(Stony Brook, NY) From the iconic 1970s Front Engine Dragster to the 1946 Midget that appeared in the movie, “The Big Wheel” starring Mickey Rooney, there’s plenty to see at Ward Melville Heritage Organization’s Summer Exhibit celebrating our very own Bridgehampton, Freeport, Riverhead, Islip and Vanderbilt racetracks.

Chevron B-54 c

One of the race cars featured will be a 1971 Lotus courtesy of Guy Frost.  Bill Fuhrman purchased it in the 1990s and Northumberland Engineering prepped the car for Bill to race at Bridgehampton. Tragically, Bill Fuhrman owned the car for only two years before he died in the TWA Flight 800 crash off Long Island.  Guy went on to drive it in Sports Car Club of America-sanctioned races at Bridgehampton before the track closed in 1998.

The exhibit will also include an Outdoor Car Club Showcase and many of the cars that raced these very tracks (see details) as well as memorabilia courtesy of Himes Museum of Motor Racing Nostalgia/Marty Himes; Bridgehampton/Robert Rubin’s Collection, vintage signage and the works of renowned auto artist George Ellis. The exhibit runs July 13 through Labor Day, September 2 at WMHO’s Educational & Cultural Center in Stony Brook Village and is open 7 days from 10 am to 5 pm.  Admission is $4 for adults and $2 for children under 12.  For info visit wmho.org or call 631-689-5888.

Exhibit Details

• Front Engine Dragster: 24 FT, reproduction of the 1970s national record holder and national championship car, courtesy of Anthony Persico, Bohemia, NY.
• Kurtis Kraft Midget, 1946, appeared in the 1949 movie,“The Big Wheel” starring Mickey Rooney, Courtesy of Warren Smith, Brookhaven Winged Sports Race Car: 1981, Chevron B-54 C, Courtesy of Fred Knoll, Stony Brook, NY.
• 1937 Dodge 4 Door Sedan, Courtesy of Marty Himes, Bay Shore, NY.
• 1971 Lotus XI (Westfield) Courtesy of Guy Frost, Roslyn, NY.

Outdoor Car Club Showcase

July 20:            L.I. Corvette Owners Association
Volkswagon Club
(2:30 pm – Appearance by local race car driver Walt Kern)

August 10:      L.I. Buick Club
Big Apple Miata Club
August 11:      L.I. Sound Region of Classic Car Club of America
August 17:      Thunderbird Club
August 18:      Jaguar & MG Club…“The British Are Coming!”

Founded in 1939, WMHO is a not-for-profit corporation that develops and fosters community enrichment through cultural and educational experiences.  WMHO accomplishes this by enhancing and interpreting its historic and environmentally sensitive properties and by utilizing state-of-the-art technology. For more information, please visit www.wmho.org.

(Long Island, NY) Former Nassau County Comptroller Howard Weitzman voiced his concern that George Maragos has continued to stall on issuing the County’s 2012 year-end financial report and failed to meet a statutorily-mandated deadline.

“It is appalling that it is July and George Maragos still hasn’t released the year-end financial report for last year,” said Weitzman. “This report is one of the Comptroller’s chief responsibilities. Mr. Maragos is the first Comptroller to resort to hiring an outside firm at a price of $225,000 over three years to help his own staff finish this report, and yet he has still failed to file on time.”

Several weeks ago Maragos held a press conference at which he announced preliminary end of the year figures but did not release the required full report and supporting documentation. The numbers provided were misleading and failed to account for over $100 million in real estate tax refunds and included overly-generous projections for Superstorm Sandy reimbursements. Maragos has now failed to meet the statutorily required deadline of submitting the report by June 30th. for the second year in a row. Just three weeks ago, a spokesperson for Maragos insisted that he would not miss the June 30th deadline this year.

“If George Maragos is going to stand before the people of Nassau County and make a ridiculous claim about the state of the County’s finances, he should at least provide documentation to back it up,” said Weitzman. “To neglect this responsibility is to neglect the heart of his job as Comptroller. The Comptroller’s office is badly broken if a routine report cannot be issued on time.”

Maragos was widely criticized for his preliminary announcement, with Newsday weighing in on the situation in a June 12, 2013 editorial which included:

“The Wall Street rating service that downgraded $1.5 billion of Nassau County’s debt by a notch on Tuesday might have felt silly when County Comptroller George Maragos announced Wednesday that Nassau had amassed a $41-million surplus in 2012. More likely, though, the financial folks at Fitch Ratings, and Moody’s Investors Service, which downgraded Nassau debt in October, recognized that while the surplus is a fiction, the county’s financial woes are all too real.”

