Friday, May 10, 2019
Vol. 79, No. 19
$1
SERVING PLAINVIEW, HICKSVILLE, AND LEVITTOWN
Long time Hicksville bakery damaged by fire
AN EVENING OF EXCELLENCE
BY GARY SIMEONE
Students from The Division Avenue Show People presented a sneak peek of their production “Thoroughly Modern Millie” during a recent Levittown School Board meeting. See page 17.
Armed Forces Appreciation Day The Town veterans and active United States military personnel are invited to the Town of Oyster Bay’s Armed Forces Appreciation Day Celebration slated for Friday, May 17, from 11:00 am to 2:00 pm at Syosset-Woodbury Community Park, located at 7800 Jericho Turnpike in Woodbury. “The Town of Oyster Bay is committed to serving veterans and ensuring they have access to important benefits in which they are entitled to,” said Supervisor Saladino. “This is an important
way of thanking our brave hometown heroes for protecting the freedoms we enjoy each and every day as Americans.” President Harry S. Truman established Armed Forces Appreciation Day in 1950 as a day to pay special tribute to the men and women of the United States Armed Forces. This single holiday provides an opportunity for citizens to come together and thank our military members for their patriotic service in support of our country. The Town’s celebration
includes a patriotic musical salute to our hometown heroes, including a special performance by the “American Bombshells,” and a free barbeque. To accommodate as many hometown heroes as possible, veterans and active military personnel are invited to bring one guest. There is no charge to attend and a rain date is scheduled for Friday, May 24. To RSVP, please call the Town of Oyster Bay at (516) 7974121.
It was a sad day on Sunday, April 28th as a long-standing Hicksville business was severely damaged by fire. Francesco’s Bakery, which has been in the community for over thirty years, suffered structural damage to its roof, interior and exterior. “Everything was destroyed. Nothing was salvageable,” said Francesco Guerrieri, the bakery’s owner. “It’s heartbreaking. We’ll do what we have to do.” Guerrieri said he was alerted to the fire from one of his workers, who texted him a picture of the building going up in flames. “I just thank God that my nighttime Baker was not inside at the time.” said Guerrieri. “Things could have been a lot worse if someone was injured or had lost their life.” 100 firefighters from nine different departments were called to the scene around 11:30 pm on Sunday night. “The cause of the fire is listed as undetermined but not suspicious,” said Michael Uttaro, the Nassau County assistant fire chief. Guerrieri said that all of the bakery’s operations have moved to its North Massapequa location as a result of the fire. “A lot of my workers have been with me for twenty-five, thirty years. We are all coming together and staying strong and will pull through this.” He said that the workers put together 90 wedding cakes that were set to go out and that everything is in good shape. As far as rebuilding, Guerrieri said that he hopes the business will be up and running in its original location in 6-8 months. In the meantime, he and his staff are looking for a temporary rental in the Hicksville area, so he can hold onto his local customer base. Antonio Guerrieri, the son of Francesco, said that it was heartbreaking to see his family’s business burned to the ground in a matter of hours. “It’s heartbreaking to see 33 years of work gone in three hours,” said Antonio. “But Francesco’s will be back. We will rebuild and be better than ever.”
Hicksville Memorial Day Parade plans PAGE 10 500th victory for MacArthur coach PAGE 4