Queens Press Epaper

Volume 11 Issue No. 46 Nov. 19 - 25, 2010

PAGE 26

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IS 231: 93% Black

SEQ officials react to the news that the only non-high schools in Queens set to be ‘closed’ by the Dept. of Education are in our neighborhood, and mostly serve black students.

By Jessica Ablamsky…Page 12

PRESS Photos by Ira Cohen

PS/IS 147: 92% Black

PS 40: 74% Black

PS 30: 85% Black

Online at www.QueensPress.com

Presstime

S. Asians Fight For Their Own Seat

BY DOMENICK RAFTER

Join The Rider Rebellion

BY DOMENICK RAFTER

Fares are going up, service is being cut or scaled back, and no one is really sure how to fix it – or if the people in charge even want to.

In response to the rising furor over the financial crisis at the MTA, Transportation Alternatives, a non-profit organization boasting more than 8,000 members that promotes public transit, walking and bicycling in New York City, is starting a campaign called Rider Rebellion, aimed at moving straphangers to pressure public officials to fix the MTA. Rider Rebellion has released a proposed Transit Rider’s Bill of Rights, aimed at channeling public frustration into a list of certain demands, which include reliable, affordable and efficient transit; accurate, readily available information; clear announcements; well lit, clean, maintained and safe facilities; handicapped access; helpful and courteous services; prioritization of funds for operation, maintenance and improvement of the system; and more transparent lines of communication between the MTA and riders.

The bill of rights also calls for fare hikes to be used as a last resort, and at least one worker and one rider to be installed as voting members of the MTA Board of Directors.

Transportation Alternatives is hoping to have Queens SubAlready, the group’s way riders join its Rider Rebellion.

Facebook page has over

that the South Asian-American community is large enough to necessitate uniting them in one district.

Albert noted that the importance of the South Asian-American community goes beyond Richmond Hill and South Ozone Park.

"If you wanted to capture the entire neighborhood, you would have to go into Ozone Park and parts of Woodhaven," Albert said. He listed neighborhoods like Jackson Heights, Jamaica Estates and Bellerose as other locations with high South Asian-American populations that he hopes to advocate for. The growing South AsianAmerican voting bloc in Bellerose was key to former Councilman Tony Avella's defeat of 38-year incumbent State Senator Frank Padavan (R-Bellerose).

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

Council Bills Offered To Reduce Car Tickets

BY DOMENICK RAFTER A new bill being considered in the City Council may make it easier to park your car on street-cleaning days.

The bill, introduced by Councilman Ydanis Rodriguez (D-Manhattan), had a hearing in front of the Transportation Committee last week. If enacted, it would protect drivers who park on a street after the street had been cleaned from being ticketed; they would not have to wait until the allotted time is up, and drivers who remain in their cars until the street cleaner arrives on the block would also be protected.

The bill has two cosponsors from Queens, Peter Vallone Jr. (D-Astoria) and Dan Halloran (R-Whitestone).

"Competition for parking spaces is getting worse," Vallone said.

Halloran said that there is a misconception among many about who drives in the City, and that misconception is often erroneous when dealing with residents in the outer boroughs.

"There is a false perception that drivers in New York City are rich and well-to-do," said Halloran. "In my community, most car owners are middle class people, and alternate-side laws affect them the most. Middle class drivers often don't have access to driveways and are forced to park on the street. They have to adjust their lives around the next street cleaning. It takes people away from their jobs and families. And if they forget to move their car, they are hit with costly parking tickets."

Councilman Peter Koo (R-Flushing), a member of the Transportation Committee, has not yet endorsed the bill and said there are still kinks to be ironed out.

"There are still some problems with the execution and logistics of some of the considerations offered by the bill," said Koo spokesman James McClelland.

Vallone, who is also sponsoring a bill that would allow drivers to double-park while wait-

A bill being debated in the City Council would loosen parking restrictions during street sweeping. ing to pull into a parking space, said enforcement of the new law is up to the NYPD. "They put themselves in this situation by letting their traffic agents run amuck," Vallone said. "It's their job to figure out how to enforce it."

Councilman Rodriguez offered some suggestions on enforcing his bill.

"The principal concern is how traffic enforcement agents will know if the street sweeper has passed or not when issuing a ticket," he said. "I think that the answer to this is first of all to implement a greater level of coordination between the street sweeper and the person issuing the tickets," he said. "The City should also look to implement a vehicle tracking system, similar to what most cities use to tell if the busses are running on schedule."

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

Nov. 19-25, 2010 PRESS of Southeast Queens Page 3

1,000 fans and the campaign is going across the city to Community Board meetings to spread its message.

At a meeting of Community Board 5, Mo Kinberg, policy and outreach manager for Transportation Alternatives, asked members of the board to endorse Rider Rebellion.

“We want to put the public back in New York City Public Transit,” she said.

At the meeting, Kinberg took questions on Transportation Alternative’s positions on issues like privatization of the MTA, which Kinberg said cost force fares higher because a privatized MTA would need to raise more revenue than they do now to make a profit.

For more information on the Rider Rebellion campaign, visit riderrebellion.org.

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

hoods are divided into slices of districts centered away from the area, including the Flushing-based district of Rory Lancman (D-Hillcrest), the Far Rockaway-centered district of Michele Titus (D-Far Rockaway), the districts of Mike Miller (D-Glendale), Vivian Cook (D-South Jamaica) and Audrey Pheffer (D-Rockaway Park), where voting blocs in Glendale, Rochdale Village and the Rockaway Peninsula respectively outnumber the South Asian community. Albert said Taking Our Seat is conducting a study on the need for a state-level district, and findings should be released in December.

Albert said he was not concerned with the low turnout rate in Richmond Hill and South Ozone Park during the Census earlier this year because their advocacy will be based on number of voters, which he believes would make the group's argument

PRESS Photo by Ira Cohen

The South Asian-American population in Southern Queens is being disenfranchised by district boundaries, according to a study done by Taking Our Seat, an organization advocating for better political representation for South Asians.

The neighborhoods of Richmond Hill and South Ozone Park have some of the largest populations of residents of South Asian and Indo-Caribbean descent in the country, but the neighborhoods are divided among different Council, State Assembly, State Senate and even Congressional districts.

On the City level, the South Asian community is split between the Council districts of Eric Ulrich (R-Ozone Park) - where populations in Howard Beach and Rockaway outnumber the South Asian communities - and the district of newlyelected Councilman Ruben Wills (D-South Jamaica). The election that put Wills in office is at the forefront of the issue raised

by Taking Our Seat.

John Prakash Albert, the group's founder, said more than 4,000 South Asian-American and Indo-Caribbean voters do not live in the district, but do live in the neighborhood, and would have made a difference in the race that Wills won with 3,347 votes.

What he calls the disenfranchised 4,225

South Asian voters "would have had a tremendous impact on this race," Albert said. "We conducted this analysis to show how an election that is supposed to empower our community actually demonstrates how powerless we are."

Two of the seven candidates running in the special election Nov. 2 were from the South Asian and Indo-Caribbean community; Al Baldeo, who finished third, and Harpreet Singh Toor, who finished sixth.

Taking Our Seat, Albert said, is using those election results to promote its grassroots efforts to unite the South Asian community in Southern Queens in common districts. The movement, called "Brown Districts, Now," will advocate to keep South Asian-American neighborhoods in the same district to increase the possibility of a representative of South Asian descent getting elected.

The state legislative seats are Taking Our Seat's first priority.

"The state redraws its lines for the Assembly and Senate first," he explained. Just 10 years ago, the seat recently won by Francisco Moya in Corona was created to meet the needs of a growing Latino demographic.

The communities in South Queens are split between the State Senate districts of Shirley Huntley (D-Jamaica) and Joe Addabbo Jr. (D-Howard Beach), while on the State Assembly level, the neighbor-

Mourning Those Lost In Flight 587 Eight years ago, Flight 587 exploded over Belle Harbor, sending hundreds to their deaths and setting off an investigation as to the cause of the tragedy.

Hundreds of friends and family members of the more than 300 who perished Photo by Victoria Canore DMD IMAGES

Grandchildren of Pedro Brito, Corona plant roses in the loving memory of their fallen grandfather.

that day came to The 587 Memorial on Beach 116th Street in Rockaway. While the official government report assigned blame for the disaster to pilot error, there are many out there who disagree with the official yet suspicious findings.

The ceremony was very solemn, as a glaring sun that shined warmth on the mourners and guests attending the 8th annual memorial service.

A bell tolled as the names were read aloud by a number of family members.

Mayor Mike Bloomberg looked very somber, with tears filling his eyes at times during the service. Also on hand were U.S. Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-Kew Gardens), State Sen. Malcolm Smith (D-St. Albans) and Councilman Eric Ulrich (R-Ozone Park). Most of the Dominican families who lost loved ones in this disaster live in Washington Heights.

Following the memorial service, which included prayers by local clergy and music by a local performer, the families joined Bloomberg at the site of the Memorial Wall for the official wreath laying ceremony.

The moment did not include the press, giving family members some private time with their thoughts.

Many families reminisced about lost loved ones, including their favorite foods and what their families remembered most about their lost relatives.

The family of the late Pedro Brito spoke lovingly about their lost father, uncle and grandfather. His daughter

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BY DAN MILLER

Madeline Brito, who lost her father and two cousins in the crash of AA Flight 587, stands with her children as she clutches the photos of lost family members.

Madeline was very emotional when speaking to the press about her beloved father.

"This has been a nightmare. Where most people bury a loved only one time, I have had to bury my father three different times since each time we buried his remains, the government reported that they found more parts of his body that had been scattered for miles around the explosion and crash site," she said.

In all 260 who were on Flight 587 on

its Nov. 12, 2001 takeoff and five more on the ground were killed, making it the second-deadliest aviation accident in national history.

Following the ceremony and private time at the memorial, families walked over to the beach where they were seen staring out at the Atlantic Ocean. The Brito family scrawled the name of their beloved father and grandfather and laid a rose near his name.

Veterans Leave JFK For Vegas R&R

BY JOSEPH M. CALISI For the second year in a row, in celebration of Veterans Day, American Airlines, the USO and The Sands Foundation got together to give 150 wounded military warriors and their families a free weekend trip to Las Vegas.

The American Eagle Boeing 767-200 adorned with yellow-ribbons, nick-named “Flagship Independence,” transported U.S. troops and families on its inaugural flight from New York’s JFK Airport to the Venetian in Las Vegas for the second annual “Tribute to the Troops.” The “Tribute to the Troops 2010

Las Vegas” group includes service members from Fort Benning in Columbus, Ga.; Bethesda Navy Hospital; Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C.; and veterans from the New York City area.