About Howard Weitzman, CPA
In 2001, Howard Weitzman became the only CPA ever elected to the office of Nassau County Comptroller after a 30 year career as a healthcare financial executive. He was subsequently re-elected to a second term in 2005. During his eight years as Comptroller, Howard Weitzman played a central role in the financial rescue of Nassau County. Under Howard’s leadership, the office of Comptroller became a national model for transparency and accountability while at the same time developing a reputation for groundbreaking audits, independence and integrity. A graduate of Brooklyn Technical High School and Queens College, Howard is the former Mayor of Great Neck Estates, where he and his wife resided for 35 years and raised three children. He is currently a resident of North Hills.

High waters and fast moving rivers, streams may be hazardous for holiday weekend

(Long Island, NY) New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation Commissioner Rose Harvey reminded boaters heading out for the holiday weekend to be mindful of potentially dangerous conditions after recent heavy rainfall and flooding.

“Many areas of New York are experiencing high water levels and fast moving rivers due to unusually heavy rainfall,” Harvey said. “These conditions may pose unexpected dangers to boaters. Before setting out, we urge boaters to make sure they understand the conditions they’ll face and avoid bodies of water that may be unsafe. Don’t let a poorly planned boating trip turn your holiday into a tragedy.”

The Office of Parks and Recreation along with the United States Coast Guard strongly recommend wearing life jackets, especially while aboard small manually propelled watercraft.

Additionally it is recommended that all boaters:

• Properly equip and carry essential safety gear, signaling devices and whistles;
• Always let others know where you’re going and when to expect your return;
• Take a boating safety or paddle sport skills course; and always,
• Refrain from mixing alcohol with boating.

The State Parks Marine Service Unit is responsible for the general coordination of boating safety programs and supports marine law enforcement efforts across the state, including patrols, training and funding for local marine enforcement activities. For more information about boating safety – including listings of boating safety courses – and marine recreation in New York State, visit www.nysparks.com/recreation/boating.

(Long Island, NY) Once again, some of the most talented Long Island musicians from Folk to Rock will take to the stage at the Harry Chapin Lakeside Theatre in Eisenhower Park in East Meadow to pay tribute in song to the late singer, Grammy Award winning songwriter and social activist by performing many of his classic recordings. The annual Just Wild About Harry Tribute Concert will be held on Monday, July 22nd at 7:00 P.M.  Concert goers are once again being asked to bring a donantion of non-perishable food to support Long Island Cares, Inc., the  regional food bank founded by Harry Chapin in 1980. In addition, copies of the 2011 recording of the Just Wild About Harry concert will be on sale, which features many of the artists that will appear on July 22nd.

The line up of musicians and performers set to appear on July 22nd is still being developed but will certainly include concert organizer and host Stuart Markus and his band, Gathering Time.

“This is a wonderful event that all of us at Long Island Cares are always excited to participate in. The public responds very generously with donations of food and all of the artists offer wonderful renditions of Harry’s material. We are very grateful to Stuart Markus for his ongoing passion in producing this concert each year to benefit our organization,” said Paule Pachter, Executive Director.

This year, the Long Island Cares’ tent will include copies of several of Harry’s CDs for sale and the new CD from Jen Chapin, Reckoning.  In addition, several styles of t-shirts will be on sale and information about all of the organization’s programs, services and special events will be displayed.

SPECIAL TOM AND JEN CHAPIN RAFFLE: Raffle tickets will be sold for a chance to win a specially framed and autographed drum head from Tom Chapin and Jen Chapin, with all proceeds to benefit the Long Island Cares Endowment Fund.

About Long Island Cares, Inc.
Long Island Cares, Inc. – The Harry Chapin Food Bank is Long Island’s first food bank: serving the hungry on Long Island since, 1980.  Long Island Cares brings together all available resources for the benefit of the hungry on Long Island and provides emergency food where and when it is needed, and sponsors a wide variety of innovate direct service programs that help families achieve self-sufficiency. The organization was founded by the late singer, Grammy Award winning songwriter and social activist Harry Chapin in response to the growing issue of hunger on Long Island. It is continued today by his wife and partner Sandy Chapin, a dedicated Board of Directors and talented staff working out of their 35,000 square foot facility in Hauppauge and their storefront hunger assistance centers in Freeport and Lindenhurst. Long Island Cares is a member agency of the Food Bank Association of New York State and Feeding America. Long Island Cares, Inc. is recognized by the NYS Department of Health and the USDA as the regional food bank for Long Island.

