The Garden City News (3/27/20)

PRICE GOUGERS BEWARE

Nassau County Executive Laura Curran was joined by Congresswoman Kathleen Rice and New York State Senator Todd Kaminsky to raise public awareness and condemn of the widespread price gouging of COVID-19 Coronavirus related supplies. The state has said that it will investigate and prosecute instances of price gouging of medical and sanitary supplies.

Schools supt. on Covid closure Transitions for Teachers, Students and Parents

BY RIKKI N. MASSAND

Two years ago -- with a special meeting of the Garden City Board of Education, convened March 13, 2018 -- Dr. Kusum Sinha was officially appointed as the District’s new superintendent of schools. On Friday March 13, 2020 as the COVID-19 pandemic grew exponentially in nearby parts of the New York City tri state region, instead of

Dr. Sinha and schools administration looking ahead to spring festivities and budget planning for next fall and beyond, she was suddenly preparing to temporarily close schools March 16 and 17 for deep cleaning and virus disinfecting. Next, by order of County Executive Laura Curran on March 15 schools were closed through March 27 with hopes of reopening in April.

“I know this is an unprecedented time for what our country is going through. While we are encouraged to socially distance from one another, it is my hope that we will still stay connected through phone calls, emails, social media, etc. We must continue to provide social and emotional support for one another during this challenging time,

See page 28

Mayor discusses Village, national response

BY RIKKI N. MASSAND

This week, The Garden City News received correspondence from the Garden City Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Dennis Donnelly that the COVID-19 crisis will cause prolonged closures and drastic changes to operations for some businesses, while leaving a bare cupboard and light prospects for businesses who can mitigate the ‘hit’ of the current situation.

“The Chamber has requested that the Village government (Board of Trustees) waive village property taxes as well as commercial garbage tax for the duration of the emergency,” Donnelly wrote as part of a Chamber statement early this week. He has also forwarded this request and other suggestions with a letter to the Village Board and administration.

Upon receipt of the letter from Donnelly, Garden City Mayor Theresa M. Trouvé spoke with the News and explained that due to “stay-at-home” protocols the Village Board of Trustees held its March 19 meeting and budget proposal session via conference call, but the eight trustees and administration had not had any opportunity to raise this issue on temporary relief of commercial property and garbage collection taxes. To date, there have not been any Chamber businesses contacting Village administration or the Board of Trustees directly to express the same request, the mayor said.

“There is heavy concern over the future of local businesses and the present morale of the local business community. What the request stated in the letter can mean for us (the Board) is to evaluate giving temporary financial assistance/relief to entities in the village; the idea being they would not pay the regular fees. The Board as a group has not been able to discuss the point raised as of now -- we are preoccupied with the illness parts of Coronavirus impact and the expanding public health crisis in the area,” she said.

Mayor Trouvé commented on the idea presented by President Trump that the country can re-establish protocols and people may be able to return to work and the normal functions of

See page 29

Photo courtesy Nassau County

Our pandemic plan

The coronavirus has hurt everyone, most especially those who are ill or have loved ones who are ill.

Businesses are also suffering, as is evident from the skyrocketing numbers of people who are newly unemployed.

Unfortunately, the Garden City News is no exception to the economic pain. Unfortunately as our advertising revenue is drastically down as businesses throughout the village have closed down.

Because of that we will be taking some measures to ensure that we survive the pandemic.

Originally we had considered ceasing publishing a print newspaper and going to online only. But we realized that we have an obligation to our readers, many of whom are seniors who don’t use

the internet much, to continue to bring them important information in a print format. In addition, we have obligations to the village and school district to publish certain notices required by law.

So our new pandemic plan is to continue to print a slimmed down version of the paper each week that will include all essential information, and as much community news as we can fit.

Material that we cannot fit inside that footprint will be published on our website, www.gcnews.com

Our office is being staffed sporadically, so the best way to reach us is by email to editor@gcnews.com.

The Garden City News will be 100 years old in 2023, and we intend to be around to celebrate!

The Black Hole

To the Editor:

Once again it’s time to feed the Black Hole, you feed the Black Hole by pouring tax payer’s money down it.

What is the Black Hole you ask? The Black Hole is the St. Paul’s building. Hey, what are you doing with the Black Hole (St. Paul’s) ? Answer: “Nobody know’s... The only thing that the leaders of the Village of Garden City can say for sure is that we must continue to pour money (tax payer money) down the Black Hole. You know for different stuff, like survey’s, estimates, appraisal’s, secure the door’s, window’s, clock tower, put up a fence and of course stabilize. I do not think this will ever end. I say tear it down and re-use the property without the Black Hole being there... Wait a minute, maybe it can be saved, returned to its glory days, saved without any cost to the tax payers, yes, yes, it can happen... APRIL FOOL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Sorry about that, I just couldn’t help myself.

Paul Dellacona

Use the money to fight virus

To the Editor:

There are other financial solutions to Metropolitan Transportation Authority looking for a $4 billion bailout from Washington due to unanticipated costs incurred by the coronavirus. Washington has already accumulated $23 trillion in long term debt.

With a $4 trillion plus annual budget, this debt was anticipated to grow by $1 trillion annually for years to come prior to the coronavirus. The federal government will fund a stimulus package of $850 million. It will be paid for with more borrowed funds increasing our national debt once again. This legislation will deal with the growing coronavirus. Every village, town, county, city and state along with many private sector businesses will look toward Washington for additional financial

assistance.

Just who is going to bail out Uncle Sam to pay for this? All levels of government and the private sector must also make difficult financial decisions on how to use existing resources. Americans prioritize their own family budgets. They make the difficult choices in how existing resources will be spent. What can wait till later will be postponed. Now the MTA is looking for $4 billion in additional aid from Washington. This is on top of the annual $1.4 billion in assistance provided by the Federal Transit Administration. The MTA has budgeted $4 billion of local funding within the $51 billion 2020 - 2024 Five Year Capital Plan to be used toward paying for the $6.9 billion Second Avenue Subway Phase Two. This project benefits a handful of the 5 million daily transit riders. Why doesn’t the MTA make the difficult financial decisions everyone else does? Given the current financial crises faced by all levels of government, the MTA should postpone funding this project until the next 2025 - 2029 Five Year Capital Plan. Use these funds Currently available under the $51 billion 2020 - 2024 Five Year Capital Plan toward dealing with additional $4 billion costs incurred by the coronavirus.

Larry

Penner

POA system is fair

To the Editor: I take issue with Dan McCarthy’s many uninformed comments in his March 13th Town Crier column, in particular his description of village government dominated by cliques. The POA system is open to all residents. In the East, where I have lived for 40 plus years, communication has always been open and encouraged. The EPOA holds open meetings throughout the year (currently 6, the next one on April 21), maintains a website (www.gcepoa. org) updated on an ongoing basis, sends

Garden City School Board holds first virtual meeting

BY RIKKI MASSAND

A first “virtual” and call-in meeting for the Garden City Board of Education, with participation from district administration and counsel and a listen-in feature for the public, took place on March 24 at the Board’s regularly-scheduled meeting time of 8:15 p.m.

Superintendent of Schools Dr. Kusum Sinha and Board members highlighted immediate responses to the COVID-19 pandemic in March as schools closed midway through the month, as well as adaptations to distance (online) learning aided by the professionalism and dedication of faculty and staff as makeshift operations carry this school year, hopefully for the short-term.

School Board Vice President Tom Pinou commented that he’s spoken with many parents and children in the community during the closure of schools. He’s heard excellent feedback on the programs for distance learning and protocols GCUFSD has in place.

School Board Trustee Michael Cassaro commented that several community members have set up “Kids’ Zoom meetings or GoogleHangouts’ meetings” to keep the connectivity with classmates during a time of staying at home to ride out the COVID-19 crisis, with social distance in place and supplementing their virtual learning

activities.

Superintendent Sinha said the Coronavirus shakeup and widespread school closures reflect a time where the school system provides the local community with support reaching far beyond education.

“We are closed until at least the end of this month per the Governor’s order. These are certainly difficult times for all of us. We are thankful for the support and encouragement of our entire school community during this time. Responding to this public health crisis has undoubtedly tested us as an educational system. This past week and a half has shown me firsthand who we are and how we’ve all come together to support one another -- we have really transformed our schools into distance learning platforms and instruction. I want to thank all our administrators, faculty and staff for their hard work and dedication. They have worked tirelessly to ensure we had the continuity of instruction in place. The work that has taken place in the district is pretty transformative and profound,” she said.

Dr. Sinha also commented on early-stage success of both the mandated child care program for first responders, transit workers and healthcare workers which is being run at Stewart School and the “grab-and-go” meals provided to school district community families at

Garden City High School, daily from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. GCUFSD Buildings and Grounds staff has cleaned and disinfected each of the district buildings, including the two noted that are currently in abbreviated use.

“In preparation for a possible longer period of closure, operational aspects of the schools have been reviewed and plans are in place for that as well. The two buildings are open, the district offices are open, while all other buildings are closed,” she said.

Committee on Special Education meetings have shifted to online as well during the COVID-19 crisis.

Budget Presentation Pushed Back

This week’s meeting was originally scheduled with a budget presentation for academic year 2020-’21, Part II of district Instructional Budget components, but that has been postponed to take place during the Tuesday April 7 school board meeting, which also has the potential of being held virtually via teleconference. Community members and board trustees were informed that Superintendent Sinha will post the corresponding PowerPoint slides for that budget presentation on the district’s website well ahead of the April 7 meeting.

“In light of the unforeseen circumstances brought about by COVID-19

we’ve asked that the administration have available to the Board and the public the full presentation available online in advance of the next meeting -- this way both the Board and the public can review it. At this time we do not know if the upcoming district meetings would be in-person or via teleconference and we will allow at least for the public to have ability to review as the Board and public will see all portions of the proposed budget presentation -- the public will have the ability to email their budget questions to Superintendent Sinha in advance of the April 7 meeting. Depending on how things unfold leading up to April 7 and whether or not the meeting can take place in-person, the Board can decide to respond by having an online post such as an “Frequently Asked Questions” on the district website or to respond directly to the questions that we’ve received,” Heineman outlined.

Potential for May 19 Budget Vote

On Tuesday night Garden City Public Schools’ attorney Bonnie Gorham of Farmingdale-based firm Guercio & Guercio LLP explained that there’s been preliminary discussion at the New York State level about postponement of this year’s (state-declared) board election and budget vote date of May 19, 2020,

Vinny Muldoon

Owner

and Garden City Resident

Old World Quality Corp.

Go Green with Kelly & Colleen: Simple Tips for Family and Environmental Health

BY COLLEEN CIOLLO AND KELLY SMITH

Helping the Environment from Home

Like so many of us, we are working from home and juggling the new realities of life during the COVID-19 pandemic. We hope this month’s article finds you well and taking seriously all of the health and safety regulations available, while also caring for your social and emotional wellbeing. This month, we are offering suggestions on ways to protect community health, stay connected, and keep busy with a simple garden activity.

Action Items:

1. Consider the potential harmful effects of gas leaf blowers on air quality.

2. Stay connected through social media groups, such as Garden City Sustainability on Facebook, and explore natural wonders using digital resources.

3. Engage in activities such as starting seedlings for your spring and summer garden.

Why You Should Care:

For those of us who are not healthcare workers, our shared responsibility is to remain cautious and physically distant during this unprecedented health crisis. This time provides us with an opportunity to implement simple environmental efforts with our families at home.

Gas Leaf Blowers

As reported in the March 13 issue of The Garden City News, prior to the shut-down of our local government, the Board of Trustees was considering restrictions on gas leaf blowers due to their negative impact on community health and safety. The NYS Department of Environmental Conservation states on its website that emissions from gas powered leaf blowers are substantial and consist of “exhaust emissions including hydrocarbons, oxides of nitrogen, and carbon monoxide along with particles including pollen and mold, animal feces, heavy metals, and chemicals from herbicides and pesticides.” According to Dr. Bonnie Sager of Huntington Calm, a local outreach/educational organization, toxic particles from gas leaf blowers can remain on surfaces and in the air for hours.

