Bellmore Herald 02-22-2024

Commemorating the Holocaust at multiple schools

The Bellmore-Merrick Central High School District commemorated International Holocaust Remembrance Day, which fell on Jan. 27, throughout the month of February. Students were educated through personal storytelling from Holocaust and genocide advocates and survivors — and there’s still more in store after February break.

Above, Marion Blumenthal Lazan, a Holocaust survivor, met with students at Wellington C. Mepham High School, to share her story of fleeing Nazi Germany and surviving concentration camps.

Right, students at John F. Kennedy High School heard from guest speaker and Holocaust survivor Manny Korman.

Story, more photos, Page 3.

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Woman shares impactful heart health journey

By JANET PRETE CORRESPONDENT

Cardiovascular disease is the number one killer of women in the U. S., and Merrick resident Jayne Dickie is trying her best to significantly lower those numbers.

Her efforts come after Dickie, 70, recently encountered a scare of her own with the disease, which is responsible for one in three female deaths.

She told her story at Mount Sinai South Nassau Hospital in Oceanside on Feb. 2, as part of the hospital’s Go Red for Women event, promoting awareness of cardiovascular disease in women.

Women’s heart disease is underrecognized, underreported and undertreated.

night with what she thought was food poisoning, nine months before she visited her cardiologist. She vomited throughout the night, and when she looked in the mirror, she saw that her face was extremely flushed. At that point, she asked her husband to call an ambulance because she realized something was wrong and wanted to make sure she was taken directly into the emergency room.

DR. ADHi SHARmA

President, Mount Sinai South Nassau

Dickie, a trim, petite woman who was a selfdescribed gym rat in her younger days, eats mostly healthy foods, with occasional indulgences for potato chips.

The mother of five and grandmother of 11 said she felt perfectly healthy before she woke up in the middle of the

The EMTs told her that her blood pressure was 203/140, which is considered a hypertensive crisis and a medical emergency, and she was rushed to NYU Langone Hospital in Mineola. Dickie was admitted to the hospital, but after six days, she was sent home with medication and a recommendation to see a cardiologist.

Dickie started taking the medication but stopped on her own, and never went to see a cardiologist. She admitted that

Continued on page 2

Photos courtesy Bellmore-Merrick Central High School District

Grateful grandma shares saga of heart surgery

she was in denial, and she still felt fine. But about nine months later, Dickie’s sister suffered a stroke, which was the push she needed to meet with a cardiologist.

During an appointment with cardiologist Dr. Sherry Megalla of Mount Sinai South Nassau, who’s based in Bellmore, Dickie insisted that she did not want to take any medicine.

Megalla, seeing that Dickie’s cholesterol was high, ordered a calcium score test, which is used to determine possible plaque in the blood vessels. When these levels came back elevated, more tests were ordered, including a stress test. Dickie’s stress test revealed that blood flow was impeded on one side of her body, and she was shocked when she was told that she required triple bypass surgery which she underwent in Oct. 2022.

A two-time breast cancer survivor, Dickie had always kept up with medical appointments and her blood tests and blood pressure readings had always been good. She had no idea that heart disease ran in her family, later discovering that her two grandfathers and a 38-year-old cousin had all died of heart attacks.

“Women’s heart disease is under-recognized, underreported and undertreated,” Dr. Adhi Sharma, president of

Mount Sinai South Nassau, said. “The symptoms are different and they may not recognize it, and they certainly need to make sure that they take care of themselves because they do such a great job of taking care of everyone else in their lives.”

Although the bypass surgery is performed at Mount Sinai in New York City,

the patients’ prior and follow-up care is available at Mount Sinai South Nassau.

“Jayne’s story is such a strong reminder that an absence of cardiac symptoms doesn’t necessarily mean an absence of heart disease,” Dr. Megalla said.

Megalla added that some symptoms of obstructive coronary disease are the

same in men and women, such as exertional chest pain and shortness of breath. When these symptoms are mild, patients may attribute them to not being fit and do less activity to compensate. However, women may also experience vomiting, such as Dickie did, extreme fatigue, exertional jaw pain or exertional left arm pain.

Megalla recommended that women become physically active and keep tabs on their blood pressure, and their numbers from routine blood tests, such as cholesterol and sugar levels. When women hit menopause, risk factors for heart disease change because of a drop in estrogen, so that is a good time to get a cardiac checkup.

Since the surgery, Dicke said she is feeling back to normal, and was up walking around the day after the procedure.

“I was the worst patient and completely in denial about my diagnosis,” Dicke said in a release shared by Mount Sinai South Nassau. “I tried to run out of the exam room until Dr. Varghese walked in. He had a halo over his head and was so reassuring.”

Dicke urges women to not take their heart health for granted.

“Just as we make time for our mammograms, PAP smears, manicures and pedicures,” she said, “we must make time for our heart.”

Holocaust education of utmost importance

International Holocaust Remembrance Day was on Jan. 27, and educators in Bellmore-Merrick Central High School District commemorated the significant anniversary that holds profound historical importance through education and personal story telling from Holocaust and genocide advocates and survivors.

“Holocaust Memorial Day serves as a poignant reminder to honor the memory of the six million Jews who tragically lost their lives during this dark chapter in history,” said Robyn Einbinder, the social studies chairperson at Wellington C. Mepham High School.

Einbinder arranged for Holocaust survivor and author Marion Blumenthal Lazan to visit with students and share her story of fleeing Nazi Germany, surviving concentration camps, and emigrating to the United States.

Her tale is documented in the book, “Four Perfect Pebbles,” as well as in a PBS documentary narrated by Debra Messing, “Marion’s Triumph: Surviving History’s Nightmare.”

On Feb. 5, Lazan addressed students with universal messages that she said “every one of us is familiar with to varying degrees.”

“We must build bridges and reach out to one another,” she said to a full auditorium of students. “We must be true to ourselves and not blindly follow a leader without thinking ahead and searching our hearts and our minds as to what the consequences might be.”

By listening to these messages, Lazan said she hopes that “you can prevent our past from becoming your future.”

John F. Kennedy High School students heard Holocaust survivor testimonies from two individuals. Renee Silver shared her very personal story of her childhood years in occupied France with ninth and 10th graders.

Shortly after World War II began, her

countless lives, while far too many stood by and said nothing.

Renowned advocate and survivor of the Rwandan genocide, Carl Wilkens, engaged students across four sessions in the Bellmore-Merrick Central High School District. In 1994, he was the only American who chose to remain in the country after the Rwandan genocide began.

On Jan. 30, he spoke to Dr. David Goldberg and Tanya Cestaro’s Voices of the Past classes at Sanford H. Calhoun High School.

He also visited Mepham High School to interact with Jacqueline Geller and Brian Joyce’s Leadership students. The following day, Wilkens presented to Brad Seidman, Teresa Negron and Jack Ryan’s Leadership students at Kennedy High School, concluding his visit with a session at the Meadowbrook Alternative Program.

family was interned in Gurs by the French fearing they — and any other foreigners — were spies.

“After France’s defeat, the family was allowed to leave Gurs and move to Villeurbanne near Lyon,” explained Ann Donaldson, a social studies chairperson.

Silver and her family endured the discrimination resulting from the Vichy government including humiliation in school, being hidden in Le Chambonsur-Lignon and ultimately fleeing to neutral Switzerland.

Eleventh and 12th graders also heard from Manny Korman, who was also recently featured in Newsday.

When World War II broke out, Korman and his family were forced from their home in Germany, moving across

different places before Manny and his brother were eventually separated from their mother and father through the Kindertransport.

“They lived in the English countryside with gentiles who were kind enough, brave enough and compassionate enough to take them in when they had nowhere else to go,” Donaldson said. “Hiding their identities along with all the other children hidden amongst the gentile population, Manny spent this formative time in his life in a completely different world from that which he had known on mainland Europe, where both his parents still were at the time.”

The family’s miraculous reunion in the United States is evidence of the good-hearted upstanders who saved

“Wilkens, drawing from his unparalleled insights and experiences, profoundly inspired and educated the next generation of leaders and scholars,” social studies chairperson Christina Cone said. “His firsthand account transcended textbooks and lectures, emphasizing the transformative power of empathy and individual action in the face of adversity.”

