care, our doctors deliver superior services so that whatever comes through our doors: challenge accepted.

*Tied for number one in New York State.

STEPPING OUT

Inside the hive at Long Island Children’s Museum

By Danielle Schwab

There’s a special “day” for everyone and everything it seems. So it’s certainly fitting that the helpful yet often misunderstood honey bee gets its due. And that brings us to Aug. 17, aka “National Honey Bee Day.” Long Island Children’s Museum goes all out to celebrate the hard-working insect with two days of “Honey Hoopla” activities, Aug. 16-17.

The museum has been home to over 20,000 honeybees year-round since 2012, when a hive was introduced to the Feast for Beasts exhibit, which opened in January of that year. The museum welcomed visitors to the first “Honey Hoopla” that year so that everyone could experience the first harvesting of honey from the then newly active hive.

Now Honey Hoopla returns — in a big way.

Families can check in on the busy bugs from an observational beehive, still located in the Feasts for Beasts exhibit. There, honeybees travel in and out of the hive, pollinating flowers in the museum’s pollinator garden and working together to create a productive thriving colony.

“They all have an important task to do, and they really stick to that role. And then, of course, there’s the queen, the leader of the hive,” says Ashley Niver, the museum’s director of education.

The fruit of their labors? Lots and lots of honey, of course Color, aroma, and taste can change based on the nectar of the flower. Families are welcome to taste many different varieties of honey, including, of course, from the museum’s honey harvest. And for those interested, the museum’s honey is available for purchase in the Museum Store.

“A lot of people maybe don’t know that honey can taste different from different varieties of flowers or the location. We’re offering different honey varieties that the kids can taste test and try to match up,” Niver says.

Bees certainly give us more than that sweet treat. Families become fully involved in exploring the role of honey bees in our ecosystem through hands-on activities.

• Friday and Saturday, Aug. 16-17, 11 a.m.- 4 p.m.)

• $17 museum admission, $16 seniors 65 and older

• View the LICM events calendar at licm.org for additional information or call (516) 224-5800

• Long Island Children’s Museum, Museum Row, Garden City

Visitors will learn that honeybees are responsible for pollinating some of Long Island’s most abundant crops including melons, pumpkins, tree nuts, and berries; and that the honey bee population is in danger and decreasing rapidly. Without these pollinators, we would lose some of our favorite foods such as chocolate, grapes, apples, and pears.

‘Families can also explore the use of honeycombs, from which wax is made. The “Happy Beeday” activity is an opportunity to make and decorate beeswax birthday candles.

“They’ll have a strip of colored beeswax and wicks they’ll wrap and roll up to create the candle, and then any scrap pieces of wax can be used to decorate it,” says Niver.

A local beekeeper will be on hand to demonstrate how honey is harvested from those honeycombs. In addition, kids can get involved in bee-themed crafts throughout the galleries that highlight how we can help the bees so that our fruit and vegetable crops can be healthy.

After some time buzzing around, visitors might want to take a break, with a free theatrical reading of Gay Thomas’ book, “Beezy County Fair: A Bee Tale,” at 11 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. The charming story engages families with adorable illustrations and an uplifting message about cooperation and the great benefits of working together for a common goal, along with plenty of bee facts.

While we understand that honey bees do so much for our environment, climate change and pesticides put the insects at risk of colony collapse disorder, where worker bees will exhibit abnormal behavior that leads to the destruction of the colony.

“They’re in danger of continuing to decrease due to different environmental factors,” Niver explains. “If we don’t have the bees here to help us pollinate, then we don’t have the abundance of crops that we can use for our food, and we’ll lose the success of our crop.”

To that end, the museum has launched its Name a Honey Bee Campaign so that visitors can join in bee preservation efforts. A donation of $10 allows families to name one of the museum’s bees, to be recognized on a visual display featuring the bee’s new name and the donor’s name through year’s end.

“It’s very easy for people to feel fearful of bees because they don’t want to be stung, and maybe they assume that all bees are looking to sting and cause harm,” Niver adds. “But the reality is that the honey bees are very docile, and they are just looking to make their honey. They’re really our friends.”

Photos courtesy LICMl

The industrious honey bee buzzes into the spotlight to captivate museum visitors. Participate in a theatrical reading and meet Gay Thomas, author of the “Beezy County Fair: A Bee Tale,” and explore an observational beehive during the event.

Gladys Knight

Hop aboard that “Midnight Train to Georgia” when the legendary soul chanteuse brings her Farewell Tour to Flagstar at Westbury Music Fair. Gladys Knight is without a doubt one of the most influential, and beloved living singers on the planet. And while the Empress of Soul may have been in the business for more than 60 years now, that hasn’t stopped her from continuing to rock that beat as only she can do. She’s bringing her classic Motown-style R&B to fans one last time before she bids us farewell. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee’s fierce vocal power, elegant precision, and heartfelt performances have cemented her as one of music’s true icons. If you’re enjoy her classic Motown-style R&B, then you’ll surely want to see her perform — one more time. “That’s What Friends Are For,” “I Heard It Through the Grapevine,” — you know the hits, now hear her bring them to life once again.

Friday, Aug. 9, 8 p.m. Tickets start at $63. Tickets available at LiveNation. com. Flagstar at Westbury Music Fair, 960 Brush Hollow Rd., Westbury.

Paula Poundstone

The iconic comedian Paula Poundstone is known for her smart, observational humor and a spontaneous wit that’s become the stuff of legend. When she isn’t collecting hotel soaps while on tour or panel-ing on NPR’s #1 show, “Wait, Wait...Don’t Tell Me!,” she hosts the popular Maximum Fun podcast, “Nobody Listens to Paula Poundstone.” “Nobody” is a comedy field guide to life, complete with taste tests, cats of the weeks and leading experts in everything from beekeeping to prosopagnosia. Her stand-up credentials are endless, along with numerous TV appearances. Her second book, “The Totally Unscientific Study Of The Search For Human Happiness,” in which she offers herself up as a guinea pig in a series of thoroughly unscientific experiments, was recognized a semi-finalist for the Thurber Prize for American Humor (the highest recognition of humor writing in the U.S.).

Friday, Aug. 9, 8 p.m. $55. $45, $35, $30, $25. The Paramount, 370 New York Ave., Huntington. Tickets available at Ticketmaster.com or ParamountNY.com.

