9/11 responder honored with street renaming

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Dozens gathered at the intersection of West Henrietta and Fulton Avenue in Oceanside on the morning of Aug. 28 to commemorate their neighbor, NYPD officer Steven Brandow, who died in February from Covid-19. Family and friends were on hand to see Brandow’s memory etched into the community, as Town of Hempstead Supervisor Don Clavin renamed the street after the Oceanside resident.

Brandow lived at West Henrietta Avenue with his wife, Gladys, and son, Steven. Brandow served as an NYPD officer for 20 years, with experience at the 41st Precinct in the Bronx, the Queens North Task Force, the Hazardous Materials and the Cobra (Chemical Ordinance, Biological and Radiological Awareness) units, and at the World Trade Center on 9/11. He spent a month helping to recover victims from the wreckage of the Twin Towers.

Gladys Brandow and her son Steven, 15, an incoming sophomore at Chaminade High School, reminisced about Steven’s life. “Today, not only do we recognize the achievements of a police officer, but we also pay tribute to a man who always continued to serve,” Gladys Brandow said. “He had the gift of gab and was larger than life.”

Brandow grew up in Rosedale, Queens, before moving to Long Beach in the early 2000s. There, Gladys and Steven met in 2002 and married in 2004. They moved to Oceanside in 2008, two years after they had their only child.

Gladys Brandow also recalled that her husband helped neighbors obtain gas service through National Grid in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy. “Everyone who converted to gas was very grateful and appreciative, giving him the nickname: ‘Steve the gas man,’ which will be his legacy on the street,” Brandow joked.

“My husband is now retired, doing what he enjoys,” Brandow said, speaking of her husband in heaven. “Catching fish on a boat, having his favorite Belgian beer, having a cigar and hoping his Giants will win the next Super Bowl.”

“Despite the sad feeling that we still have over the father’s passing, may this dedication let his memory linger among our community and for him to be remembered for years to come,” Steven Brandow said. He also urged the crowd to take precautions against the Covid-19 virus and to cherish their loved ones.

“Though nearly 20 years have passed since Sept. 11, 2001, heroic first responders like Steven Brandow continue to tragically lose their lives,” Town of Hempstead Supervisor Donald Clavin said. “In keeping with our Town of Hempstead mission to ‘never forget’ the heroes of Sept. 11, we are proud to rename West Henrietta Avenue as Police Officer Steven E. Brandow Avenue.”

“As a retired NYPD detective and ex-chief of the Island Park Fire Department, I understand the call to service and dedication to helping other — qualities that were exhibited by police officer Steven Brandow as he put his own health and safety on the line to help others on Sept. 11,” Hempstead Councilman Anthony D’Esposito said. “I am honored to join with Supervisor Clavin and the Brandow family to honor the memory of Steven by renaming his home street so that future generations can know the sacrifices he made in service of our nation.”