The-Leader_2007-07-19

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^S*Of?T!iia!ORIALUSRARy Freeport,N.y.ttsa)
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72nd Year, No. 26 Freei>ort, N.Y. 11520
The Community Newspaper
Thursday, July 19, 2007
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THE FREEPORT HIGH SCHOOL CLASS OF 1957 <^: .i >
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FHS Class of '57 celebrates
by Fred Schmidt
Chairman, Class of 1957
50th Reunion
Our reunion was a resounding success, especially because so many showed up and participated at all die c^i^ events fiom Thursday ni^t tfarouoh late Sunday afto--noon, June 28 through July 1.
1 had made plansAesevalions f(H-6,16,40, 20,20 and 10, but 46,36,100,60,60 and 30 showed up: Mermaid Restaurant on Woodcleft Ave (6/46 Ihuisday dinner, 4(^100 Friday dinner); Jones Beach (ISGe) Friday afternoon; Freepoit High School (20/60) Saturday lunch; E.B. Elliot's Restaurant on Woodcleft Avenue (2a'60) Sunday lundi; Freeport Museum (1080) Sunday aftemocM.
I have to thank the Meimaid and E£. ElUot's for being flexible enough to acccan-modate the surprise overrun and their willing­ness each time to giw us flie required jxivate space and the outside deck in the case of EJB. ElUot's. The Mermaid ewn called in extra help af^er the parties started
The weather was cool and dry the whole weekend. At Jones Beach Friday, I, along with Dick James. Doc Kinsey, Ralph Schaeffer, Bob Blanck (and probably others) went all the way into the surf in spite of the cold 64°. Paul Nonemaker got half w^ too. Most everj'one wore bathing suits. I took my boogie board in and got a few good rides. The dominating fectcr was the surf temperature of only 64°. The beach partv' lasted fixim noon tiU4.
Shortly before noon on Saturday as Assistant Principal Ernest Kight greeted me at
the Freeport High School door on Brookside Avenue, I told him fliat 40 more Aan planned were coming. Just in time he was abte to have 40 more folders with inserts pxxiuced and 40 more chairs placed in the as^mbfy room. We were told that a few other dass reunitms have come to the hi^ school, but never have near­ly so many attended. Afts die tour and lunch, be had us assemble on the ftont stairs ftar a group photo.
He was helped by linda Hendrickson, social studies teacher Joel Destil, die head custodian, and diree of die top Qass of 2007 students: Kimberly Lipman-White (3), AIe.xandra Torian (4), and Chevon Panis-Skeete (8). After die PowraPoint presentation die three students qxAs for a few minutes eadi and dien they took questions finom the Cl£BSofl957.
The dinner ams& was prepaid so there was no surprise Saturday night. The real surprise was that the captain took us out to Point Lookout to see the fireworks and die night was so clear that we could see the tops of New York Qty's midtown sk>'line and die fimpire State Building. Usually diat is only possible in the winter when the air is really dry.
Judith Minnerly Koutsos. whom I had selected to do the after-dinner show, took ovCT the entire fcmr-hour cruise itinerar%-. She select^ the menu, including the FHS colors for die frosting of die cake, put up memora­bilia tables and boards, composed and print­ed the program, put out memorabilia at each place setting, got five cheerleaders to do a couple of cheers with new pom-poms and
arranged for (continued on page 6)
Baldwin schools re-organize
By Joan Delaney
Many peq>le believe that a new school year be^ns in September when students return to classes. Fcr school districts, however, the ofBcial school y^r begins in July when boards of education hold mandated caganization-al meetings and ^prove annual £q^intments that are required by law.
On July II, die Baldwin board con­vened at its traditional two-part meet­ing. During the organizational pOTtion, board members elected James Scarmell to serve as board president and Maty Jo O'Hagan to sa%'e as its vice-presicfent
Among a \'ariety of ajpointments, the board ajprovoi their diiee cate­gories of auditws, die third auditCH-required of districts in the aftennadi of financial irregularities in districts lite RosIjTi.
The external auditor is Coughlin Foundotos; die claims auditor is R.S. Abrams and die internal auditor is Stuart Fishbein, District Counsels will be die firms of higeman Smidi, LJL J. and Hawkins, Delafield &Wood.
Two major positicMis have now been filled, again by candidates who have come from outsit die district Echelle
May will serve as principal of Shubert School, replacing Pettonella Cellura, who retired, and Lori Presti will serve as principal of Steele School, replacing Kadileen Dykes, who also retired.
Several otho- candidate searches are also ongoing as noted in recent adver­tisements in die New York Times where die distiict has advertised for a directOT of fine and performing arts to iqilffi* Peter Reennan and an assistant principal at Baldwin Middle School to replace Colleen Can^bell.
Althou^ dK board has engaged in sevaal conversations during recent years concsning its desire to make the Baldwin disdict a place where educa-t<HS can find long-term careers, the largest number of appointments to hi^»a'-level positions continue to be of candidates who come fiom outside the distiict
During audience questions, attcaney Eric Sussman of Baldwin, representing dB D(Hiifiat femily, inquired of dieir sppeai of a board decision not to allow Melody Domfort to attend die BOCES Cultural Alts Program. As is their poU-cy, die board refrained from discussing the issue publicly as it relates to an indi-
(continued on page 16)