Sixth-grade members of the student council at Chatterton School in Merrick organized bins of food donations last week, following a successful drive. The donations will go directly to Merrick families in need this holiday season.
Student council at Chatterton helps Merrick families in need
By JoRDAN VAlloNE jvallone@liherald.com
Students who attend the Chatterton School in the Merrick School District are learning the importance of giving back to others this holiday season, thanks to a food drive that will directly benefit Merrick families in need of a little extra support.
The school’s student council, comprised of fifth- and sixth-grade students, collected nonperishable food items throughout the month of November, and assembled donation boxes at the school on Nov. 21, to be distributed ahead of Thanksgiving.
Sixth-grade teachers Laura Bonet and
Lindsay Zender, who lead the student council, oversaw the food packing process with members of the council. Marisa Taddeo, the school’s social worker, also helped put together the bins.
Bonet said that this year the student council was opened up to all fifth and sixth graders, assembling a massive team eager to participate in school and community service efforts. The council meets once a class cycle — about every five days — to discuss different initiatives it would like to get involved in.
“But this is traditional here, that every year we do a food drive for Thanksgiving,”
ConTinued on page 11
Chris Carini remembered with vigil
By CHARlES SHAW cshaw@liherald.com
The late Town of Hempstead Councilman Chris Carini was known for giving back to his community, and dozens of people gathered on the front lawn last Sunday for a candlelight vigil to honor his memory.
ECarini, a Republican, who resided in Seaford was first elected to the Town Board after Councilwoman Erin King Sweeney dropped out of the race six weeks before the 2019 election. He served the 5th Councilmanic District, representing Seaford, Wantagh, Bellmore, Merrick, Freeport, Lido Beach and Point Lookout, until he died unexpectedly in July, at age 49, while visiting family in Florida.
their respects, remembering Carini as a dedicated public servant and a proud father.
Councilman Chris Schneider, who was appointed to the board to fill Carini’s seat, said there was one word that kept coming back to him when he though of Carini: Friend.
verything he did in his life was about giving back.
PAtRiCk RyDER
The Seaford Chamber of Commerce, along with the school district PTAs and Booster Club, hosted the event at Seaford High School, at which friends, family members, community members from Carini’s district and local officials paid
“He was a great guy, and I know everybody has their own personal memories and stories of him,” Schneider said. “I think about him every day.” Schneider won a full term on the town board in this month’s election. After his appointment, Schneider told the Herald that the experience was bittersweet, because Carini had been a close friend for years. The responsibility as councilman is special to him, Schneider added, because it means that he will be able to carry on Carini’s legacy.
Before Carini joined the Town Board, he was a decorated veteran of law enforcement, serving for 22 years as an officer in the New York City, MetConTinued on page 4
Jordan Vallone/Herald
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Community members learn lifesaving skills
By JORDAN VALLONE jvallone@liherald.com
The Bellmore-Merrick Community Parent Center hosted a Narcan training at the Brookside School on Nov. 18 to address the ongoing opioid crisis. Attendees learned how to identify and respond to overdoses using naloxone, commonly known as Narcan, a nasal spray that can reverse the effects of an opioid overdose.
Narcan works by rapidly binding to opioid receptors in the brain, displacing the opioids and effectively stopping their effects, including life-threatening respiratory depression. Narcan is typically administered as a nasal spray, making it easy to use even for those without medical training.
Bellmore-Merrick’s Community Parent Center is a resource center for parent and community education programs. It runs informative events all year long — like Narcan trainings — and additional programs that target drug use.
The Tempo Group, led by Cindy Wolff, its executive director, is a nonprofit, community-based alcohol and drug rehabilitation center, is based at the Brookside School, which is also the Bellmore-Merrick Central High School District’s headquarters. The group, which assisted with last week’s Narcan training, provides specialized adolescent treatment programs for teenagers who are experiencing difficulty managing their life due to substance abuse, and provides treatment in groups as well, among other services.
Wendy Tepfer, the parent center’s director, has highlighted the severity of the opioid epidemic, especially the rise in fentanyl-related deaths.
“An opioid addiction does not discriminate,” she said at a past Narcan training, urging prevention and education for parents and teens.
According to the CDC, opioids were involved with 80,000 deaths in 2022, accounting for nearly 75 percent of all drug overdose deaths. Fentanyl is a primary drive of these fatalities.
Fentanyl, a synthetic drug, is 50 to 100 times more potent than morphine, a common opioid, and is often mixed into other drugs without the user’s knowledge, significantly increasing the risk of overdose. Overdose deaths among people ages 15 to 24 have risen sharply in recent years, often linked to counterfeit pills containing fentanyl.
Despite its effectiveness, many overdoses go untreated due to a lack of awareness or access to Narcan, underscoring the need for education. Narcan is now available over-the-counter, and learning how to administer it properly can help reduce fatalities and save thousands of lives each year.
At last week’s event, attendees that before Narcan is even administered, it is crucial that 911 is called. Even if someone arouses from an overdose, they are still in need of medical attention. The person receiving Narcan should be flat on the ground, and with
Fast facts about Narcan
What It Is: Narcan, the brand name for naloxone, is a medication that reverses opioid overdoses
How It Works: Narcan binds to opioid receptors in the brain, blocking the effects of opioids and restoring normal breathing
Administration: It is most commonly used as a nasal spray, making it simple and accessible for non-medical individuals
a simple push of your thumb, the entire dose of it will come out of the spray nozzle. Even if it appears that the person is not breathing, Narcan should still work. Sometimes, a second or third doese of Narcan needs to be administered, depending on the severity of the overdose.
Narcan will only work on an opioid overdose — it cannot reverse the effects of a different type of overdose. With that said, Narcan will not harm someone if they are overdosing on a different type of drug, so it can be administered even if one is unsure what is causing an overdose.
Everyone who attended the training last week received a kit containing Narcan.
The Community Parent Center and the Tempo Group operate under the guise that “prevention is key.” The
Kits, containing Narcan and additional supplies, were distributed.
Effectiveness: Narcan only works on opioid overdoses
FDA Approval: Narcan is approved by the Food and Drug Administration for treating known or suspected opioid overdoses
Over-the-Counter: Narcan is now available without a prescription, increasing accessibility for emergency use
treatment center, services offered, and outreach within
call the
Tempo Group has offices at 1260 Meadowbrook Road, North Merrick. To learn more about opioid addiction, the
Bellmore-Merrick schools,
Tempo Group at (516) 374-3671.
Elaine Squeri, the director of health services at the Tempo Group, Wendy Tepfer, the director of the Bellmore-Merrick Community Parent Center, and Cindy Wolff, the executive director of the Tempo Group, led an informative Narcan training on Nov. 18 at the Brookside School.
Holden Leeds/Herald photos
Attendees lined up to receive important information about the opioid epidemic.
Communities Carini served remember him
ropolitan Transportation Authority and Port Authority of New York and New Jersey police departments.
At the vigil, State Sen. Steve Rhoads described Carini as a tremendous person with a unique soul. Rhoads added that Carini was a passionate and dedicated member of the community.
“He was all about trying to make the community better for his family, and for treating each of us as though we were his family,” Rhoads said.
Prior to becoming a councilman, Carini was part of the Wantagh/Seaford Homeowners Association, which often focused on quality-of-life issues. He took those concerns with him on the board, establishing the town’s Quality of Life Task Force last year. Since then, crews have traveled around Hempstead, removing graffiti as well as illegal signage from utility poles and fences, and collecting errant trash and debris.
Town Clerk Kate Murray had worked with Carini for four years, and attended community events with him. He was passionate about policing and criminal justice issues, she said, and wasn’t afraid to express his opinions.
“He didn’t mind if he broke a few eggs, and perhaps lost a fan or two along the way,” Murray said, “because he knew what he knew, and he believed what he believed, and got many more fans for that, honestly.”
Nassau County Police Commissioner Patrick Ryder spoke of Carini’s career in law enforcement, noting that he responded to the Sept. 11 attacks, and was willing to sacrifice everything for others, including strangers.
“Everything he did in his life was about giving
It is remarkable to us how many people we meet who have amassed signifcant wealth beyond their needs, yet have little or no inclination to share their good fortune with others, even their immediate families. It seems to us that the only value that any asset has is in its use — those who have assets they are unable to utilize are really no better off than those who don’t.
How much richer and happier many lives would be if only we learned to share more. Studies in psychology and neuroscience have demonstrated that acts of generosity trigger a release of endorphins, referred to as the “helper’s high”, leading to increased feelings of happiness and satisfaction.
Generous acts involve considering the needs of others, expanding one’s empathy and leading to deeper connections with others and a more meaningful and fulflling life. This may explain why those least able to give are sometimes the most generous. Generosity has less to do with what one has than the way one thinks.
dozens of people from a variety of communities gathered on the
of
remember town Councilman Chris Carini, who was dedicated to improving the
back,” Ryder said.
Ava Carini, 17, said she was thankful that her dad had known so many people in the community. Seeing the crowd honor his memory, she said, made her real-
“A fght is going on inside me,” said an old man to his son. “It is a terrible fght between two wolves. One wolf is evil. He is anger, envy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority and ego. The other wolf is good. He is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion and faith. The same fght is going on inside you.”
The son thought for a minute and then asked, “Which wolf will win?”
The old man replied simply, “The one you feed.”
— Wendy Mass
Generosity may also involve giving of your time and attention. As theologian John Wesley put it three hundred years ago:
“Do all the good you can, By all the means you can, In all the ways you can, To all the people you can, As long as you ever can.”
Requirements:
ize that her family wasn’t alone in dealing with his loss.
“It’s nice to see how many people my dad has impacted in their lives,” Ava said.
Own professional-grade camera
Flexibility to work evenings and weekends
Reliable transportation
Strong work ethic, punctuality, and the
Holden Leeds/Herald
lawn
Seaford High School on Sunday to
quality of life in his community.