American Airlines, the official airline of the USO, joined with the Sands Foundation to honor our nation’s veterans and active members with a weekend of relaxation, entertainment, sightseeing and educational seminars.

“American Airlines has long-standing ties to the nation’s armed forces. With more than 60 percent of American’s pilots

Aqueduct Job Fair

BY DOMENICK RAFTER

Tutor-Perini, the general contractor for Resorts World New York Casino at Aqueduct Racetrack, will hold its first major Minority, Women, and Locally owned Business Enterprises outreach event for contractors and suppliers interested in providing construction services for the Resorts World New York facility.

The outreach event will take place from 8:30 a.m. to noon at Aqueduct Racetrack on Friday, Nov. 19.

Mike Speller, President of Resorts World New York, said his company has committed to working with local minority and women owned businesses to assist in construction and management of the casino.

“Our process is simple and transparent — we will notify the community that we have a procurement need, detail exactly what we intend to source, and be crystal clear about the timing of delivery and other pertinent information related to the specific bid,” he said.

Ground was broken late last month on the site, which is anticipated to bring 1,300 construction jobs and more than 800 permanent jobs in entertainment, hospitality, security and foodservice fields. Resorts World will detail the timeline and process of filling those jobs next month. The casino is slated to open in the Spring.

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

and 10 percent of all American and American Eagle Airlines employees serving as active military or veterans, the company places a strong emphasis on its military and veteran’s initiatives,” said Mark Magerian of American’s JFK Customer Service, who served as emcee for the event.

Bob DiSalvio of the Sands Corporation

and Foundation was proud to be part of the celebration. “I think of the selfless sacrifices made by our troops to defend our freedoms whenever I see the Sands site in Bethlehem Penn., which is where the old steel plant was,” he said. “The Sands Foundation is honored to host these heroes on Veterans Day at The Venetian.”

Get Your Trash Out On Time

BY DOMENICK RAFTER

With the sun setting sooner and temperatures dropping, it can only mean one thing – it is time to get your trash to the curb a little earlier The Sanitation Dept. is moving to its winter pickup schedule beginning this week to prepare for the upcoming winter snow.

From mid-November to mid-April each year, the Sanitation Dept schedules a sufficient number of its crew on evening and overnight shifts in each of the City’s 59 Sanitation Districts to prepare for potential snowfall. The idea is to have a significant force ready to clean the streets of snow before and during morning and evening rush hours.

“All Sanitation personnel are gearing up for another winter that may bring heavy snowstorms, but the Department will be prepared whether only an inch or mounds

of snow hit New York City,” said Sanitation Commissioner John Doherty.

The two shifts are 4 p.m. to midnight, to handle the evening rush, and midnight to 8 a.m., to clean streets of overnight snow before the morning rush. When snow isn’t falling, the crews will be tasked with picking up your trash.

That means you should have your trash on the curb ready for pickup before midnight the night before your pickup day. If your pickup day is Monday, your trash should be ready for collection by midnight Sunday night. Trash still cannot be placed at the curb prior to 4 p.m.

Some pickups will occur in the middle of the night. Crews have been advised to work as quietly as possible during those hours.

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

Nov. 19-25, 2010 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 Associate Publisher

In Our Opinion: Arnold Thibou Executive Editor:

Brian Rafferty Contributing Editor:

Marcia Moxam Comrie Production Manager:

Shiek Mohamed Queens Today Editor

Regina Vogel

Editorial An Unclear Message The discovery that the only schools in Queens slated for restructuring by the Dept. of Education are predominantly black can clearly be viewed from many perspectives. Socioeconomic factors are typically indicators of a school’s ability to “reach” the students. Children from lowincome households historically have a harder time focusing on school.

The fact that a large percentage of the catchment area for the schools facing “closure” – more properly termed restructuring – are in moderate- to high-income neighborhoods is offset by the small percentage of local kids who go to these schools. The DOE even states that a high rate of students gaining education outside the public schools is indicative of the need for change within the public institutions.

The obvious issue raised by this discovery is that the only schools being handled this way are ones with a black population. A scan of other schools – in both minority and non-minority neighborhoods – that meet similar criteria but are not being considered for closure only highlights the lack of understanding between the schools and the city they serve.

The education of our children should not contain ever-changing evaluation criteria that do not seem to be consistent from year-to-year or from school-to-school. We need a clear, consistent and reliable explanation from the DOE for every school, comparing apples to apples, so that we, our readers and our borough’s parents can know exactly how any one school measures up against any other.

If we are failing, we need to know; if we are improving, we need to celebrate. The lines of communication should not be garbled, with the parents left to shake their heads and give up trying.

Art Dept:

Sara Gold Rhonda Leefoon Candice Lolier Barbara Townsend Advertising Director Alan J. Goldsher Sr. Account Executive Shelly Cookson

Page 6 PRESS of Southeast Queens Nov. 19-25, 2010

Advertising Executives Merlene Carnegie

A Queens Tribune Publication. © Copyright 2010 Tribco, LLC

Michael Schenkler, President & Publisher

Michael Nussbaum, Vice President, Associate Publisher

glomerate, yet refuses to talk to the press.

I understand that there is a significant fiscal component to the Chancellor’s work, and that Ms. Black has experience in this regard at Hearst, but I feel strongly that the next person to occupy that role should be someone with classroom and school administration experience. Surely there are school administrators with a suitable background.

Our schools are not corporations. They require fiscal knowledge coupled with educational vision and institutional understanding. From what I have read, Ms. Black has the first, but as regards the second and third she is a tabula rasa.

Accordingly, I believe that a public hearing should be held to acquaint the community with Ms. Black.

Toby Ann Stavisky, 16th Senate District

Middle Class Burden

Photo Editor: Ira Cohen

Reporters: Harley Benson Sasha Austrie Joseph Orovic Domenick Rafter Jessica Ablamsky Editorial Intern: Angy Altamirano Jason Banrey Terry Chao

Letters

Letters Bring It Public To The Editor: Dear Mayor Bloomberg, I want to assure you that I have formed no opinion on Catherine Black, your choice for Schools Chancellor. I cannot. I do not know anything about her; I do not know where

she stands on the issues; I do not know her education credentials, her attitudes, her beliefs. I want to be fair-minded and make my decisions based on facts, but I have few facts about Ms. Black.

I am troubled by the fact Ms. Black works for a media con-

To The Editor: That leaders of President Barack Obama’s deficit commission would propose reducing the annual cost-of-living increases in Social Security and eliminating mortgage interest deduction is extraordinarily ill-conceived and must be rejected. That they would propose additional cuts to Medicaid after exacerbating pressures on this federal program by en-

acting Obama-care is disappointing to say the least.

Too many Democrats ran asserting that Republicans would roll back Social Security, when the Obama administration has been doing just that. In fact, under his watch, COLA has been frozen for two years running.

Now his blue ribbon panel is proposing reducing COLA again when our seniors on fixed incomes are already struggling.

This is beyond the pale.

To c o mpound these bad ideas with the notion of eliminating the mortgage interest deduction is not just a betrayal of the middle class, it is suicide for our faltering economy, which is struggling to come out of a deep recession brought about in part by a real estate and financing collapse.

That we need to get control of a $1 trillion-plus budget deficit is a given, but for our Democratic President and his commission to endeavor to do so on the backs of seniors and the middle class once again is insane.

Congressional Republican plans to roll back spending to preObama levels is the right approach. Let’s pare back spending in an intelligent fashion and get our economy moving again.

Let’s not throw the baby out with the bathwater.

Vince Tabone, Bayside

At Long Last Rangel Case Is Heard A Personal Perspective

By MARCIA MOXAM COMRIE For those of us who keep up with elected politics, this week was an inordinately embarrassing and sad one for New York, as the Dean of our Congressional delegation went on trial by a House subcommittee for ethics violations.

It was embarrassing because at 80 years old, Charles Rangel, heading into his 20th term in the House of Representative, stood and declared to members of the House Ethics Subcommittee that he could not participate in the hearing as he could not afford legal counsel.

With that said, the former Ways and Means Committee chairman walked out of the room.

It was a stunning performance to be sure.

And I use the word "performance" advisedly, because most people are unconvinced this was not a ploy on Rangel's part to try to elicit sympathy while saving money. A New York-based political consultant called him, "crazy…crazy like a fox."

Indeed.

Having spent a reported excess of $2 million, Mr. Rangel probably had simply depleted his funds and decided to play his judges. When I heard he was going to represent himself - and he's actually an attorney by training I recalled the old courtroom saying, "a defendant who represents himself has a fool for a lawyer and a fool for a client."

Well, it turns out he did not represent himself, per se. He simply didn't participate in the hearing beyond the soliloquy about not being able to afford his defense. The subcommittee would go on to find him guilty of 11 out of 13 charges of ethics violations, including the use of a rent-stabilized apartment for political purposes, without his cooperation in the proceedings.

Taking it one step further, he now criticizes the judgment as a farce given his absence. This case has dragged on for about two years and will finally come to a close when the full House decides on a punishment to fit the alleged crimes.

Experts are predicting he will not be expelled and at most be

censured or given a letter of reprimand. That would be the right decision, given that it was decided that Rangel did not enrich himself by these violations.

In less than two months, Rangel will have been in Washington for 40 years. In any field of endeavor, that is a mighty long time. He has been a towering figure in our nation's capitol and it will be good to see him have the opportunity to represent New York's best interests for at least one more term.

A lesser congressman may not have fared as well as Rangel has, in terms of the committee saying he did not seem to have sought personal enrichment with his ethics violations.

They seemed saddened by the situation and seemed to have come to their conclusion with reluctance. After all, this is a colleague who has served his country honorably in a war and effectively in a legislative body. We all have to watch out for hubris.

What I would tell him now is to stop talking and get back to work on the people's behalf. It's one thing to declare your innocence; it's quite another thing to

be so defiantly outspoken that you have the public growing wary of you. Most people believe there was something in that milk that wasn't white.

Many people, however, are willing to say that while his actions may not have been criminal in terms of the external legal system, he was at least complicit in his handling of some of his affairs.

They would like to see him take responsibility for where he may have fallen short and missed the mark. So Congressman, a little less defiance in your protests may be a good thing as you try to reestablish your good name.

It would be good to see you simply state, "I made some mistakes; they were not meant to defraud. But nonetheless I apologize to my constituents and to my colleagues and going forward I will endeavor to be more vigilant in my affairs."

Let's put it to bed with dignity, Congressman. You can't change the verdict but there's something to be said for graceful handling of a disgraceful situation. Let's stop the PR bleeding. The public loves humility.

Keeping It Honest When Reporting and Voting

By MICHAEL SCHENKLER

REPORTING THE NEWS I still love this business. Journalism will survive the media upheaval.

Today the industry is threatened with diverse challenges, the greatest of which is maintaining the integrity of the newsroom amid decreasing industry revenues.

