Nassau Herald 03-24-2024

Courtesy Jay Saltzman

Jay Saltzman, of Chabad of Hewlett and Hewlett United for Israel, joined the solidarity mission to Israel in the second week of March, meeting soldiers, visiting army bases and helping citizens in need.

Five Towners join mission to Israel

Chabad of Hewlett collaborates with other organizations

By PARKER SCHUG pschug@liherald.com

Jewish communities came together to show solidarity with Israel earlier this month. Members of Chabad of Hewlett, Hewlett United for Israel and Toys for Simcha joined forces to head overseas and help relieve hardships in Israeli communities.

“Since Oct. 7, obviously all feelings and

with the group, said, referring to Hamas’s attacks on Israel.

The trip’s itinerary for the group of about 15, half of whom were from the Five Towns, included delivering care packages to members of the Israel Defense Forces on the Gaza border, meeting with families of fallen soldiers, packing food at pantries for those in need, touring a Chabad house and a local police station, and visiting the site of the Nova Music Festival, where some of the attacks occurred.

“The journey was very special and will

Residents voice concerns about LHS seawall

By PARKER SCHUG pschug@liherald.com

Cedarhurst residents packed Village Hall and crowded into a downstairs anteroom for a meeting of the board of trustees on March 14, to express their anger at the Lawrence school district for the seawall it is proposing to build on the Lawrence High School campus. Community members also directed their displeasure with the $75 million project at the representatives of the Federal Emergency Management Agency who attended the three-hour hearing.

Residents of the neighborhood adjacent to the high school contend that a seawall will exacerbate the recurring flooding in the area. They cited a recent loss of cars in the area, destruction of property, and the ponding and buildup of sewage and sediment on local roads during and after rainstorms and high tide dues to a lack of drainage.

“This is wrong and cannot be allowed,” Gemma Allen, a resident of a Cedarhurst cooperative, said. “We’re going to remember this the next time we’re asked to vote for a school budget or school board members.”

Attendees raised concerns about the accessibility of the school property with a wall in place, the impact of the new infrastructure on nearby property values, low enrollment at Lawrence High, and the cost of the project compared with the cost of moving the students to another building.

Michael Mark, an architect working for the school district, explained that the seawall’s purpose is solely to keep the building in operation should there be another Hurricane Sandy-like storm. Mark added that in the event of a flood, floats controlling the gates of the seawall would allow students and staff to leave the area easily.

“That school is a resource for the community,” Mark said. “The point is, after another flood event like that — god forbid we see that again, hopefully we never have to see those things arise — but in the event that they do, and those floodwaters subside, the school can distribute meals, offer a refuge for the community.”

After some residents suggested closing the high school and moving the students to another building, district Superintendent

ContInUed on page 12

Kiwanis, Independent Coach, county, partner on toy drive

By PARKER SCHUG pschug@liherald.com

Giving toys to Five Towns children in need is a year round project, according to Christopher McGrath, former president of Peninsula Kiwanis Club.

“The initial toy drive just went to the children in the local hospitals during the holiday season,” McGrath said. “It expanded because more people were in need.”

Each year, the club hosts a Christmas Dream event, distributing toys to children who may not otherwise get gifts during holidays. McGrath said the club also collects coats and clothing for kids.

TOnce the holidays roll around, Kiwanis receives lists of students in need from the Five Towns Community Center, Five Town’s childcare centers, Our Lady of Good Counsel R.C. Church in Inwood and local schools, from social workers. The toys collected throughout the year are then sorted to ensure the appropriateage toy is received by the children.

focuses on collecting donations from major toy producers looking to give back, as well as independent donors.

“Were just gathering them now, you have to get them when you can get them,” McGrath said.

Independent Coach Corp., a Five Towns-based bus company that services the Hewlett-Woodmere and Lawrence school districts, stepped up this year to aid in transport of toys to and from distribution sites.

hey had volunteers out there to meet the vehicle, we loaded the vehicle up, top to bottom, side to side.

MiCHAEl SPERBER Independent Coach

“We try to match it,” McGrath said of all the toy requests.

Annually, the organization donates anywhere from 450 to nearly 600 toys.

“We give toys to every person, age, race doesn’t matter,” McGrath said.

Outside of holiday season, Kiwanis

“They’re a company that is born in bred in our community that never stops giving back to our community,” McGrath said.

Toys are stored in a warehouse, lent to the organization from Nassau County.

“Its something that the county executive believes in, taking care of the poor is one of his missions,” he said of County Executive Bruce Blakeman.

Michael Sperber, the risk manager at Independent Coach Corp. said the company has supported Peninsula Kiwanis’ efforts for decades.

On March 11, the company picked up toys from 700 Hicksville Road at the Nassau County Office of Emergency Management to be given to children by Kiwanis.

“This was the first time that we’ve picked up the toys for them because they had such a great abundance,” Sperber

Coach Peninsula Kiwanis and Independent Coach Corp. teamed up this year, to prepare for the organizations’ annual toy drive. While it is a holiday- based event, it is a yearround project, collecting toy donations, transporting and storing them.

said. “They had volunteers out there to meet the vehicle, we loaded the vehicle up, top to bottom, side to side.”

Independent Coach Corp. also volunteers to help with bringing Christmas trees to veterans, transporting students to backpack fundraisers, for those in need of a book bag, offering rides to church programs at times, in addition to many other community services.

“It’s a family owned company, the ownership does what we can to support the community in whatever ways we can,” Sperber said.

U.S. Marines typically donate toys and the WE CARE Fund, of the Nassau County Bar association issues grants for additional toys, McGrath said late-in-the-year distribution event happen.

“We want to maximize those dollars and funds that we’re giving back to the community,” Jeffrey Catterson of WE CARE said. “With the toy drive, those dollars we are giving back, go right back to help those in need.”

For more information on getting involved with the Peninsula Kiwanis’ toy drive go to PeninsulaKiwanis.org.

PUBLIC BUDGET FORUM

PUBLIC BUDGET FORUM

Tuesday, March 26, 2024•6:30 PM

Tuesday, March 26, 2024•6:30 PM

W son Place, Woodmer e

Woodmer e Education Center, One Johnson Place, Woodmer e

The Hewlett-Woodmere Board of Education will hold an open forum on Tuesday, March 26 at 6:30 PM to provide members of the community with an opportunity to voice questions and opinions regarding the 2024–2025 proposed budget.

The Hewlett-Woodmere Board of Education will hold an open forum on Tuesday, March 26 at 6:30 PM to provide members of the community with an opportunity to voice questions and opinions regarding the 2024–2025 proposed budget.

The open forum serves as an opportunity for the public to be heard before the budget is adopted by the Board of Education.

The open forum serves as an opportunity for the public to be heard before the budget is adopted by the Board of Education.

All members of the Hewlett-Woodmere community are encouraged to participate. To learn more about the 2024–2025 school budget, please visit www.hewlett-woodmere.net.

All members of the Hewlett-Woodmere community are encouraged to participate. To learn more about the 2024–2025 school budget, please visit www.hewlett-woodmere.net.

Courtesy Independent

Benny Goldstein is running for Lawrence mayor

By JEFFREY BESSEN jbessen@liherald.com

Benny Goldstein, the brother of former Lawrence Trustee Daniel Goldstein, is running for mayor of the village.

The current mayor, Alex Edelman, cannot seek office again due to term limits. Mayors serve four terms of two years in Lawrence. Deputy Mayor Paris Popack also announced she is running for mayor.

Goldstein, 46, grew up in Israel but has been living in the United States since 2018. He served as the town supervisor of Canajahorie in upstate Montgomery County and has served on other government boards, including zoning. He had previously lived in Kingston.

“I’ve been back and forth since 2009,” he said, about traveling from Israel to New York state. “I’ve been working consistently. I love America.

In Israel, Goldstein became a lawyer and obtained a master’s degree in law and specialized in international, patent and government law in the Jewish state. He and his brother both run for the Knesset, the ruling legislative body in Israel.

Part of his platform then was suggesting that Israeli companies that typically

pay their employees monthly, pay them weekly.

“I tried, I tried, it’s a whole different ball game in Israel, he said.

In his town supervisor role, Goldstein took pride in passing what is considered a comprehensive solar panel law that was crafted to limit the harmful impact of solar development on the residents and funding was said to be a long-awaited highway garage. When he ran for office upstate he proudly called himself a Trumpist Republican.

“I had a police department, a fire department and two villages under me, I am very familiar with running things and being a good manager,” he said. “You need a board that works as one.”

After a divorce, Goldstein, the father of three boys, moved down to Lawrence.

“Lawrence is a beautiful place, but it’s in the Stone Age,” he said, noting the village’s lack of speed bumps to mitigate traffic issues and outdoor working gyms.

His platform includes possibly selling a sticker for $15 so residents could park for free for either hour or two all the time, instead of needing to feed the parking meters all the time with quarters.

“I don’t like pettiness,” Goldstein said,

adding that municipalities such as Lawrence could be a “little more lenient and not so strict,” regarding certain laws. He also thinks that Lawrence village has spent too much money on what he termed “petty lawsuits,” and he would

look to lower taxes.

Goldstein hadn’t been an announced candidate for long when generate he some controversy and criticism for pushing what is known as Yiddishkeit — the Jewish way of life — in a campaign mailer.

