By JOSEPH KELLARD
³This annual award is given to a person¹s outstanding contributions to the children of Oceanside,² said Tony Iovino, a Kiwanis past president who is on a select committee that names the award¹s annual recipient. ³Don deserved the award because he has dedicated his adult life to the children of Oceanside.²
Another past president, Bob Transom, said, ³Don has worked untiringly for the children for the 38 years he¹s been involved in the schools. So he totally deserves the recognition he received.²
Maresca said he was extremely honored and humbled by the award. ³I attend a lot of these kinds of events in our community,² he added, ³so it was certainly a shock to be on the other end of it.²
Maresca is a recognizable face not only at the many theatrical events staged at Oceanside schools, but also at many community and sporting events, including away games, all indicating the multiple levels at which he has supported children and championed their interests. ³He always attends special events at our schools, and practically all of our other events,² said Bruce Misher, principal of School 4. ³... I think it lends an importance that he comes to many events. Certainly the staff members and myself are very appreciative that he, being a board member, takes the time out to actually see what¹s going on in our building.²
When School 3 held a walk-a-thon in September to raise money for victims of Hurricane Katrina, there was Maresca, in sneakers, doing laps with students and staff. ³We also had a school barbecue a month ago,² said Principal Jeff Schlissel, ³and Don was there saying hello, greeting people. He just makes himself visible and available, and he¹s caring.²
³I go to all these events to show that I care about what¹s going on in their schools,² Maresca said, ³and I try to make myself visible.²
His increased visibility throughout the district since he retired as principal of School 2 in 2000 and became a school board trustee in 2002 is no wonder, given the many programs and clubs he has instituted throughout his career in Oceanside.
A program Maresca calls ³my baby,² the Intergenerational Forum, began when he was principal of the sixth grade center at Merle Junior High School in the 1980s. Students visit the Oceanside Senior Center on Rockaway Avenue and interact with seniors, who share their experiences with the kids.
Maresca created the Career Opportunities Awareness Lecture Series program (COALS), in which he invited people from various professions and walks of life to speak to his students, including Sen. Dean Skelos. ³I know his heart was always close to that program,² Misher noted.
Maresca also established Sixth Grade Conference Day, in which School 2 sixth-graders join annually with other students their age from 10 Long Island school districts at Hofstra. There they talk about pertinent issues of the day, including drug use, AIDS, gangs and career choices. He began the program at the junior high school, later included sixth-graders from School 2, and then welcomed their peers from other districts (from as far away as Riverhead) to meet at Hofstra, which co-sponsors the day-long event. Today, about 300 students attend.
Among Maresca¹s other creations are the Long Island Science Series, the AIDS Discussion Seminar and the Memorial Botanical Garden at School 6. He formed a variety of clubs, including foreign language clubs in elementary schools, before they became part of the district¹s curriculum, a nurses club at the junior high school, and a schoolyard sports program.
Maresca began his career in Oceanside in 1967 as an assistant principal at School 8. Six years later, he was appointed principal of the sixth-grade center at School 1 (where Schoolhouse Green is today, on Foxhurst Road). There he piloted a family life program and mainstreamed special-education students. When the school closed in 1981, Maresca took the sixth-grade center to the Merle Avenue Junior High School, where he was principal until 1984. When that school closed, he became associate principal at Oceanside High School, and the next year principal of School 2, where he enjoyed his final 15 years working for the school district.
After he retired in 2000, Maresca served a term on the board at the Oceanside Library, after which he was elected to the school board. He has also been a longtime member of Oceanside Community Service, which assists poorer families with many children, especially during the holidays.
³Don always acts in what¹s in the best interest of the children,² Schlissel said. ³We have sat at a hundred meetings, and Don will always take the position or ask the question, How is this going to help the kids? He doesn¹t think about himself or the school, he always thinks about what¹s best for kids. Whether as a teacher, principal or board member, that¹s always been his exact approach.²
Reflecting on his 32 years living in Rockville Centre with his wife, Sandra, with whom with he raised two daughters, Maresca said, ³I thank God for the opportunity I had to work in the schools of Oceanside. I truly enjoyed my career here immensely. I always believed that there was a code of respect and responsibility from day one, when I first started my professional educational career here.²
Comments about this story? JKellard@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 284.