Research shows that air pollution compromises lung function and cre-

ates greater population vulnerability to airborne illnesses. As reported by the Washington Post last week, Aaron Bernstein, the interim director of the Center for Climate, Health, and the Global Environment at Harvard stated, “it is very likely that people who are exposed to more air pollution and who are smoking tobacco products are going to fare worse if infected with COVID-19 than those who are breathing cleaner air, and who don’t smoke.” It is well documented that gas leaf blowers produce substantial amounts of pollution. Dr. Sager states particulate matter, toxic emissions, and ground level ozone produced by gas leaf blowers can exacerbate COPD, asthma and other respiratory conditions that hospitals do not have the capacity to treat during the current pandemic.

Alternatives to gas leaf blowers exist and are not hard to incorporate into our lawncare routines. At the homeowner level, raking is a viable alternative, especially since this is not very labor-intensive during spring and summer. Simple yard work can be a great activity for children as well, providing them with fresh air and an outdoor activity that allows them to see the result of their efforts. At the commercial level, homeowners can encourage or insist landscapers use rakes or switch to less polluting battery operated or electric machinery. The NYS DEC website states electric blowers are “quieter than gasoline models and do not generate ground-level exhaust emissions.” The DEC encourages the use of electric plugin or battery-operated yard vacuums as another alternative with the added benefit that many models shred leaves, compacting them for use as compost.

Online Environmental Engagement

Maintaining social relationships is important during this time of physical isolation. We encourage you to join social media groups, such as Garden City Sustainability on Facebook to connect with others. Members of the group are working together to discuss ways to reduce pollution and raise environmental awareness in the village. Connecting with others who have similar interests and passions can help maintain a sense of community during the physical distancing required to confront this pandemic.

While physical travel is also restrict-

Please

A message from the Garden City Clergy Fellowship

To all our congregants and friends in the community:

During this challenging and stressful time, we speak from different religious traditions, and yet with one united voice, as members of the same human family. In our fight against the coronavirus pandemic, we join with all of you in praying for health and strength, and protection from harm, as we go forward in navigating this uncharted territory together. Though we must remain physically apart for the time being, we will continue to use the gifts of human creativity and ingenuity, as we remain in contact over the phone and online. And, if it should become necessary, we will do what we can to provide tangible help, while remaining vigilant with regard to the cautions and restrictions as outlined by New York State and the Federal Government. Prayer and hope know no bounds or limitations, and all that unites us is far greater than that which divides us. We stand in solidarity with one another as clergy colleagues and friends. Please continue to reach out to us, as we will reach out to you. Together, we will get through this.

May all of us be blessed with health and strength, with love, and peace.

The Members of the Garden City Clergy Fellowship:

Rev. Gordon Clay Bailey, Unitarian Universalist Congregation, Garden City

The Rev’d. Adam Bucko, Minor Canon, Cathedral of the Incarnation

The Rev’d. Michael F. Delaney, Canon Pastor, Cathedral of theIncarnation

Rabbi Linda Henry Goodman, Chair of the Garden City Clergy Fellowship

Rabbi Stephen Wise Goodman, Garden City Jewish Center

Msgr. Thomas J. Harold, Parish of St. Anne

Pastor Wanda Lawry Hughes, Garden City Presbyterian Church

Rabbi Glenn Jacob, Hillel At Adelphi, Director

Rev. Karen Jones, Director, Pastoral Care And Education, NYU Winthrop University Hospital

Dr. Richard L. Koral, Leader, Ethical Humanist Society of Long Island

The Rev’d. Morgan Ladd, Minor Canon, Cathedral Of Incarnation

The Right Reverend Lawrence C. Provenzano, Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese Of Long Island

Rev. Lynn A. Sullivan, Senior Pastor, Garden City Community Church

Reverend Msgr. James P. Swiader, and the Pastoral Staff of St. Joseph R.C. Church

Rev. Earl Y. Thorpe, Jr. Pastor, Church-In-The-Garden

St. Joseph Church makes online Mass available

During the suspension of public Masses in the Diocese of Rockville Centre due to the coronavirus, St. Joseph Church in Garden City has taken steps to safely connect with parishioners via its parish web site.

Msgr. James Swiader announced that a video of the Mass of the Day will be available for view at any time from that day on. Parish website: www.stjosephchurchgc.org

The prayer “An Act of Spiritual Communion” is also posted on the parish website.

The church will remain open during the day for private prayer. However, in the interest of safety, while inside the church, those at prayer should observe the “social distancing” and attendance limits as requested by the government.

Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) When and Where to Seek Care

NYU Langone experts want you to know how to stay healthy and when to seek medical care given the outbreak of COVID-19 in New York.

If You Have Cold Symptoms

For cold symptoms without a fever—runny nose, congestion, sore throat, minor aches and pains—consider staying home until you feel better.

If You Have Flu-Like Symptoms

For fever, headache, cough, muscle aches and joint pains—stay home and consult an NYU Langone provider remotely using Virtual Urgent Care.

Same day Virtual Urgent Care appointments are available:

7am to 11pm Monday through Friday 8am to 8pm Saturday and Sunday

Schedule an appointment using the NYU Langone Health app or by visiting nyulangone.org/virtualurgentcare

When to go to the Emergency Room

If you have a fever and cough and difficulty breathing, it is important that you do not wait to get care. Call 911 or seek immediate medical attention at your nearest emergency room.

Prevention is the Best Treatment

These tips will help you stay healthy:

• Avoid close contact with people who are sick.

• Wash your hands frequently for at least 20 seconds using soap and water or use an alcohol-based handrub.

• Always cover a sneeze or cough with a tissue or by using your arm.

• Avoid touching your nose, mouth, and eyes without washing your hands first.

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Adelphi’s Food Pantry continues with online-only service

While Adelphi University, like many colleges and universities around the country, is shifting to remote and online classes and other services in response to the coronavirus situation, the need for a food pantry remains – from students, faculty and staff members.

Unlike many food pantries, Adelphi’s Panther Pantry built in online ordering from the day it opened in September 2018. Now, with the move to social distancing, in-person visits to the pantry are temporarily halted – but the online ordering continues.

“The pantry is continuing to operate and serve the needs of the community,” said Michael Hoffner, coordinator of the University’s Interfaith & Spirituality Services who also oversees the largely volunteer Panther Pantry. “We have seen an increase in the total number of orders. In March as a whole, we have

filled 52 orders. So far this week alone, March 16–18, we have filled 21.”

Orders made in the morning can be picked up the same afternoon in the University’s campus mailroom.

The online ordering system was built by Adelphi’s Office of Information Technology. Its original purpose was to offer an alternative that was more confidential to users – but having it in place and functioning well has eased the transition to today’s circumstances.

While the pantry doesn’t accept food donations, you can help by offering financial support. It accepts cash as well as checks made payable to Adelphi University, with “Panther Pantry” written on the memo line. Donations should be delivered to Carol Lucas, Office of the Associate Dean of Student Affairs, Nexus Building, Room 308.

In this new feature, the Garden City News salutes people in the community who help others during this difficult time. If you know someone who should be thanked for their help, please send it to editor@gcnews.com.

Photos especially welcome.

“We have five children (12, 11, 10, 8, 6) and my wife is now in charge of homeschooling them. I work on Wall Street and need to be trading from our basement at this point of the virus. I came upstairs to see what my wife, Kathie, had organized the first day of “school” and saw the attached photo. Truly amazing. She has also organized them to write letters and cards for elderly friends and neighbors that can’t get out.”

-- Brian Scollard

Building fire: On March 16th Garden City firefighters assisted the Mineola Fire Department with a working commercial building fire in Mineola.

Checks forged: On March 17th Garden City Police investigated a report of numerous checks in a res ident’s name being forged and attempted to be cashed at different locations in Bethpage and Hempstead.

City Post Office reports all older model mailboxes in the Village have been replaced with new tamper resistant boxes.

Criminal contempt: On March 22nd police arrested a 65 year-old Garden City man for allegedly texting and calling another family member in violation of a court order. He was charged with criminal contempt.

Debit cards stolen: On March 19th a worker at a Garden City Plaza business states her coat containing debit cards was stolen from her locker.

Burnt food: On March 19th Garden City police and firefighters responded to a residential fire alarm. The cause of the alarm was determined to be burnt food.

Bad brakes: A West Hempstead company was charged with the operation of a truck on Franklin Avenue with a loose load, leaking containers and defective brakes on March 19th.

Stolen vehicle: On March 20th Garden City Police investigated a report of a stolen vehicle from Vassar Parking Field.

Graffiti: Graffiti (dollar signs) was found on the rear of a Stop sign on Somerset Avenue on March 21st.

New mailboxes: The Garden

Bank fraud: On March 23rd a resident reports someone opened multiple bank accounts using his personal information without authorization.

Forged check: On March 23rd a resident reported that someone cashed a fraudulent/forged check in his name for $4,200.

But no toilet paper? A truck traveling south struck the Cherry Valley train trestle on March 23rd. The top of the truck was sheared off and the contents consisting of Bounty Paper Towels were strewn over the roadway. The 66-year-old operator was charged with disregarding bridge clearance signs. There were no reported injuries.

Forged checks: On March 24th a resident reported that someone cashed multiple fraudulent/forged checks using his bank account information.

The Truth About Aging

By Dr Kelly Mattone

Aging is inevitable of course, however before we can try to fight it, fix it, or (gasp) accept it, it’s important to understand the root cause of aging.

When you see visible signs of aging such as dryness, lines, wrinkles, jowls or even sagging skin, what your body is experiencing is a loss of collagen and hyaluronic acid. Collagen is a protein that provides the structural framework of your skin and keeps it smooth, firm and resilient while hyaluronic acid (HA), is a carbohydrate whose job is to absorb water into your skin to keep it plump, soft and hydrated. Therefore, the goal of all antiaging treatments is to improve the skin’s appearance by increasing collagen and hyaluronic acid. While there are many options available, Ultherapy is considered the gold standard as it is the only procedure that can re-grow brand new collagen in your skin.

Ultherapy is a non-surgical procedure that uses the power of ultrasound to work deep below the

skin’s surface to revive and create new collagen, distinguishing it as the only FDA cleared procedure to LIFT and tighten your brows, jowls and neck. It is non-invasive and there is no downtime.

Microneedling is a virtually painless skin rejuvenating procedure that results in the release of growth factors that increase collagen and elastin levels, restoring your skin’s natural elasticity and glow.

Fibroblast skin tightening is a revolutionary method of facial rejuvenation that stimulates collagen production and significantly tightens, lifts, resurfaces and regenerates the skin.

Dermal fillers such as, Restylane and Juvederm are hyaluronic acid gels that are injected directly into the skin to act as your own naturally occurring hyaluronic acid. These HA fillers soften laugh lines and enhance cheeks and lips immediately. A consultation with your cosmetic physician is the best way to determine which procedure is right for you.

Kelly Mattone, M.D.

Medical Studio

• Botox

• Fillers

• Ultherapy

• Emsculpt

• Fibroblast Skin Tightening

• Microneedle

• PRP Hair Loss

• Laser

• Coolsculpting

• Facials and Peels

The Board of Trustees and staff continue to work on numerous projects, including preparation of the 2020/21 Village budget, stabilization of the former St. Paul’s School, proposed upgrades to Fire Station No. 2 and other matters. I encourage you to attend Village Board of Trustees meetings; the schedule can be found on the Village’s website, www. gardencityny.net.

