The Lakeville Estates Civic Association honored firefighters from three Nassau County departments at its April 15 membership meeting, presenting certificates of appreciation to volunteers from the Manhasset-Lakeville, Garden City Park and New Hyde Park Fire Departments for their work during the winter’s snowstorms.
The recognition came months after the storms, but civic association president Bill Cutrone made clear he wanted the firefighters to hear it in person. “We don’t realize that, while we were hunkering down, these gentlemen, and many more who are not here tonight, went out of their way to make sure that we were safe,” Cutrone said. “It’s important that we give you this recognition and thank you.”
From the Manhasset-Lakeville department, Eric Dobkin, Paul DePaulis, Brian Wood and Michael Moroni each received a certificate. Dobkin, who serves as the company’s president, told the gathering that his department responded to a call during the snowstorm even while firefighters were on standby status. Volunteer departments run lean. They always have. Dobkin took the moment to make a pitch. “We’re always here, and we’re always looking for more members,” he said.
Garden City Park Chief Michael McGillicuddy and Assistant Chief Vincent Bitsko attended alongside New Hyde Park Chief Joe Kotewski and Third Assistant Chief Gerard Efinger, each accepting recognition for their respective departments.
The honors portion ran first, but the rest of the evening had plenty of ground to cover. Nassau County Police Inspectors and an officer from a Problem-Oriented Police Unit joined the meeting to talk through public-safety concerns with residents of the 3rd Precinct. The conversation moved fast, the way community meetings tend to when neighbors have been holding their questions for a while. Parking came up, as it almost always does on Long Island. So did tinted-window laws, vape shops and helicopter traffic around the village.
Inspector Joseph Massaro walked through enforcement updates and delivered a direct warning about scamming tactics the department has run into recently. His advice was simple: don’t engage. “We are the largest mom-and-pop department in the country,” Massaro said, describing his philosophy of working alongside residents rather than above them. He said parking and moving ticket issuance has gone up, but he didn’t sugarcoat the underlying problem. Parking, he said, remains a serious issue for residents. He also addressed catalytic converter theft and gym thefts, outlining steps residents can take to avoid becoming targets or to report incidents when they see them.
The Long Island Press reported that Cutrone raised concerns about Nassau County’s recent early retirement deals and what they might mean for police staffing. Massaro pushed back on the worry, saying the buyouts affected only high-level department personnel. He added that a new group of recruits is in field training and a fresh class is currently going through the police academy. Whether that pipeline fills the gaps left by departing veterans is a question Nassau County taxpayers will be watching closely.
The meeting closed out with a turn to the school board. Great Neck school board Trustee Rebecca Sassouni, who is running for reelection, spoke about board of education budgets and pressed residents to get involved. “It was civic, and an interest in educating the next generation of Americans that led me to support public education,” Sassouni said. “I just want to encourage you to learn more about your budget.” For anyone interested in Nassau County school finances, the Nassau County Department of Education oversight structure is documented through the New York State Education Department.
Voter participation in school budget elections on Long Island has never been strong. Turnout figures from recent cycles are easy to find through the New York State Education Department’s budget vote reporting portal. Sassouni’s pitch, delivered in a room full of exactly the kind of engaged residents who do show up, was well-targeted.
What the April 15 meeting showed, start to finish, is how much a neighborhood civic association can pack into a single evening. You had volunteer firefighters getting the credit they earned in January and February, a direct line to precinct leadership on public safety, and a school board candidate making her case face-to-face. That’s not a bad return on a Tuesday night in Nassau County.