Holiday Shopping Safety

County Executive Edward P. Mangano and Nassau County Police Commissioner Lawrence W. Mulvey and the Police Department are taking affirmative steps to ensure the safety of the people of Nassau County during the upcoming holiday season. All of our regular marked and plainclothes patrols will be intensifying their coverage of shopping malls and commercial areas. The patrols will be augmented by patrol from our Mounted Unit and Bureau of Special Operations. Concurrently, dedicated patrols have been assigned to the major malls within the county, putting additional police officers at those locations during peak hours.
In addition to shopping safety, Nassau Police will also be on the outlook for drivers and occupants who are not complying with the Seat Belt Law. This includes children who are not in child safety seats or buckled in their seat. Police Officers will also be vigilant watching for drivers who are drinking and driving on all roads in Nassau. Handicapped parking violations will be strictly enforced. Parking in handicapped spaces are reserved for those with visible permits.
Police Commissioner Lawrence W. Mulvey suggests some holiday shopping tips:
Before Leaving Home
· Plan your shopping trip carefully. Know where you are going and what routes you will take to get there.
· If possible, arrange for a friend to go shopping with you. There is safety in numbers.
· Let someone know where you are going and what route you will be taking. Additionally, let them know when you expect to return.
· Leave your home secure, engage alarms and give the appearance that your home is occupied by leaving the lights on in the most frequently used rooms.
· Don’t leave valuable items out in the open. Secure them in closets, safes, etc.
When Parking
· Always park in well-lit areas.
· Note the location of your vehicle in the parking lot to conveniently return after shopping.
· Always lock all your doors
· Remove all items, such as radar detectors, laptops or packages and hide them in the trunk, glove compartment, out of site.
· Avoid parking near vans or other vehicles with covered cargo areas.
· Avoid carrying large handbags. Carry only what is necessary.
· Look around the parking lot for suspicious persons before you exit your vehicle.
· Don’t get out of your vehicle until you are ready. If you don’t feel safe, stay in the car or drive away.
While Shopping
· Keep your money and credit cards in your front pocket and try to limit the number of credit cards and cash you’re carrying while shopping.
· To avoid being a victim of “Identity Theft”, be aware of exposing credit cards, debit cards and other identification at the cash register and ATM’s. Thieves will utilize cell phones to capture card information without your knowledge.
· Be cognizant of any other type of “Distraction” type of crimes that typically occur during this time of the year.
When Returning To Your Car
Never leave the store with your arms full of packages. Use a courtesy cart.
Have your car key in hand, ready to unlock your door.
Check the parking lot for suspicious people and look around before you exit the store.
Do not return to your vehicle if you see people loitering nearby.
Carry a whistle or other audible device. If you feel threatened, use it. If you’re inside your vehicle, lock your doors and honk your horn to attract attention.
Check underneath, in front and in back of your car as you approach it.
Check the front and rear passenger seats inside your car before you enter it.
If you are planning on returning to the store, never leave your packages in plain view inside your vehicle. Lock them in the trunk or place them on the floor and cover them with a blanket or jacket.

County Clerk Warns Residents about Deed Scams

“Nassau County Clerk Maureen O’Connell wants to caution homeowners about mass mailings being sent out claiming “The U.S. Government Federal Citizen Information Center website recommends that property owners should have an official or certified copy of their deed.” These letters urge homeowners that it is necessary to purchase a certified copy of the deed to their home.
All deeds for property located in Nassau County are recorded and maintained at the County Clerk’s Office and only the Clerk’s Office can issue certified copies of these records, which are equivalent to the original. Once processed the original deed is returned directly to the owner or their attorney. These private companies continue to solicit the purchase of a deed on behalf of the homeowner sometimes for more than 800% over Clerk’s Office fees.
County Clerk O’Connell, concerned by these deceptive practices, advocated along with County Clerks throughout the state for the passage of legislation requiring these solicitations to disclose that certified copies of deeds are available directly from the County Clerk for a nominal fee. However, many homeowners continue to be victimized by these scams.
It is not necessary to retain a service to get a copy of your deed. Certified copies of deeds can always be obtained from the County Clerk’s Office for $5 to $10. Anyone wishing to request a certified copy of their deed can contact Clerk O’Connell’s office at 516-571-2664 for further information.”

