Southeast Queens Press Epaper

Volume 13 Issue No. 1 Jan. 6-12, 2012

PAGE 18

PRESS Photo by Ira Cohen

MORE TO COME

Gov. Cuomo proposes a 3.8million-square-foot convention center at Aqueduct Racetrack as part of his State of the State Address.

By Domenick Rafter ‌ Page 3

Online at www.QueensPress.com

News Briefs Prayer Breakfast The New Jerusalem Baptist Church is hosting a prayer breakfast on Saturday, Jan. 20. Breakfast will be served from 8:30-9:15 a.m. with a prayer service following soon after. Special guests include violinist Sapphire Holness and The Worship Center of St. Albans. Tickets can be purchased for $7 through Jan. 13. For more information, contact Brother Al Smith at (917) 651-3244.

100 Suits For 100 Men In an effort to promote empowerment through employment and ownership within Southeast Queens,

Kevin Livingston, president of the Livingston Development Group, is announcing a suit drive this winter.

Livingston plans to distribute one suit each to 100 men between 15 and 23 years old. The suit drive began Jan. 2 and will run through March 1. The goal of the program is to engage gang members and encourage them to pursue a more professional lifestyle. Those interested in receiving suits can stop by Parsons Boulevard and Archer Avenue from 8 to 9:30 p.m. on Jan. 9. Those interested in donating suits can drop off apparel at the Sean Elijah Bell Center at 107-52 Sutphin Blvd. or Marvelous Cuts, located at 111-32 132nd St. For more information, contact (347) 472-2519.

Former Hospital Head Admits To Bribery The former CEO of Parkway Hospital admitted this week to bribing former State Sen. Carl Kruger (D-Brooklyn), becoming the latest person to head to prison in a tangled web of scandal that also brought down Kruger and David Rosen, the former CEO of MediSys, the company that operates several Queens hospitals including Jamaica and Flushing Hospitals.

Aquino, who before his arrest had been trying to lobby community leaders for support to reopen the shuttered Parkway Hospital in Forest Hills, pleaded guilty on Tuesday to paying $60,000 to Adex Management, Inc., a company in which Kruger had an interest. Half that money went to a sham consulting company controlled by another defendant, Michael Turano, who had a close relationship with Kruger. Aquina admitted in his plea that these payments were meant to influence Kruger to use his power as a State Senator to help keep Parkway Hospital open, which nevertheless closed in 2008.

Kruger resigned in December and pleading guilty to two counts of conspiracy and Turano pleaded guilty to one count on Dec. 20, 2011.

“Robert Aquino was all too willing to make sure a bribe was paid to preserve his job as CEO of a hospital.

Like others in this case, he chose to fight his battle with money under the table rather than to play by the rules,” US Attorney Preet Bharara said.

Aquino, who was indicted along with the other suspects in March 2011, could face five years in prison and a fine of $250,000 when he is sentenced.

Rosen was convicted in September for his involvement in the scheme to bribe Kruger and former state Assemblyman Anthony Semenerio, and is scheduled to be sentenced this Friday, while another suspect; lobbyist Richard Lipsky pleaded guilty to corruption and bribery charges on Wednesday.

Charges against one other suspect indicted in the scheme, Solomon Kalish, who owned Adex Management, Inc. are pending. Another state legislature Assemblyman William Boyland (D-Brooklyn) was acquitted last year of corruption charges in connection with the case.

Page 2 PRESS of Southeast Queens Jan. 6-12, 2012

Worst Landlords In NYC As part of an announcement of the latest additions and features to the New York City Worst Landlords Watch List, Public Advocate Bill de Blasio recently announced the five worst buildings in Queens.

The list is topped by 107-04 150th St., cited for 209 violations, and 89-06 138th St., 135 violations, both represented by Allen Affordable Housing Development.

Other properties on the list include: 1821 Cornelia St., 101 violations, Roseman, Beerman & Beerman LLP, landlord; 307 Beach 70 St., 92 violations, landlord is Gowrie Seegulam; and 106-19 177th St., 91 violations, landlord is Diana Alleyne.

The watch list website, www.landlordwatchlist.com, now includes an updated list that tracks whether violations are on the rise or are being repaired. The site also includes a list of 176 buildings recently removed from the watch list because violations like lead paint, infestations and mold have been addressed.

“Since first launching the watch list, we’ve helped to successfully pressure landlords to improve the safety and living conditions for thousands of New Yorkers,” de Blasio said. “There is more work to be done, so we’re building on this progress by launching new features that will increase pressure on landlords who refuse to address violations, supply even more helpful information to apartment hunters, and continue to provide residents an outlet to report landlords who fail to follow the law.”

All entries on the watch list have a minimum of two hazardous housing code violations per unit, including lack of heat or hot water, lead paint, toxic mold or broken plumbing. The public advocate launched the site in 2010 to shine a spotlight on repeat offenders whose buildings have fallen into dangerous disrepair. More than 250,000 visitors have used the Watch List since its launch.

Presstime

Cuomo Eyes Mega Conv. Center At Aqueduct

BY DOMENICK RAFTER If Gov. Andrew Cuomo has his way, the world's largest convention center could be coming to Queens.

In his State of the State address Wednesday, the governor proposed a 3.8 millionsquare-foot convention center at Aqueduct Racetrack near the Resorts World New York City Casino. The center would be more than a million square feet bigger than Chicago's McCormick Place convention center- currently the country's largestand nearly four times the size of the Jacob Javits Convention Center.

"The Jacob Javits Convention Center on Manhattan's West Side is obsolete and not large enough to be a top tier competitor in today's marketplace," Gov. Cuomo said.

He announced the State would be partnering with Genting, the parent company of Resorts World New York City, to undertake the $4 billion project. He says it will generate tens of thousands of jobs and create new economic activity and would include 3,000 new hotel rooms at the site.

"This will bring to New York the larg-

est events, driving demand for hotel rooms and restaurant meals and creating tax revenues and jobs, jobs, jobs," he said.

Genting Americas Senior Vice President of Development Christian Goode praised the plan and said his company looked forward to working with Cuomo to build the center.

"Genting Americas is extremely excited about this opportunity to partner with Gov. Cuomo to build the largest convention center in the country," he said. "It's a great time to invest and grow in New York, and we are thrilled to be able to play a role in creating jobs and increasing tourism."

Borough President Helen Marshall called it a "forward-thinking proposal."

"In addition to creating tens of thousands of jobs, it would generate thousands of hotel rooms and put national and international events close to Kennedy Airport, mass transit and complement the Aqueduct Racino complex," she said.

State Sen. Joe Addabbo Jr. (D-Howard Beach) said a convention center and hotels were always talked about as something that could be built on the site along with

(l. to r.) State Sen. Joe Addabbo Jr., Assemblyman Phil Goldfeder, Resorts World New York City President Michael Spiller and State Sen. Malcolm Smith celebrate the casino’s opening on Dec. 16. governor, Genting and the community.

The current property includes the casino building, NYRA's grandstand and the racetrack, which multiple sources confirm will not be affected by the governor's plans. Development could occur in the parking lots, on vacant land south of the track and at the site of Home Depot store on Rockaway Boulevard.

Reach Reporter Domenick Rafter at drafter@queenstribune.com or (718) 3577400 Ext. 125.

the casino. He added that he was waiting for more details in the governor's plan, which he admitted he only found out about Wednesday morning.

"What the governor did today was put [the convention center] on the map," he said. "I think we should move forward in a very cautious manner."

Addabbo said he would speak to constituents who live near the track about the plan and further discuss the job impact, and impact on traffic and safety with the

Police Make Arrest In Queens Firebombings PRESS Photos by Ira Cohen

BY VERONICA LEWIN

Above: Mayor Michael Bloomberg, at podium, speaks to reporters about the firebombings that took place on New Year’s Day. Left: Bloomberg met with Imam Maan Al-Sahlani (r.) and community leaders Tuesday morning.

Expressway., while about 80 people were inside. The building sustained minor damage and no one was injured. The final attack occurred at a home on 88-20 170th St. that housed a Hindu temple. Lengend also confessed to a Nassau County attack that took place a little before 10 p.m. on Jan. 1. Police said the defendant picked his targets due to personal grievances. It is alleged he targeted the mosque because he was not allowed to use the bathroom there.

According to police, the suspect was thrown out of the Hillside Avenue deli on Dec. 27 for attempting to steal milk and a Starbucks Frappuccino. It is alleged Lengend used glass Starbucks Frappuccino

bottles in at least three of the attacks Sunday night.

“We don’t know what the motive was, but in New York City we have no tolerance for violence and certainly no tolerance for discrimination,” Mayor Michael Bloomberg said Tuesday before the arrest.

Bloomberg and Police Commissioner Ray Kelly met with Iman Maan Al-Sahlani Tuesday morning to discuss Sunday night’s attacks. The meeting preceded a press conference, where clergy, faith-based organizations and elected officials came out to show their unity with the Muslim community and denounce the attacks.

“Our group is here today to show, here

Jan. 6-12, 2012 PRESS of Southeast Queens Page 3

For the past 24 years, Rahima Naim has been a member of the Imam Al-Khoei Islamic Center and when she was a child she attended the Al-Iman School located inside. She now sends her four and fiveyear-old sons to attend school at Al-Iman, with their safety being her priority. Two days after homemade firebombs were thrown at her place of worship, Naim said her sense of security has been shattered, and she is devastated by the event.

“Whoever did this needs to get punished for it,” Naim said. “That’s not right. You’re burning somebody’s house down, you’re trying to take lives away of innocent people. That’s not what we’re taught in Islam.”

On Tuesday, police arrested Ray Lazier Lengend, 40, of 89-04 215th St., and charged him with five counts of criminal possession of a weapon (possession of an explosive), one count of arson as a hate crime and four counts of arson.

Four Molotov cocktail attacks Sunday night in Jamaica within a two-mile radius have Naim and other residents dismayed.

A little before 8 p.m. on Jan. 1, a Molotov cocktail was thrown at a deli located at 179-46 Hillside Ave. Minutes later, a homemade firebomb was thrown at the home of Christians Monty and Sonia Burnett on 107th Avenue, severely damaging the house. The Islamic Leadership Council of Metropolitan New York announced Tuesday that they will be offering a donation to help repair the Burnetts’ home.

Around 9 p.m. Sunday, firebombs were thrown at the door of the Imam Al-Khoei Islamic Center, located at 89-89 Van Wyck

in America, we are one family,” said AlSahlani of the Imam Al-Khoei Islamic Center. “If one gets hurt, all of the family gets hurt.”

Al-Sahlani thanked everyone for their support following the attacks.

Queens has seen more than its share of bias crimes in recent months. Last November, swastikas were painted on a synagogue in Jackson Heights and at the Queens Library’s Jackson Heights and East Elmhurst branches.

A 40-year-old Jackson Heights man was arrested in connection with the vandalism. On Nov. 23, community and religious leaders signed an updated version of the 1657 Flushing Remonstrance, a pledge for tolerance.

Borough President Helen Marshall, who signed the pledge, said she was almost too upset about Sunday’s events to speak at the press conference. “This is the most diverse county in the United States of America.

Everyone has to be welcomed, especially this wonderful community,” Marshall said.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo, a Queens native, issued a statement following the homemade firebomb attacks. “Attacks such as this have no place in our open and inclusive society and we must do all we can to ensure New York remains a safe and tolerant place for all,” Cuomo said.

The governor asked State Police Superintendent Joe D’Amico and Deputy Secretary For Public Safety Liz Glazer to assist with the investigation.

Because of Sunday’s Molotov cocktail attacks, the Council of Peoples Organization has advised all of their affiliated places of worship to heighten their security inside and outside of their buildings, including installing surveillance if necessary.

Reach Reporter Veronica Lewin at vlewin@queenspress.com or (718) 357-7400, Ext. 123.

More than 200 Queens residents received damage claims in connection with the treacherous snowstorm of 2010.