Dramatic Work to be Performed at BAM’s New Fisher Theater on July 26

(Long Island, NY) A new collaboration will take place this summer between Usdan Center for the Creative and Performing Arts, and the new Youth Summer Programs of the Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM).  Students from Usdan’s Senior Division Creative Writing Major will travel to BAM on July 23 and 26 to work with students in BAM’s Style and Substance creative writing workshop.

Led by Usdan teacher David Surface, and BAM teacher Richard Hoehler, students will together create a narrative project that will become a play or series of interwoven monologues and dialogues. Students will work to create the theme of the piece, and will then write a script for a new piece of collaborative theater. The culminating event will take place in BAM’s new Fisher Building on Friday July 26, and will feature professional actors bringing the new theater work to life.

Andrew Copper, Associate Director of Usdan Center and Usdan’s coordinator of the project, says “Usdan Center is thrilled to partner with BAM for the first time. We are excited to see students from both organizations work together to create an exciting, vibrant and unique piece of art.”

BAM’s one-week Style and Substance program, for ages 12 to 14, from July 22-26, aims to build style, tone and voice and improve critical thinking through responses to fellow students’ work.  Its Fisher Center, which opened last September, was designed as a dynamic, flexible space for new programs, Brooklyn artists and the community, with an expanded roster of talks, education and family programs.  The Youth Summer Programs offer a variety of one and two-week workshops in Creative Play, Video Game Design and Creating Musical Theater.

Usdan Center for the Creative and Performing Arts, now entering its 46th year, has introduced the visual and performing arts to more than 60,000 children ages 6 to 18 at its 200-acre woodland campus in the Huntington area of Long Island.  In its Creative Writing program, started (how many?) years ago, small groups of creative writing students engage the forms of poetry, short fiction and playwriting in covered, open-air studios. The program culminates in the publication of Usdan’s literary magazine, Painting with Words, a multidisciplinary publication which includes student-produced poetry and writing.  Besides the regular faculty, guest teachers including Broadway playwright Michele Lowe, have taught Master Classes.

David Surface, Founder of the WriteMind Workshop, has had stories and essays published in Doubletake, North American Review, and Crazyhorse. He is a recipient of a non-fiction literature fellowship from the New York Foundation for the Arts, and is Writer-in-residence at Bronx High School for Writing and Communication Arts. Richard Hoehler is an actor, director, writer, and teaching artist. He received the OOBR Award for Best Solo Performance, and his work has been optioned by Columbia Tri-Star Television, performed at regional theaters around the country, featured at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, and published by Smith & Kraus. His fiction and award-winning short stories have been published by various publications and presses. Hoehler has taught acting and writing classes in New York City schools for over twenty years, and is the workshop director for Random House, Inc.’s Creative Writing Competition.

The Brooklyn Academy of Music, a multi-arts center in downtown Brooklyn has, for more than 150 years, presented world-renowned programming in music, dance and theater, opera, film and much more, showcasing the work of emerging artists and innovative modern masters.

Usdan Center for the Creative and Performing Arts’ alumni include actors Natalie Portman and Olivia Thirlby, singers Jane Monheit and Mariah Carey, and members of major music and dance ensembles. Usdan’s program features more than 40 three, four and seven-week programs in music, dance, theater, visual arts, writing, nature & ecology, and chess. No audition is needed for most programs. Each summer, 1,500 students are transported to the Center in air-conditioned buses each day. One-third of Usdan’s students attend on scholarship. Although the mission of the Center is for every child to establish a relationship with the arts, the unique stimulation of the Center has caused many to go on to arts careers. Usdan Center is an agency of the UJA-Federation of New York.

(Wading River, NY) New York State Senator Ken LaValle, center, recently congratulated SUNY Maritime scholarship recipients Thomas Fox and Joe Whelan, both of Wading River and 2013 graduates of Shoreham Wading River H.S.

Tom is a volunteer firefighter in Shoreham Wading River and hopes to become an officer in the Coast Guard. Joe is member of the Wading River Fire Department Explorers and hopes to pursue a career in engineering.

New York State Senator Ken LaValle, center, SUNY Maritime scholarship recipient Thomas Fox, at left, and Joe Whelan, at right, both of Wading River and 2013 graduates of Shoreham Wading River H.S.

