HERALD east meadow Understanding the election with the LWV
ENL students socialize and learn new, American traditions
By JoSEPH D’AlESSANDRo jdalessandro@liherald.com
W.T. Clarke Middle School celebrated Thanksgiving one day early last week, hosting an event catered for students learning English as a new language on Nov. 27.
Throughout the day, groups of students gathered at the school’s Home and Careers classroom during their lunch periods. The school’s English as a New Language instructors took the opportunity to explain one of America’s oldest traditions to the students before school was closed for Thanksgiving recess.
Principal Elizabeth Dowling oversaw the holiday program.
“This is our annual mini-Thanksgiving celebration for our English language learners of all different countries,” Dowling said.
“We’re introducing them to this wonderful American holiday tradition and allowing them to experience different foods that we serve on Thanksgiving Day.”
The East Meadow school district hosts students from countries around the world, such as China, Ecuador, and Honduras. At W.T. Clarke Middle School, the ENL holiday program began about 10 years ago.
“They thought it would be a nice way to introduce them to such an important AmeriContinued on page 2
By CHARlES SHAW cshaw@liherald.com
At the Nov. 20 meeting of the League of Women Voters of East Nassau, attendees were treated to an indepth analysis of last month’s presidential election and what the results could mean for the future.
IThe league is a nonpartisan, grassroots organization that works to protect and expand voting rights throughout the country. Its East Nassau chapter encompasses Wantagh, Seaford, Levittown, Merrick, Bellmore and East Meadow. Joining the meeting were members of the Central Nassau chapter, which includes Baldwin, Freeport, Uniondale, Oceanside and West Hempstead.
also aims to educate voters on political topics. Leiter added that she hoped attendees would leave the meeting, which was held at the Levittown Public Library, with a better understanding of what happened on Election Day.
think it’s extremely important, when you start analyzing the election, to look at who actually came out and what was happening there.
RoSANNA PERottI Professor of political science,
Hofstra University
Ann Leiter, president of the Central Nassau chapter, said the organization encourages people to get out and vote, and
“I would like them to have a broader sense of the objective details of what happened,” Leiter said. “It was a good opportunity for them to air out their individual concerns.”
Rosanna Perotti, professor of political science at Hofstra University, spoke at the meeting. Her presentation about the election touched on voter turnout, the candidates’ policies and economic trends.
The turnout for the 2024 election, Perotti said, was similar to 2020’s, but this time with a clear advantage for Republicans. Citing reporting
Continued on page 11
Courtesy Nicole Averso
enL instructor elaine Kelvin sliced the turkey for her students’ thanksgiving celebration.
Sharing old traditions with new students
can holiday, and really get them assimilated to our culture, our foods and some of our beloved traditions,” Dowling said. “It’s a really great experience for them.”
Instructors cooked a Thanksgiving feast, provided popular board games and explained the cultural importance of the holiday — a time to express gratitude and bond with friends and family.
“This is a great way for our students to socialize and to practice their English language skills,” Dowling said. “We have some of our counselors here with translation devices, so the students can still participate, understand and be a part of the experience.
“They were playing Headbands, which is such a wonderful way for them to learn new words, and Guess Who,” she added. “They were not only engaging for fun, but these were also great ways to practice their English in a social setting.”
The food for the celebration was, in part, donated from the Long Beach-based eatery Swingbellys BBQ, who provided the turkey, mashed potatoes and cornbread stuffing. The school staff prepared sweet potatoes, corn, and vegetarian stuffing to accommodate different diets.
“We’re just so proud of our English language learners and the efforts they put in to really become a part of our school culture,” Dowling said. “We learn so much from them, about their cultures, and the diversity they bring to our school community, and we’re as grateful for them as they are for being a part of our school community.”
ENL Instructor Nicole Averso sees the holiday program as an opportunity to immerse students in their local community.
“As an ENL teacher, I think it’s really important to teach the students our language,” she said. “It’s also
W.t. Clarke middle School in east meadow hosted a thanksgiving celebration on nov. 27 for students in its english as a new Language program, offering food, games, and a chance to connect with peers.
really important to foster their sense of community and belonging in a new place. Hosting allows our students to come together and celebrate a holiday that (some have) never celebrated before, bond and form a sense of community.”
The event is well received among newcomers and returning students, Averso said.
“It’s been great seeing them be more willing to try some of the foods that are new to them compared to last year, and the bonds that they formed with each other,” she said. “They’re enjoying themselves. They’re playing games, they’re chatting, they’re conversing.”
The Thanksgiving program is also designed to help
students increase English language proficiency at home by filling out a form listing all the things they are thankful for, which they can share with their families.
“They can talk to everyone at home about what goes on at school, what they’re learning about, and a new cultural tradition in America that they can bring home to their families,” Averso said.
Eighth-grade ENL student Arlenis Jara participated in the school’s Thanksgiving program before and looks forward to it each year.
“This is so fun because we get to eat food and we get to hang out,” Jara said. “I also get to talk to my friends for a bit because I don’t really see them sometimes — so, it’s so fun to come here.”
Joseph D’Alessandro/Herald
County hospital sues finance authority
By JORDAN VALLONE jvallone@liherald.com
Following the alleged discovery that New York state engaged in a decadeslong Medicaid scam to deprive the largest safety-net hospital on Long Island of as much as $1 billion in aid, Nassau University Medical Center and its parent public benefit corporation, Nassau Health Care Corporation, have filed suit against the Nassau County Interim Finance Authority, accusing the authority of gross negligence and abuses of power.
Our entire team has done an outstanding job putting this reform program into action to ensure that we continue to improve the range and quality of our services to everyone.
MEg RyAN
Interim president and chief executive, Nassau University Medical Center
NIFA assumed financial oversight of NUMC in 2020, citing poor financial conditions while failing to acknowledge that the state’s actions, including Medicaid fraud and reduced aid, caused these challenges, the hospital said in a Dec. 2 news release.
The petition alleges there were significant violations of the public’s trust on the part of the stateappointed fiscal watchdog to advance either its own or the state’s agenda to the reputational and financial detriment of the hospital.
“What my clients have uncovered eviscerates the credibility of NIFA as an independent financial oversight organization,” said Steve Cohen, partner at Pollock Cohen, who is representing NUMC. “NIFA’s repeated efforts to craft a misleading public narrative and manipulate data are clear attempts to justify its legally dubious oversight of NUMC’s finances.”
NUMC is currently pursuing legal action against the state. The hospital is alleging that the state orchestrated a ruse to withhold Medicaid reimbursement payments it was entitled to, since at least 2001. A notice-of-claims was sent to the state, outlining NUMC’s plan to file a lawsuit for $1.06 billion, on Nov. 20.
In response to the notice-of-claims, the state said: “We are continuing to work with Nassau County on an appropriate solution for the future of NUMC. Our concerns are the fiscal health of the hospital and patient care.”
Richard Kessel, the chairman and director of the finance authority, told the Herald that the finance authority has to approve hospital contracts over $50,000 — and the legal contracts that the health care corporation set up to file
Matthew Bruderman, chairman of the Nassau Health Care Corporation board, spoke at a Nassau University Medical Center news conference last month, detailing the hospital’s intent to sue New York state for $1.06 billion. The hospital is now pursuing additional legal action against the Nassau Interim Finance Authority, or NIFA.
Legal catch-up
As of Nov. 20:
■ Nassau Health Care Corporation and Nassau University Medical Center are pursuing a legal claim against New York state for $1.06 billion
■ The hospital system claims the state orchestrated a ruse to withhold Medicaid Disproportionate Share Hospital payments that the hospital was entitled to
■ The state says it remains concerned about NUMC’s fiscal health and patient care
suit against the state are not to exceed $325,000, according to a recent meeting agenda posted on the hospital’s website.
Kessel said the hospital was notified that they needed to review the legal contracts. According to the state, if NIFA does not approve the contracts, the law firms cannot be paid for their services.
Regarding the new suits against NIFA, the petition lays out the finance authority’s failure or unwillingness to uncover the state’s Medicaid shell game, and it accuses NIFA of using it’s highpaid consulting firm, Alvarez and Marsal, to manipulate its reports to shield the state from responsibility for destabilizing the hospital.
“NIFA’s failure to uncover the state’s Medicaid fraud scam has deprived the
As of Dec. 2:
■ A new suit filed in the Supreme Court of Nassau County claims the Nassau Interim Finance Authority made arbitrary and capricious decisions, violated public trust, and acted to advance its own or the state’s agenda at the expense of NUMC’s reputation and financial stability
■ The hospital is seeking to nullify NIFA’s financial oversight, impose a monitor to ensure its competence and independence, and require public corrections and apologies for manipulated reports
hospital and those it serves of substantial aid — its unwillingness to provide basic fiscal supervision is truly shocking,” Cohen said. “If all this behavior wasn’t intentional, it was certainly grossly negligent.”
The suit asks the court to nullify NIFA’s financial oversight of NUMC, impose a monitor over NIFA to ensure it is fulfilling its statutory role competently, and independently, instruct NIFA to apologize publicly and correct two manipulated financial reports produced by its consultant, Alvarez & Marsal.
“They abused their authority to extend financial oversight to the hospital and then provided no oversight,” NHCC Chairman Matthew Bruderman said in the Dec. 2 news release. “What
was worse, they lied to the public by omitting key data about state aid cuts and the state’s Medicaid scheme to justify recommending slashing our staff by 90 percent during the pandemic. They provided no solutions, despite paying their consultants millions.”
“NIFA has repeatedly misrepresented to the media, to the hospital’s staff, and to the public that the hospital was in the midst of a financial crisis and should be shut down,” Meg Ryan, the interim president and chief executive of the hospital said. “That is simply untrue, insulting to the dedicated people who work here and unnecessarily scares the patients who depend on this hospital.”
Kessel, in statement published by Newsday, said, “We’re reviewing the litigation but again, I think the hospital is wasting money that could be better spent on patient care rather than enriching law firms and lawyers in a frivolous, ridiculous lawsuit.”