Both Merrick Avenue and Grand Avenue middle schools provided opportunities to further understand the impact of history as well. In addition to classroom humanities curriculum, students will see the play, “From the Fires: Voices of the Holocaust” in March and April.

“This performance will provide a deeper perspective,” Grand Avenue Principal Carlo Conte said, “allowing us to connect with the past and strengthen our commitment to creating a world marked by empathy, understanding, and kindness.”

— Jordan Vallone

Courtesy Bellmore-Merrick Central High School District Mepham Social Studies Chairperson Robyn Einbinder arranged for Holocaust survivor and author Marion Blumenthal Lazan to visit with students and share her story of fleeing Nazi Germany, surviving concentration camps, and emigrating to the United States.

Kennedy High School Assistant Principals Jeffrey Cronk, Dan Janzten, guest speaker and Holocaust survivor Renee Silver and Zachary Graulich, the director of programs for the Holocaust Memorial and Tolerance Center in Glen Cove.

Marion Blumenthal Lazan met with Mepham students.

Hundreds unite to remember Beckwith

By BEN FIEBERT bfiebert@liherald.com

Bob Beckwith rushed out of retirement as a New York City firefighter to help a friend find his missing son at ground zero, three days after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, that shook New York City — and the country — to its core.

This selfless choice turned Beckwith into a beacon of hope for the nation when he stood on the rubble at President George W. Bush’s side — hope he embodied until the day he died on Feb. 4. He was 91.

Beckwith ultimately succumbed to a 9/11-related melanoma, and was remembered by family, friends, leaders and a large number of off-duty firemen during Beckwith’s Feb. 10 funeral in Baldwin, before he was buried at Greenfield Cemetery in Uniondale.

Some will remember Beckwith for the iconic photo and video featuring him with Bush on Sept. 14, 2001, while others recall how Beckwith was a humble man who would sit in the back row of St. Christopher’s Church in Baldwin every Saturday evening while still finding time to visit a Levittown diner with his friends each week.

Beckwith enjoyed playing the piano, fishing, watching “Jeopardy,” spending time with his grandchildren, and attending their lacrosse games. He also took part Irish step dance competitions, and spent time at the Baldwin American Legion post.

Beckwith was an ordinary man, he would proclaim, who by chance was given the opportunity to uplift Americans during one the country’s darkest times.

Beckwith was retired for more than a decade after 30 years of service with the New York City Fire Department when he learned the son of his old friend, Jimmy Boyle, was missing amid the ruins of the twin towers.

presents no

in

tax law in the last few years introduced a “fiscal cliff”. Whereas formerly New York only taxed the amount over the exemption, if you exceed the limit today (by

The tax is surprisingly large. On a roughly seven million dollar estate, the taxes payable to New York exceed five hundred thousand dollars. An estate over ten million would owe over a million in estate tax.

These New York estate taxes are avoidable if you have a spouse and you create an estate plan using two trusts, which doubles the exemption. Another way to avoid the fiscal cliff is to use the “Santa Clause” providing that you gift to charities of your choice all amounts over the exemption. Gifts to charities are deductible

inspiring words, with his arm draped around Beckwith.

“America, today, is on bended knee in prayer for the people whose lives were lost here, for the workers who work here, and for the families who mourn,” Bush said at the time.

Bush would remain close to Beckwith, and shared a statement for former U.S. Rep. Peter King to read at his funeral.

“Laura and I are saddened by the passing of Bob Beckwith,” Bush said, explaining how the retired firefighter raced toward danger, showcasing the resilient spirit of all Americans during 9/11.

“I want to say that no one is indispensable,” King said in his own eulogy. “Bob Beckwith is indispensable. He was one of a kind.”

Beckwith was born April 16, 1932 in Astoria. After graduating from Rice High School in Manhattan in 1952, Beckwith joined the U.S. Navy n the tail end of the Korean war, before going on to study at LaGuardia Community College.

After graduating, Beckwith held various jobs like driving for UPS. But it was in 1964 Beckwith became an FDNY firefighter, kickstarting a 30-year career with the department.

Having lost two sons of his own, Beckwith understood the grief Boyle was going through.

So, he sprang into action and headed to ground zero while the rest of the nation remained in shock.

Beckwith later described how he was just in the right spot at the right time. Bush was paying his respects to those lost at ground zero, and wanted to speak directly to those who were digging through the rubble looking for survivors.

The president spotted Beckwith, and had him stand next to him where, using a megaphone, Bush delivered

from estate taxes.

While the Federal estate tax exemption of 13.61 million is “portable”, i.e. if the first spouse doesn’t use their exemption or any part of it, it passes to the surviving spouse, New York does not allow for portability. It’s use it or lose it.

The Federal exemption is expected to be reduced from the 13.61 million exemption, passed by the Trump administration, to the 6.94 million, adjusted for inflation, that New York uses, at the end of 2025. For larger estates, there remains a planning opportunity by making gifts while the higher exemption is in place. You may use any of your Federal estate tax exemptions to make gifts while you are living. These gifts are reported to the IRS and get subtracted from what you may give at death.

One added attraction to gifting is that New York does not tax gifts -- so that gifts may also be used to avoid onerous New York estate taxes at death. There is a minor exception that gifts made within three years of the death of the donor are brought back into the donor’s estate for New York estate tax purposes.

Beckwith met his wife Barbara at a picnic in 1956. They were married a year later, settling down on Fairview Avenue in Baldwin, where they raised their six children.

Beckwith retired from the FDNY in 1994. He would find himself enjoying time at home, entertained by his two great-grandsons with a smile across his face.

Besides his wife, Beckwith is survived by daughter Christine; sons Bob, Richard and Stephen; 10 grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren. He was preceded in death by sons Joseph and Tommy.

Christine Rivera/Herald

Firefighters salute the casket of Bob Beckwith as it is placed on top of a Baldwin Fire Department fire truck.

What’s neWs in and out of the classroom

HERALD SchoolS

Newbridge third graders say ‘no bear left behind’

After reading a book about the plight of moon bears, third graders at Newbridge Road Elementary School in the North Bellmore School District decided to take action. And they sure did – raising hundreds of dollars for bear rescue efforts in Asia.

The student-led service project was a huge success, as Lynda Brust’s class collected $777.09 in just a few days. They split into teams to carry out the initiative. The different roles included promoting the fundraiser, educating other students about moon bears, providing each class with bags for donations and counting the money. The latter was quite the task, as most the donations came in the form of spare change.

“It’s heartwarming to see passionate students take ownership of their learning,” Brust said, who said the service project was sparked by a book that was part of the nonfiction reading unit. “It was a teamwork effort. Every student in the class was part of the

moon bear effort in some way.”

Students, whose motto was “No bear left behind,” hope that their efforts will make an impact. The money they raised will be given to AnimalsAsia, a group devoted to ending bear bile farming and improving the welfare of animals across Asia. The organization operates bear sanctuaries in China and Vietnam, and also fights against abusive animal practices at safari parks and zoos.

“We’re saving animals and that’s a good thing,” third grader Dominic Mitchell said.

“It’s so nice that the whole school can do something together and it just feels amazing to help these animals,” added Maya Zucker.

Andrew Boylan was touched by the generosity of his fellow Newbridge Road students, saying, “Look at how much money people gave to save these animals, and I think that’s really kind.”

A third grade class at Newbridge Road Elementary School raised $777 to help rescue moon bears after reading a nonfiction book about the animals.

Artificial intelligence through the years:

OpenAI, an artificial intelligence and research company, publicly released ChatGPT-3 on Nov. 30, 2022. Now, a little more than a year later, the sophisticated chatbot — with more than 180 million monthly users — is seemingly developing faster than users can keep up. To understand how this language model became one of the most technologically advanced virtual assistants in the world, you have to go back nearly 75 years.

Imagining classrooms — and a future

By Ben Fiebert, Parker Schug & Nicole Wagner

First part in a series exploring the presence of artificial intelligence in our schools, and over time, in society as a whole. Thoughts? Questions? Ideas?

Email us at execeditor@liherald.com.

Artificial intelligence — it all starts with an idea. One developed by a computer programmed to mimic the human intelligence process through learning, reasoning and self-correction.