GCPD collecting medical supplies

Garden City Police Commissioner Kenneth Jackson announced Tuesday, March 24, 2020 that the Garden City Police Department is accepting donations of medical supplies during this unprecedented National State of Emergency. Drop off supplies seven days a week, 24 hours a day at Police Headquarters, 349 Stewart Avenue. We thank you and encourage donations of the below medical supplies in unopened boxes/packages:

• N95 Surgical Masks in unopened container/boxes

• Eye protection such as goggles and face shields

• Nitrile Gloves in unopened boxes which have not expired (All sizes, especially L and XL)

• Disposable medical gowns (paper which are fluid resistant or plastic)

• Shoe cover/booties

• No-Touch thermometers

• Thermometer probe covers

• HEPA filters for Ventilators / Anesthesia Machines

• Antibacterial and disinfecting wipes – typically alcohol or bleach based

• Disinfecting wipes (Clorox/ Lysol)

• Hand Sanitizer

Budget meeting rescheduled

Please be advised that the Thursday, March 26, 2020 Budget meeting has been rescheduled for Thursday, April 2, 2020 via conference call. This may change as the Village is looking into a system that may allow residents to listen but not participate.

Village dump closed

The Village Dump will be closed until further notice due to precautionary measures related to COVID-

19. This closure will aid in limiting exposure of residents and employees on-site from direct contact. For further assistance, please call the Village Clerk at 4654051 or visit the Village website at www.gardencityny.net for more information and additional updates. This information is subject to change as this situation continues to evolve.

Library Children’s Room

The Children’s Room and adjacent Circulation Desk area in the Library have not been updated since the library was built 47 years ago. According to Library Director Marianne Malagon, upgrades would not be limited to cosmetic changes but would also improve the Library’s function and its programs. “Staff has increased programs this year despite not being able to enhance the space or significantly grow our program budget or our staffing budget. They’ve added dropin programs and have also hosted programs by outside providers to approach demand of early childhood programs,” Ms. Malagon said. During the March 19, 2020 Board meeting held via conference call, Trustees directed Village Treasurer Irene Woo to increase the 2020-21 Capital Budget for the Children’s Room to $600,000. Everything from technology to lighting needs to be updated. Further, the space needs to be outfitted to enhance the technology and STEM initiatives the Library is undertaking. Ms. Malagon was able to secure $200,000 in State and Municipal (SAM) grants from the offices of Senator Kevin Thomas and Assemblyman Edward Ra, which will help offset the total cost of renovations.

Fire Station No. 2

The Village Board adopted a “plans and specifications” Bond Resolution March 19, 2020 for the Fire Station No. 2 Renovations Project in the amount of $500,000. This resolution covers the initial pre-construction costs (architect fees). Trustees also voted to have the architects, PKAD Architecture & Design, move forward with a proposal to create bid specifications and to pause at the 60 percent design phase to provide reliable estimates for full construction costs.

Mayor Theresa Trouvé

EPOA seeks candidates for Junior Ambassadors

The Garden City Eastern Property Owners’ Association (EPOA) is seeking applications for candidates to be considered for Junior Ambassador positions for the years 2020-2022. This program is designed to introduce high school sophomores entering their junior year to Village government through participation in EPOA meetings, attendance at government meetings, and promoting civic participation in our community. This is an exciting opportunity for students to become involved in local affairs and to learn about our unique form of local government.

The Junior Ambassador program is designed as a two year commitment encompassing junior and senior years. Preference will be given to students who reside in the Eastern section of Garden City and whose families are dues paying members of the EPOA.

The current ambassadors are Jaimie Murray (the5murrays@optonline.net), Tim O’Hanlon (tohanlon36@gmail.com)

and Delaney McKenna (dpmred@yahoo. com). Interested candidates can email either Jaimie, Tim or Delaney to learn more about their experience. Jaimie, Tim and Delaney have contributed their time, talent and unique perspective to further the mission of the EPOA. The application itself details the responsibilities of the position.

Students who attend Garden City High School may obtain an application from the Social Studies Department office or on the EPOA website at www. gcepoa.org. High school sophomores, who attend schools other than Garden City High School, may download an application from the EPOA website. Completed applications can be mailed to EPOA, P.O. Box 7525, Garden City, N.Y. or submitted electronically to contactus@gcepoa.org

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All interested sophomores are encouraged to apply. The deadline is April 30. A brief interview will be conducted as part of the application process.

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GC Meals for NYU Winthrop makes an impact

“This is helping me keep my head above water…” “Now I can keep my guys on for another week…” “Thank you for the opportunity to repay the incredible doctors and nurses at NYU Winthrop for all they do for this community…”

Those are just a few of the comments from the restaurants participating in the “GC Meals for NYU Winthrop” program. Despite their own struggles, each one of them said they were eager to participate

to help the hospital and the community.

GC Meals began barely 10 days ago, has raised almost $17,000, delivered over 500 meals, and will deliver an additional 350 meals by the end of this weekend. There are over 20 local food establishments participating, delivering to 8 of the most affected units in NYU Winthrop hospital.

Although the community is anxious and uneasy, it’s gratifying to participate

Smok-haus gets some great food ready.

in an effort bigger than ourselves. Please keep the donations coming so we can keep this community effort going next week! Venmo @GCMeals, GoFundMe –GC Meals for NYU Winthrop, or check to Liz Menges 27 Hilton Ave. (GCMeals in the memo).

For updates, watch for posts on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram of photos from our local businesses preparing and delivering the food.

Stay safe, and let’s keep looking for ways to help others!

From GP-3: “Just wanted to extend a big thank you to The GC Meals for the delicious lunch from Smok-haus. The doctors and nurses really enjoyed the food and it picked everbody’s spirits up! It is so much appreciated that our community recognizes our work during these challenging times.”

Pizza Supreme provided all the toppings.

Your Mother’s House gets meals ready for healthcare professionals.

The crew at the Seventh Street Cafe

The Banana Bread Baking Company provided meals with love.

March 27, 2020

“Auschwitz: Not Long Ago. Not Far Away” Landmark

Exhibit Offers Unexpected Lessons for Today

BY KAREN RUBIN

Nothing puts into perspective our discomfort over the “sacrifice” we have to make because of the coronavirus than a visit to exhibit, “Auschwitz. Not long ago. Not far away.” At the Museum of Jewish Heritage-A Living Memorial to the Holocaust. The museum is presently closed to the public but there are excellent materials on line, and hopefully the landmark exhibit, the most comprehensive Holocaust exhibition about Auschwitz ever presented in North America, which has already been extended until August 30, 2020 will open soon for New Yorkers to experience before the exhibit travels.

One of the many benefits of travel is that it affords new perspective and understanding that we can apply to our own lives, and travel through history even more so.

I compare our confinement – with telecom, internet, video links to family, friends and the world, and home delivery, with a chance to get out in fresh air for a walk or bikeride (keeping 6-foot separation) to Anne Frank’s miserable, isolated, frightening imprisonment. We are “confined” but not in hiding from soldiers, police or government officials. Our fear is of catching a virus, albeit a potentially deadly one, but not being shot on sight or sent to a death camp, never to see loved ones again.

They say this pandemic is

In a case of suitcases and personal objects, you realize that families packed with anticipation of being resettled; 200,000 children were immediately taken off the freight trains upon arrival Auschwitz and sent to gas chambers with their mothers. “Auschwitz: Not long ago. Not far away.” at Museum of Jewish Heritage © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

“unimaginable” (except it wasn’t, you only had to look back at the 1918-19 Spanish flu, or January 2020 in China), but the Holocaust was indeed “unimaginable,” “incomprehensible” in its scale of human cruelty. That, I realized, was the secret weapon. There are so many lessons that the Auschwitz exhibit has to share, but most chilling of all in light of renewed anti-Semitism, big-

otry, xenophobia, “Not long ago. Not far away.” Indeed, the most chilling realization of all: it took a mere 10 years between Hitler’s election to power and the Final Solution. Out of 1200 artifacts, photos, video testimonies from survivors, it comes down to one: a tiny, well-worn leather child’s shoe, the sock still hanging out of it. Was it taken off in anticipation the child was just going to a

shower, never to return to collect it? or was the child ferociously pulled out of the shoe and sock?

Shoes take on special significance at the “Auschwitz: Not so long ago. Not far away.”

As you first walk in, there is a single red shoe in a glass case that perversely sparks an image of the ruby slippers in “Wizard of Oz.” set against a grey-toned wall-mural sized photo of piles of shoes. Further on as you walk through the threefloors of exhibits, there is the pair of hardened leather clog-looking shoes in a case with a prison uniform so rough and raw they would irritate, then infect and swell the feet, a death sentence for the hapless prisoner.

Another display case in the “Selection” section contains shiny leather boots, much like those that the prisoners would see Mengele wearing as they were forced out of the freight cars minutes after being unloaded at Auschwitz, beneath the sign that said. ‘Work Sets You Free.” He was the doctor who selected out twin children for his medical experiments. The rest of the children200,000 of them – were immediately sent to the gas chamber along with their mother, aunt, sister, grandmother or friendly stranger who had accompanied them on their journey. The tiny leather shoe with the sock still in it is the only evidence this child existed at all, his life extinguished.

800,000 more Jews were imme-

See page D2

GOING PLACES, NEAR & FAR....

“Auschwitz: Not Long Ago. Not Far Away” Landmark Exhibit

Continued from page D1

diately sent to their deaths in the gas chambers, 2000 at a time, their bodies thrown into crematoria that worked 24/7 to keep up with the industrial-scale exterminations, their ashes thrown into a river.

Out of the 1.1 million “deported” to Auschwitz, the largest of the Nazi death camps, only 200,000 were “selected” not for immediate death but to become slave labor in the concentration camp. They too were immediately marched into showers, their hair shaved, their arms painfully tattooed, their bodies stripped of any dignity or humanness. Few lived more than a month or two under the atrocious conditions – dying of starvation, disease, overwork, beatings or simply shot on the spot. Some became so infirm, they settled into their fate, and welcomed being carried by stretcher to end their daily terror and

pain. Others, packed six to a wooden plank in the barracks, would wake up to find a dead person next to them.

This exhibit, which focuses down to one “tiny dot” on a map that was the largest killing camp in the Nazi’s network – makes it as personal as is possible. You walk in their shoes. But you also see the faces, the horrors, the personal objects, the testimonials of survivors, the drawings and photos, an actual freight car and an actual barracks, even so, it is still hard to comprehend.

Indeed, the incomprehensibility of the horror was key to its success – along with secrecy and deception. People could not imagine the level of brutality, cruelty, savageness. So they packed up what they could in suitcases expecting to be resettled to places free of anti-Semitism, where they could work and live out their lives. Several

An original German-made Model 2 freight train car of the type used for the deportation of Jews to the ghettos and extermination camps in occupied Poland stands outside the Museum of Jewish Heritage © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

resisters gave their lives to smuggle the truth out in the hopes of getting help from the outer world. We see their stories, too.

“Auschwitz” isn’t just a look back with graphic evidence to plant a marker in the history books that others are working so hard to erase. It is a look at now, a look at where the trajectory of dehumanization and bigotry can lead. That is what is embodied in the phrase. “Never Again.”

Produced by the international exhibition firm Musealia and the AuschwitzBirkenau State Museum in Poland, the groundbreaking exhibition is the largest ever on Auschwitz with more than 700 original objects and 400 photographs from more than 20 international museums and institutions, on view for the first time in North America.

See more extensive coverage and photos : Groundbreaking Exhibit

at Museum of Jewish Heritage Transports to “Auschwitz: Not long ago. Not far away” Museum of Jewish Heritage – A Living Memorial to the Holocaust, 36 Battery Place, New York City, 646-437-4202, mjhnyc.org.