The leadership team at the hospital has undertaken a substantial fiscal and operational reform program to dramatically improve the hospital’s financial position. NUMC recently received its Gold Star Certification from the Joint Commission and its first increase in its healthcare grades in six years.
“Our entire team has done an outstanding job putting this reform program into action to ensure that we continue to improve the range and quality of our services to everyone, regardless of their ability to pay,” Ryan said.
“We are an essential part of this community, and we won’t let Albany politicians play games with people’s healthcare,” Bruderman added.
Jordan Vallone/Herald
Art isn’t easy elevate the Conversation
With sincerest apologies to Stephen Sondheim and his Pulitzer Prize winning musical, “Sunday in the Park with George”, I am here to acknowledge that art may not be easy but it is always very personal.
Impossibly sincere. That is why those who teach the arts need to be magnificent in their ability to bring out the best in students, no matter the conflict in vision. And I have witnessed and experienced it both ways: instructors who guide and encourage and those who have no patience unless it is the way they wanted it “to look”.
A Baker’s Dozen Reasons to Use a Trust
sometimes years to probate.
health aides through the Medicaid program.
2. Trusts start the five year “look-back” for institutional care, making you eligible for Medicaid benefits to pay for a nursing home.
3. Trusts can ensure the inheritances you leave will stay in the bloodline for your grandchildren and not end up with in-laws and their families.
4. Trusts can provide who takes over if you become disabled – guaranteeing you get the person you choose instead of a court-appointed legal guardian.
5. Trusts can avoid a will contest from heirs you leave out or ones that receive less than they think they are entitled to.
6. Trusts give you immediate access to assets on death unlike wills which can take months and
7. Trusts can provide supervision and protection for special needs and other children who have issues with handling financial matters.
8. Trusts can reduce and often eliminate estate taxes for couples with taxable estates.
9. Trusts can avoid guardianship proceedings for gifts made to grandchildren.
10. Trusts can avoid the problems of locating unknown heirs or dealing with heirs abroad.
11. Trusts can move assets out of your estate for income and estate purposes.
12. Trusts can avoid the expense, delay and publicity of a probate court proceeding for your property in New York and out of state.
13. Trusts can protect the inheritances you leave from your children’s divorces, lawsuits and creditors.
When my husband was a crafty high schooler, a substitute teacher asked his art class to draw their vision of the world. His masterpiece was an ink dot on the center of a piece of the paper; the dot represented “all that was left of the world”. He was able to leave class early without further inquiry from an enthusiastic instructor who clearly respected independent artists and their thinking. According to family lore, my older brother struggled in Kindergarten because he couldn’t cut well. Long before lefthanded scissors, my mother was convinced that he was at a disadvantage as a left-handed student of the 1960s. He was sent back to his desk a number of times to fix a shamrock for St. Patrick’s Day. Even as a kid sister I knew he didn’t need to be disrespected for the hard work and genuine effort that art requires.
Whether it is a child’s drawing or the finest art, design, music or dance, I believe art is human expression at its highest level. Art can be extremely private. Fiercely individual.
I have recently failed craft classes. Not because I didn’t do my homework, but because my work wasn’t the teacher’s ultimate vision. I have been asked to undo that which I crafted and surprising myself, I remained steadfast that the work was fine with me. Left out of the “finished product” pictures, I didn’t leave class early or discouraged. I took the masterpieces proudly home and felt defiantly satisfied with the results despite any earlier assessment. Art isn’t easy. But if there are any rules, I believe there is one that triumphs over them all. You must create art in a single way. Your way.
A contributing writer to the Herald since 2012, Lauren Lev is a direct marketing/advertising executive who teaches marketing fundamentals as well as advertising and marketing communications courses at the Fashion Institute of Technology and SUNY Old Westbury.
L auren L ev
HERALD SPORTS
Hofstra hoops showing plenty of promise
By ANDREW COEN sports@liherald.com
With a largely new roster this season, fourth-year Hofstra men’s basketball head coach Speedy Claxton was expecting that the beginning of the new season could be a bit of a learning curve. The former standout Hofstra and NBA guard then saw quicker chemistry than he anticipated, providing hope that the 202425 campaign could culminate with a banner.
Hofstra won its first four games to start the new season with many new faces including a 49-48 upset victory against Big East foe Seton Hall at the Nassau Coliseum on Nov. 13. The hot start featured a number of scoring contributions with the Pride also finding ways to win games in a variety of fashions in three straight wins against Iona, Seton Hall and UMass after starting with
a blowout of Division III opponent SUNY Old Westbury.
“Those are three good wins and if you would have told me before the season we would get all three I’d be extremely happy and even if you told me I would only get one I would have been happy,” said Claxton, a former NBA guard who led Hofstra to the NCAA Tournament as a player in 2000. “It shows we can compete with anyone.”
The 4-0 start was followed up by stiff competition at Florida State and then 7th-ranked Houston. The Pride then headed to the Bahamas for three games over the Thanksgiving weekend and knocked off Rice in overtime 68-63 and edged Arkansas State 68-66 on a buzzer beater shot from graduate student forward Michael Graham.
Claxton added six transfers and two freshmen to the roster to go along with six returners from last year’s team that went 20-13 and fell to Long Island rival Stony Brook in the Coastal Athletic Association (CAA) semifinals.
Sophomore guard Jean Aranguren is one of the newcomers shining early as the team’s leading scorer. The Iona transfer registered a double-double with 20 points and 11 rebounds in Hofstra’s 75-71 overtime win at UMass on Nov. 16.
The addition of Big East transfers Cruz Davis (St. John’s) and Jaquan Sanders (Seton Hall) are also paying dividends early on this season. Sanders was clutch in the Seton Hall win against his old team with 10 second half points while Davis tallied 21 in the UMass victory.
“All three of those guys have been playing well,” Claxton said. “I think that is why we have been performing well in the early part of the season.”
Other transfers added to the roster include Graham (Loyola Marymount), senior guard TJ Gadsden (Canisius) and redshirt sophomore guard Eric Parnell (Eastern Florida State). Graham is the team’s fourth leading scorer and recorded 14 in the dramatic Arkansas State win.
The Pride are also getting a leadership boost from returning players Silas Sunday and German Plotnikov, who both
Newcomer Cruz Davis popped
UMass.
21
saw key minutes last season. The 7-1 Sunday provides a big presence in the paint while Plotnikov is a long-range shooting threat who connected on 47.4 percent of his three-pointers last season.
“They’re both benefiting from being here last year and knowing how we do things,” said Claxton of Sunday and Plotnikov.
Hofstra’s December schedule is highlighted by a Sunday afternoon home game against Temple on Dec. 15 starting at noon. It will also serve as Hofstra’s annual Jewish Heritage Day game.
The CAA home schedule gets under-
way on Jan. 2 against William & Mary at 7 p.m. which will honor the 25th anniversary of David S. Mack Arena. Hofstra’s annual winter homecoming game will take place on Feb. 8 at 4 p.m. against Stony Brook.
Hofstra was picked fourth in the CAA Men’s Basketball Preseason Poll behind Towson, defending champion College of Charleston and UNC-Wilimington.
“The conference is always going to be tough with some really good teams and really good coaches,” Claxton said. “It’s not gonna get any easier once we get into conference play”
photos courtesy Hofstra Athletics Communications
in
points for the Pride in a Nov. 16 victory over
Sophomore Jean Aranguren is leading Hofstra in scoring in the early going.
Celebrating Long Island’s Future Leaders: $2,500 Student Sustainability Prize Open for Nominations
By: Maureen Fitzgerald
Reworld™ is searching for Long Island’s next generation of environmental innovators to receive the first-ever 2025 Student Sustainability Champion Award. This prestigious award honors one outstanding student from Nassau County and one from Suffolk, with each winner receiving $2,500 to support their education or future sustainability projects – presented to the student recipients at the upcoming 2025 Herald Sustainability Awards of Long Island.
Nominations are now open, inviting the community to recognize young changemakers under 16 who are making a positive impact. Submissions should highlight the student’s leadership, innovative contributions, and dedication to sustainability. Entries should include a brief description of their achievements and motivation, along with a photo or example of their work—be it a community garden, recycling initiative, or creative environmental solution.
This award is part of the larger 2025 Herald Sustainability Awards of Long Island, presented by Reworld™ and hosted by the LI Herald and RichnerLIVE, which will take place on February 26th at The Heritage Club in Bethpage.
The event will bring together community leaders, advocates, and changemakers who are driving innovative environmental solutions and fostering sustainable tomorrows across Long Island.
Despite Long Island’s environmental challenges —coastal erosion, water quality, and balancing development with conservation—stories of innovation and hope thrive. Local nonprofits restore habitats, educators inspire, and leaders prioritize sustainability. From renewable energy to advanced recycling, these efforts showcase the region’s spirit. With Reworld™ fostering this innovation and community empowerment, they’re driving Long Island toward a greener future.
t
“Reworld™ is honored to partner with RichnerLIVE and the Herald to recognize the inspiring efforts of our young changemakers,” said Dawn Harmon, East Region Area Asset Manager at Reworld™. “This initiative aims to empower Long Island’s future leaders and celebrate the innovative strides our community is taking toward sustainability.”
For more information or to submit a student nomination, visit www.richnerlive.com/reworldcontest. Let’s celebrate the bright minds and groundbreaking innovations shaping Long Island’s sustainable future.
Curing a rare heart disorder with a short life expectancy.
Performing a life-changing brain surgery without a single incision.
Helping a new mom give birth—and receive a new liver.
At Northwell’s North Shore University Hospital, the nation’s most brilliant minds come here to conquer health care’s greatest challenges. So that whatever comes through our doors: challenge accepted.
North Shore University Hospital
Nominate a student under 16 for the Sustainability Champion Award to recognize their efforts in driving sustainable change.
We want to hear about the extraordinary young individuals who are driving change in their communities.
The award will be presented at the 2025 LI Herald Sustainability Awards of Long Island powered by Reworld in February.
Your nomination could inspire countless others to follow in their footsteps!
Submit a nomination of approximately 200 words or less describing the student’s leadership in promoting sustainability: What motivates them? What impact have they had?