Step into the holidays in Bellmore and Merrick
By JORDAN VALLONE jvallone@liherald.com
The holiday season is just around the corner in Bellmore-Merrick, and there’s plenty of events throughout later November and December that are slated to bring communities together and spread goodwill.
The Chamber of Commerce of the Bellmores is continuing its holiday tradition with the Annual Santa Visit on Friday, Nov. 29, the day after Thanksgiving. As part of the event, children in the community can enjoy a free movie at Bellmore Movies, courtesy of theater owners Anne and Henry Stampfel. Santa will make a special arrival by fire truck around 11 a.m., after making four additional stops around town, thanks to the Bellmore Fire Department.
Before his arrival at the movie theater, Santa Claus will be at Stop & Shop in North Bellmore at 9 a.m., North Shore Farms on Jerusalem Avenue and 9:30 a.m., Piccolo Ristorante on Sunrise Highway at 10 a.m., and the Ace Shopping Center on Merrick Road at 10:30 a.m.
There’s no charge to attend this fun community event, but the Chamber asks that those attending bring a new, unwrapped toy which will be donated to children in need.
Festivities will the Chamber continue on Dec. 6, with a Christmas tree lighting at 7 p.m., a visit from Santa, a live
nativity, and festive holiday music. Additional attractions include horse and carriage rides from 6 to 9 p.m., trolley rides through the community from 6 to 10 p.m., and refreshments. The fun kicks off at the Bellmore Village’s Veterans’ Memorial, right by the Bellmore Long Island Rail Road station.
Later in the month, the Chamber will reconvene at the same spot for menorah lighting, starting at 4:30 p.m. Religious
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leaders from Congregation Beth Ohr will lead the community in prayer as the Bellmores light at 10-foot menorah for Hanukkah. Performances by Hebrew school students are slated, and there will be plenty of Hanukkah goodies to go around.
For more on events in Bellmore, visit BellmoreChamber.com.
Santa Claus will be visiting the Merricks on Dec. 7, stopping the by the Mer-
Learn more about what’s coming up in Bellmore and Merrick at:
■ BellmoreChamber.com
■ MerrickChamber.com
■ Library websites for Bellmore Memorial Library, North Bellmore Public Library, Merrick Library & North Merrick Public Library
rick Golf Course Clubhouse at 2 p.m., via a fire truck driven by the Merrick Fire Department. Free candy and hot chocolate will be distributed, and everyone who attends will be able to take a photo with Santa.
Holiday celebrations continue on Dec. 8 in Merrick at the intersection of Merrick Avenue and Broadcast Plaza. The Merrick Chamber of Commerce will light its Christmas tree and menorah, ahead of both holidays, which start at the end of the month. Festivites kick off at 5 p.m., and light refreshments will be served.
For more on both holiday events in Merrick, visit MerrickChamber.org.
The holiday season is just around the corner in Bellmore and Merrick, and there’s plenty of events being hosted by the Chamber
HERALD SPORTS
Carey defeats Mepham for county title
By TONY BELLISSIMO tbellissimo@liherald.com
There was nothing fake about Carey’s dominant run to the Nassau Conference II football championship.
Well, actually, there was.
Deadlocked with Mepham early in the second half of last Friday night’s title game at Hofstra, the Seahawks pulled a fake punt on fourth-and-6 from their own 47 that saw senior Billy Koutsoumbaris gain 29 yards. Five plays later, sophomore Justin DePietro scored his second of three touchdowns and Carey eventually pulled away for a 28-7 victory and its first county championship since 2014.
“We noticed on the previous punts they were in full return mode,” Koutsoumbaris said. “When I saw we called a fake, I was confident. There was a huge hole and I just took off.”
The top-seeded Seahawks (11-0) faced another fourth down later in the same possession and DePietro, who carried 35 times, kept the chains moving with four of his 187 yards. His 11-yard touchdown capped the nine-play, 57-yard drive which put them ahead for good.
“Our O-line did what it needed to do and Justin is just a machine,” senior center Richie Metzger said of DePietro, who in the 15-0 semifinal win over Long Beach had 160 yards and both touchdowns. “It’s such a great feeling for all of us,” he added. “We’ve been working for this since the summer. Mepham gave us a tough fight as we expected.”
Carey, which has yet to trail in any game this season, advanced to face Half Hollow Hills East for the Long Island Class II crown this Friday at Hofstra at 4:30 p.m. Mepham, which reached the finals for the second time in three years, finished 9-2 with both defeats coming to the Seahawks.
“I’m just so happy for the kids, they worked so hard all year long,” Carey head coach Mike Stanley said. “They were committed to the offseason and did everything we asked them to do, and more. It’s a special group and I’m really proud of them.”
Both teams scored on their opening drives. Carey went 67 yards on 12 plays and led 7-0 on DePietro’s 6-yard touchdown run and senior kicker Joshua Palomino’s first of four successful extra points. The Pirates responded by going 66 yards on nine plays, with senior quarterback Owen Heller
throwing for all of it including a 10-yard touchdown strike to senior Nicholas Gampero. Senior Ryan Bayer added the extra point after the first playoff score allowed by the Seahawks.
“Coach [Tom] Aiello does an outstanding job with our defense to give us an edge,” Stanley said. “Our guys are ready week-in and week-out.”
The next eight possessions combined resulted in no points and the ninth had a similar look until Koutsoumbaris took junior long snapper Mike Agostino’s delivery and turned the biggest play of the game.
“At the time of the fake punt we thought we needed to swing momentum,” Stanley said. “We converted and went on to score and it was a bit of a backbreaker for them.”
DePietro provided breathing room with a 1-yard touchdown run on fourth down with 8:33 remaining in the fourth. Carey iced the title four minutes later with senior quarterback Chris Obertis’ 25-yard touchdown pass to junior Tristan Hickis.
Junior Christian Anaya had 2 sacks and 9 tackles to lead Carey’s defense. Junior James Quilty had 17 tackles for Mepham.
“It was a great season and we had an amazing group of seniors who led us and left their mark on the program,” Mepham first-year head coach Tom Mazieka said.
Jeff Wilson/Herald Nicholas Gampero had the lone touchdown for the Pirates in last Friday’s 28-7 loss to Carey in the Nassau Conference II championship game.
Students make their case in N. Merrick elections
Fourth, fifth and sixth graders at Camp Avenue School in the North Merrick School District gathered on Oct. 29 to hear from fellow students vying for positions on the Student Council.
Nine students running for various Student Council positions confidently gave theirspeeches in front of an audience of their peers and teachers.
Each made a case for why they deserved the votes of their fellow students and pitched ideas about their goals if elected. Some, for example, suggested expanding food options during lunch and offering a wider variety of goods in the school store, while others pitched fundraising drives and recycling bins in each classroom. Later in the day, each grade participated in the democratic process of casting their votes.
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Courtesy North Merrick Public Schools
Nine Camp Avenue School students gave their pitch on why they deserve their peers’ votes in the Student Council election on Oct. 29.
The stars are dimmed by light pollution
With each passing year — especially in areas like Nassau County — we see less of the night
By NICOLE FORMISANO
Special to the Herald
As a child, Ken Spencer would wait until the sun sank below the ocean horizon, and then ride his bike down to the beach and lie in the sand, staring up into the sky as the final streaks of pink and orange slipped from view. Then quietly, one by one, billions of stars would wink into existence — diamond dust, he said, scattered across a sea of black velvet.
Now, at 82, the Sea Cliff resident is lucky if he can spot even the brightest stars amid a night sky that has, over the years, morphed into a wall of light-polluted gray.
Nassau County suffers some of the worst light pollution in the world. It’s harming local wildlife, damaging human health, and marring something as seemingly inviolable as the very sky above.
The word “pollution” often evokes clouds of smog, or continental landfills; little do we think of light itself as a form of pollution. But when we are irresponsible about how we artificially light the world around us, that additional light impacts everything it touches.
Summer nights on Long Island, for example, used to mean a world illuminated by fireflies. That likely won’t be the case for the next generation. The bioluminescent beetles can’t find potential mates amid an overlit world, and are becoming increasingly endangered.
Light pollution is increasing by 10 percent every year, according to DarkSky International, a nonprofit fighting to mitigate the problem. And we’re already suffering the effects.
Losing the night sky
“I know nothing with any certainty,”
Vincent Van Gogh once wrote, “but the sight of the stars makes me dream.”
For as long as we have existed, humans have been linked inextricably to the stars. They served as beacons by which humanity navigated, charting new lands and waters; their movement led scholars to new mathematical and scientific discoveries; they have long captured the imaginations of philosophers, poets and artists; they encourage people of every age, race, class and ability to lift their eyes to the sky, wonder at the vast sea of the universe, and recognize the miracle it is to be alive.
“It feels primeval,” Spencer said of the night sky’s singular ability to pull our eyes upward. “It’s something within us.”
the sky. And little by little, it’s become harder and harder to see the Milky Way.”
More than 80 percent of people will not see the Milky Way in their lifetime, according to DarkSky International, and that number is climbing each year. We in Nassau County cannot see the Milky Way without traveling to the East End — and even that sight is a fading echo of what once was.
The amateur astronomer, originally from Milford, Connecticut, began studying the constellations with his daughter in 1989. He remembers looking at the constellation Hercules, identifying the globular cluster of 300,000 stars at the demigod’s side. He looked for that once-familiar sight recently, but the stars were simply impossible for him to see. He used to drive down to the Custer Institute and Observatory in Southold, which served as a refuge for starry skies on Long Island. But even that, he said, is slowly being encroached on.
“Over the years, now it’s all big-box stores,” Spencer said. “They’re all lit up, and they have big, giant lights in the parking lot, so that light bounces up into
The night sky is integral for interconnectedness, Susan Serven, a spokeswoman for DarkSky International, said. It helps us understand that we aren’t separate from the cosmos, but part of it.
“It’s just been the last generation or two where we’ve lost that privilege to view our starry skies,” Serven said. “If we lose the ability to go out under our night sky, we lose the awe and wonder that humanity has experienced for millennia.”
