SJB Opens Its Doors To All Interested 8th graders

(West Islip, NY) All students and their families are encouraged to attend the St. John the Baptist Diocesan High School Open House. This informative event will take place on Sunday, October 20, 2013 from 10:30 AM – 2:00 PM. All are welcome!

Participants can learn valuable information about classes and sports.  There will also be guided tours of the school available.

Academic and Co-Curricular Highlights include:

•  99% of Applicants are accepted to a 4 year college and/or military academy
• 2013 Graduating Class received over 1,100 scholarships totaling more than $44 million.
• Advanced Placement courses are offered in Computers, English, Math, Science, Social Studies and Spanish
• College-credit courses are offered in all core subjects
• There are over 50 clubs and extracurricular activities

http://www.stjohnthebaptistdhs.net/www/drvcny_stjohnthebaptistdhs/site/hosting/Press%20Releases/sjb-building2.jpg

About St. John the Baptist Diocesan High School
About St. John the Baptist Diocesan High School: 1,700 students attend St. John the Baptist DHS, a college preparatory Catholic High School located on the south shore in West Islip. As part of the Diocese of Rockville Centre, St. John’s offers a value-centered education that recognizes the unique talents and abilities of each child, while fostering a school environment that challenges students to reach their true potential. Open since 1966, St. John’s offers a rigorous curriculum and extensive activity and athletic programs. Students have the opportunity to take numerous Advanced Placement classes and 99% of St. John’s graduates continue on to higher education. For Mission Statement and additional information: http://www.stjohnsdhs.org/

 

(Valley Stream, NY) For nearly 10 years Supervisor Kate Murray has misinformed Town of Hempstead residents claiming her administration is fiscally responsible. Open government advocates, and Hempsted Town Supervisor candidate Felix Procacci cites many sources including the 2012 New York state audit of the Hempstead Animal Shelter, which reported gross financial mismanagement.

“I am running for Hempstead Town Supervisor to reform Town Government by making it transparent, accountable, and fiscally responsible. Making government transparent means providing accurate and timely information to the people. This is the first step in putting the power where it belongs, in the hands of the people,” states Procacci

Despite Supervisor Murray’s claims of fiscal responsibility, town budgets show just the opposite.

“During her first nine years in office Supervisor Kate Murray raised property taxes 44.9%. The increases in Town taxes exceeded the rate of inflation by over 50% even while the workforce was being reduced by 6%. During her first nine years in office she approved special district tax increases of over 40%. During her first nine years in office, the Animal Shelter budget doubled, and the State Comptroller’s report showed widespread financial mismanagement,” states Procacci.

To support his statement Procacci created a chart, which shows Supervisors Murray 44.9% tax increase on residents.

“Every election politicians talk about taxes, but they must be honest with the public and Supervisor Murray must be honest about how she raised taxes 44.9%. Elected leaders must provide accurate and timely information to the people and as Town Supervisor Procacci will ensure that residents have the information necessary to make an informed choice,” state Procacci.

The Procacci Promise: By Implementing the following simple steps we will go a long way to insure that Town government is far more open and accountable to its residents. These three ideas can be implemented at no cost to the Hempstead taxpayers.

1. Broadcast all Town board meetings online and on public access channels. Town Board meetings are where government does its day-to-day business which includes the expenditure of taxpayer money.
2. Put all Town government contracts online (immediately after the contract has been signed) and provide their total budgeted cost over the life of the contract.
3. Provide all amended budget items (for the previous year), in the first section of each year’s proposed budget (so resident’s can easily identify all mid-year budget changes).

