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Opinion
(Ed. note: A few years ago, Rev. Thomas Hammond, pastor of Our Saviour Lutheran Church in Manhasset, read the following prayer at a meeting of the Manhasset Rotary Club. We have read it each Thanksgiving since and would like to share it with our readers. It was written by Robert Louis Stevenson.)
Lord, behold our family here assembled. We thank tThee for this place in which we dwell, for the love that unites us, for the peace accorded us this day, for the health, the work, the food and the bright skies that make our lives delightful, for our friends in all parts of the earth.
Give us courage, gaiety and the quiet mind. Spare to us our friends, soften to us our enemies. Bless us, if it may be, in all our innocent endeavors. If it may not, give us the strength to encounter that which is to come. May we be brave in peril, constant in tribulation, temperate in wrath, and in all changes of fortune, loyal and loving to one another.
As the clay to the potter, as the windmill to the wind, as children of their sire, we beseech of Thee this help and mercy. Amen.
I must respond to Harold J. "Whitey" Henrickson's letter that appeared in the Nov. 13 issue of the Manhasset Press.
Never has a statement been lifted out of context and misinterpreted to such detrimental effect. Never has an insult been more misplaced or unjustly leveled than his toward Pat Schanzer. Ms. Schanzer's statement: "Students are really benefiting. Twenty years ago, it was the dummy class in the basement," was intended to demonstrate how much the image of special education has changed; that it is no longer viewed as "the dummy class in the basement" but now warrants serious consideration, concern, and attention from the people who set policy and the community at large. This monumental shift in attitude has occurred in large part because of the efforts of people like Pat Schanzer!
I have worked closely with Ms. Schanzer for six years and I can say without reservation or qualification that there could be no more sensitive, dedicated, professional, or responsible advocate for the needs of special education children - for all children - than Pat Schanzer. By misinterpreting her statement, Mr. Henrickson makes a completely erroneous judgment about Ms. Schanzer and does her a grievous disservice.
Ms. Schanzer is indeed a shining example of what makes the Manhasset School district outstanding. She does an extraordinary job in the face of the most difficult and conflicting demands and needs. She deserves boundless kudos, not distorted insults.
Candace Cohen
President of P.A.S.E. (Parent Association for Special Education)
We want to publicly thank our two local gift shops for refraining from decorating their windows for Christmas until, at least November. Our two local department stores were decorated for Christmas by mid-October.
As Christians we find this offensive and expressively commercializing one of our Holy Celebrations.
Thank you Fleur de Lis and Mole Hole of Manhasset for your sensitivity to the real meaning of Christmas.
Betty O'Connor and Member of FOCUS Group
(Friends Offering Care, Understanding and Support)
Sr. Peggy Byrne, O.P.M.A.
Director of Parish Outreach, Volunteers of the Marian Center
Thank you for your kind words in this week's Manhasset Press editorial. Meeting regularly with local civic and business groups was one of the more enjoyable aspects to my term as Councilman.
Your concern for the Cow Neck peninsula is warranted. Issues affecting Port Washington and Manhasset are unique in the town and these two special communities both need and deserve representation. Although I will no longer be serving on the town board, it is my firm intention to continue to be an advocate for the issues that I have focused on: the preservation and enhancement of our waterfront, the protection of our environment and the continued quality of life we enjoy on the North Shore.
Although I obviously was not pleased with the results of the election, I am proud of the four years I have contributed to the town. As you know, we have always tried to be open and honest in our approach to governing. As a result, I leave with my only regret being that I will not have the opportunity to continue and finish the projects I have worked on.
As I said, I will continue to be active in local affairs and I hope that we will be able to work together for the ongoing improvement of the community. Again, thank you for the kind words.
Fred L. Pollack
Councilman
To everyone who lives in Manhasset Park District.
Please come out and vote for your next commissioner. The voting will be held in the Co. #1 Fire House on Bayview Avenue, Tuesday, Dec. 9 from 5 to 9 p.m.
This is a very important election in the Manhasset community because the commissioner elected will serve for three years and there is much to be done in that time period. Downtown parking and the general health of the community is at stake. Mr. Adams is seeking another three-year term in office. I believe that his time has come and gone. He had done much good in the distant past, but he has failed in several projects in the most recent past. We now need new blood in the commissioner's seat.
Therefore we endorse Harold (Whitey) Henrickson for next commissioner on the Park District board. He knows Manhasset and many of its problems, is sympathetic to the needs of both shoppers and merchants alike and has many thoughts that can only improve our shopping area. Whitey will listen to all concerns and take appropriate action. One would hope that, with the other two commissioners, Whitey would spend our, not the Park District's, money wisely and prudently.
Vote for Whitey on Dec. 9.
From a lifelong resident of Manhasset.
Peggy and Ward Wright
I would like to comment about last week's letter from Norgate residents Leipsic, Monaghan, Pelzer and Vigilis regarding my letter concerning the Nov. 5 board meeting. I don't know how they could impute that my comments could not be "further from the truth" when I was at the meeting and no Norgate resident was in attendance. (There were only two of us at that hour.) I stand by what occurred at the meeting as I was witness to it. Furthermore, if they read my letter again, they will notice that my comments were made about the lack of knowledge exhibited by two board members at the Nov. 5 meeting, not to the "merits or drawbacks" of the gate closure. The exchange and comments made by Dr. Calluzzo (and corrected by Mrs. Masone) are only more baffling considering his "intimate" association with Norgate, and Norgate's many discussions with Superintendent Petraglia.
The Norgate writers are correct about "Wright being a resident of Terrace Manor," a community which is burdened by an identical problem. Those of us who moved to Terrace Manor are aware there is a school (St. Mary's, adjacent to our homes and that, at times, buses and cars come with that location.
As the Norgate Civic Association has not responded to several invitations in the past by the President of Terrace Manor, Phyllis Clark, and myself to discuss our mutual concerns, let me once again extend the offer.
Joyce Wright
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