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MARCH, 2000

The On-Line Edition of the Newsletter of the NorthWest Civic Association Inc. of Hicksville, New York

March Meeting

The March meeting of the NorthWest Civic Association will be held on Monday, March 6, 2000 at 7:30 PM at the Burns Avenue School. We will have two speakers.
Councilwoman Bonnie Eisler of the Town of Oyster Bay will be at the meeting to introduce herself and answer questions. Laurie Farber of Nassau County's Groundwater Guardian Team will speak to us on current concerns over Nassau's groundwater resources. Learn why some recharge areas are considered more sensitive than others.

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Caught Doing Good

Anne DeDona and her sons Anthony and Robert, ages 5 and 2, were recently observed picking up litter on Hawthorne Street. It turns out the wind had overturned garbage cans allowing litter to escape and Anne enlisted the aid of her young ones in cleaning it up. Young Anthony asked why the garbage men did not pick up the trash. Anne explained that they only pick up garbage in cans or bags. It's never too early to start teaching civic concern

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~ In Sympathy ~

Eileen Wink's sister recently passed away. Our sympathies are extended to George, Eileen and family.

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Member Picnic

Mark your calendar for Sunday, July 23. Reservations have been made for the picnic area at Cantiague Park. Let's repeat the great time we had at last year's event.

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You CAN Help

The Beautification Committee would like to continue their efforts in the community. To raise funds, members are encouraged to recycle cans and bottles and contribute the proceeds to the cause. If you wish to participate, contact Linda Bennett. We can make a difference. Funds redeemed from 2000 cans were used last fall to buy a commemorative brick for the NorthWest Civic at Fountain Park. We are told our brick will be in place by Memorial Day.

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3 Month's Trial Offer

A list is being compiled of those who would like to receive a three months free trial subscription to the Hicksville Illustrated News. If you are interested, please give your name and address to Millie Jones by March 15. The names must be submitted as lists from organizations.

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~ Get Well Gladys ~

Member Gladys Jones, daughter of Millie, is still ill and in the hospital. We ask that members send a note or a card to cheer her up.

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Refreshments

Thanks to Jane Grella and Millie Jones for February Refreshments. Don't forget to sign up to bring cake or cookies to a future meeting.

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Phone Scams

Jo-Ann Broska reminds us to be alert phone scams . One should be skeptical of unsolicited calls including calls from phone service providers. Take precautions. A few basic rules of thumb can protect you from most types of telephone-related scams. Never pay money up front. Legitimate companies have little reason to require money ahead of time and in the case of loans, it is illegal for telemarketers to ask for fees in advance.

Don't provide bank account, credit card and social security numbers or other personal information unless you are sure the company is legitimate and the information is necessary for the transaction. Even with partial information, con artists can make unauthorized charges, deduct money from your account, and impersonate you to get credit in your name. Ask that all offers be mailed to you. Don't let yourself be rushed into any decisions. High-pressure sales tactics often indicate potential fraud. A good deal today should still be a good deal tomorrow.

For free reports check out to http://linz1.net/ehom.htm

Several members have come forward since the appeal was first put out last year for photos to be used in "Looking Back in the Northwest." Most notably, William and Mildred Sauer loaned us approximately 18 photos of 1950s civic association activities. Alice Hayes and her daughter, Jane Grella, came forth with a couple of dozen photos taken by the late William Hayes during the 1950s and 60s. Alice also donated many of her husband's negatives to the Nassau County Division of Museum Services before she passed away in November. These photos document Hicksville at a time when the post war suburbs were new and expanding. The images will be available for researchers to use at the Long Island Studies Institute at Hofstra. Other civic members have also loaned one or more photos.

The photos are scanned into my computer where digital copies are stored on the hard disk. The originals are returned to the owner. The digital copies have been "backed up" on a CD, so if anything happens to my hard drive I won't have to start all over again.

Images are selected from the stored copies for inclusion in a newsletter according to subject matter, the season, ability to reproduce a specific illustration in a photocopied newsletter, etc. We've had several photos that reproduced with limited success, but we're getting better at it. I have been putting the photos and related ones on the web site after publication in the newsletter. For instance, two illustrations of St. Johns Protectory (orphanage) have been published in the newsletter, but there are five on the web site.

I'm saving a couple of special photos for the right time. We have two photos that I saved for use this fall at the height of the political campaign season. There are also some of the "end of steam" ceremony at the old Hicksville station that will be published this year.

The NorthWest Civic is at the forefront of a unique community history effort. Don't you have a photo or two that you can share? If you do, please bring them to a civic meeting.

Dale Bennett