By Nicole Falco
"The district was looking to do something as a school district and we were looking to do something more privately," said Linda Rini, Spartan Club memorial chairperson.
After numerous discussions, the Spartan Club decided on creating a memorial in the interior courtyard of the high school. Renovating the courtyard had long been on the Spartan Club's list of things to do.
"For a number of years we wanted to redo the courtyard, but we didn't know what to do, how to do it or how to get the money to do it," said Robin Segur, Spartan Club president.
The Spartan Club, a 20-year-old parents organization that bestows numerous scholarships each year, pitched the idea to North's principal Dr. Tom Troisi, and the Board of Education as well as the families of the four alumni, Scott Bart, Class of 1991; Bruce Boehm, Class of 1970; James Haran, Class of 1978; and Adam Ruhalter, Class of 1978.
Everyone agreed and the response to the project has been overwhelming, but the Spartan Club could still use more donations.
"You dream for the biggest...but we also know this is something that can be added to," Segur said.
The Spartan Club is raising money to revitalize the courtyard in two ways. The club is selling gift bricks, which can be purchased and inscribed for $50, and they accept cash donations, which will go toward landscaping the courtyard. A sample brick is displayed in the Spartan Club display at North. The bricks will be laid in both entryways to the courtyard and around the center of the courtyard, where the four alumni will be individually honored and remembered.
Bart, 28, a vice president with Marsh & Mclennan, may be remembered for his sense of humor or as the best son, older brother and husband. Boehm, 49, a broker with Cantor Fitzgerald, was nicknamed "Chappy" because his walk resembled Charlie Chaplin's; he may be remembered for his zest for life and love for his wife and two daughters. Haran, 41, also a broker with Cantor Fitzgerald, may be remembered at the barbecue or behind a volleyball net, but first as a husband and father of four. Ruhalter, 40, a controller with Cantor Fitzgerald, had two children of his own, and may be remembered rooting for everyone's children during Saturday morning soccer games in Plainview.
"I think the garden would get a lot of use and the memory of these four people would be something that would continue," Rini said.
The Spartan Club hopes to sell as many as 700 bricks and so far has sold more than 100. Letters have gone out to students' parents, alumni and community merchants. Alumni from Florida, New Mexico, North Dakota and more have responded. For more information on making a donation or purchasing a brick, contact North High School at (516) 564-5500 or Linda Rini at (516) 593-1572.
The Spartan Club hopes to be able to hold a dedication ceremony in June.
"Our goal is to leave the school with something that people could look back on for years to come," Segur said.
