It’s rare that you get the chance to meet your professional heroes, so when one of mine recently came to Hofstra . . . more

In 1996, Hewlett House was a dilapidated farmhouse, long empty and fast rotting. The Hewlett-Woodmere School District, which owned it, planned to demolish the 300-year-old structure to make way for a parking lot. Then the Nassau Herald started reporting on the historic home’s plight. more

There I sat on a stool at the end of the lunch counter at Brookhaven Memorial Hospital in Patchogue, awaiting word on my grandfather, who had suffered his first or second heart attack of three. more

Toasts, clinks of silverware against glasses and good conversation filled the air at every table during the Merrick Chamber of Commerce’s 81st annual Installation Dinner. more

The Merrick Chamber of Commerce’s annual Installation Dinner is set for Jan. 28, at 6:30 p.m., at Chateau Briand in Carle Place. At this 81st dinner, Charles Fuschillo Jr., the former state senator from Merrick, will be honored as Man of the Year, and Donna Rosenblum, the Merrick Library’s current president, will be recognized as Woman of the Year. The Professional of the Year is Louise Pitlake, and the Merchant of the Year is Peter Holmstedt. The Merrick Herald Life is a co-sponsor of the awards. For information on tickets to the dinner, go to merrickchamber.org. Here are the chamber’s profiles of the honorees. more

The Herald endorses Nassau County Legislator Michael Venditto, a Republican from Massapequa, in the 8th Senate District race. more

Nassau County Republicans lined up earlier this month in support of County Legislator Michael Venditto, a Massapequa Republican, as their party’s candidate to succeed former Sen. Charles Fuschillo Jr. in the New York State Senate. more

Residents of the 8th State Senate District, which stretches along the South Shore from Baldwin to Lindenhurst, do not now have a representative in the New York State Legislature’s upper chamber. This troubles some as Albany legislators and Gov. Andrew Cuomo negotiate this month over how the state will allocate its more than $100 billion budget. more

In an era when too many politicians seem to be focused primarily on staying in office, U.S. Rep. Carolyn McCarthy has announced that she will be stepping down, and State Sen. Charles Fuschillo Jr. has already done so. more

In a New Year’s Eve surprise, State Sen. Charles Fuschillo Jr., a popular Republican from Merrick, announced that he would step down at 11:59 p.m. on Dec. 31 to become chief executive officer of the Alzheimer’s Foundation of America. more