Rockville Centre Letters to the Editor

We lost a champion

To the Editor:

I am lucky to have known Karen Resnick for more than 18 years. I was 22 years old when I met Karen at my first Rockville Centre Chamber of Commerce meeting. She greeted everyone at all meetings, and I knew from my first impression that this woman with an infectious personality and smile would impact my life and career. My father told me from an early age to surround myself with amazing, grade-A talent and you will thrive being around them.

Karen was just that: an amazing saleswoman who truly cared for her customers and would only pitch you if it made sense for your business. But over the years she became more than a contact with the paper: she became a mentor, co-board member of the chamber and, most importantly, a friend.

A few years ago, she asked to reduce her role on the board and become an adviser to concentrate on her health. That day, Barbara Goldfeder and I knew we had to make changes to the structure of the board. So we rewrote our by-laws and increased our board by four members. It was obvious to all that we would need four people to replace Karen’s drive, passion and dedication to the chamber.

She lost her battle with cancer, but she won at the game of life. I am forever a better person for having Karen as a part of my life, and will always remember WWKRD (What Would Karen Resnick Do?). She would put others before herself, would face every challenge with pride and integrity, and would never complain about her situation, no matter how rough it was. My hope is that those who were lucky enough to have met her carry all those qualities with them. I know I will.

Greg Schaefer

Vice president, Chamber of Commerce

Stand up for education

To the Editor:

On Monday, March 16, the Wilson Elementary School PTA passed a five-point resolution addressing items in Governor Cuomo’s “Opportunity Agenda” and its proposed educational reforms. The PTA’s resolution:

Rejects the proposed increase in the student testing component of teacher evaluations from 20 to 50 percent;

Advocates for the reduction of time for Math and English Language Arts (ELA) state tests in grades 3-8;

Supports teacher evaluation methods that are fair, transparent and comprehensive;