SEQ E-Paper 11-16-12

Volume 13 Issue No. 46 Nov. 16-22, 2012

PAGE 18

PRESS Photo by Ira Cohen

OBAMA AT WORK

President Barack Obama toured storm-damaged parts of New York Thursday. In the wake of Superstorm Sandy, LIPA announced this week that the Rockaways may be too damaged to repair.

By Natalia Kozikowska ‌ Page 3.

Online at www.QueensPress.com

News Briefs Death Toll in Rockaway Rises On Nov. 9, Superstorm Sandy claimed its 43rd victim in the City when Albert McSwain, a 77-year-old grandfather and Vietnam War veteran, died at Jamaica Hospital after slipping in the dark and hitting his head on Oct. 31. Just two days after the storm, McSwain had fallen in the Hammel Houses, located in the Rockaways, and became paralyzed from the neck down. One week later, the veteran succumbed to his injuries.

With power and heat still out in most parts of the Rockaway peninsula, Councilman James Sanders (D-Laurelton) said he is worried that more injuries and deaths are inevitable. His office held a protest rally on Nov. 14. outside of the Hammel Houses to draw attention to the ongoing threat facing senior citizens who are left in the dark.

"Dark stairwells, no heat, no elevators and no refrigeration spells big trouble for our most vulnerable populations, especially seniors and young children," said Sanders in a statement. "We can't endure much longer without basic amenities like food, medicine, clean water and heat. The tragedy of Mr. McSwain throws the danger facing seniors into sharp relief and illustrates clearly why it is so imperative that the power is restored to our community immediately. At this point, LIPA is near criminally responsible for the deaths of innocent civilians in the Rockaways.

It's time to protest, time to make our voices heard."

Page 2 PRESS of Southeast Queens Nov. 16-22, 2012

Queens Man Indicted on Murder Charges in Death of Witness A 21-year-old Arverne man was been charged with the murder of a witness who testified against him in an earlier robbery case. Additionally, a 21-year-old Rosedale woman has been charged in connection to the crime for allegedly assisting in the murder by driving the defendant to the crime scene, according to a statement released by District Attorney Richard Brown.

"The defendant's alleged actions strike at the very heart of our justice system and must be severely punished as both an example of our commitment to protecting the integrity of the criminal justice system and to punish those who engage in such conduct," said Brown in a statement.

The statement identifies the defendants as Shytique Kelly, 21, of 440 Beach 58th St. in the Arverne section of Queens, and Jazmin Guillebeaux, 21, of 148-03 Huxley St. in the Rosedale section of Queens. Kelly was arraigned today on an eleven-count indictment before Queens Supreme Court Justice Richard Buchter

and ordered held without bail.

Guillebeaux was previously arraigned on Oct. 31, 2012, and ordered held without bail. The next court date is scheduled for Jan. 29, 2013.

Kelly is being charged with first and second-degree murder, second-degree attempted murder, second and third-degree criminal possession of a weapon, first-degree criminal contempt and thirddegree tampering with a witness.

Guillebeaux is charged with second-degree murder, second-degree criminal facilitation, and first-degree hindering prosecution.

Kelly has been held in jail in lieu of $250,000 bail since his arrest on May 30 and faces up to life in prison without the possibility of parole if convicted.

Guillebeaux faces 25 years to life in prison if she is convicted.

According to the charges, Kelly approached Tysheen Coakley, 21, and two other individuals at approximately 5:28 p.m. on May 27, at the intersection of 110th Avenue and 160th Street and fired in the direction of the three individuals, hitting Coakley in the chest and causing his demise. It is also alleged that Guillebeaux assisted Kelly in carrying out the murder by driving him to and from the scene of the crime.

Kelly violated a legal order of protection that had been previously filed against him when, between June 1, 2011, and Sept. 30, 2011, and he intentionally placed Coakley in reasonable fear of physical injury or death by making a thirdparty threat to kill Coakley to another individual.

Additionally, it is alleged that, between July 19 and Aug. 6, Kelly tampered with a witness who either was about to be called as a witness or had been called as a witness in a criminal proceeding by wrongfully compelling the witness to swear falsely to an affidavit by instilling in the witness a fear that Kelly would cause physical injury to the witness.

At the time of his arrest on the morning of May 30, police allegedly found Kelly in his closet. On a shelf inside the closet police found a loaded two-shot derringer pistol.

The investigation was conducted by detectives assigned to the NYPD's 103rd Precinct Detective Squad, with assistance from Assistant District Attorney Patricia Diaz, of District Attorney Brown's Homicide Investigations Bureau.

Brief Us!

Mail your news brief items to: PRESS of Southeast Queens, 150-50 14th Rd., Whitestone, NY 11357

Presstime

LIPA: Rockaways Too Damaged To Repair With some residents approaching their third week without power, the Long Island Power Authority has removed the Rockaways from its power outage map, citing the area as simply too damaged by Superstorm Sandy to restore electrical service at this time.

Nick Lizanich, vice president of transmission and distribution at LIPA, said that restoring power in the Rockaways in its current condition could potentially create a dangerous situation because many of the homes that sustained flood damage contained massive amounts of water that came out of the ocean and Jamaica Bay, leaving electrical panels under water.

“When it is under water, especially sea water, you end up with salt contamination and debris contamination, such that if we were to try and put the power on, there is

U.S. Rep. Gregory Meeks the possibility the house (D-Jamaica) did confirm could catch on fire,” that he has been speaking to Lizanich said. “The electricofficials at LIPA and said he ity would create a flash and also believed there were sevthe flash would ignite and eral parts of the Rockaways turn into a damaging type of that were damaged to an event.” extent that LIPA cannot reAdditionally Lizanich store its power. said that by LIPA code, it is “I can tell you that I’ve standard protocol to clean gone up and down the penand replace important insula from the east all the pieces of equipment to ensure it may safely revive elec- Queens Borough President Helen Marshall and way to the west, to Breezy tricity.

U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand toured the damage Point, and there are a substantial number of homes that “We have about 34,000 in the Rockaways. were affected by the storm. customers with meters in the Rockaways and that would include another major factor that delayed You just need to go and see the loss a little bit of the area that’s back LIPA’s restoration efforts in the and rubbage that are in front of the towards the Queens border. About Rockaways is that its facility also homes,” Meeks said. “When water 5,000 [of those] customers are suffered a considerable amount of rises six feet in people’s basements and it gets into their electrical on,” he said. “The remaining water damage during Sandy.

In an effort to speed up the switches, salt water destroys it and 29,000 [without power] are in the category that we can not restore recovery effort in the Rockaways, we got to fix it.”

Although the Congressman them until they provide us the cer- Lizanich said the agency has been tification that the City of New communicating and identifying to shared many of the same concommunity leaders about the steps cerns regarding the fire hazards York is requiring them to do.”

According to the representative, the area should take to regain power. of restoring power in homes far Photo provided by the Borough President’s office

BY NATALIA KOZIKOWSKA

too damaged, he expressed his disapproval with LIPA’s response time, arguing the agency’s facilities should have been built better to withstand water damage.

“Initially they did not restore power to the places that could have power because the substations were knocked out,” he said.

“Some were repairable; others were knocked out beyond repair so they had to bypass it. They will hopefully learn from this storm so that when they build anew, when another storm happens, it will not knock out the substations.”

Just nine days after LIPA removed the Rockaways off its outage map, CEO of LIPA, Michael Hervey resigned. More than two weeks after storm, 45,000 LIPA customers still remain without power.

Reach Reporter Natalia Kozikowska at (718)357-7400 Ext. 123 or nkozikowska@ queenspress.com

Officials Call Out Power Companies store power to Queens residents.

U.S. Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-Jamaica), State Sen. Joe Addabbo Jr. (D-Howard Beach) and Assemblyman Phil Goldfeder (DHoward Beach) convened on Rockaway Beach Boulevard in Belle Harbor to criticize Mayor Mike Bloomberg’s storm response efforts. Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who appoints members of the maligned Long Island Power Authority’s board, has avoided criticism, however.

“The coordination and efforts to restore power and heat to the residents of southern Queens and Rockaway have been dismal and completely `unacceptable,” Goldfeder said. “As a result of inaction and neglect by Mayor Mike Bloomberg, the Long Island Power Authority and Con Ed, the health and safety of our most vulnerable neighbors are being jeopardized.”

Bloomberg, Con Ed and LIPA have defended their response to Sandy.

“When I look at the damage we had on Long Island, I would

tell you that I thought we did a very good job of restoration as well as preparation, but I will also tell you in our business, it is a continuous improvement process and we’ve learned a lot of les-

sons from Irene,” said Nick Lizanich, vice president of transmission and distribution at LIPA. Reach Reporter Ross Barkan at (718) 357-7400, Ext. 127 or rbarkan@queenstribune.com.

Presidential Visit:

President Barack Obama touched down at John F. Kennedy Airport with U.S. Sens. Charles Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand before heading out to tour areas damaged by Superstorm Sandy, along with Mayor Mike Bloomberg and Gov. Andrew Cuomo.

Nov. 16-22, 2012 PRESS of Southeast Queens Page 3

The rage in the Rockaways is growing by each powerless day.

Last week, more than 30 clergy and community leaders from across Queens blasted the Long Island Power Authority, Con Edison and City and Federal agencies for failing to coordinate an adequate relief effort for the thousands of people left without electricity and heat in the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy.

