Dix Hills – Huntington Town
Supervisor Chad A. Lupinacci, Councilwoman Joan Cergol, and Tax Receiver
Jillian Guthman were joined by Lieutenant Governor Kathy Hochul, Assemblyman
Steve Stern, Assemblyman Andrew Raia and Assemblyman Charles Lavine as well as
family and friends of Scott J. Beigel and the Beigel-Schulman family, including
former campers and students of the teacher and Dix Hills native who lost his
life in the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting just six months ago,
for the street dedication ceremony taking place in Mr. Beigel’s honor on
Saturday, August 11.
“Scott
Beigel was a teacher, a cross-country coach and a mentor to his students. Scott
heroically lost his life helping those students escape the danger that sealed
his fate,” said Supervisor Chad A. Lupinacci. “We are standing here today on
the street in Dix Hills where Scott and his sister Melissa were raised, where
their parents, Linda Beigel-Schulman and Michael Schulman, still reside. Today
the Town recognizes Scott Beigel’s heroic sacrifice with a permanent street
dedication for all to see who pass Hart Place on Half Hollow Road in Dix Hills.”
“During one of the worst tragedies
imaginable, Scott Beigel died defending the lives of his students,” said
Lieutenant Governor Kathy Hochul. “As a mother myself, I can only imagine the
pain endured by mothers, fathers, and family members of those lost in Parkland.
I have no words to console the families whose lives have been forever altered,
but I am in awe of how they have harnessed this travesty into a force for
change. We need common sense gun safety reform, and Governor Cuomo and I will
not stop fighting until we pass the Red Flag Bill to keep our schools safe.
Let’s work together in honor of Scott and make reform a reality.”
“We cannot
ever forget Scott’s sacrifice and the loss of lives on that tragic day six
months ago. And we cannot let up in our individual efforts to lobby for
stricter gun control legislation that could put an end to the senseless loss of
life, and the madness that has all too often played out in our schools, malls,
theaters, streets and homes, forever changing our families and our lives,” said
Councilwoman Joan Cergol.
Tax Receiver Jillian Guthman shared
her personal story of loss: “The heartache from the Parkland shooting is very
personal to me. While I was in 4th grade, my father was killed during a
robbery. That loss remains in my heart and grows deeper with each senseless
shooting. When children are robbed of the ability to learn in an environment
free of the threat of death and teachers have to choose between preserving
their life and protecting the lives of their students, we as a society have a
fundamental problem which cannot continue. I applaud the Beigel family for
having the strength and tenacity to fight for sensible gun control. Scott
Beigel will forever be remembered as a heroic person who selflessly put the
life of others before his own and as a catalyst for a movement for responsible
gun regulation. Scott J. Beigel Way in Dix Hills will forever serve as a
reminder of the heroism of one that sparked a movement. Thank you Scott!”
Scott’s mother, Linda Beigel
Schulman, thanked the Town, the State and the people gathered for the unveiling
as she described how she was overcome with emotion watching Town employees
installing the sign dedicated in her son’s name the day before, “knowing that I
was the mother of the person they were installing the sign for,” she watched as
they handled the installation with care, which she said was the way everyone
has been towards her family, “the caring is beyond compare.” Beigel Shulman
called for the State Senate to pass a “red flag” law, similar to one the State
Assembly passed earlier this year, which she stated would have saved her son’s
life if a similar law existed in Florida prior to the shooting.
Linda Beigel-Schulman, with help
from granddaughter Dylan Zech and Lieutenant Governor Hochul, surrounded by
daughter Melissa Zech, husband Michael Schulman, and Town and State Officials,
did the honors unveiling the sign dedicating Hart Place “Scott J. Beigel Way.”
Also in attendance for the unveiling was Paul Guttenberg, uncle of 14-year-old
Jaime Guttenberg, a Parkland student who was killed in the February 14
shooting, and a representative from Congressman Thomas Suozzi’s office..
The Town of Huntington held a
candlelight vigil for all victims of the shooting, highlighting the heroic
actions of Scott Beigel, the teacher who gave his life protecting students from
the gunman, on the one month anniversary of the tragic event, on March 14 at
Town Hall. Joined by town and county officials, representatives from state and
federal officials’ offices, superintendents and students from local schools,
the Huntington Town Board unveiled a street sign dedicating the street in Dix
Hills where Scott and his sister Melissa were raised and where their parents,
Linda Beigel-Schulman and Michael Schulman, still reside, as “Scott J. Beigel
Way.” Hart Place in Dix Hills was officially dedicated “Scott J. Beigel Way” in
a resolution at the March 20 Town Board Meeting.
In the photo (l-r): Assemblyman
Charles Lavine; Lieutenant Governor Kathy Hochul; Councilwoman Joan Cergol;
Linda Beigel-Schulman; Michael Schulman; Dylan Zech; Supervisor Chad A.
Lupinacci; Melissa Zech; Assemblyman Steve Stern; Tax Receiver Jillian Guthman;
Assemblyman Andrew Raia.
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