Congratulations to the Hicksville Community Council and the United Coalition of Hicksville Civics for the outstanding job at this year's Meet the Candidates forums. Through the efforts spearheaded by Community Council Director and Committee Chairman Joel Berse, this year's candidates were distributed among the Hicksville civics and community council. Hicksville residents were afforded the opportunity to participate and ask questions of this year's candidates who wish to be elected to the positions of town supervisor, town board, town clerk, town receiver of taxes, county legislature and elected judgeships.

The community of Hicksville is second only to the Massapequa representing 14 percent of the electorate within the Town of Oyster Bay. The meetings were well-attended and proved to be a huge success. I would like to take this opportunity to thank all those who participated and remind everyone to please get out and vote on Tuesday, Nov. 6.

I am happy to report that civic pride within our community is on the rise. The four active civics: Duffy Park, Midland, NorthWest and Hicksville Gardens are all experiencing a renewed interest in what is happening in the community we all call home. There are, however, still many areas within our community that are not represented by an active civic. One such area is the south central Hicksville community located west of Jerusalem Avenue, east of Newbridge Road and south of Old Country Road. Various members from that community have approached me and asked that the Hicksville Gardens Civic Association (HGCA) expand its western boundaries to include their community. We here at HGCA are extremely flattered with your interest in our organization, however, an expansion can sometimes take years and is not something we are currently prepared for.

In January, I will be hosting a forum in which the presidents of the Jericho Gardens, Westbury Hills, Duffy Park, Midland, NorthWest and HGCA will discuss local issues and next year's National Night Out. It will be at this forum that the area south of Old Country Road, west of Jerusalem Avenue and east of Newbridge Road will be discussed. I ask that any resident homeowner who resides within this area and is interested in establishing an active civic association, to please forward me their name, phone number and address. That information is to be sent to the Hicksville Gardens Civic Association (attention: Henry Goessmann), PO Box 624, Hicksville NY 11802-0624. You can also email information to henrygoessmann@optonline.net. Check out our new website at www.hicksvillegardenscivicassociation.com.

Henry A Goessmann

President, Hicksville Gardens Civic Association

Director, Hicksville Community Council