Be sure to include a photo or an example of their work—whether it’s a community garden, an environmental campaign, or a creative solution to a sustainability challenge.
Kiwanis hosts annual dinner for seniors
By JORDAN VALLONE jvallone@liherald.com
The Kiwanis Club of East Meadow hosted the Frank Saracino Memorial Senior & Military Dinner on Nov. 24, serving 350 meals to seniors and veterans at East Meadow High School.
Named in honor of Saracino, a former principal and superintendent in the East Meadow School District who died in May of last year at 90, the dinner has been a cherished community tradition for over 45 years.
This year’s event was no different — or more cheerful — than years past.
Saracino founded the event in 1978 to connect students with older generations. Initially supported by school volunteers, the dinner transitioned to Kiwanis leadership in 1988 and has thrived ever since. Saracino remained actively involved in the community even after his retirement in 1995, and his legacy continues to inspire volunteers.
This year, members and volunteers stepped up to prepare and cook the meals, which included turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing and more. Local businesses sponsored the dinner, and raffles were donated by businesses and other community organizations. The East Meadow school board, central administration and additional staff members also took part in the day’s activities, joining in food serving efforts.
Musical performances by East Meadow High School’s band and chorus entertained attendees throughout the event.
The dinner is chaired by Kiwanians Michael and Julie Leake. Michael Leake is a chef and caterer and led the food preparation effort, alongside Steve LaSala, Lisa Hallett, Diane and Richie Krug, Mitchell Allen, Debbie Kirsh, Kevin Kamper, Tracey Rudd and Donna Goldstein. The raffles were assembled by Kiwanis members Jessica Schiavone and Marianna Cereoli.
Catherine Razzano, who chairs the East Meadow Kiwanis’s food drives, told the Herald last year that it’s a multitiered volunteer effort that makes the dinner so successful. The Kiwanis works with kids from all of the clubs part of the greater-Kiwanis organization, including the Key Clubs at East
Meadow and W.T. Clarke High School, the Builders Clubs in East Meadow’s middle schools, and K-Kids, the elementary and entry level into Kiwanis. Whether the students were decorating the gym ahead of the dinner, or handing out flowers to the seniors as they entered, their efforts helped make the dinner a success.
The Kiwanis is happy to host the event in Sacarino’s memory. Saracino himself was honored in 2021 for 50 years of service to the Kiwanis, during the 70th anniversary of the East Meadow organization.
“He was a civic leader, a Kiwanian, and he’d been involved in the community,” Razzano said of Saracino. “So many of us knew him for many, many years.”
On its Facebook page, the Kiwanis Club of East Meadow was appreciative of everyone’s efforts. “We can’t thank our kids enough for the wonderful service they performed today and the great service by our members to ensure that everyone had a fun time with amazing food, drinks and desserts,” the organization wrote. “Happy Thanksgiving.”
The Kiwanis of East Meadow hosted its annual Saracino Memorial Senior & Military Dinner on Nov. 24. Kiwanis president, Melody Schiller, with Legislator Tom McKevitt.
Helen Weber and Kathy Williams, who live at the Meadows at Mitchel Field, attended the Nov. 24 dinner.
Natalie Rivera, Komal Ohillon and Madison Casseus volunteered at the event.
Holden Leeds/Herald photos 350 meals were served to seniors and veterans in the East Meadow High School gymnasium.
LWV unpacks the presidential election
Continued from page 1
from The New York Times, she said that counties with the largest Democratic margins in 2020 delivered roughly 2 million fewer votes for Vice President Kamala Harris than they had for Joe Biden, while Republican counties added around 1.2 million votes to Donald Trump’s total this year.
“I think it’s extremely important, when you start analyzing the election, to look at who actually came out and what was happening there,” Perotti said.
In Nassau County, Trump became the first Republican candidate since George H.W. Bush, in 1988, to garner more votes than his Democratic opponent, receiving 52 percent to Harris’s 47 percent.
The main reason why a majority of voters across the country chose Trump was simple, Perotti said: the economy. Reporting from exit polling surveys, she said, made that clear, and the economy was followed in importance by immigration. Harris’s campaign, Perotti added, focused more on cultural issues, such as abortion rights.
“Harris talked a lot about reproductive rights and about abortion, and those things were important in Senate races,” Perotti said. “They don’t appear to have been quite as important, from some of the things that I’m looking at, in the presidential contest.”
Nonetheless, across the country, abortion rights continued to have strong support. Legislation protecting women’s health care choices, Perotti said, passed in seven out of the 10 states where they were on the ballot. In New York, the Equal Rights Amendment, which will add protections against discrimination to the state Constitution — including in the areas of pregnancy and pregnancy outcomes — won approval with nearly 57 percent of the vote.
In the 2020 election, Perotti said, 65 percent of vot-
ers age 18 to 29 voted Democratic, and 35 percent favored Republican candidates. That margin shrank this year, with Harris receiving 55 percent of the young vote, to Trump’s 43 percent. And within that age group, there was a gender gap, Perotti noted, with young women more likely to vote for Harris, and young men, with or without a degree, preferring Trump.
According to a study by Tufts University, a majority of young women voted for Harris, but 56 percent of young men voted for Trump, an increase of 15 percentage points over 2020. The main issues for young men, Perotti said, appeared to be immigration and the economy, while young women were more concerned about health care, and specifically abortion rights. Even in her own classes, she said, she noticed that younger men were more vocal in their support of Trump, which made for some tense discussions.
rosanna perotti, professor of political science at Hofstra university, discussed the results of the presidential election at the nov. 20 meeting of the League of Women Voters.
“There is a message of being left behind, of not being noticed, that was really powerful to young men,” Perotti said, “and a message of relatability and a tribal message that really seems to have resonated with them.”
She concluded by highlighting several concerns about the election results, which included accountability for the events of Jan. 6, 2021, opposition to vaccines, climate issues, immigration and single-party control of the government.
Peggy Stein, a member of the league’s East Nassau chapter, said she hoped attendees whose favored candidates lost would understand that that didn’t mean they should give up hope.
“They still have to be involved,” Stein said. “You can’t just say, ‘Well, I didn’t get what I wanted.’ We have to be ready to go forward, and we have to do what’s best for the country.”
Charles Shaw/Herald
Gov. Kathy Hochul and state officials announced a funding program available to help low- and middleincome households and older adults manage heating expenses during the winter months. Applications are now open for the program, called Home Energy Assistance Program.
State could help cover the cost of heating this winter
By JORDAN VALLONE jvallone@liherald.com
New York state officials announced that funding is available to help low- and middle-income households and older adults manage heating expenses during the winter months through the Home Energy Assistance Program, or HEAP. The program, which can provide up to $996 to eligible households, is now accepting applications, according to a
news release on the state’s website.
“New Yorkers should not have to choose between heating their home or putting food on the table, and we’re offering critical financial assistance to protect vulnerable New York households as the weather gets colder,” Gov. Kathy Hochul said.
HEAP, a federally funded program, is available to households with vulnerable members, including children under 6, adults aged 60 and older, and those with disabilities. Eligibility is determined by factors such as income, household size, and heating needs. For example, a family of four with a gross monthly income of $6,390, or an annual income of $76,681, may qualify — marking a significant increase from last year’s maximum of a monthly gross income of $5,838, and an annual gross income of $70,059.
Eligible households can receive one HEAP benefit per season and could also be eligible for up to two Emergency HEAP benefits, if they are in danger of running out of heating fuel or having their utility service shut off. Applications for HEAP benefits are now being accepted, while applications for Emergency HEAP benefits open Jan. 2, 2025.
New Yorkers can apply at NY.gov/ Heat, at local social service offices, or through the mail. Older adults needing assistance can contact a local aging office or call (800) 342-9871.
“HEAP provides essential financial assistance that will help hundreds of thousands of low and moderate-income households in New York pay their energy bills this winter,” Barbara Guinn, commissioner of the state’s Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance, said. “HEAP is a lifeline for low-income working families and older adults on a fixed income and also provides financial support to ensure those in emergency situations can keep the heat on and keep their homes warm during the cold winter months.”
Last year, over 84,000 Long Islanders, and just under 990,000 New York City residents, benefited from the HEAP program.
HEAP also offers heating equipment repair or replacement benefits, allowing up to $4,000 for repairs and $8,000 for replacements. Homeowners may also apply for a heating equipment clean and tune benefit, covering maintenance services like chimney cleaning and carbon monoxide detector installation.
The energy assistance program for heating complements other state programs designed to help low- and middleincome New Yorkers, such as the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority’s EmPower+ program, which provides low energy efficiency services to HEAP-eligible homeowners and renters, such as comprehensive home energy assessments that help determine plans for lower home energy usage.
To learn more about the program, and for links to apply, visit Governor. NY.gov/news.
Courtesy Office of Gov. Kathy Hochul
STEPPING OUT
Five times the charm
Laurie Berkner returns with a rockin’ holiday concert for families
By Alyssa Seidman
The scarcity of sun that marks winter’s return often brings Laurie Berkner back to her musical roots. On cozy winter evenings her family would gather ’round a songbook to recite melodies reminiscent of Christmas and falling snow.
“Music always made me feel safe, happy, and loved, and all those feelings come together around [this] time of year,” Berkner says. “Holiday songs were always something that brought up a lot of really warm feelings for me.”
It’s no surprise, then, that Berkner’s discography includes two bestselling albums about the most wonderful time of the year. Families adore her — she still wears the known as the ‘Queen of Kindie Rock’ — and can tale in her festive originals alongside yuletide classics once again when “The Greatest Holiday Hits Tour” arrives here at the Paramount, on Dec. 15.
Berkner is a veritable dynamo as singer/songwriter, author, lyricist, and founder of Two Tomatoes Records. With more than one billion total streams, over 500 million views on YouTube, and millions of albums, singles and DVDs sold, her songs have become beloved classics for families worldwide.
While working as a children’s music specialist at preschools and day care centers in New York City, she gained an instinctive understanding of kids’ natural rhythms and energy. This enabled her to launch the progressive “kindie rock” movement, a genre that is just as palatable to parents and caregivers.