THE Your Neighborhood

Double Vision

The 1970s and ‘80s come alive when Double Vision brings their “Foreigner Experience” to the Paramount Stage, Saturday, Aug. 17, 8 p.m. Whether you’re a lifelong Foreigner enthusiast or a newcomer eager to experience the magic of their music, Double Vision promises a night of electrifying entertainment that will leave you singing along and craving more. Composed of some New York City’s top professional rock musicians, the band delivers the highest level of integrity and technical prowess in bring audiences all the hits from the band that you’ve come to love, while honoring Foreigner and its audience, with a show second to none. The spirit of rock ‘n’ roll lives on, one unforgettable performance at a time, with this group of talented musicians and die-hard Foreigner fans. Double Vision has perfected the art of bringing to life the unforgettable hits that have defined generations. From “I Want to Know What Love Is” to “Cold as Ice,” their renditions are a harmonious blend of passion, precision, and nostalgic energy.

Drawing inspiration from Foreigner’s unmistakable sound and stage presence, Double Vision delivers a performance that pays homage to the band’s legacy while infusing their own charisma and enthusiasm. Their commitment to authenticity is matched only by their unwavering dedication to creating an electrifying experience for every audience member. With an impressive catalog of classics at their fingertips, Double Vision transports audiences to an era when arena rock ruled and Foreigner reigned supreme. Each show is a testament to their musical prowess, transporting fans to a time when anthems were born and memories were made. Sing along to some of the greatest hit tunes , including “Juke Box Hero,” “Hot Blooded,” “Cold As Ice,” “I Want To Know What Love Is,” “Urgent,” “Double Vision,” “Head Games,” “Feels Like the First Time,” and more! . $60, $40, $25, $20. The Paramount, 370 New York Ave., Huntington. Tickets available at Ticketmaster.com or ParamountNY.com.

Movie Night

Enjoy a family film outdoors on Eisenhower Park’s big screen, Wednesday, Aug. 14, dusk, at the Harry Chapin Lakeside Theatre.

See Disney’s recent animated musical comedy “Wish.” Audiences are welcomed to the magical kingdom of Rosas, where Asha, a sharp-witted idealist, makes a wish so powerful that it is answered by a cosmic force, a little ball of boundless energy called Star. Together, Asha and Star confront a most formidable foe, the ruler of Rosas, King Magnifico, to save her community and prove that when the will of one courageous human connects with the magic of the stars, wondrous things can happen. Eisenhower Park, Lakeside Theatre, East Meadow. For information, visit NassauCountyNY.gov.

Music for Aardvarks

Baldwin Public Library hosts Music for Aardvarks, an interactive series tailored for children ages 4 months to 4 years, accompanied by a parent or caregiver. Held every Wednesday in August, at 10 a.m., in the Community Room, these interactive sessions offer singing, dancing, musical storytelling, and jam sessions with instruments, promising a fun-filled experience for all. Registration required. 2385 Grand Ave. For more information and to register, visit BaldwinPL.org.

Dramatic Play

Theatre Playground returns to Long Island Children’s Museum with “Dramatic Play!,” Monday, Aug. 12, 1 p.m., taught by Lisa Rudin, Director of Theatre Playground. In this interactive, theater-inspired workshop, children will act out an original story and help choose how it unfolds. Music, props, and sound effects create a theatrical world where participants are immersed in the story.

Children express themselves as they create characters, explore different worlds, stretch their imaginations and build self-confidence. This week’s theme: The Amazing World of Bugs and Butterflies. Costumes encouraged. $5 with museum admission. Museum Row, Garden City. (516) 224-5800 or LICM.org.

Super Mario Mondays

Kids in grades 6-12 can cool off with video games in the Teen Zone at Baldwin Public Library, Mondays, noon-1 p.m. Play against others. All games are rated E for Everyone. Registration not require; first come first serve. 2385 Grand Ave. Visit BaldwinPL.org for more information.

Seasonal Sprouts

Bring the kids to Old Westbury Gardens for a Seasonal Sprouts session, Wednesday, Aug. 21, 11 a.m.-noon. Children (ages 4 to 6) can tour the gardens with guided activities exploring smells, sight, sound, and touch, even taste in planting a tasty veggie. $8 per child, $15 adult. Registration required. Old Westbury Gardens, 71 Old Westbury Rd., Old Westbury. For information, visit OldWestburyGardens.org or contact (516) 333-0048.

Cedarmore Farmers market

Buy fresh food and produce from local vendors while enjoying various forms of entertainment at Cedarmore Farmers’ Market at Baldwin LIRR Train Station, Parking Field BA-5, Saturdays, 10:30 a.m.2:30 p.m., through Oct. 12

The market is in partnership with Leg. Seth Koslow and Leg. Debra Mulé. With a DJ, authors and artistic performances. For more information, visit CedarmoreFarms.org.

‘Walkin’ After Midnight’

Plaza Theatrical presents a showstopping tribute to the legendary Patsy Cline, Sunday, Aug. 11, 2:30 p.m. Through iconic songs and witty storytelling, Carter Calvert uses her award-winning vocal talents to create this captivating musical tribute. Calvert, a Broadway star and title character in Always… Patsy Cline (opposite Sally Struthers), gained rave reviews and triumphant accolades for her heartfelt portrayal of this legendary country recording artist.

She vocally captures Cline’s musical stylings pitch-perfectly in mega hits including “Crazy” and “I Fall To Pieces.” It’s performed at Plaza’s stage at the Elmont Library Theatre, 700 Hempstead Tpke., Elmont. $40, $35 seniors. Elmont. For tickets, call (516) 599-6870 or visit PlazaTheatrical.com.

Having an event?

Circus antics

Get in on the action with I. FLY Trapeze, Long Island’s only flying trapeze and circus arts school. Families will enjoy “Wild West Circus,” Saturday, Aug. 17, at 8 p.m., at Eisenhower Park. I.FLY Trapeze puts spectators up close to the aerialists who perform amazing feats of athleticism and agility 25 feet in the air. Performances include Chains, Silk and Lyra, with comedy and on the grounds acts with Balancing and Baton, also a Flying Trapeze Finale. Next to the Nassau County Aquatic Center off Merrick Ave., East Meadow. Free parking available in lot 1A adjacent to the trapeze. For more information, visit IFlyTrapeze.com.

Storytime

Children ages 3-8, can join Girl Scouts for storytime, Saturday, Aug. 17, 1-3 p.m. The scouts will read stories and lead a craft at the Baldwin Community Garden. 1980 Grand Ave.