Envision Valley Stream

The next general meeting of Envision Valley Stream will be Wednesday, October 27 at 7:30PM in the Field House at Firemen's Field (at the intersection of Albermarle Ave and Fenimore St). The meeting will consist of a short update on Envision Valley Stream's work this past year and will be followed by an open discussion about our community. Your feelings and ideas regarding our community are important so please make every effort to attend.

Below is an excerpt from a Valley Stream Historical Society mailing. I thought it would be something interesting to share with the group.

"Valley Stream is the only place on Long Island at which four railroad trains meet at the same time, and it bids fair in the course of times to be a thriving place."
Brooklyn Eagle, September 10, 1872

David Sabatino

Envision Valley Stream
PO Box 1454
Valley Stream, NY 11582

Website: www.EnvisionValleyStream.org

Phone: 516-792-1246

8th Gun Buy Back Program

Nassau County Executive Ed Mangano, Police Commissioner Lawrence W. Mulvey and District Attorney Kathleen Rice announced today that they will be hosting the County’s eighth Gun Buy Back Program on Saturday, October 16th from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. at the Iglesia Pentecostal De Jesucristo Refugio Eterno Church, located at 184 Nassau Road in Roosevelt.

The Gun Buy Back Program is strictly anonymous and individuals will be paid $200 cash per turned in operable handgun. Not accepted are: licensed guns, BB Guns, air pistols, long guns and replicas. Guns transported by car must be transported in the trunk of the car and must be unloaded and put in a plastic/paper bag or in a shoe box.

“192 illegal and operable handguns, including a TEC-9, were turned in at the last gun buyback held in August. This program has proven to be effective in getting guns off our streets before they fall into the wrong hands,” said County Executive Mangano. “Community support is critical to the success of this program, and we appreciate the assistance of the members of the clergy who are participating in this effort. By working together, we can ensure that Nassau County remains a safe place to live and raise a family.”

“The previous Gun Buy Back Programs have been extremely successful resulting in the purchasing of over 1,500 illegal operable guns,” said Commissioner Mulvey. “The Gun Buy Back program, our ShotSpotter Program and our GunStoppers Program have been very effective in decreasing gun related crime here in Nassau County.”

Forfeiture funds from the Nassau County Police Department and the District Attorney’s Office are utilized to fund the Gun Buy Back Program.

Something to Keep in Our First Aid Kits

My daughter received a text message from her good friend who said he was in the Emergency Room of a local hospital because he burned the bottom half of his leg. The ER bandaged him up and sent him home with burn cream. They informed him he had 1st and 2nd degree burns, but didn’t need to go to a burn unit because his wounds were superficial. Knowing she better take a closer look she showed up at his house to see how he was feeling. He had a fever and chills. It looked bad. She stayed with him to change bandages and monitor his fever…

I’ve taken First Aid Training thru the Red Cross and have kept it updated, I have to say it has come in handy, so many times. It kept me calm and cool in many an instance. Hot/cold weather illnesses, bug bites, cuts, sprains, car accidents, helping a pedestrian struck by a car, to knowing the abc’s … airway, breathing, circulation… But in the First Aid Training, when it gets to the part about burns and compound fractures and stabilizing the area, the instructor touches on the topic gingerly as to not gross us out and turn us off. We get through it though and hope we never witness such an injury.

If you work with electric, chemicals or deal with fires on a regular basis you know the first aid procedures, they are just ingrained in your mind. It’s your job to know these procedures. But for us ordinary joes whose life gets slammed with a loved one or even ourselves being burned, where do we turn? What did they teach us in that first aid class??? Is this a first, second or third degree burn? Apply cool water, no ice, no butter… should I call 911, where will they take me, the closest hospital? But what if its second or third degree burn? Will they transfer me to the best burn center in Nassau County?