Felix Procacci “The Open Government Advocate” is the Democratic candidate for Hempstead Town Supervisor. Felix Procacci is a Franklin Square resident who is running to: create a transparent and accountable Town government; get Town Hall meetings online; require Town government to provide residents with the cost of settled employee contracts; post employee contracts online; post all budget data online in a format that allows for searching and sorting; post all Town Board member votes online; and to end to the waste and abuse at Town Hall. Felix Procacci is a computer programmer, community activist, husband, and father of two (Katherine 12 & Kenneth 9). http://www.facebook.com/Felix4Sup

(Huntington, NY) Assemblyman Chad Lupinacci (R,C,WF,I-Huntington Station) joined Martin Rosenthal, president of the New York State Elks, on Thursday, October 3 at the Elks Club in Huntington.

From Left: Assemblyman Chad Lupinacci presents a proclamation to Mr. Martin Rosenthal, president of the New York State Elks

Lupinacci joined the Elks in honoring local veterans as part of the Elks National Remembrance Month.

(Long Island, NY) Suffolk County Legislator Jay Schneiderman (I-Montauk) announced that Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone has signed legislation to further reduce light pollution from County-owned facilities.

Introductory resolution 1472-13 was unanimously approved by the legislature at the last general meeting on September 12. This local law is an amendment to previous legislation, which was sponsored by Legislator Schneiderman in 2004.

This law requires all outdoor lighting which is purchased or replaced by the County to use “warm-white” light sources. Under this legislation, the County will commit to utilizing only warmer-colored outdoor lights at its facilities to protect the health and well-being of residents and to protect the County’s ecological systems. It is required that Suffolk County use lighting fixtures with a correlated color temperature no higher than 3500 Kelvin for all lamps purchased through December 31, 2015. Any new lighting fixtures bought after December 31, 2015 will have a correlated color temperature no higher than 3000 Kelvin. Correlated color temperature is the perceived color of the light emitted by a lamp, which is expressed in Kelvin (K) units. The higher the Kelvin rating, the “cooler” or more blue the light will be.

Advances in light technology over the past decade have created high-quality, energy efficient lighting in several forms, with high brightness LEDs becoming the most popular. Most LED “white” light has a substantial blue component, referred to as “blue-rich white light.”

The Suffolk County Legislature has determined blue-rich white light is linked with a higher incidence of glare, particularly outdoors from dusk to dawn. This type of light is also more difficult for human eyes to process as people age. Blue-rich white light also creates higher levels of light pollution in the night sky, introducing a portion of the light spectrum which is not currently contributing substantially to such pollution. Blue-rich white light is also associated with disruption of circadian rhythms and melatonin secretion in humans and animals. Disruption of these functions can change the instinctual habits of wildlife living near such light sources.

“This amendment to my previous legislation to limit excess lighting is an important step forward in efforts to protect human health and the health of our wildlife and to insure that we save money on energy costs and reduce unnecessary light that limits our ability to enjoy the beauty of the night sky,” said Legislator Schneiderman.

“Much has been learned over the past decade or two about the harmful effects of outdoor lighting on the environment and on human health,” said Gail Clyma, Chair of the Southampton Town Dark Skies Advisory Committee. “In recent years it has become increasingly clear that light with a high blue content is the most serious offender. I commend Legislator Schneiderman for sponsoring this important piece of legislation.”

Earlier legislation required Suffolk County to use fully shielded outdoor lighting fixtures to reduce light pollution at County-owned facilities. Unshielded light contributes to light pollution, which makes it harder to see a starry night sky and interferes with astronomical observations and recreational enjoyment. Directing light more accurately onto areas intended for illumination prevents the waste of energy, reduces energy costs, and lowers emissions from fossil fuel burning facilities needed to produce this excess energy. There is increasing scientific evidence demonstrating that unshielded, misdirected, excessive or unnecessary outdoor night lighting can have detrimental effects on the environment and the human physiology.

Legislator Schneiderman would like to thank Gail Clyma and Gilbert Anderson, Commissioner of Department of Public Works and Transportation, for their efforts in supporting this bill.

Representing the South Fork, Jay Schneiderman is the Suffolk County Legislator for the Second Legislative District. For more information, or to arrange an interview, please call (631) 852-8400.