Items on The Scene page are listed free of charge. The Herald welcomes listings of upcoming events, community meetings and items of public interest. All submissions should include date, time and location of the event, cost, and a contact name and phone number. Submissions can be emailed to thescene@liherald.com.

On exhibit

Nassau County Museum of Art ‘s latest exhibition

“Seeing Red: Renoir to Warhol,” reveals the many meanings, connotations, and associations of this powerful color in art. Evoking strong emotion, red can represent the human condition. Its myriad variations have come to signify authority as well as love, energy and beauty. Red warns us of peril and commands us to stop, but it can also indicate purity and good fortune. Red boldly represents political movements and religious identities. From the advent of our appreciation for this color in antiquity to its continued prominence in artistic and popular culture, this exhibition will span various world cultures through a range of media.

It features more than 70 artists, both established and emerging, ranging from the classical to the contemporary. American portraitists such as Gilbert Stuart imbued red in their stately paintings of prominent individuals to conjure authority. Robert Motherwell, Ad Reinhardt, and other major abstract painters displayed a deep fascination with red in their commanding compositions that evoke a sense of chromatic power. And, of course, Andy Warhol is known for his bold and imposing silkscreened portrait of Vladimir Lenin saturated in bright red to his signature Campbell’s Soup Cans. On view through Jan. 5. Nassau County Museum of Art, 1 Museum Dr., Roslyn Harbor. (516) 484-9337 or NassauMuseum.org.

Summer tunes

Enjoy a tribute to ‘70s radio hits with 45 RPM, at Eisenhower Park, Friday, Aug. 9, 8 p.m. The New York City-based band of vocalists and musicians recreates the songs and their era with the C’mon Get Happy show, an entertaining and visually engaging evening that has you singing and dancing along. It’s a whole night of “wow, I remember that one” moments. Get “hooked on a feeling” with 45 RPM. Bring seating Harry Chapin Lakeside Theatre, Eisenhower Park, East Meadow. For information, visit NassauCountyNY.gov.

Movie matinee

Cool off with a movie on Baldwin Public Library on Baldwin Public Library’s big screen, Friday, Aug. 16, 1:30-4:30 p.m. See the 2024 action thriller “The Beekeeper,” rated R and starring Jason Statham as Mr. Clay, a former operative for a secretive global organization. His brutal campaign for vengeance takes on national stakes after he is revealed to be a former operative of a powerful and clandestine organization known as “Beekeepers.” 2385 Grand Ave. Visit BaldwinPL.org for more information.

BALDWIN

Task force focuses on human trafficking

By JOSEPH D’ALESSANDRO jdalessandro@liherald.com

Law enforcement agents, state legislators and experts on human trafficking met at a conference at Nassau Community College on July 31.

The Assembly Minority Conference Task Force on Human Trafficking was created to help Nassau and Suffolk investigators, policy makers and safe houses share what they need to protect victims.

The Interagency Task Force on Human Trafficking — the state organization responsible for providing annual reports on the topic — is three years out of date, resulting in a critical lack of data since coronavirus lockdowns eased. Since then, organizations that help victims have strained to mitigate the harm done by human traffickers.

“It is a problem that is everywhere, but nobody is actually seeing it,” Assemblyman Brian Curran said.

The participants discussed state financial support, law enforcement tools, aid for exploited migrants, and educational programs to help New Yorkers recognize when someone is a victim of trafficking.

Attorneys and law enforcement personnel considered the effects of changes in trafficking-related charges — some are not officially “sex crimes,” so perpetrators don’t end up on the state’s Sex Offender Registry — and proving a victim was exploited is difficult for prosecutors, Christine Guida, deputy chief of the Nassau County Special Victims Bureau, explained.

The difficulty of bringing cases to trial can begin much earlier. Trafficking victims are often young — high school and college students — or struggle to communicate due to a language barrier. In virtually every case, they are threatened by traffickers not to come forward.

“People think that in order to do the unthinkable, there has to be some kind of torture involved,” defense

The task force is composed of local law enforcement, legislators and members of organizations that provide services to people in need, representing a range of groups that deal with different aspects of human trafficking.

attorney Diane Clarke said. “That’s not the case.”

The goal of training and education programs is to demystify what human trafficking is and how it works. Deepening the public’s understanding of trafficking can make tools such as simple hand signals for help increasingly viable for victims to escape their captors.

The Empower, Assist and Care Network is one of many organizations that provide housing, case management and other forms of aid to victims across Long Island and New York City.

“It is my hope that these conversations are going to continue in a way that is coordinating and enhancing our services, and advocating for funding,” said Neela Mukherjee Lockel, president and CEO of the EAC Network. “We’re going up against giant criminal enterpris-

es. That’s what human trafficking is, and we need money and resources to do that.”

Dr. Jeffrey L. Reynolds is president and CEO of the Family and Children’s Association, which has been providing shelter for runaway, homeless and trafficked children for over 140 years. It also has a mental health program that serves about 400 young people, in addition to programs for those suffering from addiction.

“We’re here today to make a couple suggestions about ways to improve systems of care,” Reynolds said. “This would include educating health and human service workers about how to spot the signs of trafficking, what to do about it, and how to intervene.”

The conference was the first step in renewing the fight against trafficking, Assemblyman Brian Maher said.

Joseph D’Alessandro/Herald

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TITLE TRUSTEE FOR TRUMAN 2016 SC6 TITLE TRUST, Plaintiff, vs. MARGARET A. BURCH

A/K/A MARGARET A. MILLS A/K/A MARGARET A. GREEN, ET AL., Defendant(s).