The challenge of new media is a challenge to the integrity of journalism itself. The reliance on unedited, unfact-checked blogs, websites or social media as a source of news has cheapened the entire industry. The acceptance of the content offered online without proper vetting has diminished the value of news and has diminished society itself in the process.

News, as I was brought up, must be gathered, fairly and accu-

rately reported, double sourced, fact reported that Olberman had conchecked and edited by profession- tributed to three Democratic canals before being dissemididate s, he was susnated. Today’s fast paced pended without pay for world seems to reward violating the station’s those who go from gathpolicy. ering to dissemination Not surprising, the the quickest and disrestor y about t he stor y gards the process of verican best be found by folfying the accuracy, imparlowing Ms. Aujla’s tiality or facts. tweets.

But at the heart of While we are conSimmi Aujla qualit y jour nalism are fused about t he ver y quality reporters. The curious, te- partial station’s policy of imparnacious and often over-zealous tiality, there is no confusion about truth seekers who are driven to the importance or impact of a qualbreak a story and see their name ity reporter or news story. on it will ensure that journalism survives.

THE NEW VOTING MACHINES While we in the profession Sadly, the election is not over. struggle to balance doing a high As political junkies in New York quality job of reporting the news watch too many too-close-to-call with paying the bills, star report- races in the State Senate and one ers w il l continue to repor t the Congressional on the east end, I news and break stories. can’t help but wonder what advanWe all just witnessed one such tage was gained by the purchase of instance. new voting machines at a cost of Simmi Aujla, a 2009 graduate some gazillion dollars. Sure the Feds of Brown Universit y, joined the waive the funds in the State’s face, staff of Politico, a relit ively new but who made sure that we were Washington D.C. newspaper, less buying something that ensured than half a year ago. This rookie more accurate, quicker counts, easier reporter broke the story that got recounts and, ah yes, privacy.

Keith Olberman suspended from On the privacy level, my two MSNBC. Hours after Aujla’s story encounters with the machine leave

Privacy? Congressman Weiner’s ballot is visible during the scanning process

me uncomfor table about privacy during the scanning process. I felt very much like Congressman Anthony Weiner might have felt if he did not invite Trib photographer Ira Cohen to shoot him during the voting process. But when he did, was Weiner aware that a blow up of a picture of his ballot would reveal how he voted?

With a t wo-sided bal lot i n New York City, there really was no way to prevent nearby eyes from catching a glimpse of your filled-in ovals.

We haven’t researched the process or the names of those involved in selecting the new ma-

chines but are pretty darn sure that at the end of the day, there was some very wellpaid lobbyist who absolutely earned his or her outrageous fee by convincing some well-meaning elected officials – many of whom received generous contributions bundled by the lobbyist – that privacy was not an issue with these new machines . . . nor was accuracy, recount speed or anything for that matter.

Sadly, for a once-in-a-lifetime purchase by the government of new voting machines, I am very disappointed.

At least with the old machines when you opened t he cur tai n which provided privacy and comfort, you could hear your vote being counted.

Maybe I just don’t like change?

MSchenkler@QueensPress.com

Page 8 PRESS of Southeast Queens Nov. 19-25, 2010

Unweighted by Experience, Cathie Black Seeks Waiver

By HENRY STERN The prospect for the granting of a waiver to Cathie Black so she can serve as New York City’s school chancellor may have dimmed a bit in the past several days.

For one thing, the New York Times reported, Henry that the man who will decide whether to grant the waiver, State Education Commissioner David M. Steiner, “will convene a screening panel consisting of representatives of the State Education Department and educational organizations to make a recommendation.” The commissioner’s spokesman “would not speculate on how long that would take.”

For another, two of Chancellor Joel Klein’s deputies have announced their resignat ions, and others are expected to leave as well. One reason cited in favor of Ms. Black was that the Klein management team would be available to assist her as she familiarized herself with the educational universe.

No truly independent screening panel of educators is likely to conclude that no experience whatsoever in their professional field is adequate preparation for the most difficult and complex job in local public education. If they felt that way, they would be expressing the view that their own professional qualifications had little value, and that any corporate executive could

fill the positions they now hold.

This does not mean that Ms. Black will not receive t he nece ssar y waiver. T he Commissioner and his screening panel may be responsive to the wishes of a higher authority. Mayor Stern Bloomberg wants the waiver, and carloads of movers and shakers will be influenced by his wishes. There is a strong argument that, since the law provides for mayoral control, and the first element of control is selecting the head of the enterprise, this appointment is his call.

There are also many people who believe that some schools are ungovernable, and some children uneducable, and that giving the mayor a free ride on the chancellorship would make it easier to fix the blame on him if a le ss than satisfactory outcome results.

Mayor Bloomberg has previously shown his distaste for technical, legal standards. When Patricia Lancaster resigned as Commissioner of Buildings in 2008, the law required that the Commissioner of the department be an architect or engineer. The mayor’s choice, Deput y Commissioner Robert LiMandri, was neither. He solved that problem by having the City Council pass a local law repeali ng the requirement. Mr. LiMandri is now the Commissioner and he is well regarded.

The Schools Chancellor’s position is one that is a target for year-round assault by various groups. The politically correct term for them is “stakeholders;” the pejorat ive de scr ipt ion, “special interests.” Public officials begin with a mode st re serve of goo d wil l, which is depleted over time as group after group is dissatisfied because their particular demands are not being met.

Ambitious politicians boast about their concern for education; photographs of children decorate their mailers. Some of these friends of education, however, do not go so far as actually voting for additional funds, or giving the Chancellor the power to manage the system.

In view of these hazards and obstacles, it could be said that the Chancellor, an official whose importance is comparable to that of the police commissioner, should be a person of impeccable and undisputed credentials, a Horace Mann of the 21st century, if such a person could be found and persuaded to take the job. To select a chancellor with no background whatsoever in education is certainly a daring leap of faith.

It is true that Mayor Bloomberg himself, a successful business executive, had no experience in government before he was first elected mayor in 2001. Since he has basically been a good mayor (he was re-elected twice, has generally appointed and removed com-

missioners on the merits, has run a scandal-free administration, and innovated in public health and environmental issue s), it is understandable for him to believe that others who have achieved great success in business can use their talents to succeed in the public sector.

A perennial problem in the field of education is credentialism.

Schools for teachers award degrees routinely, and school boards may require those degrees as qualifications for being hired. It is too often the case that possession of a degree has lit tle relat ionship to ability to teach in a classroom. But

even those who reject credentialism may support minimal standards for people who hold impor tant positions in educational administration. Credentials may not have intrinsic value, but they do provide a veneer of protection for the qualified and unqualified alike.

The elusive qualities of managerial judgment and the ability to lead and inspire may be present in Cathie Black. If she gets the waiver, she will have the opportunity to demonstrate them. But will her skills be sufficient to improve educational outcomes for over a million children?

StarQuest@NYCivic.org

Not 4 Publication.com by Dom Nunziato

News Briefs New Office For Sanders Councilman James Sanders, Jr. (DLaurelton) opened a new Far Rockaway district office, located at 1526 Central Ave., which runs perpendicular to Mott Avenue, at a ceremony on Nov. 5.

The new location is on the first floor of an office building, which also houses a day care center and local revival church. Easily assessable to foot and vehicle traffic, the office features more spacious accommodations than the former location on Birdsall Avenue, including a large conference room, reception area, and private office suite.

“After years at our old location, it was time for a change of scenery,” Sanders said. “Our new Far Rockaway office is better situated, geographically and physically, to directly address the needs and concerns of the people of the Rockaways.

I look forward to beginning our work from our new and improved Rockaway location, and to continuing to serve the people of our community.”

The Councilman’s new office officially opened for business on Monday, Nov. 1.

Though the address has changed, the phone and fax lines remain the same. For more information, contact the Councilman’s district office at (718) 471-7014.

Metro Campus Concerns Neighborhood leaders are concerned over enrollment numbers at the $158 million Metropolitan Avenue Campus’ high school, which they say do not meet promises that at least half of the kids would be from Forest Hills.

The locally-zoned school’s first 250freshmen class was originally slated to be split evenly between kids from Districts 24 and 28. But according to Councilwoman Karen Koslowitz (D-Forest Hills), a lack of outreach and apprehension has left the school’s first class with a glut of Glendale students, while Forest Hills kids make up less than half of the overall student body.

“I was disappointed in the amount of kids that came from Forest Hills,” Koslowitz said. “It was supposed to be 125-125. It wasn’t like that at all.”

The Dept. of Education did not respond to requests for comment and Koslowitz said they refuse to provide exact figures about the class’s makeup.

Tunnel Anniversary

Borough History At QC Many great civilizations have taken it upon themselves to document their history. In this day in age, with the amount of technology available at the fingertips of almost every individual, Queens residents will soon play an active role in documenting the evolution of the country’s most ethnically diverse county.

In an effort to digitize the borough’s past and presently evolving history, Queens College has tipped the first domino that it hopes will set in motion an interest in capturing contemporary history as it happens.

The Queens Memory Project began as an independent study over the summer.

Then, Natalie Milbrodt, a special collections and archives fellow in the Queens College Libraries, began conducting oral history interviews with residents of Flushing’s Waldheim neighborhood.

Receiving a $25,000 grant in October from the Metropolitan New York Library Council, the project’s digital collaboration with the Queens College Library’s Department of Special Collections and Archives, and the Archives at Queens Library, will create an online site users can easily access.

The grant will also fund the digitization of archival records relating to subjects discussed during the oral histories. The combined images, interviews and digitized records will form the first-ever digital archive of contemporary and historical records of life in the borough.

The site is expected to go live towards the end of 2011.

New Traffic Pattern For Mall The tangled mess of traffic surrounding the Queens Center Mall will get a new flow. The Dept. of Transportation, in an effort to ease congestion around the busy shopping center, has proposed a redirection of 57th Avenue between 90th and 92nd Streets. The change would see the stretch convert westbound-only.

Queens DOT Commissioner Maura McCarthy introduced the plan to Community Board 4 at its most recent meeting.

According to District Manager Richard Italiano, a quorum was not on hand to vote on the proposal, limiting discussion of the plan.

According to the DOT, the change would ease pedestrian and vehicle conflicts at 90th and 92nd Streets, ease the flow of traffic and improve entry into and exit from Queens Center’s garage. The agency said about 70 percent of all traffic on 57th Avenue is heading west under current conditions.

The DOT is also reviewing a plan to install a left-turn signal at the intersection of 92nd Street and 59th Avenue.

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

Nov. 19-25, 2010 PRESS of Southeast Queens Page 9

What brings 80,000 people to and from Manhattan daily and is old enough to collect Social Security?