Two weeks after the storm struck the metropolitan area, almost 30,000 people on the Rockaway Peninsula and hundreds in other Queens neighborhoods are still without power.

While volunteers and supplies pour into the storm-ravaged neighborhoods, a coalition of Queens clergy said that the supplies are not necessarily reaching all the people that need them most.

“There are too many chiefs and not enough Indians,” said Joseph McKellar, executive director of Queens Congregations United for Action, a coalition of

eight congregations in the Borough. “I can’t emphasize enough how chaotic and disorganized the relief effort has been.”

McKellar and his allies gathered in front of the Rockaway Beach Library on Nov. 9, arguing that one leader was needed to oversee relief efforts. Space heaters desperately needed in Howard Beach, for example, were left outside for days in the rainsoaked Rockaways, he said.

McKellar called for a “czar” to coordinate relief efforts in southern Queens, claiming that the various agencies, while good-intentioned, are not efficient enough.

“I have lost everything, but our leaders seem to have abandoned us,” said Donna Crockett, a resident of Howard Beach who is volunteering with QCUA. “The casinos at Aqueduct, in New Jersey, and lower Manhattan all have electricity, while families in Howard Beach freeze at night with no heat or electricity.”

On Nov. 8, elected officials and civic leaders also begged for a more coordinated plan to re-

Photo by Ira Cohen

BY ROSS BARKAN

MTA: No Refunds For Monthly Passes

BY NATALIA KOZIKOWSKA

Page 4 PRESS of Southeast Queens Nov. 16-22, 2012

Photo by Ira Cohen

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority confirmed on Tuesday that it will not be giving refunds or extending the life of unlimited ride MetroCards to riders who were unable to use subways and buses in the days following Superstorm Sandy. The no-refund policy also pertains to riders who were unable to use the MetroNorth and Long Island Rail Road.

A spokesperson from the MTA noted that a major factor in the agency’s decision is attributed to the lack of technological advancements necessary to complete such transactions.

“It would be a complicated process,” the spokesperson said.

Superstorm Sandy forced the MTA to shut down its transit system on Oct. 28. Some bus service resumed the following evening and limited subway service was running on Nov. 1. As of press time, the MTA reported riders were still experiencing delays at the 1,2,3,B,D,F,M,N,Q and R

trains and the A,C,E,J,Z,L, and S trains still had limited service. The 4,5,6,7 and G trains were listed as having “good service.”

The spokesperson added that the MTA offered free transportation to riders two days after the storm.

While Sandy may have halted subway and bus service in the days following the storm, Kevin Ortiz, an MTA representative, said that its plan to provide riders with cell phone and data service in the upcoming years is still scheduled to be completed on time.

The project, initiated by Transit Wireless, is scheduled for completion in 2018 and will wire all 277 underground stations in New York City, but Ortiz said he is confident that they will be able to finish sooner than the projected year.

“The crux of the entire project is to be able to provide customers with cell phone and data service underground,” said Ortiz. “It’s essentially part of our efforts to bring new technology to our cus-

MTA customers will not be refunded for unused days in the wake of Superstorm Sandy. tomers. In essence, this is something that is part of our overall goal. As you’ve seen already, we’ve brought in new technology like the countdown clocks.”

By providing data service to riders, Ortiz said the project will also make subway stations safer.

“It also serves as an added benefit in terms of having customers being able to access 911

underground as well, in case of an emergency,” he said.

Thus far, Transit Wireless has signed an agreement with carriers like AT&T and T-Mobile, but is looking to sign contracts with other services.

“Transit Wireless continues to negotiate with other wireless carriers at this point. We want to provide a robust and thorough

accessibility to our riders when it comes to cell phones and data connectivity,” Ortiz said.

The project will come at no cost to the MTA, as it will be funded

by Transit Wireless and wireless carriers. Instead, Ortiz said that it will be a revenue generator.

“The cost of a full build out that Transit Wireless is doing is actually going to be incurred by Transit Wireless along with the cell phone carriers who are paying 100 percent of the cost of the project, which is estimated to be between 150 and 200 million dollars,” he said. “On the other end, the MTA is going to be able to garner revenue from this in the fact that we will split all revenues with Transit Wireless 50-50. They are able get from rent paid by the wireless carriers.”

It is still unclear as to whether TMobile and AT&T customers will have to pay extra for the service.

Reach Reporter Natalia Kozikowska at (718)357-7400 Ext. 123 or nkozikowska@queens press.com.

Post-Sandy, Residents Debate Rebuilding

BY ROSS BARKAN Don Riepe’s house, like so many along New York City’s suddenly vulnerable shoreline, drowned in saltwater the night Superstorm Sandy blitzed through the region.

Six feet of water frothed in his Broad Channel living room.

The electricity, along with many of his possessions, was gone.

As thousands of people like Riepe hope to reorient their lives in the wake of such unprecedented devastation, an uncomfortable question is now emerging in the minds of scientific observers: should residents keep living near the shoreline?

“For us as a species, we really have to consider whether it’s a good idea to keep developing near the shoreline,” said Riepe, president of the northeast chapter of the American Littoral Society, an environmental group concerned with issues pertaining to coastlines. “Any shoreline that is open space should be left

as open space. People living on bays, on the edge like I do, are going to have a problem.”

A 2010 New York Academy of Sciences report estimated that sea levels around New York City could rise two to five feet by the 2080s.

Scientists have predicted that sea levels will rise as many as six inches per decade, expanding flood zones and increasing the likelihood that areas like Broad Channel, Hamilton Beach and the Rockaway Peninsula will be submerged at a far more frequent rate.

While resolute residents of beachfront neighborhoods vow to rebuild, these very expensive efforts will have to take into account more volatile weather patterns and destructive storm surges.

“In the next 25 years, you’ll see continued hurricanes as part of a normal pattern, but because of global warming, they will be more erratic, damaging and violent,” said Dr. James Cervino, a visiting scientist at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute and chairman of Community Board

7’s Environmental Committee.

Cervino explained that hurricanes themselves will not become more frequent because of climate change. However, heightened sea levels automatically make any storm surge more destructive. Warming waters from climate change, Cervino said, fuel hurricanes when that water evaporates. With the possibility of more severe hurricanes in New York City’s future — Sandy was a hybrid of a late-season hurricane and a winter storm — Cervino argued that the City needs to take action to prevent greater economic and environmental tolls when the next storm arrives.

Sea walls, boulders, bulkheads and concrete can be used as buffers against stronger storm surges, though construction on coastal landfills in neighborhoods like College Point Estates could mean waterfront communities will become more hazardous than luxurious. Arverne by the Sea, a beachfront development in the Rockaways green-lit

last decade, is likely to be a casualty of future storms.

Though Mayor Mike Bloomberg has lambasted climate change deniers, his administration’s rewriting of the zoning code fueled a coastline building boom that could haunt future generations. Long Island City, now a glittering hospitality and technology hub, is just one of several growing neighborhoods that will continue to lie in the path of another storm surge.

There are no easy or inexpensive ways to protect Queens’ shorelines from future flooding. A storm surge barrier, costing billions to construct, placed in New York Harbor would mitigate flooding but do little for the Rockaways, which perilously faces the Atlantic Ocean. Dan Hendrick, a spokesman for the New York League of Conservation Voters, suggested that when the obliterated Rockaway Beach Boardwalk is rebuilt, it should serve as a tidal barrier. A “hardening” of waterfront structures, along with raising

their height, will be necessary, he said, as well as reworking the zoning code to limit development in flood-prone areas.

Outgoing U.S. Rep. Bob Turner’s (R-Middle Village) Breezy Point home burned to the ground during the storm. Unlike Riepe, he plans to rebuild, as do most of the residents he spoke to.

“I think as we rebuild, we should have different specifications,” Turner said. “We may work on height requirements. Right now we’re four feet above grade and we may have to go up higher.”

For many residents, it will be extremely difficult to abandon the shorelines they love.

“This is the great American dream, to get a house by the beach and unfortunately houses by the beach are always going to be subject to storm damage,” Bloomberg told reporters Monday. “That’s been happening around the world since people built houses.”

Reach Reporter Ross Barkan at (718) 357-7400, Ext. 127 or rbarkan@queenstribune.com.

Nov. 16-22, 2012 PRESS of Southeast Queens Page 5

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Editorial Out Of Power, Out Of Time In the wake of Superstorm Sandy, many homes throughout the area – especially in the ravaged sections of the Rockaways – are still without power. No one is happy with this situation, from the people without power to the elected officials fighting for their constituents.

Many elected officials have been vocal since the storm passed, looking for answers from Con Edison and the Long Island Power Authority.

Unfortunately, almost three weeks later, many questions still remain and tens of thousands of customers are left without power.

While we praise the efforts of the linemen who have worked tirelessly to make repairs, the leadership of these companies leave a lot to be desired, especially LIPA, which has not only left nearly 30,000 customers in Queens without power as winter begins but has also seemingly refused to communicate with its customers.

It is clear that a restructuring of the authority needs to take place.

The recent resignation of LIPA chief operating officer Mike Hervey is a step in the right direction. The question remains, however, why did it take a disaster to begin to enact change? During his campaign, Gov. Andrew Cuomo called for reform of LIPA. In the two years since Cuomo has been in office, why has nothing been done?

