East Meadow Herald

East Meadow

HERALD Artists thank their heroes

EMFD unveils new fire truck

Belmont Park delays racing

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Vol. 20 No. 17

APRIl 23 - 29, 2020

Even the sick are isolated Medical Center fellow seeks cellphones for Covid-19 patients stepped up to the plate to help all the first responders,” she said, adding that residents have When the coronavirus pan- donated homemade masks, demic began over a month ago, 3D-printed face shields and “an Sophie Weinberg didn’t antici- abundance of food every day.” pate treating Now, Weinberg patients. She has is looking for a been a child and way to support adolescent psychipatients who are atry fellow at Nasisolated during sau University treatment beMedical Center cause the hospital since October. cannot allow visiWeinberg, 31, t o r s. “ I t f e e l s joined the general almost impossible medical division for them to be — or was patients in the “deployed,” the hospital and not now commonly have their famiused term — on lies surrounding Monday. Health them,” she said. care workers in a patients SoPhIE WEINBERG at Many range of medical NUMC don’t fields are being Fellow, have cellphones, reassigned to gen- Nassau University and have no way e r a l m e d i c i n e Medical Center to contact their across the counloved ones, she try, she explained. added. And staff “It’s unprecemembers are trydented territory,” she said. ing to limit their exposure to “There’s no course on pandemic Covid-19 patients and less likely medicine in grad school.” to lend their phones.

The support she has seen Weinberg and her husband, from her neighbors throughout Yossi, who is also on the hospithe pandemic outweighed her tal’s medical staff, are collecting anxiety. “The community has really gotten together and Continued on page 3

By BRIAN STIEGlITZ bstieglitz@liherald.com

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Courtesy Instagram

ThE INSTAGRAM PAGE EMHSSeniors2020, created by seniors Alessandra Ippolito and Lexie Garbarini, gives students the ability to see which colleges their classmates are attending in the fall.

Honoring 2020 grads, virtually Students and staff lift one another’s spirits

By BRIAN STIEGlITZ bstieglitz@liherald.com

Each May, the guidance department at East Meadow High School pins a list of graduating seniors, and the colleges they plan to attend in the fall, to a bulletin board.

This is one of many traditions the class of 2020 may miss if schools in New York remain closed beyond May 15.

“It’s been hard for all of the seniors,” Alessandra Ippolito said of the coronavi-

rus pandemic. “The worst part is that we went to school for the last time and didn’t know it was our last time, and we don’t know if we’re ever going to be in a big group with the rest of our class again.”

Despite the uncertainty surrounding the remainder of the year, most students are already committed to colleges. And while there’s no bulletin board list, Ippolito said that she and her friend Lexie Garbarini wanted to create

their own. So they recently launched the Instagram page @EMHSSeniors2020, on which they have been posting photos of graduating seniors and their plans for the fall.

“I think the page really shows that we’ re going through the same thing, and we have to be strong for each other,” Ippolito said.

Some traditions, however, could not be recreated virtually. The members of each gradContinued on page 9

hey don’t have anyone to talk to during the day.

The doctors and nurses come in to treat them, but nobody is sitting bedside.

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April 23, 2020 — HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS

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HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS — April 23, 2020 Courtesy Stephanie Sparkowski

Stephanie SparkowSki iS looking forward to joining the women’s soccer team at the University of Michigan in the fall.

Seniors cope with Covid-19 cancellations uating class visit the district’s elementary schools and file through the hallways, waving to their old teachers and the current students. Garabini had looked forward to this since her freshman year.

Ippolito, meanwhile, is unsure whether to move forward with any prom plans.

“Most of us already bought our prom dresses and had our plans made up and everything,” she said. “It’s been frustrating to think about, because you want to start making deposits toward a bus, but you have no answers and nothing to base your decisions on.”

There was another layer of uncertainty for athletes until Tuesday, when Nassau and Suffolk counties announced the cancelation of the remainder of the spring sports season. Senior Stephanie Sparkowski said she was not only missing her final season on the girls’ lacrosse team, but also losing time she could have spent with the East Meadow Soccer Club, preparing for her college athletic career.

In the fall, Sparkowski will join the women’s soccer team at the University of Michigan.

“It has made me very anxious, because I would be putting in hours and hours to get ready,” she said. “I’m just trying to do as much as I can on my own.”

The soccer club has been hosting virtual meetings on Zoom, and Sparkowki’s coaches have sent her personalized workout routines she can do at home. Her lacrosse teammates have been videoconferencing once a week and sharing their home workouts on Instagram.

Ippolito and Garabini said that their teachers have been supportive and comforting through the adjustment to remote learning. “It helps everyone when the teachers are confident,” Ippolito said.

“I think all the teachers at our school have been very understanding and helpful,” Garabini added. “If you need anything, they’ll reach out and do their best to help you.”

The senior class officers are creating a

compilation video featuring classmates’ messages to one another. And on Monday, staff members at the high school shared with students a YouTube video they made, titled “EMHS, We Miss You!” in which Principal Richard Howard addressed the graduating class.

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“You came into this world during 9/11,” Howard told them. “Now you have to endure a time in history that we could never have imagined. You will be stronger for it, I promise you. Moving forward, we will do everything we can to make some positive memories for you.”

Let Your CommunitY Know!

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Online Business Directory

aleSSandra ippolito, near right, and Lexie Garbarini, seniors at East Meadow High School, recently launched the Instagram page @EMHSSeniors2020.

List your business’ status and find out information about other local businesses.

liherald.com/whatsopen Courtesy Alessandra Ippolito

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continued from front page

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Virtual Personalities

April 23, 2020 — HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS

By Lauren Lev The beauty and curse of the digital world is the ability to present yourself proudly for the entire world or chose to hide behind the internet and be whoever you want to be — real or imagined. It’s resulted in people who have found their calling as lifestyle influencers and it has created trollers and stalkers and haters too.

But I think that the one thing I didn’t see coming, when coming into an all-digital connections with the world outside my door, was that I would end up being many people, wearing all kinds of “hats” as the pandemic curve flattens.

The most unexpected, multi-personality role I have had to face has been with my students in three local universities.

Obviously, I have had to step up my game as an instructor to convert our classes from in-person to remote. But what I didn’t realize was how important it was going to be to express my concern in this chaotic moment — acting as a combination of cheerleader and house mother for my 75+ students.

Every day, in every digital way from email to live sessions, I have been reminding these young people that we are there to help them, we are there to guide them, we are there to support them and aid in their continued success. My voice catches as I speak to them, my writing is edited over and over until I can find just the right words and sentiment. At every moment, I don’t have all the answers, but I

promise I will try to find the person who does.

In return for my outreach, I get candid responses from students who are slowly recovering from the virus. Honest descriptions from the students who lost family members to Covid-19. Those who acknowledge they are overwhelmed from their day-to-day activities punctuated by sadness and grief. And I am so moved by those who are maintaining as much normalcy as they can in their personal lives including the student who wrote me that because he must drive his parent to work in the morning he will run “late” to our 8 a.m. virtual classroom.

Even as an advertising enthusiast and professional, I admit I am quickly growing tired of the marketing of brands during this crisis. I am irritated by the “We are all in this together” language being used to promote car companies and Internet providers alike. But then again, in this moment with a generation that has known the internet their entire lives, it is precisely this virtual connection that I must use to communicate we are all in this together and can rely on each other for encouragement and support.

A contributing writer to the Herald since 2012, Lauren Lev is an East Meadow resident and a direct marketing/advertising executive who teaches advertising and marketing communications courses at the Fashion Institute of Technology/SUNY, LIU Post and SUNY Old Westbury.

Crime watCh

Police investigate robbery at motel Police are investigating after an unknown man allegedlybed a 34-year old woman outside of the Pines Motor Lodge in Salisbury on April 18 around 10 a.m.

The woman was in the parking lot of the motel on Taylor Avenue when the man approached her and tried grabbing the bag she was carrying. When she resisted, detectives said, the man punched her in the face, took the bag and fled on foot toward Fulton Street. There were no injuries reported at the scene.

Police described the subject as a thin, black man in his 20s who was last seen wearing a black, hooded sweatshirt, black pants, black Nike sneakers and a black facemask.

Detectives request that anyone with information about the above robbery contact Nassau County Crime Stoppers at 1-800-244-TIPS or call 911. All callers will remain anonymous.

–Brian Stieglitz

East Meadow

HERALD HOW TO REACH US Our offices are located at 2 Endo Blvd. Garden City, NY 11530 and are open from 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., Monday through Friday.

MAIN PHONE: (516) 569-4000 ■ WEB SITE: www.liherald.com/eastmeadow

Turn-of-the-Century East Meadow Hotels The families operating small hotels in band did just that when the 66-year-old East Meadow in the 19th and early 20th Alsheimer succumbed to a brief illness in centuries tended to be immigrants from 1917. His estate was valued at $19,000, a Germany. Unlike most of East Meadow reasonable sum of money for the time. residents, who attended the Methodist Pauline lived until 1931.

Episcopal Church, these hoteliers attended The “Noon Inn” at Prospect and NewLutheran or Catholic churches. Politically, bridge (now East Meadow) Avenues was the men tended to associate with the Dem- one of the most popular meeting sites in ocratic Party, where most other locals were East Meadow. It was built approximately aligned with the Republican Party.

