Great Neck Vigilant Fire Company Trustee Ludomir Czynski was honored by Nassau County and Jet Blue for his dedicated service and continued leadership to the Great Neck community on May 7.
Nassau County Executive Edward Mangano and JetBlue Vice President Richard Smythe were on hand to present Czynski with his award. Also present at the ceremony were Chief Fire Marshal Scott D. Tusa, Fire Commissioner Rick Gardner, Nassau County Comptroller George Maragos, and members of the Great Neck Vigilant Engine and Hook and Ladder Company.
Czynski joined the Great Neck Vigilant Fire Company in 1983 and Vigilant Fire Company Chief Laurence Jacobs said that when the county asked for award nominees Czynski was the first to come to mind.
“He is one of the most upstanding people I know,” said Jacobs, who has known Czynski for the past 20 years. “He truly puts other people first.”
Cyznski and his wife Fran have two adult children who have long since moved out of their house, however, they are also foster parents of children whose parents are HIV positive.
“They truly believe it’s part of their responsibility to make the world a better place,” said Jacobs.
As a trustee at Vigilant Fire Company, Czynski works on the board to execute the budget for the firehouse. The board is elected by firehouse members and supervises all purchases of equipment and also provides leadership continuity. “They basically act as commissioners to the firehouse,” Jacobs said. “He still takes his frontline responsibilities seriously by serving the public each week.”
All the members of the firehouse including the trustees are active firefighters and Czynski is a certified EMT.
As part of the ceremony, JetBlue presented Czynski with a free round-trip ticket on the airline.
“That was very generous and totally unexpected from Jet Blue,” Czynski told me in an e-mail, “Thanks to Jet Blue I’ll be able to visit our grandchildren in California.”
