May 22 Community Update

May 22, 2020 - Community Update Letter

Dear Neighbor,

Memorial Day Weekend here on Long Island is traditionally a time where we gather with family, friends, and loved ones to celebrate the official beginning of summer. While the COVID-19 pandemic has forced many of us to change our plans this holiday weekend, it has not altered the importance of honoring our nation’s fallen heroes. Every Memorial Day, we take time to honor those who have given the ultimate sacrifice for our country, and recognize the men and women who continue to put their lives on the line every day in service to our nation.

While many local parades and ceremonies have been cancelled or limited in size, here are some ideas to help you and your family commemorate this important holiday:

Wear or Display a red poppy, a nationally recognized symbol of sacrifice worn by Americans since World War I to honor those who served and died for our country in all wars.
Pause at 3 p.m. In accordance with the National Moment of Remembrance, pause from whatever you are doing at this time to reflect on the sacrifices made by so many to provide freedom to all of us.
Display a Memorial Day Poster on your front door. Nassau County has provided a series of free posters featuring Poppy flowers and our American Flag that you can download and print out, available here: https://www.nassaucountyny.gov/4989/Memorial-Day-2020-Community-Poster-Initi
The Nassau County Memorial Day car parade will take place on Monday, May 25. County Executive Curran and other local dignitaries will join with local veterans’ groups to pay tribute to fallen military personnel. The car parade will lead to the Veterans Memorial at Eisenhower Park. Residents are encouraged to tune in live to salute and remember those who were lost in the line of duty on Facebook at www.facebook.com/ncexecutive.
Tune in to the Bethpage Virtual Air Show. While the pandemic may have grounded this year’s air show at Jones Beach, you and your family can watch the first-ever Bethpage Virtual Air Show right from the comfort of home. The show will go live on May 24 at noon on https://bethpageairshow.com/.

If you and your family are planning on visiting one of Long Island’s many beaches and parks this weekend, please take note of local guidelines for reduced capacity and social distancing. The status of all Nassau County Parks can be accessed at https://www.nassaucountyny.gov/1767/Parks-Recreation-Museums. Realtime parking updates for state beaches, which will begin to open at 50% capacity or less and with heightened precautions, will be available at https://parks.ny.gov/. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact my Office at 516-739-1700 or email thomas@nysenate.gov.

I wish you and your family a safe, enjoyable Memorial Day Weekend.

Sincerely,

Senator Kevin Thomas

Upcoming Events & Opportunities

Ongoing Community Efforts to Combat COVID-19

Expanded COVID-19 Testing

An important step to reopening our community is increasing access to testing, especially in our most affected communities. New York State continues to increase testing capacity for COVID-19 on a daily basis:

To help residents locate the closest test site, New York State has created a COVID-19 Test Site Finder, which can be accessed at https://coronavirus.health.ny.gov/find-test-site-near-you.
Starting Friday, May 22, CVS Health will begin offering self-swab tests for people who meet certain CDC criteria at locations in Westbury, Farmingdale, Levittown, & Hicksville. More information on these testing sites can be found at https://www.cvs.com/minuteclinic/covid-19-testing?icid=covid_testing_dt_banner
Governor Cuomo and SOMOS have partnered with community sites across the state to expand COVID-19 and antibody testing to Latino communities that have been particularly hard-hit by the pandemic. SOMOS will be opening a multi-lingual COVID-19 test site at Simela Medical Arts PC on 680 Fulton Avenue in Hempstead. To make an appointment, call 833-SOMOS-NY.

If you have questions regarding eligibility or access for testing should call the New York State COVID-19 Hotline at 1-888-364-3065 or visit the NYSDOH website at https://covid19screening.health.ny.gov.

New York State is Still Hiring Contact Tracers!

New York State is looking to hire and train a team of staff to work remotely to perform COVID-19 contact tracing in communities across NYS. Contact Tracers will be tasked with reaching out to the contacts of anyone diagnosed with COVID-19 to assess symptoms and determine social support needs. For more information and to apply online, please use this link: https://careers-pcgus.icims.com/jobs/5244/contact-tracer/job?mobile=false&width=1140&height=500&bga=true&needsRedirect=false&jan1offset=-300&jun1offset=-240

Virtual Food Drive

Thanks to our community’s generosity, our Virtual Food Drive has exceeded our initial goal of collecting 1,000 lbs for Long Island Cares Harry Chapin Food Bank. A big thanks to all who donated! If you would like to help in our efforts, there are still 10 days left to participate in the Virtual Food Drive. To learn more or make a contribution, go to https://yougivegoods.com/kevinthomaslicares.

Upcoming Virtual Events

Enough Abuse Virtual Workshop

Friday, May 29th, 2020, 11:30AM

Join me in partnership with The Safe Center LI for a virtual 60-minute workshop to learn about strategies to prevent and protect against child sexual abuse. To register, please email dmedina@nysenate.gov and include your full name, zip code, phone number, and email address.

Homeowners and Coronavirus: What You Should Know

Tuesday, June 9, 2020, 6:30 PM

Join me for a detailed, informational conversation with real estate attorneys from New York Legal Assistance Group about the unique challenges facing homeowners during the COVID-19 crisis. If you have any questions regarding real estate, mortgages, foreclosures, buying, or selling a home, I encourage you to attend! To register, please email dmedina@nysenate.gov and include your full name, zip code, phone number, and email address.

FREE Online Yoga Classes

(May 24-30, 2020)

Body&Brain Yoga/TaiChi will be offering a week of free online classes from May 24-30 to help promote physical and emotional wellbeing. Classes are 45 minutes long and are open to individuals of all experience levels. To register, go to https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSehtDGZI0-QE6jh4E-rh-mMqbruX0zV_XSqIiRE7OFmE10Twg/viewform?entry.580140865=Syosset.