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UNIONDALE _____________
HERALD BEACON
Caribbean heritage month
haitian artist’s solo exhibit
Barry Tech students honored
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Vol. 76 No. 25
JuNe 18 - 24, 2026
$1.00
Grand Avenue School presents ‘Cinderella’
the Lion. “‘The Lion King’ allows for such dancing and musicality,” For many students at Union- drama teacher Ellie Iconis said. dale’s Grand Avenue Elementary “It can really allow us to showSchool, stepping onto a stage for case those skills.” The drama club, which the first time was intimidating. includes third, But when the lights fourth and fifth came on for the grade students, school’s production began meeting of “Cinderella, If the before school in Shoe Fits,” those nerves disappeared October. Along with and were replaced by rehearsing lines and confidence, teamsongs, students work and a sense of learned musical thebelonging. ater jazz and the The May 28 perwaltz as they preformance marked pared for the producthe school’s first fulltion. staged theatrical pro“Since this was duction, featuring our first year, we students from multihaven’t had a chance ple grade levels and to establish a budget the debut season of a or find all of the cosnew drama club. tumes,” Iconis said. The program has SummeR “Costumes were proalready created new vided by myself and mATThewS, 11 opportunities for stumy husband, and dents. Grand Avenue Fifth-grader at Grand part of producing recently received a Avenue Elementary the show involved Disney Broadway securing the perforJunior Grant that provides per- mance rights.” formance rights, scripts, While third-grade students rehearsal materials, choreogra- presented a curriculum-based phy videos and other resources musical last year, “Cinderella, If for next year’s production of the Shoe Fits” marked Grand “The Lion King,” which also fits Avenue’s first fully staged proin with the school’s mascot Leo
By STACY DRIKS
sdriks@liherald.com
I
Deliah Roberts/Herald photos
Rhylan Bailey, 11, of Uniondale, received a signed ball from former Met Art Shamsky. Rhylan, who plays in Uniondale Little League, was one of many young players who got tips on fundamentals, and souvenir balls, from former major leaguers.
Big-league dreams, local lessons By STACY DRIKS sdriks@liherald.com
While today’s major leaguers spend the summer traveling from ballpark to ballpark, a group of former professional baseball players brought their experience to Uniondale Avenue Park for a day of instruction, mentorship and fun. The Major League Baseball Players Alumni Association’s Legends for Youth program, a nationwide initiative that offers free clinics for children ages 6 to 16, visited Uniondale Little League to share the fundamentals of baseball while emphasizing sportsmanship, teamwork and life lessons both on and off the field. The Little Leaguers stepped into the batter’s box last Saturday to face pitches from former New York Mets hurler Kevin Baez, and rotated through stations focused on hitting, fielding, pitching, catching and base running. Before the games started, the former pros offered instruction. By the end, they were sharing stories from
their playing careers and posing for photos, and youngsters picked up signed baseballs and gave the former players high-fives. For former Mets outfielder Art Shamsky, 84, a member of the 1969 World Series champion Miracle Mets, the clinic was an opportunity to share lessons that extend far beyond baseball. He explained how failure can teach valuable lessons, using baseball as an apt example. If a player swings 10 times and gets three hits, he said, that means he also made seven outs. What matters is how players recover from those setbacks. “Baseball is a great sport to teach teamwork, humility, and how to deal with failure,” Shamsky said. The game, he added, helps young athletes learn how to handle adversity, work toward goals and build relationships that often last long after their playing days are over. “I always ask one question to kids when I meet them: ‘Do you love the game?’” Shamsky said. “They raise their hands, then you know ContinUed on pAge 10
’ve been in many shows before, but this one just felt different. Everybody was so nice, and the dances and the singing made it feel alive.
ContinUed on pAge 11