Thousands of New Yorkers Rally and March for Immigration Reform as part of National Effort to Pressure House Leadership

(New York, NY) On Saturday, October 5th at noon, thousands of New Yorkers will rally at 200 Cadman Plaza in Brooklyn and march over the Brooklyn Bridge in one of more than 170 events in 150 cities in 40 states across the country to press Congress to pass immigration reform this year.

Other gatherings will take place across the state, including Buffalo, Poughkeepsie, Binghamton, and Brentwood. New Yorkers for Real Immigration Reform, a campaign coordinated by the New York Immigration Coalition, will bring together elected officials, community leaders, and labor, faith, and advocacy groups from across New York State to send a message to Congress to pass an immigration reform bill that keeps families together, provides a pathway to citizenship, and brings some reason and fairness to our immigration system.

For a list of gatherings happening in New York State, click HERE.

Speakers (list in formation):

• Senator Charles Schumer
• Mary Kay Henry, international president, Service Employees International Union (SEIU)
• Steven Choi, executive director, New York Immigration Coalition
• Hina Naveed and Max Ahmed, recipients of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals
• Guillermo Chacon, executive director, Latino Commission on AIDS
• Linda Sarsour, executive director, Arab American Association of New York
• Bakary Tandia, policy advocate, African Services Committee
• S.J Jung, board president, MinKwon Center for Community Action
• Nancy Peredo, member of Make the Road New York
• Congresswoman Nydia M. Velazquez
• Adolfo Carrión, 2013 New York City mayoral candidate*
• Mario Cilento, president, New York State AFL-CIO
• Congressman Jerrold Nadler
• Bill de Blasio, 2012 New York City mayoral candidate*
• Members, New Immigrant Community Empowerment
• Congressman Hakeem Jeffries
• Vinny Alvarez, president, Central Labor Council
• Congresswoman Grace Meng
• Monsignor Kevin Sullivan, executive director of Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of New York
• Rabbi David Adelson, East End Temple

Entertainment:

• DJs Chief Boima and Geko Jones
• Cetiliztli Nauhcampa Quetzacoatl in Ixachitlan
• CHIA Marching Band
• Rebel Diaz

*All mayoral candidates were invited to the event. Their appearance is not an endorsement of their campaigns.

The New York Immigration Coalition is an umbrella policy and advocacy organization for nearly 200 groups in New York State that work with immigrants and refugees. The NYIC aims to achieve a fairer and more just society that values the contributions of immigrants and extends opportunity to all by promoting immigrants’ full civic participation, fostering their leadership, and providing a unified voice and a vehicle for collective action for New York’s diverse immigrant communities.

The New Yorkers for Real Immigration Reform campaign is a statewide campaign coordinated by the New York Immigration Coalition and endorsed by 170 labor, business, faith, grassroots and immigrant organizations from across the state. The coalition is calling for an overhaul of the immigration system to meet the needs of the economy and keep families together.

Department of Labor and Department of Corrections and Community Supervision Announce Labor, Criminal Justice and Community Partnership to Reduce Recidivism and Improve Job Placement

(New York, NY) The State Department of Labor and Department of Corrections and Community Supervision today announced a partnership that will bring their agencies together with leaders in the community and non-profit sector to create paths to jobs for people returning from incarceration. This partnership, an extension of the “Work for Success” initiative which has led the way in curbing recidivism, will help reduce poverty and joblessness for formerly incarcerated New Yorkers so they stay out of prison.

The program helps the formerly incarcerated with two different approaches. Formerly incarcerated individuals assessed as “low risk of reoffending” and having “low barriers to employment” will be sent to Department of Labor Career Centers for job training and placement assistance. At the same time, higher risk individuals with higher barriers to employment will receive more intensive employment services through existing programs in the nonprofit community that specialize in serving people with criminal convictions.

“The figures are staggering – it costs taxpayers more than $40,500 per year to incarcerate someone,” said State Labor Commissioner Peter M. Rivera. “Getting a job after being incarcerated dramatically increases the chances that an individual will stay out of prison. By sending low risk individuals to Department of Labor Career Centers, our staff, workforce development programs and partnerships are helping to ensure that finding work and re-joining society becomes a reality.”

