The Garden City Republican Club invites residents to join them this Wednesday, February 10, at 8 PM at the Garden City Senior Recreation Center, corner of Eleventh Street and Golf Club Lane to hear from Frank Scaturro who is eager to have community support in his quest to represent Garden City this November as the candidate for the 4th Congressional District now represented by Carolyn McCarthy.

Frank Scaturro was raised in New Hyde Park following his family’s move to that community in 1973. His father, who had emigrated from Italy as a boy, was self-employed in a commercial air conditioning and refrigeration repair business for several years. He later became the supervisor of maintenance and operations at Bergdorf Goodman in New York City and then held a similar position at Chaminade High School in Mineola. His mother studied physical therapy at Nassau Community College and worked near home as a secretary at an insurance agency and several law firms.

Frank attended Notre Dame Elementary School in New Hyde Park and graduated with the school’s highest honor. He attended Chaminade High School and graduated with honors. He was a member of Boy Scout Troop 544 and attained the rank of Eagle Scout. His service project consisted of improving the school, church, convent, and rectory grounds of Notre Dame.

Frank’s community involvement includes memberships in numerous civic and church organizations. He also worked as associate historian and records retention coordinator for the Village of New Hyde Park, as well as interned in the district office of Rep. David Levy, who represented the 4th Congressional District.

Frank attended Columbia University, where he pursued his interest in history and government through scholarship. Frank volunteered with the National Park Service and began guiding tours of nearby Grant’s Tomb.

As he became more familiar with the 150-foot granite structure, he noticed that what was formerly one of the nation’s most popular attractions was showing serious signs of neglect. The roof leaked, the walls were discolored, and the site was slowly becoming masked with graffiti and treated like a bathroom. Drug users and their associated paraphernalia became more and more prevalent on the tomb’s front staircase and plaza.

Thus began a personal crusade, soon to be joined by others, to inform the Park Service, and later political leaders and the general public, of the tomb’s deterioration. Frank founded a non-profit organization, the Grant Monument Association, to serve as an outlet for citizen support for the monument and a source of education on the life and legacy of President Grant. By 1997, his many reports and memos were answered with a $1.8 million face-lift.

He then attended the University of Pennsylvania School of Law, where he served on the board of the Journal of International Economic Law and was awarded the Fred G. Leebron Memorial Prize for the top paper in constitutional law. Following graduation, he worked at the law firm of Lane & Mittendorf and later at Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft.

Frank has published a number of books and articles in the area of history and law, including President Grant Reconsidered (1998), a reassessment of Grant’s presidency; The Supreme Court’s Retreat from Reconstruction (2000), an exploration of a key chapter in the history of civil rights; and Public Companies (2002), a book he co-authored on how to be a responsible public company in the wake of the corporate scandals of the early part of this decade.

For over 4 years, Frank served as Counsel for the Constitution on the Senate Judiciary Committee. Frank was a key aide on President Bush’s nominations of Chief Justice John Roberts and Associate Justice Samuel Alito to the Supreme Court. He also worked on the last two attorney general nominations and the beginning phase of the nomination of Associate Justice Sonia Sotomayor.

In 2008, Frank collaborated with Senator Arlen Specter on his memoir focused on his struggle with Hodgkin’s lymphoma, bringing national attention to the early detection of and fight against cancer. Frank is currently serving as a visiting professor at Hofstra Law School and is teaching courses on constitutional law and the legislative process for the 2009-2010 academic school year.

The Garden City Republican Club is most fortunate to have Frank Scaturro join us on February 10th and is hopeful you will be able to be with us and learn first hand about Frank and his passion to become our next Congressman. At each month’s club meeting, candidates seeking office will be featured so that residents may learn and ask questions about each candidate’s point of view and philosophy.

Presently the nominating committee is accepting names for 2010-2011 club administration as well. So if your talent is writing, phoning, working with people, planning events, the Club hopes you will consider expanding your participation by submitting your own name for consideration. For additional information please contact Jackie at 741-3079 or via email at ourtown1@aol.com.

Refreshments will be served along with a 50/50 raffle to benefit the new Garden City Young Republican Club led by Nicole Russo and James Regalbuto. For more information please contact Nicole at nlaurenrusso

@gmail.com.The next meeting of the YR club is March 3rd.