2020 Travel Features Syndicate, a division of Workstyles, Inc. All rights reserved. Visit goingplacesfarandnear.com,  www.huffingtonpost.com/author/karenrubin & travelwritersmagazine.com/ TravelFeaturesSyndicate/ Blogging at goingplacesnearandfar. wordpress.com & moralcompasstravel. info. Send comments or questions to FamTravLtr@aol.com. Tweet @ TravelFeatures. ‘Like’ us at facebook. com/NewsPhotoFeatures

One of the exhibits “Auschwitz: Not long ago. Not far away.” at Museum of Jewish Heritage is part of an original barrack for prisoners from the Auschwitz III-Monowitz camp © Karen Rubin/goingplacesfarandnear.com

WRITER’S CORNER

On Great Eats: Steakhouses

BY LOU THEODORE

Steakhouses? A recommendation? I can close out this article right now with my answer: stay away from steakhouses. Period! They are a group of restaurants not to be frequented. Despite my above recommendation, many of you will still want some comments and analyses. So here goes with a baker’s dozen, although it hurts to say anything positive about this class of restaurant today. In earlier times, nearly ¾ of a century ago, Italian restaurants had the best steaks; however, I can’t remember ordering a steak at any

Italian restaurant in recent years.

1. Blackstone, Melville. Overpriced. Mashed and creamed spinach good. Highly recommended in the literature. It’s all yours.

2. Bryant & Cooper, Roslyn. Overpriced. Try the hamburger with onions or the lamb chops. Not for me.

3. Burton and Doyle, Great Neck. One of many along steakhouse row on Northern Blvd. Decent, perhaps.

4. Butcher’s Bar & Grill, Williston Park. Celebrated our 50th wedding anniversary there. Everybody loved it, except yours truly (who was not paying). Not for me, ever again. Really

disappointing.

5. Capital Grille, Garden City. Grossly overpriced. Formal, decent service. Excellent steak ($69, ouch) the one time I ate there.

6. Frank’s Steakhouse, Jericho. A bit expensive. One of our son’s favorite. Not for me, although the least expensive of the “overpriced” group.

7. Jake’s Steakhouse, East Meadow. There during restaurant week. Decent.

8. Majors, East Meadow. A poor man’s steakhouse. Casual, comfortable, and decent service. My friend’s favorite haunt but I’ve yet to have a good steak there.

9. Morton’s, Great Neck. A bit

WRITER’S CORNER

expensive. Formal. I’ve only gone there during Restaurant Week ($29 for 3 courses). The drinks are hellaciously expensive and a major rip-off – stay clear of the bar!

10. Outback, Merrick. Another poor man’s steakhouse. If you go, order the lamb chops, not a steak.

11. Rothmann’s, East Norwich. Expensive. Formal. A favorite of one of my friends. Not for me.

12. Peter Luger’s, Great Neck. Very expensive; salad ($20, ouch) and steak for two ($115, ouch). Poor service. Not for me – it’s all yours!

13. Ruth Chris, Garden City. I’ve never had a good steak here. Definitely a good one to avoid.

I apologize if I’ve missed a few. But, you get the picture. My recommendation is that you stay clear of these restaurants.

I know. Many of you complain that much of my stuff are put-downs without offering any alternatives or solutions. So here goes. If not a steak, is there another option? I have come to really enjoy hamburgers. What could be better than a hamburger with fried onions on a crusty roll? Add some ketchup, french fries and a sour Jewish pickle and you’re in business. My favorite burger spots? Wendys, (Dave’s Single) and Shake Shack. You might also think about meatballs with spaghetti (actually, linguine for me) in Rao’s marinara sauce, from a jar, (I prefer Mary’s rich tomato sauce) and grated cheese. Finally, you might think about (as I usually do) an Angus ribeye from a supermarket and putting it on your own grill at home. All of these suggestions carry another feature. There is no tipping! Today, good service requires a 20% tip. I go for 25% if happy with the service. Thus, 2 - $15 glasses of wine (I no longer drink) doesn’t cost $30 – they cost $40. A $200 food bill costs $260 with tip and tax. Bottom line: you make the call, but there appears to be some merit to frequenting “fast food” restaurants (next Great Eats article later this year) and eating in.

I hope this helps those of you who requested this article. Let me know what you think.

Note: The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of the editor or publisher.

Visit the author at: www. theodorenewsletter.com or Basketball Coaching 101 (Facebook)

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With a Spouse, Taking Your Social Security Early Might Be Better

BY TOM MARGENAU

I’m sure you’ve seen websites, or received mailers from financial planners, that entice you with come-on’s like this: “Learn the secrets to maximizing your Social Security benefits.” Or, “You may be losing tens of thousands of dollars if you don’t know this Social Security secret.”

If you open the website, or attend the seminar, here is the “secret” you will learn: delay taking your Social Security benefits until age 70. And the theory is that you will live long enough to make up for the money you lose by not starting your benefits sooner.

That’s probably good advice for lots of people. But there are still millions of senior citizens who, for a variety of reasons, choose to take their benefits earlier. For example, both my wife and I started our Social Security benefits at age 62. We were perfectly content doing that. We know that if we live until a ripe old age, we might end up coming out on the short end of the Social Security stick. But we don’t care. We’ve been having too much fun for the past decade spending our reduced Social Security checks.

Besides the “eat, drink and be merry” types like me and my wife, there is another group of people who should seriously think about starting benefits earlier rather than later. And that is retirees who have a spouse potentially eligible for benefits on their record. Today’s questions and answers illustrate what I am talking about.

Q: I am 66. I plan to delay starting my Social Security until I’m 70. My full retirement age benefit is $2,600. If I wait until 70, I’d get $3,432. My wife is 62. She wants to file for her Social Security now. She’s due a much smaller benefit. It would be about $787 if she files now. I say she should wait until I am 70 and she is 66 and then file on my record, because if she files for reduced benefits now, that reduction would carry over to the spousal benefits she will eventually be due on my record. So, who is right?

A: I think your wife is right. Let’s compare the two options. We’ll take yours first. In your scenario, no one would get anything until you turn 70 and sign up for Social Security. At that point, you would get $3,432. Then your 66-year-old wife would sign up for her full retirement benefit, which should be about $1,050. At the same time, she would file for spousal benefits on your record and get an additional $250 for a total of $1,300. (A spousal benefit is always based on your full retirement age rate, not your augmented age-70 rate.) So, your wife will get her retirement benefit supplemented to 50% of your $2,600 rate, or $1,300. In other words, in the option you think is best, neither of you would get any benefits until you are 70 years old, at which point you would start getting $4,732 per month in combined benefits.

Now let’s look at what your wife wants to do. She wants to start taking her reduced retirement benefits now. So, she would get $787 per month for the next four years. That’s $37,776 you guys would forfeit if you do nothing until your 70th birthday. And what happens then? Well, you would get your $3,432 monthly check. And then your wife can claim some extra spousal benefits on your record. You are right that she will suffer a bit of a reduction in her spousal benefits because she took early retirement on her own record. But it’s not as much as you think. Here is roughly how they will figure out what she is due. They will take her full retirement rate, or $1,050, and subtract that from one-half of your full retirement rate, or $1,300. The difference, $250, will be added to her reduced retirement benefit. So, her combined retirement and spousal benefits will be $1,037 (as compared with the $1,300 she’d get in your preferred option). In other words, your total combined benefits would be $4,469, not all that much less than the $4,732 in your option.

So, if you guys go with your choice, you’d get an extra $263 per month from age 70 on. But you would have given up the $37,776 in reduced retirement benefits your wife would have been due starting at age 62. It would take you about 144 months to make up that money you would have lost by not letting your wife file now. I think you guys better talk about that.

And one more thought: You should know that even if your wife takes reduced retirement benefits, that decision will have no effect on what she gets as your widow. Assuming you are both over age 66 when you die, she will keep getting her own benefit, and it will be supplemented up to your full age-70 rate. In other words, your wife’s spousal rate is based on your full retirement benefit. But her widows rate is based on your augmented age-70 benefit.

Q: I will be 62 next month Even though I’m not working, I have no desire to sign up for my own Social Security now. My full retirement benefit is projected to be $2,750. I’m thinking of waiting until I am 66 before I file. My wife is 69, and she is getting $550 per month in her own Social Security. Can she get anything on my record now?

A: No, she can’t. A woman who is currently married to her husband can’t get any spousal benefits until her husband applies for his own Social Security. (It’s different for a divorced woman. She can get benefits even if her ex hasn’t filed for retirement.) Because of those spousal benefits you guys are giving up, you might want to think about filing for Social Security now. If you did, you’d get 75% of your full retirement age rate, or $2,062. And your wife would get her retirement benefit supplemented up to 50% of your full retirement age rate, or $1,375. In other words, she would get her own $550, and she’d get $825 on your record for a total of

$1,375 per month.

So if you wait another four years until you are 66, you will be losing out on $2,887 per month you are not getting now. (That’s your $2,062 benefit plus your wife’s spousal share of $825.) That’s $138,576 you will lose by waiting another four years to file.

If you wait until age 66, you will get your full retirement age rate of $2,750. And your wife will get the same spousal rate she’d be due now, or an extra $825. So all you gain by waiting is the difference between your 100% full retirement age rate and your 75% reduced retire-

ment rate -- or 25%. That’s about $688 per month. It would take you about 200 months to get back what you lose by not filing now.

Here is something else to consider: If you take reduced benefits, that reduction will carry over to any widows benefits your wife might be due after you die. But since you are seven years younger than she is, that might not be something to worry about.

If you have a Social Security question, Tom Margenau has the answer. Contact him at thomas.margenau@comcast.net. .

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“It’s easy for people to have hours -- and perhaps days -- go by as if they’re not mentally there at all. ... You just sat in an hour-long meeting, but what happened is a total blur. “ If this has ever happened to you, you are not alone. Your brain is on information overload, and it’s warning you by daydreaming, turning off or tuning out without intention. Joseph McCormack, author of “Noise: Living and Leading When Nobody Can Focus” and founder and managing director of The Brief Lab, enlightens all levels of business leaders about the overcommunication and miscommunication taking place in today’s organizations.

The book is filled with interviews, real workplace stories, memorable quotes, warnings and east-to-apply skills to prevent the tuning out of employees and managers who lack clear communication skills. McCormack has discovered that “listening without judging is a gift.” Much like the Tower of Babel, “people hear an opposing view, and their response is not to listen but to disagree ... People tune each other out instantaneously. One word is a trigger to shut someone off.” McCormack concludes, “It takes patience, discipline, and respect from both sides to listen carefully to

Protecting a ‘Techno-Junkie’ Workforce AT WORK

other perspectives without immediately tuning out.”

The workplace and life are filled with noise: “In science, there’s no difference between sound and noise.”

People consume information from emails, smartphone notifications, social media streams, 24-hour connectivity, texting and news feeds. The workforce is facing a shrinking attention span and an overstimulated, overfilled brain.

Here are some reasons people shared for tuning out to others: “It doesn’t really apply to me. I was daydreaming and totally spaced out. I don’t agree at all with the person. I don’t understand at all. I choose to ignore because listening is too painful. I already know everything. I was preoccupied with something much more important.”

People have a knack for making excuses to justify anything, and sadly, most have known or worked with those who think they already know everything.

A Harvard Business Review study showed “multitasking doesn’t exist. People can switch tasks, but the brain cannot process different information sources simultaneously. McCormack says, “A multitasking mind is like having a squirrel in the attic.”

BY LINDSEY NOVAK

Anyone who has watched a squirrel gather twigs to build a nest and collect food immediately sees the squirrel’s rapid scurrying back and forth. Most agree that email is an improvement over the old-fashioned mail system, but “51% of people delete email (within) two seconds of opening it.” One employee told of a new project where management “buried any spark of enthusiasm and acceptance with a fire hose of internal communication. It was a powerful monologue that just fell on deaf ears. And that’s when things went from bad to worse.” McCormack advises managers to tell, not sell. Explain “the what, the why, and the so what.”

When managers can’t communicate effectively through verbal and written explanations, the important information becomes mixed with the garbage. His advice to managers is 1) Make sure all your employees are on board; 2) Give employees an opportunity to have input about what you are presenting; 3) Moderate the amount of information so employees hear the message without getting overwhelmed; and 4) Have steps in place for participants to give feedback. In short, real communication is an exchange of information, not a soliloquy.