City Pays Out $567K In Boro Snow Claims

BY DOMENICK RAFTER

Gabe Nakashian's parked Lexus was hit by a snowplow on 72nd Avenue in Douglaston, as was Nubia Martinez's BMW in East Elmhurst. Ana Herrera was hit by a Sanitation truck going in reverse on 41st Avenue in Elmhurst; Alethia Cassimy received eight stitches in her lip after also being hit by a truck on Guy R. Brewer Boulevard in Rochdale. These four women were among 224 borough residents who filed claims and received settlements from damages during the City's cleanup from the Dec. 26, 2010, blizzard, according to City Comptroller John Liu. As of Jan. 1, 620 claims to the city in damages related to the blizzard have been filed and settled citywide, and the city has paid out over $1.8 million. The highest percentage of claims settled was in the borough of Queens, and more than

$567,000 in damages have been paid to borough claimants for such damages as cars or pedestrians being hit by Sanitation trucks.

The largest claim paid out in Queens was to Cassimy, who received $45,000 after a Sanitation truck hit her on Dec. 30, 2010 on Guy R. Brewer Boulevard near 137th Avenue in Rochdale. Cassimy had sued the city for $5 million, but instead received the settlement.

The largest settlement citywide was for $150,000 to a claimant in Brooklyn. That borough accounted for almost half of the $1.8 million paid out citywide.

Scott Seiber, spokesman for Liu, said some claims are still being settled, but he could not confirm how many more settlements are in the works.

Reach Reporter Domenick Rafter at drafter@queenstribune.com or (718) 3577400 Ext. 125

Flushing Nurses Picket

Page 4 PRESS of Southeast Queens Jan. 6-12, 2012

BY ROSS BARKAN With negotiations breaking down, the nurses of Flushing Hospital picketed Thursday outside of Flushing Hospital Medical Center on Parsons Boulevard. Registered nurses at the hospital said they are fed up with hospital management’s negotiating tactics, and are taking their fight public.

At stake, according to spokesman Mark Genovese of the New York State Nurses Association, are payments to the nurses’ health and pension plans. The registered nurses union at the hospital seeks an extension of an interim agreement that would continue contributions to the nurses’ pension programs and health benefits; after 90 days, health coverage would expire. Hospital CEO Robert Levin has not signed an interim agreement.

The contract for 350 nurses expired on Dec. 31.

“We know it’s about control and is intended to intimidate nurses,” Genovese said of the hospital management’s refusal to sign an interim agreement. “They’re try-

ing to use it as a bargaining chip so we’ll cave in in negotiations.”

The picket occured during the nurses’ scheduled breaks. If an interim agreement is signed, it would guarantee health and pension benefits for six additional months after the contract’s expiration. Genovese said the nurses would be unwilling to accept pension benefit concessions that would “cost each nurse $150,000 in lost lifetime pension benefits.”

According to the Bureau of Labor, registered nurses nationally earn on average $67,720 a year.

While Genovese has been publicly adamant about the demands of the nurses, hospital management has been much more tight-lipped about the negotiations.

“In negotiations with nursing union, we are hopeful for a resolution,” said Michael Hinck, a spokesman for the hospital. “As far as any specifics regarding issues, we don’t necessarily get into details of that nature.”

Reach Reporter Ross Barkan at rbarkan@queenstribune.com or (718) 3577400, Ext. 127.

Weathering Curbs Irk Homeowners

BY VERONICA LEWIN

PRESS Photos by Veronica Lewin

Whenever it rains in Bellerose, residents on 242nd Street have to deal with f looded driveways. While rising water tables are often to blame, this time it is a lack of infrastructure.

Caroline Vereline has lived in her Bellerose home for 54 years and said the curbs outside her home have not been replaced since the homes were built. Pools

of water seep into her driveway causing slow damage to her private driveway.

Flushing resident William Bica said some of the homes near his 163rd Street residence lack curbs altogether, making it difficult to parallel park.

State Sen. Tony Avella (D-Bayside) held a press conference with concerned residents Dec. 30 on 242nd Street in Bellerose to address the Dept. of Transportation's curb repair policy.

State Sen. Tony Avella (l.) stands with residents who are fed up with the City's delay in curb repairs.

"I can't even remember a time when the city actually put out concrete with stones in it," Avella said. "That's how old this curb is."

If someone injures themselves or their vehicle due to shoddy infrastructure, the individual can file a claim with the city to be reimbursed for damages. Avella said the city is wasting money paying claims for incidents involving damaged curbs instead of fixing the curb and preventing accidents.

Many residents complained about how they cannot schedule curb repairs themselves because the curbs are city property.

Vereline said she called the DOT three times to complain about the vanishing curbs outside of her home before giving up.

"I think this is really disgusting that this is the city and we can't get our curbs done," Vereline said. She said she hopes she is still alive when the City gets around to replacing the curbs on her street.

Avella said some residents are apprehensive to call and complain about curbs because of fear of punishment. It is alleged when a homeowner calls about disappearing curbs, the DOT will issue a sidewalk violation in retaliation for complaining.

Avella took this point as a rallying cry.

"It's almost like the city is saying to homeowners and property owners throughout the city, 'don't you dare complain, because if you do, we're going to hit you with a sidewalk violation."

According to Avella, there is currently a 23-year backlog on DOT curb repairs.

Avella said he is working towards reducing the delay on repairs. Requests for comment to the DOT were not returned as of printing. To report rundown curbs outside of your home, call 311.

Reach Reporter Veronica Lewin at vlewin@queenspress.com or (718) 357-7400, Ext. 123.

New Year Baby:

Nina Love McConnell-Honore, a girl that weighed 7 pounds, 10 ounces, was the first baby born in 2012 at New York Hospital Queens.

The newborn joins her parents Rose Honore and Duane McConnell and Aamin, her 12-year-old brother. “I feel great, I feel special and so does she,” Honore said. “She is sweet, quiet and lovely.

That’s why her middle name is Love.”

The hospital presented the family, from St. Albans, a $1,000 savings bond and a congratulatory basket of flowers.

Jan. 6-12, 2012 PRESS of Southeast Queens Page 5

OF SOUTHEAST QUEENS 150-50 14th Road Whitestone, NY 11357 (voice) (718) 357-7400 fax (718) 357-9417 email news@queenspress.com The PRESS of Southeast Queens Managing Editor:

Steven J. Ferrari Contributing Editor:

Marcia Moxam Comrie Production Manager:

Shiek Mohamed Queens Today Editor

Regina Vogel Photo Editor: Ira Cohen

Reporters: Harley Benson Veronica Lewin Domenick Rafter Ross Barkan Jason Pafundi Intern: Brianna Ellis Art Dept:

Rhonda Leefoon Candice Lolier Barbara Townsend Advertising Director Shanie Persaud

Editorial Queens Values Its Diversity The residents of Queens came together again this week in another show of unity after an attack that raised concerns for the safety of its people. The result was more proof that the borough stands firm behind its pledge against hate and intolerance.

In November, Queens officials came together to support an updated version of the Flushing Remonstrance, a 354-year-old document that made the borough the birthplace of religious freedom and tolerance in the Western Hemisphere. On that day in November, officials reaffirmed the commitment to that freedom and declared again that Queens will celebrate the differences that define us and not let them divide us.

While the actions of the man who threw Molotov cocktails at buildings in Queens may not be considered hate crimes – the suspect is alleged to have acted in response to personal grievances – the response of the community to Sunday night’s events shows once again that the citizens of Queens will stand together in dire circumstances to declare our unity in trying times.

As we move forward into the new year, we must continue the dedication to tolerance and understanding, no matter the circumstances. As was stated in the pledge signed in November: “Every man, woman and child of this county, this city, this state and this nation, regardless of ideology, history or philosophy, is our brother and our sister. Together we face an open future free from hate, bigotry, fear and persecution.”

Letters Sewer Issues To The Editor: In breaking ground with a $50 million dollar infrastructure initiative consisting of sewers for the Willets Point purported redevelopment, Queens Borough President Helen Marshall lauded the expansion of the city’s sewer network saying “it will address long standing issues.” The issue she was talking about was that the lack of a proper infrastructure (no sewers) did not permit for the

essential drainage of run-off water causing contamination of the area (Ground Breaks On Willets Point- Queens Tribune- Dec. 814,2011).

Notwithstanding the lack of sewers in Willets Point, Ms. Marshall as well as her predecessor Claire Shulman, sat idly by for years and years and watched the City collect sewer rent from Willets Point property owners for non-existent sewers and did not lift a finger to assist the thou-

Letters sands of workers now being displaced by what will be an enormous taxpayer subsidy to Mayor Bloomberg’s fat cat real estate friends. She made no objection to the City making a mockery of the time-honored understanding that eminent domain was to be used for public purposes and not to subsidize real estate developers. She willfully watched the area fall into structural disrepair and then mislabeled as being financially sub-standard. The real issue she should have addressed was not the lack of infrastructure but her culpability as well as that of the far too many myopic politicians the taxpayers of this city are saddled with, which hopefully in the future term limits will address.

Ms. Marshall’s failure to address the real issue and to regally cloak herself as some sort of public official extraordinaire qualifies her for admission to The Chutzpah Hall of Shame.

Benjamin M. Haber, Flushing

Tricky Letters To The Editor: “Journalistic Jargon: Learning To Speak To A Reporter” (Michael Schenkler – Dec. 8) should be included in the curriculum of any college journalism class. Allow me to add another trick of the trade used by elected officials and their official mouthpieces they use when dealing with reporters and newspapers. Check out the frequent letters to the editor and guest Op-Ed articles that appear in weekly newspapers. Too many

under the public officials name are known by original writers as “cut and paste” robo letter classics.

I, like many of your ordinary regular readers, continue to be grateful that the PRESS offers me an opportunity to express my views, along with others of differing opinions. Thanks to you, ordinary citizens have the freedom to comment on the actions and legislation of elected officials. We do this on a voluntary basis on our own time and dime on timely topics of the day. Public officials use taxpayer dollars to promote their views, via mass mailings of newsletters, news releases, letters to the editor and guest opinion page columns. In many cases, they are produced or written by campaign or office staffers paid for by taxpayers.

The rest of us have limited time to submit a letter. Why not save your scarce space in your excellent Letters to the Editor section for original submittals by your readers as opposed to canned promotions cleverly submitted by elected officials? Elected officials submit these so called letters to the editor as part of their own public relations campaign.

It is an ongoing effort to raise their own individual name identification with voters. They hope it will assist them in winning another term in office or promotion to higher public office down the road. Why not ask them to take out a paid advertisement instead?

Larry Penner Great Neck

Sr. Account Executive Shelly Cookson Advertising Executives Merlene Carnegie Shari Strongin

An Attack On Reason And Sanity A Personal Perspective

BY MARCIA MOXAM COMRIE

A Queens Tribune Publication. © Copyright 2012 Tribco, LLC

Page 6 PRESS of Southeast Queens Jan. 6-12, 2012

Michael Schenkler, President & Publisher

Michael Nussbaum, Vice President, Associate Publisher

There is always one. There is always going to be one person who is bent on causing trouble, that is.

This past week it was a guy who, allegedly after being turned away from using the bathroom at an Islamic Cultural Center in Jamaica, decided to throw firebombs not just in that location, but in other parts of Jamaica and even one location on Long Island.

Sadly, among the places firebombed were private residences where children lived with their parents. Thankfully, no one was physically harmed in any of the incidents. I could not help but think of the four little girls killed in the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing in 1963 in Birmingham, Ala. The suspect in this week's Queens bombings, Ray Lazier Lengend, sends shivers up and down our collective spine. At a reported 40 years of age this is

how he chose to settle a grudge.

But hate and crime seem to have no age limit. And in fact, he has been charged with one count of arson as a hate crime.

It's just nuts. And it was done on New Year's Day no less. This is a time when we should be feeling goodwill toward all people and here you have someone stirring up trouble in our area based on religious or ethnic origination.

This is Queens, dude. If you don't like diversity, don't live in Queens. It's the most diverse borough in the world. You either live together in peace or move to a more homogenous place. But no one is moving for your comfort.