1836 by Sylvanus Bedell and subsequently Heinrich (Henry) Schultze, for example, owned by different families, most notably was the proprietor of the East Meadow John H. and Mary Noon, who operated the Hotel and also treasurer of the Third Dis- inn between 1848 and 1861. John Noon trict Democratic Association. Both politi- became a wealthy real estate investor in cal parties held meetings at the area. After operation by the East Meadow “town the Seaman and Glinsmann hall,” which was the old families, the property was schoolhouse that had been sold in 1883 to Heinrich moved to Mr. Schultz’s prop(Henry) and Lena Schultze. erty, the site of the current Henry Schultze was East Meadow Post Office. known as a “genial propriSchultze was on the church etor” of the East Meadow council of the German Hotel. Great celebrations Lutheran Epiphany Church were thrown at the hotel, of Hempstead. such as the 1904 birthday Henry Alsheimer came party for his 13-year-old from Baden, Germany in daughter Louisa that 1882. He and his wife Pauattracted “quite a number line became farmers at of villagers.” His hotel was Manhasset. The family r cott ckErS noted in newspapers: when moved to East Meadow and he erected a nice new fence became vegetable farmers or ran an auction of dry on Front Street. Henry’s goods, locals observed or son Edward owned a $23,000 estate there by attended. In 1902, some neighborhood 1930. From their farm, the Alsheimers boys vandalized Mr. Schultz’s farm wagon, transported goods by truck to New York which was left over night near the City and Brooklyn markets. This property Alsheimer property at Front Street. The is now East Meadow bowling alley and boys disassembled the wagon and put the connected establishments. Henry ran a wooden boards and wheels up a tree and in hotel on [North] Jerusalem Road from the cellar of a former house. A description approximately 1909 until his death. Hen- of this youthful prank and Mr. Schultz’s ry’s daughter Katie also lived in East angry response (“shaking his fist at perMeadow; his two other sons lived in near- sons imaginary and vowing that hereafter by communities. he would not leave a wagon on the roadEast Meadow was clearly a safe and side”) took up about three inches of newsorderly place most of the time but its paper space, which indicates there wasn’t hotels were occasionally the sites of nota- much news in East Meadow at the time. ble offenses. In November 1911, Henry was Schultz’s hotel made the newspapers again allegedly assaulted by one John Clark, who in December 1909 when a stranger who lived near Smithville South (North Bell- took a room for one night skipped out on more). Mr. Clark, a bartender, apparently the bill before breakfast, taking with him hit Mr. Alsheimer with a beer bottle, $35 from another room. After running the breaking his nose and causing a head East Meadow Hotel for nearly forty years, wound. Mr. Alsheimer claimed that he Schultze sold the property to Andrew and was “knocked... senseless” and “[left] for Elizabeth Hoeffner in 1914. He died three dead on the roadside.” After an inquiry, years later at age 77. the court set Mr. Clark free after he convinced a local judge that he acted in self- © Scott Eckers defense.

Apparently, Mr. Alsheimer pursued Mr. Dr. Scott Eckers is the author of East MeadClark, who took off from his hotel with six ow (in Arcadia Publishing’s Images of bottles of beer, and was getting ready to America series). He is a trustee on the East strike him first. Seemingly a jovial fellow, Meadow Board of Education and serves as Henry Alsheimer directed his friend Larry a teacher and administrator in a nearby Fitzgerald to hire a brass band to play live- school district. He is also an entertainer and ly music at his funeral. The twenty-piece recording artist.

a LOOK BaCK

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■ E-MAIl: Letters and other submissions: emeditor@liherald.com ■ EDITORIAl DEPARTMENT: Ext. 234 E-mail: emeditor@liherald.com Fax: (516) 569-4942 ■ SUBSCRIPTIONS: Press ”7” E-mail: circ@liherald.com Fax: (516) 569-4942 ■ ClASSIFIED ADVERTISING: Ext. 286 E-mail: ereynolds@liherald.com Fax: (516) 622-7460 ■ DISPlAY ADVERTISING: Ext. 249 E-mail: sales@liherald.com Fax: (516) 569-4643 The East Meadow Herald USPS 336580, is published every Thursday by Richner Communications, Inc., 2 Endo Blvd. Garden City, NY 11530. Periodicals postage paid at Garden City, NY 11530 and additional mailing offices. Postmaster send address changes to East Meadow Herald, 2 Endo Blvd. Garden City, NY 11530. Subscription rates: $36 for 1 year within Nassau County. Out of Nassau County: $58 for 1 year. Copyright © 2020 Richner Communications, Inc. All rights reserved.

Let us Know

News Brief items including awards, honors, promotions and other tidbits about local residents are welcome. Photographs may be emailed as well.

Deadline for submissions is noon Thursday, week prior to publication.

Send to bstieglitz@liherald.com

County exec: School tax collection delayed so are looking for financial relief.

Delaying school taxes, however, could have serious financial consequences Nassau County Executive Laura for the county, Curran said.

She explained the county must Curran announced Monday that, by order of Gov. Andrew Cuomo, the guarantee all school tax collections, school tax collection deadline has been meaning if the school districts come up short in their collecdelayed by three weeks. tions, then the county “At my request,” Curmust provide the funding ran, a Democrat from Baldto the districts — by law. win, tweeted Monday eveShe said the county is ning, “ [Governor Cuomo] hurting financially, as are is issuing an executive all municipalities, amid order that will push back the coronavirus pandemic. the May 11th property tax Sales and property tax colp ay m e n t d e a d l i n e fo r lections comprise 67 perschool districts in Nassau cent of the county’s more County. More details to than $3 billion budget. come soon.”

Sales taxes have plummetThe new deadline is during the outbreak, June 1.

Laura curraN ed starving the county of one Earlier in the day, the of its two primary revenue Republican-controlled Leg- County executive sources, Curran said. islature had voted to push She worries about counback the deadline to June ty employees, she said, and 10, but Curran contended the Legislature did not have the wants to ensure the county maintains authority to change the date, only the its force of first responders, including police officers and medics. governor.

The federal and state governments, Curran spoke at length on Saturday about the proposal before the County she said, must step in to ensure the county has enough cash on hand to Legislature to delay collection of school taxes that were to come due in meet its financial obligations, including to its employees, so it can continue May. to provide essential services.

Many residents have been laid off or have seen their hours reduced, and

HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS — April 23, 2020

By scott BriNtoN sbrinton@liherald.com

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t my request, [Governor Cuomo] is issuing an executive order.

Christina Daly/Herald

Nassau ExEcutivE Laura Curran said she worries that if school tax collections were delayed, the county might wind up paying the bill.

Covid-19 deaths decline over the weekend In Nassau County, new hospitalizations declined for the third straight day, as did ICU cases and intubations, County For the first time since the Covid-19 Executive Laura Curran said Saturday pandemic struck more than a month ago, afternoon.

New York state saw sharp declines in the On Sunday, Cuomo appeared alongnumber of overnight deaths because of side Northwell Health President and the coronavirus, and Gov. CEO Michael Dowling to Andrew Cuomo was expressannounce plans to undertake ing cautious optimism over widespread, random antithe weekend that the state body testing to determine was past the peak of the dismore precisely New York’s ease. actual infection rate.

He noted, however, that Overnight from Saturday relaxing social distancing into Sunday, 507 people died could lead to a second wave of the coronavirus in New of infection.

York, Cuomo said at NorthThe number of deaths well’s Feinstein Institutes for because of the coronavirus Medical Research in dropped a little more than 14 Manhasset. That represented percent across New York an 8 percent drop in the overstate overnight from Friday night death rate. into Saturday, from 630 to New hospitalizations also 540, Cuomo said Saturday declined, from 2,000 the day afternoon. before to 1,300, a 35 percent It was the smallest numdrop. ber of overnight deaths the Gov. aNdrEW And new intubations, state had seen in a day since cuoMo whereby people are placed on early April, and represented ventilators to enable them to a 32 percent decrease in the breath, were down also. overnight mortality rate from April 9, If those statistics hold, Cuomo said, when the number of deaths from one day “we are past the high point,” and all indito the next peaked at 799. cations are the infection rate is “on the Cuomo noted, however, that the state descent.” still saw 2,000 new hospitalizations overStill, he said, “Thirteen hundred is a night, which, he said, was troubling. lot of people coming into the hospital

By scott BriNtoN sbrinton@liherald.com

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e just pray to God [the infection rate] remains down on the other side … We still have a long way to go.

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Governor: Marinas can open New York, Connecticut and New Jersey are allowing marinas, boatyards and marine manufacturers to open for personal use, provided they adhere to social distancing protocols and sanitize their facilities, Governor Cuomo announced Saturday afternoon.

Chartered watercraft services or rentals will not be allowed, and restaurants at these sites will be limited to take-out or delivery.

system.”

State officials are taking a breather with the infection rate appearing to stabilize. Cuomo described the crisis “as a mountain that just kept building and building and building,” and he said, he had “no idea where the top of the mountain” was.

“We just pray to God,” he said, that the infection rate “remains down on the other side” of the mountain.

He also noted, “We still have a long way to go.”

The governor urged people to continue social distancing and practice sound hygiene. He worries that people will see the death and new hospitalization rates

“Throughout this pandemic, we’ve worked closely with our friends in neighboring states to implement a uniform regional approach to reducing the spread of the virus,” Cuomo said. “Aligning our polices in this area is another example of that strong partnership, and will help ensure there is no confusion or ‘state shopping’ when it comes to marinas and boatyards.”

–Scott Brinton declining, and then attempt to return to life as normal too soon. That, he said, would jeopardize the progress the state has made over the past 40 days in containing the virus.

In preparing for a reopening of New York’s economy, he said, the state needs greater testing, and it needs more federal funding. Cuomo estimated the state faces a $10 billion to $15 billion deficit. That money will have to be made up somehow.

Without federal funding, cuts are likely, he said, noting school districts across the state could see their state aid slashed by 50 percent in 2020-21 without federal assistance.

April 23, 2020 — HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS

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On the front lines with a Northwell ICU nurse

By Scott Brinton sbrinton@liherald.com

Each time a patient comes off a ventilator in the intensive care unit at North Shore University Hospital in Manhasset these days, the Beatles’ “Here Comes the Sun” plays over the loudspeaker, alerting all staff and patients that a life has been saved.

Elyse Isopo, an ICU nurse practitioner at North Shore, with 20 years experience, spoke of that moment during a 19-minute Facebook Live interview with Northwell Health video producer Rob Hoell on Thursday.

It is an important moment for all in the ICU, as staff members work around the clock battling the Covid-19 virus, which, Isopo said, is yet to let up in the ICU. People throughout the ICU erupt in cheers and clapping when that Beatles song sounds, Isopo said, noting, “We need those wins, because it keeps us going.”

The number of new hospitalizations across New York state, including in Nassau, appears to be declining, according to Gov. Andrew Cuomo and County Executive Laura Curran.

The number of ICU patients where Isopo is at, however, continues unabated, she said, “because people who are hospitalized are getting sicker.”

Working in the ICU, she said, “is scary, and real, and rewarding at the same time,” adding, “Everybody has been amazing. It feels like a family.”

Courtesy Northwell Health

northwell health icU nurse practitioner Elyse Isopo spoke with video producer Rob Hoell about what it’s like to battle Covid-19 on the front lines.

