_________ Oceanside/island park ________
HERALD EGP Fall Festival a big success
JCC focuses on special needs
o’Side workers get their shine
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VoL. 59 No. 44
oCToBER 24 - 30, 2024
$1.00
Oceanside Kiwanis hosts its installation By KEPHERD DANIEL kdaniel@liherald.com
Holden Leeds/Herald
Kiwanis Club President Michael D’Ambrosio, far left, with County Legislator Patrick Mullaney; Todd Nussen, his wife, Maria, and their daughters, Melina, Natasha and Adriana; Kiwanis Lt. Gov. Michaelene Abbott-Cooper; and incoming President Eric Abbey.
The Oceanside Kiwanis Club gathered in celebration on Oct. 17, hosting its highly anticipated installation of officers and awards dinner at Temple Avodah. The event, filled with camaraderie and community spirit, marked the installation of the club’s officers and board of directors for 2024-25, and three dedicated community members were honored for their exceptional service. Kiwanis Club Lt. Gov. Michaelene Abbott-Cooper officially discharged the club’s outgoing officers, including President Michael CoNTiNuED oN PAGE 10
Honoring a lifelong commitment to service in I.P. By KEPHERD DANIEL kdaniel@liherald.com
In towns small and large, there are those who leave their mark on their community. In Island Park, one such person is Mickey Hastava, who has devoted decades of service to the village as the founder of the Kiwanis Club. Hastava has helped keep the cornerstone organization alive and thriving for seven decades. The club will celebrate its 70th anniversary at DaVinci’s Italian Restaurant on Friday. The event, beginning at 6:30 p.m., will honor Hastava, 88, one of the club’s founding
members. The cost is $70 per person, and attendees will enjoy a sumptuous meal and an open bar. Island Park Kiwanis was founded by Hastava shortly after he graduated from high school in 1954, and has been in operation ever since. Persuading a friend to help him charter a local chapter of the international organization, Hastava envisioned serving the children and families of the village. Initially he invited 30 classmates, and 10 people attended the first meeting. A Navy veteran, Hastava was stationed in the Pacific in the 1950s, where he witnessed
some of the tests of atomic weapons that were conducted in the region. The family business, Hastava Real Estate, was one of the oldest continuously operating businesses in the Island Park area before it moved to Garden City. Over the years, the Kiwanis Club has supported a wide range of community needs, from supplying food for families in need to sponsoring children at Camp Kiwanis. It has provided students with school supplies, and built a playground at F.X. Hegarty Elementary after Superstorm Sandy. The club has hosted an annual Lobster Bake fundraiser for
over 40 years, as well as pancake breakfasts, spaghetti dinners, Sip and Paint events, and breakfasts with Santa. It will begin its 71styear of service with a holiday food drive on Nov. 2, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., at the Island Park King Kullen. These events not only bring the community together but also raise funds for scholarships, awards, and other chari-
table initiatives. Today the club continues to sponsor community service awards, and donate pediatric trauma kits to the fire department. Thanks to the efforts of Hastava’s niece Karen Davis, of Oceanside, the current Kiwanis president and a teacher at Lincoln Orens Middle School, the club has seen a revival in CoNTiNuED oN PAGE 9