West Hempstead Boy's Quest Helps Clean Hall's Pond

A Mother’s Day gift turned into a West Hempstead boy’s quest to clean up Hall’s Pond.

Connor Last, 9, was upset on Mother’s Day that he hadn’t got his mom Kelly a present, so she offered to give him some money to get her flowers. Connor asked Kelly to take him to Hall’s Pond, which is near their home, and he presented her with the arrangement. Then, they took a walk around the pond, and Connor became concerned with what he saw.

“Connor was extremely upset with the condition of the pond…it was filthy,” Kelly said. “His main concern was the ducks’ safety and he felt that West Hempstead should not be represented like this.”

“I really want all the ducks and other animals to have a good life,” Connor added. “Since I have a good life, I wanted them to have a good life.”

The Lasts headed home and Connor wrote a hand-written letter to Nassau County Executive Edward Mangano, which explained his desire to clean up the pond. He received a response from Mangano’s office regarding where to send the letter, and he decided to get his classmates at Cornwell Avenue School to write letters as well.

Due to his efforts, the County responded and Hall’s Pond received the cleaning that Connor so desired. He was also recently recognized with a citation from Mangano at Hall’s Pond.

“Connor wrote me and described some issues he was concerned about,” Mangano said. “We were so impressed that he took the time to write such a nice letter to jumpstart a project to clean up Hall’s Pond.”

“Now the ducks have a home that they can enjoy, and that’s what we wanted for them,” Connor added.

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