LIPA of course should be held accountable for its failings in the wake of Superstorm Sandy, but we should also be looking at our Governor and ask him why he failed to act on this campaign pledge.

Letters Vote Early To the Editor: The State of New York needs to take a long hard look at how elections are conducted. During this year’s presidential election, there were long lines of people

all over the state waiting to cast their ballots. Some did not have the time to stand on a long line and forfeited their vote. In areas where devastation resulted from Hurricane Sandy, voting was difficult. People had other pri-

Letters orities on their minds.

A 15 hour window for voting during a single day is insufficient in an election where millions are to decide who our country’s leader will be for the next four years. Why doesn’t New York have early voting like other states do, or even voting by mail? This would increase the participation, allow for emergencies that develop and be a convenience to people who have busy lives and many responsibilities. Bad weather on Election Day would not impact as greatly if voting was spread out over time or impact at all if voting was done through the mail.

If the state employs early voting or voting by mail, it may impact positively on the problem of low voter turnout and apathy. If people had more opportunity to cast a ballot, it would seem logical that more voters would take advantage of such a system and be involved in the election process. Isn’t that what democracy is all about?

Perhaps the Board of Elections should try early voting and/ or mail in voting first during off year elections where there is little to vote for or where there are few competitive races. The election of 2011 is a prime example. I understand that in Queens County, less than 10 percent of

registered voters participated that year. Instead of wasting millions of dollars to hire poll workers to sit waiting for relatively few voter participants, wouldn’t it just make more sense to mail ballots to registered voters for those elections?

Primaries, which are infamous for low turnout, should be handled by mail as well. If this method proves successful and cost effective, the Board of Elections should consider having all elections conducted by mail. There would be no need to purchase expensive voting machines for every election district or employ poll workers, little chance for voter suppression and no excuse for the electorate to not take advantage of their right to choose their leaders.

I believe that early voting or even voting by mail would be a vast improvement over the antiquated system we have in place now and bring more people into the election process.

Henry Euler, Bayside

WRITE ON:

The PRESS of Southeast Queens, 150-50 14th Rd. Whitestone, NY 11357 email news@queenspress.com fax: (718) 357-9417

A New Term, A New Urgency For Obama A Personal Perspective

BY MARCIA MOXAM COMRIE Presidential elections are over and New York’s favorite candidate prevailed to serve another term.

President Barack Obama’s decisive win gives him a second term to try to complete his wish list for America. Number one among the priorities must certainly be to pull the economy back from the looming “fiscal cliff,” including a comprehensive jobs plan.

The novelty of being the first Black president is growing old with people who have become chronically unemployed. The president knows this is the number one concern calling for his attention. He also knows that we can no longer accord him a pass because “he inherited a mess from Bush.”

Indeed he did inherit an inconceivable debt crisis from President Bush, but we can’t spend eight years blaming Bush.

That accomplishes nothing. It’s time to devise a fail-proof plan to get us out of the mess and onto solid economic grounds again.

That is very true; but that’s starting to wear thin. He will have to give this issue precedence over all else. I often quote essayist and historian Thomas Carlyle (17951881), who noted in his time that, “A man willing to work, and unable to find work, is perhaps the saddest sight that fortune’s inequality exhibits under the sun.”

For our times, we can change the pronoun “man” to “people” so it includes women, but the meaning remains the same. Unemployment can impart an overwhelming sense of personal failure and hope-

lessness onto the human spirit. It is time for the president to work with the great business minds of this age to find ways to get our citizens back to work.

We don’t know that Mitt Romney’s campaign promise that his potential administration would have created 12 million new jobs and we won’t know now. It was enticing to the unemployed masses and the people who love them, but it wasn’t enough for the Republican candidate to overcome the fear that a Romney administration would have somehow wiped out Social Security and Medicare.

We refused to drink that KoolAid. It was too much of a risk for younger Baby Boomers to take.

We know, however, that there were many other reasons that cost Romney the election. A big

part of it was “the 47 percent” statement he made while speaking with wealthy donors behind closed doors.

At the end of the [Election] Day we had to go with the candidate we trusted. It wasn’t so much about race and party affiliation as it was about policy and respect. All aspects of the electorate are important to the success of any candidate and no candidate worth his poster thinks and says otherwise.

Now we are in even deeper trouble with the wreck wrought

by Hurricane Sandy. Figures like $4 billion to rebuild New York’s devastated area. We wish the president well and we wish our fellow New Yorkers whose lives have been devastated by the super storm, a quick return to normal.

America Has Not Decided In Which Direction to Go

By HENRY STERN The 2012 national election has been described by both parties as a clash of competing ideologie s; t he polit icia ns said it would be an Armageddon whose outcome would determine America’s course for decades.

Like so many political predictions, that one turned out to be wrong. The 50 - 48 percent split between candidates Obama and Romney did not show a national consensus. Although the results taken individually were somewhat better for the Democrats, the Re-

publicans kept control of the House. There was no mandate to either expand the safety net or to weaken it. Polls showed a majorit y of the population favored a lesser role for the government in economic affairs, while at the same time they voted for Obama, who held the opposite view.

This election turned out to be a victory for moderation. Candidates who ran primaries on the far right moved towards the center in the general election, if for no other reason than that is where the votes are. However, there was

not enough time to pirouette twice and a few Republicans were caught with their snakeskins still molting.

In New York State’s 27 house districts (down from 45 in 1950), no Member of Congress was defeated primarily on ideological grounds. There was no significant swing in either direction. Turnovers resulted from local sentiment and the individual strengths and weaknesses of candidates, not from a switch in public opinion from one philosophy to another. As is often the case, the same people who in polls found fault with their legisla-

Superstorm at the Ballot Box ballots in accordance with Governor Cuomo’s Executive Order.

There is no excuse for these types of issues, particularly when so many of our sister states have embraced reform that has improved turnout and reduced crowding on Election Day. Governor Cuomo’s Executive Order allowing all displaced voters to cast affidavit ballots at any polling place was the right call, and a decision I praised. However, there are longer-term steps New York could take today to fix this woeful system and fix it for good — not just in t imes of weather-related crises, but always.

Fixing New York’s voting system star ts by joi ning 32 ot her states and embracing early voting, which allows citizens to exercise their right to vote well in advance of Election Day. Instead of imposing a barrier on working people who may not be able to get to the polls on the first Tuesday of November, these states permit voting from four to 45 days prior to Election Day, with the average across all 32 states being 19 days.

In addition, New York should do away with the needless excuses that are required to qualify for an absentee ballot.

Many other states, including New Jersey, allow no-excuse absentee voting. However, in New York, voters must first prove they will be out of the city, or are disabled, hospitalized, or in prison facing a misdemeanor charge to get an absentee ballot.

For a state that pride s itself as the gateway to America for millions of immigrants and a leader of progressive government, the time has come for New York to

embrace both early voting and noexcuse absentee voting in order to expand access to the ballot box.

Here’s the point: As we continue to recover from Sandy, debates have already begun about storm walls, sea barriers, and other devices to protect New York from future storms. But we must also engage in a debate about modernizing the law so that all New Yorkers can exercise one of our most sacred civic rights and responsibilities: voting.

Scott M. Stringer is the Manhattan Borough President.

pened the last time Senate Democrats had a majority, in 2009.

Another factor for Governor Cuomo, a presumed candidate for President in 2016, is that he does not want to be seen as opposing a left-leaning state legislature so he Stern will have a compelling reason to participate in the choice of leadership, although of course he will express disinterest in the matter.

If he does not weigh in and the legislature chooses someone who is ideologically at odds with him, it will add to his difficulty in governing. If a fractious legislature makes the Governor appear to be out of step with his own par ty, that would not be helpful to his ambition.

Again there is a potential conflict between the delegates to the 2016 Democratic convention, many of whom will be proud socialists, and the overall electorate, whose viewpoints are much more moderate. This is analogous to the tea party situation: militant activists influencing the party beyond their numbers and making it more difficult for them to win a broadbased national election.

StarQuest@NYCivic.org

The Broken Windows of Politics

By TOM ALLON One of the main reasons we saw violent crime recede dramatically in New York in the 1990s was because the city police adopted the “broken windows” theory of policing.

This revolutionary idea, advanced first by Harvard Professor Jame s Wilson, maintai ned that small symbols of crime and disorder, like broken windows in cit y buildings, illustrates a lack of order and policing that then leaves the door wide open for more violent crime.

So, put in practice by Police Commissioner Bill Brat ton and Mayor Rudy Giuliani, a crackdown on subway fare beaters and “squeegee men,” those who forcibly tried to clean people’s car windows and were seen as menacing by some, was the first step in attacking crime.

It worked.

We need the political equivalent of “broken windows” policing in how we treat our elected

leaders in New York.

Corruption and crime has become cancerous in our body politic in New York in the last decade.

People like Carl Krueger, Miguel Martinez, Pedro Espada and Larry Seabrook have actually gone to jail for crimes they commit ted while in office.

But we have not gone far enough. We have a man in Brooklyn, the former county leader, who will walk the halls of New York State’s legislature in the coming weeks and months, who is an alleged sexual predator.

