Thursday, October 1, 2026
At its May 7 meeting, the Lynbrook Board of Education trustees made their disappointment with the chairman of the Lynbrook Memorial Day parade committee, Pat Cardone, clear. Cardone recently notified the district that the school board and central administration were “uninvited” from participating in this year’s event. The board may keep district students from taking part as well.
“We don’t think it’s appropriate to have our band and our children marching without the leadership of the district,” said Trustee Bill Belmont. “We don’t think the proper supervision would be there … we have to consider what messaging we are giving the community and our kids to allow this type of behavior to take place.”
Two weeks ago, the board received a letter from Cardone, which was also published in the Herald, on behalf of the parade committee. The letter stated that board trustees, and all others associated with School District 20’s administration, were not invited to march in the parade this year. The action was a response to a recent vote by the board to reject a resolution that would have created a tax exemption for veterans in the district.
As reported in the Herald’s March 20-26 issue, school board trustees voted against the resolution on Feb. 26, sparking outrage among local veterans. In the past, veterans living in New York have been eligible for state, county, town and village tax exemptions, and last December the State Legislature passed a law giving school boards the same option. The Lynbrook board voted 6-0 against the resolution — one trustee was absent — citing a shift in the tax burden from veterans to non-veterans if it were approved.
“I have a hard time asking our community to pay more in taxes,” Trustee Ellen Marcus said before the vote. “Even though we come within the tax cap and do the best we can, our taxes continue to go up.”
