Malverne/West Hempstead
HERALD Thankful Thursday in lakeview
Mental health clinic at Molloy
Residents protest for George Floyd
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Vol. 27 No. 23
JUNE 4 - 10, 2020
Putting faith into practice By NakEEM GRaNT ngrant@liherald.com
Courtesy Our Lady of Lourdes Church
MalVERNiTE ChRisTiNa CallahaN, second from left, and her mother, Patricia Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick, raised money for Our Lady of Lourdes Church’s food pantry by selling homemade bracelets. With them were church volunteer Linda Baldacchino and the Rev. Michael Duffy.
Stuck at home because of the coronavirus pandemic over the past few months, Malverne teen Christina Callahan said that boredom helped her stumble on a fun, meaningful project. In April, she said, she found string in her basement that she decided to turn into bracelets. Knowing the challenges that many families in the village are facing, she started selling bracelets for a good cause. Since then, Christina, 13, has sold nearly 100 bracelets, and has donated $300 to Our Lady of Lourdes Church’s food pantry, which supports families in need. Continued on page 7
Meet West Hempstead’s school board candidates By NakEEM GRaNT ngrant@liherald.com
Four candidates are running for two open Board of Education seats in the West Hempstead School District in the June 9 election. The Herald sent brief questionnaires to the candidates, and their answers have been edited for brevity and clarity. Incumbent Vincent Trocchia is running for re-election, and is being challenged by Jason Miller. Trocchia, who has been a trustee for nearly 30 years, said that he was running again because he wants to help the district complete its $35 million bond referendum for capital
improvements of schools. “I’ve been meeting with the architect almost weekly throughout the school year to try and move things along, and to follow this bond issue to its fruition,” Trocchia said. “We want to install a pre-K center as well, so we’re hoping to bring more families into the district.” He also said he hoped to improve children’s education, and to help make informed decisions on hiring of personnel, and formulating budgets and policies, if re-elected. Helping the district reach its goals after the coronavirus pandemic, he said, would be dependent on Gov.
Andrew Cuomo’s guidance. “Our superintendent is forward-thinking, and I have full confidence in our administration,” Trocchia said, “but no one can really tell you what’s going to happen in September, because the governor and the county haven’t given us any directions yet. It all depends on what latitude they give us.” Miller, who has worked as a technologist at Amazon for the past six years, said that the district was need of new ideas and perspectives to educate students in a post-pandemic world. If elected, he said, he aimed to improve students’ literacy skills,
develop a three-year technology plan and help establish a safety protocol for staff and students while the pandemic continues. “I intend to contribute my managerial skills to drive results,” Miller said, “coupled with an understanding of the educational needs of the 21st century in order to help our students succeed in an uncertain
world.” As a former educator — who began his career as a special ed. teacher in the South Bronx nearly a decade ago — Miller said he understands the effort teachers have made to continue educating students online. He added that he hoped to use his experience in both education and technology Continued on page 7