AI is already deeply ingrained in society. Whether it be smartphones with virtual assistants like Siri and Bixby, search engines making suggestions for what we’re looking for online, to even the spam filtering and email categorization in email platforms like Gmail.

The fast-growing advancements of AI may be hard to keep up with, especially as more and more platforms develop that specialize in AI like ChatGPT and Canva.

Television and news outlets focus more on how AI can turn your dog into a Muppet, or how it can instantly write a sonnet about someone’s favorite desserts.

But AI is finding its way into more and more of our everyday lives and it’s something that has institutions like our public schools racing to find the best ways to not only adapt, but to appropriately integrate AI into the classroom.

receives,” ChatGPT responded when asked what it was designed for.

It’s commonly used to answer a variety of questions, or brainstorm ideas. It can help draft emails and compose essays. It can help with extensive research, and even translate text from one language to another.

And for those looking to be a little less serious, ChatGPT can tell jokes, strike up a casual conversation, and even participate in storytelling and roleplaying scenarios.

But it can also write term papers, or essays. Or complete homework. And detecting when AI is being used is virtually impossible. That has created some concerns for school administrators, while at the same time tasking them to redevelop curriculum that prepares future minds for a future where AI is prevalent.

Ting Wang, a Stony Brook University associate professor who also directs its Algorithmic Learning, Privacy and Security Lab, describes the original conception of AI as “a feeble attempt to recreate intelligence and to help humans achieve specific tasks.” He believes developers have come a long way in achieving success doing just that.

ChatGPT is a popular example of this. Launched in late 2022, the software describes itself as an online interface that is “like having a conversation with a very knowledgeable and helpful friend — except this friend is actually a computer program.” It has been trained on swaths of data, making it capable of completing many different tasks ranging from gathering information, getting some helpful advice, or even looking to simply have a friendly chat.

“ChatGPT is designed for generating human-like text based on the input it

“From the academic perspective, I think one of the challenges is that it’s becoming harder and harder to obtain these AI models because they’re super expensive, the training costs, and have a requirement of huge amounts of data,” Wang said. “Those type of resources are not so accessible for the academia world.”

Where is AI?

Google, Bing and other search engines have used forms of artificial intelligence for years, but more recently began making its integration more obvious. Google integrated what it calls “generative AI” into its systems some 20 years ago, which typically predicts the next word in a search phrase.

ChatGPT also can edit certain articles, blog posts or other forms of writing. If someone asks ChatGPT to write an email with specific requirements, for example, the AI can handle it because its “training” has covered these sort of scenarios. What makes ChatGPT unique from other AI platforms, Wang said, is the massive amounts of data that “trains” it.

“You can see many artists, especially digital artists, using this program to create content that you cannot easily create manually,” Wang said.

Brett Tanzer — a product management vice president for Microsoft’s cloud platform, Azure — says models created by AI developers are installed in products like Bing and Microsoft Copilot, an

Nicole Wagner/Herald

A reporter asks ChatGPT to describe not only itself, but the artificial intelligence language model that powers it. AI has gone from science-fiction to science-fact, and schools are among a number of institutions around the world working to adapt.

AI companion technology which utilizes ChatGPT among other language models, to aid users in their day-to-day lives.

This helps users brainstorm alternatives for ideas on a given issue if they get stuck.

“It’s already being applied to help people reduce workforce time,” Tanzer said.

Creatives aren’t the only ones utilizing AI for their work. Many in the health care industries are using AI products like those offered by Microsoft to accelerate medical research for advanced treatment and diagnosis of diseases.

“That’s really helping practitioners and doctors in their day-to-day experiences with patients,” Tanzer said.

Educators are utilizing AI in classrooms around Nassau County. In Franklin Square, for example, a robot named Milo interacts with students to help them hone their social and emotional skills.

Pamela Taylor, Franklin Square’s pupil personnel services director, said at the time the school had done a lot of

training to bring Milo into the classroom.

While Milo is the first robot of its kind to be used in a Long Island classroom, its ability to work with students on their confidence in emotional skills is something Taylor is eager to spread throughout the district.

“We are looking to expand,” she said, “because he’s appropriate for all learners.”

An artificial intelligence elective course at Bellmore-Merrick school district’s Sanford H. Calhoun High School is teaching students about the basic principles of AI through exposure to machine-learning algorithms in Python computer programming language.

Danielle Caliendo, a math and computer science chair at Calhoun, says this course prepares students for careers in the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

“It also equips them with the skills necessary for today’s world where artificial intelligence is shaping the way we live and work,” Caliendo said, in a

The term ‘artificial intelligence’ is coined by John McCarthy. Computer scientist Arthur Samuel develops a program called ‘Samuel’s Checker Players’ to play checkers, which is the first to ever learn the game independently.

Edward Feigenbaum and Joshua Lederberg create the first ‘expert system’ called Denral, which was AI programmed to replicate the thinking and decision-making abilities of human experts. The purpose of this program was to map the structure of molecules, and to help chemists identify unknown organic molecules.

MIT professor Joseph Weizenbaum creates the first chatbot called Eliza to simulate human conversations. The program was designed to mimic human conversation, utilizing words users entered into a computer, and then pairing them to a list of possible scripted responses.

The U.S. government showed little interest in continuing to fund AI research.

1970s:

1980s:

AI is booming. Government funding led to breakthroughs in research. The use of the expert system program becomes more popular, allowing computers to learn from their mistakes and make independent decisions. This leads to the development of the Fifth Generation Computer project, with a goal of creating computers that could converse in human language and express reasoning on a human level.

1997:

2011:

2016:

2014:

2020:

Seeing artificial intelligence in daily life?

recent interview.

What does the future hold for AI?

Overall AI research at Stony Brook is intended to maximize the practical impact of artificial intelligence. Wang works on AI’s resilience against malicious manipulations, preserving privacy among users, and making the data written by AI more transparent and interpretable to users.

“People don’t have a great understanding of what AI can and can’t do,” Wang said. “I think people use AI as a magical box, and it actually may not work as expected for normal users.”

Yties to transform power in engineering, productivity, health care and cybersecurity.

Wang envisions ChatGPT becoming even more customizable and personalized than it is now. Although it’s already quite adaptable, users have their own individual requirements and writing styles that ChatGPT is not necessarily trained to understand.

ou can see many artists . . . to create content that you cannot easily create manually

TIng W Ang associate professor Stony Brook University

As AI models become more sophisticated, Tanzer said, Microsoft has its sights set on developing models with advanced capabili-

“You may want the program to draft an email in your own style and have your own specific writing requirements,” Wang said, “and currently, the chatbot may not be able to do that.

”It’s an ever-evolving landscape,” Wang said. “I think from the perspective of classroom teaching, people are still trying to figure out what is the best way to harness the power of AI, and at the same time kind of limit and curve the harmful impact of this technology.”

third-grade students at franklin Square’s John Street School learn how to hone their social and emotional skills with the help of milo the robot. equipped with adaptive artificial intelligence, milo is designed to read facial cues from those around him to teach students techniques to cope with their emotions.

Deep Blue — a computer run by the AI program alpha–beta search algorithm and developed by IBM — beats world chess champion Gary Kasparov, becoming the first computer program to beat a human chess champion. This kickstarts an era introducing AI into everyday life through innovations such as the first Roomba and speech recognition software on Windows computers.

Apple releases Siri, the first popular virtual assistant, found primarily on the company’s iPhones.

Amazon releases the Echo, powered by a voicecontrolled intelligent personal assistant named Alexa. These devices are smart speakers equipped with microphones for voice commands.

Google releases the Google Assistant and its voice-activated speaker: the Google Nest.

OpenAI starts beta testing GPT-3, a model that uses deep learning — a method of AI that teaches computers to process data in a way that mimics the human brain — to create code, poetry and other writing tasks.

Rei Wolfsohn/Herald file

Rebeccan Benison’s debut novel hits the shelves

By RACHELE TERRANOVA rterranova@liherald.com

With kidnappings, murder, and conspiracy lining it’s 332 pages of Rebecca Benison’s debut fiction novel “Harvest Cruise,” the book is sure to grab the attention of readers.