(Huntington, N.Y.) – Councilwoman Susan A. Berland was at Huntington High School for the United Methodist Men of the United Methodist Church of Huntington-Cold Spring Harbor’s “Laughter and Lyrics Too for the Children of Huntington Station” Friday evening to celebrate and raise funds for a splash/water park with Reverend Dr. Luonne Abram Rouse, his lovely wife Marie and the community. Councilwoman Berland presented special guest Bishop Prosper Yumba Lufungula Bumi of the Democratic Republic of the Congo with an official proclamation from the Town of Huntington.

L-R: Pastor Nelson, Reverend Dr. Luonne Abram Rouse, Marie Rouse, Bishop Bumi, Councilwoman Susan A. Berland.

Bishop Prosper Yumba Lufungula Bumi holds a Masters of Divinity Degree and has served as a pastor for over 25 years. He was elected as Bishop of “Communitie’ Pentecostiste DES Carmelites Mission Naire” in 2001 and has built a medical clinic, hospital and a University-Seminary in efforts to lead his community to amazing growth.

“It was a pleasure for me to honor Bishop Bumi,” commented Councilwoman Berland. “He is a community leader in his village and is passionate about building a bright future for our youngest generation. Huntington was honored to welcome him to the “Laughter and Lyrics Too for the Children of Huntington Station” event sponsored by the United Methodist Men of the United Methodist Church of Huntington-Cold Spring Harbor. I would like to thank the United Methodist Men for continuing to sponsor community events to raise funds for the creation of a water/splash park for children living in Huntington Station.”

The Alliance for Quality Education Releases College & Career Readiness Report Card

(ALBANY, NY) Today, the Alliance for Quality Education released their College and Career Readiness Report Card titled, Are We There Yet? The report card grades Albany on its progress in improving public education in New York State. Click here to read the report.

The report card found that the state was moving in the right direction in the areas of “Providing Quality Pre-K” and “Creating Community Schools.” However, the report card found that the state is moving in the wrong direction in the areas of “Expanding Learning Time,” “Providing Challenging and Engaging Curriculum,” “Creating a Positive School Climate and Reducing Suspensions,” and “Investing in Equity.” The report card gave the state an “Incomplete” in “Providing Quality Teaching Initiatives,” stating that there is not enough evidence to show whether or not the new teacher evaluation is a step in the right or wrong direction yet.

“We agree with the Governor, the state should be investing in full-day pre-K, high quality curriculum, teacher mentoring, more time for student learning, and improving low-performing schools by creating community schools,” said Billy Easton, Executive Director of the Alliance for Quality Education. “Now that the state is funding these successful educational strategies for less than two percent of New York students, the next step should be for the state to embrace the reality that we have a moral obligation to make these programs available to students throughout the state.”

The report card finds that, overall, New York State is moving in the wrong direction because it is failing to provide large portions of students with these successful educational opportunities.  New York has created small grant programs in several of these areas, but those programs each serve less than two percent of students in the state.

“The way that this state is treating my child’s education is just plain wrong,” said Natasha Capers, parent from Brooklyn. “The bare bones of education is unacceptable, and I’m angry that my child has less opportunities to succeed than other children in this state. The state must do its job, so that schools can do their job to give students an equal opportunity to succeed.”

“The Governor’s initiatives in education continue to fall short in addressing any substantive issues of real school improvement,” said Laurence Spring, Superintendent of Schenectady City School District. “While the state provides more than 100 districts with more than 100% of their foundation funding, dramatically underfunded districts must compete for grant funding, placing them in the awkward position of cutting base programming but attempting to add experimental initiatives.  Schenectady is eager to embrace expanded early childhood and extended school-year / school-day opportunities. However, given that we receive such a small share of our foundation funding, we are cutting basic services that students need to be successful.  AQE’s Report Card helps to ensure that the entire picture of school funding and improvement efforts is clear to all.”

“Populations living in vulnerable conditions require a formula of interventions and school systems that are protective and functioning effectively. The AQE report provides the calculations necessary for this formula to work,” said Dr. Edward Fergus-Arcia, Assistant Professor of Educational Leadership, New York University.

“We need to do better. The recommendations of the Are We There Yet? report may ruffle some traditionalist feathers, but that is because they emphasize the best interests of the students,” said Patrick Michel, HFM BOCES superintendent. “Based on international best practices, AQE’s report card shows the path to student success. The state should not ignore these recommendations if it truly wants to ensure students are college and career ready.”

“It is extremely important for us to provide quality education to all children,” said Senator Kevin S. Parker. “We must continue to work to make sure our children’s education is fully and fairly funded, and continue to improve access to education, quality pre-K, and community schools. This will ensure that our children are prepared to compete in the global economy.”