One of the hardest parts that patients must endure is the sense of isolation from their families, because visitors are not allowed into the hospital, Isopo said.

Patients receive iPads so they can connect with loved ones, but it is not the same as meeting face to face.

If a patient appears near death, only then is family allowed in, she said.

Isopo spoke of one recent case, a patient originally from Korea. The patient asked that Korean music be played in his

final moments, and so it was. “It was beautiful,” she said, “and we supported his dying process.”

Such images, however, can also be haunting. “I don’t sleep very well at night,” Isopo said.

She is married with children. Worried about potentially infecting her family, she is careful each night to remove her clothes and shoes and take a shower before entering her home. “After a long day,” she said, “it’s draining.”

Working in the ICU is tough, she said.

“It’s very challenging. It’s very difficult.

It’s very stressful,” she said. “Everybody is as critical as the next person and the next person.

“It looks like a MASH unit,” she continued. “It’s bed after bed after bed … You walk in there, and you’re in the trenches.”

Isopo said the community has come out in unexpected and welcome ways, showering the nurses and doctors with praise and parades and food. “Seeing everyone in the community looking at us like heroes is very overwhelming and very much appreciated,” she said.

She emphasized, though, that “I never thought of myself as a hero.” The first responders in the field, the police and firefighters, are the heroes, she said.

Isopo said she believes Northwell has provided adequate personal protective equipment to hospital workers throughout the crisis. At first, workers were limited to one N95 mask per week, but now receive a new one daily, she said. Many place surgical masks over their N95 masks as an extra layer of protection to keep fluids off them.

In addition to masks, all workers receive paper scrubs, goggles, face shields and gloves.

She ended by saying people should stay home to reduce the infection and hospitalization rates. “The more people stay home, that helps us,” she said.

For the full interview, see liherald.com.

Catholic Health Services taking part in clinical trials

By Jeff BeSSen jbessen@liherald.com

Catholic Health Services is taking part in two clinical trials designed to develop treatments for Covid-19.

A Mayo Clinic trial is using what is called convalescent plasma donated by recovered Covid-19 patents to treat individuals who continue to fight the coronavirus.

Convalescent plasma comprises parts of the blood of people who have had the virus and recovered.

The second study involves using the medication remdesivir, which was originally developed to treat the Ebola virus and has been successfully used for other coronaviruses, including Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome and Middle East Respiratory Syndrome.

The convalescent plasma study is being offered at CHS’s six hospitals. The remdesivir trial is taking place at St. Francis Hospital, The Heart Center® in Roslyn and at Good Samaritan Hospital Medical Center in West Islip, CHS officials said.

One 200 milliliters/6.8 ounces dose of the plasma has benefitted a portion of patients, according to the initial data. People who recover from Covid-19 do so, in part, because their blood contains antibodies that are able to fight the virus. Previous research of other viruses found that treating patients with plasma obtained from those who have recovered from the same virus leads to rapid improvement, CHS officials said.

Using remdesivir to treat COVID-19 follows limited testing in the United States, Canada, China and other countries that led to an improvement in the condition of some patients. The treatment regimen using remdesivir takes place over 10 days and includes a 200-milligram dose on the first day and a 100-milligram dose on days two to 10.

Herald file photo

catholic health ServiceS of Long Island, which includes Mercy Medical Center in Rockville Centre, above, is involved in two clinical trial seeking to develop a treatment for Covid-19.

“Catholic Health Services is excited to be on the front lines and participate in these clinical trials for Covid-19,” CHS Senior Vice President and Chief Quality Officer Dr. Jason Golbin, stated in a news release. “Our clinical teams have spent several weeks caring for Covid-19 patients. It means a great deal to everyone to take part in these two cutting-edge research efforts.”

Potential plasma donors must have a prior, verified diagnosis of Covid-19, but are now symptom-free and

fully recovered. Donors must also be at least 18 and weigh at least 110 pounds. The plasma can be administered only to a consenting Covid-19 patient or a patient whose family member offers consent. The treatment will be given to patients judged by a doctor to be at high risk of disease progression to severe or life-threatening.

To donate plasma and for more information on the two clinical trials, call Catholic Health Services at (855) 247-4500.

Cuomo extends N.Y. PAUSE to May 15 By scott Brinton sbrinton@liherald.com

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ew York PAUSE has worked, [but] we’re not there yet.

couple can now marry by video in new York state On Saturday, Governor Cuomo issued a directive allowing marriages to be performed via videoconference to help reduce the infection rate amid the coronavirus crisis.

Among other conditions, the order requires the following be met:

are present in the New York state jurisdiction where the marriage is to take place.

■ The couple to be wed must present valid photo ID during the videoconference.

Local town and city clerks may provide further guidance.

If a couple’s marriage license has or will expire during the Covid19 pandemic, the state is waiving the 60-day waiting period to obtain a new license. It is also waiving all fees to obtain a second marriage license.

■ The town or city clerk, the witness(es), the person to solemnize the marriage, and the couple must interact with one another. No pre-recorded ceremonies are allowed.

■ The couple must affirm that they

■ The couple must send a legible copy of the signed marriage document by fax or email to the town or city clerk, the witnesses, and the person to solemnize the marriage on the same date it was signed.

–Scott Brinton

State releases data on nursing home deaths

By James Bernstein jbernstein@liherald.com

The New York State Department of Health released a list of 22 nursing homes on Long Island, including homes in Long Beach, Glen Cove and Lynbrook, where residents have died from the coronavirus epidemic. The state said its list included only deaths that took place inside a facility or location where five people or more have died.

State health officials said 22 residents at the Long Beach Nursing and Rehabilitation Center had died of the virus; eight at the Glen Cove Center for Nursing and Rehabilitation, and six at the Lynbrook Restorative and Therapy Nursing facility.

Across the state, a total of 1,135 nursing home or assisted living center deaths at 72 facilities, officials said. The Health Department lists say 128 deaths took place at a total of 11 nursing homes in all of Nassau County.

The Health Department released the list after numerous complaints from the families of residents at the facilities, legislators and members of the media.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo was asked repeatedly at his daily briefings about the coronavirus illness at nursing homes and assisted living facilities in the state.

The governor had said the figures were being compiled.

Cuomo ordered nursing homes to i m m e d i at e ly i n fo r m re l at ive s o f patients who test positive.

Herald file photo

the state health Department reported 22 cases of Covid-19 deaths at the Long Beach Nursing and Rehabilitation Center.

Administrators at the nursing homes in Long Beach, Glen Cove and Lynbrook have not released information about Covid-19 cases. But most all facilities have listed on their websites that they are sanitizing all areas within the

homes, maintaining social distancing among staff members, and noting that they are closed to outsiders, to protect the health of patients.

Relatives have not been allowed to visit patients at the facilities, and many

told media outlets they had been unable to reach patients by phone.

Administrators at the Long Beach, Glen Cove and Lynbrook facilities did not return calls seeking comment.

HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS — April 23, 2020

lion of them are workers.

New York on PAUSE — Policies Assure Uniform Safety for Everyone — Gov. Andrew Cuomo last Thursday has kept the infection and hospitalizaextended New York on PAUSE, a 10-point tion rates to manageable levels, the govplan that shuts down “non-essential” ernor indicated. “We slowed the infecbusinesses and schools and requires tion rate by our actions, and that’s why social distancing, through May 15. The we’re in a better position today,” he said. announcement came during Wi d e s p r e a d t e s t i n g , his daily briefing, when he including antibody blood also continued to lay out his sampling, is needed to better vision to reopen the economy track the infection rate and — and the challenges doing assure people that they are so will present. safe when returning to their Previously, New York on workplaces. Cuomo said the PAUSE was to end April 30. state would conduct 3,000 “New York PAUSE has random antibody tests in the worked,” Cuomo said, but he coming weeks. noted, “we’re not there yet,” Last Wednesday, Cuomo referring to the reduction in said he would like to see the Gov. andrew the Covid-19 infection rate economy reopen in phases, needed to allow all people to cuomo in close coordination with retur n to work and ease six other states — Delaware, social distancing requireConnecticut, Massachusetts, ments.

New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Rhode The governor said the state does not Island. yet fully know what the infection rate is.

He asked on Thursday that employers To date, more than 500,000 people have begin to consider whether their workers been tested in New York, more than Cali- can continue to telecommute when their fornia, Florida and Michigan combined, workplaces reopen, as well as think Cuomo said. That figure, however, repre- about the configuration of their worksents a fraction of the state’s population spaces. How far apart might desks be — 19 million people live here, and 9 mil- spread apart, for example?

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April 23, 2020 — HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS

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Senator freed from prison amid pandemic

By Jill nossa jnossa@liherald.com

Former State Sen. Dean Skelos of Rockville Centre has tested positive for Covid-19 and will serve the remainder of his prison term at home, according to court papers filed last Wednesday.

Skelos, 72, was reportedly in quarantine at the federal prison in Otisville, according to documents filed in federal court in Manhattan by Southern District prosecutors, and has been symptom-free since April 8.

Prosecutors said that medical authorities at the prison have cleared his release. The U.S. Bureau of Prisons said Skelos is expected to be approved for furlough and home confinement once the U.S. Probation Department has approved his proposed residence. A release date had not been set as of press time Monday.

L a t e l a s t m o n t h , S ke l o s

requested early release, citing fear of contracting the virus after another inmate tested positive. The motion, filed under seal, was opposed by federal prosecutors in papers filed publicly, saying that an application for release must first be filed with the U.S. Bureau of Prisons, which can better assess his health situation. His medical condition was not made public at that point.

Skelos has more than two years left on his 51-month sentence for extortion, wire fraud and bribery.

Skelos was convicted in July 2018 of using his political power to secure roughly $300,000 in jobs and fees for his son Adam, also of Rockville Centre. They were each convicted on eight counts of conspiracy, extortion, and bribery.

Adam Skelos was sentenced to four years in prison.

Herald file photo

former state sen. Majority Leader Dean Skelos of Rockville Centre has tested positive for Covid-19 and is expected to be released early to home confinement.

Trump lawyer, Lawrence native, to be released from prison

By Jeff Bessen jbessen@liherald.com

Michael Cohen, a Lawrence native and former personal attorney for President Donald Trump, who was convicted of several felonies and sentenced to three years in prison in 2018, will be released because of the coronavirus pandemic after a 14-day quarantine period, prison officials said. He will serve the remainder of his sentence confined to home.

