Some 70 attendees, more than 30 of whom were residents of Floral Park, recently attended at village hall the first of five CERT training sessions. CERT is a federally funded program to better prepare individuals and committees to respond to emergency situations.

The aftermath of last year's hurricane season that severely impacted Louisiana and a number of southeastern states gives dramatic example of the need for neighbor to help neighbor and community to help community. In response to the devastation and the staggering breadth of human loss and suffering, Long Island's emergency preparations have taken on a new urgency to meet the cataclysmic forces, natural or otherwise, that could wreak such horrific losses and damages.

Long Island was unsuspectingly hit by such a catastrophe in 1938 when a massive hurricane, later called the "great wind," swept across large portions of the island leaving in its wake a holocaust of death and utter devastation. The memories of those who lived through the catastrophe were indelibly etched by the images of its crippling effect and the fragility of human agency to thwart its savage power.

Today, satellite-warning systems are in place to better forecast the mysterious, mercurial whims of the natural world and better guard us against its volatile, explosive surprises. But no scientific enterprise is foolproof and even if it were, ample warning is not in itself sufficient to provide our citizenry with the protection and security it needs when confronted with a full-scale emergency.

The mission of CERT is to help fill in these insufficiencies. CERT members will not take the place of more extensively trained responders, be they police, fire or medical response personnel. Rather, it is expected that CERT members, through their specific training, will be able to assume some tasks that might otherwise burden our first responders and keep them from utilizing their skills to the fullest.

I'm proud that our village has hosted the first of these very important CERT programs. I want to especially thank Deputy Mayor Kevin Greene and Trustees Tom Tweedy and Jim Rhatigan for attending and seeing how these measures can best apply to our village. Over the next month, these community-minded citizens will complete their basic instruction on how to help protect themselves, their families and their neighbors.

I believe our library, with its Mount Vernon façade, Palladian windows and cupola crown, is one of the architectural glories of the village. So much of what passes for architectural beauty today is but a graceless vestige of modern art: geometrically blind, structurally incoherent and arresting only for its absence of artistic sensibility. Our library, though once a Farley Post Office, possesses a classical simplicity whose dimensional distinctness stands aesthetically apart from the physical character of our community yet simultaneously espoused to it by embodying a quaint spirituality that symbolizes its very essence.

Domiciled in these sumptuous confines is the cultural and educational Mecca of our village whose resources and staff serve to provide for the needs of our residents with special emphasis given to meeting the needs of our student and senior population.

Speaking toward the library facility itself, with the heating/air conditioning/ventilation system upgrade now complete, the village board, in concert with the library board of trustees, has selected the firm Coburn Architecture PC to present a proposal for a modest expansion of our current library design. This renovation is expected to address several programmatic components including handicap accessibility, reconfiguration of existing space accentuating separate and differential reading areas that will showcase the building's intrinsic architectural features, possible reorientation of the building entrance and reconstitution toward a centrally located circulation department.

The village is also looking toward enhancing exterior vistas of the library. The board has approved a plan to develop the triangular area adjacent to the library and near to Tulip Avenue into a pocket park replete with benches, lighting and plantings. The Floral Park Woman's Club is generously furnishing the village with financial support toward this most worthy undertaking.

I want to express my appreciation to Trustee Jim Rhatigan for sensitively and conscientiously working with all interested parties in mid-wifing these many meaningful proposals through for the village board's consideration. I am also thankful for the hard work and support of our library as well as Dominick Longobardi, president of the library board of trustees, and the trustees, volunteers all, who have conspicuously dedicated themselves to the improvement and enhancement of our wonderful village library.

I must also pay tribute to the Friends of the Floral Park Library who over the years have given so much of their time and talents to increase both library usage and enjoyment. The Friends will be spearheading the upcoming celebration of National Library Week (which I will address in a future message) with a number of interesting and informative programs. Please stop by the library to pick up a copy of the Friends newsletter for more information about their organization and events.

From monies received through a "Community Development" grant, the village is constructing a handicap ramp on the Carnation Avenue side of Centennial Hall. This embellishment will facilitate access to the building for residents who may have difficulty negotiating the steps. Because we used our in-house engineer we saved money on both the design and supervision aspect of the project. Work that is supervised by our own village personnel assures not only a higher quality of labor being performed but also almost guarantees that the job will be completed in a more timely fashion.

This is the strategy we will also employ for the three quarters of a mile stretch where we will be doing road and curb reconstruction on Magnolia Avenue. The design, supervision and administration of this Olympian task will again be done in-house, as it was on Carnation Avenue, which resulted in significant savings.

I was invited by my neighbor, one of our village's unsung do-gooders, Mary Rubbo to speak to the AARP membership on President's Day at the recreation center. Accompanied by Trustees Tom Tweedy and Jim Rhatigan (Jim is now an AARP member in good standing) we encountered a room filled, and good-natured crowd brimming with enthusiasm.

In just two years, in 2008, the first flush of Baby Boomers will be officially designated as senior citizens. Between 1946-1964, with economic growth and job creation reaching high tide, more babies were born in this country than any time before or since. During the Depression and WWII 1929-1945 America, percentage wise, experienced its lowest birth rates.

Our rapidly aging population presents great challenges to every level of government. The debate over the financing of Social Security in Washington is a consequence of the aging demographics of society. It is a cruel illusion to foster the idea among seniors that government is omni-provident because it is not and never will be.

I have every confidence that these challenges, over time, will be met. Part of being an American (at least as I see it) means having a healthy mix of short-term pessimism and long-term optimism. Creative market solutions, under the auspices of benevolent guidelines that are still profit oriented, have been successful in meeting the housing needs via "Golden Age Housing" and even long-term nursing care and assisted living needs. More of these innovations will be needed in the future.

On the local level, the combined resources of local government, fraternal organizations and our churches are working, often together, to meet these needs. Some of these efforts, listed below, are quite impressive:

The village significantly discounts pool membership fees for our seniors and gives them a festive party at the end of the season. Last summer was one of the hottest since records were first kept in 1869. The pool provided refreshment and relief from the summer's oppressive heat for our seniors.

Our recreation program, at our beautiful Recreation Center, hosts a number of programs that seniors really enjoy such as line dancing, Tai Chi and exercise programs. There is also knitting and crafts.

The Village of Floral Park provides several thousand dollars a year in contributions to the Town of Hempstead's Senior Enrichment program.

At our village library, seniors can receive income tax preparation help and 55 Alive courses that teach safe driving.

The Knights of Columbus and our local churches do more of their share for our seniors and are always looking for ways to do more. The FISH Organization of Floral Park, which is now entering its 35th year of continuous service, is very active in helping seniors, providing drivers and telephone people. Many of our local organizations and churches make generous donations to FISH. Last year FISH's volunteers made nearly 450 trips transporting mostly seniors to doctors and hospitals. We in village government will continue to encourage our residents to get involved with these extraordinary organizations whose work is truly God's work.

If you wish to volunteer for FISH please call Fran at 775-0740 or Laura at 437-0808.

Finally, our village is always endeavoring to coordinate and network through Town of Hempstead and County of Nassau senior services.

I concluded my "State of the Village" speech before the AARP membership with these words that are meant for all of us who have flown far on the wings of time: "May your days be measured in smiles and not tears and your days counted by friends not years."