Pursuant to an Order Confirming Referee Report and Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale duly entered on May 4, 2023 and an Order Appointing Successor Referee duly entered on January 29, 2024, I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction on the front steps on the north side of the Nassau County Supreme Court, 100 Supreme Court Drive, Mineola, NY 11501 on August 21, 2024 at 2:30 p.m., premises known as 1459 Prince Street a/k/a 1459 Prince Avenue, Baldwin, NY 11510. All that certain plot, piece or parcel of land, with the buildings and improvements thereon erected, situate, lying and being at Baldwin, Town of Hempstead, County of Nassau and State of New York, Section 36, Block 373 and Lot 69. Approximate amount of judgment is $454,243.16 plus interest and costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment Index #609911/2019. This foreclosure sale will be held on the north side steps of the Courthouse, rain or shine. COVID-19 safety protocols will be followed at the foreclosure sale. If proper social distancing cannot be maintained or there are other health or safety concerns, the Court Appointed Referee will cancel the sale. Kenneth Gartner, Esq., Referee

Friedman Vartolo LLP, 85 Broad Street, Suite 501, New York, New York 10004, Attorneys for Plaintiff

Firm File No. 190226-2 148013

LEGAL NOTICE STATE OF NEW YORK SUPREME COURT: COUNTY OF NASSAU WELLS FARGO BANK, N.A., AS TRUSTEE FOR CARRINGTON MORTGAGE LOAN TRUST, SERIES 2006-FRE2 ASSET-BACKED PASSTHROUGH CERTIFICATES, Plaintiff, v. JOSE LOPEZ AKA JOSE M. LOPEZ, ET AL, Defendants.

NOTICE OF SALE IN FORECLOSURE PLEASE TAKE NOTICE THAT In pursuance of a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered in the Office of the County Clerk of Nassau County on March 22, 2024, I, Peter L. Kramer, Esq., the Referee named in said Judgment, will sell in one parcel at public auction on August 28, 2024 at North Side Steps of the Nassau County Supreme Court, 100 Supreme Ct. Dr., Mineola, NY 11501, at 02:00 PM the premises described as follows: 1112 Pacific Street Baldwin, NY 11510

SBL No.: 54-370-729 ALL THAT TRACT OR PARCEL OF LAND situate in the Town of Hempstead, County of Nassau, State of New York.

The premises are sold subject to the provisions of the filed judgment, Index No. 615211/2022 in the amount of $710,437.19 plus interest and costs. The aforementioned auction will be conducted in accordance with the Court System’s COVID-19 mitigation protocols and as such all persons must comply with social distancing, wearing masks and screening practices in effect at the time of this foreclosure sale.

Woods Oviatt Gilman LLP

Attorneys for Plaintiff 500 Bausch & Lomb Place Rochester, NY 14604 Tel.: 855-227-5072 148126

PLEASE TAKE NOTICE that each and every person not a party to the above entitled action who, at the date of the order dated June 3, 2024 appointing the undersigned referee to inquire as to creditors, had a lien upon any undivided share or interest of a party in the property hereinafter described, is hereby required to appear before the undersigned at 2280 Grand Avenue, Suite 202, Baldwin, New York 11530, on or before September 15, 2024, to prove such lien and the true amount due or to become due by reason thereof. The property herein is described in the complaint as follows: 1641 Oak Street, North Baldwin, New York 11510. DATED: July 12, 2024. Referee: Jerry Merola, Esq. 2280 Grand Ave, Ste 202, Baldwin, NY 11510. Tel: 516-887-1975 148117

LEGAL NOTICE NOTICE TO BIDDERS

BALDWIN UNION FREE SCHOOL DISTRICT Notice is hereby given that SEALED PROPOSALS for:

BALDWIN UNION FREE SCHOOL DISTRICT TOILET RENOVATIONS AT BROOKSIDE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL AND LENOX

ELEMENTARY SCHOOLREBID

SED#

28-02-10-03-0-001-022 AND SED#

28-02-10-03-0-005-024 CONTRACT G1 –GENERAL

CONSTRUCTION WORK –BROOKSIDE CONTRACT G2 –GENERAL CONSTRUCTION WORKLENOX

Will be received until 11:00 AM prevailing time on August 22, 2024, at the Business Office of the Baldwin Union Free School District, located at 960 Hastings Street, Baldwin, NY 11510, at which time and place where all bids received will be publicly opened and read and where the identity of all offerers will be publicly disclosed. Complete digital sets of Bidding Documents, drawings, and specifications, may be obtained online beginning August 8, 2024 as a download at the following website: melville.h2mplanroom.co m

The Owner has decided to solicit bids from one contractor in accordance with General Municipal Law § 101, the Bidder shall submit with its bid a separate sealed list that names each subcontractor that the bidder will use to perform work in the contract, and the agreed-upon amount to be paid to each, for: (A) Plumbing and gas fitting, (B) steam heating, hot water heating, ventilating and air conditioning apparatus and (C) electric wiring and standard illuminating fixtures. After the low bid is announced, the sealed list of subcontractors submitted with such low bid shall be opened and the names of such subcontractors shall be announced, and thereafter any change of subcontractor or agreedupon amount to be paid to each shall require the approval of the public owner, upon a showing presented to the public owner of legitimate construction need shall include, but not be limited to, a change to sub-contractor status as determined pursuant to paragraph (e) of subdivision two of section two hundred twenty-two of the labor law or the subcontractor has become otherwise unwilling, unable or unavailable to perform the subcontract. The sealed lists of subcontractors submitted by all other bidders shall be returned to them after the contract award. Complete sets of Bidding Documents, Drawings and Specifications, may be obtained from REVplans, 28 Church Street, Unit 7, Warwick, NY 10990 Tel: 1-845-651-3845, upon depositing the sum of $100 (One Hundred Dollars) for each combined set of documents. Checks or money orders shall be made payable to Baldwin Union Free School District. Plan deposit is refundable in accordance with the terms in the Instructions to Bidders to all submitting bids. Any bidder requiring documents to be shipped shall make arrangements with the printer and pay for all packaging and shipping costs.

Please note REVplans (melville.h2mplanroom.co m) is the designated location and means for distributing and obtaining all bid package information. Only those Contract Documents obtained in this manner will enable a prospective bidder to be identified as an official plan holder of record. The Provider takes no responsibility for the completeness of Contract Documents obtained from other sources. Contract Documents obtained from other sources may not be accurate or may not contain addenda that

Baldwin Student Awarded by Princeton University

Baldwin High School student, Solomon Ruff, was one of five students to be recognized with a “Certificate of Accomplishment” by the Princeton University Board Committee for his hard work in advancing racial equity and dedication to improving the lives of others.

Solomon was recognized through the Princeton Prize in Race Relations, or PPRR, established in 2003 to reward high school students who volunteer to undertake significant efforts to promote racial equity. PPRR operates through 28 Regional Committees and an at-large committee, awarding notable work. Both Prize recipients and Certificate of Accomplishment recipients, like Solomon, are recognized at ceremonies in their home regions by local Princeton alumni.

