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Mostly Cloudy Six vying for two seats in N. Bellmore
Two seats are up for grabs in the North Bellmore Board of Education election, and in each case, the incumbents are being challenged by two candidates.
Grace Cramsie
Grace Cramsie, who as served on the board for six years, faces challenges by Greg Bashaw and Peter Mayo.
Cramsie, 46, and her husband, Ed, have lived in North Bellmore for 14 years. Their three children attended Saw Mill Road School and now go to Kellenberg Memorial High School in Uniondale. While her children were in elementary school, Cramsie was a member of the PTA. Over the past year, she has served as Board of Education president during a contentious process to close Gunther Elementary School, which district officials said was necessary to save money to meet a state-mandated 2 percent property-tax levy cap. Additionally, officials said, the school was underused. In the coming years, they said, the school would be operating at 50 percent capacity if it were not shut down. As of June, the district will rent part of the facility to a day-care center, Wee Friends.
Cramsie said that serving as president this year was her hardest role yet. “We faced difficult choices, making every effort to preserve our programs, while being fiscally responsible to our overburdened taxpayers,” she said. “While I've been on the board, the business of our school district has become transparent, I tell the truth and am sensitive to the community I serve.“
Cramsie is an administrative assistant at Molloy College in Rockville Centre. She also has spent many years volunteering at St. Barnabas the Apostle Roman Catholic Church in Bellmore, where she is involved with Christian Formation and Vacation Bible School.
Peter Mayo
Challenger Peter Mayo, 37, and his wife, Marissa, have lived in the district for 11 years. The couple have two children. Their oldest attends Martin Avenue Elementary School.
Mayo is an electrician with Local Union 3. He earned his degree from Empire State College. While working with Union 3, he has served on wage and policy and safety committees.