If your answer is, “A very efficient bus driver,” you are wrong. It is the QueensMidtown Tunnel, which celebrated its 70th birthday linking Long Island City and Midtown this week.

“From its inception, the Queens Midtown Tunnel was a key link in the metropolitan region’s transportation network, providing a vital conduit for businesses, daily commuters and families exploring the cultural riches that exist from Manhattan to Queens and Long Island,” said MTA Bridges and Tunnels President Jim Ferrara.

In recognition of the tunnel’s 70th birthday, MTA Bridges and Tunnel will feature historic photographs of the tunnel’s construction during the 1930s in the lobby of its headquarters on 2 Broadway in Lower Manhattan through the end of the month.

The tunnel, often referred to simply as

the “Midtown Tunnel,” opened on Nov. 15, 1940, and was the largest non-federal public works project in the nation at the time. When it opened, Queens’ population was 1.3 million; just over half what it is now, and neither the Long Island Expressway nor JFK Airport were built.

Police Blotter Compiled By DOMENICK RAFTER

101st Precinct Robber Sought The NYPD is seeking the public’s assistance in locating a suspect wanted in connection with a grand larceny in Rockaway On Saturday, Oct. 30, at 3:30 a.m., the suspect entered an underground parking garage located at 10-40 Neilson St. in Far Rockaway, removed a 2007 Suzuki motorcycle, and then fled.

The suspect is described as a Hispanic man, 30-35 years old, 5-foot-10 and 200 lbs.

Anyone with information in regards to this incident is asked to call Crime Stoppers at (800) 577-TIPS (8477). The public can also submit their tips by logging onto the Crime Stoppers Web site at nypdcrimestoppers.com or by texting their tips to 274637, then entering TIP577. All calls are strictly confidential.

102nd Precinct Burglar Loose

Page 10 PRESS of Southeast Queens Nov. 19-25, 2010

The NYPD is requesting the public’s assistance in identifying and locating a man wanted in a residential burglary in Richmond Hill.

The robber entered a home at 104-02 86th Ave. in Richmond Hill on Sunday, Sept. 5, at 11 p.m. through an open first floor window and removed a laptop computer, camera and a wallet containing

credit cards.

Anyone with information in regards to this incident is asked to call Crime Stoppers at (800) 577-TIPS (8477). The public can also submit their tips by logging onto the Crime Stoppers Web site at nypdcrimestoppers.com or by texting their tips to 274637, then entering TIP577. All calls are strictly confidential.

Another Burglar The NYPD is asking the public’s assistance in identifying a man wanted for a burglary in Richmond Hill.

On Tuesday, Sept. 7, at 1:30 a.m., the man entered 115-25 84 Ave. in Richmond Hill and, using a crow bar, pried open the door to a storage unit and removed an undetermined amount of tools.

Anyone with information in regards to this incident is asked to call Crime Stoppers at (800) 577-TIPS (8477). The public can also submit their tips by logging onto the Crime Stoppers Web site at nypdcrimestoppers.com or by texting their tips to 274637, then entering TIP577. All calls are strictly confidential.

113th Precinct Two Kids Hit On Sunday, Nov. 14, at approximately 4:56 p.m., police responded to a report of two children struck by a vehicle near the intersection of 160 Street and North Conduit Avenue in Springfield Gardens.

Upon arrival, police determined that a 1998 Mercury Sable sedan traveling west on North Conduit Avenue struck two children; an 11-year-old boy and 4-year-old girl.

The vehicle and its driver remained on the scene. EMS also responded and brought both children to Long Island Jewish Hospital, where the boy was listed in stable condition and the girl was listed in critical condition. The investigation was ongoing.

From The DA Rapist Convicted A St. Albans man has been convicted of breaking into the homes of three women during an 1-month period in 2006-2007 and either physically assaulting or sexually abusing two of them.

Kenneth Washington, 31, of 118-19 193rd St., St. Albans, was convicted Tuesday afternoon of three counts of first-degree burglary, three counts of second-degree burglary, two counts of first-degree assault, two counts of second-degree assault, one count of first-degree criminal sexual act and one count of first-degree sexual abuse. Washington, who is being held without bail, faces up to 50 years in prison when he is sentenced on Dec. 15 "While burglary is a serious crime in and of itself, the defendant displayed extremely dangerous and outrageous behavior on two of the three occasions by breaking into occupied homes and engaging in barbaric conduct with the lone fe-

males he found there," DA Richard Brown said. "His actions clearly show that he is a threat to society and deserving of a maximum prison sentence."

Cassandra Whitaker, an NYPD detective, was asleep at home when Washington entered her bedroom during the early morning hours of Aug. 17, 2006. When she awoke and saw Washington going through her dresser, she attempted to retrieve her police-issued revolver from inside her nightstand. A struggle ensued and Washington managed to grab the firearm, which he then used to severely beat her about the head.

Thereafter, he stole her service revolver and police-issued shield, as well as jewelry and other personal property before fleeing.

Four months later, on Dec. 5, 2006, Washington forced open a rear window of the Bellerose residence belonging to Luisa Gonzalez, 44, while she was at work and stole jewelry, her children's video games and other property. A pair of gloves recovered from inside the house was submitted for DNA testing and matched his DNA. A 26-year-old female, six months pregnant, was sleeping inside her father's St. Albans residence on the afternoon of July 15, 2007, when Washington broke into the house and sexually and physically assaulted her before robbing her of property. The victim managed to lock herself in the bathroom and escape by jumping approximately 10 feet from the bathroom window to the ground and running to a neighbor's house in her underwear.

Borough Beat

A Star Shines Brightly In Forest Hills PRESS photo by Jason Banrey

By JASON BANREY There are periods in life when the fates align, designing paths, conspiring to direct you towards what may not seem, at that time, to be your destiny. This journey can take you a long way from home, only to bring you back to where you began to achieve what was always meant to be.

Danny Brown, owner and operator of Danny Brown Wine Bar and Kitchen, can attest to his own voyage.

Working in many kitchens, spanning across the European continent and within New York City, Brown’s lifelong work has come to materialize in the borough’s first Michelin star restaurant.

Pioneering a style that offers his variation of European cuisine in the heart of Forest Hills, Brown has developed a venue that may be responsible for coining the culinary term “New European.”

Taking cooking ingredients that are traditional staples in various dishes throughout proud and popular gastronomic countries such as Italy, Spain and France, Brown’s kitchen offers a range of flavorful dishes in a casual setting that promises a savory slice of European delights with a local’s touch.

After a number of years in some of Manhattan’s restaurant hotspots, Brown became tired of New York’s restaurant

Danny Brown stands in front of Danny Brown Wine Bar and Kitchen on Metropolitan Avenue in Forest Hills. scene. Desiring a change, he looked across the pond for inspiration.

It was in Europe, under a three-month apprenticeship, where he experienced and witnessed the passionate love affair locals shared for their selectively homegrown ingredients, their delicate attention to detail and the informal settings in which they enjoyed their meals.

Bouncing from Barcelona to Paris and then Modena, Brown took on menial tasks, such as peeling onions and washing potatoes, before aspiring to create his Michelin Star restaurant.

During his time overseas he observed the importance that each position played

within a finely tuned restaurant and secretively began to conspire to create his own establishment. Still the question loomed as to where his dream would come to fruition.

Just after Sept 11, 2001, Brown’s first attempts at opening his own restaurant were plagued with numerous obstacles. He attributes his missed opportunities of opening his first enterprise in Brooklyn to circumstances of the times.

Due to the catastrophic events, an unstable economy in New York City made it difficult for his own venue to materialize and he temporarily sidelined his aspirations.

Placing Queens on Michelin Guide’s internationally prestigious culinary map was not always in the cards. After returning home with a renewed sense of where he wanted to steer his career, Brown found the space where his restaurant is now located. “It all happened by chance.” he said.

“I never really envisioned saying I want to go and open a restaurant,” said Brown.

Unsure of how the community would receive his take on European cuisine after opening in 2006, the restaurant is now entertaining 120-150 guests during dinner service with the reservations piling up to get a chance at Brown’s popular dishes.

Brown believes the popularity of his evolving menu is partly a direct result of dealing closely with his guests. “It started out by putting out an idea, letting it develop

and taking the feedback. See what the people are looking for,” said Brown. “We wanted to keep people interested. It certainly has evolved and it’s probably evolved, because of the community; because they’re encouraging you to try different things.”

Brown is in his element developing dishes for the palettes of his guests in a cozy environment he calls home once again. “In a way, it’s almost like playing music. You go out and play a song, the crowd says, yeah we like that. We want to hear some more,” Brown modestly mentions as an aroma of roasted Brussels sprouts beginning to lightly brown fills the air as the kitchen prepares for dinner.

Before Brown came on to the scene, the borough’s diversified cultural cuisine was eclipsed by Manhattan and Brooklyn’s world-renowned eateries. With encores occurring every week and an internationally renowned star glittering over Danny Brown Wine Bar and Kitchen, be sure to reserve your front row seats to experience the culinary experience that has put Queens on the gastronomic globe.

Danny Brown Wine Bar and Kitchen is located at 104-02 Metropolitan Ave. in Forest Hills. Call (718) 261-1149 or go to dannybrownwinekitchen.com to learn more.

Reach Intern Jason Banrey at jbanrey@queenstribune.com or (718) 3577400, Ext. 128.

Nov. 19-25, 2010 PRESS of Southeast Queens Page 11

Does Race Matter?

Boro Endures Horror DOE Resident Targets Only BlackNew Schools After Exposure To Mystery Powder For Possible Academic ‘Closure’

BY JESSICA ABLAMSKY Mayor Mike Bloomberg proudly touted the narrowed achievement gap between black and Hispanic students and their white and Asian peers, as he stood beside outgoing Chancellor Joel Klein, who was supposedly instrumental in that change.

But, of the 24 elementary, middle and K-8 schools proposed for closure, every one is populated almost entirely by black and Hispanic students.

Using data from the City Dept. of Education, the PRESS of Southeast Queens discovered that schools with the lowest scores in 2010 on the English Language Arts and Math tests were, with few exceptions, schools with mostly black and Hispanic students.

Citywide, schools with the most black and Hispanic students had scores that ranged from the best to the worst. In Queens, the range of scores in schools with similar racial and ethnic demographics were much more narrow, with none approaching the heights reached by schools with mostly white and Asian students.

The standard answer, low socioeconomic status, is insufficient to explain the dynamics in Queens. The four non-high schools proposed for closure in the borough are located in relatively aff luent black communities in Southeast Queens.

Page 12 PRESS of Southeast Queens Nov. 19-25, 2010

Demographic Dilemma It is very strange that every proposed closure is from the black and Hispanic community, said State Sen. Shirley Huntley (D-Jamaica), a former PTA member and school board president, and member of the Senate Education Committee.

