18 LONGISLANDPRESS.COM • AUGUST 2018
POINT OF VIEW
NASSAU PARKS:
THE PUBLIC
JEWELS
By LAURA CURRAN
Nassau County Executive
I had a wake-up call last week.
The previous seven months had
been a blur of tackling inherited
challenges – massive debt, a broken
assessment system, crumbling infrastructure.
But in the whirlwind,
I stopped for a second and realized
how easy it is to forget about the great
things about living in Nassau County.
Like our parks.
It happened on a glorious morning
visit to the county’s Summer Recreation
Program in Eisenhower Park. Kids
were painting with watercolors at picnic
tables in the shade of big oak trees.
“Wow,” I thought, “look at the good
things we’re providing.”
Nassau’s summer program, which
also operates in Wantagh Park, Cantiague
Park, and Nickerson Beach, fills
up immediately, and it’s no wonder.
Kids get to swim in Olympic-sized
pools and play in splash parks, play
basketball and tennis, and kick off
their sneakers to run on turf fields.
The counselors are engaged and
caring. Parents love our summer
program because it not only provides
a fun, safe and active summer for their
kids, it doubles as affordable childcare.
Our parks offer so much to so many.
The county’s nationally renowned
public golf courses are affordable,
manicured, and challenging. I got
the chance to chat with golfers at Eisenhower
who praised the condition
of our fairways, roughs and greens,
and families playing mini-golf in
Eisenhower and Wantagh Park. The
exercise trails were busy with walkers
and joggers of all ages.
At a noontime concert in Eisenhower,
I met residents who sat in a
beautiful shaded area as they took in
the free entertainment. Afterward,
I met with Nassau staff technicians
who take great pride in their work
behind the scenes, putting on the
dozens of free concerts and movies
at Eisenhower, Nickerson Beach,
Cedar Creek, North Woodmere,
Christopher Morley and Grant Parks
and Chelsea Mansion.
Take a look around your county
parks to appreciate all the beautiful
plantings. Our horticulturalists take
such care to create the most beautiful
and varied surroundings – from the
sea grass at Nickerson, to the mint
growing at Cantiague, to the beds of
colorful flowers in all our parks.
And there’s always something new
to learn. Did you know that Eisenhower
Park is bigger than Central Park?
Here’s something else: I noticed a larger
than-normal crowd of 30-something
guys between Eisenhower’s
stunning Veterans’ and Firefighters’
Memorials. I struck up a conversation
with these guys and learned the
spot is a popular “PokeStop.” I hope
Pokemon got a Leisure Pass.
What I love the most is the sense of
community that flourishes in a public
park. People dancing at the Disco
Night concert at the Harry Chapin
Lakeside Theater, seniors listening
to big-band music at the noontime
concerts, families picnicking together.
These parks belong to you.
That is why I did not want my name
on any county park signs and that
decision has resonated more than I
ever could have imagined. During the
hours I spend at your parks, people
tell me how much they appreciate my
making good on that promise.
For the complete Nassau County
2018 Free Summer Entertainment
Schedule please visit: nassaucountyny.
gov/DocumentCenter/
View/21964
EMT students Andrew Mahaeir, left, and Hannah Triquet, center, practice their skills in
providing chest compressions and rescue breathing with supplemental oxygen. Instructor Tom
DunfeeG, at reightt, loookns o nt. rack for a new career at
Nassau BOCES Adult Education
Join us at our Open House
Thursday, September 6, 2018, 7-9 p.m.
Joseph M. Barry Career & Technical Education Center
1196 Prospect Avenue, Westbury
Get to know us at our Open House
on September 6!
Non-discrimination Statement
The Nassau BOCES advises students, parents, employees and the general public that it offers employment and
educational opportunities without regard to age, race, creed, color, national origin, sexual orientation, religion,
military/veteran status, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical condition), gender, marital status,
disability, predisposing genetic characteristic(s), or domestic violence victim status. Moreover, the Nassau BOCES
shall provide equal access to the Boy Scouts and other designated youth groups. Information and grievance
procedures are available by contacting the following Civil Rights Compliance Officer at 71 Clinton Rd., Garden
City, NY 11530: Selma Stoddard, Esq., Assistant Director, Department of Human Resources at 516-396-2360,
sstoddard@nasboces.org. Inquiries concerning the application of regulations prohibiting discrimination may be
referred to the above-mentioned Civil Rights Compliance Officers or to the Office for Civil Rights at NY Office
for Civil Rights, U.S. Department of Education, 32 Old Slip, 26th Floor, New York, NY 10005-2500 or call
646-428-3900, or fax 646-428-3843, or TDD 800-877-8339 or email OCR.NewYork@ed.gov or file form at
http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/complaintintro.html.
Adult Education
• Career training programs
• ESL/HSE classes
• Programs for adults with disabilities
Visit www.nassauboces.org/adulted or
call 516-622-6950 for a free catalog or more
information.
/complaintintro.html
link
link
/adulted