“What I meant in the mailer is I’m appealing to the majority who very religious,” he said. “I knew I might upset some percentage, but I grew up very, very religious. Threatening was not my point. I know you can’t push Judaism. I was appealing and getting to understand whose my crowd.”

Known for what some people would call his quirkiness, Goldstein has boasted of earning roughly $500,000 from inventing what is called the SoloCam selfie stick, to creating a board game called Zabaerias to investing $20,000 of his income on cryptocurrency called “Fucvax” to protest the Covid-19 vaccine mandates.

“I plan on going door to door for more people to get to know me,” he said. I’m good at getting things done. I’ve done it before.”

The village election is June 18. All candidate petition forms are due to be submitted by May 14.

Hitting the charitable ground with Boots for Israel

By JEFFREY BESSEN jbessen@liherald.com

It began with a phone call.

A few days after the Oct. 7 attack on Israel by Hamas, when many of the Israel Defense Forces reservists returned to active duty, IDF officers, including General Daniel Jacobs, saw that the returnees’ boots were very worn.

Jacobs learned that there might be someone in Holliswood, Queens that could help his unit to obtain the needed military boots. He placed the call and Yakir Wachstock answered.

Wachstock noted that Boots for Israel started with shoe wholesaler Avi Shakarov, but now has expanded to multiple sources.

As of press time, at least 46,000 boots have been collected and sent to the IDF.

“The units often send a representative to pick up or we deliver to the base directly,” Wachstock wrote in an email. The largest one-day packing of boots was 6,000 he said.

The Hebrew Academy of Five Towns and Rockaway schools raised money and purchased and packed 1,800 boots earlier this month.

Middle school Principal Josh Gold attended a Long Island packing event and then contacted Wachstock.

“We thought it was an amazing way to support Israel and support the troops,” Gold said, adding that packing the boots in duffle bags was a great hands-on opportunity for the students to help the soldiers protecting the Jewish state.

Wachstock said it is a wonderful thing when schools such as HAFTR become involved.

“We have found when schools participate and let their community physically get involved by sorting boots, packing the boots into the actual duffels, and finally tagging them in readiness to be brought to El Al (airlines), the excitement is palpable,” he wrote.

Through his experiences, Wachstock said that, “Many of the students are in disbelief that these are the actual boots the soldiers will be wearing while they are up north or in Gaza defending us,” he said. “When we have Sunday boot-packing events, people come out in droves and no matter how long we expect he packing to last, inevitably it is done in a far shorter duration due to the excitement.”

County Executive Bruce Blakeman, Nassau’s first Jewish county executive, was excited to see what the school community accomplished at the HAFTR bootpacking event on March 8.

“I am thrilled to support Boots for Israel and to join in their drive at HAFTR,” he told the Herald. “In the wake of Oct.7, Nassau County residents have mobilized to assist Israel by sending needed supplies and funds.”

Blakeman noted that the amount of boots already sent and the organization plans to send “thousands more.”

For Gold, this act of charity ties in with this year’s annual dinner theme — HAFTR Stands with Israel.

“I would say that it’s important that the students understand that there is a financial component to chesed (the Hebrew word for kindness),” Gold said.

The eighth grade students along with parent volunteers oversaw the logistics of packing the boots and moving the boxes as kindergarten to eighth-graders — 800 students — helped with packing the duffle bags. The younger students wrote letters of appreciation to the soldiers receiving the boots.

“More than that it is a way of life. Actually giving back is part of the important lesson. It also really manifests itself in HAFTR’s core values. That we are committed and connected to Israel. It is very important we are instilling that value into all of our students.”

“It is an example and demonstration of a commitment to Israel,” he said.

For information on the dinner, go to HAFTR.org.

To help Boots for Israel, go to TheChesedFund.com/bootsonthe ground/ bootsforisrael.

Courtesy Benny Goldstein Benny Goldstein is the second person to announce they are running for mayor of Lawrence. Deputy Mayor Paris Popack announced last month.

Courtesy HAFTR

HAFTR Middle School students with some of the boots collected for the Israel soldiers in partnership with Boots for Israel.

Israeli real estate event generates protest

By PARKER SCHUG pschug@liherald.com

The Great Israeli Real Estate event drew a different crowd than its normal cliental during a stop in Cedarhurst. Nassau police and protesters gathered down the road from Young Israel of LawrenceCedarhurst on Spruce Street on March 12.

Talk of a protest at the traveling real estate event, which also makes stops in Montreal, and Toronto, Canada, Teaneck, New Jersey and Brooklyn, selling Israeli real estate, began in Five Towns online forums such as WhatsApp and Facebook over a week before the event.

On the south side of the road, Jewish protestors gathered. Police officers confined both groups of protestors to the sidewalks.

“We are Jewish, we live in this community and we wont be bullied or intimidated in our own community by antisemites and people who support genocide against our people,” Joe Carpenter, a Five Towns resident and protestor said of the Palestinian supporters. “We love life, they love death, that’s the difference.”

Protestors came out in support of Palestine, gathering on the north side of Spruce Street in the public lot connected to Cedarhurst Avenue on that Tuesday.

“It’s a group of Long Islanders that want to see the occupation end,” Farahana Islam said, speaking on behalf of the protesters of the Israeli real estate event.

The police patrolling the event by foot, horse and marked vehicles from Waverly Avenue to Central Avenue declined to comment, as did the real estate event greeters who sat at the door of the synagogue.

“We’re not speaking with the press, we we’re told not to, we want to keep it about the event tonight, we want to keep it private,” a greeter said.

Josh Vitow, a Five Towns resident found the protest to be a waste of time, he said.

“I don’t understand who they’re protesting to considering this is an extremely Jewish area with people that are very Jewishly knowledgeable and have very firm opinions on the Israeli Palestinian conflict and their opinions are not going to get moved one iota by saying 10, 15, 100 protestors,” Vitow said of protesters for Palestine and later of those for Israel, counter-protesting Palestinian supporters.

Instagram accounts with usernames CAIRNewYork, CoalitionForLWLI representing Coalition for Left Wing Long Island, LI.Students4Palestine, MuslimsForProgress, PSLLongIsland representing Long Island unit of the Party for Socialism & Liberation, SB4Palestine representing Stony Brook students and YoungLongIslandForJustice posted fliers about a 6 p.m. protest at the event for the week leading up to the event.

“PROTEST THE ILLEGAL SALE OF STOLEN PALESTINIAN LAND,” the flyer read.

The flyer also read that the real estate agents at the event would be engaging in the sale of property of settlements deemed illegal under international law.

“As the genocide continues, we call for an end to the settler-colonial project and it’s goal of expansion,” the flyer read.

In the WhatsApp group 5TownsCentral#29, where Five Towns updates are shared, an administrator message stated that Rabbi Shalom Axelrod from Young Israel Woodmere shared a message with YIW members to attend the real estate event for a large show of support. Axelrod’s message also included a statement from Cedarhurst Trustee Dan Plaut, saying he had coordinated with the police for their presence at the event and urged community members to attend.

“We must show that we are not intimidated and will continue our regular activities,” Plaut wrote in the message shared by Axelrod, posted to the Five Towns chat.

Parker Schug/Herald Jewish protesters line the south side of Spruce Street in Cedarhurst as a group on the north side protests an Israeli real estate event, taking place at Young Israel of Lawrence-Cedarhurst on March 12.

Embracing AI — but in a responsible way

By Rachele Terranova, Parker Schug & Brendan Carpenter

Continuing 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.

What place does artificial intelligence have in schools? Should it be feared? Embraced? Somewhere in between?

These are conversations that didn’t even exist a year ago — at least as far as education is concerned. But as AI becomes more and more accessible, students and teachers alike are finding they can use software to ask questions, find answers, and even complete their work faster — and maybe even better — than they ever could.

But no matter how some may feel about AI — or simply not even understand what AI is — the tool is making its way into schools and curriculum. How fast and how much depends on the district. But at this point, it seems teachers and administrators on Long Island are accepting AI rather than running from it.

Revolutionizing teaching and learning

One of those districts is Bellmore-Merrick Central High School, which is not just introducing AI to its students — it’s already turning it into a college-level course.

Offered through the computer science department at Calhoun High School in Merrick, the magnet course partners with Long Island University to offer the college credit to not only Calhoun students, but also those from Kennedy and Mepham high schools in Bellmore, too.

“Each project is aligned with artificial intelligence topics that showcase the practical applications of AI,” said Danielle Caliendo, the district’s mathematics and computer science chair.

Students learn the Python programming language while creating AI chatbots. They also program a robot created by a French technology company to use AI features like facial recognition. And they fly drones.

Students also completed a linear regression project designed to make predictions based on existing data, like how public company stocks might perform.

Each project is aligned with AI topics that showcase the tool’s practical applications.

Joe Innaco, who leads the district’s administrative and instructional technology efforts, sees technologies like ChatGPT— a free chatbot system designed to provide a human-like response to a prompt— as fascinating possibilities.

try class.

“If you look at the history, there was a lot of resistance because it would eliminate all the thinking of doing trigonometry,” he said. “It was used, and it was embraced. And it saves more time for creative thinking and innovation.”