“I’m just as baffled as you are,” she said. “That’s saying to us that our kids cannot learn. That’s saying that they are the underachievers based on the fact that they are minority.”

What Is Closure?

School “closure” is what the DOE now refers to as phase out. Generally, students in upper grades are allowed to graduate, while kids in younger grades are reorganized under a different school in the same building. New administration and staff are brought in to spark improvement in the school.

Referring to schools like PS 30 and PS 40, two elementary schools proposed for closure in Queens, Huntley affirmed that they are not sited in poor communities. Among their residents are doctors, lawyers and judges.

One possible answer for the lack of academic success in Southeast Queens is educational migration. Proposed closures in Queens have high levels of zoned students choosing other options, including private school.

• At PS 30, only 60 percent of zoned students attend.

• At PS 40, 57 percent of zoned attend.

• At PS/IS 147, grades K-5 are zoned.

Only 54 percent attend.

• At IS 231, only 35 percent of zoned students attend.

When nearly half or more students who are zoned to a school choose other options, the remaining students are probably from the poorest segment of the community, said DOE spokesman Jack Zarin-Rosenfeld.

“It’s probably a safe bet that the 35 percent [remaining] has nowhere else to go and no other option,” he said, referring to IS 231. “For us, that means we have no choice but to improve that school.”

Local elected officials offered a very different explanation for what is going on in Southeast Queens, and around the city. They agreed that closing schools is not the answer.

Schools are a reflection of society, said Councilman James Sanders (DLaurelton), who acted as president of School Board 27 for seven of the 10 years he served.

“Is it true that it is easier to kick a black population than anyone else?” he asked.

“Sadly, that just remains an American truism.”

For Sanders, performance in black and Hispanic schools is a question of school funding – which he said is better in integrated schools – and teacher experience.

Teachers Who Help Seniority rules allow more experienced teachers to choose where they want to work, a problem Sanders thinks incentive pay could help solve. In the federal model for reforming struggling schools, some teachers receive more pay.

But better educators cannot fix the system, which he said requires “genuine change, top to bottom.”

“Logic dictates that your most experienced teachers should go to the most problematic schools,” Sanders said. “That is not the case here.”

In his explanation for the racial and socioeconomic disparity, Councilmanelect Ruben Wills cited a common criticism – the criteria for closing schools does not make sense.

An Unreliable Standard Schools were caught unaware when

the State Dept. of Education raised standards for Regents tests, Wills said.

The State Dept. of Education raised standards for tests after the close of the school year.

Non-high schools came onto the DOE’s closure radar through low progress report grades, which are based mostly on those scores.

As a result of the raised standards, progress report grades plummeted this year, though schools were graded on a curve, according to the DOE. Closure is based on an overall progress report grade of D or an F in one year, or three Cs in a row. Last year, nearly 90 percent of nonhigh schools received an A. A one-year change in the progress report formula left most of those schools immune to closure, since any school that received an A last year could not receive lower than a C this year. DOE staff cited progress as an important measure of success, but some schools that earned an F for progress received a C overall, and vice versa.

The DOE has changed the formula for progress reports every year since they were introduced in 2007, said Leonie Haimson, executive director of Class Size Matters, an education advocacy organization.

“The progress reports have never been a reliable measure of success,” she said.

Students would work harder if they had the “whole school experience,” including fringe benefits like art, gym and music, which Huntley said have been lost in favor of test prep.

It Takes A Village Elected officials agreed that parents have been largely shut out of schools, but schools with strong parental involvement perform better, Huntley said.

“I think that’s missing in a lot of schools today,” she said. “Parents are the people who are volunteers, who are the watchdogs.”

Parents do not get a free pass in Huntley’s book. Even busy parents must make time to get involved in their child’s school, she said.

“You have to make sacrifices,” she said. “You can’t just continue to blame everybody else.”

Elected officials expressed no faith in

the DOE’s ability to turn things around.

They agreed that answers will come from an active community. For his part, Wills plans to mobilize his district by knocking on doors.

“Just because your school is not proposed for closure this year does not mean it won’t be next year,” he said. “I think that parents as a whole need to take that as an alarm.”

Model For Success Although the picture painted by the data is not pretty, there is hope. Among the best schools in the city are a handful located in poor neighborhoods in Brooklyn, The Bronx and Manhattan. Their halls are filled with black and Hispanic students who are succeeding. Many, but not all, are charter schools.

An excellent example is the East New York Family Academy in Brooklyn, which is 99 percent black and Hispanic. In 2010, 95 percent of students scored 3 or 4 on Math. At IS 231, only 21 percent managed the same feat.

The schools share nearly the same number of English language learners and those who receive free lunch. The disparity in test scores is shocking, but proof that the public educational system can work for everyone.

As for the DOE, “sometimes I don’t think they think that they have a problem,” Huntley said. “If schools were doing great, why would we be closing schools?”

Asked whether we are condemning an entire generation of black and Hispanic students to a poor education, Huntley said, “That’s the way it looks.”

Reach Reporter Jessica Ablamsky at jablamsky@queenstribune.com or (718) 3577400, Ext. 124.

Photo by Juliet Kaye

pix

Go To College

Southeast Queens Events Edited By Harley Benson

GJDC @ Workforce 1

Photos by Walter Karling

The Greater Jamaica Development Corporation's Downtown Committee met Nov. 10 at the Workforce 1 Queens Career Center, 168-25 Jamaica Ave., to see first-hand the operation of this fine organization. The Center has a variety of workshops designed to help Queens residents through the job search process, including individual career advisement, interview skills training, job search strategies, resume development, and much more.

New York City Dept. of Small Business Services representative Karen Durgana welcomed committee attendees.

Page 14 PRESS of Southeast Queens Nov. 19-25, 2010

With Workforce 1's program offerings featured speakers Nancy Konipol, Partner Coordinator with Grant Associates, Inc.; NYC Dept. of Small Business Services representative Karen Durgana; and Greater Jamaica Development Corporation Downtown Committee Chairman William Martin.

The You Can Go To College Committee celebrated their 14th Annual Achievement Awards and sending over 4,000 students to college. Pictured l. to r., seated: Honorees Renee Buford, Valerie Bell; Monique Meyers, Chief Financial Officer for hip-hop megarstar Curtis "50" Cent" Jackson's G-Unity Foundation; co-founder and Exec. Dir. Dorita Clarke; co founder and Educational Dir. Sis. Shirley Dye; honorees Brenda Nealy, Philippa Karteron, and NYPD PO Felicia Richards. Standing l. to r.: Student of the Year John Douglas Robinson; Honoree Gina Fletcher; Student of the Year Shenele Smith; Honoree NYPD Chief James Secreto; Student of the Year Dana Harris; Assemblyman William Scarborough; Student Amanda Fields; Honoree Larry Gaither; Student Mishel Penson; Honoree Manual Caughman; Students Deja Taylor and Aninah Gibbs; Honoree Leroy Gadsden, Jamaica Branch NAACP President.

Downtown Committee members anticipate the day's tour of the center while Committee Chairman William Martin explains the agenda.

A&E

Zoo’s Parrot Chicks Make Debut In Boro

BY JESSICA ABLAMSKY

Page 16 PRESS of Southeast Queens Nov. 19-25, 2010

them to get it together,” he said.

If that happens, the zoo could soon be maxed out for space. The enclosure could accommodate about 30 birds.

Despite the difference in climate between their native habitat and New York City, the birds can survive outside through all but the coldest days.

They always have access to heat sources, and are locked inside their holding area when it gets really cold.

Want to see the birds for yourself? The Queens Zoo, located in Flushing Meadows Corona Park, is open to the public 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. daily. Admission is $8 for adults, $6 for seniors and $5 for children ages 3-12. To learn more call (718) 271-1500 or go to queenszoo.org.

Reach Reporter Jessica Ablamsky at jablamsky@queenstribune.com One of the Thick-Billed Parrot chicks (c.) is flanked by two or (718) 357-7400, Ext. 124. adults.

PRESS Photo by Jessica Ablamsky

The Wildlife Conservation Society’s Queens Zoo heard the pitter-patter of little beaks after the recent hatching of six critically endangered thick-billed parrots.

These green and red birds used to brighten the Southwestern skies, until they were extirpated from the United States in the mid-1950s due to hunting and habitat destruction. Today, the birds can still be found in the mountains of Mexico, but their numbers are limited.

“Being that thick-billed parrots are extinct in the United States, the arrival of these chicks marks a significant step in the conservation of this animal,” said Dr. Scott Silver, director of the Queens Zoo. Since 2006, the Queens Zoo has raised 15 thick-billed parrots, bringing their total flock to 23 – the largest in the country. Fewer than 100 birds can be found in accredited zoos in the country.

“A flock of a couple dozen birds would be enough for them to learn all of their survival skills,” Silver said.

The species is part of a cooperative breeding program through the Association of Zoos and Aquariums. The Queens

Zoo received their first birds in 2001 and features the most successful breeding program in the country.

“By far we’re the most successful,” Silver said. “Certainly in the last couple of years we’ve had the most number of chicks born.”

Silver attributes that success to the size of the birds’ enclosure, which allows them to keep more birds, and offer mating pairs a wide range of nesting boxes.

“They do better in a group situation than alone,” he said. “They do better with a range of nest boxes. Different birds like different things.”

Breeding season starts in late spring.

Those who have yet to nest are sometimes stimulated to give it a try by watching the behavior in other birds.

This past summer, three pairs produced chicks, which hatched in July and August. Food is brought by both mother and father, who split childcare equally and generally mate for life.

In the wild, their diet is primarily pine nuts. In the zoo, they eat a mix of fruit, pine nuts, other kinds of nuts and commercially prepared parrot food.

The birds are sexually mature by four or five and live for up to 30 years. Silver hopes that the zoo will have even more chicks next year.

“Sometimes it takes a year or two for

A&E

Change Comes One Dinner At A Time

BY REGINA VOGEL Who would have thought that spending an enjoyable evening with new-found female friends and chatting over dinner, wine and dessert would help women in extreme poverty?

A simple “tweet” by New York Times reporter Nicholas Kristof inspired her to start a Queens chapter of Dining For Women. According to Kristof, “There’s a growing recognition among everyone from the World Bank to the U.S. Military’s Joint Chiefs of Staff to aid organizations like CARE that focus on women and girls is the most effective way to fight global poverty and extremism. That’s why foreign aid is increasingly directed to women.”

Dining For Women’s Mission Statement is simple: to empower women and girls living in extreme poverty in the developing world by funding grassroots programs that foster access to healthcare, education, and economic self-sufficiency.

