Merrick
to all our readers of the Christian faith
HERALD Infections as of Dec. 21
CoMMuNITy uPDATE
2,860
Rotary Club lends a hand
Town allocates funds for schools
2,606
Page 7
Page 10
Infections as of Dec. 14
$1.00 $1.00
DECEMBER 24- 30, 2020
Vol. 23 No. 52
CHSD reflects on messages of Dr. King year, and each individual grade in each building is tasked with bringing in a specific set of The lessons of the Rev. Dr. items. At Wellington C. Mepham Martin Luther King Jr. are espe- High School, each grade is colcially poignant for the students lecting separate Covid-related of the Bellmore-Merrick Central items: freshmen, masks; sophoHigh School District this year — mores, hand sanitizers and tisnamely what he sues; juniors, hot said was the most cocoa and tea; and urgent question in seniors, soup and life: “What are you crackers, said doing for others?” Mepham social A m i d a ye a r studies teacher that included a Robyn Einbinder. pandemic and “It takes on its re s u l t i n g w i d e own personality spread financial across the district,” troubles, middle said Einbinder, and high school who also helped students are conplan the districttinuing their annuwide initiative as al tradition of colthe Central Dislecting goods for trict’s social studless fortunate indi- MADIsoN yEh ies chairwoman. viduals. This year, John F. Kennedy High “We have such all donations col- School ambassador crazy things going lected will directly on in the world, benefit the commuand we need to nity via the Bellmore-Merrick bring light to [the] positive Community Cupboard. things,” Mepham senior Taya The collection will run until Carlin said. “MLK changed so Martin Luther King Jr. Day on many lives for the better, and it’s Jan. 15. Collected goods will then important in hectic times we be packed and distributed by remember all the good times.” small groups of students. “MLK Day is building comThousands of students take part in the massive drive every Continued on page 4
By ANDREW GARCIA agarcia@liherald.com
I
Courtesy Dana Rogoff
No school? s’no problem. Merrick resident Jessica Raskin, 7, took advantage of the new-fallen snow last Thursday, when schools were closed by the first snowstorm of the season. Story, more photos, Page 5.
Former Merrick Life editor Harriet Luce dies at age 90 By AlyssA sEIDMAN aseidman@liherald.com
When Harriet Luce (nee Work) received a press badge certifying her position as the Merrick Life editor, the community’s former hometown newspaper, her son Allan said she “lit up like a flare.” “Do you know what this means?” Luce said. “I can go anywhere I want!” Allan explained that his
m o t h e r ’s e n t h u s i a s m w a s matched by her dedication to bettering the community. “If there was a civic duty to be perfor med,” he said, “she felt obliged to take a swing at it.” Luce’s daughter, Amy Ullrich, said this sense of devotion lasted throughout her mother’s life. Luce died on Dec. 3 after living with Alzheimer’s disease for several years. She was 90. Luce was born in 1930 in Buffalo and grew up in Pennsylva-
nia, where her father worked as a steel engineer. She studied liberal arts at Mount Holyoke College in Massachusetts, and was working for the B. Altman & Company department store in Manhattan in 1955 when she met her second husband, Robert Luce, at a cocktail party. Robert, who predeceased her, worked at an advertising company a few blocks from the department store at the time. Continued on page 3
t’s ever more prudent for us as a school and community to more than just simply recognize MLK Day.