I would like to thank all those who made possible the Holiday Lighting of the Village of Farmingdale's Tricentennial Tree on Tuesday, Dec. 2. This was the twentieth year for this festive event, and once again, the weather was favorable.

Many thanks to Judy Feuss, director of the Northside School Grade Three Chorus and her talented youngsters for capturing the magic and joy of the season in their selections. The South Shore Brass Ensemble, as for all 20 years, added a special musical sparkle. The brass ensemble has been sponsored by the Farmingdale Chamber of Commerce since the tree-lighting tradition began in 1989. The Farmingdale-Bethpage Historical Society again funded the notices and ads, and the Kiwanis Club of Farmingdale once more provided refreshments following the program in Village Hall.

Mayor George Starkie and Deputy Mayor Pat Christiansen played their roles perfectly during the highlight of the evening, the lighting of the Tricentennial Tree. Ed Kozlowski, lead teacher of the music staff of the Farmingdale Schools, performed the duties of "emcee" superbly. Originally, Brad DeMilo, longtime director of the Village Pops,was scheduled for this role, but Brad was unavailable this year because of another commitment. I do wish to thank Brad for relieving me of much of the preliminary planning for the program this year, as in the past.

Others who contributed to the event behind the scenes included Andy Fisch, village superintendent of public works and his staff; Jeff Pritzker, lead audio-visual technician of the Farmingdale schools, for setting up and manning the sound system; and the Village Beautification Committee, a dedicated group of volunteers under the direction of Deputy Mayor Pat Christiansen, who have the the whole area of the Village Hall/ Village Green festively decorated for the season, as well as many other areas of the Village.

I'm also grateful for the residents of our community who attended the tree-lighting in impressive numbers. To all, many thanks, and happy holidays!

Bill Johnston
Historian, Village of Farmingdale