_________ Oceanside/island park ________
COMMUNITY UPDATE Infections as of May 24
4,397
Infections as of May 17 4,358
$1.00
HERALD
Memorial Day events return
Junior Honor Society celebrated
Sidewalk chalk messages inspire
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VOL. 56 NO. 22
MAY 27 - JUNE 2, 2021
Residents take Austin Blvd. traffic in stride that he “loves the action.” Ronnie Krum, who lives on Baker Street, said she was also Though an $8.9 million taking the traffic slowdowns in repair to Austin Boulevard has stride. “It’s inconvenient, but snarled traffic on the Island Park about time,” she said, “They’re thoroughfare, residents have doing great. Now if we could get accepted the inconvenience, say- some trees and plants, it would ing they have waitbe fantastic.” ed two decades for County officials completion of the had pushed for project. improvements on “It took years to Austin Boulevard get this project for many years. going, and of Last October, the course you’re going project was anto get your comnounced as part of plaining,” Roland County Executive Zimatore said. “. . . Laura Cur ran’s Think of the final 2021-24 Capital outcome: beautiful DENISE FORD Improvement Plan, paved roads and no Nassau County and the county flooding.” allocated funding legislator Kelly Ann Fosfor the work. ter said her house The Austin Bouis often inaccessilevard portion of ble when the street the plan focuses on floods, and she has regularly had upgrading a 1.4-mile stretch of to wait more than an hour for the road, and is intended to the tide to recede late at night to improve pedestrian and vehicle drive home after a storm, adding safety, as well as drainage and that she is anticipating the first storm resiliency. The drainage storm after the project to test the work that was completed last roadwork. “Pain worth the week necessitated the closure of gain,” she said. two northbound lanes, and now Larry Mirro said he was OK there will be three northbound with the slowdowns because they’re “only temporary,” noting CONTINUED ON PAGE 3
By MIKE SMOLLINS msmollins@liherald.com
A
Tom Carrozza/Herald
THE NEW LABYRINTH for reflection opened recently on the grounds of St. Anthony’s Church in Oceanside. Jake Christel, a member of Boy Scout Troop 230, led the effort to create it as his Eagle Scout project.
Eagle project has calming effect Team of scouts builds serenity labyrinth at church By TOM CARROZZA tcarrozza@liherald.com
Jake Christel wanted to use his Eagle Scout project to offer parishioners at St. Anthony’s Church in Oceanside a place to reflect. He and other Troop 230 members built a serenity labyrinth on the grounds that features circular gravel patterns that people can walk while they reflect and serves as a new landmark on the grounds. For aspiring Eagle Scouts,
the service project is often the most challenging requirement in their journey to the highest rank in scouting. Eagle candidates often focus on construction, conservation or remodeling, but the project can be anything. Christel credited the Rev. Bret Stockdale for inspiring the project. Stockdale helped Christel nar row a wide range of project choices. The labyrinth concept stuck out to him as different, Christel said, and he liked that it was
open to all, since it occupies a prominent location, across from the St. Anthony’s school. “It just seemed like the most fun and interesting one,” he said. At the labyrinth’s unveiling on May 17, Stockdale blessed the project with holy water and took an inaugural walk with Christel. According to its creator, the labyrinth is intended to help people build their conCONTINUED ON PAGE 3
ll of this is necessary and will ultimately help our communities.