He was serving his sentence and expected to be released in November 2021 from federal prison in upstate Otisville, where 14 inmates and seven staff members at the facility tested positive for Covid-19, as of press time. A federal judge had previously rejected Cohen’s request for a sentence reduction because of coronavirus on March 24.

Cohen was found guilty of breaking campaign finance laws, tax evasion and lying to Congress, among other charges in 2018. He was also ordered to pay $1.39 million in restitution, forfeit $500,000 and pay a $50,000 fine. The guilty pleas to the federal felony charges resulted in his disbarment as a lawyer in New York state.

Serving as Trump’s personal attorney, Cohen, 53, arranged sixfigure payments to a por n star known as Stormy Daniels, whose

Jeff Bessen/Herald

lawrence native michael Cohen who was serving three years in prison on multiple federal charges will be released because of the coronavirus outbreak.

Above, testifying before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform last year. real name is Stephanie Clifford, and former Playboy model Karen McDougal, to buy their silence about their one-time affairs with the president.

Cohen testified multiple times in front of Congressional commit-

tees on Capitol Hill last year, including the public hearing before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, before which he famously called his former boss a racist and a cheat, and admitted,” I am a fool.”

News brief Long Island Trauma Recovery Network to provide free therapy The Long Island Trauma Recovery Network will provide free therapy to health care workers, first responders, essential employees, their families, and those whose loved ones are facing or have died from the coronavirus.

All services will be provided remotely by trained and licensed eye movement desensitization and reprocessing therapists. Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing is a form of psychotherapy in which a trauma patient is asked to recall a distressing image. It has been proven to help address the trauma symptoms that medical professionals and first responders face.

The Long Island EDMR Trauma Network will offer the Integrative Group Treatment Protocol, which provides individual EDMR therapy in a group setting. The program is administered to groups of people who have experienced the same type of trauma or who share a major life challenge.

There will be several groups weekly, and some individual appointments are available.

For more information, email LongIslandTrauma@gmail.com and contact Cathy Menzies, LCSWR Trauma Recovery Coordinator at (631) 466 - 7053 to register.

–Melissa Koenig

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HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS — April 23, 2020 Courtesy MSSN

Mount Sinai South Nassau hospital officials said there has been a flattening of the curve in coronavirus cases, however, the community must still be vigilant in practicing social distancing.

Courtesy Sophie Weinberg

EaSt MEadow rESidEntS Sophie Weinberg and her husband, Yossi, treat Covid-19 patients at Nassau University Medical Center. They are collecting cellphones, tablets, iPads and other smart devices, with chargers, for those who are otherwise unable to connect with family and friends.

E. Meadow couple are treating Covid-19 patients continued from front page cellphones, tablets, iPads and other smart devices, with chargers.

“I think it would be amazing to lend them a phone and let them FaceTime their families for a couple hours when they’re lonely,” she said. “They don’t have anyone to talk to during the day. The doctors and nurses come in to treat them, but nobody is sitting bedside … everybody here wants to spend more time with their patients.”

For three years until last fall, Weinberg was a psychiatry resident at Maimonides Medical Center in Brooklyn. She earned a medical degree from Technion American Medical School in Haifa, Israel. While there she met Yossi, who is now also treating Covid-19 patients at NUMC. The couple moved to East Meadow two years ago, when Yossi began working as a surgical resident at the hospital. Several weeks ago he was reassigned to the general medical division to treat Covid-19 patients in intensive care.

Asked how she and her husband are coping, Weinberg said, “We have a 10-month-old baby at home . . . seeing the joy in his eyes every day gets us both through it.”

The Weinbergs’ schedules at NUMC change regularly. “We work as a team to juggle work and child care week to week,” Sophie said. When neither of them can be home, they send their child to Big Chief School and Camp in East Meadow.

Big Chief offers day care throughout the year, and when businesses were ordered closed by Governor Cuomo, its owner, Luanne Picinich, decided to remain open only for the children of

with no visitors, they need phones East Meadow resident Sophia Weinberg is a child and adolescent psychiatry fellow at Nassau University Medical Center who was recently reassigned to the hospital’s general medical division to treat Covid-19 patients. These patients are in isolation, because the hospital is not allowing visitors, and Weinberg has seen many without cellphones.

To help them connect with their loved ones, Sophia and her husband, Yossi, are collecting cellphones, tablets, iPads and other smart devices, with chargers. To donate, email them at theweinbergsmd@gmail.com.

essential workers. “[She] allowed us to continue caring for patients,” Weinberg said. “I don’t know what we would do without her.”

Recalling her first day of redeployment last Monday, Weinberg said she owed a debt of gratitude to her fellow staff members and medical team. Despite the anxiety, she said, “it was also a very meaningful experience to be able to be a part of solution to this worldwide pandemic.”

To donate a device to NUMC patients, email Weinberg at theweinbergsmd@ gmail.com.

MSSN sees coronavirus curve flattening

By Briana Bonfiglio bbonfiglio@liherald.com

The curve of Covid-19 cases at Mount Sinai South Nassau in Oceanside is flattening, according to Joe Calderone, the hospital’s vice president of corporate communications.

As of Friday, the hospital had 290 patients being treated for Covid-19, down from 383 on April 13, which hospital officials said they believe was the peak.

“The good news is the number has been steadily flattening,” Calderone said.

“The social distancing that people are doing, as difficult as it is, is definitely producing results. We are really urging people to not let up.”

Of those patients, 64 were on ventilators. MSSN has more than 100 ventilators available. In addition, Calderone assured that the facility has enough personal protective equipment, or PPE, for all hospital staff.

“We purchased some [ventilators] ourselves and were able to get some through Mount Sinai Health System,” Calderone explained. “Our partnership with them has been incredibly helpful through this pandemic, supporting both in a clinical standpoint in terms of new drugs being tested and plasma therapy. They also have a very good, robust supply chain operation.”

As of Friday, the hospital had 238 Covid-19 deaths, while 357 patients who were previously diagnosed with the virus were treated and discharged. When cases began to climb last month, Department of Medicine Chairman Dr. Aaron Glatt spoke of the importance of social distancing during a Facebook Live session at the hospital.

“I want to stress the single most important thing that everybody can do is really understand what social distancing means,” he said at the time. “That’s the

buzzword of 2020. That will be the word of the year.”

One month later, Calderone urged residents to continue to heed that advice, even as the numbers continue to improve.

While the toll the virus has taken is unprecedented and beyond what most hospital workers have ever seen, Calderone noted that there is still much they are grateful for. The hospital has received food donations from more than 50 local businesses.

“Many have come forward and funded food for the staff,” he said, “which is really helpful because they’re working 16-hour days and barely have time to take a break. This way, [the food] is readily available and they don’t have to think about it.

“But really, it’s not about the food,” he added. “It’s the message that it sends to the staff that people on the outside recognize what’s happening inside this hospital and the incredible challenge the front-line workers have faced during this pandemic, putting themselves and families at risk to care for often critically ill Covid patients.

It sends a great morale boost.”

Nurses at Mount Sinai South Nassau hospital are also spreading positivity with their “message board of hope,” which they debuted in the hospital lobby last week.

Nurses Teresa Ebehart, Angelica Hoyos and Christine Doud handcrafted the board, which displays the number of Covid-19-positive patients that have been discharged from the hospital, and how many coronavirus patients have been taken off ventilators at the facility.

As each patient is discharged from MSSN, “Here Comes the Sun” is played as the board is updated. Each time a patient is taken off of a ventilator, the staff plays “Breath.”

Mike Smollins contributed to this story.

April 23, 2020 — HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS

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What’s neWs in and out of the classroom

Herald ScHoolS

Photos courtesy East Meadow School District

A W.T. ClArke High School art student created the above poster to thank the heroes of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Art students thank health care workers Art students throughout the East Meadow School District created posters and signs to thank health care workers who are on the front lines of the Covid-19 pandemic. Students have been displaying their work on front doors, in windows and outside of their homes.

“We are all so grateful to the emergency care workers

and community members who are on the front lines during the pandemic,” said Director of Art and Music Kelly Gelfer. “The East Meadow Art Department would like to say thank you for all they are doing during this difficult time.”

–Brian Stieglitz

The Above posTer was also created by an art student at W.T. Clarke High School as a tribute to health care workers.

Above is A poster created by an elementary school student in the East Meadow School District as a thank-you to the health care workers who are the frontlines of the Covid-19 pandemic.

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HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS — April 23, 2020

GET ANSWERS YOU CAN TRUST WITHOUT LEAVING HOME. With so many questions about COVID-19, it’s hard to know where to turn for answers you can trust.

If you or a loved one is feeling sick, use Mount Sinai NOW to access all of our virtual care options.

TM

MOUNTSINAI.ORG/NOW

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All of us, throughout New York City, Long Island and the entire tri-state area, are here for you.

County property tax payments may be extended

By BRIAN STIEGLITZ bstieglitz@liherald.com

The Nassau County Legislature passed an emergency resolution on April 20 to extend the deadline for residents and businesses to pay property taxes from May 11 to June 10. The motion was approved on Monday with a unanimous 19-0 vote and sent to County Executive Laura Curran for approval or veto.

Under current law, residents and businesses that pay their property taxes after May 11 are hit with an extra interest payment and, if they pay after May 31, they must also pay penalties. The emergency resolution would remove both interest and penalties, while granting an additional 30 days to pay.

Last week, members of the legislature’s majority joined with Supervisors Donald Clavin, of the Town of Hempstead, and Joseph Saladino of the Town of Oyster Bay, to ask Governor Andrew Cuomo to extend the deadline statewide. As of Monday, the governor had not responded to the request. By delaying the interest and penalties, the county can accomplish the same result without state action.

“Officials at every level of government should be looking for ways to ease crushing financial burdens on residents and businesses as they struggle to deal with the impacts of the Covid-19 outbreak,” said Presiding Officer Richard Nicolello “With thousands of residents out of work and many businesses shuttered or having their operations drastically reduced, this extension will provide additional time to pay their property taxes without being hit with interest and penalties.”

Herald File Photo

ThE NASSAu CouNTy Legislature passed an emergency resolution on April 20 to extend the deadline for residents and businesses to pay property taxes from May 11 to June 10.