The Baldwin High Schooler founded the Knowledge, Inspiration, and

Nurturing Growth for Success, or K.I.N.G.S, organization. This studentled legal nonprofit dedicated to providing Black male high schoolers with the resources needed to achieve academic and personal success has already raised over $4.9K. By gaining an Instagram following and public support, the K.I.N.G.S organization held multiple virtual workshops, sponsored a private college tour of Princeton University with ten members, gave a $1K Scholarship to a Baldwin High School Senior, and provided community event opportunities for members to attend. The organization includes Baldwin students and other local High Schools.

Solomon was honored at an awards ceremony in New York City on May 14th, where he gave a speech about the K.I.N.G.S organization.

— Cameron Brown

Public Notices

may have been issued. All bid addenda will be transmitted to registered plan holders via email and will be available at melville.h2mplanroom.co m Plan holders who have paid for hard copies of the bid documents will need to make the determination if hard copies of the addenda are required for their use, and coordinate directly with the printer for hard copies of addenda to be issued. There will be no charge for registered plan holders to obtain hard copies of the bid addenda.

Bids must be made in the standard proposal form in the manner designated therein and as required by the Specifications that must be enclosed in sealed envelopes bearing the name of the job and name and address of the bidder on the outside, addressed to: BALDWIN UNION FREE SCHOOL DISTRICT, clearly marked on the outside: Bid For: Toilet Renovations at Brookside Elementary School and Lenox Elementary School - Rebid.

Each proposal submitted must be accompanied by a certified check or bid bond, made payable to the BALDWIN UNION FREE SCHOOL DISTRICT, in an amount equal to ten percent (10%) of the total amount of the bid, as a commitment by the bidder that, if its bid is accepted, it will enter into

a contract to perform the work and will execute such further security as may be required for the faithful performance of the contract. Certification of bonding company is required for this bid, see Instructions for Bidders section. Each bidder shall agree to hold his/her bid price for forty-five (45) days after the formal bid opening.

A pre-bid conference and walk through is scheduled for August 13, 2024, at 9:00 AM at Brookside Elementary School, and August 13, 2024, at 10:00 AM at Lenox Elementary School. Potential bidders are asked to gather at the main entrance to the school, at which time they shall be escorted to the area of work. This meeting is not mandatory; however, it is highly recommended that all potential bidders attend.

It is the Board’s intention, and it reserves its right to award the contract to the lowest responsible bidder, providing the required security who, to the Board’s satisfaction, meets the experience, technical, budget and all specification requirements and has references and responses from references that are deemed acceptable by the Board. The Board reserves the right to reject any or all bids, or portions thereof, or alternates, or alternatives, to waive any informality and to accept

such bids, or portions thereof, or alternates, or alternatives which, in the opinion of the Board, are in the best interests of the School District.

Board of Education Baldwin Union Free School District 960 Hastings Street Baldwin, New York 11510 148371

LEGAL NOTICE NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT COUNTY OF NASSAU Mortgage Assets Management, LLC, Plaintiff AGAINST Nassau County Public Administrator, as the Limited Administrator of the Estate of James McCrory; et al., Defendant(s) Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale duly entered July 12, 2024 I, the undersigned Referee, will sell at public auction at the North Side Steps of the Nassau County Supreme Court at 100 Supreme Court Drive, Mineola, NY 11501 on September 11, 2024 at 2:00PM, premises known as 1354 Short Place, Baldwin, NY 11510. All that certain plot piece or parcel of land, with the buildings and improvements erected, situate, lying and being at Baldwin, Town of

Hempstead, County of Nassau, State of NY, Section: 36 Block: 236-1 Lot: 32 and 255. Approximate amount of judgment $696,646.80 plus interest and costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment Index# 001173/2014. The auction will be conducted pursuant to the COVID-19 Policies Concerning Public Auctions of Foreclosed Property established by the 10th Judicial District. Foreclosure Auctions will be held “Rain or Shine.” Christine Grillo, Esq., Referee LOGS Legal Group LLP f/k/a Shapiro, DiCaro & Barak, LLC Attorney(s) for the Plaintiff 175 Mile Crossing Boulevard Rochester, New York 14624 (877) 430-4792

Dated: July 26, 2024 148307

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Living A Dream

PALM BEACH GARDENS, FLORIDA East Pointe Country Club. Gorgeous 3BRs, 3Bths, Golf, Double Kitchen, High Ceilings. MLS#RX-10977928 $889,000 Jill 561-373-2724 CEDARHURST NO FEE trance, W/D, Storage, Wall To Wall Carpeting, Indoor Parking Space. Starting At $1450 For One Bedroom When Available. (516)860-6889/ (516)852-5135/ (516)582-9978

room and home office, also wet bar. Guest quarters. Taxes: $12,508.44 Franklin Square $905,000 Hoffman Street. Duplex. 5 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms. Finished basement. Eat-in kitchen with granite countertops and pantry. Formal dining room. First floor master bedroom. Updates include cathedral ceiling and skylight. Taxes: $12,430.17

Lido Beach $1,289,000

Gerry Avenue. Hi Ranch. 4 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms. Eat-in kitchen with granite countertops. Den/family room and home office, also wet bar and guest quarters. Master bedroom with walk-in closet. High end finishes include skylight. Security system.

Taxes: $15,290.87

Malverne $692,000

Morris Avenue. Colonial. Fully renovated and move-in ready. 3 bedrooms, 1.5 bathrooms. New eat-in kitchen with granite countertops and stainless steel appliances. New bathrooms, roof and windows.

Taxes: $14,800

SALE at Beth David’s in Elmont. Asking for $6,500. Please contact Michele Flanigan at 518-546-9550

Merrick $1,350,000

Valerie Court. Split Level. 4 bedrooms, 3.5 bathrooms. Partial finished basement. Large custom eat-in kitchen with granite countertops and high-end stainless steel appliances. Formal dining room. Den/family room. Custom upgrades include 2 fireplaces, skylight and radiant heated flooring in main bathroom. All large rooms. Upper level Trex deck leads to paved yard with built-in pool. Security system.

Taxes: $29424.24

Oceanside $1,212,500

Oceanside Parkway. Colonial. 4 bedrooms, 4 bathrooms. Finished basement. Eat-in kitchen. Formal dining room. Den/family room and home office. Master bathroom with walk-in closet. High end finishes include cathedral ceiling. Security system.