Did you know we have the only burn center in Nassau County which is located right here in East Meadow at Nassau County University Medical Center. We don’t realize how lucky we are to have a burn center of this magnitude so close to home. Seeing patients from 10 days old to 101 years, they estimate to have seen over 1,000 outpatients and 200 inpatients yearly.
Named the Nassau County Firefighters Burn Center, it is located on the sixth floor of the hospital. Although they have been treating burn victims for over 60 years it has been recently made over with an infusion of 7 million dollars thanks to NUMC. They have enriched the center with state of the art beds, tools and equipment. It is recognized nationally as one of the leading burn centers for burn victims.

In 1990, a coalition of fundraising firefighters and rescue workers co founded The Nassau County Firefighters Burn Center Foundation. The Nassau County Firefighters Burn Center Foundation has donated money and resources to the Nassau University Medical Center Burn Center through various fundraising efforts hosted by Nassau County’s 71 fire departments to make sure it delivers the best burn care available. In addition, it helps fund and staff relevant rehabilitation and recreation programs to address burn treatment needs as well as paid staff training, equipment, furniture and televisions.”

Funds raised by the Nassau County Firefighters Burn Center Foundation have provided a complete physical therapy room at Nassau University Medical Center with all the necessary equipment so staff can treat both inpatients and outpatients at one central location. The NCFBCF also provided for a separate children’s room featuring a television, and children’s books and games to help alleviate the stress young burn victims can experience while in therapy. Each year the NCFBCF sends professional staff members from the NUMC Burn Center to continuing education seminars and training certification programs and seminars. This access to the most recent treatment techniques lets referring physicians and their patients have confidence in every Burn Center staff member.

Fast forward to today, at this moment my daughters friend is at the NUMC Burn Center recovering from surgery he needed to repair his leg from his third degree burns…
We are hoping the delay in receiving treatment will not impede the healing process.

Maybe we should print out this information and place it in our First Aid Kits the Red Cross suggested we put together just in case we ever have to help someone else go through a bad burn injury. We’ll know exactly where to turn.

For Serious Injuries or Burns CALL 911
They will help stabilize the victim and transport to the best location.

NUMC Burn Center 516 572-3219
2201 Hempstead Turnpike
East Meadow, New York
NUMC 516 572-0123

If your interested in taking First Aid Training/CPR,
call Nassau County Red Cross Chapter located at:
American Red Cross
Nassau County Chapter
195 Willis Avenue
Mineola, NY 11501-2623
Phone: 516-747-3500
Web site: http://www.nassauredcross.org
or call your local Firehouse

100 Years Ago...

A new exhibit honoring the 100th Anniversary of the Belmont Air Meet of 1910.

At the Cradle of Aviation Museum September 10th-20th and Belmont Park Oct. 8th-17th.
Garden City, New York – One hundred years ago, airplanes and not thoroughbreds raced at the famed Belmont Park Racetrack during the 1910 Belmont Park Aviation Meet, the first international aviation meet held in the United States. For ten days in the fall of 1910, the world’s leading aviators and the most advanced aircraft gathered at Belmont Park.

To commemorate this unique anniversary the Cradle of Aviation Museum has put together a special exhibit that will be at the Museum for a limited time from September 10th through the 20th and then will move to Belmont Park Racetrack from October 8th through the 17th. This new exhibit will feature examples of the type of aircraft that flew at the Belmont Meet, including a French “Antoinette” and “Demoiselle” that are on loan from other museums.

The Belmont Park Aviation Meet offered a total of $75,000 in prize money in various categories, a huge sum for 1910. At the Meet several new world records were set including altitude (9714 feet) and speed (61mph). The Meet also allowed Long Islanders and New Yorkers to see airplanes in flight for the first time. Visitors to the exhibit at the Cradle and Belmont Park will be able to get up close to airplanes that haven’t been on Long Island for 100 years plus see rare photographs, artifacts and film from the Meet itself.

