'Our holidays matter, too'

East Meadow School District celebrates its first Diwali

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After years of rushing her twin daughters from school to change into traditional Indian clothing, and then hastily traveling to a Hindu temple, Hiral Mehta was relieved to spend an entired day celebrating Diwali in her East Meadow home on Oct. 19.

This year marked the East Meadow School District’s first observation of Diwali as an official school holiday, giving students the day off so that Hindus, Sikhs and Jains could celebrate. The Board of Education voted last December to observe Diwali at the recommendation of then Superintendent Leon Campo, along with the Muslim holiday Eid al-Adha.


“It’s not only an amazing feeling to have this special holiday acknowledged here and in many U.S. communities,” Mehta said, “but it also means that my kids will actually have the opportunity to celebrate this special day just the way we celebrated it back home.”

Mehta is one of hundreds of Hindus in East Meadow who celebrate Diwali, or Deepawali, which honors good over evil and the illumination of knowledge over the darkness of ignorance. Diwali is celebrated over five days, and is called the Festival of Lights because the word Deepawali roughly translates to “row of lights” in Sanskrit.

The most common birthplace for foreign-born residents in the Town of Hempstead is India, while Hindu is the third most spoken language, according to Data U.S.A. The U.S. Census estimates that of a population of more than 38,000 in East Meadow, nearly 2,500 identified as Asian Indian in a 2015 community survey.

The growing Indian population influenced the Board of Education’s decision last year, Campo said at a December board meeting. After the Syosset Board of Education became the first school district on Long Island to adopt Diwali, Eid al-Adha and Eid al-Fitr last October, school districts across Long Island — including East Williston, Half Hollow Hills Central, Herricks and Hicksville — followed suit, adopting Diwali and enforcing a “no homework” policy.

“We lit candles in the morning, and later made rangoli [patterned colorful artwork] near the door to welcome light and acceptance into our home,” Mehta said. She said this year’s celebration was relaxed and family-oriented, as she and her family spent more time at their temple without worrying about homework.

“It was so special to me because it reminded me of how I used to celebrate it in Mumbai when I was younger,” she said.

To encourage discussion on the adopted holiday in the district, Sonali Agnihotri and Hema Shetty visited their children’s kindergarten class at Bowling Green Elementary on Oct. 18. Agnihotri and her daughter, Diya, and Shetty and her son, Hridhaan, celebrate Diwali each year.

“We wanted to explain to the students why they had the day off and why it was so important to their classmates who celebrate Diwali,” Shetty said. She and Agnihotri read a Diwali book, while teacher Riara Daly set up paint palettes for the students to paint tea light candle holders.

“Living in a country that has so many different cultures and religions, it’s wonderful to feel like our holiday is finally acknowledged,” Agnihotri said. “It’s all about sharing positivity and happiness.”

As the children painted, they wished Diya and Hridhaan a “Happy Diwali,” a gesture Daly said she hoped would spark conversation among the kindergartners throughout the year.

“Not only about Diwali, but about other holidays and religions, too,” Daly added.

District Superintendent Dr. Kenneth Card Jr. said that the district takes pride as one of the first to recognize Diwali as an official school holiday.

“Diversity is one of the values that we embrace and celebrate within our district,” Card said. “By recognizing Diwali, the district is acknowledging a large portion of our community, as well as providing students with an opportunity to learn about another culture and tradition other than their own.”