Berkner has released 16 award-winning albums over the course of her decades-long career. She was the first recording artist to perform in music videos on Noggin — appeared regularly on the network’s “Jack’s Big Music Show” — and helped develop the animated musical preschool series “Sing It, Laurie!” for Sprout TV, now Universal Kids.
Berkner has performed at Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall, and the White House, among many prestigious venues. She is regularly lauded by her peers, and has been dubbed “the Adele of the preschool crowd” (The New York Times), “the queen of kids’ music” (People), and “one of the most popular children’s performers in America” (Wall Street Journal).
Holiday hits
This is the fifth time “The Greatest Holiday Hits Tour” will grace The Paramount stage. She first brought her holiday concert to Long Island in 2019, and has delighted kids — and kids at heart — every year since, aside from 2020.
“It feels really great to be able to come back each year and make it feel like a tradition,” Berkner says. “It’s that feeling of coming together and doing something that feels really good, fun, and joyous.
“Mostly what I try to do is hit a lot of people’s favorites and put the songs I can’t get to into a medley for the encore. I’ll also be playing my new song ‘Walking With The Penguins,’ so they’ll
Courtesy Jayme Thornton
DoLaurie Berkner is ready to share some holiday cheer with her fans — as only she can. Groove along to festive originals alongside yuletide classics at “The Greatest Holiday Hits Tour.
• Sunday, Dec. 15, 11 a.m.
• Tickets start at $20.50; available at LiveNation.com
• A $1 donation to Little Shelter Animal Rescue is included in each ticket
• The Paramount, 370 New York Ave., Huntington
hear that live for the first time.”
Her concert features original tunes from her popular holiday albums, “A Laurie Berkner Christmas” and “Another Laurie Berkner Christmas.” She’ll also play treasured holiday classics like “Deck the Halls,” “Holly Jolly Christmas,” “Jingle Bells,” and more.
Of course Berkner’s greatest hits — “We Are The Dinosaurs,” “Waiting for the Elevator” and “Pig On Her Head” — are always in the mix. At that point everyone is sure to be singing and dancing along with their favorite stuffed animal on their head.
The hour-long show fully involves her audience from the get-go; yet two moments in particular stand out to Berkner.
“In every show I do ‘We Are The Dinosaurs,’ and it’s very hard to not start laughing while everyone is screaming. “When I sing ‘My Family’ I will ask people to hug the person they’re there with, and it’s amazing that they actually do it.”
Cultivating these shared experiences for her mixed-age audiences is Berkner’s aim for every performance, but especially at her holiday shows.
“Those events that feel exciting to the kids [yet] still fun and enjoyable for the parents are difficult to find, but my shows fit that bill. I feel really grateful to provide moments where they can connect with one another, and have a sweet, loving memory when they leave.”
New Year’s resolutions
With a new year on the horizon, Berkner shares some of her plans for 2025.
“I very likely will put out another album next year, but I also have a couple projects I can’t talk about yet,” she says.“There will be new music, new videos, and definitely some surprises — probably more on my plate than I should have!”
Her fans would expect nothing less.
Leggz Ltd.’s
‘The Nutcracker’ Visions of sugarplums await when Leggz Ltd. Dance, presents its annual full-length production. Helmed by longtime Artistic Director Joan Hope MacNaughton, it’s as always, accompanied by the South Shore Symphony Orchestra. This year’s production stars Violeta Angelova as the Sugar Plum Fairy, who’s appeared with the Vienna State Oper and Suzanne Farrell Ballet, with George Sanders, who has danced with New York Theatre Ballet and The Little Prince Broadway, as the Cavalier. The gifted young dancers who round out the cast include 9-year-old Vivian Ng as Clara and 11-year-old Matthew Carnaval as The Prince — both Rockville Centre residents.
Friday, Dec. 6, 7 p.m.; Saturday, Dec. 7, 5 p.m.; Sunday, Dec. 8, 3 p.m. Tickets start at $35. Madison Theatre, Molloy University, 1000 Hempstead Ave., Rockville Centre. Tickets available at madisontheatreny.org or (516) 323-4444.
Jason Bonham’s Led Zeppelin Evening
Jason Bonham, son of the legendary Led Zeppelin drummer, showcases his musical journey and family legacy when he visits the Paramount stage. He celebrates his father with hits from Led Zeppelin’s iconic albums, while highlighting his own contributions to rock history. Encompassing tunes from the iconic band’s entire career, including albums “Led Zeppelin,” “Led Zeppelin II,” and “Led Zeppelin IV,” the concert event is a dynamic tribute to a legend. Jason always finds himself at home behind the drumkit. From this spot, he has anchored the tempo of one of the legendary artists of all-time.
Monday, Dec. 9, 7:30 p.m. $99.50, $89.50, $59.50, $49.50, $39.50. The Paramount, 370 New York Ave., Huntington. Tickets available at ticketmaster.com or paramountny. com.
The Hot Sardines
The band brings their distinctive sound back to the Landmark stage, with a “Holiday Stomp,” Saturday, d ec. 14 , at 8 p.m. It’s a raucous Christmas celebration that includes timeless classics and original tunes. The Hot Sardines bring classic jazz standards with their own brassy horn arrangements, rollicking piano melodies and vocals from a chanteuse who transports listeners to a different era with the mere lilt of her voice. Emerging over a decade ago from the underground parties of Brooklyn to touring worldwide and recording a string of albums that’s racked up more than 60 million streams across digital platforms, the Hot Sardines’ own “potent and assured” (The New York Times), “simply phenomenal” (The Times of London) brand of reinvigorated classic jazz landed them at the center of a whirlwind. . In the last two years, the Hot Sardines have been featured at the Newport Jazz Festival and the Montreal Jazz Festival, have sold out venues in New York City from Joe’s Pub to Bowery Ballroom and more than 150 tour dates from Chicago to London. They released two albums on Universal Music Classics to critical reviews and a #1 slot on the iTunes Jazz chart in the U.S. and internationally. Their unique recipe blends hot jazz and sultry standards from the ’20s, ’30s and ’40s, rich New Orleans sounds, a dash of ’40s Paris flavor, and vibrant musical surprises. It’s all steeped in salty stride piano and the music Louis Armstrong, Django Reinhardt and Fats Waller used to make. The result is straight-up foot-stomping jazz. Their name says it all: their iconic ‘hot’ styling will paint a vibrant picture with smoky sounds and audiences revel in the steamy, swanky influence of their art form. With their contagious brand of joy, grit, glamour and passion, the 8-piece band invokes the sounds of nearly a century ago, yet stay right in step with the current age. $65, $55, $45. Jeanne Rimsky Theater at Landmark on Main Street, 232 Main St., Port Washington. Tickets available at landmarkonmainstreet.org or by calling (516) 767-6444.
Holiday at Westbury House
Old Westbury Gardens’ Westbury House offers a festive glimpse of early 20th century holiday merriment, before it closes for the winter, Saturday, dec. 7, 10 a.m.-2 p.m.; Sunday, dec. 8, 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Also dec. 14-15. The “Christmas at Westbury House” celebration reflects what the festive season was like during those opulent decades of the early 1900s when the Phipps family lived there. The period rooms in which John S. Phipps — the eldest son of Henry Phipps, Andrew Carnegie’s partner at Carnegie Steel — and his family resided are impeccably decorated with wreaths, mantelpiece drapes, plenty of greenery, and other horticultural arrangements.
Take a self-guided tour through Westbury House and view specially decorated rooms for the holidays, have cookies and cider on the West Porch and meet and take photos with Santa while listening to ambient holiday music. The gardens will also be open, along with other special holiday events, including Holiday Flute Choir concert, Dec. 8, 2:30 p.m., holiday market, and more. $15, $13 ages 62+ and students, $8 ages 7-17. Old Westbury Gardens, 71 Old Westbury Rd., Old Westbury. For information visit OldWestburyGardens.org or call (516) 333-0048.
Holiday concert
The Long Island Choral Society returns its holiday tradition, Handel’s Messiah, Part 1 and highlights from Parts 2 and 3, Saturday, dec. 7, 7 p.m., at Garden City Community Church. For many Long Islanders, the holiday season officially begins with this performance. The chorus is accompanied by a professional orchestra and soloists. $25, $10 youth. Tickets are available via credit card by calling (516) 6526878 as well as via Venmo at LICS_2022. For more information, visit lics.org. 245 Stewart Ave., Garden City.
Mah Jongg
Enjoy an afternoon of Mah Jongg and canasta, every Wednesday, 11:30 a.m.-4 p.m., at East Meadow Beth El Jewish Center. $5 contribution per person. Snacks are provided. No outside food allowed due to dietary laws. Bring your own games and cards. Mah Jongg lessons available. 1400 Prospect Ave. For further information call (516) 428-3693.
Bingo at Beth-El
Get your game on at a weekly bingo game at East Meadow Beth-El Jewish Center, starting at 6 p.m. Prizes, progressive games, bell jar prizes and refreshments will be provided. Proof of vaccination is required. 1400 Prospect Ave., in East Meadow. For information, contact (516) 483-4205.
NEW YORK’S WRONGEST RUNNING COMEDY!
Let’s Skate
Get ready to enjoy all the thrills of the snowy season, while staying warm and cozy as Long Island Children’s Museum’s popular “Snowflake Sock Skating rink returns, through Jan. 7. Slip on “sock skates” and take a spin on the indoor rink, made from a high-tech synthetic polymer surface that lets kids slide around without blades. Kids can stretch, twirl and glide. As visitors step off the “ice” they can jump into winter dramatic play in Snowflake Village. Become a baker in the holiday sweet shop, step inside a giant snowman and serve up some hot cocoa, take a turn in the rink “ticket booth” and “warm up” around a rink side “fire pit.” Long Island Children’s Museum, Museum Row, Garden City. (516) 2245800 or LICM.org.