“Our vision is of opportunity and innovation,” he said. “That’s how we see technologies like these. Opportunities and innovations for teachers. We want to provide training. We want to encourage exploration in model classrooms, spotlight success, and really host conversations about it.”

Embracing AI goes right to the stop of the Bellmore Public Schools district, where superintendent Joe Famularo already serves on several AI advisory boards at institutions like Adelphi University, New Tech Institute and LIU. He also participates in think tanks conducted to discover how to incorporate AI into the classroom in a safe and responsible way.

While change might be daunting to many, Famularo points out that it’s not unprecedented. Just think about how much opposition there was to bringing something as simple as a slide ruler into a trigonome-

Eventually came scientific calculators, and then the internet. Both received significant pushback, but now who could imagine a classroom without them?

Learning responsible use of AI

Instructors at Lawrence Woodmere Academy in the Five Towns are guiding students there in to use AI responsibly. John Tiliakos — who teaches computer science in the middle and upper schools — tends to let his students lead discussions surrounding AI.

AI is coming into his middle schoollevel engineering and technology classes, as well as his more high school-level courses in aviation, aerospace and computer programming.

But even before that, Tiliakos was spreading the word about AI, teaching a class at LWA on how artificial intelligence works in our world.

While that class no longer exists, Tiliakos said he and the other teachers at LWA are still focusing on the same values of providing knowledge for proper use of the technology.

“AI is a great tool,” Tiliakos said. “There’s nothing wrong with it, if it’s used in a positive way.”

That’s why he focuses so much of his attention on inputs — the written instructions given to AI systems. Tiliakos believes that inquisitive nature of teenagers could lead to devious uses of the technology — like writing term papers and the like.

His responsibility, Tiliakos said, is to direct students toward feeding AI prompts that result in helpful information to be used for beneficial causes.

“When you use AI, you see scenarios based on what you did,” he said. “Every action is a reaction.”

But some teachers — even at LWA — aren’t too keen about the AI presence.

“I don’t think it’s positive or negative,” said Christopher Clark, a senior at the school. “It just depends on how you use it.”

One unlikely way of putting AI to use is through another somewhat newer technological offering: podcasting.

“AI is still new. But for podcasting, it’s still very, very new,” said Henry McDaniel, a theatre arts and oration teacher at LWA. “What it can do is help you write a script for your podcast.”

Podcasting students also can use AI to reproduce their own voice to read their scripts, McDaniel said. They then post the productions online.

“Our motto here is ‘at home with the world,’” he said. “What we’re trying to do is give them skillsets, but (also) teach them the responsible way of using those skillsets.”

Testing the waters

Implementing AI has been a little slower going in Long Beach, where the discussion on how best to use it continues.

Lorraine Radice, the school district’s literacy director, has worked to alleviate many of the fears some Long Beach teachers might have when it comes to AI, while looking for ways they could try to implement the technology into their respective classrooms.

“Over the summer, I taught two professional development courses in the district and taught teachers how to use ChatGPT,” Radice said. “I surveyed teachers in the fall across the district as to who was using ChatGPT and who knew about it. Even in the fall after about nine months of ChatGPT being in social media circulations and in the news — not as many people had used it as I expected.”

While Radice would very much like developing ways on how AI chatbots like ChatGPT can be used in classrooms, a lot of her time is still focused on educating teachers what exactly the AI software is.

“So, part of the goals of those summer professional development courses was to raise awareness of how to use it,” Radice said,” and then to really start to support teens in thinking about how it could be used from the planning side of being a teacher. And then also how it can be used as a tool to provide support and equitable access to writing and generating ideas for

Courtesy Bellmore-Merrick Central High School District

New to schools in Bellmore and Merrick is a college-level artificial intelligence course. Partnering with Long Island University, the class is offered at Calhoun High School, where students can earn college credit by learning about the emerging technology.

Some teachers worry AI goes a little too far

ConTinued From PreViouS PAge

kids.”

Having access to AI has impacted classrooms already by allowing students to use it to aid research, while many teachers worry they could go too far and have AI completely answer questions and even write essays for them.

But that just means adapting.

A I is a great tool. There’s nothing wrong with it, if it’s used in a positive way

John TiliAkos teacher, Lawrence Woodmere Academy

“A teacher raised a great question during a session when talking about using artificial intelligence tools to analyze classical texts,” Radice said. “The same question has been asked so many times, and she asked, ‘If I could just get the answer from a tool like ChatGPT, then what’s the point of even asking this type of question?’

“That’s a great thing for people to think about. What is the point of this question? Can I rephrase this question that really puts the student at the center of the thinking, and not so much (a) media tool?”

But there is still a ways to go before AI becomes more commonly accepted in classrooms, Radice said. At least on Long Beach.

“I wouldn’t say that there is a push,” she said. “I think part of that is because of the privacy. We want to make sure that we’re using tools that are safe to use in school. And once we do that, then it can become a more consistent part of our practice.”

Parker Schug/Herald

Lawrence

TSmall numbers, substantial results PERSON TO PERSON

here’s something I like about small numbers. Especially 1, 2 and 3. For me, more than 3 is typically unmanageable. Everything I need to do, and everything I want to remember, should be no more than 3 at any one time.

Let me give you 3 examples to illustrate what I mean:

If you’re running around trying to get 101 things done during the day, stop! Ask yourself what the 3 most important tasks are that you need to take care of today. Then get them done. 3 is manageable; 101 is not. If you finish the 3 and still have energy for more, do another 1. When you finish a task, take a moment to pat yourself on the back and say, “I’ve done it!”

absorb at any one time. So, don’t read on until you’ve digested the first 3 ideas. Then, and only then, are you ready for more.

PsychWisdom

If you’re having difficulties with technology, feeling like an idiot because you don’t understand a whole lot on your new digital device, stop! It’s all too much. Learn 1 thing, only 1! When you figure out this one feature, you’ll feel less tech challenged. Success is created with 1 accomplishment at a time!

If you’ve had a frustrating day and are ready to explode, don’t try to calm your anger by counting to ten. That doesn’t work. When you’re furious, counting to ten takes seconds and then wham, you erupt with more fury than before. Instead, take 3 deep breaths, inhaling slowly, exhaling slowly. If you still haven’t calmed down, take another 3 deep breaths. Then say something reassuring to yourself. Appreciate the closure as you put your frustration behind you.

Okay, have you gotten those suggestions down pat? If not, reread them, till they sink into your brain. I don’t care how many gray cells you have; there’s only so much you can

Let’s say you’ve read an article entitled, “25 Ways to Get More Organized.” Twenty-five, are you serious? The author must think you’re just sitting around with nothing to do except master her obsessive-compulsive techniques. No, no, no! You’ve got a life to live. So, either throw that magazine out (1 task accomplished) or skim that article for an idea or two that might be helpful to you. Just 1, 2, or 3 will suffice.

Big numbers can interfere with weight loss. If you want to lose weight, aim for 1, 2, or 3 pounds this week. Whatever you accomplish, that’s great! Next week, lose another pound or two. That’s it! You put on 1 or 2 pounds at a time; you take them off the same way!

Instead of enumerating all the faults of another as your anger revs up, choose 1 trait that’s most annoying to you. Then suggest a good time to discuss it. Fingers are not to be used to tally up the wicked, nasty, stupid things others do. Your fingers are meant for better things.

That’s all folks; enough is enough! I hope you spend the rest of this day enjoying yourself. Not enough of us do.

©2024

Linda Sapadin, Ph.D., psychologist, coach, and author specializes in helping people improve their relationships, enhance their lives, and overcome debilitating anxiety, procrastination and depression. Contact her at DrSapadin@aol.com. Visit her website at www.PsychWisdom.com.

Jewish organizations show solidarity with Israel

remain with us in our memory forever,” Rabbi Nochem Tenenboim, of Chabad of Hewlett, wrote in an email.

Saltzman is a member of Hewlett United for Israel and Chabad of Hewlett. Hewlett United for Israel, a nonpartisan grass-roots organization, was founded in June 2022 to battle antisemitism. Saltzman said he found speaking with IDF soldiers and seeing the aftermath of the Hamas attacks to be especially moving.

“You can follow what’s going on there,” he said. “It’s a very different reality when you stand on the kibbutz, right on the Gaza border.”

One Israeli man who spoke with the group said he had rescued nearly 350 music festival attendees on Oct. 7, loading them into his truck and taking them to safety, all while traveling unarmed.

Tactive soldiers at an army base, eating, chatting and dancing with them.

“The young men and women were amazing,” Saltzman said. “They know what they’re fighting for, and they’re very dedicated.”

J.J. Hecht, president of Toys for Simcha, an organization that donates toys to hospitalized children in Israel, also went on the trip. Toys for Simcha, which is headquartered in New York City, widened its mission after Oct. 7, to help children in need throughout Israel, hospitalized or not.

he journey was very special and will remain with us in our memory forever.

Rabbi Nochem TeNeNboim Chabad of Hewlett

“The bravery of the common people there — it’s hard to describe,” Saltzman said.

He said he also appreciated being able to pick fruit on a strawberry farm to be sold the next day. “It really felt like I was helping out,” he said. “The fellow that owns the strawberry farm has had no workers since the war broke out.”