A content marketer by trade, the Bellmore resident is used to writing and editing for businesses. Benison has previously published work in a variety of other publications including “Workers Write!” literary journal and the “Empyrean Literary Magazine.” She is now dipping her tow into novel writing.

She wrote her debut book, “Harvest Cruise,” on her lunch breaks over the course of a year.

Finding a home for her book proved to be more difficult than she anticipated, she explained. Talking with agents and publishers, and navigating the process can be a time consuming and an arduous task. Her novel eventually found its home at small Canadian publisher, Chicken House Press, and was officially release on Jan. 28.

“Finding a home for the work has been a challenging process that you don’t necessarily think about when you’re writing it,” said Benison.

For Benison, organization and preparation was the key to success —

and utilizing X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter. Due to the active writing community on the platform, she was able to make a spreadsheet of agents, when she reached out to them, and when to follow up.

Social media can come in handy in more than one way while writing a novel. After the heavy lifting of writing the novel, having a social media presence can be crucial for marketing the work, even before finding a publisher or agent, you’ll need to prove you will have readers.

and

“Building up your market early is a huge thing,” she said. “Once you do get to the point where you have finished the work and you’re shopping it out, having a presence on social media is actually a really big deal to a lot of agents and publishers.”

Agents and publishers still rely on authors, though, to continue to market their own work due to lack of marketing budgets. A social media following though, no matter how

small, can be a game changer.

“Definitely finding one social media network that you’re comfortable with, and trying to build up an audience there, I would say is important,” Benison explained.

The book is now available through Chicken House Press and on Amazon Kindle.

“Get swept up, relate to the characters, and find something engaging,” Benison said.

Photos courtesy Rebecca Benison

Rebecca Benison’s debut novel ‘Harvest Cruise,’ came out on Jan. 28,

is her foray into the world of novel writing.

Benison’s novel ‘Harvest Cruise’ is brimming with pages of kidnappings, murder, and conspiracy.

Mepham’s second-half rally stuns Elmont

By TONY BELLISSIMO

tbellissimo@liherald.com

A defensive adjustment at halftime and a dominant third quarter led by junior Makayla Daube and senior Grace Glynn spurred No. 9 Mepham to a come-frombehind 51-41 victory at eighth-seeded Elmont last Friday in a Nassau Class AA girls’ basketball first-round playoff matchup.

Daube had a game-high 19 points and game-high 22 rebounds and was instrumental during a 16-point run by the Pirates that began with senior point guard Ashley Felsberg’s basket just before halftime and included more than half of Glynn’s season-high 14 points in a third quarter that saw the Spartans held scoreless.

“This was such an incredible team effort,” said Daube, who had 11 fourthquarter points to help Mepham (12-9) protect the lead. “We’ve had some good wins this season, but not in this type of environment with so much at stake. I’m really proud of everyone.”

The Pirates, who trailed Elmont by as many as nine in the first half, advance to face top-seeded and defending county

Class A champion Manhasset in the quarterfinals. Felsberg had 10 points and senior Briann Frier sank a pair of threes in the first quarter.

“We switched from zone to man after halftime and got results,” Mepham head coach Jim Mulvey said. “Elmont shot the lights out in the first half and we had to make an adjustment.

“Makayla put us on her back in the second half, Grace played off the charts, Ashley hit some big shots and got everyone the ball, Brianna kept us close in the first quarter and Sophia [Beck] worked tirelessly on defense,” he added. “This is a tough gym for a visiting team to win in.”

Junior Charlotte Hines paced the Spartans (14-7) with 12 points and 10 rebounds. Senior Sophia Manchoon hit for 9 points, all from behind the arc, and juniors Kyla Moore and Kaitlyn Paulino added 8 and 7 points, respectively.

“All season we were looking forward to getting to this point and advancing, but we just didn’t play with the poise and patience we needed to in the second half,” Elmont head coach Pete Lawson said. “We rushed a lot of shots and Mepham did a great job on the boards. Once they made

their run, we got away from what got us there. It became a domino effect.”

It was only the second defeat in 12 home games for the Spartans, who had control early thanks to the hot hands of Manchoon and Hines. They combined for all but two of Elmont’s opening-quarter points as it built a 19-11 lead.

Daube, who was limited to a free throw in the first, scored seven points in the second but the Pirates still trailed 28-22 at intermission.

The tide turned dramatically after halftime. The Spartans were unable to find the bottom of the net in the third quarter and were outscored 14-0. Mepham’s largest lead was 11 early in the fourth.

“As we kept falling further and further behind, we tried to get it back all at once instead of running our offensive sets,” Lawson said. “We were out of sync and they were rolling.”

Senior Grace Glynn’s 14 points were key for the Pirates in their victory at Elmont last Friday in the first round of the Nassau Class AA playoffs.

Eric Dunetz/Herald

Love is in the air at the Coral House

Bellmore-Merrick couples renew martial vows in special Valentines’ Day ceremonies

In celebration of Valentine’s Day — the most romantic day of the year — Hempstead Town Clerk Kate Murray presided over vow renewals of 116 couples on Feb. 14.

In total, 232 Town of Hempstead residents took part in the Valentine’s Day event, with ceremonies being held at the Coral House in Baldwin — on the backdrop of a snow-kissed lake, thanks to snowfall from the day prior.

Several vow renewals were of couples who had been together for decades, including one married couple who have been together for 74 years. Additional couples had been together for 60 years, and other duos ranged from just one year of marriage to 59 years of mar-

riage.

Valentine’s Day is already a day dedicated to love and romance, making it an ideal occasion for reaffirming marital vows. The symbolism of celebrating love on this day adds an extra layer of significance to the renewal ceremony.

Renewing marriage vows on Valentine’s Day is a way for couples to reflect on their journey together, celebrate their love, and look forward to the future — and more years of marriage to come. The Town of Hempstead event served as an opportunity to reaffirm the promises couples made on their wedding day and strengthen the bond that they share.

— Jordan Vallone

Photos courtesy Town of Hempstead James and Jean Woisin, of North Bellmore, who have been married for 10 years, renewed their marital vows on Feb. 14, in a ceremony presided by Hempstead Town Clerk Kate Murray.

Theresa and Kenneth Resca of Bellmore celebrated 37 years of marriage.

On a beautiful backdrop of a snow-kissed lake, 116 couples renewed their vows. Among them was Robert and Kathy Eckstein of Merrick, together for 52 years.

Those who renewed their vows on Feb. 14 were celebrating anywhere from one to 74 years of marriage. John and Debra Gerrity, of North Bellmore, are celebrating 36 years together.

Richard and Rita Smith hit the golden anniversary mark this year, with 50 years of marriage under their belts. The couple is from North Merrick.

What’s neWs in and out of the classroom

HERALD SchoolS

Winning Stars take district administration on a tour

Several Winning Star Leaders at Winthrop Avenue School in the Bellmore School District facilitated a tour of the building for local school district administrators.

Multiple school districts made a visit to Winthrop to see firsthand how the district promotes student leadership through Core Values and Leadership Principles as part of the Character Development Program. Through every grade level, Bellmore stars are encouraged to be leaders at any and every opportunity available. Visiting adminis-

trators saw leadership in action as several students led the way through halls and classrooms while sharing facts about their daily learnings. They made several stops, including in the gymnasium and library, before concluding in the auditorium for a special show. On the stage, Winning Star Leaders sang the district’s Leadership Song which focuses on their Leadership Principles and Core Values. Leading the tour is just one of many ways Bellmore students have the opportunity to demonstrate their leadership skills.

Al Kanfei Nisharim (AKN) is a registered 501c3 organization that supports Single Mothers. These women can rely on Al Kanfei Nisharim to provide support, resources and guidance to help them achieve independent financial stability.

Photos courtesy Bellmore Public Schools

Winning Star Leaders at Winthrop Avenue School facilitated a tour for local school administrators, which made a stop in the school gymnasium.

In the cafeteria, students showed where they share positive messages.

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Become a bookish

Discover Eric Carle’s tiny world of insects in new sensory adventure

By Danielle Schwab

In the light of the moon, a little egg lay on a leaf.

That’s how the journey started for Eric Carle’s Very Hungry Caterpillar, the beloved character from his acclaimed picture book of the same name. Now, Long Island Children’s Museum takes the magnifying glass to Carle’s curious bugs in its newest exhibit, “Very Eric Carle: A Very Hungry, Quiet, Lonely, Clumsy, Busy Exhibit.”