What this guy allegedly confessed to is a reprehensible act.

The Muslim community in Queens has lived harmoniously with the rest of the borough's residents for decades. For anyone to do such a dastardly thing toward them is really not acceptable. This indefensible act has

cast a pall over our borough and city. Shame on any person who takes out a personal grudge on innocent people!

Maybe there was a very good reason the Center turned him away. Bathrooms other than those specifically provided for public use - as in a restaurant - are usually reserved for only those affiliated with that place. They let strangers use it at their discretion.

But if you make them feel uncomfortable they won't let you in.

Some people's body language, facial expression, etc, can sometimes make a person fear for their personal safety. Or they may have had one too many people leave the space unfit for their own use afterwards. So if you get turned away, it should not be viewed as a personal affront. It's just people exercising their right to say "no."

If there really has been a confession from the suspect, then that's probably a good thing. It will spare taxpayers' money. Tri-

als are exorbitantly expensive and a confession would spare us a protracted trial. It is also great that further danger from this particular individual will be no more. At the same time, how sad for him and his family, that he has ruined his life and that he chose the first day of a new year to do so.

The suspect, in police custody, is now under psychiatric observation. That's a good thing because sane people don't act this way. Biological and social scientists have said the major difference between man and beast is the opposable thumb and the capacity for reason.

Anyone who plots and carries out this sort of act really seems to have impaired judgment.

Thank God he is off the streets and getting whatever treatment deemed appropriate, whether jail, medicine or therapy.

Let's hope there will be no copycat acts following on the heels of this one.

Ed Koch Commentary: Interesting Court Decisions A really interesting decision of a federal appeals court in Atlanta, Ga., was repor ted in the Times of December 28, 2011. An employee at a Tyson chicken plant sued the company, alleging racial discrimination and seeking damages for the act of a plant manager who “called adult black men working there ‘boy’” The Appeals Court, in a 2-to-1 decision, initially overturned the trial court’s finding in favor of the plaintiff, stating that “the uses [of boy] were conversational and non-racial in context.”

But there was such an uproar against the appeals court’s reversal amongst law yers, civil rights leaders, and other federal judges that a year later the appeals court sua sponte (on its own) changed it s decision a nd re stored t he $365,000 judgment in favor of the plaintiff, but rejected the $1 million punitive damage award.

In its original decision, the appeals court said: “The use of ‘boy’ when modified by a racial classification like ‘black’ or ‘white’ is evidence of discriminator y intent. But the use of ‘boy’ alone is

not evidence of discrimination.”

However, the U.S. Supreme Court disagreed, sending the case back to the appeals court, with the following admonition, according to the Times, “‘The speaker’s meaning may depend on various factors including context, inflection, tone of voice, local custom and historical usage,’ the justices said in an unsigned opinion.”

The Times reported that “that admonition was rejected by the 11th Circuit panel last year. Then it was embraced this month though with little enthusiasm,” a reference to the reversal by the appeals court of its earlier decision. Ultimately, justice was done in this case. *** In Illinois, as in New York City, the Catholic Charities organization is an arm of the Catholic Church.

Catholic Charitie s renders social services, e.g., adoption, foster care, etc., under contract and for fees comparable to those paid non-religious organizations.

Illinois, according to the Times of Dec. 12, 2011, specified that all vendors providing services to the

state “must consider same-sex couples as potential foster care and adoptive parents if they want to receive state money.”

The Roman Catholic Bishops in Illinois “have shuttered most of the Catholic Charities affiliates in the state rather than comply with a new requirement.”

When I was mayor and before the City Council at my request in 1986 enacted a law that prohibited the private sector from discriminating against gays, lesbians, bisexuals and transgendered with respect to employment, housing and education, I directed that all private sector organizations doing business with the city end all discrimination in employment based on sexual orientation. John Cardinal O’Connor and the Salvation Army responded that if the cit y bound them to follow these rules, they would cease entering into contracts with the city to provide social ser vice s to ch ildren, t he homeless and the poor. I replied that the regulations covered every vendor, religious and non-religious alike. Both the Roman Catholic

Church and the Salvation Army sued the city on the basis of a state law that exempted them from state mandates that violate their religious teachings. They won, and we were never faced with their ending their services.

If the city had won the case, would you, the reader of this commentary, have imposed the nondiscrimination policy or provided a religious exemption? *** According to The New York Times of Dec. 24, 2011, South Carolina enacted legislation that would “require voters to present photo identification.” The Times reported that the Justice Depar tment blocked that law saying it would “dispropor t ionately suppress turnout among eligible minorit y voter s.”

The Justice Department cited South Carolina’s own submit ted data that “there were 81,938 minority citizens who are already registered to vote and who lack such identification, and that these voters are nearly 20 percent more likely to be ‘disenfranchised’ by the

change than white voters.”

Whenever a state or municipality seeks to impose preconditions on qualifying for a benefit, e.g., food stamps or housing vouchers, it generally faces opposition based on the belief that it is racist to impose any such preconditions.

I have always believed that there is nothing wrong, and certainly it is not racist to require fingerprinting to qualify for some government benefits, particularly where significant fraud is present in the program.

However, I agree with the Just ice Depar tment t hat Sout h Carolina’s proposed picture ID requirement as a precondition to voting is not necessary. I just don’t’ believe that fraud at the polls is a significant problem. The significant problem is that in the U.S. eligible voters, particularly in primaries, simply don’t go to the polls. To impede and reduce the vote further based on the desire to reduce or eliminate a fraud that really doesn’t exist, makes no sense.

Mayor Koch was a member of Congress from New York from 1969 through 1977.

Beating the Third Term Blues: Others Measure the Carpet several years, rarely participating in Senate business. He was first elected in 1926 and his fourth term was set to expire in Ja nuar y 1951.

Wagner was not expected to seek re-election. What he did, guided by other Democrats, was to re sign i n late June Stern 1949, when the vacancy would be filled by a special election to be held on Election Day. To hold a state-wide election on the same day as the New York City mayoral election would bring out a larger number of city voters, predominantly Democrats, thereby helping the Democrats win other races. The strategy worked, with former Democratic Governor Herber t Lehman defeating John Foster Dulles, the Republican who Governor Thomas Dewey had appoi nted to fi l l out the re st of Wagner’s term, by a small plurality in the November general election.

TEN YEARS ON Mayor Bloomberg has continued to function in a competent and professional manner. He is not beloved by the public, partly because of env y of h is great p er sonal wealth and influence, partly because of a handful of infelicitous remarks (usually quickly corrected), and to some extent because ordi nar y people do not believe the mayor has high regard for them and their concerns about municipal government. The Mayor has a national role to play as an honest, moderate reformer, and is well regarded by elites. T his approval wane s, however, as the pol lster climbs

down the ladder.

The mayor’s achievements in public health, in environmental protection, in governmental integrity, in expanding parks and recreation programs while diminishing staff - deserve recognition. Commissioner Kelly is justly well regarded, and the absence of successful terrorist attacks cannot be attributed to a change of heart by al-Qaeda. The murder rate has declined sharply, although some offenses have begun to tilt upwards.

The mayor’s wars on cigarette smoking and unlicensed guns deserve par ticular praise. He has turned his causes into national crusades, which have had varying degrees of success. He is not afraid to think of the larger picture, and the latest figures on extended life expectancy in New York City support his approach.

I am not persuaded by some of the proposed remedies, such as congestion pricing, which particularly disadvantage the middle class while having limited effect on the rich, to whom the fees would be a trifle. And the jury is still out on the rejected mid-Manhattan stadium, although the six dead blocks it would have created seem increasingly a high price to have paid for adding thousands of private vehicles to the midtown traffic mess.

The interests of the Dolan and Johnson families should have been distinguished by the Council from the city planning and traffic questions involved.

The problem with construction issues like the stadium is that you can’t really be sure of the merits until you build the facility, and

by then you cannot undo what has been done. Mario Cuomo’s rejection of the Shoreham nuclear plant on Long Island is a conspicuous exception to that rule.

As usual in politics, the occasional flaws in the record attract the most at tent ion - t he $700 million CityTime corruption scandal, the appointment of Cathie Black as schools chancellor, and the handling of the snowstorm the day after Christmas last year. But these must be judged as aberrational, compared with thousands of mayoral appointments, promotions and contracting decisions made pursuant to law and on the merits. And when compared with the performance of the City Comptroller, the Mayor is a beacon of light and learning.

We often appreciate public

officials more after they have left office. We believe that Mayor Bloomberg’s reputation will grow over the years, as memories of his inappropriate term extension fade.

Anyway, does anyone believe that New York City would have been bet ter off w it h Ant hony Wei ner as Mayor? Somet ime s Providence protects us from acts of folly, but we cannot always rely on chance to protect us from humiliation and chaos.

The last observation we would make is that, at this point, the lineup of candidate s seeking to succeed to the mayoralty is undistinguished. And we haven’t heard the bad parts yet about what they have done or failed to do. Are these the best out of eight million?

StarQuest@NYCivic.org

Not 4 Publication.com by Dom Nunziato

Jan. 6-12, 2012 PRESS of Southeast Queens Page 7

By HENRY STERN The imminent approach of the mid-point of Mayor Bloomberg’s third (and presumably last) term makes this an appropriate time to review his tenure and to scan the prospects of his successor who will be sworn in on Ja n. 1 2014 - unle ss Henry something unexpectedly happens before that day.

Tradition and experience have cast a cloud over mayoral third terms. Public officials inevitably accumulate enemies over their tenure. There is no necessary correlation bet ween competence and popularity. The better the mayor, the more s/he will attempt to accomplish, and the greater the chance of failure. The more often a mayor rocks the boat, the more opportunities for the passengers and crew to jump ship.

There is also historic inevitability in the rise and fall of politicians and dynasties. Parties and movements lose popularit y over time as the public tires of them.

CREATING A VACANCY The mayoralty of New York City is determined on a quadrennial cycle. The mayoral election follows by one year the presidential election and precedes by one year the gubernatorial contest.

The last time a federal and a non-judicial statewide election coincided was 1950. One incumbent, Democratic Sen. Robert F. Wagner Sr., author of The National Labor Relations Act and The Social Securit y Act (fat her of Mayor Wagner), had been seriously ill for

Year In Review:

2011: A Year Of Protest

Turner said his campaign was about getting frustrated voters to send that message.

“It was people like us who got off their couch and said ‘I’m as mad as hell and I’m not going to take it anymore,’” he said.

COMPILED BY STEVEN J. FERRARI

School’s Out Forever?

At the end of the 2010-11 school year, six Queens high schools were announced as having the opportunity to “restart” under President Barack Obama’s School Improvement Grant. John Adams, Richmond Hill, Grover Cleveland, August Martin, William C. Bryant and Newtown – all schools which have appeared on the “Persistently Lowest Achieving” list – received a reprieve from closure when the Dept. of Education announced the schools would reopen as charter schools, run by a non-profit organization chosen by the state legislature. The decision gives the schools and their partner organizations three years to revamp the curriculum and raise test scores. At the end of the three years, each of the schools would be re-evaluated.

Not so lucky was Jamaica High School. In February, the Panel for Educational Policy decided the 119-year-old institution would be one of 12 schools in the city that would be phased out. It was the second time since 2009 the panel had decided to close the school, but this time there was no legal action taken to save the institution. Students and alumni were saddened by the decision.

“I am saddened by the fact it will cease to exist,” Kenneth Suzan, a 1989 graduate, said. “It’s a part of my history…an important part of my upbringing in Queens.”

As the 2011-12 school year started, students at Jamaica High School grew uneasy with the inequities they saw, sharing the building with students attending other well-funded charter schools. In December, State Sen. Tony Avella (DBayside) joined students outside the building to protest the lack of programs and resources available to Jamaica High School students.

“They have dreams and they have careers they want to go onto. And obviously the mayor and the chancellor are saying, ‘we don’t care,’” Avella said.