The group also hosted a barbecue for

As estate planners, we consistently meet with people who are suffering from traumatic relationships with their children or grandchildren. Children themselves may become estranged or at odds with parents or their siblings. Sometimes, an in-law is involved that seems to turn the client’s son or daughter into someone completely different from the child they raised. The pain that these clients are going through is palpable.

Some wise sage once said that all pain comes from resistance. Many of these relationship issues may be difficult or impossible to overcome, but one thing we can all do is work on ourselves — by accepting what is. Accepting what is does not mean agreeing with or condoning certain behavior. What it does mean is that you stop saying to yourself that it is not fair, it “should” be otherwise, etc. That will not do you one bit of good and may do you considerable harm. Stress has been called “the silent killer”.

We recall reading a pithy quote a while back that went something like this “when someone disappoints you, you have two choices, you

The barbecue, Hecht said, gave him new perspective on what is happening in Israel.

“That was a really happy experience — that was a really positive experience,” he said, recalling the uplifting energy of the younger soldiers. “We left the army base with a tremendous amount of hope.”

This was the largest mission Toys for Simcha had been part of since the start of the war, Hecht said, this being the biggest group their organization had traveled with. And Hecht gave a dollhouse and drone to two children.

The group stayed in a hotel in Jerusalem where the government placed families who were displaced from their homes on the Gaza border.

can either lower your expectations or walk away”. What is disappointment but dashed expectations? Those who learn to expect less are disappointed less.

“Accepting what is” cannot be accomplished overnight. It is a concept or thought process that improves your outlook the more you think about it, work on it and form new neural pathways to forge the new outlook.

Estate planners inevitably become “therapists” for their clients, because estate planning involves social relationships. Over the years, we have observed that many social problems occur between the client’s two ears. As Shakespeare said in Hamlet “There is nothing good or bad, but thinking makes it so.” Forget about what’s fair or right and what’s not. You are only hurting yourself. The other person is often blissfully unaware of how you’re feeling. Michael J. Fox, the actor known for his optimism despite suffering from Parkinson’s, put it best when he said “My happiness grows in direct proportion to my acceptance, and in inverse proportion to my expectations”.

to Israel, where they helped a local farmer,

not had employees since Oct. 7, pick strawberries.

“Nobody talks about it, but there are internal refugees all over the country,” Saltzman said.

In the hotel, the displaced Israeli children were up late at night, playing soccer and other games and doing puzzles in the hallways.

“You really just want to talk to the kids and give them a hug,” Saltzman said.

Tenenboim noted that this is one of the most challenging times Israelis have faced. “Israel is amazing in its beauty,” he wrote, “and we found that the spirit and devotion of the people are so strong.”

Courtesy Jay Saltzman

The Chabad of Hewlett, Hewlett United for Israel and Toys for Simcha took part in a solidarity mission

who has

Art explorations

Converse, collaborate and create at Family Saturdays at Nassau County Museum of Art, Saturday, March 23, noon-3 p.m. Get inspired by the art and objects in the galleries and then join educators at the Manes Center to explore and discover different materials to create your own original artwork.

Kids and adults connect while talking about and making art together. A new project is featured every week. $20 adult, $10 child. For ages 2-14. Registration required. Nassau County Museum of Art, 1 Museum Dr., Roslyn Harbor. Visit NassauMuseum.org for to register or call (516) 484-9337.

Games & Crafts

Relax with friends playing a game or work on your ongoing craft project as part of Peninsula Public Library’s in-person Cozy Games & Crafts program, Monday, March 25, 2-4:30 p.m. Bring your own knitting, crocheting or other projects and material. Some games will be provided. No instructors. 280 Central Ave., Lawrence.

Purim Masquerade

Celebrate Purim Eve with Chabad of Hewlett, Saturday, March 23, 9 p.m. $25 per adult, 24 Everit Ave., Hewlett. Visit JewishHewlett.com/Masquerade for tickets.

Parsha & Pizza

Join Rabbi Steve Graber at Temple Beth El of Cedarhurst for Parsha & Pizza, on Thursday, March 28, at 6:30 p.m., for a religious discussion with dinner.

All congregants welcome to the event, hosted by Temple Beth El, Temple

Hillel, Sephardic Temple and Hewlett East Rockaway Jewish Centre. 46 Locust Ave., in Cedarhurst. Visit TempleBethElOfCedarhurst. org

Retrofest

Purim Costume Extravaganza

Young Israel of Hewlett hosts a Retrofest Purim Costume Extravaganza, Saturday, March 23, 10 p.m.-12 a.m. Playing Dead, Richie Borah and Uncle Jams band perform music by The Grateful Dead, Phish and Bob Dylan, Tickets are $18 in advance at YIHewlett.org/ form/2024PurimRetrofest. html or $25 at the door. 1 Piermont Ave., Hewlett

Having an event?

Literary conversation

Poet-essayist Elizabeth Schmermund, who is an assistant professor of English at SUNY Old Westbury, reads from her works, as part of Hofstra University’s Great Writers Great Readings series, Wednesday, March 27, 4:30 p.m.

Her work has appeared in The Independent, Mantis, and Gyroscope Review, among other venues. Her first poetry chapbook, “Alexander the Great,” is published by Finishing Line Press. Free and open to the public. Guthart Cultural Center Theater, Axinn Library, South Campus, Hempstead. Register at events. hofstra.edu or call the Hofstra Cultural Center at (516) 4635669 for more information.

Weekly Parsha

Chabad of the Five Towns welcomes all to its weekly Parsha class for men and women, Thursdays, at 7:30 p.m. Join R’Yanky Feder for discussion at the Levi Yitzchak Library. 564 Central Ave., in Cedarhurst.

Items on The Scene page are listed free of charge. The Herald welcomes listings of upcoming events, community meetings and items of public interest. All submissions should include date, time and location of the event, cost, and a contact name and phone number. Submissions can be emailed to thescene@liherald.com.

In concert

Plaza Theatrical welcomes spring with a lively tribute to The Temptations, Saturday, March 23, 7:30 p.m. Groove along with The Fellas, in their concert “Just My Imagination,” a powerful salute to the Motown icons. Enjoy all those great tunes, including “Just My Imagination,” “My Girl,” “Papa Was A Rollin’ Stone,” “Ain’t Too Proud to Beg,” and more. See the concert at Plaza’s stage at the Elmont Library Theatre. 700 Hempstead Tpke., Elmont. $40, $35 seniors. Elmont. For tickets, call (516) 599-6870 or visit PlazaTheatrical.com.

Get hoppy

Long Island Children’s Museum welcomes spring when it opens its doors for an after-hours celebration, “Spring EGGstravaganza,” Saturday, March 23. Peter Cottontail greets families, 6-9 p.m., with a night of engaging activities celebrating iconic symbols of the season. Children can start their evening by decorating a Cool Carrot goody bag to collect items throughout the night. Activities include the creating such spring-themed items as a Bunny Puppet Pal, How Does your Garden Grow planter, an Everywhere a Chick Chick necklace and a Spring has Sprung hat. Also test your skills in egg relay races and take part in a museum-wide scavenger hunt. All that celebration got you egg-hausted? Make a sweet treat to recharge your energy.

The LICM Theater hosts eye-popping performances of BubbleMania Jr. with bubbleologist Jim Napolitano (6:15, 7:05 and 8 p.m.) Sit back and witness fascinating bubble sculptures being crafted and discover soap bubble tricks, with plenty of comedy and audience interaction woven into this spell-binding show. Dancing bubbles, bubbles inside bubbles, arches and a bubble fountain on display create a truly memorable performance. (Additional ticket required for theater performance.) $15 per person ($13 members); BubbleMania Jr. ticket fees are $4 with EGGstravaganza admission ($3 members). Advance tickets are recommended for this popular event. Museum Row, Garden City. (516) 224-5800 or LICM.org.

Celebrating Purim at Yeshiva Ketana

To celebrate Purim this year, Yeshiva Ketana of Long Island administrators, rabbis and students held the Inwood school’s holiday extravaganza on March 17.

The theme was the Jewish shtetl with the rabbis dressed in the clothes of what Jews in the early 1900s would wear. A shtetl, a Yiddish word, simply means town, but is most associated with Jews in Eastern Europe as the communities where most Jewish people lived in this area before the Holocaust.

Purim, which this year starts on the night of March 23, is a Jewish holiday that commemorates the heroism of a Jewish woman named Esther and how she helped to rescue her people from the clutches of the evil Haman, an officials of the Achaemenid Empire in the Fifth century Before the Common Era.

The story is recounted in the Book of Esther, also known as the Megillah. The holiday is typically celebrated by children dressing in costumes of the heroes, including Esther’s cousin, Mordecai, and eating a triangle-shaped pastry called hamantashen. Whenever Haman’s name is recited, it is downed out by noise.

— Jeffrey Bessen Courtesy Mark Getman

Yeshiva Ketana of Long Island students, administrators and rabbis took part in the school’s Purim celebration on March 17.