The health risks of light
When Valerie Giangrande, of Massapequa, says goodnight to her two teenage children, she sometimes has to ask, “Where are your glasses?” The teens will then put on what looks like orangetinted sunglasses before continuing to watch TV or scroll on their phone — sometimes with a sigh or an eye roll, but that’s OK with Giangrande. To the optometrist and applied quantum biology specialist, making sure her kids are shielded from the dangers of excess
sky
blue light is worth a bit of teenage ire.
“It’s one of the biggest health risks that nobody thinks about,” said Giangrande, who is an eye doctor at Optical Concepts offices in Bellmore, Freeport and Patchogue. “Light literally controls every aspect of our bodies, which is a pretty big statement to make, but it controls everything. We’re wired by light.”
Just about every function of our body runs on our circadian rhythm, a natural 24-hour clock, she explains. And that clock is controlled by the sun. When the photoreceptors in our eyes take in the long red wavelengths of morning sun, our bodies understand that it is morning and start slowly producing cortisol. As the sun climbs in the sky, it gives off more shorter-wave blue light, which heightens cortisol production and tells our bodies that it’s midday. And after sunset, when our photoreceptors recognize darkness, our brains get the signal to produce melatonin, the sleep hormone, and go into repair mode.
These days, most of our natural clocks are running haywire. That’s because the vast majority of artificial light that contributes to light pollution — LEDs, phones, computers, televisions, billboards — emit blue light. Our bodies are constantly surrounded by signals that it is noon.
Overexposure to blue light is linked to what seems like every health risk under the sun, Giangrande said — insulin resistance and diabetes, high blood pressure, cancer, neurodegenerative diseases, insomnia and lower-quality sleep, and excess anxiety.
“Anyone who wakes up not refreshed, anyone who’s tired, anyone who can’t fall asleep, can’t stay asleep — blue light
Courtesy Ken Spencer
across the Long island Sound, the town of Clinton, Connecticut, illustrates just how much light is wasted by being projected straight into the air. it burdens taxpayers, contributes to energy waste and creates a visible sky glow that erases stars from the sky.
The more lights, the less we see of the sky
Continued from PreViouS Page
toxicity,” Giangrande said. “Say we eat dinner, and then an hour later we’re really hungry again. That’s blue light toxicity, hands down.”
Our digestive enzymes naturally go down at night, she explained. Often when we’re hungry at night, it’s because our blood sugar and insulin are still up because our body thinks it’s daytime.
There are some things people can do to reduce the harm done by light pollution, Giangrande said. To start your day, step outside — or even just open a window — to get exposure to the full light spectrum of the sun. Consider replacing blue-spectrum LEDs in your home with warmer, softer lighting. And perhaps most important, get 100 percent blue light-blocking glasses to use indoors after the sun has gone down.
“Light has to be regulated first before we do all the things,” Giangrande said. “Because there’s no supplement that can take over for the sunlight.”
Let there (not) be light
So, besides our screens, where is excess artificial light coming from? A few of the primary offenders in Nassau County are entire towns and villages using unshielded streetlamps; empty fields, gas stations and parking lots lit up all night by glaring spotlights; and homeowners who illuminate their — and, by extension, their neighbors’ — property with floodlights out of the erroneous belief that it discourages crime. Multiple studies have found that lighting has no effect on crime. In fact, it encourages crimes like vandalism and graffiti, and the glare from harsh lights at night actually makes it more difficult to spot hazards in the dark.
If overlighting accomplishes anything, it wastes money — more than $3 billion in the U.S. each year, according to DarkSky, or as much as $7 billion, according to another study.
Take the Meadowbrook Parkway, for example. The 869 streetlights that line the road are activated by photocells, which turns the lights on at dusk and off at dawn, a spokesperson for the state Department of Transportation said. However, observant drivers will notice that long swaths of the parkway are peppered with orange lights even in the middle of the day. The NYSDOT did not respond to the Herald to answer whether this was intentional or indicative of faulty photocells, and how much energy and money is wasted by the lights each day.
But light pollution and its energy waste can be mitigated relatively easily by local governments. The Village of Oyster Bay, for example, has a lighting ordinance stipulating that all outdoor lighting be fully shielded. But despite such ordinances being demonstrably energy-efficient and cost-effective, few towns and villages have adopted them.
“The best way we recommend our advocates getting involved in changing actually how their backyards and their cities are lit,” said Chris Peterson, engagement director of DarkSky Inter -
an illustration of how much of the night sky is lost, and how much light is wasted, when it is ineffectively shielded — and, inversely, how well-directed, and timed, lighting can preserve our views of the stars.
Courtesy LightPollutionMap.Info
this map, using data from naSa, observatories and the World alas 2015, shows light that is wasted, which is about 30 percent of all artificial light, darkSky international estimates.
national, “is to approach city councils, development offices, planning commissions, and propose an update to that lighting ordinance for the city.”
The nonprofit even provides a template for proposing such ordinances to local representatives, which illustrates the principles of responsible outdoor lighting. And if local reps are unswayed, individuals can still help by ensuring they are not overlighting their homes.
But if we don’t take action, we will soon live in a world where a starry night sky is a distant memory.
“It’s a terrible thing for children to not know the night sky,” Spencer said. “If you don’t know something, you don’t know what you’re missing.”
“The central core of me knows that night is important,” he said. “Important to us as a human species.”
Those looking to learn more can visit DarkSky.org.
Every man’s right
Amid skyscrapers and smartphones, what do we have in common with our ancestors? The answer is the stars; the vast swath of universe that serves as our celestial home address. When I look up and see Cygnus flying over me in the winter sky, I’m looking at the same stars as people halfway across the world, or from thousands of years ago, whose names I’ll never know. The night sky serves as a keystone of the human experience, and connects us across space and time in ways that would otherwise be impossible.
As the world around us charges forward unceasingly — always asking for bigger, better, more — we rarely think of the things we lose little by little, day by day. We may not even notice when the Little Dipper dims into oblivion; when each star of Orion’s belt blinks out, one by one; when, one day, even brilliant Jupiter is extinguished, and we are left with a lone moon in a gray sky. I’ll tell my grandkids stories of the firmament, how light traveled billions of light years to make its way to us, and all we had to do to see it was look up. I wonder if they’ll believe me.
I’m not ready to give up the night sky. Are you?
–Nicole Formisano
Courtesy DarkSky International
‘Sweet Dreams’ now at Eisenhower Park
By JOSEPH D’ALESSANDRO jdalessandro@liherald.com
LuminoCity returned to Eisenhower Park for its third annual Holiday Lights Festival with a sprawling, glowing, sugary dreamland on Nov. 7. The attraction also features food and drink vendors and a gift shop and will remain open through Jan. 5.
“This is 14 acres of wonder,” LuminoCity Project Manager John Baiata said. “Our job here is to make sure that when people leave here, they’ve rekindled the sense of wonder that they grew up with.”
The Holiday Lights Festival is LuminoCity’s annual flagship event. The festival’s theme changes annually, and it takes months of production to plan and construct all the displays. The production team of about 40 members worked on 2,750 handmade displays.
Xiaoyi Chen, the founder and chief executive of LuminoCity, was inspired to create the company based on her memories of growing up with traditional Chinese lantern festivals. She came to New York and created her business to spread a sense of awe and wonder with family-friendly attractions — and inspire the next generation of young artists along the way.
“By combining the heartwarming spirit of the holidays with the unique visions and creativity of the winners of Lumi’s Utopia, our event will bring the local community together and create lasting memories for all attendees,” Chen said in a news release.
This year’s festival partnered with the Long Island Children’s Museum to bring children’s artistic ideas to life. Children created drawings in the Lumi’s Utopia workshop, where the museum’s judges selected drawings to be made into light sculptures.
“Earlier this year, we were able to host a contest where many Long Island children came in and they made confection drawings of their sweet dreams,” Aimee Terzulli, vice president of program and visitor experience for the Long Island Children’s Museum said.. “We had the hard job of having our internal judges pick only 10 out of hundreds and hundreds of young people that got to learn about the lantern process and the cultural aspects of this beautiful art form.”
The children’s art was adapted into vibrant pieces such as singing ice cream cones, ballet dancers, chocolate covered strawberries and singing candy bowls. These children and their families were able to see their art come to life for the first time on the night of the festival’s opening.
Wantagh resident Dominic Recher, 6, is one of the young artists whose work — a field of ice cream cones — was turned into a light display.
“I feel very excited, and I feel very happy,” Dominic Recher said of his art being included.
“I’m really excited that my son won — he worked really hard, and I’m really proud that he put all his time and detail
Mia Panetta and Jolie Doerbecker of Massapequa came to see the Holiday Lights Festival’s colorful and surreal light sculptures.
into his work,” his mother, Jessica Recher, said. “He makes me a proud mom.”
Festivals like LuminoCity help the community bond and boosts the county’s.
“We want to have things that are exciting, vibrant, new and family oriented, and this light festival checks all the boxes,” Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman said. “We’re extremely happy to have this beautiful exhibition here. It’s nice to bundle up and get into the Christmas and Hanukkah spirit here in Eisenhower Park.”
The festival connects several luminescent holidays at once: Diwali’s theme of light overcoming darkness, Hanukkah’s lit candles and Christmas’ decora-
tions, Blakeman added. Nassau County Comptroller Elaine Phillips applauded Chen’s contribution to the local economy.
“Businesses drive our budget,” Phillips said. “When small businesses, large
for local vendors.
businesses, do well here in Nassau County, we do well as taxpayers.”
To learn more about the festival, where to park in Eisenhower, and how to reserve tickets, visit LumincoCityFestival.com.
Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman cut the ribbon to open the attraction, encouraging support
The Holiday Lights Festival featured a wintry section, capturing the spirit of Christmas and Hanukkah decorations.
Tim Baker/Herald photos LuminoCity has returned to East Meadow for the third annual Holiday Lights Festival, with a new theme: Sweet Dreams.
