Wantagh
HERALD Citizen
Catholics pray for end to division
Middle school through a lens
Firehouse blood drive a success
Page 3
Page 8
Page 26
$1.00
OCTOBER 22 - 28, 2020
VOL. 68 NO. 43
The focus turns to those in need Community members urge neighbors to help out in unique year of challenges By J.D. FREDA jfreda@liherald.com
Courtesy John Theissen
THE JOHN THEISSEN Children’s Foundation is gearing up for its 29th annual Holiday Toy and Fund Drive, with a focus on helping families in need during the pandemic.
As the cold weather nears and the holiday season approaches, the focus of the South Shore’s most devoted philanthropists turns to the less fortunate, who will be spending this season without family, shelter, money or food, and on finding ways to give back, and encouraging their neighbors to help. Local businesses, like Little Kitchen, on Railroad Avenue in Wantagh, are partnering with nonprofits to organize collections for Long Island’s needy. “Last year we had a customer
that would come in for lunch often, and one day she asked us if we would help her collect donations for Long Island Cares, who she worked with,” said Little Kitchen owner Carlo Stanisci. “Last year we collected about 80 Thanksgiving dinners for families.” This year, Stanisci wants to up the ante. He wants to collect enough donations for 125 meals, and is urging his neighbors to give what they can. “This year there are a lot of families that are really being affected by the coronavirus,” he said. “But at the same time I think people now are willing to give more, if they CONTINUED ON PAGE 5
PSEG retiree raises thousands for local charities By TIMOTHY DENTON tdenton@liherald.com
More than 14,000 women and men in New York are diagnosed with breast cancer each year, and some 3,000 die of the disease. Nassau County accounts for an average of 1,200 cases, including more than 200 deaths. Breast cancer is the second-leading cause of death among women, after heart disease, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The disease is personal to Dottie Weremeyshik, 67, of Wantagh. Two of her aunts died of breast cancer, she said. In addition, “my sister-in-law had
her first bout at age 29 and her second battle in her early 40s.” She survived and remained in remission from breast cancer, but succumbed to colon cancer at 63. The experiences not only touched Weremeyshik emotionally; they motivated her to begin aggressively fundraising for cancer research. “I began doing the Avon [39] Walk about five years ago,” Weremeyshik said. “It’s 39 miles around Manhattan. The first year I did it, I raised about $1,800.” Weremeyshik said she was always interested in charitable causes — “the March of Dimes,
things like that” — but her two daughters, now 29 and 27, provided the main outlet for her energies outside of work for many years. She retired as a cost analyst in August after 47 years at PSEG and its predecessor companies. With her daughters grown and married, “I didn’t feel as needed,” Weremeyshik said. She decided to dedicate her energies to charitable work in earnest. Eventually, she raised money for an impressive number of causes across Long Island. In addition to the New York Avon Walk, Weremeyshik participated in walks in Boston and Chicago. “I have family in Indi-
ana, so it gave me an excuse to visit them, too,” she said. The Avon Walk this month was done virtually because of the coronavirus pandemic, and Weremeyshik took part by walking 39 miles around neighborhoods in Wantagh and Seaford. “I walked some of the streets twice, and I’m sure people who saw me wondered what I was
doing there,” she said. She also began fundraising at PSEG’s office in Bethpage, where she worked. With the company’s permission, she set up a stand where her coworkers could help themselves to a wide range of snacks. Besides seltzers, sodas and iced teas, the offerings included candy bars, licorice, CONTINUED ON PAGE 7