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Mostly Cloudy Berta Weinstein: A driving force behind Merrick's community spirit in 2023
When you’ve lived in Merrick for over 40 years, you’re bound to become involved in the community — whether by attending a civic association meeting or helping with a park cleanup.
Berta Weinstein, 65, takes being a member of the community to new heights, having worn nearly every hat at the South Merrick Community Civic Association. A dedicated leader, she works every day to bring her community closer together. The Herald is proud to name her its 2023 Person of the Year.
Over four decades ago, Weinstein, a Long Beach native, and her husband, Joseph, moved to their house in Merrick, where they raised two daughters.
Weinstein didn’t seek out a role in the community. In fact, she first came to the civic association because she needed help herself.
Seventeen years ago, when cell antennas were proposed for installation behind her home, she asked the association for help. Then President Joe Baker and other members of the board recommended that she start a petition. Eventually it amassed over 350 signatures, and she won. The antennas were not installed.
From then on, Weinstein wanted to give back to those who helped her, and to get involved. She attended meetings regularly, and eventually a position for secretary opened, so she joined the board. At one point, she held three positions at once — vice president, secretary and treasurer.
“Berta has been an integral part of the community,” Baker said. “She’s sincerely interested in many issues. She was always there for me, whenever I asked her to do anything. She’s always been very responsible in anything she got involved in.”
When a playground structure at Julian Lane Park in Merrick needed upgrading, Weinstein was on the team to get it done. She worked with fellow civic association board member Jodi Turk-Goldberg for over a year to see the project through.
“She’s a sweetheart, but she’s also tough, in a good way,” Turk-Goldberg, a marketing and events specialist at Richner Communications, parent company of the Herald, said. “She’s a leader.”
Most recently, in the wake of the Oct. 7 attack on Israel by Hamas, Weinstein worked with Turk-Goldberg in support of the Jewish community. Over 170 community members attended an emergency meeting, including interfaith clergy.
“It was important for me that everybody be there, because we’re a community — we have to stand together,” Weinstein said. “We can’t let differences tear us apart. We have to talk. We have to understand each other. We all come from the same place, just our religious beliefs are a little bit different.”
When it comes to her efforts to fight antisemitism, it doesn’t stop there. Weinstein is a staunch believer in bringing the community together, no matter its disparate beliefs. When swastikas were found spray-painted on the Chatterton School playground this summer in Merrick, the civic association called an emergency meeting to address the incident.
Weinstein’s impact goes beyond being a leader in the community, her close friends say.
“She’s always been there for me personally,” Turk-Goldberg said. “When my dad passed away, she made sure to come over. You know you can rely on her.”
When Baker decided to run for local office earlier this year, Weinstein was the civic association’s acting president. Before an official nomination was even made, the board decided to swear her in as president.
“I was very lucky to have her as vice president,” Baker said, “When I asked her to take over, without any hesitation, she said absolutely.”
Weinstein is no stranger to elected officials, having been in charge of hosting meet-the-candidates nights for 13 years, along with the Bellmore Civic Association. Her relationships with those officials have been beneficial: When someone comes to the civic association with a problem, they are connected to the right people, whether at the town, county, or state level.
The organization continues to strengthen its relationships with the Merrick Chamber of Commerce and the Historical Society of the Merricks. The same is true of the Nassau County Police Department and its Problem Oriented Policing unit. Weinstein even attended the NCPD’s Civilian Police Academy, which involves 27 hours of instruction in traffic enforcement, criminal investigation, patrol procedures, domestic violence, youth interaction and animal control. She is a member of the police commissioner’s council.
Weinstein spearheads the Spring Clean Sweep, an annual Earth Day event the civic hosts, in which volunteers collect trash along the business corridors of Merrick. The event is organized with the police department, and officers accompany the volunteers and keep them safe along the route. Weinstein’s grandchildren have joined her in picking up trash.
She has played a major role in getting young people involved in community activities — cleanup efforts and beyond. With the civic association’s Youth Club, students have the opportunity to complete community service while learning the value of the organization — because today’s students are tomorrow’s civic association members, Weinstein says.
“When push comes to shove, we all believe the same thing,” she said. “We want peace, we want harmony, and we want to work as a community to keep the community a community — a safe place to raise children, to have our children come back to raise their children.”
The association is growing, she said, and now encompasses parts of North Merrick. She encourages everyone to join. “Your neighbors become your family,” Weinstein said, “and that’s what I’m hoping for the community.”
