Hempstead to honor six Hispanic residents

Six Hempstead Town residents will be honored next week for their contributions to the Hispanic community, their neighborhoods and the town.

The town board will observe National Hispanic Heritage Month during a special ceremony at Hempstead Town Hall (1 Washington St., Hempstead) on Tuesday at 3 p.m.

The keynote speaker will be Jorge Martinez, the first Hispanic to be elected as a trustee in Freeport Village, town officials said.

The town’s Hispanic Heritage Month committee selected this year’s honorees. They are: Dr. Bertha Bravo, a dentist whose practice is in Hempstead Village; Jessica Carrasquillo, manager for Bethpage Federal Credit Union’s Elmont branch; Antonio Castro, vice president and financial consultant at Charles Schwab & Co. in Garden City; Nancy Fuentes, of Levittown, a Gold Star Mother as recognized by the American Gold Star Mothers Inc., an organization of mothers who have lost a son or daughter in the service of the United States; Doris Piedimonte, East Rockaway’s village clerk; and the Rev. Carlos Sorto, pastor of the Centro Cristiano Renacer Church in Freeport.

“It is a pleasure to have the opportunity to recognize the efforts of these fine individuals,” Hempstead Town Clerk Mark Bonilla, the town’s first clerk of Hispanic heritage, said in a statement.

A Latino art exhibit, “Ties of Brotherhood,” presented by the IKARUS Gallery Cultural Program, will be on display weekdays in the Town Hall lobby through Oct. 14 from 9 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. The display features original paintings, drawings and photography from numerous local Latino artists.