“People are angry,” said Willie White, Executive Director of A Village. “They are angry that 35,000 teachers have been taken out of classrooms. They are angry that opportunities like art, music, drama and sports are on the chopping block. They are angry that the students who need our help the most are the ones suffering the worst fate with these budget cuts. This report card shows that New York is failing in its commitment to students.”

“For too many years now, AQE has worked to try to stop the bleeding,” said Easton. “But, Band-Aids won’t heal deep wounds. We are in an education crisis. The state needs to change course and focus on improving schools, otherwise the damage may be irreparable.”

Since the 2007 court ruling in the Campaign for Fiscal Equity case, which states that New York has a constitutional obligation to provide all students with a “sound basic education,” the issue of equity and opportunity has been a consistent theme in the educational debate.

“It’s time for New York to take a hard look at how it treats all students in this state,” said David Sciarra, Executive Director of the Education Law Center in New Jersey. “Ranked #43 in education funding equity, New York is well behind the rest of the nation in closing the opportunity gap between high need and low need schools. A system built on equity provides all students with high quality curriculum and access to quality pre-K. In New Jersey, the opportunity gap is getting smaller because we invest in equity. New York ought to do the same.”

“There exists an elaborate narrative of denial perpetrated by conservative pundits, and echoed by some people in New York, trying to deny the fact that money actually matters a great deal when it comes to closing the gap in educational opportunity between students in wealthy and poor communities,” said Easton.

“This report card is a way of holding the legislature accountable for meeting the needs of New York’s most vulnerable youth. The progress to date is at best modest. This is the state’s responsibility and must be the state’s highest priority. If the state fails to provide students with the opportunities that AQE’s report card outlines, many of these children will be dependent on state services for generations and few will maximize their potential. This will not only be a tragedy for these children, but New York will never be able to solve its budget problems or be attractive for economic development,” said Michael P. Hogan Ph.D. Associate Dean, College of Education Information and Technology, Long Island University.

“I would like to commend the Alliance for Quality Education for releasing a thorough evaluation of New York’s public education system,” said Assemblyman Anthony J. Brindisi.  “I strongly agree with the report’s emphasis on the importance of Career and Technical Education programs. We need to ensure that this curriculum is available statewide, so that our employers have a skilled group of applicants for jobs that require some technical ability and competence.  These are the jobs of the future that will encourage our young people to stay in New York.”

New EPA Rule Will Prevent As Many As 23,000 Cases Of Respiratory Illness In Children Annually, Will Cut Emissions Of Smog-Producing Pollutants By 80% And Soot By 70% And Is Equivalent To Taking 33 Million Vehicles Off The Road; Schneiderman: The Health Of Millions Of New Yorkers Will Benefit From These Common-Sense, Cost-Effective And Critically-Important Air Pollution Standard

(NEW YORK) Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman, leading a coalition of 15 cities and states, submitted a letter to the Acting Administrator of the federal Environmental Protection Agency urging the swift adoption of a newly-proposed rule for reducing air pollution from passenger cars and trucks. The “Tier 3 Motor Vehicle Emission and Fuel Standards” rule, proposed by the agency in March, will bring substantial public health and economic benefits by setting new vehicle emission and fuel standards beginning in 2017. The rule will reduce motor vehicle emissions of smog-producing pollution by 80% and soot pollution by 70%. The coalition letter urges the EPA to finalize this critically-important rule on-schedule by the end of 2013.

“Emissions from cars and trucks result in air pollution that threatens the health of millions of New Yorkers each year,” Attorney General Schneiderman said. “Our coalition of states and cities are on the front-lines in the fight for the well being of all our citizens and particularly the most vulnerable among us, our children, our elderly and those already suffering from respiratory and heart diseases. We commend the EPA for proposing common-sense, cost-effective and forward-looking pollution standards for motor vehicles. They will help us win the fight against dirty air. Today, we are urging the Environmental Protection Agency to ensure these standards are finalized without delay.”

Poor air quality threatens the health of more than 150 million people in the U.S., especially children, the elderly and those with existing respiratory diseases. The cost estimate for air pollution-related illnesses is $150 billion per year. According to the American Lung Association, over 3.2 million New Yorkers lived in counties in 2012 where levels of soot and smog pollution endanger health. This year, the group ranked the New York City metropolitan area as 17th worst among 25 top U.S. cities most polluted by smog. Due to the tremendous public health impact of air pollution and the substantial contribution motor vehicles make to this pollution, the annual monetized health benefits of the “Tier 3” standards are estimated to be three to seven times greater than their costs.