JOIN US AS WE SALUTE

COVID-19

HOMETOWN

HEROES APRIL 30

NOW THERE’S AN EASY WAY FOR YOU TO SUPPORT OUR LOCAL HEROES Donate at www.liherald.com/heroes Every dollar donated will be used to provide food & other goods to doctors, nurses, patients and other frontline essential workers in the local community. All food & items will be purchased from locally owned and operated businesses so we can support our business community, too Look for the HERALD HEROES special edition in your mailbox April 30 The Herald and Richner Communications family thank our amazing heroes!

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April 23, 2020 — HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS

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TO MAKE A DONATION PLEASE VISIT WWW.LIHERALD.COM/HEROES

We thank you

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While many of us have stayed at home to protect our families and loved ones, our health care workers, first responders and others on the front lines wake up each day and leave their families and loved ones behind to respond to those in need. In their selfless devotion to others, these courageous individuals expose themselves to risk for the people in our communities.

These are people who stand out in times of crises. They might first responders going above and beyond or even a good neighbor helping another neighbor in need.

The Herald joins our communities and readers in expressing our gratitude to these special people making a difference during this trying time. We are all thankful to our police officers, firefighters, mail carriers, grocery employees, restaurant

REGISTER FROM APRIL 1ST TO MAY 31ST animalleague.org/sitstaywalk

Take A Walk And Save Lives

Participate in North Shore Animal League America’s virtual walk for a chance to do something positive and active, while raising crucial funds for homeless animals that need your support now more than ever. Walkers can participate anytime, from anywhere.

REMEMBER: Be safe and practice social distancing along the way.

Register Today! With $20 registration fee receive: Pet Bandana

Let us hear from you!

Fun Contests and Activities

REGISTER TODAY: animalleague.org/sitstaywalk events@animalleague.org 516-373-3235

We want to know what you think.

Send your letters to 2 Endo Blvd., Garden City, NY 11530 or email bstieglitz@liherald.com

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#GetYourRescueOn® Rescue Tag

workers, delivery drivers and essential service providers who put themselves on the front lines of the crisis daily.

We will share these outstanding stories of our local “hometown heroes” in a special pull-out section,” Salute to Covid-19 Hometown Heroes,” in the April 30 editions of the Herald. The spirit and heart of Long Island are exemplified every day by the many outstanding individuals who often go unrecognized. The Herald honors them in this inspirational section. Get to know these amazing people who share their insights in their own words.

Net proceeds from this special section will be used to partner with local businesses to provide meals and gifts to our local health care workers, first responders and patients.

Questions we’ve been asked...

Leo F.

KEARNS , Inc. Funeral Directors

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The latest Medical regulations now permit individuals to set aside a portion of their assets in an irrevocable trust account in order to have funds for future funeral expenses.

Thomas L. Kearns When an individual approaches the time when Medicaid coverage seems likely, social workers generally advise families to look into this funeral pre-funding option.

Here’s how we can help: • The Family will make an appointment with us to discuss just what we are to do when the death occurs.

• We discuss options and record their wishes not just about preferred funeral home services but cemetery, church, monument inscription, newspaper notices, etc., as well.

• We inform the family of exactly what the funeral home and third party costs are at the present time.

• Funds to cover those expenses can then deposited in our FDIC insured PRE- PLAN Trust. The Trust pays sufficient interest to allow us to guaranty those future funeral home costs into the future • While the funds remain in the name of the individual going on Medicaid, eligibility to receive Medicaid coverage is not affected.

If we can help you with this important matter, call us and our knowledgeable staff will answer your questions. Moreover, there is no cost involved in establishing a PRE-PLAN Trust

Thomas L. Kearns, Patrick J. Kearns, Paul C. Kearns-Stanley

(516) 794-0500 or 1-800-640-9500 (NYS)

445 East Meadow Ave., East Meadow (across from the East Meadow Post Office)

www.LEOFKEARNS.com

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My mother may soon be applying for medicaid.

How does this affect funeral arrangements?

Every life matters to us …

Dear neighbor:

We live and work in this community. The lives of each and every one of you is important to us and we are here to tell your stories — from beginning to end. That includes the final chapter. At this difficult time, I want to remind you that obituaries in all Herald Community Newspapers are, and have always been, completely free.

COVID-19 has taken far too many, far to soon. Let us help you commemorate the life of your loved one with a story and photo celebrating their life. Contact our Executive Editor Scott Brinton, sbrinton@liherald.com or call 516-569-4000, ext 203, if you would like to memorialize a loved one in the Herald, regardless of their cause of death.

Stuart Richner Publisher srichner@liherald.com 1087105

HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS — April 23, 2020

Herald Community Newspapers salutes our ‘hometown heroes’

$500,000 IN GRANTS AVAILABLE NOW TO LOCAL BUSINESSES

SMALL BUSINESS MARKETING GRANT

Apply for your share of the $500,000 marketing grant available to assist locally owned businesses.

STUART RICHNER Publisher Herald Community Newspapers

“Small businesses are the lifeblood of our communities. We are a small business ourselves, so we understand the pain that small business owners are going through right now. We at the Herald want to do our part to make sure that members of our small business community can continue to promote themselves during this trying period.”

Herald Team

WHO For all locally owned and operated small businesses on Long Island that have been negatively impacted by coronavirus.

WHAT A $500,000 grant program to support local small businesses. Each local business is eligible to receive up to $15,000 of matching grant funds, which can be used for Herald Community Newspapers print, digital and direct mail products in April through July 15, 2020.

WHERE Apply at www.liherald.com/grant.

WHEN Applications will be accepted until April 30, 2020 or until maximum grant funding has been distributed. Businesses will be contacted within two business days of submitting their application.

WHY Studies show that businesses that continue to market themselves during down times are the ones that fare the best long-term. This grant program will allow Long Island small businesses to continue promoting themselves and any new services they are offering during these unprecedented times.

ADDITIONAL DETAILS: • Every dollar that a grant recipient spends on marketing in Herald products will be matched with a dollar of grant funding, up to the award amount, to be applied towards marketing costs.

• Businesses must be locally owned and operated.

• Grants range from $300 to $15,000.

• Grants can be applied to any Herald Community Newspaper marketing product or service during April through July 15, 2020.

• Grants applied to direct mail products are net of postage/mailing costs.

RHONDA GLICKMAN VP Sales

LORI BERGER Sales Manager

rglickman@liherald.com

lberger@liherald.com

ELLEN REYNOLDS Sales Manager

AMY AMATO Executive Director

ereynolds@liherald.com

aamato@liherald.com

COURTNEY MYERS Media Consultant cmyers@liherald.com

For more information call Rhonda at 516.569.4000 ext. 250

APPLY TODAY AT

WWW.LIHERALD.COM/GRANT

A Special Collaboration With The Chamber of Commerce of the Bellmores

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April 23, 2020 — HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS

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Photos courtesy Bill VanLee

ThE wANTAGh FIRE Department responded to a call for downed live wires on Dover Road in Wantagh on April 9. The department determined that the downed wire was related to harsh weather conditions.

Courtesy NCDOH

E.M. among the county’s Fire department responds to live wire hardest hit by Covid-19

By BRIAN STIEGLITZ bstieglitz@liherald.com

East Meadow remains among the hardest hit neighborhoods in Nassau County by the Covid-19 strain of coronavirus, with 682 confirmed positive cases as of April 20, according to county Department of Health records. Of the more than 130 communities in Nassau County, East Meadow is the eighth-hardest hit.

The statistics come from the county Department of Health’s interactive Covid19 map, which tracks the number of confirmed cases by neighborhood. East Meadow’s cases are labeled separately from Salisbury, its neighbor and the community with which it shares a school district, which only has 168 cases.

East Meadow’s toll includes inmates in the Nassau County Correctional Center, but not patients at Nassau University Medical Center. A spokesperson from the hospital said that its statistics could not be given out in accordance with patient confidentiality.

The map does not include cases pending confirmation by the New York State Department of Health.

The news comes as the state reports a total of 229,642 positive Covid-19 cases in the state as of April 17, with 28,539 cases confirmed in Nassau County since the outbreak began in early March.

While the New York State on Pause restrictions and closures have been extended to May 15, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced recently that there were signs that the number of new coronavirus cases was leveling off, and that talks had begun to reopen the economies of New York and neighboring states initially shut down to slow the spread of infection.

“New York believes we have reached a plateau” of new coronavirus cases, Cuomo said last week. “This is relatively good news in a world of bad options.” But he urged residents to continue practicing social distancing.

In addition to New York, the states reportedly involved in the talks are Connecticut, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Rhode Island.

State Senator Kevin Thomas had been working to assist residents and those on the front lines with Covid-19 relief efforts.

Last month, he launched the Community Information & Resource Guide to provide residents with accurate, up-to-date information on the pandemic and government actions taken at state, local, and federal levels.

The guide is continuously updated and includes a range of topics, including testing information, guidance for seniors, school meal availability, loan guidance and resources for small businesses, employment protection assistance and volunteer opportunities. It can be accessed at nysenate.gov/coronavirusresources.

He partnered with The Cotillion Restaurant to provide a food truck to medical personnel and hospital staff at Nassau University Medical Center on April 2.

And, on April 14, he partnered with the Federation of American Indian Relief and the Muslim Community of New York to donate 500 N95 face masks to Nassau University Medical Center.

Senator Thomas and FAIR Chairman Imran Pasha delivered the masks to Dr. Anthony Boutin, NUMC president and chief executive officer, last Tuesday morning.

“It’s incredibly inspiring to see our community come together to support one another in times of need,” Thomas said.

“I want to thank Federation of American Indian Relief and the Muslim Community of New York for their amazing efforts in securing these masks, and thank all of our health care workers who are out there fighting a difficult battle for us. We are here to support you in every way that we can.”

Scott Brinton contributed to this story

A call for downed wires on Dover Road in Wantagh came through to the Wantagh Fire Department dispatch team on Thursday, April 9.

Minutes later, at 2:40 p.m., Chief of Department Ken Kelly arrived at the scene.

He reported downed wires draped across a fence and a shed between two houses. This caused a power outage in the immediate area. First Assistant Chief Tom Bloomfield, along with Engines 1, 3 and 8 arrived soon thereafter, along with Ladder 1.