For the first time, the Department of Corrections and Community Supervision is using new, innovative tools to identify people by their levels of risk of reoffending, and by their levels of need for employment services. Partnering with the Department of Labor’s Career Centers is a critical first step toward ensuring that people receive the employment services that best meet their needs so that they return to work and become productive neighbors.

Department of Corrections and Community Supervision Acting Commissioner Anthony J Annucci said, “We are always mindful of the often difficult journey back from incarceration. Jobs programs like this help provide the motivation and confidence to keep the offender moving forward and becoming a valuable member of the community.”

Over the past year, Work for Success has begun an extensive approach to improving employment services for formerly incarcerated individuals, including training for targeted staff to become “Offender Employment Specialists” in New York State Career Centers. Efforts also include developing a comprehensive client matching system that better matches individuals’ needs with services, improving prison vocational services and connecting trained formerly incarcerated job candidates with employers.

In addition, Work For Success and this partnership include a public education campaign for employers on the federal tax credits, human resource support, bonding and other business services and benefits available to employers who hire formerly incarcerated New Yorkers.

For its leading success, New York’s Work for Success achievements, including the new partnership were highlighted last week at a national reentry and employment event in Washington, DC, hosted by the United States Department of Labor, the United States Department of Justice Bureau of Justice Assistance, the Council of State Governments Justice Center and the Annie E. Casey Foundation. New York State Deputy Secretary for Civil Rights Alphonso David, Deputy Secretary for Public Safety Thomas Abt and Center for Employment Opportunities CEO Mindy Tarlow highlighted Work for Success as a national model for partnerships between corrections, workforce development, and community organizations.

“There has never been a collaboration of criminal justice and labor that matches individuals exiting prisons to employment services specifically targeted to their risks and needs,” said Mindy Tarlow, co-chair of the Work for Success initiative. “We are developing this forensic approach to ensure that the right people get to the right services at the right time to reduce recidivism and increase employability among individuals coming home from incarceration.”

For more information about Work for Success, please visit: www.workforsuccess.ny.gov.

(Long Island, NY) Farrell Fritz congratulates Ilene Sherwyn Cooper on her recent appointment to the Board of Advisors of Touro Law Center’s Aging & Longevity Law Institute.  Ms. Cooper is an adjunct professor at Touro, where she has been recognized as “Adjunct Professor of the Year” multiple times.

Farrell Fritz congratulates Ilene Sherwyn Cooper on her recent appointment to the Board of Advisors of Touro Law Center’s Aging & Longevity Law Institute.

Ms. Cooper, a Dix Hills, NY resident, is an estate litigator.  She is the author of several legislative amendments affecting the laws of inheritance in New York.  Ms. Cooper has held leadership roles with many state and local professional and community organizations.  She earned her J.D. degree from Hofstra University School of Law and her B.A. from Cornell University.

The Institute was created to provide attorneys and other professionals with the resources they need to serve Americans 50 years of age or older.  They will be hosting their first annual Conference on Developments in Aging and Longevity Law on Monday, October 7, 2013.  Ms. Cooper will be speaking on The Determination of Testamentary Capacity in Contested Probate Proceedings.  To learn more about the Institute and this Conference, visit http://law.touro.edu/Academics/?pageid=701.

ABOUT FARRELL FRITZ
Farrell Fritz is a full service law firm that has earned a strong reputation in the New York business community.  The firm handles legal matters in the areas of bankruptcy & creditors’ rights; commercial litigation; condemnation & eminent domain; construction; corporate & finance; distressed assets; emerging companies & venture capital; environmental; estate litigation; healthcare; labor & employment; land use, municipal & zoning; real estate; tax planning & controversy; tax certiorari and trusts & estates for a variety of corporations, not-for-profit organizations and individuals. 