Holiday Tales At The Hearth
Visit Sands Point Preserve’s Hempstead House and join in the holiday cheer, Sunday, Dec. 8, 1-4 p.m. The familyfriendly event includes activities for all ages. Meet and take photos with Santa and Mrs. Claus, enjoy jazz and holiday music with Port Jazz Project, along with seasonal crafts, Dreidel Corner, “nutty” holiday scavenger hunt, reading nook with holiday and winter stories, and puppet shows with Wonderspark Puppets at 2 and 3 p.m. 127 Middle Neck Road. Admission is $40/car, members; $45/ car nonmembers, includes parking. For information, visit SandsPointPreserveConservancy.org or call (516) 571-7901.
Sugar Plum Ball/ Galactic Gala
Bring the kids to celebrate the season at festivities hosted by the Cerebral Palsy Association of Nassau County, Sunday, Dec. 8, noon-4 p.m., at Fox Hollow in Woodbury. Kids ages 4-12, accompanied by their adult guest (Mom, Dad, grandparent, etc.), will enjoy a unique party featuring food, fun and some special guests including princesses, fairies and visitors from a Galaxy Far, Far Away. With lunch, DJ, magic show, dancing, raffles, games, photo ops, and more, even Jedi-training. Enjoy a sit down lunch and meet characters from some favorite shows and movies. Cost for each child/ adult pair is $195. Advance reservation only. All proceeds benefit CP Nassau. Call CP Nassau at (516) 3782000 ext. 651 for reservations or visit cpnassau.org. 7755 Jericho Turnpike, Woodbury.
on The Scene page are listed free of charge. The Herald welcomes listings of upcoming events, community meetings and items of public interest. All submissions should include date, time and location of the event, cost, and a contact name and phone number. Submissions can be emailed to thescene@liherald.com.
On exhibit
Nassau County Museum of Art ‘s latest exhibition
“Seeing Red: Renoir to Warhol,” reveals the many meanings, connotations, and associations of this powerful color in art. Evoking strong emotion, red can represent the human condition. Its myriad variations have come to signify authority as well as love, energy and beauty. Red warns us of peril and commands us to stop, but it can also indicate purity and good fortune. Red boldly represents political movements and religious identities. From the advent of our appreciation for this color in antiquity to its continued prominence in artistic and popular culture, this exhibition will spans various world cultures through a range of media. It features more than 70 artists, both established and emerging, ranging from the classical to the contemporary. American portraitists such as Gilbert Stuart imbued red in their stately paintings of prominent individuals to conjure authority.
Robert Motherwell, Ad Reinhardt, and other major abstract painters displayed a deep fascination with red in their commanding compositions that evoke a sense of chromatic power. And, of course, Andy Warhol is known for his bold and imposing silkscreened portrait of Vladimir Lenin saturated in bright red to his signature Campbell’s Soup Cans. On view through Jan. 5. Nassau County Museum of Art, 1 Museum Dr., Roslyn Harbor. (516) 484-9337 or NassauMuseum.org.
Family theater
Long Island Children’s Museum welcomes families to its stage, Friday, Dec. 6, 10:15 a.m. and noon; Saturday, Dec. 7, 11 a.m. and 1:30 p.m.; also Tuesday through Thursday, Dec. 10-12, 10:-15 a.m. and noon. Ezra Jack Keats’ “The Snowy Day & Other Stories” celebrates the joy in the small moments of a child’s world. Experience the wonder of a fresh snowfall, the delight of whistling for the first time, and the awe of finding a special treasure. In this childhood adventure, Keats’ classic books come to life, featuring live actors and shadow puppets telling the stories of “The Snowy Day,” “Goggles!,” “Whistle for Willie,” and “A Letter to Amy.” $11 with museum admission ($9 members), $15 theater only. Museum Row, Garden City. (516) 224-5800 or licm.org.
Public Notices
LEGAL NOTICE
NOTICE OF SALE
SUPREME COURT COUNTY OF NASSAU, ARVEST BANK, SUCCESSOR IN INTEREST BY MERGER TO ARVEST CENTRAL MORTGAGE COMPANY FKA CENTRAL MORTGAGE COMPANY, Plaintiff, vs. JOSE CANAS, ET AL., Defendant(s). Pursuant to an Order Confirming Referee Report and Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale duly entered on July 26, 2024 and an Order Assigning Substitute Referee duly entered September 26, 2024, I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction on the front steps on the north side of the Nassau County Supreme Court, 100 Supreme Court Drive, Mineola, NY 11501 on December 17, 2024 at 2:00 p.m., premises known as 9 Grayston Street, Westbury, NY 11590. All that certain plot, piece or parcel of land, with the buildings and improvements thereon erected, situate, lying and being at Westbury, Town of North Hempstead, County of Nassau and State of New York, Section 10, Block 199 and Lot 43. Approximate amount of judgment is $890,821.82 plus interest and costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment Index #012788/2013.
Ronald James Ferraro, Esq., Referee Friedman Vartolo LLP, 85 Broad Street, Suite 501, New York, New York 10004, Attorneys for Plaintiff. Firm File No. 232116-1 150013
LEGAL NOTICE
SUPPLEMENTAL
SUMMONS Supreme Court of New York, Nassau County AJAX MORTGAGE LOAN TRUST 2021-G, MORTGAGEBACKED SECURITIES, SERIES 2021G, BY U.S. BANK NATIONAL ASSOCIATION, AS INDENTURE TRUSTEE, Plaintiff -against- MARIE LOURDES ROMULUS; PHANA ROMULUS; DYNO ROMULUS; MARIE ROMULUS; NERLANDE JEAN FRANCOIS, POSSIBLE HEIR AND DISTRIBUTEE OF THE ESTATE OF MARQUES ROMULUS; UNKNOWN HEIRS OF THE ESTATE OF MARQUES ROMULUS; NEW YORK STATE DEPARTMENT OF TAXATION AND FINANCE; UNITED STATES OF AMERICA (EASTERN DISTRICT) O/B/O INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE; ETR INC.; “JOHN DOE” AND “JANE DOE” said names being fictitious, it being the intention of plaintiff to designate any and all occupants of premises being foreclosed herein, Defendants. Index No. 601525/2024. Mortgaged Premises: 564 Broadway Westbury, NY 11590 Section: 11 Block: 99
Lots: 7-9 & 42 To The Above Named Defendant(s): YOU ARE HEREBY SUMMONED to answer the Complaint in the above entitled action and to serve a copy of your Answer on the Plaintiff’s attorney within twenty (20) days of the service of this Summons, exclusive of the day of service, or within thirty (30) days after service of the same is complete where service is made in any manner other than by personal delivery within the State. The United States of America, if designated as a Defendant in this action, may answer or appear within sixty (60) days of service. If you fail to appear or to answer within the aforementioned time frame, judgment will be taken against you by default for the relief demanded in the Complaint. NOTICE OF NATURE OF ACTION AND RELIEF SOUGHT THE OBJECTIVE of the above captioned action is to foreclose on a Mortgage to secure $$344,000.00 and interest, recorded in the Nassau County Clerk’s Office on August 28, 2006, in Book M30904, Page 564, Control Number 294, covering the premises known as 564 Broadway, Westbury, NY 11590. The relief sought herein is a final judgment directing sale of the premises described above to satisfy the debt secured by the mortgage described above. Plaintiff designates Nassau County as the place of trial. Venue is based upon the County in which the mortgaged premises is located. NOTICE YOU ARE IN DANGER OF LOSING YOUR HOME If you do not respond to this summons and complaint by serving a copy of the answer on the attorney for the mortgage company who filed this foreclosure proceeding against you and filing the answer with the court, a default judgment may be entered and you can lose your home. Speak to an attorney or go to the court where your case is pending for further information on how to answer the summons and protect your property. Sending a payment to the mortgage company will not stop the foreclosure action. YOU MUST RESPOND BY SERVING A COPY OF THE ANSWER ON THE ATTORNEY FOR THE PLAINTIFF (MORTGAGE COMPANY) AND FILING THE ANSWER WITH THE COURT. FRIEDMAN VARTOLO, LLP
1325 Franklin Avenue, Suite 160 Garden City, New York 11530, Attorneys for Plaintiff. 150181
LEGAL NOTICE Notice of formation of JAY Quickfood LLC. Articles of Organization filed with Secretary of State of New York (SSNY) on 10/31/2024. Office location: Nassau County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to 22106 92nd Avenue, Queens Village, NY 11428. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. 150150
LEGAL NOTICE SUPPLEMENTAL SUMMONS
SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK COUNTY OF NASSAU CITIMORTGAGE, INC. Plaintiff, -againstROBERT ZIMMERMAN, AS TRUSTEE OF THE GERALDINE ZIMMERMAN FAMILY TRUST, DATED 3/10/17; THE UNKOWN HEIRS AT LAW OF THE ESTATE OF GERALDINE ZIMMERMAN if living and if dead, the respective heirs-at-law, next-of kin, distributes, executors, administrators, trustees, devisees, legatees, assignees, lienors, creditors and successors in interest and generally all persons having or claiming under, by or through said defendant who may be deceased, by purchase, inheritance, lien or inheritance, lien or otherwise any right, title or interest in or to the real property described in the amended verified complaint; QUEENS COUNTY SAVINGS BANK; UNITED STATES OF AMERICA - INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE; STATE OF NEW YORK, DEPARTMENT OF TAX & FINANCE, ROBERT ZIMMERMAN, AS HEIR AT LAW OF THE ESTATE OF GERLADINE ZIMMERMAN; DARLENE EUSTACE A/K/A DARLENE ZIMMERMAN, AS HEIR AT LAW OF THE ESTATE OF GERLADINE ZIMMERMAN; JEFFREY BEHAR, AS HEIR AT LAW OF THE ESTATE OF GERLADINE ZIMMERMAN; TROY BEHAR, AS HEIR AT LAW OF THE ESTATE OF GERLADINE ZIMMERMAN; J.B. (MINOR) C/O JEFFREY BEHAR, AS HEIR AT LAW OF THE ESTATE OF GERLADINE ZIMMERMAN; HARVE SIMMONS, AS HEIR AT LAW OF THE ESTATE OF GERLADINE ZIMMERMAN; HARRY SIMMONS S/H/A JOHN DOE # 1; AMY ZIMMERMAN S/H/A JANE DOE #1; Defendant(s).