Engine 1 hooked up to a hydrant, and the crew stretched a hose line and stood by until the power was cut.

Chief Kelly requested PSEG Long Island to respond to shut down the power line in order to extinguish the fire. According to the fire department, PSEG was at the scene to cut the power to the live wires in about 45 minutes. All units were on scene for approximately an hour and no injuries were reported.

The department attributed the cause of the downed wires to heavy rain and high winds.

ThE wANTAGh FIRE Department responded to a call for downed live wires on Dover Road in Wantagh on April 9.

Police: Dead body found near Mullener Pond in North Merrick A man was found dead off the Meadowbrook State Parkway in North Merrick last Saturday afternoon, according to a New York state police release.

Officials discovered the body near Mullener Pond shortly after noon on April 18. The subject was identified as 30-year-old Jhony Alvarado, of Hempstead.

The investigation is being conducted by the State Police Bureau of Criminal

Investigation and the Nassau County Medical Examiner’s Office. Officials said there does not appear to be any foul play involved.

More details will be released on the New York State Police Newsroom website, the release read. Anyone with information is asked to call State Police at (631) 756-3300.

— Compiled by Alyssa Seidman

HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS — April 23, 2020

EAST MEAdow REMAINS among the hardest hit neighborhoods in Nassau County by the Covid-19 strain of coronavirus, with 682 confirmed positive cases as of April 20.

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April 23, 2020 — HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS

EAST MEADOW FIRE DEPARTMENT

Photos courtesy John J. O’Brien Sr.

The officerS and members of East Meadow Fire Department’s Hook & Ladder Company #1 recently received a new 2020 Pierce Heavy Rescue truck.

EMFD accepts new Heavy Rescue 616

By John J. o’Brien Sr. jobrien@eastmeadowfd.com

On April 19, 2020, the officers and members of East Meadow Fire Department’s Hook & Ladder Company #1, proudly accepted delivery of their new 2020 Pierce Heavy Rescue truck.

The fruits of diligent financial planning by the Board of Fire Commissioners, and the 18 months worth of work by a committee of Hook & Ladder Company members, the rig will move us into the newest phases of technology for heavy rescue emergencies.

Boasting a DD13 Detroit Diesel engine, an Allison transmission, the latest in TAK-4 suspension offering an unprecedented turning radius and superior road handling for a massive 10’ 5” height and 37’11” length, the rig looks ready for any emergency.

Its striking blue and gold reflective trim was designed by the committee to display the colors of our community, a right fitting of Hook & Ladder Co # 1, the first East Meadow Fire Company formed on April 3, 1930.

Its interior is designed to comfortably

aBove iS a look inside the new truck and its apparatus. carry 10 Ladder 1 firefighters to any alarm putting their safety first with an array of air bags, and mandated seat belt system.

Equipped with a “Jacobs” brake, the new 616 will see a reduction in wear-andtear of its brakes, saving money and reducing mechanical down time, with

Public Notices

LEME1 0423

LEGAL NOTICE Notice is hereby given that an order granted by the Supreme Court, Nassau County, on the 5th day of March, 2020, bearing Index Number 20-000216, a copy of which may be examined at the office of the clerk, located at 240 Old Country Road, Mineola, New York grants me the

right to assume the name of Logan James Helming.

The city and state of my present address are East Meadow, NY the month and year of my birth are April, 2002; the place of my birth is Mineola, NY; my present name is Logan James DeSantis-Helming.

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Search for notices online at: www.mypublicnotices.com

LEGAL NOTICE Notice is hereby given that an order granted by the Supreme Court, Nassau County, on the 5th day of March, 2020, bearing Index Number 20/000217, a copy of which may be examined at the office of the clerk, located at 240 Old Country Road, Mineola, New York grants me the

right to assume the name of Payson John Helming.

The city and state of my present address are East Meadow, NY the month and year of my birth are April, 2003; the place of my birth is Mineola,NY; my present name is Payson John DeSantisHelming.

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To Place A Notice Call 516-569-4000 x232

braking system technology that far surpasses the system on the retired 616.

But the latest technology doesn’t stop with the fire truck features.

The new 616 is packed with the latest innovations in rescue equipment, that will make the difference at that critical call.

With total of nearly 300,000 lumens of portable and on-board lighting this truck can light up the largest of areas.

Its new line of Hurst “E Draulics” battery operated extrication spreaders (Jaws of Life), cutters, and ram spread bars, will offer superior power and speed of operation, while reducing set up time at a major vehicle accident by as much as 80% with the elimination of a power unit start up, making connections, or deploying hydraulic hose lines.

The new rig has a full array of power saws, handsaws, and specialized man versus machine equipment for deployment at nearly any type of emergency where cutting, prying, pulling, or spreading is need-

ed to save a life.

Scene lighting on the new rig, many with capacities of nearly 20,000 lumens each can be illuminated at the flip of a switch, all drastically reducing setup time, enabling the driver to play an integral role in the actual extrication four to five minutes sooner.

Ready for nearly any heavy rescue, the new rig also boasts a complete set of heavy lift air bags capable of lifting up to 65 tons from its largest bag.

Although set up for rescues, the new 616 is also carefully planned to double as a Ladder Company fire truck with a full compliment of ground ladders, forcible entry tools, breathing air, and pike poles frequently used for fires.

It will carry more than 50 spare breathing air cylinders necessary for extended fire operations meeting the needs of our high rise building fire operating procedures.

The rig also carries a small array of hazardous materials equipment such as gas detection equipment, spill containment, and encapsulating suits.

Replacing the old 616, a faithful unit for more than 25 years, the new rig will be expected to give a timeframe of service equal to the old.

Congratulations to Chief James Walsh, Captain John O’Brien III, and the members of Hook & Ladder Company 1 on your new equipment. A special thanks to the Board of Fire Commissioners, and the Hook & Ladder 1 truck design committee, Chairman Ex Chief John O’Brien Sr., Ex Chief Keith J. Hoffman, Ex Captain Richard S. Malik and Ex Captain John L. Bohl.

John J. O’Brien is an active Ex Chief of the East Meadow Fire Department. He is the District Supervisor of the Jericho Fire District and has over 40 years of Dispatch and Supervisory experience.

Nassau County is child care desert: official

HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS — April 23, 2020

By TimoThy DenTon tdenton@liherald.com

Much of Nassau County is a child care desert, resulting in billions in lost revenue, according to a study released on Friday by Nassau County Comptroller Jack Schnirman.

The lockdown due to the Covid-19 virus has highlighted the issue, showing that many Nassau County families depend on schools to provide daycare for their older children. Care for younger children, however, has always been a challenge for many families.

“Nassau County is a patchwork, varying widely from district to district,” Schnirman wrote in the study. “Despite nearly $9 billion in public school tax levies, only 10 percent of 4-year-olds have access to publicly funded pre-K programs, compared to universal access in New York City,” Schnirman wrote in the report.

Both Seaford and Wantagh are considered child care deserts — any census tract where more than 50 children are without providers, or where providers are so scarce that they are able to serve less than one-third of the total need, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

More than 60 percent of New York State is considered a child care desert.

Nassau County has a total of about 43,650 pre-K places, where more than 138,000 are needed, the study found, with minority and low-income families having the least access to pre-K programs.

Averaging more than $15,000 per year, infant care represents about 12 percent of a median family’s income of $116,300. For a family earning $52,400, or 200 percent of the official federal poverty level for a family of four, infant care for one child represents nearly 29 percent of the family’s pretax income.

According to the Census Bureau, “c=Child care is critical. It either propels or stalls the local economy.”

Locally, “child care has one of the highest economic multipliers, with a return of $1.95 for every dollar invested,” Schnirman wrote.

Of those who work part-time, lack of child care is

Herald file photo

nassau CounTy shows a wide disparity in access to affordable child care. the most commonly cited reason for not accepting fulltime work. Women make up 94 percent of the involuntary part-time workforce, due to child care concerns, Schnirman wrote, and 46 percent of Nassau County

families have no reliable child care.

Child care is an $800 million industry on Long Island, employing roughly 9,000 workers.

Belmont Park delays horseracing season The opening of the Belmont Park’s spring-summer horseracing season will be delayed because of the Covid19 pandemic from April 24 to June 6, when the 152nd running of the Belmont Stakes is to take place, said New York Racing Association officials last week.

The date of the Belmont Stakes is subject to change, however.

“The Belmont Stakes is a New York institution and American tradition,” NYRA CEO and President Dave O’Rourke said. “We are committed to running the race in 2020 and aim to deliver an announcement in the very near future.”

The racing season normally runs 51 days.

“We are working closely with the New York State Gaming Commission and public health officials to determine a timeline for the resumption of live racing at Belmont Park,” O’Rourke said. “The

17

health and safety of our racing community is paramount, and any decisions or necessary adjustments to the racing schedule and operations must reflect that priority. I’d like to thank New York’s horsemen and the backstretch community for their dedication and patience as we navigate these uncertain times together.”

The Belmont backstretch, which is home to 585 workers who tend to the essential daily care of the more than 1,300 thoroughbreds stabled there, has remained open to the horses’ caregivers and operational for training. Owners are not permitted access to the backstretch until further notice.

NYRA posted coronavirusrelated signs in English and Spanish across the backstretch, noting key information about social distancing and hand washing, and a hotline to call for workers feeling the onset of symptoms.

Herald file photo

BelmonT Park’s sPring/summer meet will not open April 24 as originally scheduled.

HERALD

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Every effort is made to insure the accuracy of your ad. Please check your ad at the first insertion. Credit will be made only for the first insertion. Credit given for errors in ads is limited to the printed space involved. Publisher reserves right to reject, cancel or correctly classify and ad.

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Computer proficiency is a must!

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Qualified candidates should sent cover letter and resume to rglickman@liherald.com

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DISPATCH WANTED

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OFFICE HELP WANTED FULL TIME

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Richner Communications, one of the fastest growing media, event and communications companies on Long Island is seeking a Sales/Marketing candidate to sell our digital, events, sponsorships and print media products.

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Will consider part time.

Please send cover letter and resume with salary requirements to rglickman@liherald.com PARKING ENFORCEMENT OFFICER: PT, Various Shifts, Retiree's Welcome.

Duties Include: Patrols Throughout The Village, Issuance Code Violations Citations.