Created by the Pittsburgh Children’s Museum and The Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art, it’s a follow-up of sorts to last year’s popular Mo Willems exhibit, which also encouraged kids to step into the creative imagination of a beloved author-illustrator.

Visitors find themselves inside the pages of Carle’s colorful books. His “Very” series — all illustrated in his hand-painted tissue paper collage technique — introduces five special insects who take journeys of discovery. Each story is a testament to Carle’s love of nature along with his recurring themes of friendship, creativity, and the power of imagination.

The colorful picture books — more than 70 in all — have been captivating young children since Carle’s first publishing effort, the counting book “1,2,3 to the Zoo,” in 1968.

From there, his “Very” books took off the following year, beginning with the one that started it all, “The Very Hungry Caterpillar,” of course. Families were immediately captivated by Carle’s little bugs with big emotions.

There’s a deep-felt connection to the insects, according to Ashley Niver, the museum’s education director.

“Children have a fascination with things that are even smaller than they are because they’re usually the ones looking up at the world,” she said. “I find that they have a lot of care and concern for these small living things. They enjoy the roleplay of being a friend of one or becoming one, like wearing the wings of a butterfly and flying around.”

And, naturally, the insatiable caterpillar holds a special place in everyone’s hearts.

“We’ve had parents mention that they read ‘The Very Hungry Caterpillar’ as a child and now they are reading it to their child,” Niver says. “The messaging is something that resonates.”

The exhibit may be indoors, but the focus is fully on the outside world, exploring the diversity of the insect kingdom through Carle’s imagination.

“A lot of people relate to ‘The Very Hungry Caterpillar,’

• Now through May 12, Tuesday through Sunday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.

• $17 museum admission, $16 seniors 65 and older; additional fees for theater programming

• View the events calendar at LICM.org for additional information, or call (516) 224-5800

• Long Island Children’s Museum, Museum Row, Garden City.

but there are a lot of other lovely stories,” Niver says. “I don’t think that everyone is as well-versed in some of his other books, so I’m happy that this features some more of them.”

Tumble in the grass, weave a web, find a friend, and even become a butterfly during your visit.

Upon arrival, visitors can follow the Very Hungry Caterpillar’s path on a journey through largerthan-life pages of the book, eating foods on the way to becoming a butterfly. Once the end is reached, you’re now ready to spread your wings.

The Very Busy Spider component includes a giant, web-like structure to step through. This activity tests dexterity, strength and flexibility as kids move across the challenging surface.

At the Very Busy Spider’s Weaving Wall everyone can try to spin their own web on the large wall, experimenting with a variety of stringy materials.

Master new skills at the Very Clumsy Click Beetle Playscape. Here, visitors rummage across a pile of pebbles, crawl through tall blades of grass, step across stepping stones, and walk across the stem of a poppy flower in this playful landscape. Step up to the challenge and persevere like The Very Clumsy Click Beetle.

Also try to catch some light at the Very Lonely Firefly “Find Your Light” interactive station. Move hands and body to lure a firefly toward you. Even work with others to attract multiple fireflies and try to form a group of the beautifully lit insects.

At another component, kids can touch The Very Quiet Cricket and his friends on a relief mural to trigger a sound and create a one-of-a-kind musical composition. The various insect sounds harmonize together to make a “symphony” comprised of rhythms and sounds found in nature.

The exhibit’s studio portion offers up facts about Carle’s life and artistic process.

“Yellow was his favorite color,” Niver says. “Yellow was always the most challenging for him, which I thought was a cool fact. He only mastered four shades of yellow.”

After all that busyness being a bug, families may want to relax by taking a moment to read some books. The nook area is a cozy spot where everyone can nuzzle up in a reading cocoon and read the “Very” stories together.

Through his stories, Carle reminds us: “Simplify, slow down, be kind. And don’t forget to have art in your life — music, paintings, theatre, dance and sunsets.”

Audra McDonald

Audra McDonald is unparalleled in the breadth and versatility of her artistry as both singer and actor. Experience her inimitable talent in a spellbinding evening of song that showcases her extraordinary vocal range. Winner of six Tony Awards, two Grammys and an Emmy, McDonald possesses a ‘lustrous lyric soprano’ (The New York Times) and an incomparable gift for dramatic truth-telling. This stage and screen icon lends her luminous voice and committed stage presence to an intimate concert of Broadway favorites, standards, seldomheard gems, and so much more, accompanied by pianist Jeremy Jordan. With Tony wins in all four eligible acting categories, countless other theatre honors — and a National Medal of Arts conferred by President Barack Obama in 2015, among her other accolades — McDonald is among the most lavishly awarded performers of our time.

Friday, Feb. 23, 8 p.m. Tickets start at $60. Tilles Center for the Performing Arts, 720 Northern Blvd., Brookville. Tickets available at Ticketmaster.com, TillesCenter.org or (516) 299-3100.

Flogging Molly

Celtic-punk rockers Flogging Molly have hit the road with their ‘Road to Rebellion’ tour, sure to rouse audiences with their anthemic odes to the Emerald Isle. Formed in L.A. in 1997 by Irish expat Dave King, the band got its start (and its name) from local bar Molly Malone’s, where they performed, grew their following, and laid down the blueprint for eventual success. Their infectious Celtic-tinged reels are perfect for dancing along to, for those who love their Irish heritage, and those who just want a good time. Expect an eclectic mix of old favorites, sing-a-longs, rare acoustic numbers and new material — all strung together by King’s cheeky tales and jokes and first-rate musicianship. With numerous latenight television appearances, a soldout Salty Dog Cruise through the Caribbean, and a yearly St. Patrick’s Day Festival in L.A., the band’s juggernaut continues.

Sunday, Feb. 25, 7:30 p.m. $79.50, $49.50, $39.50. The Paramount, 370 New York Ave., Huntington. Tickets available at Ticketmaster.com or ParamountNY.com.

Photos courtesy Long Island Children’s Museum

From caterpillar to butterfly, spider and cricket beetle, Eric Carle’s insects hold a special place in everyone’s childhood. Each element in the gallery relates to specific books in the ‘Very’ series.

THE Your Neighborhood

Tusk

March 1

Tusk goes their own way, visiting the Landmark stage with their dynamic tribute to Fleetwood Mac,, Friday, March 1, 8 p.m. Since forming in 2008, Tusk has prided themselves on being the ultimate tribute to ‘70s supergroup. No fancy tricks, no gimmicks, just five musicians recreating the music of Fleetwood Mac to perfection with note for note renditions With Tusk it’s all about respect and authenticity. A group of seasoned musicians that go back some 25 years, their attention to detail, talent and reverence of their subjects has been critically acclaimed, resulting in their accolades as the premiere purveyors of ‘Mac. Time, trust, and close friendship have cultivated an intimate familiarity with each other’s musical nuances, shaping each performance with such precision that even the slightest variation, virtually imperceptible to all but the five musicians sharing the stage, is met with a wink and a nod, and usually an inside joke. Tusk is more than a band; they are a family. So if you’re jonesing for your fix of Fleetwood, you’re in the right place! Made up of Kathy Phillips (as Stevie Nicks on vocals), Scott McDonald (as Lindsey Buckingham, guitar and vocals), Kim Williams (as Christine McVie, keys and vocals), Randy Artiglere (as John McVie, bass) and Tom Nelson (as Mick Fleetwood on drums) the five-piece band will transport you back to the group’s glory days with a set list including hits such as the “The Chain,” “Dreams,” ‘Go Your Own Way,” and more, alongside rare gems fans will love hearing again. $63, $53, $45. Jeanne Rimsky Theater at Landmark on Main Street, 232 Main St., Port Washington. (516) 767-6444 or LandmarkOnMainStreet.org.

Family theater

It’s a beautiful sunny summer day in the meadow. Leo Lionni’s beloved children’s books come to life once again, in “Frederick,” on the Long Island Children’s Museum stage, Friday, Feb. 23, 11:30 a.m., 2 p.m., 6:15 p.m. (sensory-friendly performance); Saturday, Feb. 23 ,11:30 a.m. and 2 p.m.

