By Matthew McGevna
Nahas, who took over the family-run Nahas Rug Company in West Hempstead, lives in Sands Point, just north of the Port Washington burial ground. His parents moved their rug and carpeting company to West Hempstead in 1950.
When Nahas read an article in the July 12-18 issue of the Herald about a man who was interred at Nassau Knolls in 2005 but has no headstone to mark his remains, he felt the need to take action. But it wasn¹t simply because the subject of the story, Josh Brandon, was buried in the same cemetery as his parents, or because Brandon was originally from Port Washington. When Nahas saw the photo of Brandon in the Herald, he remembered him fondly.
³I used to see him walking back and forth, and every time he walked by I¹d try to say hello,² Nahas recalled. ³And I used to see him in the Witches Brew, and I¹d say hello to him. When I read the article and I saw that he was in Nassau Knolls, I said, ŒMy god. I ought to help however I can.¹²
Brandon died in November 2005 at age 50, of an apparent heart attack. He was never married, never had children, and outlived all of his next of kin. He died without life insurance. Brandon¹s friend, Brian Barry of Franklin Square, a teacher in West Hempstead, took it upon himself to make sure Brandon was buried beside his parents in Port Washington. After a lengthy investigation into Brandon¹s family history, Barry was finally granted guardianship over Brandon¹s remains and, with the help of other West Hempstead businesses, Brandon was buried at Nassau Knolls in December of 2005.
Since then, Barry has been trying to raise roughly $1,200 to purchase a headstone, stating that the marker would ³give this man some dignity.² He had raised about $400 before the Herald reported his efforts.
Last week, in front of Nahas¹s storefront on Hempstead Turnpike, Nahas handed Barry a check for the additional $800 he needed to purchase the headstone. For Barry the moment was two years in the making, but the relief on his face made it clear that it was worth the wait.
Barry¹s struggle, however, is not over yet. Cemeteries such as Nassau Knolls are governed by a state regulating committee, and the Nassau Knolls management said that Barry must be granted additional legal permission before a headstone can be erected at Brandon¹s grave site. A spokesman for the cemetery said that it would be more than willing to cooperate with Barry, but must follow state regulations.
Barry is now working with Fred Sorrentino, of the Barnes and Sorrentino Funeral Home in West Hempstead, to secure that legal permission. Sorrentino absorbed the cost of Brandon¹s burial back in 2005. Barry and Sorrentino will meet with state officials to become guardians of the Brandon estate for the purpose of planting the headstone.
For now, the cost of the engraving is covered, and the outpouring of support has not ended with Nahas. Barry recently received a letter from an Elmont woman who had also read the article in the Herald, and decided to donate $50 to the cause.
Although Nahas and Barry are separated by more than three decades, Barry wonders about a few remarkable coincidences. Nahas¹s parents moved to West Hempstead in 1950, the same year Barry¹s parents arrived there. Both Nahas and Barry moved from Brooklyn. Barry knew Josh Brandon from his frequent trips to the Witches Brew, on Hempstead Turnpike. Nahas owns the building in which Witches Brew is a tenant.
³If people like George can come forward more often, the world would be a better place,² Barry said. ³He picked up the phone and called me. He read that article and he felt the inner compassion.²
³We live off of West Hempstead,² said Nahas, when asked what moved him to donate. ³We¹re part of West Hempstead. We¹re part of Long Island. And if you have the chance to do something, you should.²
Comments about this story? Mal-wheditor@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 205.
