A Salute to Veterans, Spooky Walk 2012

Get ready for the Spooky Walk 2012 at Clark Botanic Gardens.

There you’ll find ghosts, ghouls, goblins, swamp monsters and gruesome pals on what’s been described as a 12-acre “smog-shrouded containment facility” where they face “impending doom of the Zombie Apocalypse.”

Catch this event Thursday, Friday and Saturday, Oct. 25-27, 6-9 p.m. Entry free is $5, and all minors must be accompanied by an adult.

There’s also a Not-so-Spooky Walk for children of all ages, Sunday, Oct. 28 from 12-4 p.m., with a $3 entry fee.

Spooky Walk 2012 will also feature live music, food, and more than 100 live actors. Popular music group “Johnny and the Werewolves” will perform on Saturday night.

Clark Botanic Garden is located at 193 I.U. Willets Road, Albertson. Call 311 for all the spooky details.

Saluting Veterans

The Town of North Hempstead recently hosted its second annual “Thank You to Our Veterans” breakfast conference in New Hyde Park.

Veterans of World War II, Korean and Vietnam wars and Desert Storm were among the 160 attendees of the two-hour, Clinton G. Martin Park breakfast. The conference also featured various veteran agencies to raise awareness about available services and entitlements.

Retired United States Air Force Colonel Michael F. Canders was the keynote speaker.

A visiting associate professor of aviation at Farmingdale State College, Canders was a New York business executive who volunteered for active duty military service following the September 11, 2001, attacks on the United States.  He served in key U.S.A.F. and Air National Guard leadership positions for nine years in the United States, and in Iraq as a U.S. Air Force special operations and rescue helicopter pilot.

While in Iraq, Canders served as Commander of the main US Air Base in Baghdad from 2009-2010. He was also the Commander of the 447th Air Expeditionary Group and Senior Airfield Authority during this time. Canders was directly accountable for the safety and security of the 1,500 soldiers, airmen and civilians present at the Base, as well as approximately 180,000 in-transit military and civilian passengers while conducting major flying operations from the largest passenger aerial port in Iraq. He was awarded the Bronze Star for his service.

Cleaner Greener Communities

North Hempstead joined other local municipalities in a new regional sustainability initiative, “Cleaner Greener Communities”  Sept. 28 at the Sustainability Institute at Molloy College in Farmingdale. More than 150 people attended.

Led by North Hempstead, a coalition of Long Island municipalities and organizations will partner with public and private sector experts and community leaders to develop the regional sustainability plan.

Funded by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA), the planning effort aims to:

• Assess current greenhouse gas emissions and energy use
• Set sustainability targets for energy supplies, transportation, open space and waste and water management, among other things
• Develop a sustainability road map the region can follow to achieve its goals and targets
• Prioritize eligible projects than can apply for Cleaner Greener Communities implementation funding

NYSERDA is providing funding to New York’s 10 regions through a two-phase grant process. The first phase provides nearly $10 million to help regional planning teams create or expand the scope of sustainability plans. Phase two takes place in 2013, providing up to $90 million to fund regional projects that support the regional sustainability goals.

To share your ideas for sustainable development and smart growth practices, contact 311.