Merrick families recipients of food drive
Bonet said. “Our social worker gives us names of families in the neighborhood
from having
extra supplies around the holiday season.”
Information about the drive is sent to the entire school community to solicit donations, which are placed in bins in the front foyer of the school. The drive is always successful, but it was even more so this year than in the past, Zender said.
The work that the council does throughout the school year is very collaborative, because its members want to give back to others, according to the council’s president, Elise, a sixthgrade student at Chatterton.
WZender said. “All the pasta went on one table, all the desserts went on one table, all the vegetables went on one table, and then we went around. Every box got one of each, and then it went back around once we had extra.”
The student council asked for typical items, like canned vegetables, stuffing and soups, but added things like tea and hot chocolate onto the list this year.
e teach them about this whole idea of service.
Laura
Student council adviser, Chatterton School
“I’ve always loved helping people,” she said. “I went for president because I like to be a leader. I like working with other students, and I like working with them because I think it is just a fun way to help others.”
Donations were sorted into seasonally-decorated boxes in a classroom at Chatterton last week, and the food items were distributed as evenly as possible.
“We sorted all food by types of food,”
The donations were anonymously dropped off to the homes of 16 families on Nov. 25, right before Thanksgiving, and each family received two full boxes of food. Leftover donations were given to the Community Cupboard, the Bellmore-Merrick Central High School District’s food pantry housed at the Brookside School in North Merrick, that helps families in need year-round.
The student council does a lot of good work throughout the school year, Bonet said, adding that it was responsible for bringing back a “buddy bench” to Chatterton’s playground — a simple park bench that inspires friendship and conversation during outdoor recreation. The student council also plans to run a toy drive in December, as well as
Sixteen families received two bins each, festively decorated with messages of gratitude, to spread some extra joy ahead of thanksgiving.
collaborate with Almost Home Animal Rescue to help rescue animals in need, sometime in the spring.
All of these projects, Bonet said, reinforce the values of the student council throughout the Chatterton school community. Because the food from the drive was going directly to
Merrick families, it’s great that the students know their work is helping their immediate community, she added.
“We talk about helping the school community, the local community and then the global community,” Bonet said. “We teach them about this whole idea of service.”
Jordan Vallone/Herald
Bonet
Local leaders reject regionalization plan
By BRIAN NORMAN bnorman@liherald.com
Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman, other local elected officials, school district superintendents and school board trustees gathered in the Nassau County executive building on Nov. 21 to oppose the recent State Education Department Regionalization Plan.
The plan, introduced as an emergency rule on Sept. 25, directs school districts to pool resources, programs and services, which critics say threatens the independence of local districts. State Sen. Jack Martins, one of the plan’s main opponents, talked about fighting to preserve local control of districts.
“Long Island schools are regularly ranked among the very best in New York state,” Martins said. “That fact is due in large part to our local control and educational structure, which prioritizes our students’ success. We join our local communities in opposing any effort to force regionalization and fight to preserve local control.”
Blakeman echoed Martins’s sentiments, saying the plan was an attack on suburban school districts, and that he and others would continue to fight to keep power in the hands of the districts.
“Isn’t it interesting that cities such as Yonkers, Buffalo, Syracuse, Rochester and New York City are all excluded from their plan?” Blakeman said. “This is just
Brian Norman/Herald
Sen. Jack Martins, along with other local elected officials, challenged the NYSED’s Regionalization Plan at a news conference on Nov. 21.
another attack on the suburbs by state government, which is completely controlled by left-wing politicians, and we will not stand by and let the Department of Education gut our school districts.”
Many opponents of the plan are questioning the decision to make it an emergency measure. State Sen. Steve Rhoads called it a rushed, and added that the language contained in it could lead to local districts’ complete loss of control of their operations.
“The State Education Department’s self-created emergency regionalization
mandate is vague and can lead to a complete usurpation of local control of schools budgets, tax dollars, and educational opportunities and resources vested in local boards of education,” Rhoads said. “Long Islanders pay some of the highest school taxes in the state, and their local and state officials should and must have a voice in where those dollars are being spent, and that voice is being jeopardized with the SED’s rushed, topdown regionalization plan.”
Sschool districts across Nassau and Suffolk counties are preparing to chal -
lenge the plan. Roslyn school board President Meryl Waxman encouraged other districts to join the fight.
“Superintendents including mine have been told that this is a great big nothing, but what one says and what one does have to align,” Waxman said. “If you take the time to read the regulations and see what they say, they should be self-explanatory. These are emergency regulations, but what was the emergency? Roslyn wasn’t having an emergency until they created one.”
Nonetheless, many people believe that the plan can be beneficial for Long Island school districts. Responding to a rally against the plan on Oct. 31 at Locust Valley High School, Assemblyman Chuck Lavine said that districts can voluntarily participate in shared services, and that the protest was nothing more than political theater.
“The State Education Department website makes it perfectly explicit that any district desiring to engage in shared services with any other district can do so completely voluntarily,” Lavine said. “Held on Halloween, the Oct. 31 rally was nothing more . . . than political theater designed to frighten the public.”
Under the plan, school districts are required to submit surveys to the state by Dec. 6, identifying areas for collaboration. There will also be a comment period before the plan becomes final in January.
STEPPING OUT
Don’t miss the beats, the energy and the vibe when Secret Agent 23 Skidoo launches the museum’s Musical Explorers! Concert series.
Acclaimed husband-and-wife duo Andrés and Christina’s — known as 123 Andrés — catchy songs and lively concerts impart the joy of music, movement and language.
Memories with melodies at Long Island Children’s Museum
Reach for the rhythm in you with a colorful spectrum of musical performance
By Danielle Schwab
After everyone polishes off the turkey, families can embark on a musical adventure to usher in the holiday season, courtesy of Long Island Children’s Museum. The stage is set for a new concert series, “Musical Explorers!,” which kicks off this weekend, Nov. 30 and Dec. 1.
Young audiences are introduced to an excitingly diverse music scene, featuring an array of global sounds, culture, and artistic legends from the world of jazz, hip hop, Latin music, and more. Families will surely get in the groove at the museum’s inaugural series of concerts, which represent the vibrant genres of jazz, hip-hop and Latin music. Performers add their unique touch, blending imaginative storytelling into musical masterpieces.
“Music speaks to human nature, the human soul. Every culture has music. Everybody celebrates it. Everybody taps to the rhythm. So that’s what we’re looking to provide,” James Packard, the museum’s theater program director says. “Musical Explorers offers our audiences the opportunity to dive deeper into the many ways that music speaks to us.”
In curating the concerts, he selected Grammy-winning artists and top talents in family music so that a diverse range of genres reflecting the power of music are represented.
“We encourage families to use these performances to introduce their children to the rhythms of hip-hop, the soul of jazz, and the vibrant beats of contemporary Latin music,” he says.
The series begins this weekend with Grammy-winning hip-hop funk sensation Secret Agent 23 Skidoo. This dynamic three-person rap ensemble offers their young audience a fun and engaging introduction to hip-hop. Known for their electrifying blend of hip-hop with sci-fi-inspired storytelling and feel-good tunes, the band combines the raw energy of funk with the surreal magic of animation-inspired performance. Imagine a band with Jim Henson playing guitar or Shel Silverstein writing the bass lines and you’ve got Secret Agent 23 Skidoo. Prepare to get up and dance with larger-than-life stories through upbeat songs.
“We just came out with an album in collaboration with the Asheville Symphony. We took folk tales from around the world from various cultures and turned them into hip-hop songs to tell these stories,” Joel “Cactus” Sullivan, Secret Agent 23 Skidoo’s lead singer, says.
Sullivan and his bandmates journey back thousands of years, drawing from the rich traditions of Japan, West Africa and Persia to tell timeless life lessons.
And, it wouldn’t be hip-hop without some creative freestyle — with the help of members from the audience, of course.
“We get words from the crowd and then make up a song on the spot right there. There’s something magical about the improvisation that can happen with hip hop,” Sullivan adds.
Heading into New Year, everyone can jive to some outstanding jazz grooves with the iconic Jazz at Lincoln Center Quintet, on Jan. 19 and 20. The top-flight musicians swing into the sound of America. Their performances explore the Great Migration and the Harlem Renaissance, examining the great Louis Armstrong’s journey from New Orleans to Chicago and New York — all from the museum’s intimate stage.
“Lincoln Center is a new connection for us,” Packard notes. “It will be a more traditional concert style, but geared at school-age kids, with interactivity and conversation going on between the musicians and the audience.”
Another performance to keep an eye (and an ear) out for is husband-and-wife duo 123 Andrés. The pair — Latin Grammy winners for Best Children’s Music Album earlier this year —
Dark Star Orchestra
• Saturday and Sunday, Nov. 30-Dec. 1
• $11 with museum admission; available online at licm.org/ theater or in person at the museum box office
• View the LICM events calendar at licm.org for additional information or call (516) 224-5800
• Long Island Children’s Museum, Museum Row, Garden City
will arrive in June with their interactive bilingual performance that speak to the joy, energy and cultural richness of Latin America.
They’ll be sure to get everyone singing, clapping and dancing along to rhythms from across the Latin music spectrum.
“Music is a universal language the world over. It is a part of who we are spiritually. And so it goes on all the time, a thing that goes into your soul,” Packard adds.
The concert series reinforces the museum’s mission to bring musicians into kid-accessible spaces. It’s an opportunity for visitors to immerse themselves in a world of rhythm, melody and cultural appreciation — all within the welcoming environment of the LICM Theater.
“Music is a form of social-emotional learning,” Packard continues. “You can let out happiness or sadness. Exposing children to different styles they might find, ‘Oh, I really like hip hop,’ or ‘I really like the Latin beat’, or ‘I really like the jazz,’ and that can have an impact where they go in life.”
