Elmont honors fallen soldiers
Military veterans from VFW Post 1033 lead the way with flags held high during Elmont’s Memorial Day Parade on May 26 — a moving tribute to honor those who served and lost their lives.
Decades of duty at fire dept. earn Dennis Lyons town honor
By RENEE DeloRENZo rdelorenzo@liherald.com
Dennis Lyons, a fire commissioner at the Franklin Square and Munson Fire Department, was presented the Make a Difference Award by the Town of Hempstead on May 15 for his outstanding service to the town.
The award honors individuals in the Town who have made a significant impact on their communities through volunteerism or other acts of kindness.
Town Councilman Thomas Muscarella, who nominated Lyons, said in a statement that it was a privilege to recognize him for the many roles
he has played in the Franklin Square community.
“Dennis has proven countless times over that he cares for the safety and people of our community,” Muscarella’s statement read. “He remains extremely active in the service and is always a ‘go to’ guy whenever there is a panel or board that requires representation.”
Lyons, 83, joined the FSMFD in 1967 as a volunteer firefighter. He recalled filling out an application at the firehouse and quickly being assigned to Engine Company No. 2, where he remains today.
Over the years, he rose through the ranks as a lieutenant in 1969 and a captain in 1971, before
NUMC board restructured in budget deal
By JoRDAN VAlloNE jvallone@liherald.com
executive.
Appointments to the board could be made as early as June.
WNew York lawmakers have approved a $254 billion state budget package for fiscal year 2026, carrying several provisions affecting Nassau University Medical Center, including a state “takeover” of the hospital system.
The newly approved Nassau Health Care Corporation board structure, passed on May 7 by the legislature, shifts control away from Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman to Gov. Kathy Hochul and state Democrats.
The corporation has long faced scrutiny and accusations of financial mismanagement, despite the hospital system serving all patients, including the uninsured and undocumented, regardless of their ability to pay for medical care.
hat we are seeing now is a long-overdue intervention to protect patients and save the institution from those who failed it.
GoRDoN TEPPER
The restructured board — overseeing NUMC in East Meadow and the A. Holly Patterson Extended Care Facility in Uniondale — will include 11 members, with a majority appointed by the governor, who will also designate the chair. The county executive will lose approval authority over the corporation’s chief
Long Island spokesman for Gov. Kathy Hochul
But significant financial improvements were reported in 2024, with the hospital system ending the fiscal year with nearly $80 million in its cash reserves, up from $28 million in December 2023. Additional financial reports showed that revenue increased by $6.2 million in November 2024, while operating expenses were down by $1.7 million, compared with 2023.
In late-April, the hospital’s current medical board strongly opposed the state’s plan before
Continued on page 7
Renee DeLorenzo/Herald
Teen hosts a workshop for mental health
By RENEE DeLORENZO rdelorenzo@liherald.com
Annie Gaudiosi, a Franklin Square teen, hosted Color Your Mind, a group coloring project aimed at stress relief management, at the Franklin Square Public Library on May 21. After Annie enlisted the help of teen volunteers, the students came together and created a colorful banner showcasing the collective effort.
The finished project, completed over the course of four workshops hosted on Mondays at the library, is part of Annie’s Take Action project, a community service-based project completed by Girl Scouts to achieve a Gold Award, the highest honor in Girl Scouting.
Annie, a junior at H. Frank Carey High School, was inspired to create the project as a result of her own struggles with mental health, particularly during the pandemic when she was entering junior high school. At the time, all classes were conducted online, as well as all homework assignments.
As a strong student in all subjects, Annie recalled the challenges online learning posed to her during the 2020-21 school year. She felt isolated, intimated by new classmates and curriculum, and anxious due to pressures at home related to sick family members.
“That was really stressful for me,” Annie said. “I was falling asleep in class all the time.”
Luckily, Annie said, once she returned to school from online learning, she quickly found motivation and purpose again. Using creative outlets—art journaling, playing the violin and coloring—she is able to cope with the increasing stresses associated with her school day.