So much evidence of Vito Lopez’s bad behavior has emerged that his Democratic leader, Sheldon Silver, thought it w ise to spend taxpayer dollars to set tle two of these case s with former employees.

Yet, still, this man continues in office, repre sent ing a large Brooklyn community, free to harass female employees again. And de spite ongoing i nve st igat ions

into his behavior, his male — and female — colleagues look the other way and do not ask for his full resignation as an elected leader.

Whay kind of example are our leaders setting for the rest of society? W hy doesn’t Governor Andrew Cuomo push for Lopez’s ouster? Why don’t smart women in the Assembly like Cathy Nolan, Deobrah Glick and Linda Rosenthal insist that Lopez resign?

Because we have an incumbent protection program rather than a “broken windows” theory of politics.

And this is one of the main reasons we have political dyfunction, low voter turnout and a lack of respect for our elected officials.

The windows are broken in New York State’s Assembly. Vito Lopez must go.

Now. Tom Allon is a 2013 Republican and Liberal Party-backed candidate for Mayor of New York City.

Nov. 16-22, 2012 PRESS of Southeast Queens Page 7

By SCOTT M. STRINGER Hurricane Sandy showcased how vulnerable New York City is to the wrath of Mother Nature. But as voters throughout the five boroughs saw first-hand on Election Day, the storm also underscored how decades of poor policy decisions regarding voter registration and access to the ballot have created significant barriers to political par t icipation across the Empire State.

New York City consistently has some of the lowest voter turnout in the entire nation. Last June, the city’s Campaign Finance Board issued a report finding that in the November 2010 elections, turnout in the city was significantly lower (28 percent) than in the rest of the state (53 percent) and nationally (46 percent). New York City also had lower voter turnout in the presidential elections in 2008 than any other major U.S. city.

Of course, issues at the polls are not limited to New York City.

An Election Protection coalition of civ il right s a nd vot ing acce ss groups said they received more than 80,000 complaints and questions to their voter protection hotline.

However, voting complaints ranging from long lines and broken machines, to poorly-trained staff and a lack of ballots - flowed in from all corners of the City.

Voters in Flushing, Cambria and across hard-hit neighborhoods of Howard Beach experienced backlogs that stretched for hours.

The Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund told the New York Times that election workers in Flushing and Jackson Heights had refused to give out affidavit

tors nonetheless generally re-elected them.

The national par ties spent billions of dollars in political races and ended up in practically the same place they began. However that does not mean that the money was wasted because if the parties had not Henry spent it they might have incurred substantial losses. The fact that the races were so costly, largely because of the high cost of media time in New York State, does not prove that the expenditures were unnecessar y.

State Senate Democrats were helped by an infusion of millions of dollars by the teachers union in several races, coupled with President Obama’s strong showing at the top of the ticket The first issue that will arise after the election is whether to call the current New York State Legislature back into session before Jan. 1. They want substantial pay increase s for themselve s, wh ich would make them the highest paid state legislators in the country. The issue will likely be what reforms they will begrudgingly enact in order to get the Governor to sweeten the pot. The choice of leaders will be fascinating; remember what hap-

Sandy Can Not Dampen Thanksgiving Spirit

By JOE MARVILLI More than two weeks after Superstorm Sandy impacted Queens, several organizations are preparing Thanksgiving meals for the less fortunate, ensuring that the devastation does not diminish the holiday spirit.

All across Queens, soup kitchens, food pantries and other charitable centers are gearing up to feed as many people as they can during Thanksgiving week. While most of these groups have given in prior years to the poor or homeless, the victims of Sandy will be given priority as well this time around.

With many people and businesses in the Rockaways, Howard Beach and Long Island City still reeling from their bouts with flooding, power loss and wind damage, the responsibility of making a decent holiday for those who cannot do so themselves is mostly in the hands of those unaffected by the storm.

Although it is a great challenge, the charities are more than up to the task.

This is not the first time the AIDS Center of Queens County has helped families-in-need have a good Thanksgiving. They have been giving away holiday food for about 10 years, the same amount of time the center has had a food pantry. Located at 175-61 Hillside Ave. in Jamaica, the organization would love to give out supplies to everyone who needs them but due to budgetary constrictions, they can give to around 300 people before the well runs dry.

“It’s always higher but we can’t keep up with the demand,” Associate Executive Director Rosemary Lopez said.

Instead, the center will make do with what they have, giving out turkeys, chicken, stuffing and all the trimmings that make for a bountiful Thanksgiving meal.

The food is given out every Tuesday and Thursday.

“I think it’s important that our clients in the community have the ability to sit down with the families on the holiday and share a meal with them,” Lopez said.

Corpus Christi Food Pantry in Woodside also understands the value of a good meal to raise the spirits of those in need. Although they have never put together a Thanksgiving charity program before, the organization is certainly trying its hardest to make this holiday a memorable one for those they assist.

On Nov. 18, church parishioners will come together to provide a meal for those in the area who need it. Although this is the first year such a charitable meal is being held by Corpus Christi, they are prepared to serve around 100 people.

“It’s not as much a pantry project as it is a parish project,” the Rev. Patrick West said. “We have parishioners who will be cooking turkey for those who have no one to have a holiday meal with.”

On Nov. 19, a motorcycle club will bring 125 turkeys to the pantry, who will in turn give out food baskets. Finally, the group will wrap up the holiday on Thanksgiving with a special mass at 9:30 a.m. Corpus Christi is ask-

Page 8 PRESS of Southeast Queens Nov. 16-22, 2012

Photo by Ira Cohen

ing people to bring bags of food, specifically non-perishables, which will then be sent to Coney Island.

“It’s an expression of concern for those who can’t provide a holiday meal for themselves and their families,” West said. “I think it’s a real good concern that’s expressed not just for the poor, but for the elderly in the neighborhood. The church exists to serve the needs of everyone in the community.”

The Corpus Christi Food Pantry is located at 31-30 61st St., Woodside.

Over in Long Island City, the Queens Economic Development Corporation is working on a potential food project in their Entrepreneur’s Space for Sandy victims. Located at 36-46 37th St., the incubator is a 5,000square-foot commercial kitchen with space available for businesses or people to rent. The QEDC operate the space in cooperation with food industry consultant Katherine Gregory and her company Mi Kitchen Es Su Kitchen.

“Somebody who is going to make a lot of food to give out in the Rockaways and Staten Island is going to rent out the Entrepreneur Space to do the cooking and warming of already made food on the day of Thanksgiving,” Director of Public Relations Rob MacKay said. “That’s in the works because we’re not sure if she has insurance. That’s where it stands.”

While that project is not definite yet, Bethesda Missionary Baptist Church has their Turkey Day meal set and ready to go. Located at 179-09 Jamaica Ave., Jamaica, the church will have a holiday dinner on Nov. 22 from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m. It will be sponsored by the Healing Hands Helping Broken Hearts Foundation, a charity dedicated to speaking up for the needy.

Union United Methodist Church is also put-

Many soup kitchens are expecting higher turnout than usual this year after Superstorm Sandy.

ting their best foot forward to make Thanksgiving as pleasant as possible for those who are less fortunate. Found at 12622 150th St., Jamaica, the organization will have hot meals available on Nov. 21 between 12 p.m. and 3 p.m. They are expecting a turnout between 30 and 50 people.

Reach Reporter Joe Marvilli at (718) 357-7400, Ext. 125, or at jmarvilli@queenstribune. com.

Donations With so many people in need during this upcoming holiday season, any contributions that can be made are helpful. Here are some charities and organizations you can give to that will help both the hungry and victims of Superstorm Sandy.

FeedingNYC has been helping hungry families by hand-delivering Thanksgiving dinners since 2001. While the registration period for volunteers is now closed, you can still donate money to pay for a Thanksgiving box of food at http://www.feedingnyc.org/ donate.php.

Food Bank for New York City is one the largest food banks in the country and works tirelessly to help end hunger in the five boroughs. If you would like to volunteer, either in general or to help with Sandy recovery efforts, go to http://volunteer. foodbanknyc.org to register. You can also help with virtual food drives, actual food drives or monetary donations at http://www.foodbanknyc.org/ how-you-can-help.

New York City Rescue Mission has been providing food, clothes and shelter to the less fortunate since 1872. They are accepting donations, breaking down the amount of people your monetary contribution would help. To give, go to https://nycrescue.org/give/ donate-now.

The AIDS Center of Queens County is accepting all type of donations. If you would like to give, call (718) 8962500.

Police Blotter Compiled by STEVEN J. FERRARI

Queens District Attorney

Superstorm

Queens DA Richard Brown announced that twin brothers from Jamaica have been charged with stealing a U-Haul truck and then using the vehicle to smash through the gate of a Queens Village motorcycle shop before fleeing empty-handed. Also, a St. Albans man has been charged with menacing and criminal possession of a weapon after he attempted to cut a line at a gas station and pointed a pistol at another motorist who complained.

In addition, 15 individuals charged with burglarizing various Far Rockaway businesses in the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy were arraigned in Queens Criminal Court.

The defendants in the motorcycle case have been identified as Anthony Martin and Sean Martin, both 24, of 119-26

177th Pl. in Jamaica. Both men were charged with third-degree burglary, second-degree criminal mischief, third- and fourthdegree grand larceny and possession of burglar's tools. Bail was set at $100,000 for Anthony and $75,000 for Sean. Their next court date is set for in Nov. 19. If convicted, each defendant faces up to seven years in prison.

