Three 50-Year Fire Vets Honored At Village Board Meeting

At this month’s Village of Lynbrook public board meeting, three selfless members of the community were honored for an impressive milestone -- 50 years of service each, keeping their neighborhood safe as members of the

Five decade vets Eddie Murphy, Pete Skeris, and Thomas Ryan were all presented with certificates of merit by Lynbrook mayor William J. Hendrick while dozens of their fellow volunteer firefighters stood at attention as a sign of respect for their hard work and sacrifice over the years.

“We owe a debt to the fire department for coming out all the time,” Hendrick said. “To our 50-year members, thank you very much. You’ve given 50 years to this village...a lot of missed holidays, a lot of missed Thanksgivings...and we couldn’t have run this village safely without you.”

Lynbrook Fire Chief Michael Hynes displayed nothing but intense pride as he spoke not only about the three elder statesmen of his department, but all the brave firefighters Lynbrook has benefited from over the years.

“We’ve been in active service for 110 years as a volunteer organization,” he said. “Every day, we leave the comfort of our own homes to protect the community. These three men are a big part of that, with their 50 years of service.”

Mayor Hendrick singled out the hard work of the fire department in assisting during the recent impact of Hurricane Irene.

“I want to thank the men and women for an excellent job during the hurricane,” he said. “Thank you very much.”

Also honored for their volunteer work was the Wounded Warrior Project Band, a local charitable rock group. The band had recently played at the last session of the Lynbrook summer car show, with proceeds of the performance going to help injured military veterans.

Car show chairman Harry Levitt said that the inclusion of the Wounded Warrior Project Band in the event was their way of giving back to the men and women of the armed forces.

“The money raised helps wounded vets get the help they need,” he said. “Be it financial assistance, prosthetic limbs, whatever they might need.”

Levitt also stressed how important the car show is to the businesses of Lynbrook.

“The car show is something that we’ve been doing for 20 years,” he said. “It started as a way to help downtown, and I’d have to say that it worked. The support of the Village of Lynbrook, as well as the fire and police departments, has been a big help.”

Also covered at the Village Board meeting as a listing of various community events, included those offered at the .

The next regularly-scheduled meeting of the Lynbrook Village Board is on Monday, Oct. 3 at 7 p.m.