As a teen advocate for Free2Luv, a nonprofit organization dedicated to mental health awareness and removing the stigma around it, Annie has conducted several workshops in an effort to support local teens in the community.
The nonprofit donated the art supplies for the project, including permanent markers and the art mural. Annie then advertised the event at the library, bringing along friends and colleagues who needed volunteer hours in order to graduate.
Annie said she specifically chose coloring because it is a relaxing activity that poses no obligation or deadlines to teens stressed out by the demanding curriculum in school. Rather, Annie said, coloring allows students to quiet their minds and focus on an activity that has no strict instructions.
The banner displays a mosaic-like mural with words of encouragement, such as “kind,” “strong” and “fierce,” reminding volunteers of mental positivity.
Bringing teens together, in person, with a specific purpose, was Annie’s intention for the Color Your Mind workshop. Teamwork has been a crucial skill she has learned participating in the Girl Scouts program since she was in kindergarten, Annie said, and meeting new people with different personalities helps her keep an open perspective.
Mattias Meshesha, Kaleb Davis and Riley Loughlin were among the volunteers who participated in Annie’s event on May 21. All three of them cited community service hours as a major motivating factor for their attendance, but they quickly found the event to be a relaxing experience.
As finals approach, the teens said school has become significantly more stressful compared to the beginning of the school year as more assignments keep piling up. But, coloring helped them clear their minds.
“It’s kind of a nice, relaxing thing for you to do and just decompress,” Riley said.
“It takes the stress from other classes off,” Mattias added.
“It distracts me from all the work I have to do,” Kaleb said. “It’s nice not to think about it for a little while.”
Kim Gaudiosi, Annie’s mother, recalled some teen
volunteers showing up to Annie’s first Color Your Mind workshop were shy and hesitant to join the event. However, she said, the teens quickly warmed up to the group and were soon talking and laughing with their friends.
“You can’t beat peer to peer engagement,” Kim said. While Kim attended the event in support of her daughter, she stressed that Annie truly runs the event herself. Once Annie gets set up for a workshop, she signals to her mother that she can go into the library’s lobby and read her book.
Kim thanked Daphne Levy, the teen services librarian, and Aviva Kane, the library director, for their support of Annie in all her endeavors. The two work together to provide teens like Annie space in the library to host community events.
“This is just a great chance to for them to learn leadership skills,” Kim said of teen volunteers. “If you think about it, going into the real world, they’re going
to need those skills.”
Annie said her goal is to pursue forensic psychology in college and work as a therapist in jails or prisons. She’s always felt a pull toward it, Annie said, because she feels as though criminals are not given the resources they need to look after their mental health.
“I feel like a lot of people who are jailed are misunderstood,” Annie said. “I really want to do something with them, and hopefully help or make a difference.”
In order for Annie to receive the Gold Award, she will need to complete a minimum of 80 hours of community service and fill out a report on her work.
Kim said Annie will be hosting a Paws of War event, where teens will have the opportunity to make chew toys for service dogs and learn how to train them, on Monday, June 9 from 3:30-4:30 p.m.
Teens interested in signing up for the event can visit FranklinSquarePL.org.
Haleigh Kolmos, left, Sofia Valentino, Annie Gaudiosi and Jose Lopez III color in the banner together during one of Annie’s Color Your Mind workshops, which she hosted with the help of Free2Luv.
Photos courtesy Daphne Levy
Kaleb Davis, left, Joseph Grippaldi, Riley Loughlin, Haleigh Kolmos, Mattias Meshesha, Anton Fitko and Annie Gaudiosi proudly showcase the completed Color Your Mind banner after the project’s last session at the Franklin Square Public Library on May 21.
Haleigh Kolmos, left, Joseph Grippaldi, Annie Gaudiosi, Kaleb Davis, Anton Fitko, Riley Loughlin and Mattias Meshesha gather for their last session coloring in the Color Your Mind banner before it is completed.
