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BaBylon _______________
HERALD BEaCon
Also serving Babylon, Bay Shore, Copiague, Deer Park, Farmingdale, Lindenhurst, North Babylon, West Babylon, West Islip and Wyandanch
Former Supervisor William T. Lauder dies Page 3 VOL. 74 NO. 49
Amityville Holiday Home Tour Page 4
Ex WB Fire Chief to head town Fire Association Page 5
DECEMBER 6-11, 2024
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Fire district election of commissioners set for Tues., December 10 By CAROLYN JAMES cjames@liherald.com Voters in the Copiague, Deer Park, West Babylon and West Islip fire districts will head to the polls on Tues., Dec. 10 to elect commissioners to their boards. Fire commissioners generally serve five-year terms and are responsible for establishing policies and procedures within the department, working with the other members to assess and secure equipment and apparatus. They also formulate and are responsible for the district’s annual budget and expenses. Commissioners are all volunteers, but receive a stipend for attending meetings.
Photo courtesy/Babylon United Methodist Church Islip United Methodist Church Reverend Douglas Madlon, Reverend Richard Hanse and lay leader at Islip United Methodist Church Ken Gesseck.
‘Special homecoming’ for Rev. Hanse By CHRISTIE LEIGH BABIRAD
cbabirad@liherald.com
Reverend Richard Hanse was officially installed as the Long Island East District Superintendent of the United Methodist Church at a special ceremony held recently at Babylon United Methodist Church. The service was a “special homecoming” for Hanse, who grew up attending the church with his grandparents, the same church where he said he first discovered his faith. Hanse is the grandson of former Babylon Village Mayor and Town Supervisor Gil Hanse Sr. He grew up in Northport and Babylon and continues to visit his 104-year-old grandmother, Elizabeth Lawton Hanse, every Sunday.
“My grandparents have always been my anchors,” he said. “When I told my grandmother I was being installed as District Superintendent, she was so excited.” Hanse said of his new position, “I love my work, and I’m excited about this opportunity to empower and encourage pastors, church members, and communities.” Hanse described his new role as a “missional strategist.” He oversees all United Methodist churches in Suffolk County and eastern Nassau County, with a focus on nurturing the spirituality of both pastors and congregants. “My priority is to make sure that both the peo-
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COPIAGUE FIRE DISTRICT Voters in Copiague will head toVoters in Copiague will head to the polls on Tues., Dec. 10 to elect a commissioner to the fire department board. Running for another term is Copiague Fire Commissioner Angelo Licata, a member of the department for 37 years. He is seeking his fifth term and is unopposed. Licata began his career as a volunteer in the department’s Hook & Ladder and Rescue Company and has served as a Commissioner for 20 years. Professionally he is a plumber. A focus of the department which begun several years ago,
was to reach out and work more closely with the people and organizations in the Copiague Fire District, Amity Harbor, the American Venice, an incentive that he said he and the board has found to be highly successful and one that he would like to see continued. “As a department, we have reached out to bring the community and the fire department closer,” said Licata. “Our efforts over the last several years have been very successful and we have built many sound relationships that has not only allowed us to get things done but also to bring the community together and make it stronger.” Two recent projects include the completion of revitalizing two small parks in the hamlet, including construction of a memorial park, one at the corner of Great Neck Road and Dixon Avenue and the other at Wilson Ave and Montauk Highway where they adopted the corners and worked with the Copiague Chamber sprucing up the site. “So far the community seems very grateful for this and as a board we look forward to completing even more projects in Copiague,” said Licata. Like other volunteer departments, Copiague Fire Department is taking advantage of New York State legislation that allows CONTINUED ON PAGE 12