_________________ WANTAGH ________________
HERALD Bright lights and carnival rides
Champions of their division
A street fair for the ages
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Vol. 72 No. 30
JUlY 18 - 24, 2024
$1.00
Now a sport for everyone Town unveils adaptive pickleball court in its rising popularity. As a low-impact sport, it puts minimal stress on joints and musThe Town of Hempstead cles, and improves heart health unveiled a new pickleball court and circulation, according to a in Forest City Park, in Want- Town of Hempstead news agh, last week, but what’s release. The adaptive court is larger unique about this court is that it was built with the disabled than a standard one, which is 44 community in feet long and 20 feet mind. wide, according to The cour t was USA Pickleball, the unveiled at a ribnational governing bon-cutting ceremobody for the sport. ny at the park on The new court is 74 July 11, when Town feet long and 44 feet Supervisor Don wide, with additionClavin spoke of the al space surroundrising popularity of ing it for more the game. The Town accessibility. of Hempstead now Clavin was has 58 pickleball joined at the cerecourts, but Clavin mony by Councilsaid that this one man Dennis Dunne, would be the first Councilwoman on Long Island to DoN ClAViN M i s s y M i l l e r, accommodate peo- Town of Hempstead Receiver of Taxes ple with disabilities. supervisor Jeanine Driscoll “As the demand and members of the increases, the realAviators of Nassau ization that everybody wants to County wheelchair softball enjoy the sport is very, very team, an organization whose important,” he said. goal is to create, promote and Pickleball combines ele- expand opportunities for people ments of tennis, badminton and with physical impairments. Its table tennis, and is played on a president, Drew Scopelitis, and small court with paddles and a members offered feedback durperforated plastic ball. Accord- ing the court’s construction, ing to Clavin, the game’s health benefits have been a key factor ContinueD on pAge 9
By CHARlES SHAW
cshaw@liherald.com
A
Tim Baker/Herald
Chris Carini, the Hempstead town councilman in the 5th Councilmanic District, has died unexpectedly. A husband and a father of two children, he was 49.
Councilman Chris Carini dies at 49 A champion of quality of life, he represented Wantagh By JoRDAN VAlloNE and CHARlES SHAW of the Wantagh/Seaford Herald
Town Councilman Chris Carini, a familiar face to many in the Town of Hempstead and the 5th Councilmanic District, died unexpectedly on Sunday, while visiting family in Florida. He was 49. The Republican, who lived in Seaford, was first elected to the Town Board after former Councilwoman Erin King Sweeney dropped out of the race six weeks before the 2019 election. Carini had long been involved with the Wantagh/Seaford Homeowners Association, which often focused on qualityof-life issues. “There’s no words to express how heartbroken we are in this loss,” Ella Stevens, president of the homeowners association, said. “He took his watch over Wantagh and Seaford and spread it to other communities.” Carini spearheaded the town’s Quality of Life Task Force in 2023, which evolved from
a graffiti task force that Carini also created. Every day, crews travel around Hempstead to remove graffiti, collect trash and debris and take down illegal signage from utility poles and fences, thanks to Carini’s efforts. “Councilman Carini was a dedicated public servant,” Town Supervisor Don Clavin said in an emailed statement, “whose commitment to the communities he represented was unwavering.” “Today is a profoundly sad day for all of us whose lives were touched by Councilman Chris Carini,” State Sen. Steve Rhoads emailed in a statement. “As an elected official and as a friend, I don’t know that I’ve ever met someone who was more passionate or took more enjoyment out of helping his neighbors and trying to make his community better than Chris.” Rhoads added that Carini’s energy was “boundless” and his humor “infectious.” “I will miss his friendship, his leadership, and ContinueD on pAge 5
s the demand increases, the realization that everybody wants to enjoy the sport is very, very important.