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Paul Sapienza Parade set to march June 7 in Elmont
The New York Racing Association and the Elmont Chamber of Commerce announced the return of the Paul Sapienza Elmont/Belmont Parade, scheduled for Saturday, June 7.
This year marks the 17th edition of the community event, a news release about the parade said, which traditionally kicks off the Belmont Stakes Racing Festival and celebrates the Elmont community. The parade is named for the late Paul Sapienza, a lifelong Elmont resident and former president of the Elmont Chamber of Commerce.
Although the Belmont Stakes Racing Festival will be held for the second year at Saratoga Race Course due to ongoing construction at Belmont Park, the news release said, the parade will follow its traditional route down Hempstead Turnpike, ending at Belmont Park.
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Clients often ask whether the home should be deeded to the client’s adult children, while retaining a life estate in the parent or whether the Medicaid Asset Protection Trust should be used to protect the asset.
While the deed with a life estate will be less costly to the client, in most cases it offers significant disadvantages when compared to the trust. First, if the home is sold prior to the death of the Medicaid recipient, the life estate value of the home will be required to be paid towards their care. If the house is rented, the net rents are payable to the nursing facility since they belong to the life tenant. Finally, the client loses a significant portion of their capital gains tax exclusion for the sale of their primary residence as they will only be entitled to a pro rata share based on the value of the life estate to the home as a whole. Nevertheless, a life estate deed makes sense for a vacation home that is intended to stay in the family.
All of the foregoing may lead to a situation where the family finds they must maintain a vacant home for many years. Conversely, a properly drafted MAPT preserves the full capital gains tax exclusion on the sale of the primary residence and the home may be sold by the trust without obligation to make payment of any of the principal towards the client’s care, assuming we have passed the look-back period for facility care of five years.
It should be noted here that both the life estate and the MAPT will preserve the stepped-up basis in the property provided it is sold after the death of the parent who was the owner or grantor. Upon the death of the parent, the basis for calculating the capital gains tax is stepped up from what the parent paid, plus any improvements, to what it was worth on the parent’s date of death. This effectively eliminates payment of capital gains taxes on the sale of appreciated property, such as the home, after the parent dies.
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According to the news release, this is the first time in its history that the parade will take place on Belmont Stakes Day.
The parade will begin at approximately 10 a.m., the news release said, with marchers stepping off from the parking lot of the Alva T. Stanforth Sports Complex at 700 Hempstead Turnpike and proceeding west to The Park at UBS Arena, located in the Belmont Park backyard.
This year’s grand marshal is Tiffany Capers, NYRA announced in the news release, who is president of the Elmont Board of Education. Participants will include elected officials, local leaders, marching bands from Elmont public schools, members of the police and fire departments, and local youth organizations.
In addition to honoring Capers with a key to the hamlet of Elmont, the postparade event will include a performance by the Sewanhaka High School Marching Band and highlight the artistic talent of the Elmont community. Students from the Elmont Union Free and Sewanhaka Central High School districts, the
news release said, were invited to showcase their creativity while celebrating the rich history of Elmont and the excitement of the third leg of the Triple Crown. Prizes will be awarded to the winner and runners-up in each grade.
Those interested in marching in this year’s parade should assemble at 9:30 a.m. at the Alva T. Stanforth Sports Complex. According to the news release, participants can look forward to free food, prizes and giveaways at the finish. The parade route is approximately 1.5 miles.
The Belmont Stakes Racing Festival will be held at Saratoga Race Course from Wednesday, June 4, through Sunday, June 8. The 157th running of the Grade 1, $2 million Belmont Stakes, presented by NYRA Bets on June 7, will headline the event.
The festival will feature 27 stakes races with purses totaling $11,275,000, which, according to the news release, are the richest purses and highest number of stakes offered since the festival’s launch in 2014.
