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There are vacancies on the following Boards/Commissions: Zoning Board of Appeals (1)…Antenna Review Board (2)…Water District Advisory Board (committee in process of being formed)…. Comprehensive Plan Steering Committee (1)…Parks & Recreation Advisory Board (2).  If you would like to volunteer your time and serve on any of these boards/commissions please advise by sending an e mail with your resume to townboard@greenburghny.com. Send a copy to townclerk@greenburghny.com.

  One of the reasons why Greenburgh is such a nice place to live in is because of our volunteers. The work of our volunteers is  enormously appreciated. The following article appeared in the Journal News about one of our volunteers – Sharon Hernstadt- who is a member of the Conservation Advisory Council.  I plan to post features about our other volunteers periodically.  Our volunteers are unsung heroes – who give of their time without a lot of recognition.

PAUL FEINER

Sharon Hernstadt of Hartsdale is stronger than you know

Powerlifter unfazed by serious medical issues

11:37 PM, May 28, 2012   |  

Powerlifter Sharon Hernstadt and her trainer Vadim Vilensky are photographed at Vadim Fitness Studio, May 16, 2012 in Scarsdale. Hernstadt, 73, recently won the bronze medal in the World Masters Bench Press Championship. ( Tania Savayan / The Journal News )
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Sharon Hernstadt found powerlifting later than most.
The 73-year-old Hartsdale resident has been powerlifting for the past 12 years, competing against the best in the world. This past April, she represented the United States at the Masters Bench Press World Championships in Aurora, Colo. She won the bronze medal, bench pressing 50 kg (110 pounds.).
“I really trained quite specifically for this competition,” Hernstadt said. “It was a wonderful feeling to know that people from other parts of the world were looking to me to see what I could do, specifically because I was on this team.”
To qualify for the competition, Hernstadt needed to complete three lifts at a qualifying tournament sanctioned by USA Powerlifting (USAPL) before moving on to the national competition. After medaling at both, she was nominated to the world team.
A master gardener and a lawyer who is taking a self-described sabbatical from law, Hernstadt inspires her loved ones to be active. When her grandson, Jeffrey Diones, lifts weights after school, he asks his friends how much they can lift. After they answer, he informs them that his grandmother can lift more than they can — and it is the truth.
“Grandma has always been a deft hand at her many activities, from caring for her giant garden to making her own jewelry,” Hernstadt’s granddaughter Jesyca Hernstadt said. “So while her successes in (powerlifting) were absolutely wonderful, they were not quite the surprise they might have been. It is always fun, too, to say that my grandma is a competitive (powerlifter) who placed at worlds, just to watch people’s faces.”
What started as an extension of her rehabilitation following quadruple bypass surgery in 1999 became a pursuit of a goal.
“I started off to work out,” Hernstadt said. “I started at the cardiac rehab with this one trainer — an exercise physiologist who took the time to teach me about each lift and how to do more than just bulk up. I couldn’t have done it without him. I never would have thought of doing it.”
 
The trainer’s name was Vadim Vilensky, whose studio has been her training facility three days a week for the past 12 years. Hernstadt, who holds USAPL New York state records in the squat (126.5 pounds), bench press (88), and deadlift (226) for her age group, is preparing with Vilensky to compete at the USAPL New Jersey State Powerlifting Championships in August.
“I started competing after reading an article in The Journal News about a woman from Chicago who was a world champion for her age group,” she said. “I showed it to my trainer and he said ‘you can do that.’ It changed my life, because from then on instead of going to just work out, I had a goal, and that was to become stronger and to be able to do the three lifts of powerlifting. So it was much more enjoyable for me.”
Additional medical obstacles hindered Hernstadt’s road to Aurora. Carotid surgery a few years back paused her training for nine months. She has also battled Graves’ disease, osteoporosis, and arthritis.
Recently, Hernstadt’s doctors took her off osteoporosis medication after seeing improved bone density readings. Hernstadt credits the weight-bearing exercises she does for strengthening her bones and body.
“I know so many women and men who have back problems, who have arthritis,” she said. “I have arthritis; it doesn’t bother me. I’m not in pain. You don’t have to do heavy weight training — you don’t have to do the training that I do. But be active. If you don’t use it, you lose it.”