The Grateful Dead have been resurrected in the form of Dark Star Orchestra. Formed in 1997, this tribute band came up with the novel idea of recreating complete sets from The Grateful Dead’s gigantic list of concerts. Over 3,100 shows later DSO continues the Grateful Dead live concert experience to acclaim. On any given night, the band performs based on a set list from the Dead’s 30 years of extensive touring or use their catalog to program a unique set list for the show. In this way DSO offers a continually evolving artistic outlet within the Dead’s musical canon. Honoring both the band and the fans, Dark Star Orchestra’s members seek out the unique style and sound of each era while simultaneously offering their own informed improvisations.
Friday and Saturday, Nov. 29-30, 8 p.m. $99.50, $69.50, $39.50. The Paramount, 370 New York Ave., Huntington. Tickets available at ticketmaster.com or paramountny. com.
Long Island Ballet Theatre’s ‘The Nutcracker’
The holiday treat returns, Audiences will once again be transported by the Sugar Plum Fairy to The Land of Sweets in this familyfriendly classic, set to the music of Tchaikovsky. LIBT’s production opens “Nutcracker” season here, sparkling with a talented cast of adult professionals and aspiring young student dancers. This version is both narrated and abridged, to introduce youngster to the story of Clara, her magical nutcracker and her enchanting winter adventure..
Saturday, Nov. 30, noon and 4 p.m.; Sunday, Dec. 1, 2 p.m. $37.50. Purchase tickets at liballettheatre. com or by phone at (631) 2714626. For more information, visit landmarkonmainstreet.org. Jeanne Rimsky Theater at Landmark on Main Street, 232 Main St., Port Washington.
Courtesy LICM
Courtesy Jazz at Lincoln Center
The Jazz at Lincoln Center quintet introduces young audiences to a cherished musical tradition.
Courtesy David Rugeles
1863 Thanksgiving
Dec.
9
Jason Bonham’s Led Zeppelin Evening
Jason Bonham, son of legendary Led Zeppelin drummer, visits the Paramount stage, Monday, dec. 9, at 7:30 p.m. He showcases his musical journey and family legacy, celebrating his father’s legendary career, with a concert featuring hits from Led Zeppelin’s iconic albums, and highlighting Jason’s own notable contributions to rock history. Encompassing hits from the iconic band’s entire career, including albums “Led Zeppelin,” “Led Zeppelin II,” “Led Zeppelin IV,” and “Physical Graffiti,” the concert event is a dynamic tribute to Jason’s father, with “…a band that recreates Led Zeppelin’s music to such a degree that one can’t help but close their eyes and simply listen…” [-Classic Rock Revisited]. Jason displayed musical talent from a young age. By age five, he could skillfully play drums, and at 17, he joined the band Air Race. Over the years, he contributed to various musical projects, including a Led Zeppelin reunion in 1988, touring with Jimmy Page, and forming his band “Bonham.” He collaborated with notable artists, recorded successful albums, and participated in a Muddy Waters tribute that earned a Grammy nomination.
Throughout the years, Jason collaborated with different artists, recorded with Foreigner, and participated in the highly anticipated Led Zeppelin reunion in 2007 at London’s O2 arena. His musical journey showcases a blend of family legacy, collaborations with rock legends and a commitment to preserving and celebrating iconic rock history. Jason always finds himself at home behind the drumkit. From this spot, he has anchored the tempo for a myriad of the most legendary artists of all-time. It’s the place where he initially realized his destiny as a kid. It’s a triedand-true safe harbor for the expression of his purest emotions. Ultimately, Jason remains forever at home on the drums. $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.
Partake of Thanksgiving traditions from days gone by during Old Bethpage Village Restoration’s annual holiday event, Saturday and Sunday, Nov. 30dec.1, 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Journey back to the 19th century as oldfashioned wood burning stoves, beehive ovens and hearths are all fired up as “villagers” prepare a variety of foods and baked goods, using historical recipes. Of course, a fat turkey is spitted and roasted, along with pie making and a demonstration of food preservation methods.
With fiddle music, entertainment and children’s activities, including storytelling, and more. $15, $12 children 5-12 and seniors. 1303 Round Swamp Road, Old Bethpage. Visit oldbethpagevillagerestoration. org or call (516) 572-8409 for more information.
Santa visits Bellmore
Santa Claus will be visiting the Bellmores in style, Friday Nov. 29. Everyone’s favorite man-inred will be ushered around by the Bellmore Fire Department, thanks to the work of the Chamber of Commerce of the Bellmores. He’ll be making five different stops around town, starting at 9 a.m., at the Stop & Shop in North Bellmore at Jerusalem Avenue and Newbridge Road. For more on the event and Santa’s stops, visit bellmorechamber.com.
Bird walk
See some birds with the South Shore Audubon Society. All are welcome to join members for the next in its series of bird walks, at Mill Pond Park in Wantagh, Sunday, dec. 1, starting at 9 a.m. The park is on the north side of Merrick Road, four blocks west of Wantagh State Parkway. The group meets at the gazebo. Walk leaders, other birders and nature enthusiasts are happy to share their knowledge and experience with you. Bring binoculars. To register, text your name and contact information to (516) 467-9498. Rain, snow or temperature below 25 degrees will cancel the bird walk. Text regarding questionable weather. For more information, visit SSAudubon. org.
Bellmore tree lighting
Chamber of Commerce of the Bellmores hosts its annual tree lighting and Christmas celebration, Monday, dec. 9, starting at 6 p.m., at the intersection of Bedford Avenue in the village. With trolley rides, a horse and carriage ride, refreshments and so much more. A slight fee will be charged for certain activities. For more on the event, visit bellmorechamber. com.
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.
Tea time
The festive season is underway at Old Westbury Gardens. Enjoy a cream tea (featuring scones, Devonshire cream, assorted sweets, and tea), then a guided tour of decorated Westbury House, Tuesday, Dec. 3, 11 a.m.12:30 p.m. and 1:30-3 p.m.; Wednesday, Dec. 4, 11 a.m.12:30 p.m. and 1:30-3:30 p.m.; Thursday, Dec. 5, 11 a.m.-12:30 p.m. and 1:30-3 p.m. $22.50 per person. Advance registration suggested. Old Westbury Gardens, 71 Old Westbury Rd., Old Westbury. For information contact (516) 333-0048 or visit OldWestburyGardens.org.
Wine glass painting
Stop by Off The Brook Bistro & Cocktails in Merrick for an afternoon of painting, Saturday, Nov. 30. $60 to attend includes wine glass painting and brunch. Those attending can choose their own design and wine glass style. No refunds provided. 1810 Merrick Road. Visit OffTheBrook.com for more.
Having an event?
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.
Items on The Scene page are listed free of charge. The Herald welcomes listings of upcoming events, community meetings and items of public interest. All submissions should include date, time and location of the event, cost, and a contact name and phone number. Submissions can be emailed to thescene@liherald.com.
On exhibit
Nassau County Museum of Art ‘s latest exhibition
“Seeing Red: Renoir to Warhol,” reveals the many meanings, connotations, and associations of this powerful color in art. Evoking strong emotion, red can represent the human condition. Its myriad variations have come to signify authority as well as love, energy and beauty. Red warns us of peril and commands us to stop, but it can also indicate purity and good fortune. Red boldly represents political movements and religious identities. From the advent of our appreciation for this color in antiquity to its continued prominence in artistic and popular culture, this exhibition 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, Thursday and Friday, Dec. 5-6, 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 COURTCOUNTY OF NASSAU
U.S. BANK NATIONAL ASSOCIATION, AS TRUSTEE, SUCCESSOR IN INTEREST TO BANK OF AMERICA, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION AS SUCCESSOR BY MERGER
TO LASALLE BANK
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION, AS TRUSTEE FOR CERTIFICATEHOLDERS OF WASHINGTON MUTUAL ASSET-BACKED CERTIFICATES WMABS SERIES 2007-HE2
Plaintiff, Against DONALD ALLEN; ET AL
Defendant(s)
Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale, duly entered 11/15/2023, I, the undersigned Referee, will sell at public auction, on the North Side steps of the Nassau County Supreme Court located at 100 Supreme Court Drive, Mineola, N.Y. 11501 on 12/10/2024 at 2:00 PM, premises known as 52 Henry Street, Merrick, NY 11566, And Described As Follows:
ALL that certain plot piece or parcel of land, with the buildings and improvements thereon erected, situate, lying and being At Merrick, In The Town Of Hempstead, County Of Nassau And State Of New York. Section 56 Block 190 Lot 122 For sale information, please visit Auction.com at www.Auction.com or call (800) 280-2832. The approximate amount of the current Judgment lien is $625,779.07 plus interest and costs. The Premises will be sold subject to provisions of the aforesaid Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale; Index # 612059/2018 If proper social distancing cannot be maintained or there are other health or safety concerns, the then Court Appointed Referee will cancel the Foreclosure Auction. This Auction will be held rain or shine.
Heather D. Crosley, Esq., Referee.
SHELDON MAY & ASSOCIATES Attorneys at Law, 255 Merrick Road, Rockville Centre, NY 11570
Dated: 10/24/2024 File Number: 35032 CA 149851
LEGAL NOTICE
SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK COUNTY OF NASSAU
US BANK NATIONAL ASSOCIATION, NOT IN ITS INDIVIDUAL CAPACITY, BUT SOLELY AS TRUSTEE FOR THE RMAC TRUST, SERIES 2016-CIT, -againstJOSEPH SCHNAIER, ET AL.