Index No. 615658/2023
Date Filed: 9/26/2023
Plaintiff designates NASSAU County as the place of trial based on the location of the mortgaged premises in this action. We are attempting to collect a debt, and any information obtained will be used for that purpose. To the above-named
Defendant(s): YOU ARE HEREBY SUMMONED to answer the amended verified complaint in this action and to serve a copy of your answer, or, if the amended verified complaint is not served with this supplemental summons, to serve a notice of appearance, on the plaintiff’s attorneys within twenty (20) days after the service of this supplemental summons, exclusive of the day of service (or within thirty (30) days after the service is complete if this supplemental summons is not personally delivered to you within the State of New York) or within (60) days after service of this supplemental summons if it is the United States of America; and in case of your failure to appear or answer, judgment will be taken against you by default for the relief demanded in the amended verified complaint. NOTICE YOU ARE IN DANGER OF LOSING YOUR HOME If you do not respond to this supplemental summons and amended verified complaint by serving a copy of the answer on the attorney for the mortgage company who filed this foreclosure proceeding against you and filing the answer with the court, a default judgment may be entered and you can lose your home. Speak to an attorney or go to the court where your case is pending for further information on how to answer the supplemental summons and protect your property. Sending a payment to your mortgage company will not stop this foreclosure action. YOU MUST RESPOND BY SERVING A COPY OF THE ANSWER ON THE ATTORNEY FOR THE PLAINTIFF (MORTGAGE COMPANY) AND FILING THE ANSWER WITH THE COURT. The foregoing supplemental summons is served upon you by publication pursuant to an Order of the Honorable ELIZABETH FOX-McDONOUGH, Justice of the Supreme Court of the State of New York, Nassau County, dated the 25TH day of OCTOBER, 2024 and duly entered in the office of the Clerk of the County of Nassau, State of New York.
NOTICE OF NATURE OF ACTION AND RELIEF SOUGHT
This is an action to foreclose a mortgage lien on the premises described herein. The object of the above captioned action is to foreclose a Mortgage executed by DIANE N. ZIMMERMAN and GERALDINE ZIMMERMAN, as Mortgagors, to ABN AMRO MORTGAGE GROUP, INC., a Mortgage to secure $252,000.00 and interest, dated January 11, 2007, (the First Mortgage), which
Police recovered this gun, which they say was used to fire shots into the back of a car traveling on Prospect Avenue in East Meadow.
Two men arrested after gunfire incident
Nassau County police arrested two men following an incident involving gunfire.
According to detectives, a disturbance occurred last month between the drivers of two vehicles traveling north on Prospect Avenue. A female victim operating a black SUV reported that a red Cadillac sedan aggressively cut in front of her near Lancaster Street and Freeman Avenue. The driver of the Cadillac then allegedly fired two rounds from what appeared to be a handgun before fleeing the scene.
Officers located the Cadillac shortly after in front of a 7-Eleven at 525 Newbridge Road in East Meadow. Following an investigation, police arrested Anthony Beltran, 33, of Bethpage, and John Messina, 45, of North Bellmore. No injuries were reported during the inci-
dent.
During the investigation, officers recovered a loaded .25 caliber handgun, a switchblade, and a substance believed to be cocaine.
Beltran is facing multiple charges, including criminal possession of a weapon, reckless endangerment, menacing, criminal possession of a controlled substance, and criminal possession of stolen property.
Messina faces similar charges, including criminal possession of a weapon, reckless endangerment, menacing, criminal possession of a controlled substance, and criminal possession of stolen property.
Both were arraigned at the First District Court in Hempstead.
–Jordan Vallone
Public Notices
was recorded in the Office of the County Clerk of Nassau County on February 26, 2007 in Liber: 31588, Page: 654 which was assigned to CITIBANK, N.A. by Assignment of Mortgage dated February 20, 2013, which was recorded in the Office of the County Clerk of Nassau County on June 26, 2013 in Liber: 38852, Page: 342. And to foreclose on a Mortgage executed by GERALDINE ZIMMERMAN BY DIANE ZIMMERMAN AS HER ATTORNEY IN FACT AND DIANE N. ZIMMERMAN, as Mortgagors, to CITIBANK, N.A., a Mortgage to secure $3,892.68 and interest, dated June 14, 2013, (the Second Mortgage), which was recorded in the Office of the County Clerk of Nassau County on June 26, 2013 in Liber: 38852, Page: 344 which loan was consolidated by a Consolidation, Extension & Modification Agreement dated June 14, 2013, executed by GERALDINE ZIMMERMAN
BY DIANE ZIMMERMAN AS HER ATTORNEY IN FACT AND DIANE N. ZIMMERMAN which consolidated the First Mortgage and the Second Mortgage to form a single lien in the amount of $233,900.00 which was recorded in the Office of the County Clerk of Nassau County on June 26, 2013 in Liber: 38852, Page: 363, which was assigned to CITIMORTGAGE, INC. by Assignment of Mortgage dated August 21, 2023, which is TO BE RECORDED in the Office of the County Clerk of Nassau County, covering premises known as 1783 EVERETT PL, EAST MEADOW, COUNTY OF NASSAU, STATE OF NY 11554 (SECTION: 50 BLOCK: 323 LOT: 154). SCHEDULE A ANNEXED HERETO
The relief sought in the within action is a final judgment directing the sale of the premises described above. Dated: Manhasset, New York, NOVEMBER 26, 2024,
DAVID A. GALLO & ASSOCIATES LLP, By: /S/ DAVID A. GALLO DAVID A. GALLO, ESQ., Attorneys for Plaintiff, 47 Hillside Avenue - 2nd Floor, Manhasset, NY 11030, (516) 583-5330 (516) 583-5333 - fax
Schedule A- Description ALL that certain plot, piece or parcel of land, situate, lying and being at East Meadow, in the Town of Hempstead, County of Nassau and State of New York, known and designated as and by Part of Lot Number 147 and 148 on a certain map entitled, “Map of Hempstead Lawns, Section No. 4, situated at East Meadow, Nassau County, New York, Property of O.L. Schwencke Land and Investment Company, Surveyed in 1909 by Fairfield & Dow,” and filed in the Office of the Clerk of the County of Nassau on May 22, 1909, as Map Number 241, New Number 1845, which said part of lots when taken together are more particularly bounded and described, according to said map, as follows: BEGINNING at a point on the northwesterly side of Everett Place, formerly known as Evergreen Place, distant 95.00 feet northwesterly from the corner formed by the intersection of the northwesterly side of Everett Place with the northeasterly side of Newbridge Avenue, also known as Newbridge Road; RUNNING THENCE northwesterly at right angles to Evergreen Place 130.00 feet; RUNNING THENCE northeasterly parallel with Everett Place 55.00 feet; RUNNING THENCE southeasterly at right angles to Everett Place 130.00 feet to the northwesterly side of Everett Place; and RUNNING THENCE southwesterly along the northwesterly side of Everett Place, 55.00 feet to the point or place of BEGINNING. 150264
Courtesy NCPD
EMPLOYMENT
Help Wanted
Amityville UFSD Food Service Workers PT/FT
Responsibilities- Food preparation & service, sanitation awareness, other duties as assigned by the District.
Qualifications- Knowledge and experience with cooking, inventory, cashiering, recordkeeping, customer service, computer skills **Suffolk County Food Manager's Certificate preferred. Salary range starting at $20,980. Email resume to: humanresources@amityvilleufsd.org or apply online at www.olasjobs.org/longisland
CIRCULATION ASSOCIATE
Full Time/Part Time Richner Communications, publisher of Herald community newspapers has an excellent opportunity for a FT/PT Customer Service Clerk in our busy Circulation Department. Basic customer service and administrative responsibilities include: heavy computer work, answering phones, making phone calls, entering orders, faxing, filing, etc.
STRONG knowledge of EXCEL a must! Knowledge of DATABASE maintenance or postal regulations a big plus. Qualified Candidates must be computer literate, able to multitask, dependable, reliable, organized, energetic, detail oriented and able to work well under deadlines. Salary Range is $16 per hour to $23 per hour. For consideration, please send resume & salary requirements to: careers@liherald.com
DRIVERS WANTED
Full Time and Part Time
Positions Available!
Busy Print Shop in Garden City is Hiring Immediately for Full Time and Part Time Drivers. Must Have a Clean License and BoxTruck Driving Experience. Hours Vary, Salary Ranges from $17 per hour to $21 per hour Night Availability is a Must. Please Email Resume to careers@liherald.com or Call (516)569-4000 x239
EDITOR/REPORTER
Part Time & Full Time. The award-winning Herald Community Newspapers group, covering Nassau County's North and South Shores with hard-hitting news stories and gracefully written features, seeks a motivated, energetic and creative editor/reporter to join our dynamic (and awesome) team! This education and general assignment reporting position offers a unique experience to learn from some of the best in the business. Historically, reporters who have launched their careers with us have gone on to The New York Times, Newsweek, Newsday, the New York Daily News, New York Post, CNN, BBC, NBC News and The Daily Mail, among many others. We look for excellent writers who are eager to learn, enhance their skills, and become well-established and respected journalists in our industry. Salary range is from $20K to $45K To apply: Send a brief summary in the form of a cover letter describing your career goals and what strengths you can bring to our newsroom, along with a resume and three writing samples to jbessen@liherald.com
EMAIL MARKETING SPECIALIST
Herald Community Newspapers is seeking a motivated and knowledgeable Email Marketing Expert to join our team. If you have a passion for crafting effective email campaigns and a knack for data-driven decision-making, this role is for you!
RESPONSIBILITIES:
Set up and manage email campaigns from start to finish. Analyze data to identify target audiences and optimize email strategies. Craft compelling email content, including writing effective subject lines. Monitor and report on campaign performance.
REQUIREMENTS:
Degree in Marketing, Business, or related field. Strong understanding of data analysis and marketing principles. Experience with email marketing is preferred but not required.