Speaking of the chancellor, Dennis Walcott, Deputy Mayor for Education and Community Development and a Southeast Queens native, took over as New York City Schools Chancellor in April, replacing Cathie Black, who was appointed to the position in November 2010. Many officials were opposed to Black’s appointment, citing her lack of experience with the school system as too big a detriment to overcome.

PRESS Photos by Ira Cohen

Page 8 PRESS of Southeast Queens Jan. 6-12, 2012

As cities across the country took part in the Occupy movement, sparking a movement unseen for decades prior, Queens was experiencing its own feeling of unrest. Political discord and protests over political, fiscal and educational decisions were reoccurring themes during the previous 12 months. Even Mother Nature got into the act, as the borough experienced a hurricane, was shaken by an earthquake and then lived through a warm opening to winter.

Students protest inequities between students in front of the Jamaica High School building.

“We both agreed the story had really become about her and away from the kids, and that’s not good,” Mayor Mike Bloomberg said. “We’ve got to focus on what’s good for the kids.”

Postal Problems Facing a loss of revenue, the federal government announced over the summer they would consider closing 3,700 post offices across the country, including 35 in the City. Post off ices in Arverne, Astoria, Holliswood, Rockaway Beach and Rosedale were all considered for closure. In November, USPS announced it would close the Queens Processing and Distribution facility in College Point, relocating some jobs to a facility in Brooklyn and combining the coverage area.

The consolidation was part of a nationwide plan to cut costs. The USPS said the plan would save $30.8 million.

“FedEx doesn’t have the constitutional mandate to be here. UPS doesn’t have a constitutional mandate to be here.

The Postal Service does have a constitutional mandate to be here,” Councilman Dan Halloran said.

Outcry from local officials including

U.S. Rep. Gary Ackerman (D-Bayside), State Sen. Toby Stavisky and Assemblywoman Grace Meng (D-Flushing) led to a temporary reprieve, however. Shortly after Thanksgiving, the USPS announced that no action would be taken until May, giving the federal government a six-month window to find a way to keep the facility open. The announcement led to cautious optimism from local officials.

“Hundreds of families in Queens can breathe a sigh of relief, but only temporarily,” Stavisky said.

Political Payback?

Exit one of the most progressive Democrats in Congress, enter a neophyte Republican.

An embarrassing sex scandal led to the resignation of U.S. Rep. Anthony Weiner, a popular Democrat who many believed was being groomed for big things in the party. After news broke that Weiner had sent lewd pictures of himself to a woman who was not his wife, Democrats and Republicans alike began calling for his resignation, and he agreed, stepping down two weeks later.

Weiner’s resignation led to a special election for his seat. Weiner’s 2010 opponent, retired Republican media executive Bob Turner, took on and defeated Assemblyman David Weprin (D-Little Neck) in September.

Some saw Turner’s election as a referendum on the Obama administration, with many Jewish voters in the district upset with the president after he announced his support of negotiating a peace deal between Israel and the Palestinian Authority – a precursor for the creation of a Palestinian state. Weprin’s support of Pat Dolan (r.) walks with Borough President Helen marriage equality was also an Marshall shortly before her death in an automobile ac- issue, upsetting many Orthocident. dox Jewish voters in Brooklyn.

Nature’s Revenge Just a week after the borough was slightly shaken by an earthquake, residents began to batten down the hatches in preparation of Hurricane Irene, which made its way up the Eastern seaboard at the end of August. By the time Irene hit Queens, the storm had lost some steam, but it still packed enough of a wallop to knock out hundreds of trees in the borough and knock out power for thousands.

Despite the damage done by the storm, elected officials praised the City’s quick response. Just months after many criticized the Bloomberg administration for its handling of last Christmas’s snowstorm, officials applauded the Mayor’s Office of Emergency Management, Con Edison, and the Parks Dept. for the swift response to the felled trees in the borough, and customers left without electricity.

“I was really worrying about the devastation that had been wrought by the storm, that we would still be in a very bad state of affairs right now,” Councilman Jim Gennaro (D-Fresh Meadows) said.

“I had no expectation that on Tuesday afternoon at 5 o’clock I would be happy.”

Remembering Pat In November, Queens lost one of its hardest-working civic leaders when Patricia Dolan was hit by a car as she crossed Hillside Avenue near 198th Street. She was pronounced dead upon arrival at Jamaica Hospital.

Dolan, 72, was President of the Queens Civic Congress, President of the Kew Gardens Hills Civic Association, President of Flushing Meadows Corona Park Conservancy and co-founder of 200+ Friends of NYC Parks, which has since grown to more than 1,000 in number. A tireless fighter for the people and neighborhoods of Queens, Dolan had spent decades crusading for improvements to quality of life, services and needs of the people of Queens.

“She was the epitome of a civic leader and the definition of a community leader,” Borough President Helen Marshall said.

Homecoming After being detained for months in Egypt under charges of spying for Israel, Ilan Grapel, 27, was freed from custody with the help of U.S. Rep. Gary Ackerman. Grapel, a Hollis Hills native, was accused of being an agent of the Israeli intelligence agency Mossad. The Emory University Law Student and graduate of Johns Hopkins University went to Egypt on his American passport to work with a non-governmental organization on a legal aid program dealing with the resettlement of African refugees.

Police Blotter Compiled by ROSS BARKAN

103rd Pct.

Butt Grab

The NYPD is asking the public’s assistance in locating and identifying the following individual wanted in regards to a sexual assault On Friday, Dec. 23, at approximately 11:15 a.m., the individual walked behind the victim and then grabbed her buttocks.

The suspect then fled in an unknown direction.

The suspect, a black man approximately 5-feet-10 to 6 feet, was last seen wearing a blue American Eagle vest with a black sweatshirt.

Anyone with information in regards to this incident is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 1-(800)-577-TIPS (8477). The public can also submit their tips by logging onto the Crime Stoppers website at www.nypdcrimestoppers.com or by texting their tips to 274637 (CRIMES) then enter TIP577.

All calls are strictly confidential.

104th Pct.

Expressway Fatality

On Jan.1 at approximately 5:07 a.m., police responded to a motor vehicle accident on the eastbound Long Island Expressway at the intersection of Maurice Avenue. Upon arrival, police observed an unidentified person, unconscious and unresponsive and subsequently pronounced dead. Upon further investigation, police determined that a 2007 Mitsubishi Galant, operated by a 28-year-old Hispanic man, was traveling eastbound on the Long Island Expressway at Maurice Avenue when it struck a 2011 Lincoln, operated by the victim, which was located within zebra striped markings between the roadway.

The driver of the Galant was arrested

at the scene and transported to Elmhurst Hospital where he is listed in stable condition.

Alexis Marillo, a 28-year-old man, has been charged with manslaughter, vehicular manslaughter, criminally negligent homicide, DWI, and reckless driving.

109th Pct.

Missing Girl

The NYPD is seeking the public’s assistance in locating Alma Trevino, a 14year-old Hispanic girl, who was last seen at approximately 10:40 p.m. near 58-41 Lawrence St. on Jan. 1. She is between 5foot and 5-foot-2 and was last seen wearing a blue jacket, blue jeans, and blue sneakers.

Anyone with information in regards to this missing person is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 1-(800)-577-TIPS (8477).

The public can also submit their tips by logging onto the Crime Stoppers website at www.nypdcrimestoppers.com or by texting their tips to 274637 (CRIMES) then enter TIP577.

All calls are strictly confidential.

112th Pct.

Gunpoint Robbery

The NYPD is asking for the public’s assistance in identifying and locating the following individual wanted in connection with a gunpoint robbery.

On Dec. 21 at 4:30 a.m., an unknown suspect approached a 38-year-old man in the staircase of 74-45 Yellowstone Blvd. displayed a firearm and demanded money. The suspect removed a wallet containing money and credit cards and f led the location in an unknown direction. The victim did not sustain any vis-

ible injuries as a result of this incident.

The suspect is described as a Hispanic man between the ages of 25 and 30, approximately 5-feet-8 and 160 lbs. and was last seen wearing a black hooded sweatshirt with a white adidas logo on the front, blue jeans and black sneakers with a white trim.

Anyone with information regarding this incident is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477). The public can also submit their tips by logging onto the Crime Stoppers website at WWW.NYPDCRIMESTOPPERS.COM or by texting their tips to 274637 (CRIMES) then enter TIP577.

113th Pct.

Sexual Assault

The NYPD is asking the public’s assistance in locating and identifying the following individual wanted for a sexual assault.

On Dec. 24 at approximately 8:40 p.m., the individual followed a 47-yearold woman off a bus near 140th Avenue and Coombs Street and then sexually assaulted her. The individual then fled in an unknown direction.

The suspect is a black man, 18 to 24 years of age, 5-foot-8 to 6 feet tall.

He was last seen wearing a dark colored coat, dark colored pants, white sneakers, and a black backpack.

Anyone with information in regards to this incident is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 1-(800)-577-TIPS (8477).

The public can also submit their tips by logging onto the Crime Stoppers website at www.nypdcrimestoppers.com or by texting their tips to 274637 (CRIMES) then enter TIP577.

All calls are strictly confidential.

115th Pct.

Missing Man

The NYPD is asking the public’s assistance in ascertaining the whereabouts of Jorge Galves Calixto, 20, a Hispanic man who lives at 109-24 115th St. On Thursday Dec. 29, family members and a friend of the missing man reported to police that the missing was last seen by his friend on Dec. 21 near 93rd Street and Ditmars Boulevard. During that time, the friend reported that he and the missing person were assaulted by a group of approximately five men for unknown reasons and that during the assault he was robbed and f led the location.

Anyone with information in regards to this missing, or the robbery, is asked to call the NYPD’s Crime Stoppers Hotline at 800-577-TIPS. The public can also submit their tips by logging onto the Crime Stoppers Website at WWW.NYPDCRIMESTOPPERS.COM or texting their tips to 274637(CRIMES) then enter TIP577.

YOU DON'T HAVE TO REVEAL YOUR IDENTITY TO HELP SOLVE A CRIME.

Borough Beat

Waste Facility Raises Air Travel Concerns

By DOMENICK RAFTER

College Point Boulevard and 20th Avenue.

"I'd rather see a billion dollars invested in ways to reduce solid waste in the city of New York, and new technology to improve our recycling program," he added.

Ackerman said he recognized that the site was far from residential or commercial areas, but he was more willing to fight that battle.

"I'd rather have people upset but safe," he explained.

The facility is not far from the spot where U.S. Airways Flight 1549 was struck by a flock of birds three years ago, forcing the pilot to make a dangerous landing in the Hudson River. Flight 1549 was outbound from LaGuardia to Charlotte, N.C. when it was struck by a flock of birds near the Whitestone Bridge.

Reach Reporter Domenick Rafter at drafter@queenstribune.com or (718) 3577400 Ext. 125

Jan. 6-12, 2012 PRESS of Southeast Queens Page 9

Despite getting the approval of the Federal Aviation Administration, local leaders and concerned residents are still worried that a waste transfer facility proposed in College Point will threaten air travel into and out of busy LaGuardia Airport.

The waste transfer station would be located on Flushing Bay at 31st Avenue and 122nd Street in College Point, only about 1,500 feet across the bay from one of LaGuardia Airport's main runways.

The Dept. of Sanitation said the design of the transfer station would keep any trash movement behind closed doors and away from open air and placed on closed containers to be put on barges. They claim this would prevent the facility, and the garbage, from attracting birds, but opposition to the facility is still strong more than half a decade after it was first proposed.

The FAA did nix the plant due to Bronx is an island. Why do they need this height restrictions in 2006, but later one piece of space at the end of a major backed down from its airport's runway?" opposition, as did the Ackerman warned that the plant would be Port Authority, after the “There’s an awful lot in violation of FAA City moved the facility's rules if the Port Authortower out of FAA clear- of shoreline in the ity were to adopt upance. The agency gave city of New York, the green light to the dated air traffic control plant earlier this year. every borough but systems.