Qualifications: HS Graduate Or Equivalent, Valid Driver's License With A Satisfactory Driving Record. Willing To Work Evenings, Weekends, Holidays & Inclement Weather.

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© 2018 Century 21 Real Estate LLC. All rights reserved. CENTURY 21® and the CENTURY 21 Logo are registered service marks owned by Century 21 Real Estate LLC. Century 21 Real Estate LLC fully supports the principles of the Fair Housing Act and the Equal Opportunity Act. Each office is independently owned and operated. It is your responsibility to ensure that the marketing materials you choose or create are compliant with real estate and other local laws in your area.

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April 23, 2020 — HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS

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*If your property is currently listed with another brokerage, please disregard. It is not our intention to solicit the listings of other brokerages.

One phone call, one order, one heck of a good price to run your ad in any state, or across the country.

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things can become so complicated? On one hand, your mother simply changed her mind and didn’t have the porch built, and on the other hand, the building department simply wants paperwork from you that seems simple enough to get but isn’t that easy.

I’m concerned that none of the children was given authority to act on your mother’s behalf, and you should seek an attorney to resolve the matters of her estate. As for the voiding of the permit, building departments are run by human beings with a heart, and you should write a letter so there’s a document on record explaining the situation. Sign it in front of a notary, and arrange to meet with a senior official before having more discussions with the building inspector.

The premises will still need inspecting, to verify the work was never done. To prove the home has no more issues with permits required, to satisfy the bank and the buyer, a new building department search sheet should be requested, showing no open permits. The biggest problem is time, and this isn’t a real situation. In most cases it’s a made-up bank or buyer timeline, because your closing is dependent on another closing, and so on and so on.

Because the search and a site review weren’t done early in the sales process, and because most people don’t really believe you need a permit to make changes to a home, great sleepless stress sets in and everyone is pointing fingers. It’s not unusual to get calls from people who need an ambulance architect — you know, the ones with the rotating light on the roof of their car and the siren blaring as they race to your home to start the process of satisfying the bank, their lawyers, etc. We see it all the time, and it’s avoidable if the seller calls an architect to check the home code compliance against recorded permit plans well before the sale has begun. Good luck.

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Q. My mother was admitted to a Florida nursing home and we have to sell her house. She has Alzheimer’s and is incapable of communicating. Our attorney had a title company prepare a report, and the title search showed that there’s an open permit for a porch, which my mom never had done for financial reasons, from about 10 years ago.

When my brother and I, separately, called the building department and asked about it, we were told different things about canceling the unused permit. One person said to call a building inspector and have onte eeper them cancel it, but then I heard that I have to get my mother to write a letter saying she didn’t do the porch, and have it notarized. She isn’t able to understand or sign her name, and never gave us power of attorney to take care of things for her before her illness.

What can we do?

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HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS — April 23, 2020

Is the permit valid, or not?

19

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HErald

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April 23, 2020 — HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS

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Answers

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21

opinions

s the nation emerges from the coronavirus lockdown and begins to return to a semblance of normalcy, many of our cherished institutions will face some harsh realities. Nowhere will this dose of reality be starker than for America’s colleges and universities.

While our public school system will go through some wrenching times as it comes back to life, K-12 parents and students will not face the prospect of crushing debt and soaring costs that have been inflicted on consumers of Alfonse higher education. d’AMAto College students, in contrast, will return to campuses not only having missed most of a semester of classes; they will also struggle with exorbitantly high costs that will financially burden many of them for the rest of their lives.

How did we come to this sad turn of events, in which college degrees that should create a pathway to opportunity and prosperity instead present a long road of debt and possible financial ruin? Today, tuition and costs at some private colleges hovers in the range of $50,000 to $70,000

M

per year. College grads carry debt that can run from tens of thousands of dollars for undergraduate degrees to over $100,000 for post-graduate degrees. As they struggle to cover this debt, buying a home often becomes a distant dream. Even buying a new car often gives way to making the monthly college debt payment.

Total college student debt today exceeds $1.5 trillion.

With the added burden of the current financial crisis, much of this debt is unsupportable. Student loan defaults on a large scale are likely unavoidable. And while the just-passed national financial rescue legislation provides some relief by postponing debt payment and interest for a time, the overall financial burden will remain.

Predictably, some in Washington are calling for forgiving much, if not all, college debt. But like the other emergency financial measures passed by Congress, such relief couldn’t go on indefinitely.

Future college students will continue to face high costs and mountainous loans.

The cycle of debt and default will continue to loom on the financial horizon.

The leaders of our higher education system have a moral obligation to break this vicious cycle. Just as the Federal Reserve system has taken extraordinary

C

measures to shore up the nation’s finances, colleges and universities should also take emergency action to ease the financial burden on their students. College administrators shouldn’t cry hardship and shirk from this responsibility.

Nationwide, colleges are sitting on endowments of well over half a trillion dollars, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. They should seriously consider making these funds available to students to help pay down their current loans and reduce future tuition costs. If the Fed can tap into the national treasury for “quantitative easing” to lessen strains on our national economy, higher education treasuries can likewise tap into their great wealth to help ease their students’ money crisis.

And going forward, it’s long past time for colleges and universities to get real about not just containing, but lowering their stratospheric spending. Too many campuses have become islands of extravagance and excess amid a sea of hardship in their surrounding communities. In just one glaring example here in New York, a college president makes $5.1 million a year, 35 times what the school’s professors make, on average, and equal to the tuitions of 99 students, according to the Chronicle

an’t colleges use their vast endowments to help students pay down debt?

of Higher Education. Yet the community in which the school is located is one of New York’s poorest, with finances so precarious that it hovers near bankruptcy. In that town, as in so many others, the college is literally the shining, distant fortress on the hill with the surrounding town languishing below.

This college, and others like it, should take a hard look at themselves. Every expense should be examined, every bit of excess wrung out. The goal should be to reduce tuition and keep costs manageable over students’ academic careers.

In the future, public policy in Washington and Albany must be to stop rewarding higher education’s financial excesses and incentivize affordability instead. Federal and state aid should increase only for schools that bring their costs down. That means fewer top-heavy college administrators tripping over each other, more professors teaching more than only 10 or 12 hours a week, and fewer extravagant campus building sprees.

When students return to college this fall, they’ll return to a world changed by nature and hard times. If colleges want students to succeed, it’s time for them to lead.

Al D’Amato, a former U.S. senator from New York, is the founder of Park Strategies LLC, a public policy and business development firm. Comments about this column?

ADAmato@liherald.com.

A loving tribute to my irreplaceable elders

y aunt Sylvia Gentile Brownstein died April 11 in a nursing home in New Jersey, of Covid-19. She was 97 years old, and lived in a room at the facility with her husband of 74 years, Murray Brownstein. He was my mother’s older brother.

The last time I saw him was seven years ago, when I visited him in Florida, and he insisted we go to a pub nearby because they were serving free ice cream to World War II veterans. A proud Navy vet who lied about his age to get into the service when he was 16, Uncle MurRAndi ray served on a kReiss minesweeper in the Pacific.

Aunt Sylvia died alone, because Uncle Murray had become sick and unable to comfort her.

Before the pandemic, which precluded visitors, they were cared for by their daughter, my cousin, who has shepherded them through these last difficult years.

But only the ending was sad.

Murray met Sylvia in Brooklyn just after the war. He fell in love, and defied

his Jewish family by marrying an Italian Catholic girl. Smart guy. She was a gem, loving and mildly crazy, so she fit right in, seeing as how everyone in our anxious, highly emotive clan is a notch off plumb.

When I was a kid, Aunt Syl and Uncle Murray lived in Valley Stream and we lived in Cedarhurst, so the visits were frequent. Murray was a Garment District wheeler and dealer who won big and lost big over the years. Aunt Sylvia was a homemaker extraordinaire.

She cleaned that house until it sparkled, every single day. And she was an outstanding cook. Her specialty was Italian food, and an invitation to their table was a gift.

When she hosted Thanksgiving, the meal started with homemade minestrone, and was followed by eggplant parmesan, spaghetti and meatballs and veal cutlet parmesan. I don’t recall seeing anything green, as in a string bean, on the table.

The last entry was the turkey, an afterthought, a gesture to the new world, fully dressed but largely ignored because we were all so stuffed from the Italian feast.

I confess, I didn’t know Aunt Sylvia as

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a woman. I have no idea what her dreams or joys or disappointments were. I do know she raised her kid sister, Madelaine, when their mother died very young. Madelaine joined Murray and Sylvia’s family, big sister to their own two kids.

I wish I had gotten to know Aunt Syl better, but in those days, people kept to their roles: She was the elder aunt and I was the young niece. Uncle Murray was difficult, but she would never talk about anything as personal as her marriage. She had a twin sister, Anna, and I suspect that that was her most emotionally intimate relationship.

They had a brother, too, Johnny, who went to the Naval Academy and was the pride of the family.

Every Christmas of my childhood, we went to Aunt Syl and Uncle Murray’s for an event that was part celebration and part child abuse. As dinner drew to a close, we would hear someone stomping up the basement steps and the loud jingling of bells. Eight little kids immediately dived under the dinner table and began screaming, which sent the adults into fits of laughter. Not normal, right?

ndelible memories of holidays and birthdays with Aunt Syl and Uncle Murray.

The stomping came closer, our screaming got louder, and suddenly Santa burst through the basement door. We kids were traumatized. He was a terror in his wild white wig and garish Santa mask. None of us noticed that Uncle Murray had disappeared from the dinner table some time earlier. This intruder was the Santa from hell, and we were scared out of our socks.

The elders, however, were greatly entertained, and so this became a cherished tradition, and we did it every year. I think I was finishing my junior year in college when I realized that Uncle Murray was Santa Claus.

All of our childhood birthdays were occasions for big parties. Aunt Syl and the other aunts and uncles would raise a glass or three, and before long the women were dancing on the table and the men were telling stories about the war and the old Brooklyn neighborhood. It was a rich experience for a little kid who was all eyes and ears.

I don’t know if Aunt Syl was a religious woman, but wherever she went, she wasn’t alone for long. The day after she passed, Uncle Murray died. He was 98.

Copyright 2020 Randi Kreiss. Randi can be reached at randik3@aol.com.

HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS — April 23, 2020

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For American higher education, it’s time to lead

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Herald editorial

East Meadow

April 23, 2020 — HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS

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Small businesses need more federal help

et’s not mince words: The federal government’s Paycheck Protection Program, which was supposed to hurry loans to small businesses so they can make payroll and stay afloat, has been troubled from the start.

With $349 billion in its coffers, the program, administered by the Small Business Administration, ran out of money last Thursday, leaving tens of millions of employers in the lurch, wondering whether they will be able to meet payroll at a time when so many small businesses are limping along because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Small businesses are the lifeblood of Main Street America, employing 48 percent of our national workforce. In total, there are 28 million small businesses across the U.S., according to Forbes. They desperately need — and deserve — better, particularly in the hardest-hit regions like the Northeast.

According to a CBS News analysis of SBA and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data, New York, which has by far the greatest number of cases of Covid-19 of any state, was fourth on the list of states to receive PPP loans. Meanwhile, businesses in Texas received more such loans than any other state, even though the Lone Star State has the 10th-largest Covid-19 caseload

in the U.S. Apparently, Texas processed loans faster than New York, as the money went from the federal government to banks on a firstcome, first-served basis, creating a race for funding. But that was unfair, because in places where need was greatest, like New York, businesses were struggling most to run their daily operations, and so were hamstrung in their ability to file for loans.

The federal government should have set a date by which all loan applications were due, and then divided the money thereafter based on need.

At the same time, some very big businesses received loans under the program.

The owner of the Ruth’s Chris Steak House chain nabbed a $20 million loan, despite having more than 5,000 employees and $468 million in revenue last year. The PPP was supposed to have been limited to businesses with fewer than 500 employees, but Congress included an exception for hotels and restaurants.

Most big-name chains did not apply for PPP loans, but others, including Potbelly, Kura Sushi and Shake Shack, did. (Shake Shack announced Sunday night that it would return its $10 million loan, citing confusion over the program’s regulations and

saying that other businesses needed the money more than it did.)

There were other problems with the program. Big banks, for example, lent money to their own customers first, and then to others. Many required borrowers to already have an established line of credit with the bank to receive a PPP loan. The thing is, this was a federal government program, and no loan applicant should have received preferential treatment.

At press time, Congress was negotiating a $310 billion extension of the program, which would bring the total expenditure to $649 billion. One Forbes analysis, however, estimated the PPP really needs as much as $850 billion to fully fund all of the small businesses now in dire need.

We commend Congress for making money available to small businesses quickly. Sadly, however, the program has become another of many political footballs amid the coronavirus crisis. What’s lacking is national leadership. President Trump and Congress should be united in their desire to aid small businesses — now, not later.

If the federal government doesn’t act fast, with one voice, our downtowns could soon become ghost towns, and that would be terrible for us all.

Thanks for all you’ve done, Governor Cuomo

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e have offered high praise to our first responders and medical workers on the front lines of the coronavirus pandemic, and no doubt, they deserve every bit of it. Check out our story this week on Elyse Isopo, a North Shore University Hospital Intensive Care Unit nurse practitioner. Her determination to save lives is evident in her every word, and her fear of spreading Covid-19 to her family at her home is palpable.

Good people like her are truly heroes.

We must also acknowledge a hero of a different sort: Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who, despite finding himself in the center of this unfolding international disaster, has provided levelheaded, science-based leadership that has served as a model for governors across the U.S. Cuomo quickly realized the magnitude of the pandemic and acted decisively, without political rancor. For the most part, he has been careful not to mix up it with President Trump, despite repeated the president’s repeated goading.

letters The hypocrisy of stimulus checks To the Editor: All conservatives and Republicans across the country should return their federal relief checks so they do not become “unproductive, lazy welfare recipients” who are accepting “government handouts” and “something for nothing” — “parasites” who are being “subsidized” by the federal government.

It would be hypocritical for conservatives and Republicans to accept help from the federal government when they constantly oppose such assistance for the middle and lower classes who truly need it, and whom they look down their noses at. Now, many of them are in the shoes of those in need.

Our allies in Western Europe and Canada have federal governments that do more to help their people than ours does.

To quote Al Pacino in “And Justice for All”: “I have now concluded

Cuomo has not used this crisis to further his own brand. Rather, he has acted in the best interests of all New Yorkers, and this week we are seeing the results of his actions. The Covid-19 death toll is, as predicted, beginning to drop, as are the new hospitalization rate, the ICU admissions rate and the number of new ventilator intubations.

Governor, thank you. We will surely need your steady guiding hand in the weeks, months and years ahead as New York recovers from this unexpected catastrophe.

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oPinions

rime Minister Winston Churchill offered those words as he led Great Britain during World War II, when citizens became accustomed to nightly bombings by the Nazis. We are in the midst of a different kind of war, against an invisible enemy known as Covid-19. And when people ask me when this grim period is going to end, unfortunately, the answer is that we don’t know.

But as we in the Town of Hempstead continue to follow federal and state mitigation measures, such as social distancing, Don we appear to be CLaVin “flattening the curve.” By staying at home, you are doing your part to fight the spread of this virus. Those who have “essential” jobs, however, do not have that option. Indeed, those people are integral to winning the war on the coronavirus.

Please be mindful of the rules and stay safe. At Town Hall, we have implemented a social media campaign urging residents

to practice social distancing and proper handwashing, and to wear masks and gloves. We are also providing information on sanitizing techniques. We proactively closed facilities to the public, including town offices and certain parks and public gathering spots. I’ve been working daily with my Town Board colleagues and our Coronavirus Task Force, led by Town Medical Director Dr. Dave Neubert, to make decisions that best promote public health.

We’re also in constant contact with village officials, coordinating best practices and monitoring updates from state and local health officials.

Rest assured, our dedicated CSEA Local 880 team of coworkers are working hard every day to serve residents and provide essential services safely. The town Building Department is still accepting paperwork via a drop box at Town Hall, sanitation workers are continuing to pick up garbage throughout our township, and many other departments are conducting day-to-day business on behalf of our residents. We encourage neighbors to contact the town via our

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hurchill’s words ring true for Town of Hempstead residents in a difficult time.

Letters my opening statement.”

STEWART B. EPSTEIN Rochester, N.Y. Epstein is a retired college professor who lived in North Bellmore from 1960 to 1972. He graduated from Mepham High School in 1968 and Hofstra University in 1972.

It’s a good time for bird watching To the Editor: Why not bequeath a lifelong appreciation for bird watching to the next generation? We teach our children wood shop, pottery and contemptible games like dodgeball, but bird watching can give them a greater appreciation for our threatened environment.

I’ve done the math, and it would only cost each taxpayer $10 to send every sixth-grader to the Cor nell School of Ornithology for two weeks.

There, eminent cultural historians and acclaimed or nitholo gists would instruct them on bird-centric environmental discrimination and inculcate a profound respect and admiration for the avian world. When you consider the frivolities our town spends money on, this would be money well spent.

Now well into my retirement, I still derive tremendous satisfaction from spotting the odd hummingbird on my afternoon walk. There is a comforting

public hotline, (516) 812-3600, to set up phone appointments with some of our departments. Other departments can be accessed via email. Please visit hempsteadtownny.gov for updates and how you can connect to town services. You can also call our Helpline, (516) 489-6000, from 9 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. Monday through Friday for assistance.

We are doing everything in our power to make life a little easier for residents of America’s largest township during this difficult time.

We waived all late fees and penalties for town water customers, and we’ve called on New York state to extend the second-half school tax payment deadline by 30 days, to June 11. And in preparation for getting people back to work in the near future, the town adopted a $40 million economic stimulus plan to undertake road improvements across our communities.

I encourage you to join us for our series of Facebook Live sessions. Along with Dr. Neubert, a certified Emergency Department physician, and Councilman Anthony D’Esposito, a former fire chief

HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS — April 23, 2020

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‘Nourish your hopes, but do not overlook realities’

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and NYPD detective, we answer many of your questions and concerns about Covid-19. Our next session is scheduled for Friday at 2 p.m. Please check our Facebook page, @HempsteadTown, for ished i realitie future Facebook Live sessions and for be star town updates.

I thank all of our first responders as univer Wh well the front-line workers in the fields of health care, law enforcement, government, media, public transportation, grocery, pharmacy, postal, delivery, food service and so many more. I also commend Dr. Dave Neubert and the town’s emergency management team for their continued work and dedication to the town work force, as well as to our residents.

And I offer my condolences to all of the families who have lost loved ones during this pandemic. Let’s keep them all in our thoughts as we continue to do our part to stop the spread.

Working together, we will continue to loosen the grip of Covid-19, from both a health and economic perspective. Please es not o semest be safe and healthy, and know that the Town of Hempstead is here for you dur- with ex financi ing this challenging time. rest of How Don Clavin is the Town of Hempstead events, supervisor. should and pr of debt tuition hovers

Framework by Christina Daly

sense of accomplishment in knowing that you can see what others cannot.

Why deprive the next generation of this feeling of intellectual triumph?

The beauty of birds is all around us, and once you learn more about them, your experiences with nature become so much richer. During this lockdown, I have noticed our ecosystem responding positively to reduced human inference, and more exotic birds flying out and about. What joy.

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and liv her hu stein. H The las ago, wh

ALWYN STANHOPE Bellmore

MTA ‘lock box’ isn’t really locked To the Editor: Governor Cuomo recently included in the approved state budget a provision that amends the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s $15 billion Congestion Toll Mitigation Revenue “lock box.”

This provision was originally included to ensure that all proceeds would be used to help fund the MTA’s $51 billion 2020-24 Five-Year Capital Plan. Now these funds can instead be used against any future deficits in the MTA’s annual $17 billion operating expense budget.

Language buried in the state budget also allows $10 billion in real estate mansion and internet sales tax revenue to be used for operations rather

At Sagamore Hill, one captivating reason to get out of the house — Oyster Bay

than capital expenses. Combined, these total $25 billion of the $51 billion Capital Plan funding.

Cuomo has become the great train robber of capital transit funding. He has taken billions of this funding. His picture should be hung on a wanted poster at commuter and subway stations. Commuters can collect their reward by not electing him to

another term in 2022.

died al becom LARRY PENNER Before Great Neck visitor Penner is a transportation historian, writer daught ed them and advocate who worked for the Federal But Transit Administration Region 2 New York Mur Office for 31 years. after th

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April 23, 2020 — HERALD COMMUNITY NEWSPAPERS

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