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Co-op City Times / December 30, 2023
Building 20 Association
Building 25 Association
Happy New Year to all. Thank you to the Building 20 residents who attended our Building 20 Association Holiday Gathering. It was a festive event with lots of holiday music. All in attendance enjoyed a dinner of lasagna, spring rolls, rotisserie chicken, garlic bread, tossed salad, cranberry and apple juices. There were lots of donations of desserts, including cakes, pies, cookies, donuts, and more. Following a brief meeting, we told stories, sang songs, gave holiday cards and gifts. There was even a free silent auction where several in attendance received beautiful gifts. There was also a gift for the resident who attended the most meetings over the past year. Everyone thanked the Building 20 Executive Board members for this fantastic event. Many thanks to those who cooked, cleaned, decorated, and attended. You have helped to make the 2023 Holiday Gathering a success. The next Building 20 Association meeting will be held on Wednesday, January 17, 2024 at 7:00 p.m. in the Section B meeting room. Please make a New Year’s resolution to attend the monthly meetings. Here’s wishing you a Happy, Healthy, Safe and Prosperous New Year. —Francine Jones
Happy Kwanzaa Building 25 Association Holiday Party will take place on Friday, January 5, 2024 at 7:30 p.m. in our meeting room. Please come out and enjoy the end of holiday festivities. Our next Association meeting is Tuesday, January 16, 2024. A representative from JASA will be joining us, so please come prepared with questions and comments. In the words of Jimmy Dolittle, “There is nothing stronger than a heart of a volunteer.” So many of us bring our talents, time, experiences and contributions to help our community become a better place to call home. It has been my honor writing articles for Building 25 since year 2014, and 260 articles later, with sadness, I am informing you that this will be my last article. I will be starting a new project in year 2024. So, from me and Building 25 Association, we wish you all a Happy New Year, and to all, a goodnight! Wishing all neighbors born in December a happy birthday. For those of you who are under the weather, we hope you get better soon, and for our neighbors who continue to lose loved ones, our heartfelt prayers go out to you. Our next Building Association meeting will be held Tuesday, January 16, 2024 at 7:30 p.m. Due to holiday scheduling, that may change; look for detailed information posted near elevators as we get closer to the meeting date. Remember, residents of Building 25 can always address any comments or concerns by logging onto our building email address at building25ca@gmail.com. If anyone has problems accessing the building email address, please let us know. I will close with the following for the last time: Thank you for reading my articles and giving me your positive feedback. —Wanda Bailey
National Council of Negro Women NCNW Co-op City Section – At our last Membership Meeting on December 10th, part of our meeting was dedicated to celebrating our Founders’ Day. Extraordinary educator and political leader Dr. Mary McLeod Bethune (18751955) founded NCNW in 1935 as an “organization of organizations” to represent national and international concerns of Black women. NCNW fought for jobs, the right to vote and anti-lynching legislation. It gave Black women the opportunity to realize their goals for social justice and human rights through united, constructive action. The legendary Dr. Bethune, NCNW Founder and 1st National President, Advisor of Minority Affairs to President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, said that she could not rest to see the unharnessed power among our women, so she called upon 28 national women leaders who responded to her call. She pointed out that what was needed was not another organization, but one that would bring organizations together. Mary Church Terrell proposed forming a “Council.” Thus, Dr. Bethune founded the National Council of Negro Women as such – “a national organization of national organizations” at the 137th Street Branch, YWCA, New York City, December 5, 1935. Mrs. Bethune envisioned NCNW functioning as a clearinghouse, facilitating networking and coalition-building, and advocating the use of collective power on issues affecting women, their families and communities. In 1937 in New York, the first community-based section was organized. In the Bronx, the first meeting of the Co-op City Section of National Council of Negro Women, Inc. was held in the Community Protestant Church of Co-op City on February 14, 1971 under the sponsorship of Mrs. Daisy George and Mrs. Maggie Alston, members of the Committee of Four Hundred, National Council of Negro Women, Inc. Roberta Booze, Jessie Profit, Lillian Dean, Dorothy Edwards, Olive Glasgow and Evelyn Garner were the pioneers who paved the way. Dr. Dorothy Irene Height led NCNW for decades, securing its legacy of enlightened leadership and influence. She came to Co-op City on Sunday, June 13, 1971 to officially grant us our Charter. As we end 2023 and look forward to the beginning of a New Year, 2024, we eagerly look forward to implementing our “NCNW Priorities.” Our organization promotes education, encourages entrepreneurship, financial literacy, and economic stability, educates women about health and promotes healthcare access, and promotes civic engagement and advocates for sound public policy and social justice. If you think you would like to move into the New Year with us, reach out to us through any of the social media listed below. Social Media – Remember you can find us on our website: www.ncnwcoopcitysection.com; on Facebook: NCNWCoopcityBethune; on X, formerly known as Twitter: @NCNWCoop City; on Instagram: NCNW Co-op City and email: ncnwco.opcity@gmail.com. May we all have a Healthy and Peaceful New Year! —Joyce Howard
Be sure to subscribe to the official Co-op City YouTube channel, https:// bit.ly/3h6CrF7. Stay informed!
Building 27 Association Hello, neighbors. We trust all is well. Stay vigilant, cautious and wear your masks in crowds. Go to the doctor; take your flu shot, whatever you need to do. Happy Holidays and Merry Christmas! Wishing all happiness, warm wishes, love and that we will cherish the peace and goodwill among each other. We wish all safe travels, enjoy each other, we need some laughter, let go and let live like back in the day. Retail Cannabis Dispensary – Community Board #10 will hold the first public hearing on Thursday, January 4, 2024 at 7 p.m. in Room 31 of the Bartow Center. The second application for the proposed location 725 Co-op City Blvd (the former Capital One bank) has been withdrawn. We believed cooperators had consented to be more proactive since the Animal Shelter situation. Please let’s not discuss amongst each other, but make your comments count to those who are responsible. The people of this community have a choice –– to agree or oppose these drug shops in the midst of our community, churches and schools. We do not need to invite and welcome something that can possibly harm rather than help a person succeed in life. There is opportunity to voice your opinions, comments once again. Call Community Board #10 at 718-8921161, contact your local politicians. Please let the Riverbay Board directors know how you feel about the situation. Co-op Times Bins – If we, as shareholders, contribute to mishandling the papers as well, shame on you. If not, would you please take the time and a picture of this dumping and send it in to Co-op Times/editor. We should not allow this to take place Saturday after Saturday. We as cooperators are all in this together, making sure our building and surroundings are kept nice and decent. After all, we are blessed with clean and caring porters who keep our buildings very clean. Happy Birthday to all celebrating this month. We offer our sincere sympathy and condolences to the families who lost loved ones. We wish all the best of health and safety. Contact Lydia Rondon at 718-583-3040 and she will gladly acknowledge your birthday by sending you a card; she is excellent in sharing goodwill. Also notify her of any illness, or a neighbor has become deceased or transferred to a nursing home. For our community to be a better place to live is for the people of the community to understand and accept their personal responsibility for what happens. –Davis Merritt, Jr. —H. Overman
