Town, Girl Scouts tree initiative

Town of North Hempstead Council Member Veronica Lurvey is proud to announce that the town has formed a partnership with the Girl Scouts of Nassau County to create a tree grove at Michael J. Tully Park. This project is yet another in a string of environmental initiatives spearheaded by Council Member Lurvey aimed at strengthening the resiliency of our local environment here in North Hempstead.

Council Member Lurvey has long been a proponent for introducing tree groves in town of North Hempstead parks, and she was thrilled when The Girl Scouts of Nassau County contacted the town as part of their Tree Promise Service Project, which is funded by a grant from National Grid. The goal of the project is to enhance the beauty of the local parks while promoting environmental sustainability.

The environmentally friendly initiative involved planting trees to create a tree grove at Michael J. Tully Park. A group of trees planted separately from existing woodlands, known as tree groves, are designed to enhance the local environment in a variety of ways: cutting greenhouse gas emissions by absorbing carbon dioxide, which in turn reduces the gas buildup in our atmosphere enhancing our air quality by diminishing the number of toxic pollutants that we breath in improving our water quality by providing a filter effect that removes pollutants and sediments from rainfall, which seeps into our waterways and ground water moderating the impacts of storm water runoff providing ample shade structures that are utilized by both humans as well as the animals the live in the surrounding habitat

“We are delighted to partner with the Girl Scouts of Nassau County on this project to beautify our parks and preserve our environment,” said Council Member Lur- vey. “I am thrilled that our young leaders of tomorrow are working diligently with local government to make important contributions that promote resiliency and sustainability throughout the greater North Hempstead community.”

This project goes hand-in-hand with Council Member Lurvey’s vocal commitment to improving the town’s tree canopy. She recently revamped the town’s Tree Code and re-established the town’s Tree Advisory Committee.

As part of the Tree Promise Service Project, the Girl Scouts also had the opportunity to learn from Bonnie Klein, the town’s horticulturist, about the importance of trees and how to care for them. This educational component will help ensure that children learn about the importance of environmental sustainability.

For more information on the Girl Scouts of Nassau County visit: www.girlscoutsnassau.org.

Great Neck South tennis star Albert Hu seeks to win county, state championships

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There is normally a progression in sports when you play postseason tournaments; steps you have to take each season or each year to get better until finally scaling the top of the mountain.

For Great Neck South tennis star Albert Hu, the progression toward county singles champion has been linear so far.

As a freshman in 2021, Hu finished third at the Nassau County individual singles event.

Last year, Hu advanced to the final before losing to eventual New York state champ Stephan Gershfeld of Hewlett.

So, a third, a second this year ought to bring the big trophy to Hu’s house, right?

“I’m trying for that,” he said in a recent interview. “Last year I was really proud to get second, because I played really well in the semis. Just trying to keep getting better.”

Hu, a lefty with a ferocious forehand and strong all-court game, has been a mainstay in local tennis since he was a freshman, when he arrived on the Great Neck South varsity and immediately became the No.1 singles player.

“He was clearly by far our best player, I knew that as soon as I saw him play,” said Great Neck South coach Joshua Dugan. “His pace, his power, his knowledge and tennis IQ, he does everything so well.”

Hu is looking to play a full high school season this spring after missing time last year with groin and wrist injuries; despite not getting as many matches, he reached the quarterfinals of the state championships.

This season he’s compiled a 4-2 record through matches of April 28.

“I don’t really like team sports, but I love playing high school tennis because you’ve got people cheering for you and the whole team gets into it,” Hu said. “There’s definitely a lot more pressure playing (high school tennis), because every match you’re playing is for the team, not just yourself.”

Hu doesn’t always hear the cheers, though.

“It’s funny but if I’m winning by a lot or losing by a lot, I hear my teammates and the crowd,” he said. “But if it’s a really close match, I’m totally focused and don’t hear anything.”

Hu said he started playing tennis around age 9, and started to get serious about the sport in middle school. Hu began working with coach Maurice Trail at Robbie Wagner Tennis Training Center in Glen Cove in late 2018.

“His mental game has developed the most out of anything,” Trail said. “He doesn’t go away in matches, no matter what the score is. He’s gotten much more mentally tough and really learned how to compete well.”

“And he’s one of the most coachable kids I’ve ever worked with,” Trail added.

Hu said while his forehand is his greatest strength, even more so as a lefty sending unfamiliar spins to his opponents’ backhand, he’s been working to beef up his serve and make his backhand more of a weapon.“I need to make my serve a little more unpredictable, and win points a little easier with it,” he said. Dugan said that he’s seen great improvements each year from Hu, and that having him at the top of the lineup “just makes it so much easier for everyone else, knowing Albert is up top and is giving us a great chance at that point every time we play.”Hu has continued to play USTA tournaments when not playing school tennis, with the goal of playing his favorite sport in college. He said he and his fam- ily took a tour of Johns Hopkins and Swarthmore over the recent school break, but that he doesn’t have a favorite college right now.In the meantime, he’s hoping to take that final step to county championship glory.