NOTICE OF SALE NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN pursuant to a Final Judgment of Foreclosure entered in the Offce of the Clerk of the County of Nassau on July 12, 2024,
wherein US BANK NATIONAL ASSOCIATION, NOT IN ITS INDIVIDUAL CAPACITY, BUT SOLELY AS TRUSTEE FOR THE RMAC TRUST, SERIES 2016-CIT is the Plaintiff and JOSEPH SCHNAIER, ET AL. are the Defendant(s). I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction RAIN OR SHINE at the NASSAU COUNTY SUPREME COURT, NORTH SIDE STEPS, 100 SUPREME COURT DRIVE, MINEOLA, NY 11501, on December 16, 2024 at 4:00PM, premises known as 1808 ECHO LANE, MERRICK, NY 11566; and the following tax map identifcation: 62-24-15. ALL THAT CERTAIN PLOT, PIECE OR PARCEL OF LAND, BEING AT MERRICK, TOWN OF HEMPSTEAD, COUNTY OF NASSAU AND STATE OF NEW YORK
Premises will be sold subject to provisions of fled Judgment Index No.: 615396/2018. Peter Kramer, Esq. - Referee. Robertson, Anschutz, Schneid, Crane & Partners, PLLC, 900 Merchants Concourse, Suite 310, Westbury, New York 11590, Attorneys for Plaintiff. All foreclosure sales will be conducted in accordance with Covid-19 guidelines including, but not limited to, social distancing and mask wearing. *LOCATION OF SALE SUBJECT TO CHANGE DAY OF IN ACCORDANCE WITH COURT/CLERK DIRECTIVES. 150020
LEGAL NOTICE NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURTCOUNTY OF NASSAU THE BANK OF NEW YORK MELLON F/K/A THE BANK OF NEW YORK AS SUCCESSOR TO JPMORGAN CHASE BANK, NOT INDIVIDUALLY BUT SOLELY AS TRUSTEE FOR THE HOLDERS OF THE BEAR STERNS ALT-A TRUST 2004-10, MORTGAGE PASSTHROUGH CERTIFICATES, SERIES 2004-10, Plaintiff, Against LUIS A. QUIJANO, ET AL, Defendant(s) Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale, duly entered 03/22/2023, I, the undersigned Referee, will sell at public auction, on the North Side steps of the Nassau County Supreme Court located at 100 Supreme Court Drive, Mineola, N.Y. 11501 on 12/17/2024 at 2:00PM, premises known as 174 Babylon Turnpike, Merrick, New York 11566, And Described As Follows: ALL that certain plot piece or parcel of land, with the buildings and improvements thereon erected, situate, lying and being in Merrick, Town Of Hempstead, County Of Nassau, State Of New York.
Section 2555 Block 166
Lot 158
The approximate amount of the current Judgment lien is $1,154,373.34 plus interest and costs. The Premises will be sold subject to provisions of the aforesaid Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale; Index # 005630/2015 If proper social distancing cannot be maintained or there are other health or safety concerns, the then Court Appointed Referee will cancel the Foreclosure Auction. This Auction will be held rain or shine.
Ronald J. Ferraro, Esq., Referee.
MCCABE, WEISBERG & CONWAY, LLC, 10 Midland Avenue, Suite 205, Port Chester, NY 10573
Dated: 11/5/2024 File Number: 17-300295 CA 150016
LEGAL NOTICE
Annual Audit Report
Notifcation
Notice is hereby given that the fscal affairs of Bellmore-Merrick Central High School District for the period beginning on July 1, 2023 and ending on June 30, 2024, have been examined by an independent public accountant, and that the report of, or management letter prepared in conjunction with the external audit by the independent public accountant has been fled in my offce where it is available as a public record for inspection by all interested persons.
Pursuant to §35 of the General Municipal Law, the governing board of the Bellmore-Merrick Central High School District may, in its discretion, prepare a written response to the report of external audit or management letter by independent public accountant and fle any such response in my offce as a public record for inspection by all interested persons no later than February 1, 2025.
By Pattianne Guccione District Clerk
Bellmore-Merrick Central High School District, North Merrick, New York 150198
Search for notices online at: www.newyorkpublicnotices.com
LEGAL NOTICE NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING BY THE BOARD OF APPEALS
Pursuant to New York State Town Law Article 16, New York State Public Offcers Law Article 7, and the Town of Hempstead Building Zone Ordinance, NOTICE is hereby given that the BOARD OF APPEALS of the Town of Hempstead will hold a public hearing in the Old Town Hall, 350 Front Street, Room 230, Second Floor, Hempstead, New York on 12/04/2024 at 9:30 A.M. to consider the following applications and appeals:
THE FOLLOWING CASES WILL BE CALLED STARTING AT 9:30 A.M. 708/24. MERRICKDennis & Michelle Jaeger, Variances, front yard average setback, side yard, construct addition & 2-car garage with 2nd story above both attached to dwelling (demolish existing 2-car detached garage)., W/s Stevens Ave., 50’ N/o Howes St., a/k/a 45 Stevens Ave. 716/24. - 718/24. MERRICK - Kyle Colquhoun & Marion Kunz, Variances, lot area occupied, side yard, rear yard, construct addition, garage with roof deck & stairs all attached to dwelling; Variance, side yard, maintain portico & open porch both attached to dwelling; Install 6’ high fence forward of the dwelling which may substantially obstruct line of sight & located in clear site triangle at owner’s driveway., N/W cor. Gormley Ave. & Nassau Ave., a/k/a 124 Gormley Ave.
ALL PAPERS PERTAINING TO THE ABOVE HEARING ARE AVAILABLE FOR INSPECTION AT THE BOARD OF APPEALS, TOWN HALL, 1 WASHINGTON STREET, HEMPSTEAD, NY 11550. This notice is only for new cases in Merrick within Town of Hempstead jurisdiction. There are additional cases in different hamlets, towns and villages on the Board of Appeals calendar. The full calendar is available at https://hempsteadny.gov/ 509/Board-of-Appeals The internet address of the website streaming for this meeting is https://hempsteadny.gov/ 576/Live-Streaming-Video Interested parties may appear at the above time and place. At the call of the Chairman, the Board will consider decisions on the foregoing and those on the Reserve Decision calendar and such other matters as may properly come before it. 150153
PUBLIC AND LEGAL NOTICES… Printed in this publication can be found online. To search by publication name, go to: www.newyorkpublicnotices.com TO PLACE AN AD CALL 516-569-4000 x 232
PUBLIC AND LEGAL NOTICES… Printed in this publication can be found online. To search by publication name, go to: www.newyorkpublicnotices.com TO PLACE AN AD CALL 516-569-4000 x 232
PUBLIC AND LEGAL NOTICES… Printed in this publication can be found online. To search by publication name, go to: www.newyorkpublicnotices.com TO PLACE AN AD CALL 516-569-4000 x 232
elevate the Conversation
Thanksgiving and the interfaith service
On Sunday, Nov. 24 the Wantagh Clergy Council held their Thanksgiving Interfaith service at Congregation Beth Tikvah in Wantagh. It was the first time since Covid that the service was held, and over ten houses of worship and their parishioners/congregants participated.
But these facts tell only half the story. The other half are the emotions embedded in the words and gentle phrases of prayer used during the ceremony.
Our world before Covid had these annual services but the feeling was lighter and very different. We recited, recognized and repeated common passages, songs and prayers. We ate cookies and drank tea after it was all over. No matter the many beliefs of the people in the room, no matter the edifice we sat in, we went home spiritually refreshed in our fellowship.
The deprived and disenfranchised in our communities. Wars that rage on around the globe. Climate change that rages around the globe.
How far have we come? How much more can we accept and bear?
So when we come together in the spirit of faith and thanksgiving in 2024 at this local service, the old perspectives are gone. I come to the conclusion that I will continue to question, but must be willing to dig deeper than ever to redefine hope, gratitude and mercy for the difficult years ahead. Even if it is in smaller, more precious increments, these three are meaningless unless they are used to help others and make something good in our lives.
So much for another service prior to a major holiday. Before we knew it, Thanksgiving was here, another year to slice up turkey and dish out cranberry sauce.
But even writing here that now “the world has changed” is a massive and dispiriting understatement post-Covid. The deaths. The disagreements, derision and division among our citizens.
There is no time to waste. During this service, I notice in the poetry. In the silent pauses between the spoken words and the song lyrics. We are called to find purpose and change destiny. We are called to care about others. To be thankful every day. To believe.
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.
News brief
Joseph Fitapelli releases his first book
At just 11-years-old, Joseph Fitapelli of Merrick, became a published author. With just a camera and an inspiration, Fitapelli captured his love for dogs — and strengthen his skills in photography — wit his first book: “Dogs of Fire Island 2024.”
Joseph has spent every summer on Fire Island since he was a baby. After learning how to use a camera, he started to document pictures of the dogs he knew from around the island over the summer. Each page in his now-published book includes a fun fact about each dog along with their names, breed — and of course a high quality photo.
Fitapelli dedicated this book to his friend Lou, who helped bring the young photographer’s idea to life. Lou is not young friend that Fitapelli met while spending his summers on Fire Island — he is an 80-year-old man that has been a
companion and mentor to Fitapelli while he produced his book.
Besides his own dog, Coco, Fitapelli said his favorite dogs to photograph were Zita and Bogey because they posed perfectly, and stared right at the camera.
Fitapelli held his first book signing at Woof Pet Boutique in Ocean Beach on Fire Island, where owner Diane Madel sold his book at the store.
Next year, Fitapelli hopes to take on a new project. As a continuation of the book, he is planning on making a dog calendar with new photos of furry friends from all around the island.
–Eden Goldberg
Goldberg is a senior at John F. Kennedy High School and a student contributor for the Bellmore & Merrick Heralds.