Mouse friends Nellie, Sunny, Baby, Ernest, and Frederick are playing their musical instruments and having fun singing, until a leaf falls from the sky — autumn is here! Winter will be coming soon. All the mice get to work gathering supplies for winter, except, where is Frederick? He is gathering supplies, too, in his own unique way.

With toe-tapping Americana music inspired by bluegrass, gospel, and folk, this is an engaging tale about the power of the arts, community, and that no mouse gets left behind. $10 with museum admission ($8 members), $14 theater only. Museum Row, Garden City. (516) 224-5800 or LICM.org.

On exhibit

Nassau County Museum of Art’s latest exhibition, “Our Gilded Age,” examines the appearances and the realities of an era that mirrors our own in many ways. Like the nation’s economy, American art and literature flourished during the Gilded Age. The art of John Singer Sargent, Childe Hassam, Louis Comfort Tiffany and others adorned palatial residences designed by Stanford White and Ogden Codman Jr., architect of the museum’s own quintessential Gilded Age mansion.

Drawing heavily upon the local literary history of Long Island, including William Cullen Bryant, Mark Twain (who named the Gilded Age), Walt Whitman, Edith Wharton and others, the exhibition will include paintings, fashion, decorative arts including period silver and china, photographs, manuscripts, first editions and other historic memorabilia.

The “Upstairs, Downstairs” approach to the life of a country house brings to life not only the storied conspicuous consumption for which the Gilded Age was infamous, but also the real lives of these many individuals who maintained the palatial estates where that lifestyle was enjoyed. On view through March 10 Nassau County Museum of Art, 1 Museum Dr., Roslyn Harbor. (516) 484-9337 or NassauMuseum.org.

Grand Avenue immerses students in Black History

By RACHELE TERRANOVA rterranova@liherald.com

During Black History Month, many schools will celebrate and learn about the achievements of AfricanAmericans, recognizing their contributions to the growth and development of the United States. In Bellmore-Merrick, this is often done through lessons in class, especially in elective classes such as Past, Present, and Future at Grand Avenue Middle School in Bellmore.

TStudents began the unit with a lesson on Black History Month, followed by a biography project on a notable figure of their choosing whether in the past or present. This was followed up by creating a collaborative mural for the building based on those key figures they researched, then wrapping everything up with an escape room activity.

he escape room provides a fun atmosphere for reinforcing their understanding of topics.

KRisTiN Fus ARO Teacher, Grand Avenue Middle School

“The escape room provides a fun atmosphere for reinforcing their understanding of topics” said Krisitn Fusaro, teacher of the Past, Present, and Future class.

Breakout EDU, the escape room box used in Past, Present, and Future, was used as a way for students to experience learning hands on which helps improve their skills of working together, critical thinking and exercising their creativity.

This unit’s escape room game is based on the Harlem Renaissance and Great Migration topics, including activities like cracking codes to open locks and using ciphers to decode poems. The heart of the exercise though, is collaboration. For students, they work together to unlock the different steps of the escape room, while staff worked together to make it all happen. Fusaro worked with her humanities partner teacher to pick the poem for the activity, while the library media specialist helped build the lesson.

Each year, the curriculum is tailored for the needs of the students, adding in new and exciting activities to the core of different unit — including the escape room.

“We highlight those important African-Americans and learn about why they’re important and why we study them, but also the struggles that existed as well through the Great Migration and Harlem Renaissance” Fusaro said.

Through this unit, students have the opportunity take control and exercise their independence over their education through the different available activities.

“The students have been working really diligently in embracing the project” Fusaro said. “They got to select the prominent African-American figure for their research projects, and that often gives them ownership in creating their best work. It also gives us insight into what interests our students.”

Public Notices

LEGAL NOTICE NOTICE OF SALE

SUPREME COURT.

NASSAU COUNTY. L&L

ASSOCIATES HOLDING

CORP., Pltf. vs. ERIN BEGLEY, et al, Defts. Index #616380/2022.

Pursuant to judgment of foreclosure and sale entered August 2, 2023, I will sell at public auction on the North Side Steps of the Nassau Supreme Court, 100 Supreme Court Drive, Mineola, NY on March 7, 2024 at 2:00 p.m. prem. k/a Section 56, Block 405, Lot 613-614. Sold subject to terms and conditions of filed judgment and terms of sale. RON FERRARO, Referee. LEVY & LEVY, Attys. for Pltf., 12 Tulip

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LEGAL NOTICE NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT COUNTY OF NASSAU, U.S. BANK, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION AS LEGAL TITLE TRUSTEE FOR TRUMAN 2016 SC6 TITLE TRUST, Plaintiff, vs. HENRY OSORIO, JR., ET AL., Defendant(s). Pursuant to an Order Confirming Referee Report and Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale duly entered on March 22, 2023, I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public

auction on the front steps on the north side of the Nassau County Supreme Court, 100 Supreme Court Drive, Mineola, NY 11501

Rachele Terranova/Herald photos

Teacher Kristin Fusaro checks the work of 8th grade students in the Past, Present, and Future class as they work to complete an escape room activity last week for Black History Month.

The Past, Present, and Future class at Grand Avenue Middle School used Breakout EDU to complete escape room activities.

Students at Grand Avenue Middle School used ciphers to decode a poem as part of their escape room activity.

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learn from some of the best in the business. Historically, reporters who have launched their careers with us have gone on to The New York Times, Newsweek, Newsday, the New York Daily News, New York Post, CNN, BBC, NBC News and The Daily Mail, among many others. We look for excellent writers who are eager to learn, enhance their skills, and become well-established and respected journalists in our industry. Salary range is from $20K to $45K To apply: Send a brief summary in the form of a cover letter describing your career goals and what strengths you can bring to our newsroom, along with a resume and three writing samples to mhinman@liherald.com

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TA kitchen leads to an attic

Q. Our house is large and very old, with a third story that was partially finished before purchase. We finished the rest of the attic and put in a few bedrooms and a bath. Recently we hired an architect to enlarge our kitchen into our backyard and make a nice entrance to a porch and patio with a fireplace. The architect made the plans, after several meetings, changes, etc., and then put them into our building department to pull a permit. We next got a notice that our attic is in violation, and we had to either take out all the finishes and bathroom or file plans to get a state permit.

None of this has anything to do with the kitchen or patio, which we hoped to have by summer. We suspect our architect made this much more complicated for us, but now we can’t undo what he did. Naturally, he gets more money to do more plans and permits, which we also think is rather sneaky and uncalled for. Can we report the architect for doing this to us, and can we pull back the permit so we can make all this go away and just do our kitchen?

A. So you believe everyone is out to get you, including your architect, and you have the right to “pull back” your permit, ignoring the conditions of your house. It doesn’t work that way.

5 BR, 2 Bath Exp Cape in SD#14 (Hewlett Woodmere) Living Room, FDR & Updtd Gran/Wood EIK w/ Vaulted Ceiling. 2 Main Flr BRs & Updtd Bth. Upper Level 3 BRs & Updtd Bth. 1.5 Car Det Gar Plus 4/5 Car Drivewy. Priv Yd w/ Deck. HW Flrs, Gas Ht. Near Shops, LIRR, Trans & Houses of Worship $599,000 1534 Broadway #213, BA, FIRST TIME ON MARKET! Move

Ask The Architect

Monte Leeper

Unfortunately, even though most local governments know that most homes have violations, the governments choose not to prosecute every homeowner, since it would be bad for the business of getting re-elected, so code violations go on without a word until you make the first move, which you did, by coming to the attention of the building officials whose job is public safety.

Every day of the week, people ask if we can’t just look the other way. We absolutely can look the other way, but eventually who will believe us for lying or not doing our job? The issues of your home easily come up by simply bringing up satellite images, on-line accessible documents, including tax department records, showing what is in the home and whether the third floor was finished. Your building official doesn’t need the architect or you to figure out the truth about the illegalities in your home. When your architect shows the actual conditions, which he is required to do, including walls removed, walls finished in rooms that the building department has no previous record of, or other changes, he’s only doing his job. Imagine the scrutiny an architect would receive if a building official walked in to check the conditions and discovered that you and the architect had lied.