In the second case, Sean M. Bailey, 35, of 111-14 204th St., St. Albans, is awaiting arraignment on charges of second-degree criminal possession of a weapon and second-degree menacing for attempting to pull his white BMW ahead of another motorist on a gas line at the intersection of Astoria Boulevard and 43rd Street on Nov. 1. If convicted, Bailey faces up to 15 years in prison.

The District Attorney also noted that 15 individuals charged with burglary and other crimes for looting various Far Rockaway businesses - includ-

ing liquor and clothing stores and a Radio Shack - in the aftermath of Sandy were arraigned before Queens Criminal Court Judge Stephanie Zaro. Bail ranged from $5,000 to $100,000 and the defendants are scheduled to return later this month.

All have been charged with thirddegree burglary, a class D felony punishable by up to seven years in prison.

sault and two counts of criminal possession of a weapon.

Ekwegbalu, whose case was heard by a separate jury, was convicted of first-degree manslaughter, first-degree assault, seconddegree assault and one count of criminal possession of a weapon.

The defendants face up to 50 years in prison.

Shooting/Assault

Robbery

Queens DA Richard Brown announced that Gregory Calas, 21, of St. Albans and Nnonso Ekwegbalu, 19, of Springfield Gardens, both members of the Crips street gang, were convicted of first-degree manslaughter for the 2009 death of 13-year-old Kevin Miller. Pedro Garcia, 17, also sustained a gunshot wound to his left leg.

Calas was convicted of firstdegree manslaughter, seconddegree attempted murder, firstdegree assault, second-degree as-

The NYPD is seeking the public's assistance in identifying and locating the following suspect wanted in connection with a robbery.

At approximately 8 p.m. on Nov. 9 in Forest Hills, two suspects approached the victim, a 33-year-old male, as he exited his vehicle, displayed a silver firearm and demanded his property.

After removing property, the suspects forced the victim into his vehicle and drove him to another location where they demanded

112th Precinct

that he withdraw additional money from an ATM. Unable to do so, he was driven to a store where the suspects believed he would be able to get them additional cash. Once inside the store, the victim called 911 and the suspects fled in the victim's vehicle.

No injuries were reported.

The first suspect is described as a Black male, 25-30 years old, between 5-foot-10 and 6-foot-1.

He was last seen wearing a dark green jacket, blue jeans and black boots.

The second suspect is described as having worn a mask.

Anyone with information is asked to call Crime Stoppers at (800) 577-TIPS (8477).

The public can also submit their tips by logging onto Crime Stoppers' website at nypdcrimestoppers.com or by texting their tips to CRIMES (274637), then enter TIPS577.

All calls are strictly confidential.

Nov. 16-22, 2012 PRESS of Southeast Queens Page 9

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Softball Donations Vo l u n t e e r s f r o m t h e Queens College women's softball team sort through donations for the shelter the college provided for victims of Superstorm Sandy. Queens College provided shelter for more than 450 residents displaced by the storm, and was one of 10 CUNY colleges to do so.

Southeast Queens Events Edited By Harley Benson

Development Meeting

Page 10 PRESS of Southeast Queens Nov. 16-22, 2012

Pictured at the recent meeting of the Greater Jamaica Development Corp.'s Downtown Committee (from left) are Anthony Williams, financial services specialist with New York Life; Helen Maxwell, homeownership services manager at the Neighborhood Housing Services of Jamaica; Tannia Gordon, loan officer with Neighborhood Housing Services of Jamaica; Dennis Robertson, retail and sales manager at Carver Bank; and William Martin, chairman of the Downtown Committee.

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Photo by Walter Karling

Home Run Help New York Mets Dillon Gee and Bobby Parnell joined mascot Mr. Met collecting food donations at CitiField on Wednesday. The donations were brought to Breezy Point to aid the victims of Superstorm Sandy.

Nov. 16-22, 2012 PRESS of Southeast Queens Page 11

Borough Beat

Gas Business Plummets After Sandy

BY NATALIA KOZIKOWSKA

Page 12 PRESS of Southeast Queens Nov. 16-22, 2012

As many New Yorkers spent the last week waiting on gas lines that extended for blocks, it might be difficult to imagine that station businesses encountered a severe profit loss amidst the gas crisis. But several owners reveal that the crisis was detrimental, with profits down by as much as 75 percent in some areas.

In the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy, thousands of gas stations were left without power, inhibiting them from selling gas. For the lucky gas stations which had power, Sandy’s flooding slowed down deliveries. In the days following the storm, gas station terminals in New York and New Jersey were either shut down or operating at reduced speeds. Other factors, like the closure of major routes and tunnels and last Wednesday’s nor’easter, also

hindered deliveries.

“We are down by 60 percent.

Our deliveries are down, there is no supply” said Louie Romano, manager at Exxon, located at 150-65 Cross Island Pkwy. in Whitestone. “We are losing business. We are selling 10,000 gallons less than usual. Everything has slowed down – the [car] wash, the shop. No one wants to use gas to get around.”

Romano noted that prior to the storm, his station was receiving as many as three deliveries a day. After the storm, the Exxon didn’t receive a delivery until five or six days later.

“Our terminals didn’t get power back until Saturday or Sunday,” he said.

Even after his terminal had regained power, Romano said that the station was receiving far fewer deliveries – approximately one a day.

But other gas station owners,

like Xanthippi Moshopoulus of Exxon, located at 59-91 Maurice Ave. in Maspeth, said one delivery per day was a long shot.

“It’s affected us a lot because we don’t get deliveries every day. We’ve been getting them every two-three days. From Saturday, we just got our first delivery this [Tuesday] morning. We went all those days without a delivery,” Moshopoulus said.

Moshopoulus echoed similar sentiments as Romano, claiming her business had also plummeted by 60 percent in the weeks following Sandy.

Her business, which also encompasses a convenience store, a Dunkin’ Donuts and a car wash, also suffered dramatically.

“It’s come down too because the people can’t get to the gas pumps,” she said. “The wait to get into the station? Forget about it. People were waiting two miles away.”

Jarro Palillo, an employee at the BP station located on 21-17 Jackson Ave. in Long Island City, explained that his station suffered a 75 percent profit loss. On average, the station was getting deliveries twice a day, but in the week following the storm, the station had received only three deliveries.

Similarly, Robert Dopieho, manager at Queens Village Diesel, located at 218-02 Hillside Ave. in Queens Village, said business had slowed down significantly. Although Queens Village Diesel only dispenses diesel fuel, Dopieho said business still went down by 30 percent because he ran out of diesel fuel for five days in the week after the storm.

To reduce waiting time at gas stations, Mayor Michael Bloomberg implemented a rationing system – an odd-even system for fueling based on license plate numbers. While parts of Queens are still experiencing long waits for

gas, in a press conference held Monday, Bloomberg said that although the rationing is still in place, things are looking up.

“It’s hard to measure, it looks like there are a handful more gas stations open than yesterday and the day before. Anecdotal evidence is that lines are shorter and hopefully that’s true,” he said. “It’s also true that if people think lines are going to be shorter then they’re not going to try to fill up when they’re down a quarter of a tank. So it’s one of these self-correcting things. So in time, these distribution facilities that haven’t been functioning will come back on line.”

Multiple Queens gas station owners shared a similar consensus, estimating the gas crisis should be over within the next two weeks.

Reach Reporter Natalia Kozikowska at (718)357-7400 Ext. 123 or nkozikowska@queenspress.com.

A&E

Queens College Looks Back At Vietnam

BY JOE MARVILLI As Queens College celebrates its 75th Anniversary, the school is looking back at one of the most tumultuous times in America’s history. The campus museum is displaying an exhibit covering the Vietnam War era with both protest posters and photos from the 1960s and 1970s.

“Posters as History, Politics and Art: Teaching with Primary

Sources” is currently running at the Godwin-Ternbach Museum, having opened on Nov. 12 and lasting until Dec. 21. The museum, located in Klapper Hall, features posters donated by alumni active in student organizations, rallies and more on and off campus during that time period.

On the ground floor, dozens of anti-Vietnam posters are spread out along the walls, running the gamut of bleak, inspirational and

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cal science professor Michael Krasner, secondary education professor Jack Zevin and Townsend Harris Assistant Principal Susan Getting. The group decided to involve Townsend Harris High School, choosing 300 social studies students to study and interpret the posters.

The texts they wrote accompany the displays, which show how the works affected them.

Getting students involved helped to further the main message of the exhibit, which is to fight against what you feel is unjust.

“As informed citizens, we can make informed decisions,” Winter said. “To be patriotic is to protest that which we feel is not correct.

Democracy’s messy but you have to do this to guarantee liberty.”

The exhibit will be enhanced by several events taking place during its run.

Later in the month, the Godwin-Ternbach Museum will hold an Educators’ Evening on Nov. 28 from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.

Reach Reporter Joe Marvilli at (718) 357-7400, Ext. 125, or at jmarvilli@queenstribune.com.

Walking A Mile In Heels

BY MEGAN MONTALVO

Olga Maria Czarkowski prestigious NYC Fashion Week.

Although her new life fulfilled her desire to work in fashion, the transition was not an easy one.

