Sweet Charity for Local Firefighters

The community and local firefighters came together Wednesday night for a sweet charity event in West Hempstead.

They enjoyed scoops of ice cream at the local Baskin-Robbins store on Hempstead Turnpike while showing their support for the brave fire rescuers both locally and around the world.

The event was part of the fifth annual fundraiser that the Baskin-Robbins chain has held for the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation. Small scoops sold for 31 cents apiece between the hours of 5 p.m. and 10 p.m.  Nationally, the company will donate $100,000 to the fund.

The store was decorated in a firefighting theme with balloons, colorful cardboard cutouts of fire helmets, and a few fire engine pinatas. The lines of customers snaking the length of the counter and doubling back to the door were no surprise to Joe Matones, one of the store's franchise owners.

"It's been very successful," Matones said. "Last year, we had some firefighters behind the counter scooping up ice cream. It's a way for us to give back."

As if the ice cream were not enough, children could get balloon animals and sculptures from Carol Klein, also known as "Mismatch the Clown."

Several firefighters from the West Hempstead Fire Department pulled up in one of their trucks early into the evening's festivities. Matones said money raised locally will be donated to the burn unit at the Nassau University Medical Center.

"None of us have had to go there, thank God," said West Hempstead Volunteer Firefighter Gerard Boettcher, one of the 65 members of the department.

"It's nice to see so many people out here for a good cause," said Firefighter Anthony Rizzo of Elmont.

"I came here because of the fundraiser," said Carolann Cajuste, of West Hempstead.

Craig Dunne, of Garden City,  was also very familiar with the fundraiser, and made a point of bringing his wife and son, Christopher, who will be 4 on Friday, to the ice cream social. Dunne has been a New York City firefighter for 15 years, currently assigned to Engine 251 in Queens.

"I worked behind the counter last year at a Baskin-Robbins in our district, and it was great," he said.

He was gratified by the large turnout for very personal reasons, pointing to the shirt he was wearing in memory of Firefighter Michael Elferis, one of several friends he lost in the Sept. 11 attack on the World Trade Center in 2001.

"I was on the 22nd floor of Tower 2 when Tower 1 came down," he said.

Evelyn Farkash, of Valley Stream, had stopped in for ice cream for her family without knowing a fundraiser was going on, but she applauded the effort.

"When these guys go out on a call, they don't know what's going to happen," she said. "This is the least we can do."