McCormack advises people to put their phones away from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m. If you’re always busy, escape for a few minutes to experience silence. Technology has taken over the workforce. It’s up to you to limit the communication to only what’s needed.

Email career and life coach: Lindsey@LindseyNovak.com with your

workplace problems and issues. Ms. Novak responds to all emails. For more information, visit www. lindseynovak.com, and for past columns, see www.creators.com/read/ At-Work-Lindsey-Novak.

COPYRIGHT 2020 CREATORS. COM

FAQs about Village services during the coronavirus pandemic

This nation is facing unprecedented challenges during this National State of Emergency. As the Village does its part to help slow the spread of COVID-19, Village Hall has been fielding numerous questions from residents. We thought it would be helpful to compile answers to some of the most commonly asked questions. Please note that this information is subject to change as this situation continues to evolve. Any subsequent changes will be communicated. Thank you for your understanding and cooperation.

Can I drop items off at the Village Dump?

The Village Dump will be closed until further notice. This closure will aid in limiting exposure of residents and employees on-site from direct contact. For further assistance, please call the Village Clerk at 465-4051 or visit the Village website at www.gardencityny.net for more information.

Can I pay my bills online?

Yes. Payment through the Chase Electronic Payment System can be set-up to store credit card and electronic check information for future water payments to the Incorporated Village of Garden City. Once you click the “Pay Now” button on the Village Billing Center link, you are directed to Chase Bank’s Electronic Payment System.

If you choose to set-up an account to save your payment information, you will be required to set up a unique login for the Chase Bank’s Electronic Payment System account. If you want to pay without creating an account click the “Pay Without Registering” button. Your current water bill invoice is required to create a Chase Bank’s Electronic Payment System Account. The water invoice number, which is shown on your current water bill, will display on the top of the Garden City Billing screen. For assistance with the online payment system, contact Marc Nathanson at mnathanson@ gardencityny.net. You can make online tax and water payments here.

Who do I call regarding Sanitation pickup?

Sanitation is running on its usual schedule at this time. Residents can call 516-465-4031 or 516-465-4032 to schedule a pick up.

How do I reach someone in the Building Department to find out the status of a permit/project I filed?

Questions for the Building Department can be directed to the general Building Department email address at DOB@gardencityny.net. Also, please note Department personnel is responding to messages left on the general voicemail on a daily basis and performing minimal inspections. In addition, completed Building Department applications are also being accepted at the Garden City Police Department, if they do not fit in the mail slot in the front of village hall.

Can I still take my kids to the park?

Yes, all neighborhood parks remain open each day in accordance with hours of operation for this time of year. Restrooms, however, are closed. Please adhere to the CDC

and Department of Health recommendations regarding social interaction with one another – avoid close contact, wash your hands for at least 20 seconds and do it often; stay at home if you feel sick; and avoid hand shaking.

How can I contact Village offices?

To contact Village offices, visit the Village website, www.gardencityny.net, and click on the “Departments” tab on the left side of the homepage for individual Department contact information.

How do I return a Library book?

During the time the Library is closed, due dates have been extended to May 1 (as of 3/23/20) and fines will not accrue. So, Library users may hold on to the materials until the Library reopens. However, if a person wishes to return items, the book drop on the side of the Library only (accessible from the parking lot) will remain open.

What happens to my ticket fines/court appearances?

All Village Court sessions have been canceled with a tentative reopening on Monday, April 13, 2020 subject to revision as circumstances warrant. All matters have been given adjourned dates with no penalty imposed. Payments for Parking Violations can be made online: Payment Site, in addition to being dropped off. Any late fees or penalties that may accrue as the result of this closing will be waived. If you have any questions, you can call Justice Court at 465-4085 or email courtclerk@gardencityny. net with any questions regarding your case.

How can I donate supplies to the Village’s first responders?

The Garden City Police Department is accepting donations of medical supplies during this unprecedented National State of Emergency. Drop off supplies seven days a week, 24 hours a day at Police Headquarters, 349 Stewart Avenue. We thank you and encourage donations of the below medical supplies in unopened boxes/packages:

• N95 Surgical Masks in unopened container/boxes

• Eye protection such as goggles and face shields

• Nitrile Gloves in unopened boxes which have not expired (All sizes, especially L and XL)

• Disposable medical gowns (paper which are fluid resistant or plastic)

• Shoe cover/booties

• No-Touch thermometers

• Thermometer probe covers

• HEPA filters for Ventilators / Anesthesia Machines

• Antibacterial and disinfecting wipes – typically alcohol or bleach based

• Disinfecting wipes (Clorox/Lysol)

• Hand Sanitizer

Can landscapers work in the Village right now?

Landscapers are permitted to work in the Village at this time as they are considered “essential services necessary to maintain the safety, sanitation and essential operations of residences or other essential businesses.”

NOTICE OF FORMATION OF LL AVIATION ADVISORS, LLC

Arts of Org filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 2/4/20. Office location: Nassau County. SSNY designated as agent upon whom process may be served and shall mail copy of process against LLC to 15 Leech Circle So, Glen Cove, NY 11542. Purpose: Any lawful act. GC 1043

6X 03/06,13,20,27, 04/03,10

NOTICE OF BOND RESOLUTION

The resolution, a summary of which is published herewith, has been adopted on the 19th day of March, 2020, and the validity of the obligations authorized by such resolution may be hereafter contested only if such obligations were authorized for an object or purpose for which the Village of Garden City, in the County of Nassau, New York, is not authorized to expend money or if the provisions of law which should have been complied with as of the date of publication of this Notice were not substantially complied with, and an action, suit or proceeding contesting such validity is commenced within twenty days after the publication of this Notice, or such obligations were authorized in violation of the provisions of the constitution.

Karen M. Altman

Village Clerk

BOND RESOLUTION

OF THE VILLAGE OF GARDEN CITY, NEW YORK, ADOPTED MARCH 19, 2020, AUTHORIZING THE PREPARATION OF PRELIMINARY PLANS AND SPECIFICATIONS IN CONNECTION WITH THE PROPOSED REPLACEMENT OF FIRE STATION 2, IN THE VILLAGE, STATING THE ESTIMATED MAXIMUM COST THEREOF IS $500,000, APPROPRIATING SAID AMOUNT FOR SUCH PURPOSE, AND AUTHORIZING THE ISSUANCE OF BONDS IN THE PRINCIPAL AMOUNT OF NOT TO EXCEED $500,000 TO FINANCE SAID APPROPRIATION

The object or purpose for which the bonds are authorized is the preparation of preliminary plans and specifications in connection with the proposed replacement of Fire Station 2, in the Village, at the estimated maximum cost of $500,000. The maximum amount of obligations authorized to be issued is $500,000.

The period of probable usefulness is five (5) years.

A complete copy of the bond resolution summarized above shall be available for public inspection during normal business hours at the office of the Village Clerk, Village Hall, 351 Stewart Avenue, Garden City, New York.

GC 1056 1X 03/27

IN MEMORIAM

Donald G. Lindsay

IN MEMORIAM

Don, known to his friends as Duck, was a proud graduate of Xavier High School and St. John’s University. Shaped by the Jesuit teachings of Xavier, Don exemplified the school’s motto, “Men for Others”. He was selfless and always willing to help family and friends. Gifted with a great sense of humor, outgoing personality and generous spirit, Don had the rare quality to make you think you knew him forever. Don packed 100 years into his 65. He was a member of Garden City Country Club and former member of Garden City Casino and Atlantic Beach Club but as he would say, “my favorite club is Costco”.

Don fought so hard to stay with us but he is at peace. He will be sorely missed. Until we meet again, Sláinte!

Donald G. Lindsay, 65, of Garden City and Nassau Point, NY passed away on March 21, 2020 from a ruptured brain aneurysm. Beloved husband of Ellen (Wilkinson). Adoring and proud father of Kathryn (Ryan J. Short), Margaret (Matthew J. Pietroforte) and James Chandler Lindsay. Dearest Da of Keira and Conor Short and Jack Pietroforte. Loving brother of J. Regis Lindsay (Denise) and Mary E. Gardner (Glenn). Caring son in law of Gladys and Joseph T. Wilkinson.

Private interment at Holy Rood Cemetery on March 26th, under the direction of Fairchild Sons Funeral Home, Garden City, NY. A Memorial Mass will take place at St. Joseph’s Church at a later date. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Xavier High School, Office of Advancement, 30 West 16th Street, New York, NY 10011.

IN MEMORIAM

Virginia C. Erickson

Virginia C. Erickson, known to her friends as “Ginny,” passed into eternal life in the early hours of March 20, 2020.

She was born Virginia Claire Cutts in Jamaica, New York, on January 7, 1931, the first child of Vernon V. Cutts, Jr. and Fredericka Schult Cutts. Her parents called her “Honey Girl.”

Ginny grew up in Jamaica, graduating from Shimer Junior High School and John Adams High School. In May 1955, she married Richard N. “Dick” Erickson of South Ozone Park. The bride and the groom were both members of the Lutheran Church of the Good Shepherd in South Ozone Park. The couple lived first in Jamaica, then in Hempstead and Garden City, New York, and raised a family of four children with whom they spent many happy years.

In Hempstead, Ginny was a long-time member of the Lutheran Church of the Epiphany, where she taught Sunday school. For the past dozen or so years she has found a spiritual home at the Lutheran Church of the Resurrection in

Garden City.

For many years, Ginny taught at a nursery school in nearby Rockville Centre. Both Dick and Ginny Erickson were active for many years in the Long Island branch of the Mended Hearts organization. Dick passed away in 1997.

Ginny is survived by her younger brother, Robert V. Cutts of St. Petersburg, Florida; by her children Richard, Robert, Christian, and Amy Erickson; by her grandchildren, Anastasia Romero and Chase and Casey Erickson; by her great-grandson, Grayson Nash Romero; and by many good friends. Her grandchildren always called her “Oma.”

Ginny loved games and puzzles of all kinds and especially enjoyed playing canasta. She’ll be remembered as a dear and wonderful mother and grandmother, a devout Christian, and as a friend who was always ready to help in times of need.

Donations to the Lutheran Church of the Resurrection, 420 Stewart Avenue, Garden City, NY 11530 are requested in lieu of flowers.

Thomas E. Trotter

Tommy Trotter, whose 56-year career encompassed decades as one of thoroughbred sport’s most acclaimed racing secretaries, died on February 23rd

in Adventura Hospital, Florida after a brief illness. He was 93. He was born Sept. 21, 1926 one mile south of Churchill Downs in Louisville ,Kentucky.

In addition to his renown as a racing secretary, he was a widely respected handicapper who stamped the immortal careers of Kelso, Forego, and other champions. He was employed by 22 racetracks over the course of his career. He concluded his career as a racing official at Gulfstream Park Racetrack in 2001.

Tommy was a long time Garden City resident where he and his wife, Sally raised their six children. Sally predeceased him in 1999. He was a former member of St. Joseph’s s Parish where he served on the Men’s Guild and an usher at Sunday Mass.

Tommy is survived by his children Maureen (Tom), Dr. Tommy Trotter (Janet), Timmy (Jeanne) Lisa (Scott),Danny (Tracy) and twelve grandchildren and five great-grandchildren. He was predeceased by a son, Barry (MaryJo) who passed away in 2012. Funeral Services were held in Hallandale, Florida

IN MEMORIAM

John Owen Becker

John Owen Becker, age 61, passed away on March 22, 2020, at his residence.

He was the beloved son of Nancy L. Fardelmann and William M. Becker. Dear brother of Robert and William (Gerry) . Cherished uncle of Serena, Heather, Chris and Justin.

John was an Eagle Scout, an avid skier, loved to walk and in his youth ride trains. John persevered in the face of adversity throughout his life. The Becker Family would like to thank all

of John’s friends, support staff, doctors and kind people who have helped him along the way.

Special thanks to the congregation of Garden City Community Church for their endless support.