Public Notices

VILLAGE OF LAWRENCE

NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that pursuant to the provisions of Village Code §187-17 and the New York Real Property Tax Law as applicable to the Village of Lawrence (“Village”), and pursuant to direction of the Village Board of Trustees, the undersigned Village ClerkTreasurer/Village Administrator will sell at Public Auction in the manner provided by law on April 10, 2024 at 10:00 am local prevailing time in the Village Hall, 196 Central Avenue, Lawrence, New York so much of each of the following parcels upon which Village Taxes and/ or Assessments remain unpaid for the year 2023 as will be sufficient to discharge the taxes and/or assessments, fees, interest and discharges which may be due thereon respectively at the time of such sale, and shall continue the same from day to day until the said sale shall be completed. The Village reserves the right to withdraw any property prior to the sale of its lien.

PLEASE ALSO TAKE NOTICE THAT THE VILLAGE OF LAWRENCE WILL PURCHASE ALL LIENS FOR SALE, AND NO PUBLIC BIDDING WILL BE PERMITTED.

Such real estate will be sold subject to any unpaid tax liens purchased and held by the Village. The purchase or purchasers of such tax sale will be required to pay the amount of their respective bids to the undersigned within TEN days after the sale pursuant to the provisions of Section 1454 of the New York Real Property Tax Law and Village Local Law #12-1994. THE VILLAGE DOES NOT PROVIDE LEGAL ADVICE TO ANY LIEN PURCHASER REGARDING ANY ASPECT OF THE PURCHASE OF OR FORECLOSURE UPON ANY LIEN.

The following is a list or statement of the Real Estate upon which such Tax and/or Assessments are unpaid for the year 2023 with a statement of the amount of tax and/or assessments, fees, interest and charges thereon:

LEGAL NOTICE

NOTICE OF TAX LIEN SALE VILLAGE OF ATLANTIC BEACH

NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN pursuant to Section 1452 and 1454 of the Real Property Tax Law of the State of NY that the following is a list of real estate tax in the Incorporated Village of Atlantic Beach upon which 2023/2024 taxes are unpaid as shown in the tax list on file with the Village Clerk, together with amounts of the tax, interest and charges thereon.

PLEASE TAKE FURTHER NOTICE that on April 1, 2024 at 10:30 AM in the forenoon of said day, a lien on the aforesaid parcels of real estate will be sold at public auction in the Atlantic Beach Village Hall, 65 The Plaza, Atlantic Beach, NY, to discharge the tax, fees, interest and charges of aforesaid which may be due thereon at the time of such sale.

All parcels located in Section 58

BLOCK LOTS LEGAL ADDRESS TOTAL

12 11 Chris McMahon, 139 Coronado St. $ 1,842.89

12 14-16 Chris McMahon, 139 Coronado St. $ 174.76

55 29 Mildred Wolf, 47 Fulton Avenue $ 1,677.89

75 34 Haci Alper Tutus, 2010 Park St. $ 192.84

BY ORDER OF THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES

EMILY SINISCALCHI, VILLAGE CLERK

HERBERT A. KLIBANOFF, TREASURER

DATED: MARCH 5, 2023

Publish 3/14, 21, 28

QUOTE

LEGAL NOTICE

NOTICE OF FORMATION OF LIMITED LIABILITY

COMPANY. NAME: 12

CLANCY PROPERTIES,

LLC. Articles of Organization were filed with the Secretary of State of New York, (SSNY) on 04/25/2023.

NY Office location: Nassau County. SSNY has been designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail a copy of the process to:

Russell McRory c/o ArentFox Schiff LLP, 1301 Avenue of the Americas, 42nd Floor, New York, NY 10119.

Purpose: To engage in any lawful act or activity 144829

LEGAL NOTICE

NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT COUNTY OF NASSAU, U.S. BANK TRUST NATIONAL ASSOCIATION, NOT IN ITS INDIVIDUAL CAPACITY BUT SOLELY AS OWNER TRUSTEE FOR

RCF 2 ACQUISITION TRUST, Plaintiff, vs. ALBERT D. SUROWIECKI A/K/A ALBERT SUROWIECKI, ET AL., Defendant(s). Pursuant to an Order Confirming Referee’s Report and Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale duly entered on June 6, 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 on April 2, 2024 at 2:00 p.m., premises known as 966 Singleton Avenue, Woodmere, NY 11598.

All that certain plot, piece or parcel of land, with the buildings and improvements thereon erected, situate, lying and being in the Town of Hempstead, County of Nassau and State of New York, Section 41, Block 28, Lots 105 and 823.

Approximate amount of judgment is $530,294.98 plus interest and costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment Index #609151/2021. Cash will not be accepted. This foreclosure sale will be held on the north side steps of the Courthouse, rain or shine. COVID-19 safety protocols will be followed at the foreclosure sale. If proper social distancing cannot be maintained or there are other health or safety concerns, the Court Appointed Referee will cancel the sale.

Peter J. Famighetti, Esq., Referee

Knuckles, Komosinski & Manfro, LLP, 565 Taxter Road, Suite 590, Elmsford, NY 10523, Attorneys for Plaintiff 145080

of Hempstead, County of Nassau and State of New York, SECTION: 58, BLOCK: 58, LOT: 54, 55 AND 56. Approximate amount of judgment $1,400,598.54 plus interest and costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment Index #014941/2012. The aforementioned auction will be conducted in accordance with the NASSAU County COVID-19 Protocols located on the Office of Court Administration (OCA) website (https://ww2.nycourts.gov /Admin/oca.shtml) and as such all persons must comply with social distancing, wearing masks and screening practices in effect at the time of this foreclosure sale. Ronald J. Ferraro, Esq., Referee FEIN, SUCH & CRANE, LLP 28 East Main Street, Suite 1800 Rochester, NY 14614 SPSNY369 79647 145241

LEGAL NOTICE INC. VILLAGE OF HEWLETT NECK PUBLIC HEARING

TENTATIVE VILLAGE BUDGET

NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN

LEGAL NOTICE

NOTICE OF SALE

EASTERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK (BROOKLYN) WINDWARD BORA, LLC.; Plaintiff v. OSNAT ZINNAR, et al; Defendants

Attorneys for Plaintiff: Hasbani & Light, P.C., 450 7th Ave, Suite 1408, NY, NY 10123; (212) 643-6677

Pursuant to judgment of foreclosure and sale granted herein on 2/12/24, I will sell at Public Auction to the highest bidder in the EDNY-Brooklyn, 225 Cadman Plaza East, Brooklyn, NY 11201.

On April 4, 2024 at 9:30 AM.

Premises known as 965 Cedarhurst Street, North Woodmere, NY 11581

Section: 0039 Block: 00549-00 Lot: 00002

All that certain plot, piece or parcel of land, situate, lying and being in the Town of Hempstead, County of Nassau, State of New York.

As more particularly described in the judgment of foreclosure and sale. Sold subject to all of the terms and conditions contained in said judgment and terms of sale.

Subject: Application of Shimon and Naomi Fishman, 110 Wood Lane, Woodsburgh, to construct two pergolas and driveway entry piers with gates, which construction requires variances of the following Village Code sections: (a) 150-9, to permit the pergola at the rear of the property to be 21 feet from the rear property line, where a minimum setback of 25 feet is required, (b) 150-11 to permit the pergola at the rear of the house to be 11 feet from the side property line, where a minimum setback of 20 feet is required; (c) 150-39(A), to permit a lot coverage of 4,904 square feet, where a maximum lot coverage of 3,422.55 square feet is permitted; (d) 150-39(E), to permit (i) four (4) entry piers with gates to be located in the front yard, where no accessory structures are permitted in a front yard, (ii) the north entry pier to have a side yard setback of 6 inches, where a minimum of 13.32 feet is required, and (iii) the south entry pier to have a side yard setback of 3 feet, where a minimum of 13.32 feet is required. Premises are also known as Section 41, Block 68, Lot 275 on the Nassau County Land and Tax Map.

Allan B. Mendelsohn, Esq., Referee 145274

LEGAL NOTICE NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT

COUNTY OF NASSAU U.S. BANK NATIONAL ASSOCIATION, AS TRUSTEE FOR J.P. MORGAN ALTERNATIVE LOAN TRUST, 2006-S4, Plaintiff AGAINST RICKY PAUL GOLDIN A/K/A RICKY PAULL GOLDIN; ET AL., Defendant(s) Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale duly entered January 30, 2024, I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction at the North Side steps of the Nassau County Supreme Court, 100 Supreme Court Drive, Mineola, NY 11501 on April 9, 2024 at 2:00PM, premises known as 62 Broome Avenue A/K/A Broome Street, Atlantic Beach, NY 11509. All that certain plot piece or parcel of land, with the buildings and improvements erected, situate, lying and being in the Incorporated Village of Atlantic Beach, Town

Approximate amount of judgment: $273,926.00 plus interest and costs. Docket Number: 19cv-04533

that the Board of Trustees of the Incorporated Village of Hewlett Neck will hold a Public Hearing on Friday, April 12, 2024 at 9:00 AM. in relation to the tentative budget of the Inc. Village of Hewlett Neck for fiscal year beginning June 1, 2024 and ending May 31, 2025, a copy of which is available at the office of the Village Clerk, 30 Piermont Avenue, Hewlett New York, where it may be inspected by any interested person during office hours 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., weekdays. No compensation is proposed to be paid to any member of the Board of Trustees. At such public hearing, citizens and persons interested will have an opportunity to be heard.

