The-Leader_1984-03-29

              Official
Newspaper
Village o(
Freeport
•
Freeport
School District'
•
Baldwin
School District
THE
LEADER
FREEPORT. NEW YORK, MARCH29.1984
.48th YEAR. No.49 ...i •h-,v\Mi^ i'
FREEroRr usyoniAt. L'iB.^,\aY
^ UEnRICK RD .
FRF.ErOflT-H Y 11520 e>
«-:'i :u
TSTfE 2S^ER COPY
Red Devil Gets Vote Of Approval
Magee Resigns
From Baldwin B
Village Again Seeks
Home Rule
jQn Stadium
Two School Board Seats
To Be Voted On May 9ih
Opponent Vows To Continue
Fight To Change Mascof
by Ed Silverman and Rhoda Keller
FREEPORT • In a unanimous decision announced at its Wednesday,
March 28lh public meeting, the Freeport School Board voted to retain
the50-s-eat.oWRedJ)evil"asthedistilcf»mascot. '
Freeport resident John Asher, who first brought a complaint to the
School Board several months previously, vowed that his struggle to ban
the controversial nickname from
the school district had only Just Parola. had unanimously xeached
'^P"'- the decision, in January, that they
In a telephone taterview earlier did not agree with Ibe inlerpre-thU
week, Ashet told THE tatlon «dvinr<-H ^» Ath^n—
LEADER Uiat allliuuah he will not ~ '
FREEPORT - The Village
Board of Tmstees has began hs
second attempt to see legislation
pass through the State. Legis-. ^
latute allowing the'village to sell
or lease the municipal stadium
and its property as it desires.
Al its regular Monday evening
meeting, March 26,Jhe Board of
TrustMs — in a four-ieto vote,
with Trustee Dorothy Stonn-ab­sent
— approved a resolution re­questing
a home rale message
fimn the Legislature.
- Last^-eai,-»-sumlaf-proposal-passed
the SUte Senate but was
blacked when it was "never re--
ported out of committee in the
Assembly. ''
The Stadium is presently on-used
and no plans have been
announced for its hiture utiliza­tion.
Following the failure of the
Legislature io enact the home
rule legislation. Mayor William
H. While had appointed a Task
Force to review possible uses for
(Cont, onPage4)
Police Arrest Man
On Rape Charge
FREEPORT - A nun arrested
early Tuesday morning, March
27, by a Village police oBcer has
been acctised_ of raping and
-sodoBasaag-*
BALDWIN - James Magee, a member of the Baldwin School Board
since July 1982, has announced his r^igjiation bom the Board effec­tive
Match 31. Magee -dted-tnislness travel commmltments in an-notmcing
his action.
Dr. &nand Jones', Baldwin Supetinlepde'nl of Schools; accepted
Magee's resgnation with regret,
saying "We are sorry to see Mr.
Kbgee leave the Board; be has
teen a most productive member
during his^ short-tenure on the
Board.'He has shared with us his
great concern for the children of
Baldwin and we will miss his
election
May 9.
Prior
already scheduled for
to Magee's' announce
request the aid of Frtcport's
Human RelaUons Commission in
convincing the school board to
overturn Its decision, he Is pur­suing
other "channels." includ­ing
the iiossibUlty of some un­specified
legal'action.
The school board nude public
its dedsion'not to baa the ''Red
Dewl" 'mascot from Freeport
schools at a weB-publidzed meet-ment,
only one seat on lhe.Boaid—£ng, which even drew WABC-was
to be filled for a three year
term. Now. residents will be
.r^^cncc nl Bf a'Tl mt^^'ng* We-—lafostre-tdh «-tBo dvaortdes -Tfohre -tcw«aod imdaetm< bers
wish Urn well."
In accordance with State Edu­cation
Law, the vacancy caused
by Magee's resignation will be*
filled at the regular District
ceiving the most votes will win
the full three-year term, with the
candidate receiving the second
highest total of votes fiffing the
(Cont. on Page 8) •
Building Department Closes
Down Two Unlicensed Clubs
FREEPORT - Two unHcensed
social clubs were closed down by
the VUlage's Building Depart­ment
this week allegedly in vio­lation
of the vfflage's new PuhTic
Assembly Law.
On Monday evening, March 26,
between 9 an 10 pm. Super­intendent
of Buildmgs G. Ruii de
Zaratc, accompanied by one of
his inspectors, paid \isits to 4
Church Street and S5-S6 Guy
Lombardo Avenue.
Al 4 Church Street, the in­spectors
allegedly found seven
to eight people drinking beer, in
violation of the pubFic assembly
law.