Ken Paskar of U.S. Rep. Gary the Bronx is an Friends of LaGuardia Ackerman (D-Bayside) island. Why do they said he would rather see Airport said the problem is more than just the facility moved from need this one piece birds, which is trouble College Point com- of space at the end pletely. enough. of a major airport’s "I do think it's still "Every single collection truck in Queens close [to the airport]," runway?” he said. "They may be —U.S. Rep. will have to descend an inch out of it or a foot Gary Ackerman into one particular point in Queens," he lower than the requiresaid, noting the toll it ment, it's still too close.

There's an awful lot of shoreline in the would take on highways like the Van City of New York, every borough but the Wyck Expressway and local roads like

pix

Adopt-A-Family

Southeast Queens Events Edited By Harley Benson

Keeping Stories Alive

Assemblymember Rory Lancman (D-Hillcrest) recently presented awards to students who have documented the stories of local Holocaust survivors, keeping their stories alive for future generations. The ceremony was held at the Kupferberg Holocaust Center at Queensborough Community College, where the students presented their work.

The Sutphin Boulevard Business Improvement District recently held its second annual Adopt-A-Family Holiday Luncheon at the Harvest Room in downtown Jamaica. Executive Director Simone Price hands out some pizza to eagerly-awaiting attendees, including Scott Frazier, Nushana Ragland, Alexandria Salazar, Arcelio Perez and Maria Salazar.

Holiday Gifts

Page 10 PRESS of Southeast Queens Jan. 6-12, 2012

U.S. Rep. Gregory Meeks joined singer, songwriter and star of VH 1’s Love and Hip Olivia Longcott, Nicole Bell, the Dr. Maria Hubbard CEO of Greater Bethel Community Development Corporation and local leaders distributed holiday gifts in Southeast Queens and Far Rockaway at York College. Photo by Nat Valentine.

The holiday luncheon attendees gather together for a quick picture.

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A&E

Whitestone Pooch Takes Second In Challenge

BY JASON PAFUNDI Whitestone resident Donna Nolan and Baxter, her five-year-old Jack Russell terrier, placed 2nd in the Small Dog Agility competition at the Purina Incredible Dog Challenge. She and her dog will appear on the televised version of the event, airing 5 p.m. Jan. 14 on NBC.

The competition took place at Purina Farms in St. Louis in October. Nolan and Baxter, who was four-years-old at the time, earned a spot by finishing second in the same event at the Eastern Regional competition held in Atlanta in April.

Purina paid for Nolan’s trip to Atlanta and St. Louis and, according to Nolan, “put on an incredible event.”

Restaurant Review

Dine Like A Duke IL DUCALE RISTORANTE 12-53 150th St., Whitestone (718) 767-4699 CUISINE: Italian HOURS: Noon- 11 p.m., 7 days DELIVERY: Yes CREDIT CARDS: All major

Louisville Hands Red Storm Loss At MSG

In their first Big East game of the season at Madison Square Garden, the St. John’s Red Storm offense sputtered in a 73-58 loss to the Louisville Cardinals. The 10th ranked Cardinals held St. John’s to 5-35 shooting in the first half.

“Everything looks better when you make shots,” said Red Storm coach Mike Dunlap, who is serving as head coach in Steve Lavin’s absence due to prostate cancer surgery. St. John’s scored only 18 points in the first half on 14 percent shooting, surprising for a team that put up 91 in a win two games before.

St. John’s led 8-2 early, but Louisville dominated the rest of the first half. With the game tied at 10, the Cardinals went on a 19-4 run and led at halftime 29-18.

Rick Pitino’s famous full-court press defense gave the Red Storm trouble. “The press does things you don’t notice,” Pitino said. “It doesn’t necessarily turn you over,

it doesn’t necessarily create good opportunities for you, but what it does it takes your legs out shooting the ball. We knew they had a short bench, we knew they were young, so we wanted to try and exploit that. They’re very talented young people, which is going to prove well in the future.”

D’Angelo Harrison led the way for St. John’s scoring a game-high 24 points and pulling down eight rebounds while Moe Harkless added a dozen. The five other Red Storm players added 22 combined points.

St. John’s trailed 69-43, its biggest deficit of the night, putting a mild scare into the Cardinals with an 11-0 run, before running out of steam. The Cardinals outscored St. John’s 44-40 in the second half, which was more uptempo than the 29-18 first half. St. John’s fell to 7-7 overall and 1-2 in Big East play.

Jan. 6-12, 2012 PRESS of Southeast Queens Page 13

In Queens, one can say Italian eateries are a dime a dozen, but in Whitestone, where there is no shortage of places to enjoy the cuisine of that boot-shaped country, there is one place that stands out.

Il Ducale, which means “of the duke” in Italian, is more than just an eating experience; it’s almost like a mini tour of Italy in itself. Inside is the ornate dining room decorated with floor to ceiling frescos of the Italian coastline that almost makes you feel you are eating on a top of a cliff in Amalfi, on a beachfront in Reggio Calabria, the water splashing up against the patio, or on a hilltop overlooking the Adriatic in Ancona, watching the ferries disappear over the horizon.

But getting lost in the ambience is only the beginning. For anyone who has ever been to and eaten in Italy, Ducale’s cuisine is even more of a throwback than the paintings of the red roof shorefront villages. You will feel as if you’re eating meals made specifically for a duke.

For starters, we dove into a mixed selection of shellfish, ricotta rolled-up in eggplant and stuffed mushrooms.

Three out of four of us enjoyed the mixed platter. To our delight, one of our companions suffered from a shellfish allergy which meant there was an extra item for each. Thank God for delicious allergens.

The shrimp was the table’s favorite.

As they swiftly disappeared from the plate, we silently moved on to the stuffed clams while our shellfish-free friend sat waiting in envy for the main courses to arrive. The lightly breaded baked clams melted like butter on our taste buds, comparable to some of the best we’ve ever tried. With just a bit of room in our bellies we stuffed the rolled-up ricotta eggplants down and sat satisfied while waiting for the next course.

One by one, our waiter placed our plates before us, one chicken dish after another and fitting to our personalities.

The Pollo Normandi, chicken breasts marinated with diced apples, raisins and cognac cream sauce, is a dish not often seen at many Italian eateries, but it’s the perfect meal for a summer, or autumn

day, and one for a lover of sweet, fruity flavors. Sometimes the dish can be tart, but Ducale’s recipe delivered just enough fruity essence to give the dish its signature f lavor without going overboard.

When biting down on a slice of chicken, be sure to top it with a slice or two of apple and a few raisins for the full effect.

If the Duke was going capture our taste buds, he’d have to do it with something simple. And he did.

Initially, one of us was hesitant about ordering a dish that required too much effort from the chef. So he stuck with an Italian staple of mine (or at least what he believed to be an Italian staple) and choose the chicken parmesan with a side of spaghetti.

The side of spaghetti was just as any other, so he immediately directed his fork towards to perky poultry. A generously carved cutlet lay beneath a melting muddle of mozzarella cheese mesmerizing him.

Whether it was because he had not eaten out in a long (long) time or that this was after only having a bowl of dry cereal for breakfast that morning, he was sold.

Awaiting her first real meal since breakfast, our allergy-prone guest’s plate arrived just in time. The Chicken Francese came on a platter-sized dish with three generously sized chicken breasts. Each golden brown morsel had just the right amount of crispiness. The sauce had the perfect hint of lemon and herbs, and there was plenty to spare. After the heaping side of lightly sauced pasta, there wasn’t much room for dessert, but that didn’t stop us from splitting one.

Given the Italian-ness of the meal’s proceedings, tiramisu felt mandatory.

With cappuccinos and espressos, which could hold their own against any warm brew served at a café, we washed it back, restarting our engines.

The fluffy lady fingers making up the tiramisu’s central layers remained firm, despite soaking up a sizable amount of coffee. Where others often crumble under the pressure of a fork, this tiramisu retained its shape and consistency, the bitterness of the coffee mixing with a sweet cream to give a balanced and refreshing finale to our meal.

It seems the ownership picked a deserving name. Il Ducale truly is Whitestone’s Duke of Italian cuisine.

Viva Ducale!

—PRESS Staff

“They go out of their way to make all an athletic, competitive dog. He does of the competitors and the spectators have modeling and acting — he even has his a really nice weekend,” she said. “We had own agent.

He has appeared in commercials for time for warm-ups, a luncheon, and then a very nice dinner with a comedy show and Macy’s and Hasbro and had a part on an a highlights video from the previous year.” episode of the short-lived hospital drama “Mercy.”

In addition to the small “I always try to train dog agility, there are events him to do new things, and in freestyle f lying discs, recently I’ve started to train Jack Russell hurdles race, him to bring me the mail,” speed and catch and the she said. “He’s very good extremely popular dog divand is multi-talented.” ing.

Nolan, who has no chilNolan said training a dren and works at Belmont dog to compete in any of Raceway, said she would these events is similar to like to see Baxter become training a dog to do anya “big star like Eddie from thing at home. She even Frasier” but said that that compared training a dog to would require almost a fullteaching — if a student is time dedication. not having fun in the class“He has the attitude to room, they are less likely Donna Nolan with her Jack be that good, but it’s just a to learn. She said that if Russell terrier, Baxter. matter of getting an opporthe dog is not having fun during its training, it will not learn or re- tunity and almost giving up everything else,” she said. “But I’m not making that his life or member the skills it is practicing.

“It’s very much like training a dog in my life’s ambition to [become a star].”

Originally, Nolan’s husband called the the house or even a child at school,” she said. “You are teaching your dog certain dog Batman because of the black pattern behaviors, and if they aren’t enjoying the on his face that looked like the caped crusader’s mask. Nolan said that one day lesson, they won’t learn it.”

At the national competition, Baxter the name just evolved into Baxter.

Baxter and his owner competed at an finished behind Primo, a five-year-old male Papillion from Phoenix. At the re- indoor event last week and fared well. gional event in Atlanta, Baxter was sec- Nolan said she expects to continue comond behind Zuri, a four-year-old Shetland peting throughout 2012 and would love a return trip to the Purina national finals, sheepdog from Houston.

Nolan, who used to do horse show where she hopes Baxter finishes one spot jumping when she was younger, has been higher than last year.

Nolan said that not only does she competing in agility challenges since 2003 and has two other Jack Russell’s, a 17-year- enjoy the competition, but she really enjoys the added bonding with her dog. old and also one of Baxter’s brothers.

“It’s a lot of fun for you, fun for your “You know how sometimes you see something and you think it’s fun and then dog, and you get to interact with your dog it just fades away, well I just got totally all the time,” she said. “It’s a great thing.”

Reach Reporter Jason Pafundi at addicted to [the agility sport],” she said. jpafundi@queenstribune.com or (718) 357“I think it’s the greatest.”

Baxter, according to Nolan, is not just 7400, Ext. 128.

Faith

Rev. Norris Jr. Becomes Chief Prelate

BY VERONICA LEWIN

One community leader has been appointed one of the highest honors in a church, an opportunity he says will help him better serve his congregation.

Bishop Charles Norris Jr. was ap-

Word What do I believe? As an American I believe in generosity, in liberty, in the rights of man. These are social and political faiths that are part of me, as they are, I suppose, part of all of us. Such beliefs are easy to express. But part of me too is my relation to all life, my religion. And this is not so easy to talk about. Religious experience is highly intimate and, for me, ready words are not at hand.

—Adlai E. Stevenson

pointed chief prelate of Grace Saving Ministries last month. On Dec. 17, Norris’ family and congregation came to Bethesda Missionary Baptist Church to watch Norris receive a high ranking honor. The title of chief prelate was passed down from Bishop Anthony Perry.

Grace Saving Ministries is a collaboration between Bethesda Missionary Baptist Church, Greater St. Stevens Church of Jamaica and the First Bethlehem Baptist Church based in Brooklyn. According to Norris Jr., the foundation was created in 2010 in an effort to expand the reach of all three congregations. The ministry’s first goal is to promote and speak on the second coming of Jesus Christ. The second goal of Grace Saving Ministries is to collaborate and improve community outreach.