Any person having a disability which would inhibit attendance at or participation in the hearing should notify the Village Clerk at least three business days prior to the hearing, so that reasonable efforts may be made to facilitate such attendance and participation.

Michelle Blandino, Village Clerk Inc. Village of Hewlett

Neck Dated: March 21., 2024 145578

LEGAL NOTICE

PUBLIC HEARING NOTICE

PLEASE TAKE NOTICE that a public hearing will be held as to the following matter:

Agency: Board of Appeals

Village of Woodsburgh

Date: April 3, 2024

Time: 7:00 p.m.

Place: 30 Piermont

Avenue, Hewlett, NY 11557

The Board of Appeals, as lead agency, has determined that these applications are Type II matters under the State Environmental Quality Review Act, which require no environmental review. At the said time and place, all interested persons may be heard with respect to the foregoing matters. Any person having a disability which would inhibit attendance at or participation in the hearing should notify the Village Clerk at least three business days prior to the hearing, so that reasonable efforts may be made to facilitate such attendance and participation.

Plans and other materials associated with the application may be reviewed and downloaded at www.woodsburghny.com or inspected at the office of the Village Clerk, 30 Piermont Avenue, Hewlett, New York, during regular business hours.

Dated: March 11, 2024

BY ORDER OF THE BOARD OF APPEALS

Michelle Blandino, Village Clerk 145579

LEGAL NOTICE

HAFTR Middle School keeps hostages top of mind

Remaining hopeful for safe return

By PARKER SCHUG pschug@liherald.com

The Hebrew Academy of Five Towns and Rockaway Middle School in Lawrence marked Rosh Chodesh, the start of a new month on the Jewish calendar. Students from all grade levels honored the hostages held in Gaza by Hamas by participating in the “Forests 4 Hope” initiative.

“This started in Chicago, some Chicago schools have been doing it, we’re the first New York School that we know of to implement it,” Yali Werzberger, HAFTR middle school assistant principal said.

“Forests 4 Hope” is a program to serve as a constant reminder of those still held captive, Hebrew department chair Einat Rabinovich wrote in an email.

“Each student will write a hostage’s name along with a message of hope and tefilah (the Hebrew word for prayer) for his/her safe return,” Rabinovich said. “It promises to be a really meaningful activity for everyone.”

Students wrote names on bright yellow ribbons, then tied them to trees outside of the school.

Fanilyn Shaw, a HAFTR student, wrote hostage Ariel Bibas’ name on an orange

ribbon as an ode to his and his families red hair.

“I did an orange ribbon because Ariel

Public Notices

hereby given that the BOARD OF APPEALS of the Town of Hempstead will hold a public hearing in the Old Town Hall, 350 Front Street, Room 230, Second Floor, Hempstead, New York on 3/27/2024 at 9:30 A.M. & 2:00 P.M. to consider the following applications and appeals:

THE FOLLOWING CASES

WILL BE CALLED

STARTING AT 9:30 A.M.

195/24. HEWLETT - Uriel

Lebhar, Renewal of grant to maintain 2-family dwelling ot permitted in Res. “B” district & open porch attached thereto with variances for height, exceeds number of stories (3 stories), front yard average setback and lot area occupied., N/s Raymond Pl., 278’ W/o East Broadway, a/k/a 58/60 Raymond Pl.

THE FOLLOWING CASES WILL BE CALLED

STARTING AT 2:00 P.M.

218/24. INWOODYaakov Ludmir & Yaffa Gindoff, Variances, front yard average setback, lot area occupied, height, number of stories, construct 3-story dwelling with garage, terrace & greenhouses (existing dwelling to be demolished)., E/s Beekman St., 165’ S/o Piza St., a/k/a 10 Beekman St.

ALL PAPERS PERTAINING TO THE ABOVE HEARING ARE AVAILABLE FOR

INSPECTION AT THE BOARD OF APPEALS, TOWN HALL, 1 WASHINGTON STREET, HEMPSTEAD, NY 11550. This notice is only for new cases in Hewlett & Inwood within Town of Hempstead jurisdiction. There are additional cases in different hamlets, towns and villages on the Board of Appeals calendar. The full calendar is available at https://hempsteadny.gov/ 509/Board-of-Appeals

The internet address of the website streaming for this meeting is https://hempsteadny.gov/ 576/Live-Streaming-Video Interested parties may appear at the above time and place. At the call of the Chairman, the Board will consider decisions on the foregoing and those on the Reserve Decision calendar and such other matters as may properly come before it. 145540

LEGAL NOTICE

HEWLETT-WOODMERE

UNION FREE SCHOOL DISTRICT

One Johnson Place Woodmere, New York 11598-1312

LEGAL NOTICE TO BIDDERS

The Board of Education of the Hewlett-Woodmere Union Free School District, Woodmere, New York 11598-1312, hereby invites the submission of sealed bids for:

2024-2025 School Year Bids will be received until 11:30 A.M. on Wednesday, April 17, 2024. Specifications and bid forms may be obtained during school hours at the address listed below.

Mailing envelope and bid envelope must list the name of the bid and be addressed to: Hewlett-Woodmere Union Free School District

ATTN: Dana CroftsRoom 304

One Johnson Place Woodmere, NY 11598

The Board of Education reserves the right to reject all bids and re-advertise.

Bids will remain firm for a period of forty-five (45) days following the date of the opening and shall thereafter remain firm unless the Bidder provides written notice to the School District’s Purchasing Office that the Bid has been withdrawn.

Debra Sheinin, President Board of Education TO BE PUBLISHED:

Thursday, March 21, 2024 in the Nassau Herald 145516

LEGAL NOTICE HEWLETT-WOODMERE UNION FREE SCHOOL DISTRICT

One Johnson Place Woodmere, New York 11598-1312

LEGAL NOTICE TO BIDDERS

The Board of Education of the Hewlett-Woodmere Union Free School District, Woodmere, New York 11598-1312, hereby invites the submission of sealed bids for:

MUSIC SUPPLIES & EQUIPMENT BID

2024-2025 School Year Bids will be received until 2:30 P.M. on Wednesday, April 17, 2024.

Specifications and bid forms may be obtained during school hours at the address listed below.

Mailing envelope and bid envelope must list the name of the bid and be addressed to:

Hewlett-Woodmere Union Free School District

ATTN: Dana CroftsRoom 304 One Johnson Place Woodmere, NY 11598

The Board of Education reserves the right to reject all bids and re-advertise. Bids will remain firm for a period of forty-five (45) days following the date of the opening and shall thereafter remain firm unless the Bidder provides written notice to the School District’s Purchasing Office that the Bid has been withdrawn.

Debra Sheinin, President Board of Education TO BE PUBLISHED:

Thursday, March 21, 2024 in the Nassau Herald 145517

To place a notice here call us at 516-569-4000 x232 or send an email to: legalnotices@liherald.com

Bibas is one of the youngest captives and his hair is orange,” Shaw said.

HAFTR student Hattie Feit felt particularly connected to the Bibas family, because she shares a birthday with Kfir, the youngest child held hostage.

“Baby Kfir, everyone wants him back because he’s the youngest,” Feit said. “He turned 1 in captivity.”

The students have also helped with sending supplies to soldiers serving in the Israeli Defense forces, praying for soldiers whose photos are posted on the school bulletin board daily and discussing the war regularly.

“It feels like there’s a light even if it’s dark,” Ava Zalta, HAFTR middle school student said about how these aid efforts

make her feel.

Students also shared that writing names on yellow ribbons and hanging them, made them feel like they could help and communicate with those in Israel.

“We always are connected with them, even if they’re not here, we’re always like family with them,” Shaw said.

Along with “Forests 4 Hope “the school will continue reminding students of their Israeli counterparts and community, Avi Shaver, director of marketing at HAFTR said.

“They’re constantly being made aware, they used to wear these numbers on their shirts that said this is the number of days it has been since the war started,” Shaver said.

MUSICAL INSTRUMENT REPAIRS

Parker Schug/Herald photos Etan Haimoff, top left, Assistant Principal Yali Werzberger, Judah Nussbaum, Hattie Feit, Oriane Avigdor, Fanilyn Shaw, Lian Elgrissy, Sydney Spodek; Alma Scharman, middle Row; Mason Schein, bottom row, Ava Zalta, Sophia Weiss, Natalie Touaf, Rebekah Fichman and Sophia Fauziev wrote the names of hostages held in Gaza on yellow ribbons and hung them on trees outside of HAFTR Middle School as part of ‘Forests 4 Hope.’

Ava Zalta and Rebekah Fichman, HAFTR Middle School students hung ribbons with hostage’s names written on them as part of ‘Forests 4 Hope,’ an initiative to remember the people held in Gaza.

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We asked for a variance and were turned down

Q. After a lot of delays, due partly to Covid, we were turned down for a zoning variance and are wondering what to do. We have a café that has been operating for over 20 years, which we bought from a couple who were retiring, and everything seemed to be legal. Our building department told us that we needed a variance because we didn’t have enough parking, and that we had 20 seats instead of 12. Twelve seats was a takeout, but these days, if you don’t have enough seats, you won’t stay in business very long. So we asked for a variance, and we were turned down. Also, our plans didn’t show that we do have parking on the street, and use a public lot and some other businesses nearby. What can you tell us about our situation? We don’t want to lose our location, and anything we do will need plans, and we realize our architect had never dealt with this before.