As today’s coalition letter to Acting Administrator Robert Perciasepe points out, the proposed standards are expected to prevent as many as 23,000 cases of respiratory illness in children, 22,000 asthma attacks and 2,400 premature deaths each year, as well as reduce risks to millions of Americans living, exercising and working near major roadways. The pollution reductions achieved by the standards would have the same effect as taking 33 million of today’s vehicles off the road during the 2017 to 2025 period of the rule’s applicability.

Motor vehicles are a significant source of smog and soot air pollution. In the U.S., they are responsible for a majority of nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions and about 30 percent of volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions. These pollutants contribute to smog and soot pollution, which cause respiratory and heart disease.

EPA’s Tier 3 Motor Vehicle Emission and Fuel Standards were published in the Federal Register on May 21, 2013. The rule builds on EPA’s “Tier 2” motor vehicle regulations finalized in 2000. The proposed rule would set new emission standard for passenger cars, light-duty trucks and certain medium-duty and heavy-duty vehicles starting in 2017. The rule’s proposed tailpipe standards, which would limit emissions of smog-producing NOx and VOCs and soot pollution, would be phased in between 2017 and 2025. Proposed standards reducing allowable sulfur content of motor vehicle fuels would go into effect January 1, 2017.

Joining Attorney General Schneiderman in today’s letter were the Attorneys General of Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, the District of Columbia and the Corporation Counsels of Chicago and New York City.

This matter is being handled by Assistant Attorney General Michael J. Myers of the Attorney General’s Environmental Protection Bureau under the supervision of Deputy Bureau Chief Lisa M. Burianek, Bureau Chief Lemuel M. Srolovic, Executive Deputy Attorney General for Social Justice Alvin Bragg and First Deputy for Affirmative Litigation Janet Sabel.

Nassau Bar Free Legal Clinics July 15 and July 29 to Assist Mortgage Foreclosure and Sandy Victims

(Mineola, NY) Many Nassau residents dealing with the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy are now finding themselves in peril of losing their homes through mortgage foreclosure. Nassau County Bar Association attorneys have volunteered to assist homeowners concerned about mortgage foreclosure, helping thousands of families with advice and strategies to keep their homes during one of the worst recessions in modern history as well as one of the most devastating storms in recent memory. To meet the growing need, NCBA will present two Mortgage Foreclosure and Sandy Recovery Free Legal Consultation Clinics on Monday July 15 and Monday, July 29, from 3-6 p.m., at the NCBA headquarters, 15th and West Streets, Mineola, NY.

NCBA’s unique program allows homeowners concerned about foreclosure matters or are already in the foreclosure process involving property in Nassau County, to meet one-on-one with a volunteer attorney for free legal guidance, to receive loan modification assistance and bankruptcy information – all in one room. Homeowners may meet with HUD-certified housing counselors from the Community Development Corporation of Long Island, Hispanic Brotherhood of Rockville Centre and LaFuerza Unieda. Attorneys will also be able to help Sandy victims with claims, debt deferral, consumer protection issues, landlord-tenant issues and insurance claims. At this clinic Catholic Charities will be on hand to assist those who need funding from the Red Cross Unmet Needs Roundtable.

Reservations are required by calling the Bar Association at 516-747-4070. Attendees are asked to bring their mortgage documents to the clinic. Bi-lingual attorneys fluent in Spanish will be on site. Attorneys bi-lingual in Russian, Haitian Creole, Korean, Chinese, Hindi, American Sign Language and many other languages will be made available upon request when homeowners call to make reservations.

This program is funded through the NYS Attorney General Homeownership Protection Program.

About the Nassau County Bar Association
Founded in 1899, the Nassau County Bar Association, with a membership of nearly 6,000 private and public attorneys, judges, legal educators and law students, is the largest suburban bar association in the country. NCBA demonstrates its commitment to the community by offering a variety of services for the public, including lawyer referral services, mortgage foreclosure, Sandy recovery and senior citizen free legal clinics, judicial screening, public education programs and support for the Volunteer Lawyers Project, which provides much-needed free legal services for the indigent of Nassau County. The WE CARE Fund, the NCBA’s charitable arm, assists children, the elderly and others in need, through countless projects and donations.

For more information, call (516) 747-4070 (language translation available), email info@nassaubar.org, or visit www.nassaubar.org.