Norris Jr. took over after his father, the Rev. Charles Norris Sr. stepped down as the head of Bethesda Missionary Baptist Church. Norris Sr. was recently honored for his service at the Association of Small Churches conference on Dec. 14.

Norris Jr. said he was honored that all three of his children were able to attend the Dec. 17 ceremony. One of his sons, who is a minister, traveled from Texas to watch his father become chief prelate.

Norris Jr. said being appointed chief prelate will help him better serve his congre-

Bishop Charles Norris Jr. gation. “It’s going to present an opportunity for me to do whatever I can to help us to work together,” he said.

On Christmas Day, Norris Jr. and the Bethesda Missionary Baptist Church hosted more than 400 people for dinner and service. From noon to 4 p.m., the church partnered with the non-profit Healing Hands, Helping Broken Hearts to serve Southeast Queens. Children had the opportunity to visit with Santa and receive toys. All guests at the holiday event were sent home with coats and clothing.

Bethesda Baptist Church recently celebrated its 40th anniversary in Jamaica.

A group of Emerson College film students from Boston traveled to Jamaica Sept. 1 to film the final scene in their thesis project. The group needed a church for a funeral scene and began looking in Queens, due to its saturation of churches.

The church’s stained glass windows and classic feel led the group to picking the Jamaica church.

Reach Reporter Veronica Lewin at vlewin@queenspress.com or (718) 357-7400, Ext. 123.

Notebook Campus Magnet Complex

Coach Helps Students Shoot For Success While the name of the Campus Magnet Complex has changed over the last four decades, their varsity basketball coach has not.

Charles Gramby has been coaching the Bulldogs for the past 43 years. Last month, Gramby lead his team to his 700th victory in a 68-59 win against Forest Hills on Dec. 16. Gramby is now has the third highest number of wins in the Public Schools Athletic League.

While coaching the young men, Gramby often emphasizes the importance of excelling on and off the court. He understands how difficult being a student athlete can be and offers as much support as he can to the team. After graduation, Gramby makes an effort to stay in touch with former players. Gramby often spends weekends calling his former players who are in college to check in. He calls to make sure they are doing well academically and to help solve any transition problems the students may be facing.

A few weeks before the 2011-2012 season tipped off, Gramby called one of his former players, Warren Ross, to speak to the Bulldogs. Ross graduated in 1991,

back when the Campus Magnet Complex in Cambria Heights was known as the Andrew Jackson High School. Ross played for Gramby for three years and kept in touch after graduating. Though his basketball career did not end in the NBA, Ross attributes all of his success to the lessons Gramby taught him during his days as a Bulldog.

Ross went on to play basketball at the University of South Carolina Upstate. He earned his bachelor’s degree in 1998 and went on to become a middle school social studies teacher. During the 2010-2011 basketball season, Ross was the coach of his school’s girls’ basketball team. He is now married and has three sons. Twenty years after leaving high school, Ross reiterated that message to Gramby’s current basketball team. “Use basketball as a tool to succeed in life,” he said.

Gramby tries to prevent his team for preparing for a professional sports career, since so few can make it into the NBA. “While you play basketball, you must also prepare for the future,” he often tells his students. “You can’t play basketball forever. You need to learn a skill so you can make a good living after your basketball days are over.” Gramby also warns stu-

dents to be wary of the choices they make, because they are seen as role models.

Off the court, the Campus Magnet Complex has other programs to help adolescent males succeed after graduation.

Every Saturday, young men and mentors participate in three-hour sessions, where mentors provide lectures on values, relationships, dealing with law enforcement, in addition to academic support.

The students have volunteered at se-

nior centers, food pantries and have organized toy drives for people in homeless shelters. The program usually sees around 40 students a year. Program Coordinator Lascelles Abogye said it is the most beneficial when students join freshman year and have four years to explore what the mentoring program has to offer.

Reach Reporter Veronica Lewin at vlewin@queenspress.com or (718) 357-7400, Ext. 123.

School Spirit At Campus Magnet: For two years, Geronda Portafield has been serving as the Parent Association President of the Law, Government and Community Service High School in the Campus Magnet Complex.

Recently, she helped coordinate a holiday toy drive and brunch for other schools in the Cambria Heights complex. She said she is pushing to promote school spirit and include students in the decision making process.

Photo by Bob Harris

Page 14 PRESS of Southeast Queens Jan. 6-12, 2012

BY VERONICA LEWIN

Queens Today SECTION EDITOR: REGINA VOGEL

Send typed announcements for your club or organization’s events at least TWO weeks in advance to “Queens Today” Editor, Queens Tribune, 150-50 14 Road, Whitestone NY 11357.

Send faxes to 357-9417, c/o Regina.

IF YOUR ORGANIZATION MEETS ON A REGULAR BASIS, SEND ALL DATES FOR THE ENTIRE YEAR.

MEETINGS

MOVING IMAGE Through March 4 Jim Henson Screenings and Programs. Museum of the Moving Image, 36-01 35 th Avenue, Astoria. 777-6800. $15.

ACROBATS Through December 31 Golden Dragon Acrobats at Queens Theatre in the Park.

760-0064.

PIANO & ORCHESTERA Saturday, January 7 Tchaikovsky and Liszt: Two Romantic Masterpieces for Piano and Orchestra featuring concert pianist Dr. Albert Zak and more at the Flushing library at 2.

XMAS MUSIC Sunday, January 8 music for the Christmas Season at 11 at St. Josaphat’s Church, 2 1 0 th S t r e e t a n d 3 5 th A v enue, Bayside. Free. Angelus Choir and guest soloists.

SUNDAY CONCERT Sunday, January 8 Alva Anderson Quartet performs jazz at 3 at the Central library.

OPEN MIC POETRY Mondays, January 9, February 13, March 12 Barnes & Noble, 176-60 Union Turnpike, Fresh Meadows at 7:30.

FILM SCREENING Monday, January 9 screening of “Karen Cries on the Bus” with English subtitles at the Fresh Meadows library at 2.

JUDEO-SPANISH Monday, January 9

TALKS LOST SYNAGOGUES Sunday, January 8 join the Queens Historical Societ y for “The Lost Synagogues of the Bronx and Queens” with Ellen Levitt 2:30 at Kingsland Homestead in Flushing. $8 non-members, $5 members.

939-0647, ext. 14.

WINDSOR PARK Monday, January 9 “Dreams of Joy” discussed at 2 at the Windsor Park library.

SEASIDE Monday, January 9 “Lush Life” discussed at 6:30 at the Seaside librar y.

HILLCREST Tuesday, Januar y 10 “Loving Frank” discussed at 2 at the Hillcrest library.

SOCIAL MEDIA Wednesday, January 11 Social Media for Businesses at the Central library. 9905102 to register.

GLENDALE Thursday, January 12 “The Forgotten Garden” discussed at 6:30 at the Glendale library.

WINDSOR PARK Thursday, January 12 “Things Fall Apart” discussed at 6:30 at the Windsor Park library.

AMERICAN DOCUMENTS Saturdays, January 14, February 11, March 10 What do you know about our important American documents 1pm at the Greater Astoria Historical Societ y, 35-20 Broadway, 4 th floor, LIC. $5.

Alhambra: Judeo-Spanish music with songs in Ladino and Yiddish at 6:30 at the Flushing library.

BINGO Tuesdays at 7:15 at American Mart yrs Church, church basement, 216-01 Union Tu r n p i k e , B a y s i d e . 4 6 4 4 5 8 2 . Tu e s d ay s at 7:15 (doors open 6) at the Rego Park Jewish Center, 97-30 Queens Blvd. 459-1000.$3 admission includes 12 games.

SCRABBLE Tuesdays at the Fresh Meadows library at 1 and at the East Flushing library at 3:30.

CHESS Tu e s d ay s a t 4 : 3 0 a t t h e Rosedale library and at 4 at the LIC library.

RHY THM & BLUES Thursday, January 12 Etta to Smokey at the North Forest Park library at 6:30.

WARRIORS MOVIE Thursday, January 12 screening of the Warriors of Qiugang with English subtitles at 6:30 at the Woodside library.

GUATEMALA Friday, January 13 international tour of the Municipal School and Dance Company of Guatemala at the Corona library at 4.

CON BRIO ENSEMBLE Saturday, January 14 Con Brio Ensemble performs virtuoso masterpieces for violin, oboe and piano at 2 at the Flushing library.

KING TRIBUTE Saturday, January 14 tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. starting at 11:30 at the Central library.

STEAM OF LIFE Saturday, January 14 “Steam of Life” film at the Steinway library at 1.

WORLD OF MUSIC Saturday, January 14 at the Ridgewood library at 2.

OPEN MIC Sunday, January 15 Open Mic for Poets at the Central library at 2.

PARENTS WONDERSTRUCK Thursday, January 12 art programming for families with children affected by Autism at 5 at the Peninsula library. 634-1110 to register.

S TORY T I M E Thursday, January 19 family story time at 4 at the Auburndale library.

RELIGIOUS LOST SYNAGOGUES Sunday, January 8 join the Queens Historical Societ y for “The Lost Synagogues of the Bronx and Queens” with Ellen Levitt 2:30 at Kingsland Homestead in Flushing. $8 non-members, $5 members.

939-0647, ext. 14.

MEN’S CLUB Saturday, January 14 Men’s Club Shabbat at the Forest Hills Jewish Center. 2637000.

EDUCATION/GAMES/CRAFTS HENNA PAINTING Saturday, January 7 henna hand painting workshop at the Broadway librar y. First come, first served at 2.

LINKEDIN Saturday, January 7 learn how to use the website LinkedIn to look for employment, network and keep up with colleagues.LIC library at 2. Bring electronic copy of resume.

PUBLIC SPEAKING Saturdays, January 7, 21, February 4, 18 learn to communicate effectively at Elmhurst Hospital. 646-4367940.

DEFENSIVE DRIVING Saturday, January 7 at St. Mel’s in Flushing. $45. 631360-9720.

SEWING CLASSES Saturdays 11-3 at Maria Rose International Doll Museum in St. Albans. 2763454.

START OWN BUSINESS Monday, January 9 Starting Your Own Business at 6 at the Flushing library.

INTRO COMPUTER Monday, January 9 Introduction to Computers at the Central library. Register 9905102.

CRAFT CLUB Monday, January 9 learn crafts at 1 at the LIC library.

RESUME WORKSHOP Monday, January 9 at the Arverne library at 5:15.

BEGIN CROCHET Monday, January 9 at the Arverne library at 6.

WRITING RESUMES Monday, January 9 at the Central library. Register 9905102.

INTRO COMPUTERS Tuesday, Januar y 10 at the McGoldrick library. Register.

INTRO EMAIL Tuesday, Januar y 10 at the Queens Village library. Register.

BASIC COMPUTER Tuesday, Januar y 10 at the LIC library at 11.

KINDLE TUTORIAL Tuesday, Januar y 10 at the Mitchell-Linden library. Register.

INTRO COMPUTERS Tuesday, Januar y 10 at the Maspeth library at 1.

RESUME WORKSHOP Tuesday, Januar y 10 at 1:30 at the LIC library.

LEARNING LAB Wednesday, January 11 brief orientation about Learning Express Library, NY Wired and other online learning opportunities at the LIC at 1:30.

DO THE HUSTLE Wednesdays, January 11, 18, 25 dance class to learn the American Hustle at 6:30 at the Flushing library.

RESUME WRITING Wednesday, January 11 at 4 at the Arverne library.

CREATE EMAIL ACCT. Wednesday, January 11 learn to create an email account at the Central library.

Register.

INTRO COMPUTERS Wednesday, January 11 at 10:30 at the Windsor Park library. Limited space.

MICROSOFT RESUMES Wednesday, January 11

make your resume stand out when using Microsoft Word at the central library. 9905102 to register.

BECOME A CITIZEN Thursdays, January 12, 19, 26 at the Rego Park library at 5:30.

MAH JONGG Thursdays, January 12, 19, 26 learn American Mah Jongg at 6 at the North Forest Park library.

COMPUTER BASICS Thursday, January 12 at the Glen Oaks library. Register.