I have stated in this column, many times, the statistic that only five people out of 100 will survive a fire on the third floor. Ninety-five people will die of smoke inhalation or burns. So do the right thing and follow through, whichever way you choose. I’m pulling for you.

© 2024 Monte Leeper

Readers are encouraged to send questions to yourhousedr@aol.com, with “Herald question”

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February is American Heart Month, and this is a story about my heart — literally and figuratively. It’s the reason I am where I am today.

I was born with a significant heart defect called dextrocardia, as well as a ventricular septal defect. Basically, my heart was on the wrong side of my chest cavity and inverted — and it had a hole in it.

SETH I. KoSLoW

When I was 3 months old, my doctors told my parents that I needed openheart surgery to close the hole. At the time, however, my mother was pregnant with my sister. My parents decided to wait until my sister was born before I underwent surgery. But somehow, for some reason, my heart decided that it had to be whole, and the hole I was born with began to close. My heart could stay as it was — imperfect and misplaced, but untouched.

A journey of the heart

Growing up, I found that I was doing a lot of things half-heartedly, so to speak. Schoolwork wasn’t heartening, and there were few things that excited me. I dreamed of becoming a lawyer, but I couldn’t muster up the resolve to pursue that dream — LSATs, law school, internships, thousands of dollars in loans, six more semesters of school, and years of building a professional profile.

Deterred by these seemingly insurmountable obstacles, I remained listless through my early 20s. For a few years after college, I worked in sales. I was good at it, but my heart was definitely in a different place.

That is, until it wasn’t.

went more than a dozen cardioversions to restore the heart’s regular rhythm, and tried various cocktails of medications, all to no avail.

A fter openheart surgery, I decided there was nothing I couldn’t make it through.

In my early 20s, I was diagnosed with atrial fibrillation, or AFib, also known as an irregular heartbeat. It’s fairly common among senior citizens, but as a 20-something in college, I was now a member of a not-so-enviable exclusive club. Over the next several years, I battled my irregular heartbeats, under-

Eventually I met a cardiologist who specialized in adults with congenital heart defects — adults like me. He informed my family and me that the hole in my heart had reopened, and that it was substantially larger than it was when I was a child. This was causing my irregular heartbeat, and it would at last need to be closed. At age 25, because of the placement of my heart, I was about to undergo a potentially first-of-its-kind open-heart surgery.

On March 15, 2007, after five hours of surgery, I awoke with a heart that was beating normally for the first time in almost five years. Making it through that operation sparked something in my soul. Instead of whining about what I had to do to get to where I wanted to be, I decided to ball my fists up, dig in and do it. After all, I had just made it through open-heart surgery. Was there

anything I couldn’t make it through? I finally sat for the LSAT and got myself into law school.

That’s the attitude that’s gotten me to where I am today. When I was burning the candle at both ends, cramming for law school exams and eventually the bar exams, I would remind myself that I was getting stronger. When I was struggling to build my own law practice while juggling my responsibilities as a husband and father, I would remind myself of all that my heart could handle.

Naturally, when I saw an opportunity to run for office, a chance to represent and fight for all the communities our local government has left behind, I knew that I could take the heartburn of an arduous campaign, and that I could win over hearts and minds. That’s the mentality that I bring to my law practice, and to my work with my fellow legislators.

The arc of my life’s journey is proof that we are all stronger than we know — that we are all more capable than we can comprehend.

Seth I. Koslow represents Nassau County’s 5th Legislative District.

It’s Library Lovers Month — borrow a book

Iread “Lady Chatterley’s Lover,” my first banned book, when I was 12. My friend lent me the book, and I found the good parts by the dogeared pages. The experience did not compromise my moral compass or corrupt me in any way I can discern. I am not recommending the book for today’s 12-year-olds, because it’s a pretty boring read, but I am advocating that a broad spectrum of books be available to students who choose to read them.

This month, Library Lovers Month, I want to push back hard against the selfappointed literature vigilantes across our country, who are removing books from school library shelves and banning them from classrooms under the guise of protecting children from inappropriate subject matter.

It’s called censorship, and the problem, of course, is who gets to decide what is appropriate or not. In the past, librarians have had full discretion in selecting books. They are trained for the job and trusted in their choices. In

the best libraries, the books reflect all the ways that children and teenagers can be in the world, including gay or trans or identified with any race or religion or socio-economic group.

work for vulnerable kids.

I don’t know if a book has ever saved someone’s life, but I know for sure that battles over books are endangering lives by keeping young people from information and stories that might validate their choices in important ways.

book-ban list, by definition, express feelings, experiences and political views that the prevailing culture prefers to pretend do not exist.”

SFor some young people, the school library is the only place they can read about kids just like themselves. They can learn that others share their confusion or anxiety or fear of being different.

tudents need open access to all kinds of books by all kinds of writers.

I don’t believe that a teenager can “catch” being gay or trans from reading about it, the underlying prejudice being that there is something wrong with that identity. We can’t scrub young adult literature for references to slavery or minority struggles or even violence, because the best writing reflects real life.

A couple of weeks ago, The New York Times told the story of a librarian in Idaho who organized a “Rainbow Squad,” welcoming children of different backgrounds to read and talk about books. A local church group protested, and the community is battling over whether the Rainbow Squad should be banned, along with the books they’re reading.

I wonder how this group threatens anyone, even as it creates a support net-

In The Washington Post last week, columnist Kate Cohen wrote about the school board in her hometown, Rockingham, Virginia, deciding to ban 57 books in the school library. One-third of the books feature gay or trans characters. Cohen wrote, “Freedom to read is the closest thing we have to freedom to think.”

This month, there can be no more pressing public business than to guarantee age-appropriate, open access to all kinds of books by all kinds of writers, for students across the land.

What can we do? Each of us can become familiar with our school and community libraries, stay informed about the books available to teens and oppose efforts by any groups of book police to decide what teenagers should read. In some communities in Florida, a single parent’s complaint about a book in a school library can get it banned.

As Cohen wrote, “The books on any

I think how lonely and desperate teenagers trying to figure out their lives without access to books must feel. Wellwritten books on racism or sexuality or addiction are a far better source for our kids than TikTok.

We read books for many reasons beyond wanting to be entertained — to solve the mysteries in our lives, to be dazzled or outraged by the way others live. Sometimes we can find our beliefs and lives affirmed in the pages of a new book.

The reason authoritarian entities, be they runaway school boards or governments, ban books is to limit access to ideas that might challenge their power.

We resist by reading and sharing.

The New York Public Library is offering free access to banned books for teenagers anywhere in the country through SimplyE, its e-reader app. The latest banned book pick is “All American Boys,” by Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely. It is available to all readers ages 13 and older.

There are worlds out there to be explored. I have had this joy in my life, and I want the same for every reader.

Copyright 2024 Randi Kreiss. Randi can be reached at randik3@aol.com.

RAnDI KREISS

HeraLd editoriaL Thank you for the snow day

in the past couple of weeks, we’ve been getting a lot of something we haven’t seen much of over the past couple of years: snow.

So much, in fact, that schools in our communities had no choice but to close. And because of that, we have just one thing to say to our school districts in Nassau County: Thank you for the snow day.

Yes, education works best when it’s rigorous and on a schedule. If the young minds loading buses each day were robots, then we’d probably be hesitant to interrupt the routine. Thankfully, our children are living, breathing people. And all of us can use a break from time to time — especially one we didn’t expect.

Anyone who grew up in a climate susceptible to winter almost assuredly experienced at least one snow day in their life, if not several. They go all the way back to the 19th century, when schools became gathering points children would flock to — and where safety would become paramount.

In places like Long Island, where crews are adept at clearing roads, even the best can be overwhelmed by significant storms and heavy snowfalls. And while it might feel like a free day off for many of our young learners, nearly all school districts have built snow days into the schedule — meaning any unexpected days off will be made up later in the spring.

We here on Long Island understand

Letters

the value of snow days, but not everyone shares those values. In fact, there is a growing contingent of education leaders right in our backyard who have been working hard to wipe snow days from existence.

It’s not that New York City has it out for an occasional unscheduled school closing. It’s just that the city’s education department has capitalized on the expansion of technology necessitated by the coronavirus pandemic, which made remote learning for all not just possible, but practical.