Summonses were issned to the
owner, Juan Francisco, 25, of 22
(Com. on Page 15)
whom be had fenced into his
more than two hours before.
Jonathan Coreton, 29, of
ElSson Avenue, Freeport, is
being held in $100,(XX> ball, after
being apprehended by Freeport ••
P.O. Anthony Giordano, on Guy
Lombardo Avetrae, teveril VioAs
north of tbt spot where the 19-
year-old victim had been let out of
thecarnaked.-
According to the police report
Cnreton bad forced the wof&as
into his car at aboia II pioin the
vUiAy of Babykm Toinplke and
Eakeview Avenue, and aOegedlr
alladced her several limes while
diiving around the village.
At the extreme south end of
Guy lombardo Avenue, Cureton
. (Com. on Pago 15)
THE START OF A YEAH In oflice It the traditional Inatallallon and
Michael Ocera (r.), new preiident of the Freeport Chamber of
Commerce, It twom In by U.S. Senator Al D'Amalo 0.), a good friend
of the Ocera family. Ocera'a Inttallatlon was celebrated Kt a Dinner/
Oanee Saturday evening, March 24, at S^ty Bay Yacht Oub. (Other
• photographs, page 18.) ;,
TV's local newt aew. The
meeting was attended by nearly
2(X1 Freeport residents. Including
past and present students,
many of whom came to express
their sopp«l-of the decades-old
nickname. - •
The controversy over the use of
the "Red Devil" as a district-wide
mascot began last December
wh**" A*!*^ ^^i requested that
the school board jbonshlhs sym-boi
on the grounds that it violated
religious beliefs. Both Asher and
the school board solicited opin­ions
from more than a dozen
local dergy members In exami­ning
the issue and any rengions
implications that might be drawn
ftorh having a "Red Devil"
as a mascot.
Asher has maintained that the
use of the word devil Implied evil
and Satanic beliefs, as mentioned
in various dictionaries, but most
tommuaity and refigiout leaders
played ihe tlgnlfiaace
of the mascot.
The Village't Human Relations
Commission had also discussed
the matter, but It-declined to
take a stand until the sdxwl
board announced Its decision.
Roman Uehlions Commissioner
liOcbad E. Kiiwas told THE
LEADER that after be and Asher
met privately eariier Ihb week,
both agreed that the Cbmmlf
lioa't lack of meaain£fiil juris-didioa
would not be helphil in
Asher't cause.
The well-attended Khooi board
meeting drew supporters of the'
school district's mascot as well as
three oppooenls. .
Even before the public portion
of the meeting. School Board
President Jim ParoU read a state­ment
explaining his Board's
position, ,Tbe.. Inilteet, said
However. Parola weiit on, Ihe
Board members decided to hear
what the rest of the community \^
felt about the Issue.
"We do not .believe the nick- •
name should be changed," stated
Parola to the applause of the
audience. "While we appreciate
the reasons of those who made
the request, we respectfully dis­agree
with them." ^ ^^
:. The=fir«r-ipeaSef^TtDiTnire
audience was this year's "Red
Devil" mascot, a high school .
student garbed in the traditional
-cnstume-Deseriblng-berself-as-a
'•'regular church goer." she called
the situation "an .absurdity...My
job," she said, "is to keep the
team's spirits high."
' jFormer Freeport High School
students and present ones
trooped to Ihe microphones aTlhe
front of the auditorium to explain
thelrreasons for warning Io keep
Ihe symbol. '
Randy Mills, who had placed a
full page advertisement in THE
LEADER several weeks earlier,
calling for a large lurn^iut at the
meeting, tp6|e. of "community
pride.'°H? described the school
mascot as "a common denomin-ator...
t bond Ithat) transcends
all religions."
Natalie Dunn, a ions-lime
Freeportcr suggested "if the
children don't pul, a religious
connotation to it (the "Red
- • )
Dcvil"J, Jl's too bad that some
adttlttdo."-
Frank Guerra, father of, two
uhod team members, expressed
a view that others. later echoed.
"It is pathetic," he said, "to
teepsspie spend the time on this
inHead of ushig the time to
control drugs and akobolism
among teenagers."
A feefing of pride for Freeport
and its tdiods was expressed by
several of the speakers.iAt Judy
Darter.pat It, "There is angel's
food cake'and devil's food cake
and they are both delicious and so
are Freeport schools.''
"Yea, we wiU always be Red
Devils, but we win never forget
God,"'nid Frank Tucker, presi­dent
of the PTA Council and a
life-long Freeport reiident. who
(Cont. on Page 9). .