A. As common as this problem is, you would need to appeal your case by filing for the appeal with the court, with an attorney, within 30 days, in what is referred to as an Article 78. In order to make your case, you would need accurate plans, plus what you already have, the minutes of your hearing for an attorney to review, plus any documentation you already had through the process of the building application over all the time you described.

In addition, you would need all the old records of the property that were filed for any and all permits for the previous uses going back to the very beginning of the take-out or retail space. It sounds like a lot, and it might be, but you have a difficult case to prove, because parking on your property is usually the biggest issue in any use variance. A use permit always requires that there be adequate parking, and if there isn’t enough on-site parking, the request for a variance (to vary from the requirements) would then be your appeal.

By changing the use from takeout, where people are coming and going, to an assembly space of people who are lingering, triggers all kinds of building and safety codes. Once you get to a restaurant from a take-out by serving more than 12 people, you need male- and female-use restrooms or, depending on the jurisdiction, enough fixtures and privacy to serve the occupants, based on specific chapters from the plumbing code, the handicapped-access code and the building code, requiring more floor space.

You also have issues with fire marshal and fire safety equipment, depending on the area in square feet area and the number of occupants. Your attorney and architect can craft your case, but you have to be flexible enough to meet certain basic codes to be able to convince a court that the first level of the process can be overturned. You can do this! Good luck!

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Criminals aren’t in custody: Let’s reform bail reform

As a mother of four and a legislator deeply committed to public safety, I am compelled to address the recent horrific case in Babylon. This case — in which body parts were found in public spaces, including a park frequented by families, and a judge was unable to set bail and detain the defendants — highlights a disturbing trend: the prioritization of criminals over victims.

pATRiCiA CAnzoneRi-FiTzpATRiCk

If the grim nature of the crime itself was not disturbing enough, the aftermath was discovered by a student, which underscores the real-life impact this crime has had on the local residents. Standing in the park myself last week was unsettling, and I couldn’t help feeling as if I were a character in a horror movie. Imagine how the residents who live near that park feel. How do those children ever return to that park and not think about what discovered there? I think we would all agree that those who are credibly suspected of dismembering two bodies and tossing them

in a park like garbage aren’t people we want to be near in the grocery store, or in any public setting.

The suspects were quickly identified and charged with concealment of a human corpse, hindering prosecution, and tampering with physical evidence. Then, in a move that shocked residents, they were released back into the community. What should shock us all is that their release was required by state bail laws.

The threat a defendant poses often cannot be considered by a judge.

Our criminal justice system allows a judge to set bail to ensure that a defendant charged with a crime returns to court to face the charges. The delicate balance is that bail should be set at a level that a person can afford, but also be enough to give the defendant incentive to return to court. The current state of the law is that unless a crime is on the list of baileligible offenses, a judge is unable to set bail, and the threat the defendant poses cannot be considered. The inability of judges to consider that threat when determining whether to set bail or detain a suspect has allowed perpetrators of heinous crimes to go free.

These policies are a direct result of one-party rule prioritizing the rights of

Wcriminals over victims, and as a result, public safety has been compromised. The federal government and 49 other states allow judges to consider a defendant’s dangerousness in making these determinations, but New York stands alone in prohibiting this commonsense practice. In fact, the first bill I introduced in the Senate, which I carry with Assemblyman Ed Ra, would restore judges’ ability to keep dangerous defendants off the streets.

Alongside my colleagues in the State Legislature, including Sen. Anthony Palumbo and Assemblyman Michael Durso, I co-sponsored legislation aimed at rectifying some of the flaws in New York’s bail laws, which allowed the suspects in the Babylon case to walk free despite the gravity of their alleged crimes. Palumbo’s proposed bill aims to classify concealment or mutilation of a human corpse as a bail-eligible felony. Additionally, I introduced legislation to correct an egregious loophole after the district attorney warned that the suspects may be released from even GPS monitoring because New York’s bail reforms also placed the same time limitations on electronic monitoring as they

do on pre-trial detention. This case highlights why these measures are urgently needed.

To be clear, I don’t believe that anyone should be held in custody simply because they lack the means to post bail, and I don’t think advocates on either side of this issue think the system was working perfectly before 2019. No policy is perfect, but as lawmakers, it’s our responsibility to continuously assess how policies are impacting people’s lives. Oregon has backtracked on its radical drug decriminalization policy in an acknowledgement of its unintended consequences. But since bail reform was passed in New York in 2019, Albany has offered only Band-Aids in response to the disastrous outcomes we have seen resulting from these “reforms,” rather than the substantive corrections we need to help ensure the safety of our communities.

As a mother, a legislator, and an advocate for community safety, I am committed to closing the loopholes in our bail laws that force judges to release suspects, like those in the Babylon case, back into the community, and arbitrarily limit law enforcement’s ability to monitor potentially dangerous suspects pending trial.

Patricia Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick represents the 9th Senate District.

It’s me, not ChatGPT . . . at least I think so

hy should I work this week?

No one works anymore, or if they show up, they bring attitude or the three stages of incompetence: Don’t care, don’t want to be here, don’t notice you standing there at my counter. (I don’t mean you, of course. Herald readers are all diligent, responsible people.)

Anyway, as an experiment with AI, and a way not to work, I thought I’d ask ChatGPT to write my column.

What I specifically asked for in the query was: Write a 750-word column in the style of Randi Kreiss.

It took about two seconds, and I got a piece about the idea of detoxing ourselves from our exposure to screens and devices. Not an original idea, not a bad idea, but between you and me, I hope it wasn’t an example of how I usually write, because it was sooooo booooring.

This was the last paragraph of the pseudo-Randi column, written by ChatGPT: “So let us embrace the digital detox not as a fleeting trend, but as a timeless

reminder of our innate capacity for connection, creativity, and contemplation. Let us reclaim our time, our attention, and our humanity from the clutches of the digital realm and rediscover the beauty of life beyond the screen.”

I mean, there’s nothing wrong with the writing; it’s just so blah-blah-blah. All of which leaves me with no other choice than to abandon AI and deploy my own skills, which are both modest and flawed.

WIf I were going to write about the toxicity of screens and devices — and I am, now that ChatGPT gave me the idea — I would connect it specifically to our current political madness. We are bombarded 24/7 by repetitious news about the threat to our democracy by former President Donald Trump and his acolytes. Is there really anything else to talk about that carries the gravitas of a looming democracy-destroying, unhinged presidency? The Orange Man lurks behind us just as he stalked Hillary in the 2016 debates.

Other news outlets beat the drum about President Biden’s age and oratorical misadventures.

hen I asked it to write a column like I might write, it let me down.

For a long time, I tried to see the issues from all sides. I figured that I have more in common with Trump supporters than the issues that divide us. I figured that when he fully revealed himself as an authoritarian wannabe, folks would recoil, seeing the threat to our freedoms. I wanted to stand in their shoes and see what they saw, but Trump’s singular determination to take down our democracy blots out the sun. Legitimate disagreements over immigration, the economy and taxes pale compared to his promise to dismantle the pillars of government and build camps for people he determines are unwelcome or undesirable.

There isn’t a legitimate other side when the other side is a dictatorship.

and that means re-electing Biden. Both men are too old for the job, but Biden and his team will keep faith with the American public. The country is sound and well-connected to our friends around the world. Biden’s experience has brought us through these difficult years. The alternative is more than a flirtation with authoritarianism and institutionalized racism. Young people do not realize how quickly bellicose talk can turn into tanks rumbling down our streets.

In many homes, the TV is on. It’s always there, in the background, too loud, too repetitive, too insignificant. We all know that news shows ran out of news long ago. Most of the time they reprocess the meat of a story until it comes out like sausage, link after link, hour after hour. Is it news when a knownothing anchor interviews a reporter who once interviewed a spokesperson who represents an insignificant staff member of a mid-level politician?

He is meaner than the last time around. His alleged crimes have earned him dozens of felony indictments. We can’t stand watching the coverage, and we can’t stop.

Trump must be removed from political life, and we must find ourselves again. That means removing ourselves from obsessional newscasts. Watch the candidates’ speeches for yourself, without the filters, and believe what you see. Look and listen to who Trump is. Listen to Biden.

We must retire the would-be dictator,

We can improve our lives by disconnecting from our devices. Voting is easy and analog. The conflation of politics and screens is wearing us down. Let the candidates speak for themselves.

Thanks, ChatGPT, for priming the pump. I just needed to say it in my own words.

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

RAnDi kReiss

HeraLd editoriaL

Cedarhurst residents say, ‘listen to us’

Cedarhurst village Hall was packed with angry people who wanted answers — and information.

The village board grilled representatives from the Federal Emergency management Agency as well as the architect for the Lawrence school district. But all three were on the receiving end of a tidal wave of anger from the community over the proposed $75 million seawall that the Lawrence education board approved, with the school district reimbursed through federal funds.

In the ensuing weeks since Cedarhurst first learned about the project, tension has escalated.

At the heart of the matter lies a profound sense of unease and frustration stemming from what many perceive as a lack of transparency and accountability on the part of Lawrence’s board of trustees.