POSITION DETAILS:
Flexible: Part-time or Full-time.
Salary range: $16,640 to $70,000, depending on experience and role.
Join our dynamic team and help us connect with our audience in meaningful ways! Apply today by sending your resume and a brief cover letter to lberger@liherald.com
HBCI SUPERVISOR FT: Seeking LCSW or LMSW for Crisis Intervention Program, Cedarhurst NY. 3+ yr exp, Supervision exp. $80K Annually + benefits Claufer@hamaspikkings.org 516-875-8400 x144
MAILROOM/ WAREHOUSE HELP
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Yes, those tall buildings really sway
Waterfront Luxury
Q. We were in Manhattan recently, and learned that tall buildings actually sway back and forth. We stared at the tallest apartment building in the Western Hemisphere, at 432 Park Ave., but couldn’t really tell. Do these buildings sway? How far? Wouldn’t that be dangerous, and how come we don’t hear about it? Why would people put up with that for so much money?
A. Yes, for anywhere from $2 million upward (pun intended) to around $200 million, you, too, can get a continuous amusement ride, or the sensation of always being on a cruise, if you like that sort of thing. When people, mostly at parties, ask me whether I have designed anything tall or famous, I wince, because I’d rather be asked if I’ve ever done anything that people enjoyed seeing or being in.
Few people ever discuss the failings of the most well-known architects. Most of the buildings Frank Lloyd Wright designed leaked. Wright never really was a trained or licensed architect, but he made it to postage stamp status. When the 500-pound windows began flying out of I.M. Pei’s Hancock Tower in Boston, most people, except those who either nearly died or had to clean up the mess, never noticed. The list of the ways in which we learn from building design “aberrations” is endless, but the important thing is that we learn.
People who can afford to live in those tall buildings, above the crowds of common folk, must have to accept the soft sway of the windswept towers they rest their weary heads in. I have read many articles in technical magazines, and reports about how engineers have been tasked with trying to resolve the problems. In the case of 432 Park Avenue, two “dampers” were designed into the center of the tower, even though there is currently no code requirement for them.
The Burj Khalifa, in Dubai, which is much taller than 432 Park Avenue, has features including an aerodynamic shape to cut the wind, and a massive 660-ton pendulum that sways from cables in the core of the building. Even so, on the 163rd floor, the building sways 6½ feet back and forth. There are many different damper systems, flexible, viscoelastic collars and inserts between the rigid steel frame connections that transfer the forces by taking the heat away from the strain of the otherwise rigid joints. Without all of these shock-reducing components, sections would crack and crumble.
As it is, the residents of 432 Park Avenue have complained of air conditioning and heating malfunctions and acoustical discomfort from the creaking walls, whistling wind and stalled elevators. Most of the units are purchased for the beautiful vistas, and you can sell anything to someone who doesn’t do their homework. Many units have been leased and re-leased, bought and sold several times in the three years since the tower opened, with the prices going up and up. Better than buying the Brooklyn Bridge, right?
© 2024 Monte Leeper Readers are encouraged to send questions to yourhousedr@aol.com, with “Herald question” in the subject line, or to Herald Homes, 2 Endo Blvd., Garden City, NY 11530, Attn: Monte Leeper, architect.
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Remembering Jimmy Breslin, a legend in New York journalism
Ihave always been an avid reader of newspapers, and have a great admiration for columnists, particularly Jimmy Cannon, and then Jimmy Breslin and Pete Hamill. That’s why I so appreciate the opportunity to write a column for the Heralds. All of this came rushing back at me as I was reading the recently published biography “Jimmy Breslin,” by Richard Esposito. Breslin was a unique character. No one understood New York’s people, neighborhoods and streets like him.
Breslin’s New York was Queens Boulevard, not Park Avenue. It was cops, prizefighters, bookies and cold beer (until he stopped drinking, anyway). I started reading his columns years ago, in the old Journal-American, and continued with him through the Herald Tribune, the Daily News
and Newsday.
After Gov. Kathy Hochul vetoed the Planned Offshore Wind Transmission Act last fall due to local opposition to a wind farm’s high-voltage cables, the state had a trick up its sleeve.
T he bill would have required the State Energy Research and Development Authority to establish transmission planning for the offshore grid, coupled with a requirement to conduct a costbenefit analysis that included the impact on ratepayers. In essence, the bill would have, for the first time, given New Yorkers insight into the true cost of implementing offshore wind projects and their transmission lines.
T he question is, why did Hochul veto the bill? In addition to local opposition, I believe the answer is that if the public knew the true cost of these plans, people would begin to question the wisdom of investing millions of dollars in reworking a power grid that wasn’t broken in the first place. They would ask hard questions about where money was being spent, and who was benefiting — questions the governor obviously doesn’t want raised.
I first met Breslin in the 1980s, and we became close friends in the late 1990s. My wife, Rosemary, and I would go to dinner with Jimmy and his wife, Ronnie, at least once a month, and he and I would talk at least once a day. When Jimmy wanted to talk, he wouldn’t stop, and it was almost impossible to get off the phone with him, even if you had work to do. I found that the one way to close out a conversation was to compliment him on something. In true Irish fashion, he would get flustered, mumble a rushed goodbye and slam down the phone.
When he wanted to talk, it was impossible to get off the phone with him.
Breslin was a great guy to be with. He was tough and cynical, but had endless stories and was a true friend — when he was still your friend. He wrote several columns about me during President Bill Clinton’s impeachment that I will always cherish, and he wrote a great blurb for my first novel (which he probably never read). We commiserated after the 9/11 attacks,
attending funerals of mutual friends, giving each other support in an Irish sort of way. He came to my daughter Erin’s wedding and reception, and stayed to the very end — and that was long after he’d stopped drinking! During these good times, though, I would have in the back of my head columns Breslin used to write when he was living in Baldwin, listing people he would no longer speak with. Though he stopped issuing those lists, I wondered when my number would be up. I found out in March 2003, when Rosemary sent him a heated note, blasting him for comparing President George W. Bush to Adolf Hitler. That ended it. It was curtain time. No more phone calls or dinners. I did call him once when I heard there was a serious illness in his family.
“Jimmy, I heard the news,” I said. “I’m sorry. I’m thinking of you.”
“Yeah,” he replied, “I’ll be thinking of you, too. Goodbye.”
Later I saw him at the renowned
journalist Jack Newfield’s funeral, and we had a quick handshake. Several years after that, in 2009, Rosemary and I went to the funeral of Breslin’s daughter Kelly at an old church in Lower Manhattan. Afterward we sat and talked with him at a table in the churchyard for 10 or 15 minutes. The conversation was warm and friendly, almost like it used to be. When it was time to say so long, I said, “Jimmy, we should get together.”
“Yeah,” he said. “We should. That’d be good.” We shook hands.
We never got together. I wish we had. Breslin died in 2017, and a large part of New York died with him.
Esposito’s biography brings back the memories not just of Breslin, but of the days when newspapers and their columnists — and the written word — had such a vital role to play in our society. While much of that has died, I commend the Herald for keeping the tradition alive for the people of Long Island.
Peter King is a former congressman, and a former chair of the House Committee on Homeland Security. Comments? pking@ liherald.com.
Governor Hochul’s totalitarian energy agenda
In its infinite surreptitious reach, the state concealed in its latest budget the Renewable Action through Project Interconnection Deployment, or RAPID, Act, granting it the authority to overrule local and public input. The state Office of Renewable Energy Siting would have final say on project siting, even over community objections.
IGroups of so-called environmentalists, influenced by Hochul’s green agenda, have received millions of dollars to push the narrative that we need to move off fossil fuels now because the Earth is on fire. Before we go scorched-Earth, Let’s look at facts.
commercial areas.
t’s a mistake to plan for wide-scale solar and wind power in New York at this point.
Long Island water comes from aquifers that, if polluted, would jeopardize the health of millions. Hydrogen fluoride gas produced in these fires turns acidic when mixed with water, becoming acid rain. This acid, in large enough concentrations, can dissolve concrete. Would you or your children want to drink water this contaminated? Apparently, Hochul doesn’t care about such consequences in her drive to rapidly implement green-energy projects.
life, fishing, local businesses and communities. How future offshore wind catastrophes will affect shore towns, wildlife and commercial fishing isn’t known. But New Yorkers should realize that it’s a mistake, at this point, to plan the construction, let alone the funding, for dozens of gigawatts of solar and wind power — along with batteries 100 times the size of the world’s largest existing battery — and new transmission lines to tie all this to the existing grid.
T he state took away local municipality and public involvement in the siting of renewable-energy projects and paused congestion pricing. Further, a report by the state’s Fire Safety Working Group falsely concluded that fires last year at three battery energy storage system facilities in New York state — which store the energy that wind turbines create — had no environmental impact, neglecting to include test results of hydrogen fluoride levels in the air, soil or water at those sites. What is even more disturbing is that the working group has written an inadequate code that allows for placement of BESS facilities in residential and
T his act-now-and-monitor-later mentality, regardless of the consequences, does nothing to put minds at ease. To date, no robust engineering analysis suggests that Hochul’s RAPID Act plan will work. There has been no rigorous analysis. Instead, evidence seems to indicate that the state’s planned installations of solar arrays, wind turbines, battery facilities and transmission cables will not reliably power the grid, and will not prove safe or affordable.
Worth noting, in this critical context, is the Vineyard Wind offshore debacle off the coast of Nantucket last July, when a single turbine blade selfdestructed, dropping 60 tons of plastic into the ocean and wreaking havoc, closing beaches and impacting marine
Instead, we might better ask, first, who thought this was possible? and second, from empirical examples of places with significant intermittent energy — California and Germany — why did anyone think this would enable New York to cut fossil-fuel use and reliably and affordably power the grid?
Given the egregious overreach of Hochul’s RAPID Act, there should be an immediate halt to all of the Office of Renewable Energy Siting work as well as a prohibition on placing any renewable-energy facilities within residential communities and near schools. Taxpayers don’t want to be the subjects of a large-scale energy experiment, or a class-action lawsuit, as a result of the “next big idea.”