For more information about the 2025 Belmont Stakes Racing Festival, visit BelmontStakes.com.
–Renee DeLorenzo
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Courtesy New York Racing Association
The 17th annual Paul Sapienza Elmont/Belmont Parade steps off at 10 a.m. Saturday, June 7, from the Alva T. Stanforth Sports Complex.
Danger of Southern State is constant concern
‘Blood Alley’ stretch lives up to its name on roadway with grim total of over 3,000 crashes per year
By BRIAN NORMAN bnorman@liherald.com
Third in a series on the Southern State Parkway.
The 23.5 miles of the Southern State Parkway, which stretches from the Queens-Nassau border to Heckscher State Park in East Islip, has daily traffic congestion and frequent accidents, so numerous that one portion is called “Blood Alley.”
There have been over 3,000 accidents a year on the parkway since 2021, a majority of which occurred in Nassau County, according to New York State Police. Last year, 15 of those crashes were fatal, the highest number in recent years.
The section of parkway between exits 17 and 32 is widely referred to as Blood Alley due to its high accident rates, which include several fatalities. The road’s narrow lanes, sharp turns and poor lighting have all contributed to its dubious distinction as one of the most dangerous roadways in the country.
Elmont resident Winston Waters said that he has lived in the area for 40 years, and has often found himself having to plan his day around the congestion of the parkway.
“I work around it as much as I can,” Waters said. “There are times when I have to leave early to get to work — you know, I’ve got to deal with that — but I try to work around it. I try and leave very early, after rush hour, before rush hour, those kinds of things.”
Waters said his backyard once resembled a national park, with thick trees that helped muffle the sound of the nearby parkway. But since the trees were removed because of their age, the noise has become a growing issue, and the constant congestion is beginning to spill into the community, disrupting daily life.
see the roadway.
And despite the noise, she is not a fan of the huge sound walls erected on other roadways, such as the Long Island Expressway. “The walls are kind of ugly, Kordulak said.
“I personally didn’t want to see that much traffic in the area,” he added, “because it (creates) a lot of congestion, particularly if there’s an accident or there’s in the morning, rush hour — you have a lot of people that come through, come off the exit and then they want to maneuver through the side streets, which decreases the quality of life.”
Blood Alley lived up to its name in January, when a car overturned near Exit 29 in North Massapequa, killing two people and seriously injuring two others. The driver was speeding and weaving in and out of traffic before losing control and crashing into a tree, police reported.
South Park Drive, in North Massapequa, sits within sight of the parkway and Sharyn Kordulak can see vehicles whizzing by from the front of her house.
“You get used to all the noise, the drone of the traffic,” Kordulak said, noting that some neighbors have blocked out portions of the cyclone fence on the opposite side of the street so they don’t
Valley Stream resident Patrick Goin, who has been an advocate for safer conditions along the highway, specifically near Exit 13 in Valley Stream, said that he is hopeful that the myriad complaints about the parkway complaints will be addressed.
“I’m the one who spoke with Carrié for something to be done about that intersection, because my uncle had a severe car accident where he almost died and his car was totaled,” Goin said, referring to Nassau County Legislator Carrié Solages. “There’s been a few accidents. My uncle wasn’t the first, so that’s being addressed.”
Goin added that he lives right near Exit 13, and that speeding by motorists coming on and off of the parkway has become a recent issue for him and his neighbors when they try to leave their homes.
Exit 13, which serves both Central Avenue south and Linden Boulevard north in Valley Stream, is one of the more widely reviled entry and exit points along the highway, with residents calling for fixes for several years.
In 2018, Valley Stream resident Nayyer Zubair created a petition that documented residents’ concerns about safety. The petition, which currently has 672 signatures, calls for the addition of leftturn lanes and signals on Central Avenue to facilitate safer turns onto Stuart Avenue; lighting upgrades to enhance
between exits 36 and 37.
pedestrian visibility and safety; and the addition of traffic cameras to deter redlight violations and other dangerous driving behaviors.
