_____________ ROCKVILLE CENTRE ____________
HERALD Vol. 36 No. 21
Church choir marks 65 years
Showcasing student artwork
Page 3
Page 10
MAY 22 - 28, 2025
$1.00
School budget passes; Downing wins trustee seat By KElSIE RADZISKI kradski@liherald.com
Kelsie Radziski/Herald
The family and friends of Anna Biamonte, a former RVC Homemaker who died in January, came to see the butterfly bushes planted in Biamonte’s honor at Achievement Day on May 13.
Stitched with love, and a member’s legacy is honored By KElSIE RADZISKI kradziski@liherald.com
This year, the Rockville Centre Homemakers Achievement Day bloomed with more than crafts — it bloomed with remembrance. In addition to the display of crafts the members spent the last eight months working on, they also held a ceremony to honor the life and legacy of Anna Biamonte, a devoted member who died in January. They planted butterfly bushes in her memory, a fitting tribute to a woman whose spirit brought beauty, warmth, and growth to every corner of the community she so dearly loved, as her family and friends all
shared. At their final meeting for the year, members reflected on a year of meaningful progress while pausing to remember Biamonte, who had been a pillar of the Homemakers for more than 50 years. “Anna wasn’t just a member of the Homemakers family, she was the heart of it,” Karen Alterson, co-president of the RVC Homemakers, said. “For over 50 years, she served in every imaginable role, always giving, always lending, always supporting. Her dedication, warmth and spirit shaped the very soul of this community, and her absence is deeply felt by all of us.” Biamonte began her Homemakers jourConTinueD on pAge 6
The Rockville Centre school budget passed on Tuesday night with 1,955 votes. The $139.89 million spending plan is 1.63 percent larger than the current budget, and includes a 2.6 percent tax levy increase, just under the district’s allowable tax cap of 2.62 percent. It includes $1.8 million in capital improvements across the district, including bathroom renovations, lighting u p g r a d e s, H VAC r e p a i r s, plumbing and masonry improvements, new pavement and landscaping, and continued investment in flexible furniture for learning spaces. Donna Downing won the open trustee seat on the Board of Education with 1,641 votes, and will serve her second term.
She cited her first-term accomplishments, such as expanding universal pre-K, launching new academic and extracurricular programs and helping craft a new strategic plan, as key motivations to continue serving. A longtime district parent and college instructor, Downing emphasized her educational expertise and commitment to inclusive, responsive leadership amid evolving challenges in public education. The Rockville Centre Public Library budget of $4.2 million also passed, with 2,101 votes, and Meryl Sussman and Christine Faraday were elected to the board of trustees. The library plans to make modest adjustments to collections and materials, reducing spending on books and DVDs while i n c r e a s i n g i nve s t m e n t i n eBooks and audiobooks.
School budget results for Rockville Centre school district
√
YES
1,955 VotES
X
No
970 VotES
For more school election results information, go to liherald.com/rockvillecentre/