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Men’s Health Inside $1.00 $1.00
Vol. 25 No. 27
Merrick’s grads move up to MAMS
Explosive devices found at lakeside
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JUNE 30 - JUlY 6, 2022
Calhoun alum publishes first fantasy book By KEPHERD DANIEl kdaniel@liherald.com
Tim Baker/Herald
KRIStIN tAlBot, lEft, the garden manager at St Francis Episcopal Church, and the Rev. Grace Flint at the garden last Saturday. In celebration of Pollinator Week, the garden hosted a series of events to educate the community on how to protect pollinators.
Protecting the pollinators
Bees, butterflies and birds were the focus at the Garden at St. Francis Episcopal Church
By JoRDAN VAlloNE jvallone@liherald.com
A healthy garden relies on many things, among them sunlight, proper irrigation, regular weed removal, and human upkeep. But unbeknown to many, the key to the success of natural food sources is simple: pollinators. Threats to the environment and the habitats of bees, butterflies and even birds — earth’s pollinators — can put gardens at risk.
Volunteers at the Garden at St. Francis Episcopal Church in North Bellmore hope not only to help protect local pollinators, but also to make an impact by educating the community about their importance, and creating an environment that allows them to thrive. On the heels of the garden’s Pollinator Week, which wrapped up last Saturday, St. Francis’s garden manager, Kristin Talbot, told the Herald that the mission to protect
pollinators is part of a national movement. “Pollinator Partnership is a national organization, built by people who are trying to spread resources and knowledge about pollinators, to people who are just living in their neighborhoods that are interested in protecting pollinators, farmers like us, (and) people who are turning to land management and have acres and acres in preservation,” Talbot explained. Continued on page 7
What if Spider-Man had lived in medieval times? The answer can be found in a new book that was self-published by 2021 Calhoun High School graduate Sebastian Otalora. The 19-year-old Merrick native has been working on a book since he was in middle school, and in January he finished “A Champion’s Odyssey.” Otalora is a firstgeneration Colombian immigrant with a passion for the arts, including drawing, writing and graphic design. He was Sebastian drawn to animation in middle school, and his love of comics led him to start the book. “As a kid, I used to draw comics because, to me, it is the easiest form of storytelling from a childhood perspective,” said Otalora, who is now taking computer science courses at Farmingdale State College and working part-time. “And then as I grew up, I would just want to create these stories.” He has studied color theory,
and recently he has gotten involved in photography and video making. “A combination of all that just kind of made me want to make my own story,” he said. “A Champion’s Odyssey” is the first of 12 books Otalora is planning. It is an adventure-fantasy that takes place in medieval times, whose main character is named Esmond. Otalora was inspired to write it by two childhood favorites — Spider-Man, the Marvel superhero, and the video game series “The Legend of Zelda.” “The whole idea is that Esmond stumbled upon this otalora. a n c i e n t g o d l i k e power from an ancient hero,” Otalora said. “He wrestles with the coming-of-age and the responsibility of trying to be a heroic presence in his community.” His target audience, Otalora said, is teenagers and young adults. “In the first book, I introduced the main characters,” he said. “Alex, who is a good friend of Esmond; Zurk, a vigilante; Continued on page 20