1971-10-14

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An Official Newspaper of The Incorporated *" t N G ^
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ORDED WEEKLY
.. » oreater Farmingdale, Bethpage and Melville
VOL. 9 N O . 8 Second Class Postage has been paid at Farmingdale, N. Y. 11735 • Published by THE OBSERVER, INC., Box 146, Farmingdale, N. Y Thursday, October 14, 1971
Salute to Old Glory
There was an ugly triangle, where Balcom Road meets Oakdale
Boulevard. Whenever Hugo Hansen looked out from the living
room window of his house on 54 Oakdale Blvd., this view bothered
him. Instead of the weeds he could envision nice green grass, with
a flagpole sitting right in the middle, from which Old Glory would
unfurl, giving testimony that there are still people who get in­spiration
rather than indignation from looking at the stars and
stripes.
And so Hugo canvassed his neighbors. The response was
overwhelming. Everybody agreed to chip in to make his vision
come true. Some 35 families set out to transform this ugly sliver of
land into an appropriate place for Old Glory.
Last Saturday morning the flag that now will wave there day
after day, was raised for the first time. Congressman Grover sent
a flag that had flown in Washington over the nation's capital with
his representative, Farmingdale mayor John T. Hallahan, and
theTalbonard Post No. 449 Farmingdale of the American Legion,
commanded by Patrick Steiner, supplied the color guard. A block
party celebrating the event concluded this successful display of
neighborhood intiative and patriotism.
Our picture on top shows the flag raising ceremony, our picture
on the bottom ( from left to right) Farmingdale mayor Hallahan,
Petty Officer 3rd Class, USN, Al McAslan of 1 Vin Court, who
raised the flag, Past Commander of American Legion Post No.
449, Bob Beebe of 50 Wall St., and Hugo Hansen, who started it all.
George Fain Unanimous Choice
Of Farmingdale Library Board
" Politics and books don't mix, at least not in my
book," George Fain said during an Interview with the
OBSERVER. Books rather than politics will be on
Fain's mind now more than ever before, after the
Farmingdale library board unanimously decided last
Tuesday night to fill its vacant seat with George Fain,
a ten year resident of North Massapequa.
The newest library board
member was chosen from eight
candidates, four of them between
the ages of 18 and 24. Fain is 37
and head of a New York City
marketing firm. He is married
and the father of two boys, 10 and
15, both students in Farmingdale
Schools.
If Fain has his way, the labels
conservative and liberal will play
no longer any role within the
library. " I certainly are neither a
conservative nor a liberal," he
told the OBSERVER, " I would
like to call myself a moderate"
He feels that politics have very
little business in the library and
blames former ideological blocks
on the board for the fact that a
new library budget was
defeated each year since 1967.
" We must realize that austerity
budgets create hardships for our
own children and as head of the
library's public relations com­mittee
it will be my primary
object to have a new budget
passed next year," he said.
Fain is* by no means a
newcomer to the Farmingdale
Library. He is presently still
president of the Farmingdale
Friends of the Library, a position
he will now give up.
Irwin Jacovsky, board
president, had nothing but praise
for the new trustee. " Mr. Fain
has been very active in sup­porting
the library," he said,
" and has waged a campaign to
have our appropriations ap­proved.
He has shown intense
interest in our library, and his
constructive criticism has been
Jean Ritchie to Perform at
Historical Society Dinner
Jean Ritchie, recording star
and folk song performer and
collector, will be featured at the
annual installation dinner of the
Farmingdale - Bethpage
Historical Society on Tuesday,
October 26 at 7: 00 p. m. at the
Bethpage Park Club House.
Jean Ritchie is a descendant of
one of the oldest mountain
families in Kentucky. She and her
twelve brohers and sisters grew
up on Appalchian folk music.
Some of those songs, including
Shady Grove and Pretty Saro,
have become popular through the
Ritchie household. Now a
housewife and a mother of two in
Port Washington, the former Phi
Beta Kappa student of the
University of Kentucky is often
consulted as an expert in
American folk music.
The annual installation dinner
of the Historical Society has
become part of the local history
scene and gives to many an op­portunity
to renew old
acquaintances and make new
friends.
At a recent electon meeting the
following officers and trustees for
the 1971 / 72 season were elected:
President Orrin B. Dow, Vice
President Mrs. Andre Hubbard,
Recording Secretary Mrs. Alan
Stone, Corresponding Secretary
Mrs. Fred Dyson, Treasurer
Robert Callahan. Trustees:
Melvin Brenner, Miss Caroline
Bunting, Mrs. Gabriel Schein,
Mrs. George Fuechsel, Mrs.
William Schwendler, Mrs. Robert
Nostrand, Gregory Carman, Mrs.
K. H. Musa, Miss Roberta
Everett, Miss Barba Gray.
To make reservations for the
annual installation dinner call
any officer of the society.
George Fain
well received in the past."
Jacovsky is convinced that the
highly controversial era of the
Farmingdale library finally has
come to an end." I firmly believe
that the library board is now
composed of individuals and not
label bearers who vote strictly in
blocs on all points of discussion,"
he stated, " I hope the public is
beginning to realize that fact and
will forget the unpleasant con­troversies
of the past."
The board president pointed
out that he and all the trustees
are available to any civic
organization or community group
for discussions on the welfare of
the library.
" Our new library hours seems
to have been received well by the
public," he added hopefully. " We
were also able to reinstitute the
McNaughton Service which
makes best sellers and popular
books available to the public."
The Farmingdale library is
intent to eliminate . politics from
its business. With' the ap­pointment
of trustee George Fain
the realization of that aim does
appear to have come a giant step
closer.
Fire Prevention Week for
Woodward Parkway Pupils
Jean Ritchie. . .( shown above)
will perform at the Framlngdale
Bethpage Historical Society
Annual Installation Dinner on
October 20th.
Primary Grade children at
Woodward Parkway elementary
school were observing Fire
Prevention week when the South
Farmingdale Fire Department
brought its equipment to the
school to be inspected by second
and third graders. The children
were able to study everything
very closely, to ask all the
questions they could think of and
to even see the truck's hoses
spouting water on school
grounds.
The South Farmingdale Fire
House will be visited by kin­dergarten
and first grade classes
during the month to view the
equipment and to become
familiar with and to appreciate
the value of their firefighters.
Another interesting experience
for kindergarten and first grade
classes was a confrontation with
animals which usually are not
household pets. The children had
a chance to touch animals such as
honey bears, a boa constrictor, a
toad, a tortoise, a parrot, a lizard
and assorted turtles which were
released in the closed
auditorium. This program was
sponsored by the PTA.
Halloween is coming up and the
kindergarten classes will have
their annual parade on the school
grounds. Farmer Ben will bring
his farm to the school. First
graders will be invited guests.
American Education week will
take place from October 26- 29
during which time classroom
visitations during the day and an
open house are scheduled.
Grumman Awarded
Federal Contracts
The award of two federal
contracts totaling more than
$ 320,000,000 to the Grumman
Aerospace Corp. was an­nounced
this week by
Congressman James R.
Grover Jr. Of Babylon.
One contract covers
production of the V 14A air
craft, plus related supplies,
and totals 1231,731,670. A
BOCOnd contract totaling
$ 90,800,000, is for production oi
the E2V aircraft for the Naval
Air Systems Command Work
will be done at the company's
Bethpage plant.