Taxes: $23,265.16

Rockville Centre $850,000

Hamilton Road. Split Level. 3 bedrooms, 2.5 bathrooms. Partial finished basment. Eat-in kitchen. Formal dining room. Den/family room. Expansive home on a beautiful block is meticulously maintained and filled with period charm and elegance. It features four spacious levels of living space, including all oversized bedrooms and light filled sunroom with backyard access. Ensuite master bedroom. Private backyard with pavered patio and mature landscaping throughout.

Can we just elevate, or do we need to rebuild?

Q. We’re doing a major house lift, making changes to our existing first floor and adding a second floor. We thought it made sense to get a design and then stop, because this way we didn’t spend a lot of money on full construction plans and then end up disappointed that it was over our budget. Simple turned into complicated, as it often does. The contractor and the architect agreed that the house should just be reconstructed (nothing saved) and the estimators insisted on much more information to give us a price. Are we going about this the right way? We’re already disillusioned that we aren’t going to be able to build within our budget, and we don’t even have numbers to make a decision. What should we do?

Ask The Architect

A. Your house project isn’t sounding too “uplifting,” and frankly, from your description, you shouldn’t be lifting the original house. You may spend more than $50,000 just trying to save the little bit of the original house, moving plumbing and wiring, trying to work around the existing materials and reconstructing old ones. Money is the driving factor in most construction projects, and although it’s frustrating, you must either politely persist with evaluating costs with the contractor, or get to the finish line with plans to give estimators something to work with.

First, though, you should recognize that the current first floor will become a second floor, and the new floor above will be a third floor if you plan to have a lowest level high enough to park cars underneath or use for accessible, stand-up storage. Federal guidelines require that the new lowest level not be used for anything but car or general storage, and the state requires indoor sprinklers.

It’s really up to the contractor working with you, and the architect, to reach predictable costs for the total project. You need to pay both of them to spend the time necessary to hit a targeted budget. The contractor will then work with getting together material, labor and overhead costs, with profit and a cushion for issues that can arise, like weather, material delivery delays and scrambling when something isn’t available or a truck breaks down.

While it’s not completely unreasonable for estimators to want more information, putting together a preliminary budget isn’t a mysterious, unheardof request. My concern when this happens is that all parties need to cooperate. The reason for the architect’s involvement is to answer questions and guide decision-making about sizes of structure, material choices and code compliance. If the contractor or a subcontractor makes projections on the design of structure, for example, it must be understood that the architect makes the final decision about wall thicknesses, insulation values, structural components, and even window and door sizes. These are safety and code-related conditions that are governed by law.

The costs can escalate when plans are completed, so reducing the project to meet a budget, up front, is important. Good luck!

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To beat the heat on Long Island, we must fight fossil fuels

Scorching, sweltering, suffocating. We’re all struggling to keep our cool these days, as a dangerous heat dome hovers over much of the country and threatens lives and livelihoods. Here in Nassau County, we’ve experienced successive weeks of extreme heat that has disrupted everything from our transit systems to our enjoyment of the outdoors.

This after last summer, when historic wildfires in Canada brought barely breathable, smoky air to our state. We can choose to stay indoors all summer, or we can be honest about how we got to this overheated moment. We know exactly what is causing this dizzying change in our climate. Emissions from burning fossil fuels — oil, gas, coal — produce greenhouse gases that blanket the globe and trap the sun’s heat. And we know that global carbon emissions have been steadily increasing, warming our oceans and atmosphere.

But even in the face of damning evidence, the fossil fuel industry won’t

back down. Companies continue to drill new wells, build new pipelines and sell oil, gas and coal to burn, trapping us all under heat domes that aren’t just unbearable, but lethal.

Why haven’t we moved away from burning fossil fuels?

Because fossil fuel corporations have used their resources to block necessary climate action at every turn.

accuracy. opinionS

The industry itself predicted global warming with uncanny

Decades ago, the fossil fuel industry documented a sophisticated scientific understanding and predicted with uncanny accuracy how the globe would heat. Next, its leaders developed a multipronged effort to undermine the scientific data they themselves had uncovered, so they could stymie policies that would reduce the use of fossil fuels. Part of that campaign was a sustained effort to frame climate change as a matter of individual actions (like recycling or turning off the tap while brushing your teeth) instead of structural policy change.

Rather than investing in solutions, these corporations spent billions of dollars on the systems that have enabled them to continue to frack, mine, extract and, most important, pull in constant, breathtaking profits — even while the

iplanet got hotter and hotter. This included investing in policymakers and politicians, from state houses to the halls of Congress to the Supreme Court, as well as universities. Today, legislation that would — and should — enable us to invest in clean-energy solutions is routinely quashed because of the powerful sway of the fossil fuel industry. Its profits are valued over our very lives.

So where do we go from here?

Simply put, to the streets: to the state houses, to Congress, to the ballot box. And we need to do it together. Amid a summer that is already one of the five hottest ever, we need to wield our collective power as voters, as citizens, as consumers. We need millions of people to stand up to those billions of dollars. We need to demand the kind of big, systemic changes that are our only hope to slow the pace of change and give us a chance to survive. Because, make no mistake, we have the means to change course on this path of destruction. Just as humans created coal-powered trains and oil furnaces, we have invented clean-energy solutions such as solar-, wind- and water-powered electricity.

But we need to demand this change.

That’s why I’m joining other people of faith and climate activists from all over at the ongoing Summer of Heat protests, which take place outside the headquarters of the major financial institutions in Manhattan. If we can persuade the executives of these institutions how much we care about this, and manage to cut off funding to the fossil fuel industry, we will be taking a huge step toward dismantling that industry.

People of all backgrounds need to show up with spiritual audacity, educating, energizing and mobilizing our communities to act. When people realize that generations to come may face ever more devastating disasters — droughts, fires, floods, famines — they need the inspiration to turn despair into action.

Bottom line? If we want to beat the heat, we need to keep fossil fuels in the ground, unburned. Which means challenging the fossil fuel industry with moves to cut off funding from banks, asset managers and financial firms.

I think of the quote from Deuteronomy: “It is not beyond us in heaven.” Indeed, humans can make a new future. We have the capacity. We have the science, the resources, the people and the power. It is in our hands and in our hearts, and we can do it. We must.

Lauren Krueger is the co-leader of the Nassau County Dayenu Circle. She lives in Merrick.

Momalas for Kamala, a thread to unite us

n a world where news breaks instantly on our phones, cracking the world open in an instant, behold the weekly newspaper, the tortoise of the news business. As I write, I realize it’s not all bad to have time to think between 72-point headlines.

