Dear Uniondale School Community,
As we approach the Memorial Day weekend, our schools and neighborhoods prepare to pause, reflect, and gather. While this long weekend is often associated with the unofficial start of summer, backyard barbecues, and well-deserved time with family, its true purpose runs far deeper. Memorial Day calls upon us to fulfill our collective obligation to remember, honor, and express our deepest gratitude for the extraordinary men and women of America’s military who made the ultimate sacrifice in service to our nation.
Today, as we pause, we honor the brave individuals from Uniondale, Long Island and across our country who left our neighborhoods and our classrooms to defend the ideals of democracy. Long Island has a rich, historic legacy of military service, and today, we ground our reflections in the names and stories of our own neighbors who answered the call to serve and never made it home. The liberties we enjoy daily were purchased at a profound cost right here in our community. We owe an unpayable debt of gratitude to these hometown heroes.
However, as we honor those who wore the uniform, we must also recognize a fundamental truth: service is never a solo endeavor. We know that when a service member answers the call to serve, their entire family answers it with them.
Behind every brave soldier, sailor, airman, marine, and guardian is a network of love, strength, and resilience. It is the families who endure long deployments, frequent relocations, missed birthdays, and empty chairs at the holiday table. The burden of service is carried heavily on the home front, and the sacrifice of our military families deserves our highest respect and recognition.
As an educational community, let us use this occasion to teach our children the value of service, selflessness, and citizenship. Let us model the gratitude that these heroes and their families so richly deserve.
This Monday, amid your celebrations and rest, I ask that you join me in taking an intentional moment of silence. Let us remember the fallen, lift up our military and Gold Star families, and pledge to live lives worthy of the immense sacrifices made on our behalf. Thank you for your continued partnership, and I wish you all a safe, reflective, and meaningful Memorial Day.
In service and community,
Monique Darrisaw-Akil,
Superintendent of Schools