Christina Kramer, a professional photographer and an adjunct professor at the Fashion Institute of Technology, is the founder and president of Protect Our Coast – Long Island, New York.
In Long Islanders we trust
Beginning with the birth of our nation, Long Islanders have shaped the policies of America as well as our country’s impact on the world. Suffolk County’s William Floyd was one of the 56 men who signed the Declaration of Independence. President Theodore Roosevelt, who made his home in Oyster Bay, is often cited as one of our greatest leaders. Bellmore’s William Casey served as President Ronald Reagan’s CIA director during an era fraught with Cold War tensions.
As the Biden administration sunsets and President-elect Donald Trump’s second administration begins to take shape, Long Islanders are once again positioned to influence our nation and the course of human history.
T rump has nominated Howard Lutnick, from Jericho, to serve as secretary of commerce. Lutnick, the chairman and chief executive of the global financial services firm Cantor Fitzgerald, strongly supports the president-elect’s plans to impose tariffs on Canada, China and Mexico, which would have dramatic impacts on the global economy.
T rump has chosen Dr. Dave Weldon, a Farmingdale High School and Stony Brook University graduate, to head the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Weldon, a former congressman from Florida, would succeed fellow Long Islander Dr. Mandy Cohen, a Baldwin native whom President Biden appointed to the role last year. (Another Baldwin native, Karine Jean-Pierre, has served as President Biden’s White House press secretary since 2022.)
Given the recent politicization of the CDC, as well as the anti-establishment views of Robert F. Kennedy Jr., whom
letters
Trump has selected as his secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services — which oversees the CDC — Weldon is set to wield unique power in setting public health policy.
Biden named Dr. David Kessler, a graduate of Woodmere Academy (now the Lawrence Woodmere Academy) as the lead scientist on the coronavirus vaccine distribution efforts. Kessler formerly headed the Food and Drug Administration under Presidents George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton.
T rump has also named Steve Witkoff to be special envoy to the Middle East. Witkoff, who was raised in Baldwin Harbor and Old Westbury, is a successful real estate developer and a major benefactor of Hofstra University, where he earned a law degree. (He shares that law school alma mater with Charles Kushner, the father of Trump’s son-inlaw, Jared Kushner, and a convicted felon whom Trump has selected as ambassador to France.) Witkoff’s appointment continues Trump’s selection of Long Islanders for critical Middle East policy roles.
In Trump’s first term, the U.S. ambassador to Israel was David Friedman, who grew up in North Woodmere. The son of Rabbi Morris Friedman, who led Temple Hillel for 33 years and brought Reagan to the synagogue in 1984, David Friedman played a pivotal role in promoting Trump’s Middle East policies, from the decision to relocate the U.S. Embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, to supporting the Abraham Accords, which normalized relations between Israel and the United Arab Emirates.
T rump also announced his choice of Garden City’s Kash Patel as director of
Randi just won’t stop with Trump
To the Editor:
I just finished reading Randi Kreiss’s column, “Dear readers, we can’t keep it in neutral” (Nov. 28-Dec. 4). It seems that Randi is totally consumed by Trump derangement syndrome. Donald Trump is a deeply flawed soul to be sure, but when compared with Hillary and Harris, he is Abe Lincoln.
When he left office, but for the horror of Covid, the country was at peace and the economy was in great shape. Could this country endure four more years of what we just went through? Obviously not! The fake dossier, the disgraceful lawfare, and it goes on and on.
Trump establishes the Depar tment of Government Efficiency and the left mocks him unendingly. When it pays enormous dividends, they will ignore it, as they always do. Thank God the country was sickened by the last four years and overwhelmingly decided to reject it!
the FBI. Leaders on both sides of the aisle, however, have expressed concerns about that choice, because of what they perceive to be Patel’s desire to dismantle the very institution he has been tapped to lead, as well as his lack of relevant experience.
“I categorically opposed making Patel deputy FBI director,” William Barr, who served as attorney general under Presidents George H.W. Bush and Trump, wrote in his 2022 book, “One Damn Thing After Another.” “I told Mark Meadows,” Barr added, referring to Trump’s White House chief of staff, “it would happen ‘over my dead body.’ Someone with no background as an agent would never be able to command the respect necessary to run the day-to-day operations of the bureau.”
Finally, there’s former U.S. Rep. Lee Zeldin, who, in 2022, unsuccessfully challenged Gov. Kathy Hochul in New York’s gubernatorial election. Zeldin, an Army veteran who represented New York’s 1st Congressional District from 2015 to 2023, is poised to become Trump’s administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency. In that role, Zeldin would have wide-ranging powers to create or eliminate regulations that protect the environment.
Many of Trump’s selections must be confirmed by the U.S. Senate. We expect most of them will be, or will serve in interim roles. Regardless, these Long Islanders are a testament to the region’s diverse influence on national politics and international diplomacy.
We hope they don’t forget where they came from, and make decisions that uplift not only our country, but also the Long Island communities they once called home.
No matter who’s president, L.I.’s middle class struggles
Eight years ago, about four months into Donald Trump’s first term as president, the Herald published an op-ed I wrote entitled “What American Dream?” in which I lamented the ever-growing financial burden on Long Island’s middle class.
Despite all the hard work I put in, I wrote, I was decidedly worse off than my mother and father were a generation earlier. I laid equal blame on Democrats and Republicans, who had rotated in and out of Washington all my life and done little to stop the downward spiral. “And his promises notwithstanding,” I added, “President Trump will likely do little to change our trajectory.” He did not.
And, in all fairness, neither did President Biden.
Eight years ago I noted that my wife and I worked full time as teachers, but that she had to care for our kids alone during the week, while I tutored after school to keep up with ever-rising
lEttErs
Shop safely during the holidays
To the Editor:
The Nassau County Police Department advises shoppers to be vigilant for their safety and the safety of others this holiday season.
Before leaving home, secure and engage alarms, and leaving lights on in frequented rooms to give the appearance that people are home.
Plan your shopping trips, know where you’re going and, if possible, go with someone else. Let someone know where you’re going. Park in an area that’s well lit, and make sure your valuables are out of sight. Avoid parking near vans or other vehicles with covered cargo areas. Don’t get out of your car unless you feel safe, lock your vehicle, and remember where you’ve parked.
As you shop, keep money and credit/debit cards in a front pocket, and limit the number of cards and the
expenses.
Today I tutor two to three times as much as I did then. Not out of greed, but necessity. My wife continues to do the lion’s share of the work with the kids, but she, too, has taken on a second job, doing early intervention for special-needs 2-year-olds. So, eight years ago, we basically needed three incomes to make it. Now we need four.
BSome of my colleagues at school were elated after Election Day that we have another four years of Trump coming, almost as if their team had won the Super Bowl. It has always surprised me how any teacher can support the guy whose Supreme Court appointee, Neil Gorsuch, rendered the decisive vote in Janus v. AFSCME, a case that weakened public-sector unions like the ones we belong to.
doesn’t matter who’s in the White House — our lives here on Long Island are not going to get any easier.
y the time I graduated from eighth grade in 1992, working moms were the norm.
That’s because we’ve witnessed a steady erosion of the middle class since 1973, when real wages started to fall against the backdrop of an energy crisis and pronounced inflation. The true death knell was President Ronald Reagan’s taking office in 1980. Reagan slashed taxes for corporations and the wealthy with the idea that the financial benefits at the top of the economic food chain would trickle down to the rest of us. Only they didn’t.
and they only continued to get worse. I’m not piling on Republicans, because there were 20 years of Democratic presidents as well between then and now. My colleagues, both jubilant and dejected after this past Election Day, might remember that the roles were reversed in 2008, when Barack Obama was first elected. Regardless of who has led the country, things haven’t gotten a whole lot better.
That’s because the people at the top — the corporate interests that really run America — don’t want them to. As the late, great comedian George Carlin said, “Our country’s a big club … and you ain’t in it!”
To be fair, others at school were crestfallen.
I, on the other hand, for the first time in my adult life, paid absolutely no attention to this election, and did not watch one minute of election night coverage. Although I voted for Kamala Harris, I did not shed a tear.
That’s because I’ve heard this song before. I know how this movie ends. It
cash you carry. To avoid identity theft, be careful when exposing your cards and other identification at cash registers and ATMs. Be aware that thieves use cellphones to capture card and identity information. Be cognizant of distractions that could be staged to avert your attention.
When you return to your vehicle, don’t do so with your arms full of packages. Use a cart. Be ready to unlock your car door. Check the parking lot for suspicious-looking people, and if you see anyone loitering nearby, don’t go to your vehicle.
Carry a whistle or other audible device, and if you feel threatened, use it. Before getting into your vehicle, look around and inside it. Once inside, lock the doors, and if you have to, use your horn to attract attention.
Always be aware of your surroundings.
NASSAU COUNTY POLICE DEPARTMENT
I’m by no means an economist, but consider this: When I entered kindergarten in 1983, my mother was one of a few moms who needed to get a job to help make ends meet. The embarrassment of getting picked up by another classmate’s mother will forever be etched in my memory. Years later, my mother told me how the guilt I laid on her at the time absolutely broke her heart. Sorry, Mom. I love you.
But by the time I graduated from eighth grade in 1992, working moms were the norm. I can only recall one or two classmates whose mothers didn’t work. Things had certainly changed,
FramEwork by Tim Baker
Nobody should have been surprised that Trump trounced the incumbentbacked Harris. Middle class voters have been drowning for 50 years, desperately hoping someone would toss them a life vest that never seems to come.
I wish I shared my Trump-supporting colleagues’ optimism, or even the Harris supporters’ melancholy, but I just don’t. I don’t think any real help is coming, regardless of who is in office.
I will gladly eat my words in four years if my wallet is fatter and prices are lower. But I doubt that’s going to happen.
Nick Buglione is a teacher, a freelance journalist and a former editor of the East Meadow Herald.
nick BuglionE
At the Froehlich Family Lights, on Sherwood Drive — East Meadow
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