The state Department of Transportation unveiled a plan on May 8 to reconstruct eastbound Exit 13, with construction set to begin in the spring of 2027. The project aims to create safer conditions for drivers entering and exiting the parkway.
However, some residents questioned the need to reconstruct the entire exit.
Valley Stream resident Dayle Cohen said she recognized the issues that occur at the exit, but questioned how a massive project like this could affect the community even more.
“I drive this route often,” Cohen said. “I know a lot of people run the stop sign when you’re getting up (the ramp to) the highway. People coming from the Linden (Boulevard) side always struggle to make their right lane on Stuart. But I really haven’t noticed any (bigger)
issues. I’m not an expert — I don’t know the traffic patterns. I don’t know the statistics, and my only concern was people run the stop sign, but then you wait a minute and it’s no big deal. I’m not sure about the price tag and how it will affect people who actually live right here, but I personally didn’t see a need for it.”
In Islip Terrace, not far from the Southern State’s eastern terminus, Jo Borda has lived off Spur Drive South, on Juniper Street, for 33 years, and though the parkway is wider there than in its western portion, accidents still occur.
“All times of the day, people are turning too fast off the exit and crashing on the turn,” Borda said. “Once right into the corner house.”
The former Franklin Square resident had advice for motorists. “People just need to slow down,” Borda said.
Additional reporting by Jeffrey Bessen. Next installment: Engineering challenges, infrastructure needs.
Jeffrey Bessen/Herald photos
One of many makeshift memorials that dot the Southern State Parkway landscape memorializes Ciara Hare, who was one of three people killed in a 2022 crash near Exit 32, at the end of what is called “Blood Alley.”
Osmar Vasquez was killed in 2023 when the driver of the car in which he was a passenger apparently lost control and crashed
Hochul gains control of NUMC governance
its approval last week, stating in a letter to Hochul and the state legislature, that the changes “strip the hospital of its autonomy and replace its leadership with political appointees,” according to a news release.
Dr. Irina Gelman, the current chair of the NHCC board, also rejected the state’s decision in a statement shared with the Herald on May 7.
“The state’s hostile takeover of Nassau County’s only public safety-net hospital is unprecedented, immoral and dangerous,” she said. “This disparate targeting of only NHCC and none of the other public benefit corporations in New York state, is indicative of the moral turpitude of Albany using the employees, patients and most vulnerable of Nassau County’s residents as political cannon fodder. By continuing to put politics, any politics left, right or center, before the needs of the people that work and seek care at Nassau Health Care Corporation is deplorable.”
Gelman also brought up a December 2020 study by Alvarez & Marsal, a management-consulting firm, outlining various models the hospital system could implement “to address NHCC’s precarious financial condition.” One of those models proposed “a continuing but minimal inpatient medical/surgical footprint with the full suite of current inpatient behavioral health services.”
The assessment added that “a second collocated behavioral health hospital (Article 31) license would be needed to provide inpatient psychiatric beds at current levels.”
“Both the state’s overreach of power, as well as the proposed 19 story behavioral/ health facility in the middle of Nassau County must be of critical concern to all Nassau County residents,” Gelman said, in reference to the proposed changes outlined in the 2020
study. “The notion that a state appointed board would have a higher rate of success in managing this critical care facility from Albany is a logical fallacy, given the abysmal record New York State has with their own SUNY hospital facilities.”
The legislation passed on May 7 also included provisions that allow the Nassau Interim Finance Authority, a public benefit corporation that assumed financial oversight of the hospital system in 2020, to impose additional control over NHCC. The hospital system filed litigation in December, accusing NIFA of gross
negligence and abuses of power.
Additionally, the bill, which can be read on the state Senate’s website, calls for a study to look into “the modernization and revitalization of the Nassau Health Care Corporation.” It directs the NHCC to explore ways to strengthen NUMC and the A. Holly Patterson Extended Care Facility.