“It was very difficult learning English,” she said. “I had some training in Puerto Rico, but it was definitely frustrating at first.

Thankfully, I had great mentors who helped me.”

While working in the fashion industry, Czarkowski has had many doors open up to her, including working with Top Model judges Ms. J Alexander and Nigel Barker, styling fashion designer Shekhar Rahate at the Brooklyn Wave Fashion Week, judging the preliminary for Miss America and working as campaign model for Huntress Stiletto Fragrance

by Epiphany and Body Up Pro hairbrushes.

The success she has garnered

led her to create her own public relations firm earlier this year, which she appropriately named “DREAMS in HEELS PR.” Her clientele includes famed designer Ola Hawatmeh of Ola Style, celebrity hair stylist/makeup artist Carlos Otero, The Latino Make up Show and My Lifestyle Magazine.

Never losing focus on her desire to contribute to charity, Czarkowski also works with nonprofit organizations, including the Reginald F. Lewis Foundation, Milagros Day Worldwide, Real Beauty Real Women and Beating Cancer in Heels.

“Working with charitable organizations has always been important to me, especially ones that are dedicated to women.

There are so many issues women face, but sometimes not enough attention is given to them. That is why I volunteer,” she said.

For her charitable work, Czarkowski was honored on Nov. 12 by Mastercard and Latina Magazine as a “Next Generation Latina,” along with nine other inspiring women from around the country.

With her mother by her side at the awards ceremony, she said “I never thought I would win. But, I’m happy I get to represent for strong, Latina women everywhere. It just reaffirms my mantra that I’m living my dreams in heels.”

Reach Reporter Megan Montalvo at (718) 357-7400 Ext. 128 or mmontalvo@ queenstribune.com.

Nov. 16-22, 2012 PRESS of Southeast Queens Page 13

It has been said that in order to really know someone, you first must walk a mile in their shoes.

If you were to walk a mile in Olga Maria Czarkowski’s shoes, chances are you might fall on the first step, since an average day for the Astoria resident consists of doing everything in high heels.

From taking the subway into Manhattan to once climbing the Great Wall of China, Czarkowski (nee Vargas) has built reputation on never parting from her fashion forward shoes.

Since the age of 2, Czarkowski had always loved wearing heels – a trait that comes from her mother.

“My mother was a seamstress and always had great fashion sense,” she said. “I used to love walking around the house wearing her heels.”

Her early passion for shoes paved the way for a full-time career in fashion.

When she was 18 years old, Czarkowski moved to the United States from her native Puerto Rico.

After spending some time initially in Miami, she decided to move to New York City.

“New York is where dreams come true,” Czarkowski said. “I knew that if I wanted to make it in fashion, I needed to make the move.”

Shortly after arriving in the City, she began volunteering with fashion designers, which landed her a freelance spot in the

Photo by Zohn Yancy

Sometimes, you want to sit and enjoy a meal, but you don’t have time for a long process.

You need to get seated quickly, order quickly and receive the food quickly. For those in a rush, but who can afford to spend 20 minutes getting lunch, Lite Bites & Grill is the way to go.

Found at the intersection of Broadway and Steinway in Astoria, the bustling diner was the perfect place for my friends and me to go before heading over to the nearby movie theater on Sunday. As we entered, the place looked packed with patrons, but our waiter immediately headed over to my group and got us seated.

Looking over the menu, I could not help but notice the variety of delicious options for an affordable price. It included breakfast wraps bursting with ingredients, omelets of every flavor, several daily soup specials, inventive brown rice bowls and mouth-watering pitaninis. Nothing I saw on the menu went above $20.

As we waited for our food to arrive, I looked around at the

simple, yet tasteful décor. Lite Bites feels like a combination of a classic diner and a modern eatery. While there is no outdoor seating, you can have the next best thing by grabbing a window seat.

In seemingly no time at all, our food arrived. I stuck with a bagel and a blueberry muffin as I was only looking for a quick snack. When I saw what my friends ordered, though, my relatively full stomach suddenly felt hungry again. One of them got the Silver Dollar Pancakes, which looked so delicious that I’d equate them with gold instead. The three pancakes were stacked on top of each other, dripping with maple syrup, dabbed in butter and covered with powdered sugar. A few strawberry slices on top completed the package.

Another friend was in the mood for lunch and was rewarded with a delicious western burger. The BBQ sauce smothered the cheddar cheese and bacon that topped the burger. It looked great, smelled great and given how quickly my friend ate it, must have tasted great too.

Everything about Lite Bites was on the ball, from the service to the food. We left having definitely found a new favor eatery.

If you are in Astoria, I definitely recommend trying Lite Bites out. Chances are high that you’ll enjoy every last bite.

-Joe Marvilli

satirical. Thrown in are a few Occupy Wall Street posters, connecting today’s struggle for economic justice with the demonstrations against the unpopular war.

On the upper level, photos and newspaper clips of Queens College from the era show the protest movement in full swing. They are complimented by a few posters from the Russian Revolution. As a result, the Vietnam exhibit relates itself to protests further in the past and protests in the present.

The exhibit was organized by Curator Amy Winter, QC politi-

Faith

Grammy Nominee To Perform At St. Albans Church

BY NATALIA KOZIKOWSKA

Photo courtesy Agenda Fashion and Lifestyle Magazine

The St. Albans Congregational Church will kick off the Christmas season with a holiday concert starring Grammy nomi-

nee Gregory Porter. The world-renowned vocalist will be singing ballads that evoke influences ranging from Nat King Cole to gospel.

Home to several jazz legends including Count Basie, Lena

Grammy nominee Gregory Porter will be performing at St. Albans Congregational Church on Dec. 1.

Horne, Ella Fitzgerald and John Coltrane, St. Albans is known for its musical talents. As a tribute to the unique genre, St. Albans Congregational Church hosts free Jazz Vespers on the first Saturday of every month for the community of Jamaica. In December, the church has booked a very special guest sure to bring locals in the Christmas spirit.

Porter is an American jazz vocalist, songwriter and actor.

His debut album, Water, was released in 2010 by American record label Moteme Music. The album was nominated for Best Jazz Vocal album at the 53rd Annual Grammy Awards. Porter was also a member of the original Broadway cast of It Ain’t Nothin’ But the Blues, which appeared on Broadway in 1999.

The musician’s second album, Be Good, contains many of Porter’s original compositions, which were released in February.

Be Good gained widespread critical acclaim both for its distinctive singing and compositions, such as “Be Good (Lion’s Song),” “Real Good Hands” and “On My Way To Harlem.”

This will not be the first time the Grammy nominee has spread Christmas cheer. In 2011, Porter, whose mother was also a minister, appeared on the television show “Carole King and Friend at Christmas,” which aired on BBC Four. The show played in various locations across the globe.

Porter will be appearing at St.

Albans Congregational Church on Dec. 1 from 5 to 7 p.m. There is no entry fee, however, donations to the church are greatly appreciated.

St. Albans Congregational Church is located at 172-17 Linden Blvd. (near Merrick Boulevard) in Jamaica. For additional information about the concert or the Jazz Vespers series, you may reach the church at (718) 6578282.

Reach Reporter Natalia Kozikowska at (718)357-7400 Ext. 123 or nkozikowska@queens press.com.

Word

Seek the LORD and his strength; seek his presence continually!

-1 Chronicles 16:11

Notebook Thomas Edison H.S.

Thomas Edison High School Celebrates Spirit Week Page 14 PRESS of Southeast Queens Nov. 16-22, 2012

BY NATALIA KOZIKOWSKA Thomas A. Edison Career and Technical Education High School in Jamaica will celebrate its annual Spirit Week from Nov. 26–30. The tradition, which has been alive for more than 15 years, will give all students the chance to come together and give seniors the chance to win prizes like free prom tickets.

Guy Burley, the school’s coordinator of student affairs, said the week-long event is important to students because they should enjoy their high school experience. Every day during the week, music will be played in the cafeteria and the school will give out prizes including stuffed animals and $300 prom tickets for seniors.

“High school is a lot more than sitting in class for academ-

ics, so this way it gives a lot of spirit to the school,” Burley said.

“We do a Spirit Week every year.

It’s basically to enhance spirit and to have a little fun.”

The start of Spirit Week kicks off with Pajama Day on Monday, where students and teachers alike dress up in their pajamas.

During their lunch period, students will also compete in a hula hoop contest. The cafeteria will also sell hot chocolate and bagels on the morning of Pajama Day. “Any student that is in their pajamas, full pajamas, will get whipped cream and marshmallows with their hot chocolate,” Burley said.

Tuesday will be Twin Day, where students get to pick a friend or two and dress alike.

During lunch periods, they will have the opportunity to partici-

pate in competitions like a three legged race and limbo contest with their “twin.”

Wednesday, one of the most popular days of Spirit Week according to Burley, will be Dress for Success Day. Most students come in dressed up in gowns and suits and seniors will have the chance to play a trivia game – “The Brain Game.” A couple of students from each senior class that will be up on stage playing games and the winning class will get a free bagel party, Burley said.

On Thursday, the students will celebrate Jersey/Sport and Hat Day. On this day, participants can wear their favorite team jerseys and hats. Appropriately chosen, Thursday will also be Thomas Edison’s Homecoming basketball game. Carnival games will be held at the cafeteria following the school’s pep

rally later that day.