A memorial will be held at a later date to celebrate his life.

In lieu of flowers memorials may be made to Garden City Community Church, 245 Stewart Avenue, Garden City, NY 11530.

John will be missed by many and remembered by all.

Advertise in our papers!

If you own a business or have a service to provide, we’ll create professional advertisements to promote it and help you be seen by thousands of local readers! Call 1-516-294-8900 to inquire!

Have you lost someone?

If you would like to post an obituary for a loved one, simply send a short biography of them with (if desired) their photo, details of their funeral/visitation services, and/or any donation requests to editor@gcnews.com, or call our office at 516-294-8900 to inquire.

Donald G. Lindsay

Thomas E. Trotter

The Welcoming Club of Garden City

Join A Club

Book Club

Enjoy a good book amongst good friends. Our book club meets on a monthly basis to discuss the page turner of choice. For upcoming book club events, please email WelcomingClubBookClub@gmail.com.

Craft Club

The craft club is a great way to meet with friends and practice your crafting skills. This club meets every few months and creates a seasonal project. If you are interested in joining, please email GCCraftClub@gmail.com.

Supper Club

Bring your significant others out for this one! This is a great way to make new friends as a couple. You will be paired up with 3-4 other couples to set up a rotation of dinner events. Host your new friends at a pot luck dinner or head out to try our local restaurants. Please email GCSupper@gmail.com for more information.

Bowling Club

Join us!! No experience necessary! We are looking for new faces to join our Wednesday morning league. Occasional pacers are also welcome. Anyone interested, please contact Ellen Diller (Diller05@aol.com) Carol Santangelo (santa060@yahoo.com) or Elizabeth Colantonio (mcdea@aol.com).

Bunko

Bunko is a simple dice game usually played in a group of 12. It is a great way to meet people and make new friends.

The game is easy to learn and play. If you are interested, please contact WelcomingClubBunco@gmail.com.

Toddler Activities

A great way for you and your little ones to make new friends. Activities include stroller walks each Tuesday around our beautiful neighborhood and a visit to the park. Stroller walks are on winter hiatus and will start up again in April 2020. Playgroups for parents and kids can also be arranged for your littles ones! Please email GCToddlerActivities@gmail.com for more information.

Golf

Golf lessons at Cherry Valley Club are always a big hit! Golf pro Ed Kelly helps us GCWC ladies improve our golf game. If you are interested in reserving your spot for the spring 2020 session, email WelcomingClubGolf@gmail.com.

Tennis

Tennis lessons and group play at the Garden City Bubble! Please contact WelcomingClubTennis@gmail.com to reserve a spot for the fall 2020.

Want to join the fun and make a difference? We invite you to join the club! For just $37 a year you will have access to lots of great events and many fun members-only clubs and events. Complete the easy online membership form today at www.thegardencitywelcomingclub.org in the “Join” section of the website. While you are there, browse the site for lots of great information about the club.

GC Kiwanis Scholarship

The Garden City Kiwanis Foundation is pleased to announce that applications are now available for the 2020 Kiwanis Service Scholarship. The scholarship is open to any high school senior residing in the Garden City School District and is awarded in recognition of a student’s commitment to community service. Applications have been provided to

the Guidance Department of Garden City High School and to many of the private high schools in the vicinity. Interested students should contact their guidance department or email Carole Russo at cartaxpro@aol.com to obtain an application. The deadline for submitting an application is April 8, 2020.

Josephs - Achor Wedding

Caleb Achor and Molly Josephs

• Thursday 19 March: In response to the COVID-19 outbreak, Governor Gavin Newsome orders California’s nearly 40 million residents to stay home.

• Effective immediately, all military personnel at the US Naval Post Graduate School in Monterey are ordered to remain in Monterey County.

• Throwing caution (and a June 2020 wedding date) to the wind, Molly Josephs resolves to drive 438 miles from San Diego to Monterey.

• Upon arrival, she intends to marry her fiancé, LT Caleb Achor, USN.

• She informs her parents of these

intentions in a 12:30 a.m. phone call on Friday morning (3/20/20)

• The Rev. Michael McBride will preside.

• The wedding is a brilliant success.

• Some one hundred people attend via online meeting.

• The bride was radiant. The groom was dapper.

• The newlyweds will live in Monterey CA.

• Molly is a 2012 graduate of Garden City High School. Her parents are Nancy & Russ Josephs, and they are thrilled.

• Omnia Vincit Amor!

“If you carry joy in your heart, you can heal any moment.” - Carlos Santana Schools and teachers are the heart of this community. Show your hearts! Please make a heart of your own design and display it on your door or front window. You could include your teacher’s name, the schools you attend, or an inspirational thought.

This is an extremely difficult time for our families and our school community. We hope you and your family are doing well and staying healthy. Although we have had to cancel or postpone many events, we are still working to support our students and schools.

The GC PTA relies on the money raised through our annual membership drive and our four fundraisers to sponsor: cultural and enrichment programs for students, family fun days, speaker engagements, student recognition programs, the work of our committees, and so much more. Many of our events and programs have become long-standing traditions in our district, and our grants have enhanced the educational experience for students in all of our schools. In order to provide the same experiences in the 2020/21 school year, we’re asking for your continued support.

Garden City PTA News

The Spring Sportswear Sale, the School Supplies Sale and the 2020 Annual Dinner Fundraiser are all active now!

2020 Annual PTA Dinner: Look Within

The Dinner will be rescheduled, but given these uncertain times, we cannot confirm a new date just yet. Over the next few weeks, we will be hosting a weekly online raffle starting Friday, March 27. Every Tuesday and Friday we will raffle off new prizes. We hope you will join in the fun and help support our schools. Check your email and social media for information about this event.

The dinner tickets and grand raffle tickets can still be purchased online at bit.ly/2020PTADinnerTickets.

GC Sportswear Event: Spring Collection

The online “pop-up” shop for the latest in spring fashion - GC Sportswear! Open now through April 20. Visit our store at https://gcptas20.itemorder. com/sale

Available this Season:

Merchandise: Beach Towels, Umbrellas, Cutting Boards, Clothing, Hats and more Summer Bundles: The more you

Garden City Library’s chicks hatched

The Garden City Public Library Tweens and Teens Department‘s annual chick incubation project began with the arrival of the eggs at the Library on Tuesday, February 25. The chicks hatched throughout the day on March 16 and March 17. Out of 12 eggs, 10 successfully hatched.

The chicks were named Obi-Wan Henobi, Jade, Emerald, Scrooge McDuck, Hera Syndulla, Tom Nook,

Baby Groot, Snowflake, General Clucks and Rey. After spending a brief time at YA Librarian Laura Guinta’s home when the Library closed, the chicks were returned to the Cornell Cooperative Extension’s Suffolk County Farm in Yaphank. Check out the YA department’s Facebook page Garden City Public Library - Tweens & Teens to enjoy individual and group photos and watch videos of the chicks.

buy, the more you save

The popular “Ship-to-Home” option is back again!

Saturday, 6/6 - Spring Sportswear

Pick-up at Garden City Middle School Cafeteria 9:00 a.m. to 12 noon. There will be limited “Cash & Carry” items available for purchase. (same day & time as school supplies pickup)

School Supplies Online Store is Open

Order your child’s September school supplies ONLINE now! Save time & money with quality products. Teacher approved and custom packed for your child’s classroom.

Monday, 4/20 - Deadline to order PTA School Supplies on the website: http://www.bit.ly/ShopGCSupplies Code: GAR054

Saturday, 6/6 - School Supplies

Pick-up at Garden City Middle School Cafeteria from 9:00 a.m. to 12 noon. (same day & time as sportswear pickup)

PTA at the BOE: School Budget Season is here and we need your help!

Don’t think this matters to you? Think again! Decisions made in the upcoming weeks and presented to the

voters on May 12 could have an impact on your child’s school day next year. BOE meetings on are online. Check your email for a virtual meeting link. Tuesday, 4/7 - BOE Work Session: Proposed Budget Discussion for 2020-21 School Year virtual meeting at 8:15 p.m. Connect with us on social media for real time budget updates. Look for ways you can help our public schools in the weeks ahead. Advocacy works!

Let’s Connect @GardenCityPTA Websites: www.gardencitypta.org www.gcsepta.org

To Get Real Time InformationTurn on Notifications

Facebook: Facebook.com/GardenCityPTA

Instagram: Instagram.com/GardenCityPTA

Twitter: Twitter.com/GardenCityPTA

Join the conversation and invite your friends.

Thank you to all who support the Garden City PTA.

Together, we can achieve great things!

Garden City Public Library’s Digital Library always open

Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the Library building is closed. However, patrons can access our digital library, which is always open 24/7 through our website www.gardencitypl.org . Visit the website to become more familiar with all of the digital services available for all ages to enjoy from the comfort of home. The digital library offers access to downloading books and magazines, to streaming music, to online learning resources, to job search resources and to links to tax forms, to name just a few of the many resources available to you with your library card.

our streaming music service. RBdigital offers digital subscriptions to magazines. Creative Bug is a new crafting resource.

Tutor.com is available for students in K–college, offering live assistance with lessons. Learning Express Library and Universal Class offer online education to students and adults. Learn a foreign language through Pronunciator. Other online resources include Morningstar, Consumer Reports, Career Cruising, World Book’s Early World of Learning, and so many more.

Place an ad in our Classifieds for reasonable rates and prompt results. Call our office today at 294-8900 for info.

Many popular services are available right on the Library home page, by clicking the graphic or logo for that service. To browse OverDrive, click on the OverDrive image on our website or download the Libby app, and then use your library card to get started reading an eBook or listening to a downloadable audiobook for free. Freegal is

You can access these services 24/7 from our website www.gardencitypl.org on your personal computer, smartphone or tablet. Go to the Online Services menu and browse through the many categories of resources and services. Watch our website for more updates and follow us on Facebook to stay connected during this difficult time.

Let your voice be heard!

Is there an issue in your community you want to discuss? Want to respond to something you saw in our paper?

Then write a letter to our editor and bring it to everyone’s attention! Send your letter to editor@gcnews.com and we’ll publish it for you!

From page 1

riday, March 27, 2020

Schools supt. on Covid closure Transitions for Teachers, Students and Parents

starting with our children, of course,” Dr. Sinha wrote to parents on March 15.

Prior to coming to Garden City in the role of superintendent, Dr. Sinha was working in Chappaqua (Westchester County) as an assistant superintendent for the Chappaqua Central School District. A month ago she monitored the Coronavirus epidemic with Westchester having a key cluster, now over 3,000 cases, and in an interview with the News she spoke about the rapid spread across China and Italy earlier in the year.

“We have all been thinking about this spread and what can happen in our own communities -- you always must prepare, and we had started to prepare in the event of school closures to maintain connected with students and families so the district continues to provide the teaching and learning that needs to take place for children,” she said.

The schools’ budget sessions for fiscal year 2020-’21 continued as originally planned through the board’s work session held Tuesday, March 10.

Dr. Sinha said the next meeting set for Tuesday, April 7 starting at 8:15 p.m, will feature the presentation on the district’s Instructional Budget Part II -- with slides and materials to be posted on the district website for parents and community members to view online. If the next meeting is held virtually there will also be instructions for how the public can phone-in or log-in to the meeting online.

Learning Online

The district’s shift to distance learning just over a week ago was coordinated for the use of two online learning platforms. For kindergarteners through 2nd Grade Seesaw is utilized; for Grades 3 through 12 the district is using Google Classroom.

Following a survey sent out to district parents to gauge the interests in supply of devices such as Chromebooks, the district did give out some, although Dr. Sinha says less than 50 were requested although GCUFSD is not a 1:1 district. “We are really looking at technology supply based on needs because if a family has a student maybe at GCHS and other younger children, the older child would need more connectivity due to their greater workload and accessing materials compared to our younger children,” Dr. Sinha said.

