By JOSEPH KELLARD
On hand to celebrate the unveiling were Hempstead Town Supervisor Rich Guardino, Hempstead Town Councilman Anthony Santino, Assemblyman Bob Berra, New York State Senator Dean Skelos, Superintendent Dr. Herb Brown, School Board members Bob Transom and Kim Garrity, and President of the Oceanside Chamber of Commerce Maria Heller.
The sign was the latest in a series of developments on the project this year. The site has gone from being comprised of asphalt, concrete and dirt (before ground was broken on it in October 2000) to sporting lush green grass. A ranch-style fence was installed around the perimeter of the green, and the original flag pole from School 1, which was torn down at the site in 1981, stands at its center. Underground electrical wiring has been installed, and a light will shine on the flagpole throughout each night.
In 1960, Oceanside's Superintendent of Schools Walter S. Boardman wrote in "The Story of Oceanside," which recounted the town's history, "There is a great need for some place or agency whereby the many significant records now scattered about and eventually lost may be preserved. There is also a great need for community action in the preservation of its historic markers."
Robert and Betsy Transom spearheaded the efforts to undertake these tasks. The Schoolhouse Green project is collecting and cataloguing documents, photographs and artifacts about Oceanside that are forever in danger of being lost. A historical center will be established, either Oceanside's original one-room school house or a replica of it. The ultimate goal is to preserve Oceanside's heritage in a public haven that serves as a learning resource for students and residents of the community.
"One day I drove past where School 1 once was, and I just thought, is there anyway we can clean this up? And then I came home and said to my husband, 'What about building a town green?' And he said, 'What about a town green with a historical society," Betsy said.
The site, still the property of the Oceanside School District, was chosen because most of the town's first schools were built along Foxhurst Rd. between Long Beach and Oceanside Roads during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Know during those years as School Road, School 1 was raised there in 1922.
Schoolhouse Green is being financed through private donations, such as individuals and business owners in the community, and in Oct. 2000, Skelos presented the Oceanside Educational Foundation with a check for $125,000 in state funding for the project. After lobbying for state support, Skelos secured the funds throughout the state's Community Enhancement Fund.
The site's next addition, a Memorial Garden, will undergo construction next week, in time for the Sept. 11 commemoration ceremony to take place there on that date.
Pictured above: ON HAND to celebrate the unveiling of the Schoolhouse Green's new sign were, from left, Hempstead Town Supervisor Rich Guardino, Hempstead Town Councilman Anthony Santino, Assemblyman Bob Berra, Senator Dean Skelos, student Craig Transom, student Kim Pelgrim, Schoolhouse Green Committee member Betsy Transom, and student Courtney Garrity.