On Jersey/ Sport and Hat Day, Thomas Edison will hold a blood drive.

“Not only is it the pep rally and our homecoming game, it’s also our semi annual blood drive.

Every senior that gives blood will be in a raffle and the winning raffle will get a free prom ticket also,” he said.

Topping off Spirit Week on Friday, students can participate in Multicultural Day. On this day, students will be dressed in their home country’s unique costumes. The school’s cafeteria will also be serving cuisine from across the world.

“We are a very multicultural school so it will be wonderful to see students dressed from their cultures,” Burley said.

Just a few weeks after Superstorm Sandy devastated

regions in New York, Burley said that Spirit Week will help lift the moods of students. He also noted that Thomas Edison is contributing to relief efforts.

“We are in the process a food drive and a book drive,” he said.

“Two of our big rooms are already filled with toiletries. Our guidance department has been sure to get in contact with every student who hasn’t been back to school after Sandy. Obviously, we want to make sure they are okay.”

Thomas Edison High School is located at 165-65 84th Ave. in Jamaica.

Reach Reporter Natalia Kozikowska at (718)357-7400 Ext. 123 or nkozikowska@queens press.com Is Your School Doing Something Good? Write The PRESS of Southeast Queens, 150-50 14th Rd., Whitestone, NY 11357

What’s Up NOV. 16 Jack and the Beanstalk The Black Spectrum Theatre Company's Daycare Theatre Series will be showing a special presentation of "Jack and the Beanstalk" for the children in its community. Tickets are $7 and $6 for groups over 50. The show will begin at 10 a.m. and end at 11:30 a.m. For additional information, call (718) 723-1800.

Black Spectrum Theatre is located at 177th Street and Baisley Boulevard (Roy Wilkins Park).

Free Health Screenings Queens Central Library will be offering a free Zumba Gold program for older active adults. The program will use dance moves mixed with exercise for an effective low-impact workout. It is recommended for participants to wear loose clothing and sneakers. Preregistration is required for each session.

Queens ConnectCare will also be offering free health screenings (blood pressure, blood glucose, and body mass index) and the opportunity to schedule an appointment at the Joseph P. Addabbo Family Health Center. Both events will be held at 10 a.m. and are free.

Israel and New Breed

NOV. 17 Business Plan Competition The Queens Economic Development Corporation has begun its 7th Annual Queens StartUP! Business Plan Competition in Sept. 2012. The competition gives entrepreneurs the opportunity to strengthen their business knowledge, learn about business trends and gain insights about starting and growing a business, as well as offering an introduction to the vast resources at Queens Library. The free event will be held a Queens Central Library at 11 a.m.

Rufus King's son, John, was the president of the Railroad! In this free program held at Rufus King Park, you will have the opportunity to learn about trains and how they helped change New York from farmland to a city. Enjoy train related stories, crafts, and more.

Hands-on History events are designed for families with children.

Organized groups can schedule tours or hands-on history workshops at a time that is mutually convenient for the museum and group; group rates apply. The event will begin at noon and end at 3 p.m.

King Manor Museum/ Rufus King Park is located at 153rd Street at Jamaica Avenue

Coming Home W.I.S.E. One of the primary concerns for many citizens upon release from incarceration is getting work. Coming Home W.I.S.E. is a program designed to help the formerly incarcerated, court-involved young people and disconnected teens and young adults in the job search process and introduce them to community service organizations that provide employment services. The free program will be held at Queens Central Library at 2 p.m.

Junior Mance Junior Mance, a jazz pianist, composer, author and recording artist of forty plus albums will be performing at York College.

Mance began playing the piano at the age of five. He attended Roosevelt College in Chicago as a music major. During his early teens, he started playing professionally. He joined Gene Ammons' band and began his recording career at the age of seventeen. He also played and recorded with Lester Young, Dinah Washington, Clifford Brown, Max Roach, Clark Terry, Dizzy Gillespie, Cannonball Adderley and many others. Tickets are $20 or $10 for students and seniors.

The concert will be held from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the York College Performing Arts Center located at 94-45 Guy R. Brewer Blvd.

James Spaulding Quartet James Spaulding, a masterful soloist, will be performing at the Afrikan Poetry Theatre. For many years, the artist was among

the busier sidemen for Blue Note Records. His saxophone style is an extension of the Charlie Parker influence, but his overall concept incorporates much of the broad Jazz saxophone heritage.

Spaulding has played with musicians like Sun Ra, Freddie Hubbard, Bobby Hutcherson, Max Roach, The Ellington Orchestra, Archie Shepp and is on over 100 recordings. For price and time, you must call (718) 523-3312.

The Afrikan Poetry Theatre is located at 176-03 Jamaica Ave.

NOV. 18 Open Mic for Poets Jake Marmer, the author of the poetry collection "Jazz Talmud," which was published by Sheep Meadow Press in Dec. 2011 will be hosting an Open Mic Night for poets at Queens Central Library.

He will merge poetry, music, and performance into various philosophically potent mixtures, like existentialist dancehall, talmudic jazz poetry and personalized bop apocalypse. The free event begins at 2 p.m.

NOV. 19 Medicare: Enrollment Awareness Event Sponsored by City Council Member Leroy Comrie (D- St. Albans) and the Medicare Rights Center, Queens Central Library will be holding an interactive workshop to help teach locals about changes in Medicare taking place in 2013 and the Medicare Savings Programs and Extra Help for the Part D Prescription Drug Benefit. The free event will be held at noon. Queens Central Library is located at 89-11 Merrick Blvd. in Jamaica.

ONGOING Mobile CPR Program FDNY EMS instructors will come out to your site to conduct the CPR training using your facilities. The Be 911 Compressions Only CPR Program is brought to you free of charge by FDNY and NYC Service. The goal of the program is to train as many people as possible in basic CPR skills. In addition, participants will be briefly educated on the automated external defibrillator (AED) used to try and revive a person suffering from cardiac

arrest. Though this program does not certify any participants, the FDNY and NYC Service believe increasing the knowledge of how to save a life is far more beneficial.

The program welcomes all ages, as long as the individual can demonstrate competency in retaining the required skills.

Appointments can be made Monday through Friday during the hours of 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Classes may be approximately 20 minutes depending on the size of the group.

For group registration of 10 or more participants or further information, contact the FDNY's CPR Training Unit at Telephone Number (718) 281-3888.

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 one-on-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.

HIV Awareness Clergy United for Community Empowerment provides intervention and curriculum-based

prevention education sessions on HIV/AIDS, to reduce risk behaviors that lead to HIV transmission.

Services are located at 89-31 161st St., Jamaica. Call (718) 297-0720 ask about our presentation to adolescents and men/women of color. Services are available Tue.-Thurs., 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Merrick Flea Market A flea market has opened at 221-02 Merrick Blvd. On sale are a wide range of items, including household items, jewelry and clothing.

The market is open every Tuesday, Thursday and Friday from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.; 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturdays and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Sundays.

PAL Volunteers The Police Athletic League (PAL) is looking for volunteers to continue its mission of serving New York City's young people by donating their time and talents to help serve Queens youngsters at PAL's Redfern Cornerstone and Far Rockaway Beacon in ArverneFar Rockaway, PAL's Edward Byrne Center in South Jamaica and PS 214 in Flushing.

PAL Centers in Queens offer a wide range of opportunities for volunteers of all talents. PAL's Redfern Cornerstone and Far Rockaway Beacon are looking for people to participate in a center clean-up day. Volunteers are needed to tutor and mentor young people during the After School Program's daily homework help sessions. In addition, individuals can also donate their time assisting the many special events held at PAL's Centers throughout the year. PAL is also seeking professionals to give career advice and talk about their own careers to young people, as well as guest speakers who can share information on a specific hobby of interest to the youngsters.

To become a volunteer with the Police Athletic League or to learn more about volunteer opportunities, please visit palnyc.org. Volunteers will go through an application process that includes an interview, screening and an orientation. For more information, please contact PAL's Volunteer Coordinator, Alexandria Sumpter-Delves, at (212) 477-9450, Ext. 390 or volunteer@palnyc.org.

Nov. 16-22, 2012 PRESS of Southeast Queens Page 15

The Greater Allen A.M.E. Cathedral of New York's Men's Ministry and Male Usher Ministry is proud to present "Israel and New Breed." The event will be a powerful evening of worship.

Tickets cost $15 and the event will begin at 7 p.m. The Greater Allen A.M.E. Cathedral of New York is located at 110-31 Merrick Blvd. in Jamaica.

Hands On History

Profile

Group Aims To Keep Violence Off Streets

BY NATALIA KOZIKOWSKA In an effort to combat violence in a crime-ridden southeast Queens, one local is giving the gang members and troubled youth of his community the opportunity to trade in their guns for a suit and tie.

100 Suits for 100 Men, an organization founded by Kevin Livingston, 33, was started in January. The program was designed to give troubled men and women of his community an opportunity to turn their life around.

"We should not condemn them, but [rather] give them an opportunity," Livingston said.

"The focus of 100 Suits 100 Men is to not only provide them with suits, but to go ahead and do their resumes over and try to help bring them back to an employment atmosphere."

The focus of the program is to find a particular person's skill

nity. If you want to set and transform it into change, you change something positive, from within."