Children in Garden City’s grades 3 through 5 up to the secondary level have all had instructional experience using Google Classroom, so Sinha and administrators were confident with the ease of this transition.

“Prior to the start of remote teaching and learning (March 18) our technology teachers and technology department

went into high gear to ensure that we had systems and protocols in place for elementary and upper grade-level students in terms of what platforms to use for remote teaching and learning. We have also provided lots of virtual professional development now for our teachers -- our Garden City Schools’ tech team has been dynamite with their work behind the scenes in getting us ready for remote learning and teaching,” she said.

Superintendent Sinha notes the new experience for children as well as district teachers, many of whom are now juggling responsibilities of their own children’s education at-home as well as necessities of running the household with the governmental orders to stay at home except for getting essential supplies.

“I have to commend all our Garden City teachers and administration for the tremendous job in handling the situation and for the time and commitment put towards ensuring that our kids continue to learn. I have been so impressed that in this short amount of instructional time and learning virtually with what our district has been able to do. There’s adjustment for everyone from teachers to students to central office staff, but this is about navigating the best we can to ensure the continuity of instruction and to maintain connections to families and children,” the superintendent said.

Time commitments are heavier for most New Yorkers, so the district soon sought feedback from its teachers on adjustments to the online instruction methods, “to get a better sense of what supports they need and what administration could do even more so for them. There’s lots of adjustments for parents, students and our teachers -- for parents this involves a lot of learning as well being home to instruct and manage children with the devices and organized lessons. Teachers are dealing with the same things that our parents are, continuing to do remote learning with their own children at home,” Sinha explains.

The learning experience and interactions, as well as tactile instruction and lessons cannot be replaced through distance learning and staying at home. Dr. Sinha says the methods Garden City teachers and students become accustomed to with foundations and interactions in classes are now taking on different forms, but relationships to peers in each class are among the most stark changes occurring. Online learning and set lessons provide children with structure and the added “normalcy” but there’s challenges to not have dedicated space and resources that kids still need for education.

“No matter how much you do you’re not going to learn that online. And with students that have special needs, you

simply can’t do everything through virtual outlets or technology when 1:1 support is needed,” Sinha explains.

Facilities Protocols

Garden City High School is the site where school meals are being offered “to-go” by the school district. The childcare program is also running at Stewart School as mandated by the state: “health care and transit workers and first responders will be eligible to send their children to child care centers, where no more than 12 children with at least one teacher will be in each room, following social distancing guidelines.”

“Both of those measures were put into place per Governor Cuomo’s orders and we are making sure both programs are running and functioning well.

New cleaning measures for Garden City Public Schools became a focus in early March for Dr. Sinha, school buildings and grounds staff and administration. “We had put in new cleaning measures in two weeks ago where we gave more thorough cleanings to frequently-touched surfaces including doorknobs and light switches, students’ desks -- we had put in protocols for the workspaces and items to get disinfected each night at all the school buildings. Then on Monday (March 16) we fogged each school building with a strong disinfectant -- each of the buildings, all the classrooms and even district offices in our Administration Building was ‘deepclean’ disinfected that way. During this week the only buildings really open are the high school and Stewart School, for GCHS to have grab-and-go meals and the childcare program at Stewart. Otherwise all the buildings remain shut down, and we are trying to not have any persons going in and out of buildings,” Superintendent Sinha explains. All school buses and supporting facilities such as the bus garage have also been similarly disinfected and addressed.

Given the unprecedented issue of Coronavirus, standards for reporting cases that could come up in Garden City Schools are in place. The Nassau County Department of Health is required to provide information to the district on any person, employee, faculty member or child that tests positive and has attended or worked at schools or any district facility.

“If the Department of Health required a person with ties to the district they would direct them to self-quarantine (12 to 14 days) and notify us. That is protocol to follow for all school districts, and last week the New York State Education Department asked that we report any numbers to them. Right now the district and all other districts are closed so there isn’t the continued issue but once we are back open, we would be notified by the Nassau County Health Department

of any positive results. With schools we are working within an enclosed setting with children and adults -- I think that’s a reason to be proactive and new studies are indicating that children can be vulnerable to getting COVID-19. If the County Health Department notifies us of any student or employee testing positive I’d immediately notify our community,” Dr. Sinha said.

In the event that schools are permitted to open in April, Garden City administrators advise that plans are in place for oversight and increased scrutiny to operations resuming, including the students’ bus transportation system. Dr. Sinha said within a timeframe of the next month, “the district is set to go.”

“Our students’ learning remotely is concurrently taking place now so that when schools do reopen they can come back in. The hard part is going to be Coronavirus’ impact as a defining moment for the children -- they will likely never forget it, and we had to cancel our school musical for the community and there’s other things the kids really miss out on,” she said.

Current Year, Transitions Ahead

Students including seniors at GCHS and others who are in a grade (such as 8th, or 5th) would normally face an important transition over the next several months, as Dr. Sinha explains “special things to happen in their education which they and their families may miss out on.” She reflected on Garden City Public Schools as an institution serving as “a pillar in the Garden City community, as in most communities.”

While children may naturally miss coming to school, adults may miss interactions schools provide as teachers and faculty, including district administrators, are impacted by not seeing students present for a regular school day. Parents miss aspects from the social settings and productivity benefits of school routines too.

“We as schools serve the foundation in terms of the community and the ripple effect of schools being closed is pretty significant. People live their lives with many of the events on the district calendars and activities to look forward to. There’s a void everyone feels when schools are closed. When the children are at school there are things our adults are able to do -- right now with everything being shut down, parents are not only working from home but they are especially helping the younger students navigate distance learning and their educational experiences. Families can be spending more time together but in a very different way, but this is an adjustment for everybody,” the superintendent commented.

Going forward with mounting uncer-

See page 29

Mayor discusses Village, national response

From page 1

the economy by Easter Sunday. She said she understands reflections on the nation’s timetable and race against this epidemic, while dealing with the severe number of cases in the tristate and the rate of infections, severe illnesses and deaths.

“I think the President remains vigilant but as a businessman he realizes with the economy, if resuming operations waits for too long many, many businesses will not come back,” she said.

On Monday, March 23 two prominent entities, the Association for a Better Long Island (ABLI) and the Long Island Builders’ Institute put their collective hopes to Nassau County Executive Laura Curran and Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone that they can lobby Governor Andrew Cuomo to extend the real property tax payment deadline without penalty, as current deadlines of May 10 for Nassau and May 31 for Suffolk are currently in place.

Officials with ABLI and the Builders’ Institute commented that the State of Emergency and limiting to essential businesses has created a situation where “numerous businesses have had to close while others have been required to reduce their workforce by 100%.”

These organizations ask for delaying the tax payment due dates while not suggesting a full waiver, as the Garden City Chamber stated for municipal taxes.

The mayor sees remote operations of the Village of Garden City working well, and cooperation across the board are shared goals to create a safer environment. Every day she continues to work from home (in the interior design field) with calls and emails generating a steady workload on top of her personal reviews of village-related material, plus Coronavirus communications and updates with municipal department heads and other agencies including the Nassau County Department of Health.

“Residents, businesses and anyone

across the region must be responsible and do what we are told to do so we can get out of the situation as quickly as possible. The village keeps a keen eye on everything. Village administration has essential people on-duty all the time, and certainly the GCPD remains a constant resource. While the Village Hall is technically closed, our work continues nonstop. Staff on-duty for the village are taking calls and we continue all essential services to people -- if someone wants they can use the box to the right of the entrance to put correspondence or bills for the village. There are numerous ways of communicating with us and even from home, village staff takes calls,” Trouvé said.

Noting that in a vibrant area like Garden City, while social distancing is at times a difficult practice and people grow tired of remaining just at home, the mayor said the village is prepared to enforce rules of social distancing in order to protect the public.

Meanwhile the Board of Trustees

postponed its fourth 2020-’21 Budget Information Session which was scheduled for Thursday March 26, as a new date a week later, Thursday April 2, will be the Budget session and accommodations for a Board teleconference (to be recorded) are being finalized. Mayor Trouvé notes that like many New York and New Jersey municipalities, despite COVID-19’s impacts there have been a continuation of municipal budgeting deliberations and the village is intent on staying on track for adoption and approval this spring, “getting the Village budget ready and over to the various New York State entities that are supposed to receive it.”

“We are where we should be in terms of budget development for 2020-’21 and traditionally we always have the last budget presentation and meeting to discuss the budget one more time, now set for April 2. We remain active in communication with the community on the village’s website and in the weekly Mayor’s Column,” she said.

Go Green with Kelly & Colleen:

Simple Tips for Family and Environmental Health

From page 4

ed, consider taking a virtual tour of several national parks to connect with nature. Five parks are available for online tours through a partnership with Google Arts & Culture (artsandculture.withgoogle.com/en-us/national-parks-service/parks). These parks include Kenai Fjords in Alaska, Bryce Canyon in Utah, and Hawai’i Volcanoes. The National Park Service also offers several tours of the most popular attractions at Yellowstone including the Norris Geyser Basin (www.nps.gov/ yell/learn/photosmultimedia/virtualtours.htm).

There are countless Ted Talks on environmental issues and sustainability that can be accessed through ted. com. Even better, the site allows you to search based on topic and length, making it possible to encounter new and thought-provoking content quickly, possibly while your children are engaged in their own online learning. For those with more time, Massive Open Online Courses allow free access to environmental science and sustainability classes from prominent universities. Some courses even allow you to obtain a certificate for a nominal fee. The challenges we face as a society require innovation. Using your time to consider how others are grappling with environmental problems in creative ways may inspire you to find new ways

to solve some of these problems as well.

Spring Gardens

Planning and planting a spring garden can help keep everyone busy over the next several weeks. Some early spring vegetables and herbs to consider are peas, radishes, broccoli, cauliflower, lettuces, spinach, basil, mint, and rosemary. We recommend purchasing seeds from companies that have taken the “Safe Seed Pledge,” which ensures that the seeds are free of genetic modification. These are available online through companies such as Renee’s Garden (reneesgarden.com).

Starting seeds can be an easy and sustainable family project utilizing materials you likely already have at home. Find a sunny indoor spot to set up your sprouting garden. Reuse cardboard egg cartons and cut them into individual pods. Fill each container with an equal mixture of potting soil and used coffee grounds. Each egg carton seed starter should be placed on a waterproof tray with a lip, such as a baking dish, filled half-way with the soil mixture. Then, follow the planting directions on your seed packets, as they will differ depending on the variety. To water, simply pour a small amount at the base of the container for the cardboard egg cartons to absorb. The sprouts can go outside in late April/early May, depending on the variety. Larger starter plants can go into the ground in May. Later this

spring, starter plants will become available from local organic outdoor farm stands such as Restoration Farm in Old Bethpage.

During this difficult time, please consider making a donation to help those less fortunate in our community through the INN in Hempstead. Their current requests are available at https://the-inn.org/covid19/which also includes a link for financial contribu-

tions.

Please reach out to us with your thoughts and comments. We welcome your questions or ideas for future topics. Please email us at: GoGreenwithKellyandColleen@gmail. com.

We look forward to greening Garden City together!

Schools supt. on Covid-19 closure

Transitions for Teachers, Students and Parents

From page 28

tainty about COVID-19’s massive spread throughout the New York region, the future of the 2019-2020 school year hinges on directives from Governor Andrew Cuomo, local officials in Nassau County and the New York State Education Department. Dr. Sinha notes the guidelines in place including the 180 required days of instruction, with variation on the total instructional hours.

“Right now if we opened back up in time we’d be fine to complete the aca-

demic year but all of New York State is going to look for guidance on the total number of days, and we’d look for what our state officials tell us we need to do. New York State assessments are all cancelled but it’s not that the students or school districts would be penalized because exams are cancelled...there’s nothing we can do. Similarly with kids that would be graduating seniors or to higher grades, the authorities that be, mostly NYSED would make decisions around that and students will not be penalized,” she said.

