WWII hero led village 20 years

Andrew J. Parise, mayor of Cedarhurst for the last 20 years and lifetime Five Towns resident, died last Sunday, at age 90.

Deputy Mayor Ben Weinstock will serve as acting mayor through the end of the current four-year term later this year, said Village Administrator Sal Evola. A new election, previously scheduled, is set for Wednesday, March 18. The deadline for mayoral candidates to file petitions to run was Tuesday. 

“The mayor was the most wonderful man you could know, a fantastic leader,” said Evola. 

In 2011, Cedarhurst Park was renamed Andrew J. Parise Cedar-hurst Park. Its namesake, with local organizations, refurbished the space, creating a water park, memorial area and baseball field. His administration, in partnership with local businesses, established a summer concert series at the gazebo.

Parise grew up in Inwood, one of six siblings. He walked to the Number Four School at a time when not many of the roads were paved and there were horse stables in the area.

The 1942 Lawrence High School graduate enlisted in the U.S. Army and was assigned to the 87th Infantry Division 312 Combat Engineers from February 1943 to December 1945. He fought in the Battle of the Bulge and in France, Belgium and Luxembourg and his unit entered the Buchenwald concentration camp, an experience that created an indelible memory.

When Parise’s unit got to the camp, only corpses had been left behind. “Eisenhower came out with an order — every soldier had to visit the camps to witness what went on there so there would be no question there was a Holocaust,” Parise told the Jewish Star in 2010. “It was horrific.”

After returning from Europe, he reconnected with his high school civics teacher and entered public service in 1954 as legislative aide for the New York State Assembly. Two years later, he began a 40-year career with the Town of Hempstead, working as chief of staff for seven supervisors. He joined the Cedarhurst village board in 1971 He served as deputy mayor under the late Nicholas Farina, and became mayor in 1995.