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HERALD Ducks rally for first-half title
Heat just keeps coming
Drones looking for sharks
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Vol. 34 No. 30
JUlY 20 - 26, 2023
$1.00
Valley Stream karate kid bet life against odds She knew that at some point soon, he would have to prepare himself for a surgery that his Two years ago, Ar maan d o c t o r ’s t o l d h i m wo u l d Mohammed grew too weak to straighten out his spinal poswalk, slo g ging around on ture, but could leave him permacrutches in his living room due nently paralyzed. “I wanted to delay the surto a severe form of scoliosis, resulting in his spinal cord gery until he was 21 to enjoy the slowly rotting away. remainder of his teenage life” For most of his childhood, without concern that he may despite his condinever walk again, tion, he has always said Uddin. been a spry and It pained her in a c t ive k i d . H i s dreams and visions m o t h e r, P a r v i n to watch his son go Uddin, knew there from showing off was no use corralhis flying kicks and ling his rambuncfluid jabs with a tious energy. She glowing grin on his recalls squandering face to spending his hundreds of dollars days wheelchairon swimming and bound, his martial soccer lessons arts ambitions because M o - ArmAAN snuffed, and possihammed didn’t take moHAmmeD bly his loving smile to them for very fading away. scoliosis survivor long. Then, in secBut as time ond grade, he dispassed, his condicovered a perfect outlet for his tion grew worse. Mohammed’s bottled up energy in the martial spine had been stretched and arts, particularly karate. crushed so badly it had “I love karate. It’s a passion deformed into a C-shape. He was for me. I’m not into anything losing feeling in his legs and felt else like not baseball, not soccer. biting back pain. The sympAny of the big sports,” Moham- toms, doctors warned, would med said. “I got braver because only get worse with each passof it.” ing day. Uddin labored over Uddin needed Mohammed, signing off on his corrective 13, to be brave, to have courage. Continued on page 12
By JUAN lASSo
jlasso@liherald.com
Tim Baker/Herald
A touch of flower power A beautiful summery day at the Arthur J. Hendrickson pool.
This city public school pioneer is V.S. Central’s new principal By JUAN lASSo jlasso@liherald.com
Candace Hugee was named Valley Stream Central High School’s principal earlier this year. She succeeds Joseph Pompilio, who announced his retirement after a 22-year run. Born in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Hugee — pronounced “huey” — was a product of New York City public schools, where she discovered her leadership skills early on. She devoted her summers to tutoring students, and helped organize a neighborhood summer camp program. At 16 she enrolled at Hunter College, where she earned a degree in media communications and history. She enjoyed a comfortable career as a sports
video editor for ABC, but her untapped passion for youth and education shifted her trajectory to the classroom. She began teaching as a school aide and paraprofessional in a junior high school in the South Bronx, then became a general and special-education teacher in the city public schools. Hugee earned a master’s in adolescent urban education from Long Island University, and a second master’s, in education leadership, from Brooklyn College. She also received certificates in diversity, equity and inclusion in the workforce and women’s entrepreneurship from the University of South Florida in Tampa, and Cornell University, respecContinued on page 19
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was sad about the surgery, but I needed to make the most of the moment.