L auren L ev
Eden
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Looking for an aggressive self starter who is great at making and maintaining relationships and loves to help businesses grow by marketing them on many different advertising platforms. You will source new sales opportunities through inbound lead follow-up and outbound cold calls. Must have the ability to understand customer needs and requirements and turn them in to positive advertising solutions. We are looking for a talented and competitive Inside Sales Representative that thrives in a quick sales cycle environment. Compensation ranges from $33,280 + commissions and bonuses to over $100,000 including commission and bonuses. We also offer health benefits, 401K and paid time off. Please send cover letter and resume with salary requirements to ereynolds@liherald.com Call 516-569-4000 X286
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Richner Communications, One of the Fastest Growing Media, Event and Communications Companies on Long Island is Seeking a Sales/Marketing Candidate to Sell our Print Media Products and our Digital, Events, Sponsorships. Earning potential ranges from $33,280 plus commission and bonuses to over $100,000 including commissions and bonuses. Compensation is based on Full Time hours
Eligible for Health Benefits, 401k and Paid Time Off. Please Send Cover Letter and Resume with Salary Requirements to rglickman@liherald.com or
‘It
doesn’t look serious to us’
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Q. We are buying a house and got an engineer’s report that said there are several problems, including the worst, a crack in the foundation wall. It is parallel to the floor of the basement, but there’s no crack on the outside, either because the outside wall was painted or because the crack is below ground. The engineer made it sound very serious, but it doesn’t look serious to us, just concerning. Do we get another engineer or architect — is there a difference? What should we do to decide if the house is worth the hassle? We really want the house, and made a commitment, since there are several offers and ours is the highest — above the asking price.
A. I have dealt with this problem more lately than at any other time in my career, because it’s being used a lot as a bargaining tool, since house prices are in the stratosphere. In most cases, the wording from the home inspector makes it sound extremely dire.
I make two observations when reading these reports or hearing about the problem: 1) The report wording or buyer’s explanation is often not specific, but recommends a structural engineer, not an architect, and 2) the problem, when I review it, is most often not as serious as it is made out to be. By that I mean that except for about one out of every thousand cases, the wall is not imminently going to fail, and the person who wrote the report is not a licensed engineer or architect. They generally lack the structural training and testing, and therefore the credentials, to represent themselves as qualified to make specific recommendations, only to bring the condition to your attention, although you may already have noticed it.
As for whether you choose an architect or engineer, they both have training and credentials in this area of expertise. The engineer, if he or she is specifically a “structural” engineer, is more qualified for much more specialized and sophisticated structural design, but an architect must have formal structural training and testing in order to be licensed and registered. You can verify the licensure by searching the office of professions at op. nysed.gov and inserting their name and the field of practice. I often do this for clients, and have discovered that many home inspectors aren’t “engineers,” but do have home inspection credentials.
Again, in most cases, whether in or out of a flood zone, I have seen this condition, and the repair is often, but not always, to remove broken or exposed areas around the cracking and to inject structural repair epoxy specifically formulated for masonry or concrete repair. You most definitely should get qualified licensed professionals to look at the wall, since anyone else could not legally call themselves licensed to take responsibility for carrying out the work or its lasting result, and could be held liable for costs if a failure occurs, and you certainly want to avoid failure. Good luck!
© 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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SI
look forward to representing you again
erving New York’s 4th Congressional District has been an honor. Indeed, being entrusted with the sacred honor of representing my Long Island neighbors on Capitol Hill is a duty I have taken extraordinarily seriously every day. I am grateful to the people of this district for placing their faith in me, and look forward to representing you again. It has certainly been a consequential and active 118th Congress, and I am proud of the accomplishments I was able to achieve on behalf of the 4th District. As a member of the House Homeland Security Committee, I worked tirelessly to help pass House Republicans’ signature H.R. 2 border security legislation — a sweeping plan to end the border security crisis, which is in stark contrast to the disaster Democrats have allowed to fester along America’s southern border.
Dear
Before the presidential election, the Herald published an editorial explaining why the familyowned newspapers would not be endorsing political candidates.
If I had read the piece in a vacuum, I would agree with it entirely. It states, in part, “Our focus is not on swaying voters toward a particular candidate, but on delivering comprehensive and unbiased information about the issues that matter most to Long Islanders. We are not here to tell our readers how to vote for political candidates; rather, we are here to arm readers with the knowledge they need to make informed decisions at the ballot box.”
Sounds perfect. But we are living through an unprecedented and exceedingly imperfect time in our nation’s history. This year, not endorsing meant keeping silent when silence may have implied that both presidential candidates met minimal standards for serving in the nation’s highest office. By any standard, that is not true of President-elect Donald Trump.
Media across our country have some-
What’s more, I was proud that the House passed legislation I introduced to formally condemn the antisemitic chant, “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free,” which is used by antisemitic actors to call for the destruction of Israel. My commitment to combating antisemitism also extends to my tenure as a member of the Holocaust Memorial Museum board and my work to help found the House-Knesset Parliamentary Friendship Group — a panel created to foster stronger ties between the U.S. House of Representatives and Israel’s legislature, the Knesset. As a retired New York City Police Department detective, I also endeavored to support law enforcement professionals across the country with such legislation as my Police Our Border Act, which passed in the House and will help law enforcement agencies across the country better respond to the ongoing border crisis.
I’m proud of everything I accomplished in Congress, from bills to committee work.
hours of committee work I engaged in through my seats on the House Homeland Security, Transportation & Infrastructure, and House Administration committees. What’s more, my leadership role as chairman of the House Subcommittee on Emergency Management and Technology allowed me to conduct important oversight of the Federal Emergency Management Agency — an organization that is extraordinarily important to South Shore communities that are prone to flooding emergencies, like many in our district.
Governing is difficult, and requires coalition building, compromise, and a willingness to reach across the aisle — a fact I understand after being named the 11th-most bipartisan member of Congress and serving as a member of the Problem Solvers Caucus.
These are only a few of the 37 pieces of legislation I introduced, the 448 bills I co-sponsored and the thousands of
In addition to my legislative and committee work, I successfully secured over $20 million in direct funding for community projects across the 4th District to benefit our neighbors. These secured federal resources funded a new Nassau County Police Department training village, important flood-mitigation infrastructure in the Village of Floral Park, technology upgrades for the Freeport, Lynbrook and Rockville Centre police departments, and more.
readers, we can’t keep it in
how made it seem as if a convicted felon with a rich history of lying and a refusal to take on the serious issues of governance is a reasonable choice. But in our president-elect, we have an aspiring autocrat, a morally bankrupt man with a vengeful heart.
He has already begun fulfilling his promise to dismantle the government by selecting big donors, MAGA loyalists and inexperienced toadies for his new cabinet. None of this is a surprise. He said he would do it, and he is. Whether they get confirmed is dependent on the ever-weakening backbone of Republican senators, who live and die, politically, at the whim of the man they follow.
tarian government.
D onald Trump did not meet the presidency’s minimal standards.
We are in the beginning days of DJT’s revenge tour, fulfilling his promise to punish those who opposed him, challenged him and tried to bring him to justice. He wants people at the table whose loyalty is to him. Their expertise and leadership qualities seem incidental to the main qualification: unquestioning obeisance to the leader.
So the idea of not endorsing candidates, this extraordinary year in particular, does not sit well. The fallout from the coming Trump presidency could be a catastrophic shift toward an authori-
My successor, Laura Gillen, will need to navigate these challenges while serving in the House Democratic minority, which will prove difficult. Indeed, the fact that Gillen will be in the minority lends itself well to being a vocal partisan critic of the House Republican majority and the incoming Trump administration, because both will be working in overdrive to correct the many mistakes of the Biden administration and Democrats across the country who forced Americans to endure crippling inflation and a border crisis. Gillen’s position in the House minority does not lend itself well to delivering for 4th District neighbors like I was able to do by leveraging my position in the majority.
Gillen made bold, empty promises, and now it is time for her to deliver. Voters will be watching.
Anthony D’Esposito is completing his term in the 118th Congress.
neutral
I understand the dilemmas. Do endorsements really affect voters’ choices? Historians, psychologists and journalists bat the question around, with no clear answer. Do endorsements alienate too many readers? In the world of newspapers, these issues loom much larger on the local level than with big newspapers like the Los Angeles Times and The Washington Post, which also declined to endorse this year.
Local papers live in the community. They have responsibilities to their readers, to the truth and to the realities of just staying in business. With local newspapers closing every week across the country, conflicting interests must be reconciled, very carefully.
I started at the Nassau Herald more than 30 years ago, and for many years it did endorse candidates, from local officials to the presidency. Leatrice Spanierman, my mentor and colleague and the Heralds’ longtime executive editor, interviewed candidates every fall and wrote endorsements. The candidates, including member of the U.S. House and Senate, came to her office; they knew the value of local newspapers’ endorsement. The Heralds had a voice, and used
it as a means of informing readers. The editorial in the Oct. 31-Nov. 6 issue, explaining why the Heralds were not offering endorsements, stated that “the one place where you might see opinions about local and national political candidates … is in columns in our editorial pages, like those written by Randi Kreiss and Peter King. These essays are distinguished from Herald news content by featuring photos of the authors, making it clear that they reflect the writers’ perspectives and not the views of the Herald.”
I understand the need to create distance. I like the distance, too. I don’t speak for the Heralds. No one high on the masthead has ever tried to influence what I write or don’t write. The paper stays above the fray by giving King and me platforms for different points of view. I would be fine with any newspaper’s no-endorsement policy if this election had been like any other in America’s long history. But it was not. Nothing about this race was normal. The times demanded speaking up for democracy. For the immediate future and for as long as it can, the press must use its voice to call out the bad guys and amplify justice. This Thanksgiving, I am deeply grateful for the opportunity to share my views. Our free press never seemed so precious.
Copyright 2024 Randi Kreiss. Randi can be reached at randik3@aol.com.
AnTHonY D’ESpoSITo
RAnDI KREISS
A season for giving back on Long Island
With the holiday season upon us, our minds turn to traditions — Thanksgiving meals filled with comfort and gratitude, and other gatherings of family and friends over the coming weeks.
These moments of celebration are precious, but they also give us an opportunity to reflect on what it means to give back. Thanksgiving, rooted in the idea of gratitude, serves as a poignant reminder of our privilege and the responsibility to extend a hand to others. Here on Long Island, where vibrant communities thrive amid significant challenges, there is no shortage of causes deserving our time, attention and generosity.
