Mangano, MADD To Dedicate Memorial To Victims Of Drunk Driving

“Garden of Hope” to be Permanent Home to Powerful Sculpture by Nassau Native

Nassau County Executive Edward P. Mangano and Legislator Norma Gonsalves will join Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) at a ceremony to dedicate the “Garden of Hope” memorial in Eisenhower Park on Saturday, October 16, 2010, built to honor those lost to the violent crime of drunk driving.

 

The Garden of Hope features a sculpture created in 1997 by East Meadow native Michael Alfano, which originally stood at the front of the Nassau County Supreme Court Building in Mineola before it was moved to the Nassau County Medical Center. The powerful sculpture represents the effects of drunk driving, depicting two people attempting to help their dying friend. Alfano created the sculpture after a college girlfriend was killed in a drunk-driving accident.

“I am so pleased that this sculpture will finally have an appropriate home – at a memorial to lives that were cut too short,” said County Executive Mangano. “It is my hope that the Garden of Hope will serve as a sobering and powerful reminder of the real consequences of drunk driving.”

The dedication ceremony will begin at 11:30AM on October 16th in the Garden of Hope, located south of the Bell Tower and West of the Fireman’s Memorial in the Eisenhower Memorial Plaza.

Parking in lot #6 is advised.