INTERMEDIATE COMP. Thursday, January 12 brushup class at the LIC library at 10.

FED. JOB RESUME Thursday, January 12 Crafting Your Best Federal Job Resume at 4 at the Central library.

SOCIAL MEDIA Thursday, January 12 Social Media for Bookworms – learn how to use social media websites to write re-

views and more at the LIC library at 6..

GENEALOGY Thursday, January 12 genealogy for beginners at the Steinway library at 6.

BASIC COMPUTER Fridays, January 13, 20 at the Auburndale library. Register.

CHESS & CHECKERS Fridays, January 13, 20 at the Astoria library at 3:30.

INTRO EMAIL Friday, January 13 at the Poppenhusen library at 10.

INTRO MICROSOFT Friday, January 13 at the Central library. 990-5102 to register.

BOOT CAMP Fridays through January 27 Computer Boot Camp at the LIC library at 2.

SMARTPHONES Saturday, January 14 i n formative session on e-readers, smart phones and other devices at 2 at the LIC librar y.

HEALTH YOGA CLASSES Saturdays 10-11 and Sundays 9:30-10:30 workshops on Yoga. Other classes include meditation, Ayurvedic, yoga philosophy, Sanskirt language. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce in Jackson Heights. 646-912-1885.

NARCOTICS ANONYMOUS 7 days a week. 962-6244.

BLOOD DRIVE Sunday, January 8 9-1:30 at Temple Tikvah, 3315 Hillside Avenue, New Hyde Park.

516-746-1120.

MARIJUANA ANONYMOUS Sundays 7-8:30 at Zion Episcopal Church, 143-01 Northern Blvd., entrance on 44 th Avenue, room 5, Little Neck.

WAITANKUNG Sundays at 2. Waitankung is a great total-body workout.

Join these ancient Chinese exercise classes in the Flushing Hospital/Medical Center auditorium on 45 th Avenue between Parsons and Burling. Free. Jimmy 7-10pm 347-2156 information.

TAI CHI Mondays and Thursdays at 11 at the Cardiac Health Center in Fresh Meadows.

670-1695.

NICOTINE ANONYMOUS Mondays 6:45-8:00 at the Center for Tobacco Control, 2 2 5 C o m m u n i t y D r i ve , Great Neck. 516-510-7826.

RECOVERY INT’L Mondays at 5:45 and Thursdays at 3:30 Recovery Int’l is a support group for anxiet y, fear, depression at the Forest Hills library. 241-2220.

TAI CHI Mondays and Thursdays at 11 at the Cardiac Health Center in Fresh Meadows.

670-1695. $5 a class.

ALZHEIMERS Tuesdays, Januar y 10, 24, February 14, 28 Caregiver Support Group in Forest Hills. 592-5757, ext. 237.

GAM-ANON Tuesdays Free Synagogue of Flushing and Zion Episcopal Church. Wednesdays All

Saints Episcopal Church in Bayside, First Presbyterian Church in Forest Hills, Church on the Hill in Flushing and United Methodist Church in Middle Village.

Thursdays Free Synagogue of Flushing and Zion Episcopal Church. Call 1-877-6642469.

CAREGIVERS SUPPORT E ve r y Tu e s d a y We ste r n Queens Caregiver Network in Sunnyside. 5:30-6:30.

784-6173, ext. 431.

CAREGIVERS SUPPORT Every Tuesday 3:30-4:30 at the Selfhelp Clearview Senior Center, 208-11 26 th Avenue, Bayside. 631-1886.

WELL SPOUSES Wednesdays, January 11, February 8 Well Spouses or Partners of the Chronically Ill and Disabled meet at St. Charles Rehab Center, 201 IU Willets Road, Albertson at 7. Free. Donation. 516-8298740.

ZUMBA Wednesdays the Sisterhood of Bay Terrace Jewish Cent e r , 1 3 - 0 0 2 0 9 th S t r e e t , Bayside, will hold Zumba Fitness classes from 7:30-8:30. $8 members, $10 others.

428-6363.

OA Fridays 6:30-8:30 at Unit y Center of Flushing, 42-11 1 5 5 th S t r e e t . S a t u r d a y s 10:30-noon at Resurrection Ascension, Feely Hall, 851 8 6 1 st R o a d , R e g o P a r k .

Beginners meeting except the last Friday of each month, which is a writing meeting.

CO-DEPENDENTS ANON. Fridays 10-11:45 at Resurrection Ascension Pastoral C e n t e r , 8 5 - 1 8 6 1 st R o a d , Rego Park. Women only.

FITNESS PARTY Saturday, January 14 fitness part y 7:30-9:30 at the Central Queens YM-YWHA. Workouts, strategies and tips. $5 advance, $8 at the door. Reservations 2685011.

Jan. 6-12, 2012 PRESS of Southeast Queens Page 15

PUBLIC SPEAKING Saturdays, January 7, 21 public speaking and effective communication 1012:15 at the Elmhurst Hospital Center Conference Room. 424-9754.

ACADEMY CHARTER Monday, January 9 Central Queens Academy Charter School will hold a Board of Trustees meeting 7-9:30 at Google, 111 8 th Avenue, 4 th floor. 212-381-5460.

CATHOLIC VETS Mondays, January 9, February 13, March 12 American Mart yrs Catholic War Veterans Post 1772 in Bayside.

468-9351.

VFW 4787 Mondays, January 9, 23, February 13, 27 Whitestone V F W C o m m u n i t y Po s t meets. 746-0540.

LIONS CLUB Tuesdays, Januar y 10, February 14, March 13 Lions Club of Ravenswood at 6:30 at Riccardo’s by the Bridge, 21-01 21 st Avenue, Astoria.

MEN’S CLUB SOCCER Tuesday evenings at the Forest Hills Jewish Center 89:30. 263-7000.

CHAMBER Wednesday, January 11 the Forest Hills Chamber of Commerce meets at Garcia’s at 9 for breakfast.

UNITED 40S Thursdays, January 12, February 9, March 8 United Forties Civic Association, Inc. meets at 7 at St. Teresa P a r i s h C e n t e r , 5 0 - 2 2 4 5th Street, Woodside.

JEFFERSON DEMS Thursdays, January 12, February 9, March 8 Jefferson Democratic Club meets 7:30 at the Clearview Golf Course Clubhouse.

ILION BLOCK Fridays, January 13, February 10, March 9 Ilion Area Block Association meets t the African Center for Community Empowerment, 111-92A Farmers Blvd., St. Albans at 7:30.

CAMBRIA HTS LIBRARY Saturday, January 14 Friends Board of Directors of Queens Library at Cambria Heights meet 4-5:15.

P-FLAG Sundays, January 15, February 19, March 18 P-FLAG, a support group for parents, families and friends of lesbians and gays, meet in Forest Hills. 271-6663.

ENTERTAINMENT

Profile

Center Gives Toddlers Time For Nature

BY DOMENICK RAFTER

Three-year-old Jordan brought his mother a smorgasbord of food for breakfast: some corn, a waffle, a banana. The only problem, of course, was the food was all plastic, just some of the toys found in the brightly-colored room at the Alley Pond Environmental Center that hosts Toddler Time, a special nature-themed class for children ages 2 and 3 held six days a week at the center in Douglaston.

At the height of the holiday season, only three kids were at this Saturday’s Toddler Time; Jordan and his mom, Elaina and her dad and Freddie and his mother and aunt. On this specific chilly Saturday morning, the kids wait for class to start where they will learn about animal migration- a perfect topic for this time of year.

Toddler Time runs for 90 minutes and features time allotted for play- when the kids and parents have the opportunity to interact with each other. The children play with the toys in the room, with each other and with their parents while they trickle in. Playtime is followed by Circle Time, where the children sit in a circle and learn about the topic for the day- either through a story or through some other kind of interactive activity. On this day, Christine Schnurr, one of Toddler Time’s instructors and head of Early

Heating Oil

Childhood programs at APEC, is reading about migration to Jordan, Elaina and Freddie, who then get to play with bird feathers and listen to the calls of common birds. Even the moms are intrigued.

Freddie’s mom points out the call of a bird she often hears in her yard.

After a snack, the children go out for a walk, weather permitting. They witness migrating Canadian geese resting in the low tide in Alley Pond- a perfect addendum to the migration lesson.

“They’re taking a rest before heading south,” Schnurr tells the kids, who seem more interested in the arbitrary objects they found along the walk.

The outside trips, though sometimes prevented by weather, are key to Toddler Time, Schnurr said.

“It’s one thing talking about something,” she explained. “it’s another thing when the weather’s nice, we can go outside and get some water from the pond and we can see some tadpoles, grab some duckweed and say ‘this is what the ducks eat,’ This is what it feels like. It’s real. We can get outside and have them experience what I’m talking about.”

Back at the center, the kids get to meet an animal. Today, the star of the show is Sasha the parakeet who perches herself comfortably on Freddie’s mom’s shoulder, angering her son but intriguing little Elaina.

The kids get to meet a dove as well.

Heating Oil

Junk Cars

Parents and children interact during Toddler time at the Alley Pond Environmental Center.

Schnurr said the natural curiosity of children makes them interested in the animals at the center, but they can also be apprehensive and meeting them allows them to conquer that fear before it sets in.

“Even at a young age, some kids are very hesitant,” Schnurr said. “We want them to get the idea that they can touch and they won’t get hurt.”

Back in their playroom, the children finish out their day with a craft. On this day, the kids get to make Cheerio strands

Junk Cars

to hang outside so migrating birds can grab a bite on their way to Florida.

Toddler Time is one of four programs for children which includes Wee Sprouts, for children age 18-24 months, Fledglings for children ages 3 and 4, and Sunny Bunnys for 4 and 5 year olds. For more information about Toddler Time and other programs, visit alleypond.com.

Reach Reporter Domenick Rafter at drafter@queenstribune.com or (718) 3577400 Ext. 125.

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Jan. 6-12, 2012 PRESS of Southeast Queens Page 17

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More Weiner Trouble Just when you thought it was safe to be Anthony Weiner again…

One week after his wife gave birth to a baby boy, news broke that the troubled Queens Democrat proposed a threesome with himself, texting pal Traci Nobles and another guy.

Nobles’ proposal for a tell-all book details parts of the conversation, where Weiner admitted to being turned on by other guys. Not that there’s anything wrong with that…

We’d suggest that the former U.S. Representative stay out of the public eye for a little while, but even when he’s trying to lay low, the news keeps coming.

When Jocelyn moved to New York City from Michigan, the Mount St. Mary freshman psychology major said she knew that she had the opportunity to do what she had always wanted.

Despite some hesitation from her mother, herself a model, the 18-year-old is getting her name and face out there to begin her career.

“Mom didn’t want me to get into modeling, to be part of that lifestyle,” Jocelyn said. “But I’m in New York now, so I figured I should try and go for it.”

Now she’s trying to get her foot in the door. Jocelyn has started to drop her name at agencies and has recently taken to the web to develop a presence.

She hopes to eventually make it into the world of runway modeling.

“I’m pretty tall and graceful, so I think I have what it takes to do it,” she said.

If things don’t work out, though, she said, she has school as a fallback.

“I would love it for [her modeling career] to work out, but if it doesn’t, I understand,” Jocelyn said. “If nothing becomes of it, I’ll pursue psychology.”

In her free time, Jocelyn said she loves to dance and is looking forward to the 2012 baseball season, so she can take a trip out to CitiField to see the Mets play.

“I absolutely love the Mets,” she said.

Jocelyn said that she thinks her motivations for getting into

Page 18 PRESS of Southeast Queens Jan. 6-12, 2012

nounced his name at the nominations press conference on Dec. 15.

After flubbing on French director Michel Hazanavicius’ name, Vergara, known for her thick Colombian accent, struggled through Scorsese’s equally ethnic name, pronouncing it more like “Marthina Scoresays” before smiling, rolling her eyes and walking off the stage in hilarious embarrassment.

For a few seconds there, we thought one of our Models from Queens was nominated for a Golden Globe.