The study would examine health care delivery trends, the hospital’s financial history and projections, infrastructure and capital needs, community health disparities, available inpatient and outpatient services, regional service capacity, operational efficiency and care quality, and student training and job placement outcomes. The study should be completed and provided to NIFA no later than Dec. 1, 2026.
“If NUMC’s outgoing leadership had put half as much effort into fiscal management and patient care as they’ve put into politics and propaganda, the hospital wouldn’t be in crisis,” Gordon Tepper, the Long Island spokesman for Hochul said in an email to the Herald. “Their focus has never been on fixing NUMC; it’s been on protecting their own interests. What we are seeing now is a long-overdue intervention to protect patients and save the institution from those who failed it.”
Assemblyman John Mikulin, a Republican who represents parts of East Meadow, said in an emailed statement he voted “no” on the state budget.
“Unfortunately, this year’s state budget of $254 billion did not deliver for New Yorkers,” he said. “There were several policy decisions included in the FY2025-26 Enacted Budget I could not support, chief among them was the state takeover of the Nassau University Medical Center. NUMC plays a vital role in the Nassau County community and should remain under local control, not Hochul control.”
Courtesy office of Gov. Kathy Hochul the state legislature has approved changes to the nassau Health Care Corporation, which will shift control to gov. Kathy Hochul and other democratic lawmakers.
Dems push to reduce ‘unfair’ licensing fees
By MOHAMMAD RAFIQ mrafiq@liherald.com
At All American Cleaners in Bellmore on May 22, Nassau County Legislator Seth Koslow, accompanied by Democratic colleagues Delia DeRiggi-Whitton and Olena Nicks, unveiled legislation aimed at reducing business licensing fees across Nassau County.
“The fees that people are paying in Nassau County are multiple times higher than Suffolk County, and it’s just not fair,” Koslow, the Democratic candidate for county executive, said at a news conference. “These small businesses drive our economy, and they have to pay $650 a year just to get their license, when in Suffolk County they’re paying $110.”
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Nassau is home to over 200,000 small businesses, which employ the majority of the county’s workforce. The proposed legislation targets more than 30 categories of business licenses, including dry cleaners, locksmiths, doggroomers, second-hand gem dealers, appliance replacement services and more.
Asked why there was a difference between the license fees in Suffolk and Nassau counties, Koslow laid responsibility at the feet of County Executive Bruce Blakeman, saying, “Blakeman just keeps raising fees to pay for all his celebrations and his photo ops, and he’s not really worried about taking care of the people here that drive our business.”
“I, unfortunately, don’t anticipate it’ll get much traction because of Bruce Blakeman and the Republican majority,” Koslow added of the legislative proposal. “But this is one of those things that is important to our community, and we should do on a bipartisan level.”
DeRiggi-Whitton echoed Koslow’s sentiments.
“Many of these fees came in under the Mangano administration,” she said, referring to former County Executive Edward Mangano. “And many of them, at that point, we thought, were completely ridiculous, and our caucus voted against them. However, the Republican majority passed them.
“They are arduous,” DeRiggi-Whitton added. “They are something that would make someone decide whether or not they want to come to Nassau County, and that’s the last thing we need.”
Marc Tolchinsky, owner of All American Cleaners, was asked about the impact that licensing fees have on businesses’ ability to stay afloat, and the difference
Nassau County Democrats decried high business licensing fees and announced legislation to cut fees for small businesses on May 22. In Bellmore, from far left, were County Legislators Olena Nicks and Seth Koslow; Marc Tolchinsky, owner of All American Cleaners; and Legislator Delia DeRiggi-Whitton.
that the proposed cuts would make.
“We’ve already been hurt so badly by Covid and the working from home, so all these things that they’re coming up now with, it impacts us,” Tolchinsky said. “You know, we’re running on less revenue, less volume, and anything will help.”
