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Rabbi focuses on civil rights in new book lost anyone. “We had to have some kind of a memorial service,” he When Rabbi Jeffrey Gale said. “The purpose again, was stood before his Wantagh con- to comfort the congregation as gregation in September 2001, best we possibly can.” They reached out to memhe was facing what he called an bers, checked in with families “extraordinary situation.” “Happened, what, 25 years whose loved ones had not come ago, and it was a, it was a, it home, and gathered the community in prayer. was a peculiar The congregation time,” Gale, 72, said lost one member in in an interview the Sept. 11 attack. with the Herald, Gale declined to reflecting on leadshare the individuing Suburban Temal’s name, citing ple — now Temple confidentiality. B’nai Torah — in In the wake of the days following the tragedy, he led the Sept. 11 attacks. multiple memorial “I would like to services, including define myself as an o n e at t e n d e d by ordinary rabbi that roughly 1,000 peowas thrust into an ple. Presiding over extraordinary situthe burial after ation and had to JEFFREY GAlE remains were respond.” recovered, Gale Gale served the Former rabbi explained, was the Wantagh synagogue from 1998-2009. Like many Long most challenging task he had to Island communities, Wantagh undertake in his career as a was home to commuters who rabbi. “That was by far the worked in Manhattan. In the hardest thing that I ever did,” immediate after math of the Gale added. attacks, Gale and his staf f B u t h i s wo rk e x t e n d e d scrambled to organize a memo- beyond his synagogue walls. rial service to comfort a shaken Gale coordinated interfaith sercongregation — before they vices with local clergy, visited even knew whether they had
By lUKE FEENEY
lfeeney@liherald.com
Courtesy Seaford School District
Seaford High School junior Jackson Pignataro prepared for his EKG with the help of Dr. Sandra Nurse and medical student Kieran Mannion during the Feb. 7 screening at Seaford Middle School.
Offer of no-charge heart screening at Seaford Middle School draws a crowd
By lUKE FEENEY
lfeeney@liherald.com
With the aim of leading healthier lives and possibly heading off medical problems, nearly 200 young people from Seaford and neighboring communities received comprehensive heart screenings at Seaford Middle School earlier this month through Heart Screen New York, a partnership among the Louis J. Acompora Memorial Foundation, the Dominic A. Murray 21 Memorial Foundation and the school district. Despite frigid weather, families turned out in large numbers to receive free cardiac screenings on Feb. 7. Participants ages 12 to 24 moved through a number of screening stations set up in the school gym. After filling out medical history forms, they were measured for height and weight and underwent blood pressure checks. Medical professionals then administered electrocardiograms, or EKGs, which record the heart’s electrical activity, followed by heart sound analysis. District Superinten-
dent Adele Pecora described the day as a powerful example of the district’s community spirit at the Board of Education meeting three days later. “Saturday was an example of the Viking effect in action,” Pecora said, referring to the district’s theme of emphasizing how small acts can have big impacts. “We still tested 198 students, and we identified two students that needed further testing, which is really the purpose of that.” When concer ns arose, cardiologists administered echocardiograms to create images of heart structure and function. Participants also learned cardiopulmonary resuscitation and how to use automated external defibrillators before receiving copies of their screening results to share with their own doctors. The program, organized by Heart Screen New York, relies on volunteer cardiologists, nurses, medical students and CPR instructors. More than 140 volunteers took part in the CoNtiNuED oN PaGE 5
I
would like to define myself as an ordinary rabbi that was thrust into an extraordinary situation and had to respond.
CoNtiNuED oN PaGE 11