Town honors village resident for making a difference

For the last 20 years the Town of Hempstead has held the Make A Difference Awards to honor residents who have worked to make their communities a better place. With hundreds of nominations, only 12 could be selected to receive this distinction.

Among those celebrated was Rockville Centre lifeguard Andrew Healy. When not watching over swimmers, Healy is often working to enrich his community. He has become a respected figure in the area’s Irish-American community due to his contributions not only to the Rockville Centre St. Patrick’s Parade, but also his the Ancient Order of Hibernians, an Irish Catholic fraternal organization.

Healy’s receiving this reward would come as no surprise to anyone familiar with his contributions. Mercy Medical Center, the Rockville Centre Fire Department, Knights of Columbus and United States Lifesaving Association have all been thankful recipients of Healy’s benefaction. His contributions have been used to fund military monuments and veteran’s projects as well as allowing the RVCFD to purchase state-of-the-art lifesaving equipment.

The Make A Difference Awards exist to recognize local stories of volunteerism and philanthropy while hopefully inspiring others to do the same. By giving back, Healy has helped enable his fellow citizens to follow his footsteps.