Admission to the exhibit is free with museum admission at the Cradle and general admission at Belmont Park. The exhibit has been created with the support of the New York racing Association and Belmont Park.

The Cradle of Aviation Museum has over 75 air and spacecraft that take you through over 100 years of aviation history from kites and balloons to man’s first steps on the moon.

Long Island Fair

Long Island Fair Returns To Old Bethpage Village From September 30 To October 3


Nassau County Executive Ed Mangano announces that the 168th annual Long Island Fair, one of America’s oldest agricultural festivals, will be held from September 30 to October 3 at Old Bethpage Village Restoration. The family-friendly festival, one of the most popular fall events on Long Island, offers a range of attractions, including Lawton Trout Farm, exotic animal and reptile shows, and pony rides, as well as the amazing Flying Horses Carousel, a replica of a 19th-century folk art carousel.

“The Long Island Fair is a local tradition and one of the truly special family events that takes place each year. In particular, in our technology-driven age, the event allows children and parents to connect with the sort of recreational activities that people enjoyed in an earlier and simpler time in America,” said County Executive Mangano.

Children can take part in fun-filled contests such as corn husking and children’s potato sack races, while adults test their skill and strength at two-person cross-cut sawing in friendly competition for ribbons and prizes. Meanwhile, the livestock barn includes cattle, sheep, goats, horses, rabbits and other animals, while the livestock demonstration ring will feature the beautiful horse-drawn carriages of the Paumanok Driving Club and the miniature horses of the Keystone Miniatures Club.

In the spirit of the historic nature of the fair, the Wells Fargo Company will have a replica of a famous Wells Fargo coach with a handsome team of four horses on the Fairgrounds on Saturday and Sunday of the event.

The Long Island Fair will also present a variety of historical period musicians, dancers, jugglers, mimes and other artists. For example, a giant entertainment tent will be home for a “Punch and Judy” puppet show, a magician and musical performances by the folk group Stout. Meanwhile, baseball fans can enjoy the end-of-season matches of OBVR’s Old Time Base Ball League, which recreates “base ball” as it was played in the latter half of the 19th century, with teams competing in authentic uniforms and playing under the names of Long Island clubs of that era.

The Long Island Fair, the New York state-recognized county fair for Queens, Nassau and Suffolk, involves the cooperation of the Nassau County Department of Parks, Recreation and Museums and the Agricultural Society of Queens, Nassau and Suffolk Counties. Thousands of exhibits are entered every year in friendly competition, with blue ribbon categories including livestock, flowers and vegetables from farms and home gardens, culinary, needlework, hobbies, and a junior division for those 13 and younger.

The fair is unique among New York State County Fairs in that it maintains much of the historical ambiance of the 19th century. The fair was founded in 1842 and became known as the Queens County Agricultural Fair, but soon after was called the Mineola Fair when it moved to a permanent location in Mineola in 1866. The fair moved to Roosevelt Raceway in 1953 and to the newly opened Old Bethpage Village Restoration in 1970, where it is held on a 12-acre recreation of the original Mineola Fairgrounds.

This year’s fair is made possible by the generous sponsorship of Wachovia Bank and the Wells Fargo Company.

Old Bethpage Village Restoration provides visitors with a unique and wonderful opportunity to step back in time and experience life in a re-created mid-19th-century American village set on more than 200 acres. Hours are Wed. - Sun. 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. Entrance fees are $8 for children 5 - 12 (those under 5 are free), seniors and volunteer firefighters; and $12 for adults. It is located at 1303 Round Swamp Road in Old Bethpage; for more information, call 516-572-8400.

For more information about the Long Island Fair, visit www.lifair.org. For more information about the Parks Department, visit www.nassaucountyny.gov/parks or call 516-572-0200.