By Patrick Faraday
Last October, Lynch attended a gang awareness conference at Hofstra University in Uniondale that "really shook me up." The "awakening" that he experienced at that conference, led by former gang members, coupled with his desire to get a dedicated youth center in Lynbrook motivated Lynch to take action.
Lynch formulated a program for Lynbrook High School teens that would keep them off the streets and out of trouble. He put together a 20-page proposal on why there should be a permanent youth center in Lynbrook and presented it to administrators of the high school. Even though administration pointed to the district summer program, much like the one Lynch was pushing, he was determined. The powers that be decided to permit a one-day-a-week program that could be held in the high school gym. With the help and support of Superintendent Dr. Philip Cicero, High School Principal Dr. Santo Barbarino, Athletic Director Tom Graham and Assistant Superintendent Melissa Burack's tireless efforts to help get the program insured under the school, the Saturday Night @ Lynbrook High program (SNL) was initiated just a few short months ago. But not even Lynch's determination and dedication can keep the program going. Due to lack of financial support, this Saturday will be the program's last.
In an e-mail sent to notify people of the inevitable end, Lynch said, "Thanks for your support in making SNL happen. I think we proved that the teenagers of Lynbrook are looking for things to do on Saturday nights. We built it and they did come. It wasn't a lack of interest on the part of the teenagers, but a lack of commitment from the adults in our community that kept this from continuing."
Lynch grew up in Howard Beach, Queens and after moving around for a while settled in Lynbrook about 12 years ago. His oldest son John is a college graduate living in Buffalo planning on attending law school. Two of his children, Jason and Carly-twins- are sophomores at Lynbrook high school, and Kim is a student at North Middle School.
When asked what his children thought about his running the program Lynch admitted, "Like any teenager, they'd rather not have their dad around."
brook to become involved.
At SNL, Lynch did his best to leave the kids alone, while still keeping an eye on their behavior. There were at least two parents, two teachers and two custodians that were chaperones in the gym at all times. The attendance was also limited to students with valid Lynbrook high school identification cards.
The program started with 26 kids, and by last week Lynch took a head count of 67 teenagers, about 35 of whom stayed the whole night.
Lynch was hoping to get enough participation, so that he could get "funding from local governments and more businesses," but that never materialized. He was thankful and grateful that some parents had made donations, along with their time and a ping-pong table.
"People actually wanted to help. I got lots of calls from people offering to help the coalition any way they could," said Lynch, who described the coalition as a "bunch of parents trying to do good things."
In the end, there was just not enough outside support. Even though the program boasted ping-pong, pool, basketball, volleyball, arcade games, volleyball and foosball, the ball has now bounced into another court, and sadly the program must close. From the beginning, Lynch had planned on running the program until the money ran out. The end just came sooner than he and the teenagers had hoped.
Karenlyn Barone contributed to this story
Comments about this story? Kbarone@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 202