Jocelyn New York, NY Age: 18 Height: 5’10" Weight: 130 lbs.

Stats: 35-27-36

Here at QConf, we get a lot of mail. Usually it’s flyers and letters to the editor, but lately we’ve been getting a lot of New York themed post cards. We always knew our Models of Queens section was popular, but we didn’t realize just how popular until we started receiving postcards from a Queens Village man.

For the last two weeks, he’s been sending letters of admiration to our Models of Queens, reminding the beauties that “we are all connected.”

Hey, maybe Ciara Sockwell and Terezia Revesova will read this and “hit you up on Facebook.” If not, we suggest an online dating site.

Confidentially, New York . . .

Astoria native, Martin Scorsese

New Year’s Laws

Don’t worry, pal, your gallbladder is safe.

the modeling world may differ from others.

“A lot of people want into it for the glamour, so they can have people wait on them hand and foot,” she said. “But I think it would just be a lot of fun.”

Love Letters

What's In A Name?

Golden Globe nominations are out, signaling the beginning of awards seasons that will end with fancy-dressed celebrities clutching tiny golden statues of naked men, and one of Queens’ biggest stars is among the nominated - at least we think.

Oscar-winning (finally) director Martin Scorsese received a nomination for Best Director for his 3D adventure film “Hugo.” But the Astoria native might not have known it initially when Modern Family star Sofia Vergara an-

From A Model Family Models Of Queens

Those poor, broke Mets announced recently that they would be selling off shares of the team for $20 million a pop. The New York Times’ and former Trib writer, Richard Sandomir reported that a share in the team would come with a few perks, including a formal business card with the word “owner” and an exclusive fantasy camp. The most interesting perk, is unspecified “access” to Mr. Met. What will $20 million get you from Mr. Met? If you’re the tawdry type, probably not much. But who hasn’t pulled up to a self-service gas station on a freezing winter day and wished someone, anyone, would pump their gas? Mr. Met could slip out from your luxurious trunk (make sure to poke some air holes) and fill that Rolls Royce right up.

Or, better yet, you could get Mr. Met to be your new friend.

With attendance expected to fall, Mr. Met may be a lot lonelier in 2012.

Lonely

With a new year comes new laws. The State Senate recently put out a press release announcing legislation that took effect Jan. 1.

Some of it makes perfect sense, like the ban on the sale of hookahs and water pipes to minors. Some laws are bound to enrage someone, like the law that will reduce the number of commercial fishing licenses and permits issued by the DEC. One law in particular, though, just seems to come out of nowhere. As of Jan. 1, the possession and sale of bear gallbladder and bile will be banned.

We don’t know how many people are in possession of said items, but be warned. You may want to get rid of it.

What’s Up SATURDAY, JAN. 7 Walkers For Wellness Club Looking for a fun way to improve your health? Join the Walkers for Wellness Club at New Hope Lutheran Church of Jamaica. Under the guidance of a Walking Leader, you will walk two to three times each week at a comfortable pace with others along routes throughout Southeast Queens. The club is open to walkers of all ages and abilities. The walking schedule is Tuesdays and Thursdays at 7 p.m., and Saturdays at 8 a.m. Walkers meet at New Hope Lutheran Church, located at 167-24 118th Ave. T-shirts and pedometers will be provided. Contact Thurkessa Brown at (917) 553-1089 for more information.

Winter Basketball Program The Lincoln Park Basketball Association is offering a Fall/Winter Basketball Clinic for children ages 8-16 on Saturdays from Oct. 22 through Jan. 28. The $50 registration fee includes insurance, weekly training and a T-shirt. For more information, contact (347) 234-6833 or (718) 682-6938.

This event will be held at the Queens Transition Center, located at 142-10 Linden Blvd., from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Job Search Boot Camp Spend one day at the library and learn all the best strategies for finding a job! By the end of the day, you and your resume will be “fit” to find your best job. The sessions include: Winning Resumes and Cover Letters from 10:30 a.m. to noon, Effective Job Search Strategies from 12:30 to 2 p.m. and Acing the Interview from 3 to 4:30 p.m.

This free event will be held at Queens Library’s Central Branch, 89-11 Merrick Blvd., from 10:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

SUNDAY, JAN. 8 The Alva Anderson Quartet This group of outstanding jazz musicians with vocals by Alva Anderson recreates the rhythmic mastery and tonal beauty of jazz greats like Ella, Carmen, Nina, Lena, Etta and Billie.

This free event will be held at Queens Library’s Central Branch, 89-11 Merrick Blvd., at 3 p.m.

MONDAY, JAN. 9 Stay Well

Introduction to Computers Get yourself up to speed on basic computer skills. Learn about parts of the computer, software vs. hardware, common applications, how to use the keyboard and mouse. Also learn how to open and close “windows,” use toolbars and scroll bars.

To register, call (718) 990-5102 or visit the Job Information Center.

This free event will be held at Queens Library’s Central Branch, 89-11 Merrick Blvd., at 10:30 a.m.

Are you ready to apply for jobs? Does your resume stand out? Participants will learn: how to get started; types of resumes; what to include and not include on your resume, and tips for making your resume stronger. To register, call (718) 990-5102 or visit the Job Information Center.

This free event will be held at Queens Library’s Central Branch, 89-11 Merrick Blvd., at 6 p.m.

TUESDAY, JAN. 10 Walkers For Wellness Club See Tuesday’s listing. At 7 p.m.

Laptops For Students Laptops are available Monday through Thursday for teens and children to use from 3:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. on a first come, first serve basis. For more information, call (718) 528-2822.

This free event will be held at the Queens Library Laurelton Branch, 134-26 225 St. from 3 to 5 p.m.

Introduction to Word In this two-session workshop, customers will learn how to save files, cut, copy and paste text, and format documents.

Participants must possess basic mouse and keyboarding skills. Registration in advance is required in person at the Cyber Center Desk. For details, please call (718) 9900769.

This free event will be held at Queens Library’s Central Branch, 89-11 Merrick Blvd., from 6 to 7:30 p.m.

Own Your Own Business Learn how to develop your idea into a business plan. Participants will learn how to create demand for your product or service, set goals and objectives, budgeting and timelines, and identifying resources and networks. To register, call (718) 9905102.

This free event will be held at Queens Library’s Central Branch, 89-11 Merrick Blvd., at 6:30 p.m.

Support the Spectrum Charter School The Black Spectrum Theatre Company is interested in nurturing a new generation of artists for the 21st century! They encourage you to come out and support the proposed Spectrum Charter School for the performing arts. Let your voice be heard.

Visit facebook.com/ blackspectrumtheatre to register your support.

This free event will be held at Black Spectrum Theatre, 177th Street and Baisley Boulevard, at 7 p.m.

WEDNESDAY, JAN. 11 Picture Book Storytime Enjoy picture books, stories, songs, finger plays and crafts with your toddler.

Recommended for ages 18 months-preschool.

This free event will be held at the Queens Library Rosedale Branch, 144-20 243 St., at 10:30 a.m.

Social Media for Biz Did you know that social media is quickly becoming one of the most popular re-

sources for business development? Participants will learn what social media is, top social media websites, how best to use different social media sites and tools for your business, how to market your business using social media, and how to use social media to connect with your customer base.

To register, call (718) 990-5102 or visit the Job Information Center.

This free event will be held at Queens Library’s Central Branch, 89-11 Merrick Blvd., at 10:30 a.m.

THURSDAY, JAN. 12 Walkers For Wellness Club See Saturday’s listing. At 7 p.m.

Laptops For Students Laptops are available Monday through Thursday for teens and children to use from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. on a first come, first serve basis. For more information, call (718) 528-2822.

This free event will be held at the Queens Library Laurelton Branch, 134-26 225 St. from 3 to 5 p.m.

Word for Spanish Speakers Need to learn how to create a document or work with tables? These classes are for you. This class is part of a series that will cover: Introduction to Microsoft Word (Jan. 12) Creating and Saving Documents (Jan. 19) and Working with Tables and Printing (Jan. 26). Attendees should have basic computer skills, such as being able to use the keyboard, mouse and to open and close applications. Customers are encouraged to attend all three classes. Advance registration is required.

This free event will be held at Queens Library’s Central Branch, 89-11 Merrick Blvd., at 6:30 p.m.

FRIDAY, JAN. 13 Outreach and Assistance Are you a young woman 17-24 years of age and need assistance in applying for housing, completing college applications, financial aid or just need assistance and don’t know where to turn? The Daughters of Isis Foundation is available for support!

Contact the foundation for information or to schedule an appointment. For additional information, visit www.thedaughtersofisisfoundation.org, call Simone Williams at (347) 731-1721 or email isis.staff@gmail.com.

This free event will be held on the second floor of the Young Queens Loft, 14814 Liberty Ave., from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

ONGOING Job Club The Jamaica Neighborhood Center offers a free service to assist people from Southeast Queens with job-readiness skill sets in writing a professional resume and cover letter; interviewing practices and techniques; applying on-line procedures; elevator pitch and Microsoft Suite 2007.

For additional information, contact Ethan Chazin, Job Coach, at (718) 7392060, Ext. 18 or echazin67@gmail.com.

This free event will be held at the Jamaica Neighborhood Center - 161-06 89th Ave. Services are available Mondays and Thursdays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Wednesdays from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

CPR Training The FDNY Mobile CPR Training Unit will hold regularly scheduled free CPR classes in all five boroughs. The first Tuesday through the fourth Tuesday and the fourth Thursday of every month there will be Borough CPR training sessions in Manhattan, Brooklyn, the Bronx, Staten Island and Queens.

Training is free to anyone over the age of 14. The goal of this program is increase the number of people in New York City trained in bystander CPR Each class lasts 1 hour and participants in the class learn basic CPR skills from a member of the FDNY Emergency Medical Service.

Volunteers for the class follow along using the CPR Anytime Personal Learning Kit, which features an instructional DVD and an inflatable mannequin. All participants are able take home the kit at the end of class and asked to pledge to use the kit to show five of their family members and friends how to perform CPR. This class teaches basic CPR technique and is not a certification course.

In Queens, the classes will be held the fourth Thursday of every month at EMS Station 54, 222-15 Merrick Blvd. In addition, please visit www.nyc.gov/cprtogo for New York Sports Club locations offering free CPR classes starting in January.

Visit www.fdnyfoundation.org or call (718) 999-2413 for more information.

Group Sessions Clergy United for Community Empowerment, Inc. Group Sessions are located at 89-31 161st St., 10th Floor, Jamaica, for the community on various topics such as Domestic Violence, Mental Health, Substance Abuse intervention, Decision Making, Condom Use, High Risk Behaviors leading to HIV, and self – esteem awareness. All group sessions offer light snacks and beverages. Group sessions are open to the public.

Round-Trip Metro Card reimbursement is available at the end of each completed session. For further information call (718) 297-0720. All services are free. Please call for next group date.

Infant Mortality Clergy United for Community Empowerment’s Infant Mortality Reduction Initiative program provides the following services free of charge: case management services, parent skills building, crib care, breast feeding education, health education, nutritional information/education, referral for HIV testing, confidential oneon-one counseling, workshops, and women support groups. IMRI provides referrals for Food stamps, GED, GYN, Emergency Baby Formula (qualifications required) and more.

Call (718) 297-0720. Located at 89-31 161 St., 10th floor, Jamaica. Services are available Tue.-Thurs. 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Canned Food Drive You can make a difference this holiday season! Help us feed the community by bringing in cans of non-perishable food to Queens Library at Hillcrest to be distributed to those in need in our area. Donations can be made Monday through Saturday during regular business hours until Saturday, Jan. 11.

This free event will be held at the Hillcrest Library, 187-05 Union Turnpike.

Jan. 6-12, 2012 PRESS of Southeast Queens Page 19

Learn new ways to take charge of your health and help your friends do the same.

Learn how special exercise and relaxation techniques make a difference in your life!

This free event will be held at Queens Library’s Central Branch, 89-11 Merrick Blvd., at 10 a.m.

Perfect Resumes