_________________ FREEPORT FreePort _________________
HERALD Also serving Roosevelt
Fourth Graders move up
Town gets water stations
Free movies at Cow Meadow
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Vol. 89 No. 28
JUlY 4 - 10, 2024
$1.00
High School celebrates its graduates By MoHAMMAD RAFIQ mrafiq@liherald.com
Courtesy Freeport Public Schools
Valedictorian Jeremy Dominquez, left front, with senior class President Shaleah Burnett and Salutatorian Etienne Sasenarine. Back row, from left, assistant superintendents Idowu Ogundipe, Garvin Romane and Benjamin Roberts, Superintendent Kishore Kuncham, Freeport High Principal Gisselle Campbell-Ham, assistant superintendents Glori Engel and Helen Kanellopoulos, and school board President Maria Jordan-Awalom.
Freeport Public Schools celebrated 575 graduating seniors at the 131st Freeport High School commencement ceremony on June 22 at Hofstra University’s David S. Mack Sports and Exhibition Complex. The event commenced with the high school symphonic band playing “Pomp and Circumstance” as district administrators, members of the Board of Education and staff led the graduates into the arena, marking the conclusion of their high school journey and the beginning of new adventures. The high school’s Navy Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps presented the colors, and the Select Chorale sang the national anthem, before Assistant Principal Aaron Johnson, who served as master of ceremonies, welCOntInuED On PAGE 10
Freeport Rec Center showcases a sculptor’s artwork By AVITA JoHN Intern
The Freeport Recreation Center is proudly displaying the artwork of acclaimed artist John DiNaro for two months, beginning on July 7. The art is being exhibited at the center’s Art Alcove, which has been procured by the Long Island Arts Council at Freeport to further the presence of art in the lives of local residents. Up to a dozen pieces of varying sizes will be displayed, all original creative wood sculptures made from different kinds of wood. Some of the work is “abstract” in nature while some
is more “practical,” according to Larry Dressner of the LIACF. DiNaro who owns an art gallery, “Horse & Eagle” in Bellport, Long Island, has captivated audiences with his stunning sculptures and communityfocused art projects. His journey from a small-town boy to a respected figure in the art world is a testament to his dedication, creativity and passion for giving back. DiNaro was born on Sept. 20, 1945, as one of two twin boys, to Santo DiNaro, an American army gunner with Italian roots, and Lily Victoria Blackmore, a North Londoner who served in the British Women’s Land
Army. In early 1946, John DiNaro and his twin brother, Santo Jr., crossed the Atlantic to the U.S. with their mother on the ocean liner Queen Mary. The DiNaro family settled in Bellport, where John DiNaro grew up and eventually made his home. Today, his art studio remains a vital part of the Bellport community. DiNaro’s love for the outdoors and the sea led him to Humboldt State University in California, where he pursued a degree in oceanography. However, his true calling was always art. After years of splitting his time between commercial clam-
ming and sculpting, he realized that his passion lay in the creative world. “I went to the University of California at Humboldt State in 1964, and I graduated as an oceanographer … and in those days, unfortunately, the only work that was really available was to do environmental impact studies for energy companies,”
DiNaro said. DiNaro’s painting skills were honed through an unusual apprenticeship. More than 35 years ago, while on a sailing expedition in the Abaco Islands, an island chain in the Bahamas, DiNaro met an elderly man painting on the beach. Using unconventional tools COntInuED On PAGE 5