The structure of Dining For Women is simple. A group of women get together once a month for dinner, each bringing something to share, and their “dining out dollars” go directly to the designated month’s

program. In addition to dinner groups, some chapters meet for lunch, coffee gettogethers, at work or at school. October’s mission was Oxlajuj B’atz’, which means Thirteen Threads in the K’achikel language, in Guatemala. Over the past six years, Thirteen Threads has raised more than $237,000 and focuses on training women in health, artisan techniques, product development and business skills.

In this particular area, instruction in candle-making and rug-making will assist the local women in improving their skills so they will be able to sell their products in the new Cultural Center and Fair Trade store.

The group has a “give what you want” policy. Donations are tax deductible.

If you are looking to join a group of local women for a “girls’ night out,” learn about issues facing women and girls worldwide, share a meal and conversation – check out the local chapter of Dining For Women.

December’s featured program is Project Muso in Mali to provide financial management skills to 90 women entrepreneurs.

Dining For Women will meet on Thursdays, Nov. 18 and Dec. 16, at 7 p.m. in Flushing. Call Maryann Zappulla at (516) 770-1704 to learn more.

Restaurant Review

Bliss On Every Plate NEW BLISS CAFÉ 82-60 Austin St., Kew Gardens (718) 849-0111 CUISINE: Indian fusion café HOURS: Mon-Fri 7 am-6 pm; Sat 8:30 am-5 pm; Sun 8:30 am-4 pm PARKING: Street RESERVATIONS: No CREDIT CARDS: No

Nov. 19-25, 2010 PRESS of Southeast Queens Page 17

Nowadays it is difficult to find a sincere café, owned by painstaking proprietors who dedicate themselves to epicurean satisfaction and pride themselves on service.

Established only three months ago, the New Bliss Café of Kew Gardens has already established a following, providing local residents with elated tastes that keep them coming back for more.

Located just a few steps north of the Kew Gardens LIRR train station, this concealed café offers traditional salads, sandwiches, Panini and wraps with an Indian twist.

Upon entry you are humbly welcomed by the café’s owner, Prakash Bhatt, and his lovely wife. Their warm smiles set the tone for a splendid experience that is to ensue.

Wooden black-top tables compliment the black and white checked marble floors, creating an atmosphere that was once only felt in the 1950s.

For starters, my guest and I decided

on sharing a bowl of chicken soup.

Slurping to satisfaction, the warm, light broth reminded me of a homemade concoction that soothed the soul.

For those skeptical about beets, New Bliss has an item that will destroy your preconceptions and make you consider becoming a lover of the typically tough to eat vegetable. The Herb Marinated Beet Panini contains beetroots slowly boiled to perfection.

The thinly sliced maroon disks are slid in between a thin layer of creamy herbed goat’s cheese and aromatic arugula that melts in your palate.

Eagerly exchanging plates, my companion and I savored the different flavors that sat in front of us. Served with a side salad, made with Prakash’s homemade Ceasar dressing, the dish satisfies with a light and tangy twist to your meal.

Taking breaks between bites, the LIRR rumbled past, vibrating the earth beneath me as I suddenly got lost in the warm, lightly spiced chicken Kaathi wrap. Stuffed with sliced peppers, onions and lettuce, the tightly wrapped f lavors culminated into a mouth-watering experience transporting me to a new bliss I never experienced before.

New Bliss Café’s careful attention to service and their pride in handmade delicacies make this spot a sacred haven for your taste buds.

—Jason Banrey

Faith

Brooks’ Men’s Day Service Back

BY SASHA AUSTRIE

Brooks Memorial Methodist Church is continuing its long standing tradition of Annual Men’s Day Service.

“It is an uplifting service and it is one that brings the men together once a year,” said Ron White, chairman of Brook’s Annual Men’s Day Committee.

Though White was unsure of how long Brooks has hosted the commemoration service, he said the church has celebrated for more than 100 years. “[It is] a heritage rooted in the experi-

ences and traditions of both the Evangelical United Brethren Church and African-American congregations of the Methodist Church, and by those who covenanted together to form these organizations,” White wrote in a statement.

Annual Men’s Day Service will be at 10 a.m. on Sunday at 143-22 109th Ave. This year’s theme is, “Men seeking to be united and ministering for Christ.”

Along with bringing men of the church together, White said the service’s purpose is to “emphasize the need for men’s involvement in the life

and total mission of the church; stress the importance of trained and dedicated leadership by men; encourage an awareness of oneness in Christ among all men; recruit men to become involved in ministry for men and youth; encourage men to support both spiritually and financially the programs and projects sponsored by men of the church; along with other principles.”

White said this year was the first year men from Brooks took an active role in planning Annual Men’s Day. Including

White, members of the committee are Allen McFarlane, Arthur Broadbelt, Chester Carter and Elmer Hammond. He said usually, The United Methodist Men, an organization within the Methodist church, plans the service. He said Brooks Methodist’s pastor, the Rev. John Simmons, has charged the Annual Men’s Day Committee with continuously reaching out to men in the community.

Reach Reporter Sasha Austrie at saustrie@queenspress.com, or (718) 3577400, Ext. 123.

Word “Religion is the state of being grasped by an ultimate concern, a concern which qualifies all other concerns as preliminary and which itself contains the answer to the question of the meaning of our life.”

—Paul Tillich

Brooks Methodist Church will host its Annual Men’s Day Service on Sunday.

Notebook Campus Magnet Complex

Youth Coordinator Strives To Help Students

BY BOB HARRIS

Page 18 PRESS of Southeast Queens Nov. 19-25, 2010

Julia Hitt-Shorter

toring from program graduates and students from QCC after school, Saturdays and during the summer. There are trips, tutoring, homework assistance, college

search, scholarship search, career search, learning how to use technology, Regents preparation special presentations, and snacks provided.

Shelter Helpers: Photo by Bob Harris

Julia Hitt-Shorter is the Youth Development Coordinator in the Campus Magnet Complex in Cambria Heights. Every City high school has such a person who provides counseling, classroom workshops, school-wide projects and many another activities designed to empower the students.

Some of her other activities are helping students obtain working papers, help-

ing coordinate the Anti-Drug Red Ribbon Program and administering the Project Prize Program, and helping the students in the four small high schools in the Campus Magnet Complex.

Project Prize is a State Education Dept. program designed to help students complete high school and pursue a college education and/or meaningful career.

Through collaboration with Queensborough Community College, high school students receive guidance and tu-

The Student Organization of Martin Van Buren HS, Queens Village, has joined forces with Tourniquet Inc., a local shelter dedicated to rescuing abandoned and abused animals. Students purchase a card for $1, write their name on thebottom of the card and it is placed on a Van Buren’s Wall of Fame in the S.O. Office. Shown are three of the students active in the campaign in front of the Wall of Fame: (l. to r.) Eniola Adeniya, Armani Davidson and Dana Holder. In just a week, $200 was collected with a goal of $500.

What’s Up SATURDAY, NOV. 20 Youth & Tennis The Youth and Tennis group meets every Saturday morning at Roy Wilkins Park Saturday. To learn more, call Bill Briggs at (718) 658-6728.

Hands-On History: Apples Rufus King had apple orchards on his farm. Did you know that apples can be more than food? Come hear apple stories, learn what else they can be used for and make a special apple craft to take home at the King Manor Museum, on Jamaica Avenue between 150th and 153rd Streets, from 12-3 p.m.

Latin Jazz Coalition Trombonist/composer Demetrios Kastaris leads the Latin Jazz Coalition, whose music blends rhythms like the rumba (guaguancó), son-montuno, bembé, guajira and more.

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

THURSDAY, NOV. 25 Adult Chess Club

Take the Career Exploration Inventory, a self-scored, easy-to-use survey guide to choosing a career based on your interests and experiences.

This free event will be held at the Queensborough Public Library’s Central Branch, 89-11 Merrick Blvd., at 1:30 p.m.

Practice your chess skills weekly, on Monday and Thursday evenings.

The event is held at 6 p.m. every Thursday at Queens Village Library, 94-11 217 St., (718) 776-6800.

Polish Your Resume

FRIDAY, NOV. 26 Senior Theatre Acting Repertory

Bring a copy of your resume on a flash drive. Volunteers will guide you through editing and producing a professional quality resume using Cyber Center computers.

Participants must have keyboard and mouse experience. Pre-registration is required in the Job Information Center.

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

TUESDAY, NOV. 23 Job Club

Mark your calenders for a chance to see acclaimed civil and human rights activist, satirical humorist and legendary stand-up comedian Dick Gregory when he performs at Black Spectrum Theatre in Queens this Saturday, Nov. 20 in a show called “Where Do We Go From Here?”

The show starts at 8 p.m. at the Black Spectrum Theatre, at Baisley Boulevard and 177th Street. Tickets are $25. Group discounts for over 15 tickets are available.

Free parking is available. Call (718) 7231800 for additional information or to buy tickets.

Every Tuesday, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., 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 Lenin Gross, Job Coach, at (718) 7392060, Ext. 18 or lgrossjnc@yahoo.com.

This free event will be held at the Jamaica Neighborhood Center - 161-06 89th Ave.

Scholarship Luncheon

Camera Club

The Delta Sigma Theta Sorority will have it Annual Scholarship and Public Service Luncheon featuring keynote speaker Dr. Steve Perry at Antun’s Catering, 96-43 Springfield Bvld. from 11:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.

For more information, contact fundraising@dstquac.org or (917) 9697910.

The Southeast Queens Camera Club welcomes photographers, beginners to advanced. Meetings are held the second, third and fourth Tuesday every month at 7:30 p.m. at Roy Wilkins Family Life Center, 177-01 Baisley Blvd.

Practice your chess skills weekly, on

Introduction to the Internet In this workshop, customers will learn the basics of searching and browsing the web. Pre-registration is required in person at the Cyber Center Desk. Participants must possess basic mouse and keyboarding skills.

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

WEDNESDAY, NOV. 24 LUNCH In Church Join us for LUNCH and get refueled, renewed and refilled. This free event is held every Wednesday at noon at the First Presbyterian Church in Jamaica, 89-60 164th St. For more information, call (718) 526-4775, Ext. 10. Come just as you are.

Intro to Email

Humorist and stand up comic Dick Gregory will perform at the Black Spectrum Theatre on Nov. 20.

Queensborough Public Library’s Central Branch, 8911 Merrick Blvd., at 10 a.m.

Discover Your Career Potential

Where Do We Go From Here?

MONDAY, NOV. 22 Adult Chess Club

Page 20 PRESS of Southeast Queens Nov. 19-25, 2010

Monday and Thursday evenings.

The event is held at 6 p.m. every Monday at Queens Village Library, 94-11 217 St., (718) 776-6800.

In this workshop, customers will learn how to manage their own email account and send and receive email messages. Preregistration is required in person at the Cyber Center Desk. Participants must possess basic mouse and keyboarding skills.