For the 1.1 million students who attend more than 1,800 schools in the city, instead of sitting inside a classroom to learn on days when it snows, they are sitting in their living rooms and bedrooms instead. All while other people their age, living just a few miles away, grab their snowsuits and sleds and enjoy the winter beauty Mother Nature has delivered.

Learning is important, but snow days are valuable. Quite valuable, in fact. Beyond safety, they provide a muchneeded mental health break — not just for students, but also for the adults responsible for their learning.

The pressure of academic demands and extracurricular activities can be intense. That can lead not just to stress, but even to burnout.

Snow days give all of us a chance to recharge and relax with some unscheduled playtime outdoors. And that’s important, too. We hear too much about

In fighting fires, amateurs are pros

To the Editor:

We are professional firefighters!

I take exception to the comment made by writer Brandon Cruz in his article “Long Island needs more volunteer firefighters” (Feb. 8-14) that our volunteer firefighters are not “professionals.” Cruz reports that if new volunteers don’t join local fire departments, communities will need to hire “professional” firefighters.

Our volunteers are professional firefighters, just not paid for what we do for our communities. We, as volunteers, don’t just put on turnout gear and rush into a burning building without the needed, required and constant training provided by the Nassau County Fire Service at its training facility in Bethpage, and here in Lynbrook, our own department’s training and drills at our training facility in Wilcox Alley.

Back some 44 years ago, the Lynbrook Fire Department was facing a firefighter shortage, and formed the Lynbrook Junior Fire Department for youngsters 12 to 17, to interest them in firefighting, with the goal of becoming firefighters when they turned 18.

During their time as juniors, the youngsters learn basic firefighting methods without actually fighting

how video games, computers and television keep so many of our kids indoors. But freshly fallen snow is irresistible, and will almost assuredly get them outside to have some fun. It’s good for their physical health in a way that sitting in front of a computer, watching a teacher on Zoom, just can’t provide.

And a snow day is a chance to build community. Families come together to shovel sidewalks, or maybe help neighbors in need. Children get together, working to build snow forts, or even a snowman, complete with a carrot nose and a top hat.

And who doesn’t love an impromptu snowball fight?

All of that comes with many parents still working remotely, which helps mitigate child-care issues and costs that might otherwise accompany snow days.

Just remember that these days are not breaks for everyone. Let’s not forget the municipal workers who wake up early to plow the snow, as well as the brave souls at utility companies, hospitals, and fire and police departments who, as first responders, are always prepared for the worst.

Each one of our children will spend more than 1,200 days in class through high school. Let them have a break. And let’s show New York City yet another reason why more and more people choose to live and work here on Long Island.

Because on Long Island, snow days are cool.

“

tAlbany’s ‘Office’-like comedy of errors

his bar is what you spend on things that no one ever, ever needs.”

That line is from an episode of the Tv comedy show “The office,” but it can easily be applied to some of the real-life decisions Gov. Kathy Hochul and the new York City politicians who control Albany are considering as part of this year’s state budget negotiations.

steVe rHoaDs

If you’ve never seen the episode, it centers on Michael Scott, the boss in “The office” and one of the show’s main characters, who’s dealing with personal financial problems. one of the company’s accountants, oscar Martinez, creates a chart to help Scott analyze his finances and spending. one bar shows necessities, like rent. Another

bar shows luxuries, like vacations and going out to dinner, and the third shows things that “no one ever, ever needs” — like multiple magic sets.

politics: He’s a member of the same political party as the governor and the Senate and Assembly leaders.

come here.

rPredictably, the final column is the highest, and Scott tries to justify misguided expenditures as things he has needed, instead of recognizing the role they played in creating his dire situation.

Albany is in an eerily similar predicament, which, unfortunately for all of us, isn’t Tv fiction. The state faces an astronomical $36 billion budget gap by fiscal year 2026-27, according to a report issued by Comptroller Tom Dinapoli last July, who noted that “State leaders must take action to align recurring revenues with recurring spending, with an eye toward preserving the economic competitiveness of our State and equality of opportunity for all new Yorkers.” And Dinapoli’s not playing

Letters

fires. When they turn 18, they join one of our fire companies, begin formal basic training at the county Fire Service Academy and are considered probationary firefighters for one year while they complete additional training.

Yes, we always need more volunteers, but our junior program is helping to fill our ranks.

Many area fire departments have also formed junior programs, based on ours, to help fill their own ranks. Admittedly, the juniors aren’t always enough, and some years are better than others. Lynbrook’s chief of department and three assistant chiefs came through our junior program. This isn’t the first time that all four chiefs have been former juniors. Many of our current volunteers came through our junior program.

There are now 30 youngsters in the Lynbrook Junior Fire Department. Two former juniors joined fire companies last month alone when they turned 18. It is estimated that over 40 percent of our juniors go on to become Lynbrook firefighters.

STeve GroGAn Lynbrook

Grogan is a 56-year member of the Lynbrook Fire Department and an ex-captain and honorary chief. He co-founded the Lynbrook Junior Fire Department, and is the department’s public information officer.

We need more governance, less politics

To the editor:

re County Legislator Delia Deriggi-

Yet rather than seeing the prudent fiscal discipline necessary to address this crisis, we see misguided priorities.

ather than fiscal discipline, we see the governor’s misguided priorities.

As an example, Hochul proposes spending over $2.4 billion on illegal migrants who are flocking to new York — new York City in particular — because of its sanctuary state designation and the generous benefits it entitles them to, including free health care. That’s on top of the nearly $2 billion spent last year. When looking to save taxpayer dollars and reduce state expenses, eliminating spending on noncitizens should be the first place to start. That one change would reduce the deficit by nearly 10 percent and, just as important, help solve the growing migrant crisis by removing a major incentive for them to

Instead, Hochul plans to fund these expenditures in part by cutting state aid to Long Island schools by $75 million. every dollar of state aid that is lost has to be raised locally in the form of school property taxes, so not only are you funding benefits for noncitizens, but you’ll pay higher property taxes to make up for the lost state aid.

More than just bad public policy, that is inherently unfair to Long Island families, and an irresponsible misuse of their hard-earned tax dollars.

I will continue to fight against it, and invite you to join me by visiting my website, rhoads.nysenate.gov, and signing the petition to stop the Long Island school aid cuts.

Watching “The office” makes me laugh, but watching the comedy of errors brought on by one-party rule in the state Capitol brings me no joy. The alarm bells continue to ring. Albany needs to listen.

Steve Rhoads represents the 5th Senate District.

Framework by Tim Baker

Whitton’s column “Stop playing petty political games with county resources” last week: The difference of opinion between the legislative minority leader and the majority leader illustrates the difference between governance and politics. nassau would benefit from more of the former and less of the latter.

The millions of dollars in American rescue Plan Act funds at issue, having not been spent as intended, present a “windfall.” Shall we have Bruce Blakeman billboards or firehouse funds? Are we improvident grasshoppers or prudent and ant-like? Shall we squander millions on a 125th-birthday party or prudently invest in libraries, cybersecurity and clean water?

BrIAn KeLLY Rockville Centre

Why impeach Mayorkas, Rep. D’Esposito?

To the editor:

U.S. rep. Anthony D’esposito voted in lockstep with r ep. Marjorie Taylor Greene to impeach Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas despite having no evidence, as required by the Constitution, of “high crimes and misdemeanors.”

There is no question that the immigration situation is a serious problem that needs to be addressed. However, the solution is not to scapegoat Mayorkas, but rather to pass the bipartisan legislation to beef up border security and provide more assets to process asylum claims more rapidly.

I am sure that the vast majority of Mr.

D’esposito’s constituents are in favor of the bipartisan legislation hammered out in the Senate that was endorsed by the Border Patrol agents’ union. However, it’s clear that Mr. D’ esposito takes his marching orders from Ms. Greene. She, and the rest of the MAGA republicans, do not want to provide a solution to the border problem until after the november election, as former President Donald

Trump has explicitly admitted that it would hurt his chances of being elected again.

Mr. D’esposito owes his allegiance to our country, his constituents and the Constitution he swore to uphold, and not to Marjorie Taylor Greene and Donald Trump.

roBerT ToLLe Cedarhurst