For more information, please visit our website, as well as our Facebook and LinkedIn pages.

Expo Featuring Educational Seminars, Sessions and Exhibits Dedicated to Health & Wellness for Mom, Dad and Baby

(Long Island, NY) The first Expecting Parents & Baby Expo hosted by Expos Your Business producer of business and consumer trade shows, will take place on Sunday, October 6, 2013 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Hilton Long Island in Melville.

The Expo will provide health and wellness educational seminars and exhibits of new products and technologies dedicated to expecting parents, new parents and couples planning to start their families.

Questions will be answered by experts about a wide variety of topics including: fertility, adoption, breastfeeding, delivery options, post-partum depression, healthy routines, day care/preschool, employment rights for expecting/new mothers, childproofing your house, saving for college and more.

For more information please visit http://www.expectingparentsbabyexpo.com

(Smithtown, NY) Dr. James C. Marotta, Long Island dual-board certified facial plastic surgeon and leading hair replacement specialist, will be honored by the Suffolk County Coalition Against Domestic Violence on October 24^th at their Annual Awards Reception for his dedicated work with the American Academy of Facial Plastic Surgery’s FACE to FACE program.

Owner of Marotta Facial Plastic Surgery, Dr. Marotta is a volunteer with FACE to Face and donates his time and surgical expertise to help victims of domestic abuse and veterans who were deployed in Iraq or Afghanistan with face and neck injuries.

Owner of Marotta Facial Plastic Surgery, Dr. Marotta is a volunteer with FACE to Face and donates his time and surgical expertise to help victims of domestic abuse and veterans who were deployed in Iraq or Afghanistan with face and neck injuries.

FACE TO FACE was created to help repair both physical and psychological scars by providing complimentary consultation and surgery to domestic violence survivors whom have suffered injuries to the face, head or neck.

Victims of domestic abuse who are burdened with physical scars of the head and neck are invited to call the 24-hour toll free number – 1-800-842-4546.

An honor and privilege, Dr. Marotta is thrilled to be given the opportunity to donate his time an expertise to this amazing cause and be honored at this year’s Annual Awards Reception during Domestic Violence Awareness Month.

The Suffolk County Coalition Against Domestic Violence’s Annual Awards Reception will take place on October 24^th at 6PM at Lombardi’s on the Bay.

For more information on the event, please visit: www.sccadv.org/events/

For more information on Dr. Marotta and Marotta Facial Plastic Surgery, please visit: www.marottamd.com.

(MONTAUK, NY) Decorated US Marine Corps Veteran, John Behan, announced today that he is endorsing Jay Schneiderman for re-election to the Suffolk County Legislature.

Decorated US Marine Corps Veteran, John Behan (right), announced today that he is endorsing Jay Schneiderman (left) for re-election to the Suffolk County Legislature.

Mr. Behan, who has served as NY State Assemblyman and Director of NY’s Division of Veterans Affairs said that Schneiderman had earned his support through hard work and effective leadership on issues that matter to the region. Mr. Behan pointed to the recent opening of the new East End clinic for Veterans, Legislator Schneiderman’s support of commercial fisherman and his efforts to reduce Lyme disease as examples of Mr. Schneiderman’s leadership.

“I’m proud to have Jay Schneiderman as my County Legislator because he has always fought for what’s important to East End residents and has been a strong advocate for veterans,” said Behan. Behan formally announced his endorsement of Schneiderman at his home in Montauk, NY

“John Behan’s commitment and service to our community, country and veterans is exemplary and I’m honored to receive his endorsement,” said Legislator Schneiderman.

Behan represented the East End in the New York Assembly from 1978 to 1995, and was instrumental in establishing the Assembly’s Veteran Affairs Committee. John Behan is a decorated Marine Corps veteran who was severely wounded in combat operations in Vietnam. Behan also served as Director of the New York State Division of Veterans Affairs from 1995-1998. Mr. Behan is also a former Chairman of the East Hampton Republican Party.