This free event will be held at the

Calling all older adults: Join our galaxy of STARs to perform theatrical works at the library with a great group of people while brightening your life.

Rehearsals are held at 10:30 a.m. Fridays at Queens Village Library, 94-11 217 St., (718) 776-6800.

ONGOING CPR Training

First Presbyterian Church in Jamaica is offering free lunch every Wednesday.

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.

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

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.

Group Sessions

Laurelton Flea Market

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)

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 Thursday through Sunday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

CPR Class Learn to protect yourself and others at Heron Care Inc. For more information, please call (718) 291-8788.

Heron is located at 168-30 89th Ave., Jamaica.

Nov. 19-25, 2010 PRESS of Southeast Queens Page 21

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, 174-15 Horace Harding Expressway, Fresh Meadows, NY 11365. Send faxes to 357-9417, c/o Regina.

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

ALUMNI ST. JOHN’S PREP Saturday, November 20 alumni of St. John’s Prep High School/Lewis Avenue are invited to a reunion.

721-7200, ext. 686.

INCARNATION SCHOOL Saturday, November 27 Homecoming 2010 for all graduates from 5-11pm at 8943 Francis Lewis Blvd. 4655066.

ST. CLARE’S SCHOOL Saturday, November 27 Homecoming Celebration from 5-11pm in the school at 137-25 Brookville Blvd. 5287174.

DANCE

Page 22 PRESS of Southeast Queens Nov. 19-25, 2010

COUNTRY WESTERN Saturday, November 20 Neil Scott Johnson performs at the Thanksgiving Dance. $13. Saturday, December 11 Gunsmoke performs at the Christmas Dance. The NY Metropolitan Country Music Association. $12.

Glendale Memorial Building, 72-02 Myrtle Avenue at 7:30.

763-4328.

ISRAELI FOLK Mondays 7:15-10:00 at Hillcrest Jewish Center, 18202 Union Turnpike. $10 session. 380-4145. Mondays 7:30-9:30 at Kowalinski Post 4, 61-57 Maspeth Avenue. $5. Cake and coffee. 5652259. Wednesdays 7:309:00 at ANIBIC Center, 21212 26 th Avenue, Bayside (Bay Te r r a c e S h o p p i n g C e n te r upper level). 939-4936.

SINGLES SINGLES SOCIAL & DANCE Sundays, November 28, December 12 singles social and dance from 2-6. $10.

Over 45. Rego Park Jewish Center, 97-30 Queens Blvd., Rego Park. 459-1000.

PARENTS YOGA FOR PARENTS Monday, November 22 at the Cambria Heights library.

Register.

AHEAD Friday, November 26 at 1:30 at the Forest Hills library.

Meeting for parents who home-school their children.

ENTERTAINMENT LEGISLATIVE REVUE Saturday, November 20 Queens elected officials take center stage in a hilarious musical comedy revue at Queens Theatre in the Park.

760-0064.

CONCERT FOR COATS Saturday, November 20 at 7:30 featuring the joyful music of the Pan Ivory Steel Orchestra at St. Clare’s, 137 th and 1 3 8 th Avenues, Rosedale. Donation: one coat for charit y (new or worn). 527-6153.

BELLE’S PLAYERS Saturday, November 20 at the Forest Hills library at 2.

Belle’s Players will perform a new production of scenes and monologues by wellknown playwrights.

COMEDY NIGHT Saturday, November 20 comedians Johnny Lampert and Sherry Davey perform at Temple Tikvah in New Hyde Park. $20 advance, $25 at the door. 516-746-1120.

MANHATTAN BRASS Saturday, November 20 at the Langston Hughes library at 2.

AMERICAN SONGBOOK Saturday, November 20 Bass Baritone Gunter Stern performs at 2:30 at the Fresh Meadows library.

LATIN JAZZ COALITION Saturday, November 20 at the Central library at 3.

FILM SCREENING Saturday, November 20 Queens Lesbian and Gay Pride Committee’s film screening of “8: The Mormon Proposition” at the Jackson Heights library at 3.

DAVY JONES Saturday, November 20 at 8 at Queensboro Performing Arts Center. $35-45. 6316311.

DINO ROSI Sunday, November 21 Dino Rosi, the Voice of Napoli and International Recording Artist, performs at 3 at the Atria Senior Center in Kew Gardens.

FOREVER PLAID Sunday, November 21 at 3 at Queensboro Performing Arts Center. $35. 631-6311.

STAMP SHOW Sundays, November 21, December 26 Bayside Stamp Show at the Ramada Hotel, 220-33 Northern Blvd., Bayside 10-4:30. 645-7659.

JOHNNY MERCER Monday, November 22 tribute to Johnny Mercer with Diane Hoffman at 6:30 at the Queens Village 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.

CHAMBER MUSIC Tuesdays, November 23, 30 at LeFrak Concert Hall at 10.

997-3802 ticket reservations.

LIVE JAZZ Fridays through December 24 live jazz at 180-25 Linden Blvd., St. Albans. 347-

262-1169.

NEW CHINA Saturday, November 27 Blue Pipa, Inc. “Celebrate the New China: Traditional Chinese Music and Beloved Folk Songs” at 2 at the Flushing librar y.

MOTOWN Saturday, November 27 greatest Motown oldies at 2:30 at the Bayside library.

IT’S BROADWAY Saturday, November 27 show-stoppers at 2:30 at the Forest Hills library.

RELIGIOUS REGO PARK JC Saturday, November 20 Parashat and Haftarat Club at 12:30. Saturday Shabbat Services at 9. Wednesdays 12:30-2:30 Yiddish Vinkel.

Wednesday evenings at 6:30 Torah Discussion after evening Minyan Service.

Rego Park Jewish Center, 97-30 Queens Blvd. 4591000.

JEWISH WOMEN Saturday, November 27 the National Council of Jewish Women will meet to celebrate Chanukkah. Recreation Center at Clinton Martin Park at noon. 347-0742.

EXHIBIT QUEENS HISTORICAL Tu e s d ay s , S a t u r d ay s a n d Sundays 2:30-4:30 new exhibit “For Love of the Games: A History of Sports in Queens,” with other exhibits, “Unraveling History: Using Textiles to Date the Past,” “Kingsland: From Homestead to House Museum,” “Persistence: A Celebration of Landmarks in Queens – Past, Present, Future,” and “The Civil War’s La sting Memory.” Queens H i s to r i c a l Societ y at Kingsland Homestead, 1443 5 3 7 th a v e n u e , F l u s h i n g .

939-0647, ext. 17. $2 seniors and students, $3 adults.

NATIONAL ART LEAGUE Through November 27 80 th Fall Members’ Exhibition at the NAL, 44-21 Douglaston Parkway. 428-1859.

NO. IRELAND Through December 23 “Voices Envisioned: Memories Made in Northern Ireland,” at the Queens College Art Center. 997-3770.

HOLIDAY ART November 29 through January 1 at the National Art League, 44-21 Douglaston Parkway. Free.

FLUSHING COUNCIL Through September 2011 “Within the Emperor’s Gard e n : ” T h e Te n T h o u s a n d Springs Pavilion.” Through November 14 “Endangered Art/ists: China.” November 19 through January 7 “Korean Painting Exhibition: A Walk Through Nature.” Permanent displays include “Jazz Live!”, “Flushing Town Hall:” Fact or Folklore,” an historical exhibition on Flushing Town Hall and its place in history, “Legends of the Queens Jazz Trail” 463-7700.

EDUCATION/GAMES/CRAFTS ART CLASSES The Jackson Heights Art Club offers art classes for children and adults, day or evening, 7 days a week in Drawing, Watercolor and Oil and Acrylic. 926-9821.

SCRABBLE CLUB Saturdays at 10 at Count Basie Jr. HS, 132 nd Street and Guy R. Brewer Blvd. 8865236.

KNIT AND CROCHET Saturdays at the Seaside library at 2:30.

DEFENSIVE DRIVING Saturday, November 20 from 9-3:30 at Holy Family in Flushing. $45. 631-3609720.

PUBLIC SPEAKING Saturdays, November 20, December 4, 18 learn to communicate effectively at Elmhurst Hospital. 646-4367940.

BOATING SAFETY Sunday, November 21 the US Coast Guard Auxiliary’s Boating Safet y Class will be held at Fort Totten. 917-9527014.

PET OWNERS Sundays (not on holidays) from 1-4 free workshops on pet behavior at Crocheron Park in Bayside (weather permitting). 454-5800.

KNIT & CROCHET Mondays at 4 at the Douglaston/Little Neck library, 249-01 Northern Blvd.

INSTRUCTION & DANCE Mondays and Fridays 7:158:00 dance lessons, dance from 8-11. Italian Charities of America, 83-20 Queens Blvd., Elmhurst. $10.

ADULT CHESS Mondays at 6 at the Queens Village library.

DANCE CLASSES Mondays through Decemb e r 2 7 Ta p f ro m 6 - 7 : 3 0 , Partnering (including aspects of Jazz) 7:30-8:30. $15 per session at the Astoria Center of Israel. 278-2680.

BALLROOM DANCING Monday, November 22 at the Forest Hills library at 6:30.

COMPUTER EMAIL Monday, November 22 at the Fresh Meadows library.

Register.

LIC CRAFT CLUB Monday, November 22 at the LIC library at 1.

CLAY ORNAMENTS Monday, November 22 at the Astoria library at 1:30 and at the Glendale library at 6. Wednesday, November 24 at the Flushing library at 6.

JOB INFORMATION Monday, November 22 at the Middle Village librar y.

Register.

POLISH YOUR RESUME Monday, November 22 at the Central library. Register.

GET YOUR YARNS OUT! Tuesdays after evening Minyan at 8, knitters, crocheters, needlepointers, and others meet at the Forest Hills Jewish Center. 263-7000, ext. 200.

OPEN BRIDGE Tuesdays at 8 at the Forest Hills Jewish Center. Call 2637000 for fees.

COMPUTER CLASS Tuesdays, November 23, 30

in English and Spanish at the Arverne librar y.

BEGINNERS PC Tuesdays, November 23, 30 at the Bellerose library. Register.

INTRO WORD Tuesday, November 23 at the McGoldrick library. Register.

COMPUTER BASICS Tuesdays, November 23, 30 at the Astoria library at 11 and at the Queensboro Hill library. Register.

COMPUTER CLASS Tuesdays, November 23, 30 at the Rosedale library at 11.

ADULT SCRABBLE Tuesdays, November 23, 30 at 1 at the Fresh Meadows library.

SCRABBLE CLUB Tuesdays in November 3:305:30 at the East Flushing library.

INTRO INTERNET Tuesday, November 23 at the Central library. Register.