The need for coastal protection is undeniable. It is critical to acknowledge and address what appears to be the legitimate concerns of a community, especially one in area that is this close to mott’s Creek — and, according to the neighbors who spoke at last week’s public hearing — floods even after a normal rainfall. Forget a Hurricane Sandy-like storm.

Intended to mitigate flooding on the high school campus — the school was shut down for months after Sandy — the proposed seawall has sparked debate and mistrust of government officials, especially the Lawrence board. After Sandy, saltwater from floodwaters eroded electrical wiring

Letters

Disagrees with mayoral platform

To the Editor:

I was appalled by a mailing I received from a candidate for Lawrence mayor, Benny Goldstein.

Putting aside the oxymoronic suggestion that taxes can be lowered and government spending can be increased, the blatant disregard of the Establishment Clause espoused by a candidate for public office is shocking.

Whether it’s worse if the candidate is unaware of the Constitution or simply doesn’t adhere to it is of no moment. As a Jew I find it very disquieting to suggest that my government should promote “Yiddishkeit.” The protection of a minority is not in governmental adoption of it tenets but in the wall between church and state.

STEvEn G. LEGum Lawrence

and knocked the high school boilers out of commission.

Residents expressed fear the seawall’s construction could have adverse effects on their quality of life, property values, and overall well-being, as it will do nothing to alter the flooding homeowners in the area endure because it just protects the school grounds.

Being that the school district is under the jurisdiction of the state education department, nearly all the community members who spoke at the meeting feel their voices have been sidelined in the decision-making process.

After learning of the plan, Cedarhurst officials — along with other local public officials — called for the school board to hold a public hearing.

A February board meeting was canceled, and although the board president said in a local newspaper that the meeting was not held because the trustees couldn’t field a quorum — the legally required number of people to hold a meeting — many in the community did not believe that.

mistrust abounds.

Information is a prized commodity in every industry, and sharing information with constituents should be the gold standard for government. School trustees are elected — and have a responsibility — to answer the people they serve. Lawrence’s board earned a failing grade there.

It is imperative the Lawrence education board takes the necessary steps to repair

this relationship. The community should be heard — if not at a special public hearing, at least at a regularly scheduled board meeting.

The trustees also might need to explore alternative solutions to strengthen coastal resilience that could be less intrusive, help solve recurring flooding problems with neighbors, and be more sustainable in the long run.

Possible alternatives include green infrastructure, dune restoration, wetland preservation and beach nourishment. neighbors seemed not opposed to flood mitigation measures. Instead, they seek a more inclusive and open decision-making process that accounts for their concerns and wants. more than a few people who spoke to the trustees said how the constant flooding has forced them to rebuild their homes multiple times.

The Lawrence board needs to listen. FEmA and the school district’s own architect said the points made would be reviewed. most likely not all will be implemented, but listening and reviewing is a start.

It is a beginning Lawrence trustees should apply moving forward. The primary job elected officials have is to listen to their constituents. Within that there needs to be an increased awareness for the need for accountability and transparency — whether the school district is deciding a change in school policy, or considering a large-scale project like a $75 million seawall.

Our communities need more doctors who look like me

I’m 26, and have lived virtually my whole life in Hempstead. I’ve seen a lot of health-related issues — lowincome people of color, like me, suffering from chronic conditions like asthma, diabetes, obesity, high blood pressure, and untreated mental illness. often they haven’t been able to receive proper treatment for their conditions. I wanted to do something about it, and soon I will be able to, because I’m on my way to becoming a doctor.

sHakIa mILLer

There was a one-in-a-million chance that I would ever reach this goal. I’m an African-American woman from a low-income neighborhood, raised in a single-parent household. My father was incarcerated by the time I knew what it meant to have one, and remains imprisoned to this day — though he’s using this time to reflect and to continue his education. My mother, a crossing guard, worked extremely hard to provide for my brother and me, but

there were days when the money she made didn’t seem like enough to put food on the table, or ensure that we would keep a roof over our heads, or keep us from falling victim to the violence that plagued our community.

tI had to fight every step of the way to become the person I wanted to be. I graduated from Hempstead High School in 2015 in the top 1 percent of my class, and then, thanks to Stony brook University’s Economic opportunity Program, I graduated in 2019 with a double major in biology and psychology, and went on to earn a master’s in physiology and biophysics. I was the first person in my family to go to college, so there was no blueprint to follow but the one I created along the way.

icine and biomedical Sciences is lifechanging. There are classes to prepare me for the rigors of medical school, and a stipend I can use for living expenses so I can focus on my studies. I have mentors to turn to for help.

here was a one-in-amillion chance that I would ever be able to go to medical school.

I got jobs in the health care field, but becoming a doctor seemed out of reach until I was selected for the Diversity in Medicine pipeline program sponsored by Associated Medical Schools of new York. This post-baccalaureate program at SUnY buffalo’s Jacobs School of Med-

Letters

And the illegal ones are costing us dearly

To the Editor:

Joseph Varon’s letter sang the praises of immigration and why we shouldn’t look down on it. Yes, the greatest country in the world, the USA, became that because so many of its citizens are immigrants, or children of immigrants. They came mostly from civilized countries, and came legally.

With the Industrial Revolution booming, America needed skilled and unskilled workers, and they came in droves. Most were checked over at Ellis Island, and all were required to become citizens. Yes, we quarantined the sick for a couple of weeks, in not the most luxurious accommodations, but it worked.

We do not need the number and the caliber of those coming across our borders in illegal fashion. We don’t need the crime, and we don’t need what they turn our cities into. We can’t afford to clean up the world, and we aren’t all in desperate need of gardeners, but rather skilled welders, carpenters, etc.

Having these illegal immigrants among us costs us money, and destroys our school systems. They don’t even try to blend in — they dress, act and expect us to learn their culture. Sometimes the raw truth hurts, but they are the only ones benefiting from their crime of crossing our borders illegally. Politicians? Guilty.

RobERT CASAlE Glen Head

Most important, if I successfully complete the oneyear program, I will go to medical school in the fall, and could be selected to receive AMSnY’s Diversity in Medicine Scholarship to help defray the cost. This amazing program is 100 percent state-funded.

Pipeline programs like this are needed to help diversify the physician workforce. Research has shown that patients are more likely to visit and follow the instructions of doctors who understand their language and culture, resulting in better health outcomes. Yet in new York state, where more than 30 percent of the population identifies as black or Hispanic, just 13 percent of the state’s doctors come from those groups.

Physicians from racial and ethnic groups that are underrepresented are

We thought Randi was gone

To the Editor:

My wife and I, loyal readers of the Merrick Herald, are among Randi Kreiss’s biggest fans, and we were thoroughly dismayed when we thought she disappeared last year. but a letter to the editor in the Feb. 29-March 6 issue, “At your library, borrow a book — or a telescope,” which mentioned her column on libraries, made us realize that Randi is still here!

We have now read all her monthlies since she started them in September. What an ordeal she and her husband have been through. We wish both of them all the best, and are beyond delighted that Randi’s observations on our society, her humor, her book recommendations, and her overall words of wisdom can continue to be part of our lives.

KARIn SPEnCER & MARISA HoHEb Merrick

Guess who opposes even-year elections?

To the Editor:

Yet another example of nassau County Republicans’ blatant misuse of taxpayers’ money for partisan purposes is the legislative majority spending $500,000 for a politically connected law firm to prevent holding all elections in even years, even though even-year elections increase voter turnout and save taxpayers millions.

n assau G o P machine officials justify this waste by claiming that even-year elec-

more likely to go into primary care and practice in under-served communities, where they are desperately needed. I have seen 30 to 40 people waiting, endlessly, to see a doctor; minor symptoms that were left untreated develop into chronic disease; and people with mental illness who are homeless, unable to pay for the care they need and jaded by past interactions with the health care system. People in these communities do not trust that system. I want to be a doctor who can change that, and earn their trust.

Growing up, I never saw a doctor who looked like me. now I am one of 24 future physicians in this year’s AMSnY program who want to give back to our communities. I am immensely grateful to our state representatives and Gov. Kathy Hochul for making that possible.

In the past two years, the state’s investment in Diversity in Medicine programs has tripled. This funding must continue, and even increase, so more people like us can become doctors and leaders of change for our communities.

Shakia Miller is scheduled to complete the AMSNY Diversity in Medicine program in May.

tions “will lead voters to ignore local issues when federal and state issues dominate.” Yet Republicans’ local campaigns are dominated by state and federal issues. Indeed, County Executive b ruce b lakeman just sent a glossy mailer smearing Democrats in Albany and Washington, misusing county taxpayers’ dollars on issues that have nothing to do with county government.

l ast year, b lakeman took county government employees to new York City, and used a county podium to grandstand on an issue over which he had no jurisdiction. The GoP continuously misuses taxpayer dollars for

political purposes. neither county nor town GoP officials sent a single mailer on the plan for the casino at the Coliseum or the nassau University Medical Center debacle — critical county issues. Instead, every mailer attacks federal and state Democrats.

The Republicans win elections by gerrymandering, voter suppression, taxpayer-funded mailers and scare tactics. GoP officials use our tax money to fight voter participation. Clearly, they know that higher voter turnout will turn them out of office.

DAVE DEnEnbERG Merrick

Framework by Tim Baker

An artisan’s work at Matinecock Lodge — Oyster Bay