When I wrote last, almost a month ago, President Biden was still the presumptive Democratic nominee, although there was plenty of chatter about his slow walk and whispery talk. He was adamant: He would not step down. He was ready to fight. Many of us who think Biden has done an outstanding job in office came to believe he was not up to another four years. He looked frail. He appeared to overestimate his ability, at age 81, to meet the demands of the job. It felt disloyal to urge him to make way for a younger contender, but loyalty to our democracy had to come first. I celebrated his willingness to relinquish power, wished it had come sooner, but we had a potential new candidate.

Three weeks ago, Kamala Harris was (and still is) the vice president, and at that point her own presidential dreams were on hold. Donald Trump was salivating like a lion at the Roman Forum, waiting to take on Biden in the next debate. After the president’s shockingly poor performance in the first one, the Donald was closing in for the kill.

J.D. Vance? Barely a twinkle in Trump’s eye a month ago. He’s the guy who wrote “Hillbilly Elegy.” Suddenly he morphed into a mega-MAGA, with extreme, creepy ideas about women’s rights and personal freedoms. Trump thought Vance would make a perfect addition to the ticket.

That was July 13. Then, curtains up on the Republican National Convention, just days after the attempted assassination, with a buoyant Trump telling the world he was still standing.

i hope all the disparate political identities will form a cohesive movement.

A few weeks back, Thomas Matthew Crooks was a shy kid from rural Pennsylvania who got it into his head to kill the former president. And he nearly did, grazing Trump’s ear as he stood at the podium at an outdoor rally. I saw it happen, and time stopped until Trump was hustled to safety. I lived through the years of JFK, MLK and RFK dying in heartbreaking eruptions of political violence. Those murders scarred the political landscape forever.

Those were enough big news items for five years, compressed and pounded under pressure into just days, until the whole country, burnished like a diamond, seemed brilliant and raw. You could hear us, an entire nation, sucking in deep calming breaths, trying to steady ourselves.

Then, on July 21, Biden announced that he was stepping out of the presidential campaign and endorsing Harris to be the Democratic nominee.

I’m writing this all down because after some amount of time, nobody will believe that it all happened just like this over the past few weeks.

Then the head of the Secret Service stepped down because of her agency’s failure to stop the assassination attempt.

Then a kind of organic political wave swelled out of nowhere, pushing people forward to support Harris in a tsunami of relief and joy. Black women for Kamala. White Dudes for Kamala. White

Women for Kamala.

That’s where I lost the thread. Aren’t we all supposed to be coming together as Americans to choose our president? Can’t we be Citizens for Kamala? Am I a Short Woman for Kamala or a CR-V Driver for Kamala or a Yasso Pop Fanatic for Kamala? We’re dividing and subdividing into micro cells.

Then that changed, too. I decided to embrace the political moment.

Momalas for Kamala is born. Momala is Harris’s nickname in her family, but it’s more than that. According to the Urban Dictionary, “A momala is a trusted guardian. Outside of the family, a momala is the mother of a neighborhood. In a village, she is mother and healer. In a state, she is the mother of health, knowledge and creativity. For a country, she is the mom of compassion and strength.”

We all have mothers or are mothers or value mothers. Momalas are us, men and women, young and old.

I hope all the disparate political identities will form a cohesive movement to elect Harris president. I hope Trump will summon the courage to meet her toe to toe in a debate. I hope the young voters in this country will shed their indifference and get into the fray.

Copyright 2024 Randi Kreiss. Randi can be reached at randik3@aol.com.

LAUREn KRUEGER

RAnDi KREiSS

On Friday, honor our Indigenous heritage

as we mark the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples on Friday, it’s crucial for us here on Long Island to reflect on the rich indigenous history that shapes our communities and landscapes. From the Shinnecock and Montaukett to the Unkechaug and Setauket, Native American tribes have been integral to Long Island’s story since long before European settlers arrived.

The names of our towns and landmarks echo this heritage: Montauk, Quogue, Peconic, Ronkonkoma, Hauppauge, Patchogue, and many more. These names aren’t just relics of the past, but living reminders of the peoples who stewarded this land for millennia. They represent a deep connection to the environment and a complex cultural tapestry that continues to influence our region today.

But we must also confront the painful history of exploitation and displacement that followed European settlement. The original inhabitants of Long Island, like indigenous peoples across the Americas, faced immense challenges as their lands were seized, their populations decimated by disease, and their cultures suppressed. The Shinnecock Nation, for instance, was engaged in a long struggle for federal recognition, and continues to make its case for the return of ancestral lands.

Despite these hardships, indigenous communities have shown remarkable resilience. The Shinnecock Nation continues to maintain its cultural practices

Letters

D’Esposito shouldn’t meddle in NYC’s business

To the Editor:

and advocate for its rights. The Unkechaug people, on the Poospatuck Reservation in Mastic, have preserved their language and traditions. These communities serve as a living link to Long Island’s past and as vital contributors to its present and future.

Nationally, Native Americans have made countless contributions to American society, often unrecognized. From agricultural techniques that feed millions to democratic principles that influenced the U.S. Constitution, indigenous knowledge and practices have shaped the nation in profound ways. Native American code talkers played a crucial role in World War II, using their languages to create unbreakable codes. In science, medicine, arts, and sports, indigenous Americans continue to excel and innovate.

Globally, indigenous peoples are at the forefront of environmental protection efforts. Their traditional knowledge and sustainable practices offer valuable insights for addressing climate change and preserving biodiversity. From the Amazon rainforest to the Arctic tundra, indigenous communities are often the most effective guardians of critical ecosystems.

As we commemorate this international day — which is followed in October by Indigenous Peoples’ Day, observed just in the United States — it’s essential to move beyond mere recognition to active support and engagement. On Long Island, we can:

1. Educate ourselves about local indige-

Imagine if residents of the five boroughs dumped tons of toxic wastes in the South Shore district represented by Congressman Anthony D’Esposito. Imagine further that a New York City politician loudly denounced a plan to protect the health of D’Esposito’s constituents.

The congressman would surely be outraged. So why does he support a permanent ban on congestion pricing in Lower Manhattan? (“Congestion pricing may be paused, but the fight continues,” July 25-31.)

Car commuters whom D’Esposito defends spew pollutants every day in the congestion-pricing zone. The fact that these tailpipe emissions are invisible does not make them less deadly than mounds of toxic garbage.