Livingston said. Drug According to dealers, for example, Livingston, it is not unmay be particularly good common for him to apat selling a product, so proach disconnected inthe organization would dividuals and strike up try to channel that skill conversation to let them and make it useful toknow about his program. wards finding a career "There was a time and being an entreprewhen I interrupted a drug neur. deal and put suits up right Having grown up in a next to them on the violent community with wall," he said with a frequent shootings, chuckle. "I just think Livingston said he was once you put a suit on, inspired to start an organization that focused on 100 Suits for 100 Men participated in New York's your mentality changes understanding gang "Million Hoodie March," held in honor or Trayvon automatically and it's my members rather than Martin in March. Kevin Livingston, right, a police responsibility to help officer of the 103rd Precinct, center, and Ms. Lockett, them from that point forcondemning them. ward, keeping them on "I'm not trying to a volunteer, left. the right path." change the whole dyTo date, 100 Suits for 100 namic, but I just want to let trepreneurs out of former active people know there is an organi- gang members," he said. "I Men has distributed more than zation out there that won't judge wanted for others to know that 400 suits and has anywhere 15-20 volunteer s. you. I'm only worried about you don't need a college degree f ro m change and I want to create en- to make a change in the commu- Livingston has also sponsored

events in Jamaica in which he distributed suits to those in need, gave out more than 300 book bags and registered about 75 new voters.

Livingston is proud to announce that after much effort, 100 Suits for 100 Men will be expanding citywide. In 2013, he will be starting chapters in Brownsville, Brooklyn and Harlem, Manhattan.

"We want to target areas which are known to have a high number of shootings. Those areas suffer a lot with gang violence and heavy shootings," he said.

To become a volunteer or to learn more about being a part of the program, you may contact Kevin Livingston at (347) 4722519 or email m e r r i ck10 0 s u i t s fo r 10 0 m e n @gmail.com.

Reach Reporter Natalia Kozikowska at (718)357-7400 Ext. 123 or nkozikowska@queenspress.com.

People

Page 16 PRESS of Southeast Queens Nov. 16-22, 2012

Local students were recognized by being named to the Dean’s List for the summer 2012 quarter at Berkeley College. They include: Queens Village: Christopher Clinton, Rina Goldstein, Sergio Turbides.

Local students enrolled for their first semester at the University of Delaware in the fall. They include: Cambria Heights: Bryanna Hoy. Queens Village: Elizabeth Kalvoda.

Tyrene Wright of Laurelton received a Ph.D. in interdisciplinary studies from Union Institute and University in Cincinnati, Ohio, in October.

Valentino McKenzie of Jamaica recently participated in the University of Akron’s Make A Difference Day in Akron, Ohio. McKenzie is majoring in

sport studies-coach education.

The Kupferberg Center for the Arts at Queens College will present the Vienna Boys Choir performing an exclusive holiday show titled “Christmas in Vienna,” 7:30 p.m. Dec. 15 at the Colden Auditorium at Queens College. Tickets cost $20-$30 and can be purchased by calling the box office at (718) 793-8080 or online at www.kupferbergcenter.org.

Bishop Paul Sanchez, the Rev. Msgr. Joseph Funaro and the Sacred Music Society of Our Lady Queen of Martyrs will present the annual Christmas concert 4 p.m.

Dec. 9 at the church, located on Ascan Avenue and Queens Boulevard. The Sacred Music Society will join with the Oratorio Society of Queens to perform under the direction of maestro David Close.

Tickets cost $25; children ages 12 and younger accompa-

nied by an adult are free. For information, call (718) 268-6251.

Five Queens businesses have been selected for the annual Inner City Capital Connections program, which identifies inner city businesses in need of growth capital and matches them with capital providers. The five businesses are: Vinoleo Solution & Services Corp., Business Management Consortium LLC, Artcore Fine Art Services Inc., GM Printing and The Urban Group.

Local high school newspapers have been honored with Newsies, awarded by Baruch College’s Dept. of Journalism and the Writing Professions for outstanding high school journalism. First-place winners include: Catherine Moskos , Townsend Harris High School, in-depth reporting, “Affirmative Action Sparks Debate During College Season;” The Log, Aviation High School, lede writing;

Verdict, Benjamin Cardozo High School, best online newspaper; N i c o l e J avor sky , Benjamin Cardozo High School, arts and

entertainment, “Roadracer on the Run;” Richard Chicaiza, Aviation High School, illustration, “Excuse.”

Taking Action:

Briarwood Action Network gathered to help clean Hoover Park and Hoover Playground as part of the citywide It’s My Park Day initiative.

Models Of Queens You know what they say—better late

Third Time’s A Charm

then never.

For Inna, the jump into modeling came late in life, when she was 34 years old. She knows that she’s up against tough odds, but she’s just looking to have some fun and even make some money.

She has been told she has the right look for the runway. When not modeling, she works as a clinical aesthetician.

“I always wanted to try,” she said.

“Everywhere I go I always hear, ‘Are you a model,’ or ‘you should be a model.’”

She’s tried to get her foot in the modeling door twice and it hasn’t worked out.

She’s hoping the third time’s the charm.

“I’m not taking it too seriously,” she said. “It’s not like I’m building a career.”

She loves heading to the Queens Botanical Garden with her daughter and enjoying the serenity it offers. It’s where she lives.

A native of Brooklyn’s Brighton Beach (we’ll forgive her for that), Inna has lived in Flushing for the last five years.

“It’s a big difference living in Queens,” she said. “There’s more air; it’s just bigger to me.”

Inna’s not into the club scene like her fellow models. She’s a little too sophisticated for that.

“I’m not 19 years old, I’m not really a nightclub person,” she said. “Sometimes I love to go to a club and relax, but mostly I spend my free time playing tennis. I also like nature; I love to just take a walk outside.”

Page 18 PRESS of Southeast Queens Nov. 16-22, 2012

Washed Out A lot of times when you watch a music video, you may think either the director or band is crazy for their outlandish ideas. Brooklyn based band Rayliota took it to the next level though, irresponsibly filming a video in the Rockaways during Sandy.

The video's setup is simple enough. It is supposed to show the duo performing as waves flood over Rockaway Beach. Sandy had other plans though. Most of the song features the drummer repeat-

Inna Home: Flushing Age: 36 Height: 5’ 11" Weight: 125 lbs Stats: 34-27-38

That’s Not Nothing!

Comedian Jerry Seinfeld became famous for his eponymous TV show about “nothing,” but in the wake of Superstorm Sandy, the Queens College alum is definitely doing something.

Seinfeld announced that he was donating all the proceeds of the last three shows in his New York tour – including last month’s performance at Queens College – to local nonprofits to help with relief from the storm.

The donation was announced

by Queens Beep Helen Marshall, along with donations from businesses including JetBlue, Key Food, Staples, Bumble Bee Tuna and others.

A Home For Rocky

QConf is edited by: Michael Schenkler. Contributors: Ross Barkan, Natalia Kozikowska, Joe Marvilli, Marcia Moxom Comrie, Steve Ferrari, Megan Montalvo, Mike Nussbaum.

Conf@QueensTribune.com

In the wake of Superstorm Sandy, a clever raccoon made his way into the Baisley Park branch of the Queens Library. He was discovered under a shrub when neighborhood volunteers came to clean up after the storm. Quickly becoming the library’s pet, the children named him Mr. Rocky Books, fed him, made him a home and of course, read to him through a glass window.

Mr. Rocky Books is just one of many Queens residents who turned to a library for shelter after the storm. The Mobile Library, parked in the Rockaways, was a haven for many without heat or power in their homes.

Queens Library at Far Rockaway was open to provide emergency supplies to the community, and information for applying for

Confidentially, New York . . . edly running after parts of his drum set as flooding washes it away.

Throw in some reverse film and shaky cameras and voila! You have got a music video.

These two epitomize the phrase “Don’t try this at home.”

Oddly Even After waiting hours in line and inching your way to the pump, Queens’ drivers can now take solace in a new ODD-EVEN license plate system. Despite waiting more than a week after Sandy, Mayor Bloomberg finally announced the implementation of rationing fuel last Thursday.

The news had many locals wondering why this was not done sooner.

Perhaps he did not have to wait in the long lines like we at QConf did.

QC Prez Muyskens & QC grad Seinfeld Perhaps if the character he played on his TV show did something similar, he wouldn’t have ended up behind bars for not being a nice person in the “Seinfeld” series finale…

Mr. Rocky Books at home grants and resources.

As for the future of the sneaky raccoon, he is temporarily snug in the library’s atrium. It is a glass “donut hole” with a small garden in the middle of the library building.

Mr. Rocky Books is indeed a wild animal, so the library assumes that once the weather is more to his preference he will shuffle along.

“For now, though, everyone is happy to have him as a guest,” library spokeswoman Joanne King said.

Bye Bye, Bay-by Though we still have Flushing Bay, there is no more Bay in Flushing.

The Mets and their maligned outfielder Jason Bay agreed to part ways, making Bay a free agent.

Bay will receive all of the $21 million still owed to him. In three years with the Mets, the injuryplagued Bay never hit more than 12 home runs in any one Mets season. The year before he joined the Mets, he hit 36 home runs for the Boston Red Sox. Bay watch, thankfully, is cancelled.

Nov. 16-22, 2012 PRESS of Southeast Queens Page 19

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