Garden City School Board holds first virtual meeting

From page 3

due to the pandemic’s impact and school closures. She noted that there were no changes to the budget process and public voting date formalized as of March 24, but present discussions involved a potential move for the election “to perhaps a date in June.”

“Nothing has been finalized yet from the state but we were told that if there was going to be a change it is going to be done very quickly -- the New York State Education Department and the Governor’s office remain acutely aware that the timeline is marching on, and new information on this could possibly be published by the end of this week (March 27). Governor Cuomo is aware of the time-sensitive nature of this, and if there was any change to the date for the budget vote and election we can expect to hear about this within the next few days,” Gorham said.

Board President Heineman commented on the leadership of the school district with a collective goal of putting educational needs and connections to district students and families first in this time of crisis in the New York

region. She noted how Dr. Sinha has worked collaboratively and constructively with the Village of Garden City, the Garden City Police Department, the Nassau County Department of Health, school district attorneys, NYSED and her colleagues across education, governmental and administrative roles in greater New York State

“Dr. Sinha has been at the forefront in leading our school district’s response efforts with the COVID-19 pandemic. She has been available by phone, email plus any other ways she can be throughout the last several weeks. The entire school board has been in regular communication with Dr. Sinha and board members have received daily updates. She and the district team have done everything needed in directing and supporting learning and then some in ensuring continuity of instruction and learning by our schools, and positive and well-thought-out steps have been and will continue to be taken,” she commented.

Heineman credited Garden City’s entire faculty, administration and staff in all of their efforts, commending their

“incredible dedication, care and concern for all of our students, our families and for each other.”

“Together everybody is rising to the challenge so our Garden City Schools can be successful and do the best that we can for our students,” Heineman added.

Virtual Meetings, Evolving Situations

Tuesday night’s meeting was held virtually via conference call and Google Hangouts with no physical attendance, in accordance with New York State Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s Executive Order 202.1: “Gov. Cuomo has suspended portions of Article 1 of the State’s Open Meetings Law, to allow municipal entities including board of education to hold public meetings in this manner,” School Board President Angela Heineman explained.

At the onset of the meeting the board unanimously voted to suspend the public comment and public participation portion of the meeting: “in light of the fact that we are holding this meeting via teleconference and in accordance with Board of Education Policy 2300, the Board exercises its discretion to suspend the public comment period at

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Email: Editor@GCNews.com

From page 2

monthly and as needed e-bulletins to dues-paying members ($20 yearly) who supply their email address, and sends through the regular mail or by email (for those requesting it) to all East residents a 12-page newsletter twice yearly.

Any resident of the East can apply for the position of village or school trustee from the East. If any resident wishes to challenge the trustee recommendation of the independent East Nominating Committee, they can easily do so and run in a primary open to all East residents. This happened most recently five years ago when two sitting village trustees opposed each other in a primary which included an open debate that attracted over 100 residents and an election in which many hundreds voted. There was also an East primary election in 2012 in which almost 900 votes were cast. In addition, any village resident can challenge all of the Community Agreement Party candidates by following NYS election law in the general election. This scenario last occurred 10 years ago when two candidates from two sections ran for village trustee positions. The challengers lost but that election attracted several hundred more voters village-wide than is typical.

Village trustees represent all village residents but trustees from each section (east, west, central and estates) bring specific knowledge of the concerns of the residents of their section. The

Community Agreement was deliberately designed this way. When the East, in 2015, faced a proposal by Nassau County to redesign Clinton/Stewart into what would have amounted to a commercial intersection with multiple additional lanes, the East trustees (newly elected mayor and long-time East trustee Nick Episcopia and new East trustee John Delany) forcefully and publicly opposed the plan, as did the EPOA and the many East residents who spent endless hours circulating petitions throughout the village opposing the NC plan. Having two trustees involved for many years (in various capacities) with village and East issues proved invaluable.

As for St. Paul’s, there has never been a village-wide consensus on what to do with it since the village purchased it in 1993. This 27-year debacle affects all village residents. The different trustees over these many years have reflected multiple views of various groups, particularly in the middle years the Committee to Save St. Paul’s. In 1996, a Village-wide opinion poll was held, with residents voting yes or no if they supported senior assisted living at St. Paul’s. The vote was essentially split with 50.1% opposed and 49.9% in favor. In 2008, a village-wide opinion poll run by the East and Estates POAs in which just over 5,000 residents voted, showed a plurality (46%) in favor of demolition, with 37% in favor of mothballing the main building, and 17% in favor of the Avalon Bay proposal. This was followed

this meeting,” School Board President Heineman explained prior to the 5-0 vote on the resolution.

The Garden City school district hopes that the connectivity and loop of information for students, parents, faculty and administrators maintains and flourishes with initial momentum experienced as schools closed this month, and for as long as they remain closed.

“We continue to monitor the progress of what is going on in the school district and navigate the evolving situation with the myriad of instruction coming down from the government every day. Feedback is key to us -- we are keeping our communication protocols in place and we encourage you to keep communicating with the district and faculty daily, even though we’re unable to entertain public comments in this (virtual) meeting and particular venue.”

“We encourage communication between parents and families, students-to-teachers, with school principals and with counselors and administrators as best you can during this time,” Heineman noted.

in 2011 by a resident vote to approve or not bonds of $3.75 million to fund demolition, although the ultimate decision to demolish lies solely with the BOT. Some 4,400 residents voted, with 3,290 voting no and 1,120 voting yes. For any group or trustee to claim consensus over these many years is ridiculous.

Residents should insist that the BOT permit and follow the results of a clear and specific proposal, including final cost, to utilize St. Paul’s or to demolish it. I don’t think anyone knows what the results of such a vote would be.

If you think one trustee is driving or dominating a particular issue, then get together with other residents who share your view and oppose that trustee.

Do I wish more residents voted? Yes! Do I wish more residents were involved

with their POAs? Yes! Do I wish more residents attended BOT meetings? Yes! Budget meetings? Yes! POA meetings? Yes!

Resident non-participation, to the extent it exists, is not the fault of non-existent cliques. It is mostly a consequence of life’s demands and involvement in other activities that the individual resident considers more important to his or her life at the moment.

I hesitated writing this letter given the current world crisis (I mean, who cares?) but when it passes, we will still be faced with the same issues that absorbed our attention a few short weeks ago or, in the case of St. Paul’s, the last three decades.

Christine Mullaney

RECREATION AND PARKS NEWS

All listed programs will begin once our facilities reopen

Exercise with Joy

Start your day with low impact exercise! Joy Cody has set a program with our senior and beginner population in mind!

Classes will take place on your choice of Tuesdays or Thursdays at 9 am at the Senior Center. The one hour class will run for 10 weeks at a cost of $60. This program is open to any resident of the Inc. Village of Garden City. Classes begin the week of March 24. To register, please visit the Recreation Office at 108 Rockaway Avenue or, if you have a password you may register online at www.gcreconline.gardencityny.net.

Pee-Wee Sports Program for 4 and 5-Year-Olds

The Garden City Recreation Department will offer our poplar PeeWee Sports Sampler program this winter for children ages 4 & 5 who are Residents of the Inc. Village of Garden City. This six-week program has been designed to provide an opportunity to try a wide variety of sports with basic instruction.

This program will take place in St. Paul’s Fieldhouse beginning the week of March 16 and each session will run for 55 minutes. Our Sampler will incor-

porate new skills and free play in a non-competitive atmosphere. A different sport will be offered each week. Classes will be held according to the following schedule:

Mondays 1:30 to 2:25 p.m.

Tuesdays 11 to 11:55 a.m.

Tuesdays 1:30 to 2:25 p.m.

Fridays 1:30 to 2:25 p.m.

The cost of this program is $100.

To register for this program, please visit the Recreation and Parks Office at 108 Rockaway Avenue or, if you have a password you can register online at www.gcreconline.gardencityny.net.

Spring Roller Hockey Programs

The Garden City Recreation & Parks Department will once again offer various roller hockey programs this spring for residents of the Inc. Village of Garden City from Kindergarten thru 6th grade. Whether you played in the past or looking to get involved, there is no better time to sign up and experience all the fun. All programs take place at the roller rink located at Community Park. PLEASE PAY CAREFUL ATTENTION AS OUR OFFERINGS ARE SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT WITH NEW DAYS, DIVISION NAMES & TIMES OFFERED THEN IN THE PAST.

Fitness studio launches online classes during pandemic

Pure Barre Garden City is responding to clients’ needs in a time of crisis, moving its signature barre workouts and community online during the COVID-19 outbreak.

The Garden City franchise location launched “Pure Barre LIVE!” online streaming classes Tuesday on a private Facebook group through zoom conference link.

“I was shocked by how quickly our members responded,” said Miriah Koumpourlis, franchise owner of Pure Barre Garden City. “Less than a week later, 75% of my active membership base is in the Facebook group working out with us on live stream.”

The “Pure Barre Garden City Live

stream!” Facebook group offers more than barre classes to its participants.

Koumpourlis plans to launch her studios’ retail boutique in the online format, selling discounted athleisure-wear to her core customer base in a difficult time for business cash flow.

“Pure Barre is more than a workout, it’s a lifestyle,” said Koumpourlis. “In addition to our workouts, we plan to live stream through zoom platform partner classes and sip and shops”.

Online streaming also allows for Pure Garden City’s staff and clients to stay connected. We are making every step of the class sign-up process as normal and routine as was pre-COVID-19,” said Koumpourlis.

Each participant is required to wear full equipment at all times. This includes hockey helmet with a cage, hockey gloves, shin pads, elbow pads, roller blades, hockey stick, long pants, and a protective cup.

A description of each program we will offer is as follows:

PEE WEE BEGINNER CLINIC

(Open to Kindergarten & 1st Grade): No experience is required in hockey or roller skating. This hour long clinic will introduce the sport of roller hockey and all the basic fundamentals in a fun & safe environment. The program will take place Mondays at 3:45 p.m. beginning March 16 at a cost of $105.00.

SQUIRTS BEGINNER + CLINIC

(Open to Kindergarten & 1st Clinic): This beginner program will continue to develop our young players through drills and scrimmages. This hour-long program will take place Monday early evenings at 5:00 p.m. beginning March 16 at a cost of $105.

2nd and 3rd GRADE (MITES DIVISION): Games will take place on Friday afternoons with either a 3:45PM or 5:00 p.m. game time depending on your child’s team schedule. Season begins on March 20 at a cost of $105.

4th, & 5th, & 6th GRADE (JUNIOR DIVISION): Games will take place on Friday evenings with either a 6:15 PM or 7:30 p.m. game time depending on your

child’s team schedule. Season begins on March 20 at a cost of $105.00.

To register, please visit our office at 108 Rockaway Avenue, or, if you have a password you can register online at www.gcreconline.gardencityny.net. For questions, please contact Andrew Karen by email at akaren@gardencityny.net.

Adult Spring Roller Hockey

The Garden City Recreation & Parks Department will offer its roller hockey program at Community Park this spring. This program will be open to residents of the Village of Garden City ages 30 & over according to the following schedule:

Mondays beginning March 16th @ 8:30 p.m.

Games are in “pick up” format. The price for this program will be $90. All participants are required to wear the following equipment at all times: Hockey Helmet with cage, hockey gloves, shin pads, elbow pads, roller blades, protective cup, & hockey stick. To register, please visit the Recreation and Parks office at 108 Rockaway Avenue, or, if you have password you may register online at www.gcreconline. gardencityny.net. For questions, please contact Andrew Karen by email at akaren@gardencityny.net.

Because of the closure of the Garden City Casino for the next eight weeks, all programs of the Garden City Community Club have been canceled.

The program by Andre Rieu, scheduled for April 1, will be rescheduled for next season.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic & it’s impact on the Garden City community’s establishments, we have decided to delay the distribution of the Spring 2020 Dining Guide.

During these trying times The Garden City News wants to support our Dining Guide participating restaurants. The following dining establishments are open for business. Please Support Them.