In statement to the Herald, Blakeman rejected the claim that he was responsible for the fees. “These fees were sustained and supported by a Democrat administration with acquiescence from Democrat legislators,” the statement read. “I am happy to cut the fees provided Democrats come up with matching cuts to spending.”
Mohammad Rafiq/Herald
Banners fly high for Franklin Square vets
By RENEE DeLORENZO rdelorenzo@liherald.com
Veterans from Franklin Square were honored during the Franklin Square Civic Association’s 7th annual Hometown Heroes banner dedication ceremony at Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 2718 on Lincoln Avenue.
The tradition that began in 2019 and has grown into a heartfelt tribute to local military service members and first responders. This year, 21 banners were displayed, including 17 rehangs and four new additions, each bearing the face and name of someone whose service left a lasting impact on a Franklin Square resident.
It was extraordinarily touching. It’s a beautiful thing.
ILEaNa CaRILLO-CRaNE
Recording secretary, Franklin Square Civic Association
Primarily organized by Adrienne McKenna, an executive director of the FSCA, the Hometown Heroes program began after she and other members were inspired by similar displays in other towns.
The FSCA posted applications on its social media accounts and, after receiving responses from 26 families, launched it in time for Memorial Day in 2019.
Since then, the program has recognized veterans, firefighters, first responders, and even healthcare workers during the height of the pandemic.
“It’s important that we always recognize the military and what their contribution to our world has been,” McKenna said. “It’s nice to see that we’re honoring our hometown heroes.”
Banners are funded by families or sponsors and hang for two years, she explained, from just before Memorial Day through Veterans Day, before being returned or reinstalled upon request.
This year’s ceremony held particular meaning for residents like Ileana Carillo-Crane, who sponsored a banner for her father, Angelo Carillo, a World War II veteran.
“He was just 17 when he enlisted,” she Ileana recounted. “His four older brothers were already serving, and he didn’t want to be the only one left behind.”
Angelo was part of the original crew of the USS Midway and was honored with the title of “plank owner” by the Navy.
Ileana, tearing up, recalled how her father never sought recognition or medals for his service. She eventually contacted the Navy herself and secured his medals before he died in 2002.
Coincidentally, the banner ceremony this year fell on the anniversary of his death. “It had extraordinary meaning for our family,” she said.
Each banner represents a deeply personal story, often tied to generations of service and sacrifice. But the banners
are also part of a broader community effort—organized, installed, and supported by local groups including the VFW Post 2718, which donates its fence space for banner displays and co-hosts the ceremony with the FSCA.
John McManamy, the building president from VFW Post 2718, reflected on the program’s evolution. He said the ceremony was originally hosted on Memorial Day, but they eventually changed it to Armed Forces Day—the third Saturday in May—to avoid conflicts with the Memorial Day parade, which is hosted by the VFW.
“It’s a fitting day,” McManamy said.
He added that the banners help raise
awareness about the VFW’s presence and mission.
It shows the community that the VFW is an active organization, McKenna said. People come to see the banners, he explained, and realize it’s more than just a building.
“As a veteran, I appreciate that they remember us,” McManamy said. “Not just as faces walking down the street, but that they do honor us.”
McKenna said that the families who participate in the program show immense pride in the banners.
“I’ve dealt with the people who call for banners,” McKenna said. “They are quite excited about honoring their per-
son, whether it be a father or spouse or whoever.”
Though the ceremony is once a year, the banners remain a visible tribute for months. For many, like the Carillo family, the experience is emotional and affirming.
“It was extraordinarily touching,” Ileana said. “It’s a beautiful thing.”
Families gather to view banners honoring loved ones during the Hometown Heroes dedication ceremony, a growing tradition in Franklin Square.
Courtesy Adrienne McKenna
Hometown Heroes banners line the fence outside the Franklin Square VFW Post 2718, honoring local veterans and service members past and present.
Angelo Carrillo, pictured in his Navy uniform during World War II, served as a plank owner aboard the USS Midway at just 17 years old.