Bellmore
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Vol. 23 No. 40
oCToBER 1 - 7, 2020
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F.D. ex-chief Bob Taylor dies at 52 active in the department,” Chief Michael Irving said. “He was always in some kind of leaderFellow volunteers remember ship role — he was someone you Bob Taylor, former chief of the always looked up to.” Bellmore Fire Department, as Taylor joined the department someone who at age 14 as a junior exemplified the f i re f i g h t e r, a n d ideal firefighter: went on to lead felselfless, compaslow members sionate, knowledgethrough particularable, and led a team ly tumultuous and that shared a closeunprecedented knit bond. A fortimes. mer commissioner, When de parttwo-time chief and ment headquarters chairman of the on Pettit Avenue department’s board was set ablaze by of fire commissionan arsonist in May ers, Taylor served 2001, Taylor, who the community for was chief at the 35 years. time, was first on “He is the Bellthe scene, and led more Fire Departsix departments in ment,” said Engine extinguishing the JAY PoDolSKI Co. 2 President Jay blaze, which dePodolski, who had President, stroyed the fireserved with Taylor Engine Co. 2, h o u s e ’s s e c o n d since 1986. floor, causing an Bellmore F.D. On Sunday, Tayestimated $1 millor died at age 52, lion in damage. As of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, a it turned out, the man charged rare, degenerative illness that with the crime was a Bellmore affects the brain. His fellow fire- volunteer firefighter. In the days fighters said he will be sorely that followed, Taylor became the missed, both as a a friend and a face of the department for the mentor. “His whole adult life he was Continued on page 3
By ANDREW GARCIA agarcia@liherald.com
I
J. Heck/Herald
JohN F. KENNEDY High School senior Rachel Nossen, of Merrick, wrote an op-ed in The Cougar Crier, calling on the school community to end “gender marking” of its sports teams.
JFK athlete wants ‘Lady’ dropped from Cougars By AlYSSA SEIDmAN aseidman@liherald.com
A John F. Kennedy High School senior is calling on the school to stop referring to its female sports teams as the “Lady Cougars.” In an op-ed that appeared in the school year’s first edition of The Cougar Crier, the student newspaper, Rachel Nossen, of Merrick, argued that the title undercuts female athletes who work just as hard as their male counterparts.
Nossen, 17, is the captain of the girls’ varsity basketball team, and she plays varsity soccer. Earlier this year, the basketball squad advanced to the Nassau Class A semifinals for the first time in program history. And while the accomplishment was historic, Nossen said hearing the established “Lady Cougars” term both on and off the hardwood made celebrating bittersweet. “They’re recognizing how great we are but still saying the word ‘lady’ in front of our
team name,” she said. “It’s confusing because it separates our success from the Cougars’ success — they should be the same success.” Nossen started playing travel sports in third grade. In her op-ed, she explained that she was the only girl in elementary school who played basketball with the boys during recess. “The boy captains never picked me last because they knew I could keep up with them and score baskets,” Continued on page 9
t takes a special person to be a firefighter, and Bob was definitely one of them. But more than a great firefighter, he was a great person.