Studies suggest that 153,000 fewer cars would enter the zone once congestion pricing takes effect. And that will result in sharp decreases in nitrogen oxide emissions and particulate matter.

nous history and current issues facing Native communities.

2. Support indigenous-owned businesses and cultural events.

3. Advocate for the protection of sacred sites and the return of ancestral lands.

4. Incorporate indigenous perspectives in local decision-making, especially when it comes to environmental issues.

5. Promote the teaching of Native American history and cultures in our schools.

Recognizing indigenous peoples isn’t about dwelling in the past, but rather about creating a more inclusive and just future. It’s about acknowledging that the first inhabitants of this land have valuable knowledge, perspectives, and rights that deserve respect and consideration. As Long Islanders, we have a unique opportunity to honor the indigenous heritage that surrounds us daily. From the shores of Peconic Bay to the bluffs of Montauk, we walk in the footsteps of those who came before us. Let’s ensure that their stories, struggles and triumphs are not forgotten, but celebrated as an integral part of our shared history. This International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples, let’s commit to building stronger relationships with Native communities, supporting their rights and aspirations, and benefiting from their wisdom. In doing so, we enrich our own lives and communities while taking a step toward healing historical wounds and creating a more equitable society for all.

opinions Students learn history in English, too

my love of reading and history began when I was about 16. Enrolled in an Advanced Placement English class at my high school, I was blessed to have an amazing teacher who taught me how to make sense of the things I read, and consequently fostered my love of writing. It was around then that I began to develop an understanding of things I could never relate to, of experiences I could never begin to comprehend.

A book, or rather a memoir, that left a lasting impression on me was “Black Boy,” by Richard Wright, published in 1945. It depicts Wright’s upbringing in the South and his eventual move to Chicago, where he embarks on a writing career and becomes involved with the Communist Party of the United States.

It’s a difficult but impressive read that dives into Wright’s honest and poignant depiction of racism in the U.S. It pulls at your heartstrings as you read about the considerable distress that Wright experienced — physically, men-

tally and emotionally — throughout his early life.

The book was both critically acclaimed and strongly disliked. It has frequently ended up on banned-book lists in schools and libraries in a number of states, with those opposed to it arguing that its raw depiction of racism is worthy of censorship.

An early challenge to the book came in 1972 in Michigan, as parents claimed it was unsuitable for teens. A few years later, it was challenged by schools in Louisiana and Tennessee.

some subject matter should make us uncomfortable, but that’s OK.

It was one of the books that parents of students at Island Trees High School — right here on Long Island — wanted removed from the school’s library in 1975. They characterized “Black Boy” and 10 other books as “anti-American, anti-Christian, anti-Semitic, and just plain filthy.”

That, of course, eventually led to a landmark case in the Supreme Court, the first of its kind to consider the right to receive information in a library under the First Amendment. The court’s decision in 1982 was split, leaving the scope of the right unclear even today.

Across the U.S., there have been more

Letters

Levels of that latter type of pollution are now 60 percent higher in Manhattan than the upper limit recommended by the World Health Organization.

The congressman shows no respect for the New York City elected officials who decided, after years of debate and voluminous research reports, to impose a fee on drivers who poison the air breathed by Manhattan residents and workers.

D’Esposito should practice goodneighborliness by dropping his opposition to an initiative that will save many lives.

KEvIN J. KELLEY Atlantic Beach

We were honored to care for Rosemary King

To the Editor:

As the administrator for the Emergency Department at North Shore University Hospital, I would like to extend our heartfelt wishes to Rosemary King for a swift recovery following her recent surgery with Dr. Tamayo. Additionally, I want to express our deepest gratitude for the kind words her husband, former Congressman Peter King, shared in his column in the July 18-24 issue of the Herald, “In a medical emergency, we were in experts’ hands.”

frequent reports in recent years of books being removed from school shelves, many with content that revolves around race, sexual orientation and gender identity. In Florida alone in 2021 and 2022, school districts instituted 357 bans, according to PEN America, the organization that promotes free expression and protects writers and artists.

As a reader, and a huge supporter of public education, I find the subject of book bans tricky.

I think schools set appropriate standards for what students read throughout the course of their education. The content of books they’re assigned often corresponds well with what they’re learning in history classes, thus fostering a well-rounded understanding of a variety of subjects. By the time most students are in late middle school and high school, their brains are developed enough to understand themes, identify imagery and symbolism, and analyze and evaluate ideas they’ve found in texts. No matter how intense a book’s subject, a student should be able to not only make sense of it, but learn from it.

That’s the magic of reading.

When I think about books like “Black

Boy,” and why they’ve resonated with me all these years later, much of it has to do with comfort. Reading about the atrocities of our past is never easy. Simply put: Some subject matter should make us uncomfortable, but that’s OK. It’s through reading that we learn, and how can we ever learn if censorship runs rampant?

The New York State Legislature has fought book bans, introducing legislation that protects a child’s right to read. There have been no fewer than 13 book bans in four school districts, and the issue has played out in school board meetings and social media, even here on Long Island.

Understanding today’s societal and political landscape is tough, but the foundations of the past can help us make sense of it. As students and young people begin to navigate the complexities of society, it is crucial that their freedom to read, and to be exposed to diverse perspectives, is protected. It is only through understanding our past and confronting uncomfortable truths that we can move toward building a more inclusive, and more informed, future.

Jordan Vallone is a senior editor who writes for the Bellmore, Merrick and East Meadow Heralds. Comments? jvallone@ liherald.com.

Framework by Tim Baker

Our team was deeply moved by Mr. King’s account of his family’s experience.

LANDON WITz, MHA Senior manager, Operations Emergency Medicine North Shore University Hospital Manhasset

Jerry’s right: Project 2025 is a horror story

To the Editor:

Thanks to Jerry Kremer for his op-ed, “If you like horror stories, read Project 2025,” in the July 18-24 issue. I am so grateful when our local newspapers are able to bring national issues to the forefront. It’s so important to get this kind of information to local communities that are sometimes insulated within their own little world.

Project 2025 hasn’t received much attention until recently — despite the Heritage Foundation’s in-depth involvement in the Trump presidency and this year’s Trump campaign. It is so important that trusted local public servants sound the alarm on this extremely dangerous agenda, and that people are made to realize it is indeed very real.

ELIzABETH MURPHY Franklin Square

Three-on-three basketball draws all kinds of fans — Hempstead

JorDan VaLLone