Friendsgiving, a relatively recent tradition, embodies the spirit of connection by bringing friends together to share a meal and express their appreciation for one another. It can also be an occasion to unite for a greater purpose. By turning these gatherings into opportunities to collect donations or volunteer, we can channel collective energy into tangible support for those in need. Whether it’s hosting a food drive or organizing a group to serve at a local soup kitchen, Friendsgiving can be a powerful reminder of the broader community we’re all a part of.
On Long Island, the contrast between abundance and need is striking. While many of us prepare for feasts, thousands struggle to put food on the table. Nearly 284,000 people will suffer from hunger on Long Island at some point this year, according to Community Solidarity, a nonprofit that provides groceries, fresh produce and warm vegan meals to lowincome communities.
Organizations like Island Harvest and Long Island Cares work tirelessly to combat food insecurity in our neighborhoods. A donation of non-perishable items, a financial contribution, or volunteering for a few hours can make a profound difference to families facing hun-
letters
Where is this ship of state sailing?
To the Editor:
Re Peter King’s column last week, “Trump makes the comeback of all comebacks”: It’s fair for Mr. King to celebrate Donald Trump’s “comeback,” and to take his share of reflected glory for strongly supporting him. But, weeks into the transition, is there no trepidation over what is being wrought?
Mr. King long served honorably
Organizations that welcome your help
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Long Island: BBBsli.org
Citizens Campaign for the Environment: CitizensCampaign.org
Community Solidarity: CommunitySolidarity.org
Family & Children’s Association: FCAli.org
Interfaith Nutrition Network: The-Inn.org
Island Harvest: Island Harvest.org
Long Island Cares: LICares.org
Save the Great South Bay: SaveTheGreatsouthbay.org
ger this season.
Beyond food insecurity — limited or uncertain access to adequate food — there are numerous other causes that need our support. The holiday season can be especially difficult for those without homes. Groups like the Interfaith Nutrition Network, in Hempstead, provide shelter, meals and supportive services to help the unhoused regain some sense of stability. Contributing to these efforts — whether through monetary donations, clothing drives, or simply offering your time — can help others who are less fortunate experience the warmth of the season.
At this time of year, we also highlight the importance of supporting our local youth. Organizations like Big Brothers Big Sisters of Long Island and the Family & Children’s Association offer mentorships and resources to empower young people. By donating to these programs or
becoming a mentor yourself, you can have a lasting impact on a young person’s life.
And let’s not forget our environment, which sustains us all. As we celebrate the bounty of the land, consider supporting groups like Citizens Campaign for the Environment or Save the Great South Bay. Their work to protect Long Island’s natural beauty ensures that future generations can enjoy the landscapes and waterways we too often take for granted.
Of course, there’s also local news, which continues to face economic headwinds. Organizations like the Empire State Local News Coalition help sustain New York’s local news organizations — like the Herald — so reporters can tell the important stories about your friends and families, and shine a light on all of the issues mentioned here.
The beauty of giving back is that it doesn’t always have to be monetary — your time and skills can be just as valuable. Many local nonprofits, shelters and community centers are in dire need of extra hands during the holidays. A few hours spent wrapping gifts for underprivileged children, serving meals to veterans, or taking part in a community cleanup can ripple outward in meaningful ways.
Finally, don’t forget Dec. 3, Giving Tuesday, the annual nationwide day of charitable giving. For more information on this growing grass-roots effort, go to givingtuesday.org.
As we gather around dinner tables this season, let’s remember that gratitude is most powerful when it inspires action. Thanksgiving and Friendsgiving remind us of our interconnectedness — our shared humanity and the strength of our communities. Together we can ensure that everyone, in every corner of Long Island, feels the gratitude of the holidays. Each of us has the power to make the season brighter for others. This year, let’s not just celebrate; let’s give.
in a Congress that will now be directed to self-emasculate. There are threats of courts-martial, military-assisted deportations, even gender tests for House members. Furors will multiply over staff, from cabinet positions on down. Promises are made of $2 trillion in budget cuts. Mr. King’s experience-based thoughts might be useful.
We sail soon into heavy seas aboard the USS “Caine Mutiny,” with Captain Queeg in command.
BRIAN KELLY Rockville
Centre
opinions
Holiday season is a time to connect and spread kindness
the holiday season is a time for celebration, reflection and connection. It’s when we gather with loved ones, share festive meals and exchange thoughtful gifts. But as we move through the hustle and bustle of December, one thing deserves special attention: the well-being of those around us — family, friends, neighbors, and even our pets. check in on family members and friends. The holidays can evoke many emotions. for most it’s a time of joy, but for many it can bring loneliness or stress. We all carry our own burdens, and while social media may present the “perfect” holiday, many of us are struggling in ways that aren’t immediately visible. A simple phone call, a heartfelt text or an in-person visit can show someone they’re not alone.
Take a few minutes to reach out to those who may be isolated this season — whether they’re elderly parents, distant
relatives or friends far away. Sometimes just knowing someone is thinking of you makes all the difference. A conversation doesn’t need to be long or complicated; it’s the act of reaching out that counts. The holidays are about making memories, and often the small, unscripted moments create the most lasting bonds.
tMind your neighbors. In today’s world, neighbors can sometimes feel like strangers, especially in busy urban environments. But the holiday season is the perfect opportunity to reconnect with those who live nearby. Whether it’s offering to shovel snow, leaving a homemade treat on their doorstep, or simply wishing them a warm holiday season, small gestures of kindness make a big difference.
feel at this time of year.
he most meaningful moments are often simple acts of love and care.
Don’t forget your pets. They bring joy and companionship, but the holiday season can be stressful for them, too. With all the extra activity, travel and noise, it’s important to monitor their well-being. If you’re hosting family gatherings or traveling, ensure that your pet has a quiet space to retreat to when things get overwhelming. And remember, many holiday treats aren’t safe for pets: Be mindful of foods that can be toxic, like chocolate, raisins and spices.
delivery services to keep things running smoothly. But the high volume of deliveries can create challenges for both customers and delivery workers.
Be mindful of packages arriving at your door, especially if you’re not home to receive them. Package theft is a common problem during the holidays, so consider having packages sent to a friend or neighbor, or to a secure pickup location. If you do receive deliveries, take a moment to thank the delivery workers, who often work long hours in all types of weather to get packages to us. A simple “thank you” can go a long way.
If you know someone in your neighborhood who is elderly, has young children or may be struggling financially, consider going the extra mile. offer to help with grocery shopping, or pitch in with holiday decorating. Even the simplest acts — a quick chat or a friendly wave — can foster a sense of community and combat the isolation many people
Letters
The Sands proposal: nothing but trouble
To the Editor:
The Las Vegas Sands proposal to spend $6 billion — that’s billion with a B, folks — had me wondering from where Sands expected to recover their investment plus the daily cost of operations and the profit from the project. It wasn’t really a wonder, more of a fact, given all the expected losses the gambling public would be leaving behind.
A real concern is the draining of huge amounts of our underground aquifer to feed this unnecessary beast, a waste of our local water supply.
The proposal is now also offering an expansion of lanes on the Meadowbrook Parkway from three to four. All this would accomplish would be the removal of the mature trees and greenery along that stretch of parkway, leaving no shoulder.
Yes, it’s a parkway, meaning there are no commercial vehicles. So without an adjacent commercial highway, all the daily delivery trucks that would be needed to supply this property would be feeding off the Long Island Expressway, the only commercial road, for miles through our local streets. That would be an unneeded burden on our local streets and neighborhoods, 24/7.
We do not need this disaster in the making.
Lastly, the Sands has been spending a
lot of money locally on public relations, newspapers inserts, etc., to make the proposal sound appealing. Don’t believe the wizardry, which, when you look behind the curtain, is really a corporate giant taking local amenities and infiltrating our local environment, all in the name of a profit to feed its own goals.
MIchAEL LEfkoWITz Accountants + Advisors East Meadow
How about sharing a holiday meal at a diner?
To the Editor:
This holiday season, between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day, if you’re too tired to cook, consider sharing a meal with family, friends or neighbors and patronize your local diner or restaurant. for decades I have enjoyed many excellent meals at many local diners.
Diners have been part of my life since I was a teenager. Eating out is a periodic ritual, and their portions are generous. Between the soup, salad, rolls, coleslaw and pickles, along with the main course, diner dinners satisfy the heartiest appetites. Who’s never taken a doggie bag home with leftovers to eat the next day? Many times we’ve bagged our desserts to go.
Many Long Island neighborhoods have seen changes over the years. New immigrant groups sometimes favor
In addition to the pets we love, take a moment to think about the animals that need homes. This season, consider donating to a local animal shelter, or even adopting a pet if your circumstances allow. Shelters often see an increase in the number of animals that need homes during the winter months, and your support could make all the difference in the life of an animal in need.
Be mindful of deliveries. In the age of online shopping, deliveries are everywhere during the holiday season. Whether it’s gifts for loved ones or groceries for your holiday dinner, many of us rely on
Spread the holiday spirit. Ultimately, the holidays are about kindness, connection and generosity. It’s easy to get caught up in the shopping, the planning and the parties, but the most meaningful moments are often simple acts of love and care. This season, take a breath and check in on those you care about — whether it’s a phone call to a relative, a small act of kindness for a neighbor or a moment of peace for your pet.
Let’s make this holiday season one of true connection and compassion. Wishing you all a warm, joyful and peaceful season.
Michael Giangregorio represents Nassau County’s 12th Legislative District.
Framework by Francine Berman
their own ethnic foods and restaurants. Diners have also lost customers over time to fast-food restaurants. Remember, these people are our neighbors. our local entrepreneurs who own and operate diners have continued to invest in our communities, creating new employment opportunities without the assistance of federally funded taxpayers’ stimulus dollars. They work long hours, pay taxes and provide local
employment. If we don’t patronize our local restaurants, these workers don’t eat, either.
Why not honor the fond memories of some our favorite diners that have come and gone by continuing to patronize those that remain? h ere’s hoping that diners don’t go the way of the dinosaurs.
LARRY
PENNER Great Neck
At the ‘Wicked’ Experience — Universal Orlando Resort