COMPUTER BASICS Tuesday, November 23 at the Glen Oaks library. Register.

INTRO INTERNET Tuesday, November 23 ˜ at the Queens Village library.

Register.

BEGIN COMPUTERS Tuesday, November 23 at the Sout h Jamaica librar y.

Register.

INTRO INTERNET Tuesday, November 23 at the Maspeth library at 1.

DUPLICATE BRIDGE Wednesdays 10:30-3:00 at

the Reform Temple of Forest Hills. $12 session, includes light lunch. 261-2900.

WATERCOLOR CL ASS Wednesdays at 9:30 at NAL. Traditional and contemporary, all levels. 969-1128.

INTRO EMAIL Wednesday, November 24 at the Central library. Register.

INDOOR SOCCER – DADS Wednesday evenings at the Forest Hills Jewish Center.

263-7000.

SCRABBLE/CHESS Thursdays at 4 at the Windsor Park library, 79-50 Bell Blvd., Bayside.

QUILTING CLASSES Thursdays 10-2 at the Maria Rose Doll Museum in St. Albans. 917-817-8653 to register.

KNIT/CROCHET Thursdays (not holidays) at 6 and Fridays at 10:30 at the Fresh Meadows library.

QUILTERS Thursdays at 1:30 at the East Elmhurst library.

ADULT CHESS Thursdays at 6 at the Queens Village library.

OPEN BRIDGE Thursdays from 8-10pm at the Forest Hills Jewish Center. $12 per player. 2756615 to register.

COMPUTER COURSE Friday, November 26 at the Ozone Park library. Register.

DEFENSIVE DRIVING Saturday, November 27 at Our Lady of Fatima Church in East Elmhurst from 9-3:30. $45. 631-360-9720.

MEETINGS JEWISH WOMEN Sunday, November 21 National Council of Jewish Women will be treated to a per formance of the Youth Symphony at Queens College. 343-9029 reservations.

Monday, November 22 the National Council of Jewish Women meet at Clinton Martin Park at noon. 2251539.

P-FLAG Sunday, November 21 PFLAG, a support group for parents, families and friends of lesbians and gays, meet in Forest Hills. 271-6663.

VFW 4787 Monday, November 22 Whitestone VFW Community Post meets; ladies auxiliary meets the 2 nd Monday.

746-0540.

TOASTMASTERS Monday, November 22 learn the art and science of Public Speaking in Queens.

525-6830.

ADVANCED WRITERS Tuesdays at 6:30 at the Terrace Diner at Bay Terrace Shopping Center and also t h e l a s t Tu e s d ay o f t h e m o n t h i n th e C o m m u n i t y Room in Panera Bread at Bay Terrace Shopping.

FH VAC Wednesday, November 24 Forest Hills Volunteer Ambulance Corp meets. 793-2055.

QUEENS CENTRAL ROTARY Thursdays 6:30-8:30 Come learn if Rotary is for you.

465-2914; me1nc@aol.com

CIVIL AIR PATROL Fridays 6-10 at Vaughn College of Aeronautics, 86-01 23 rd Avenue, East Elmhurst.

Academy WOMAN’S GROUP Fridays the Woman’s Group of Jamaica Estates meets at noon. Call 461-3193 for information.

FM POETS Saturday, November 27 the Flushing Meadows Poets meet to discuss and critique their poetry at 10 at the Forest Hills library.

JEWISH VETS Sunday, November 28 Jewish War Veterans of the USA Lipsky/Blum Post meet at the Garden Jewish Center. 4634742.

ST. ALBANS CIVIC Sunday, November 28 the St. Albans Civic Improvement Association meets at 1:30 at the St. Albans L u t h e r a n C h u r c h , 2 0 0 th Street and 119 th Avenue in the undercroft. 276-4263.

MISCELLANEOUS THANKSGIVING DINNER Thursday, November 25 Catholic Charities Neighborhood Services and Cit ywide Meals-on-Wheels is hosting a Thanksgiving Dinner t St. Mary Gate of Heaven C h u r c h , 1 0 3 - 0 2 1 0 1 st A v enue, Ozone Park from 102. Music and dancing. 8479200.

Queens Today YOUTH

HEALTH partner experiencing memory loss meet at the Samuel Field Y. 225-6750,

TALKS AUTHOR TALK Saturday, November 20 Andrew P.l Jackson (Sekou Molefi Baako) will talk and sign his book “Queens Notes: Facts About the Forgotten Borough of Queens, New York.” The Manhattan Brass Quintet will provide entertainment. Langston Hughes library at 1.

PHILOSOPHY BOOK Saturday, November 20 “Discourse on Method” will be discussed at 2 at the Forest Hills library.

INVESTMENT PLANS Monday, November 22 End of Year Tax and Investment Planning Program at 6 at the Corona library.

ART IN EUROPE Monday, November 22 the Friends of the Kew Gardens Hills library will present a talk

by Larissa Bailiff of the Museum of Modern Art on “The Provocative Fin de Siecle: Art in Europe at the End of the 19 th Century” at 1:30 at the Kew Gardens Hills library.

FLEA MARKETS OUTDOOR FLEA Saturdays and Sundays until November 28 St. Nicholas of Tolentine from 9-5 at the intersection of Parsons Blvd. and Union Turnpike, Jamaica.

CHRISTMAS FAIR Friday, November 19 9:307:00, Saturday, November 20 11-8 and Sunday, November 21 9-4 at Immaculate Conception Church, 86-45 Edgerton Blvd., Jamaica Estates.

RUMMAGE SALE Saturday, November 20 610pm and Sunday, November 21 10-4 at the Whitestone Hebrew Centre, 12-45 Clintonville Street, Whitestone.

TREASURE SALE Saturday, November 20 106 and Sunday, November 21 9-5 at Holy Family School, 7415 175 th Street, Flushing.

RUMMAGE/BOUTIQUE Sunday, November 21 9:303:00 at Young Israel of New Hyde Park, 264-15 77 th avenue.

HOLIDAY FAIR Sunday, November 21 from 9:30-12:30 at Temple Tikvah, 3315 Hillside Avenue, New Hyde Park.

INDOOR FLEA Sunday, November 21 a t Nativit y Church Hall, 91 st Street and Rockaway Blvd., Ozone Park from 9-4.

MINI-BAZAAR/RUMMAGE Sunday, November 21 from 10-3 at the Forest Park Jewish Center, 90-45 Myrtle Avenue, Glendale.

FLEA/CAKE Sunday, November 21 from 10-6 at Our Lady of the Blessed Sacrament auditorium, 203 rd Street and 35 th Avenue, Bayside.

ext. 236.

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, 85-18 61 st Road, Rego Park. 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.

TEENS CHESS CLUB Saturdays at the Flushing library at 2.

KNIT & CROCHET Mondays at the Douglaston/ Little Neck library at 4.

COLLEGE $$$ Monday, November 22 Finding Funds for College at t h e Fa r Ro c k away l i b ra r y.

Register.

DUNGEONS & DRAGONS Monday, November 22 at the Baisley Park library. Register.

COLLEGE CLUB Monday, November 22 virtual tours of several top colleges at the Pomonok library at 5.

VOCABULARY Tuesday, November 23 at the Briarwood and Sunnyside libraries. Writing and Vocabulary Building Workshops. Register.

THANKSGIVING CRAFT Tuesday, November 23 at the Queens Village library at 4:30.

TEEN TUESDAY Tuesdays, November 23, 30 at 4 at the Seaside library.

TEEN GAMES Wednesday, November 24 at the Central library at 4.

TEEN GAME DAY Wednesday, November 24 at the Kew Gardens Hills library at 4.

CHESS Wednesdays at 3:30 at the Queens Village library.

POETRY CLUB/GIRLS Wednesday, November 24 Poetr y Club for Teen Girls at the Langston Hughes library at 4.

B’NAI B’RITH YOUTH Thursdays for high school s t u d e n t s a t Te m p l e B e t h S h o l o m , 1 7 2 nd S t r e e t a n d Northern Blvd., Flushing at 7:30.

WII PLAY Thursday, November 25 at the Bayside library at 3:30.

GAME DAY Friday, November 26 at the Bellerose library at 4.

WII SPORTS Friday, November 26 at the Lefrak Cit y library at 4:30.

GAME DAY Friday, November 26 at the Bay Terrace library at 2:30.

GAME TIME Friday, November 26 at the Seaside library at 4.

GAME PLAYERS Fridays at the Hillcrest library at 2.

ART CLASSES Fridays Alliance of Queens Artists in Forest Hills offers teen workshops. 520-9842.

QUEENS LIBRARIES Many branches of the Queensborough Library offer toddler and pre-school programs. Contact your local branch for dates.

ALLEY POND Alley Pond Environmental center in Douglaston presents Sunny Bunnies for those 3-4, Wee Sprouts for those 18-23 months, Toddler Time for those 24-35 months and Fledglings for those 3-4 T h r o u g h D e c e m b e r. C a l l 229-4000 for exact schedule.

SCIENCE LAB Saturday, November 20 at the Central library at 11.

ORIGAMI ZOO Saturday, November 20 at F l u s h i n g To w n H a l l . 4 6 3 7700, ext. 222. $7.

CHESS CLUB Saturdays at the Flushing library at 2.

MATH HELP Saturdays, November 20, 27 at the Flushing library at 10.

ANIMALS Saturday, November 20 at Alley Pond Environmental Center. 229-4000. For those 5-6.

S TORY TIMES Saturdays at 11 and Tuesdays at 10:30 weekly story times at 7 at Barnes & Noble, 1 7 6 - 6 0 Un i o n Tu r n p i k e , Fresh Meadows.

MAD SCIENTIST Sunday, November 21 for those 8-12 at the Alley Pond Environmental Center. 2294000.

HOMEWORK HELP Monday-Fridays (not Thanksgiving Day) at the Astoria and Baisley Park libraries. Call to verif y time.

KNIT & CROCHET Mondays at 4 at the Douglaston/Little Neck lib ra r y. B r i n g n e e d l e s a n d yarn.

CIRCLE OF FRIENDS Monday, November 22 for those 3-5 years old at the Glen Oaks library at 11:15.

CRAFT KIDS Monday, November 22 a t the Flushing library at 3.

STORY TELLING Monday, November 22 folk and fairytales storytelling at the South Ozone Park library at 3 and at 4:30 at the Kew Gardens Hills library.

THANKSGIVING CRAFTS Monday, November 22 at the Fresh Meadows library at 3:30.

MATH Monday, November 22 at the Hollis library at 3:30.

SEWING CLUB Monday, November 22 at the LIC library. Register.

CARIBBEAN ARTS Monday, November 22 at the LIC library. Register.

CROCHET Monday, November 22 at the Rosedale library at 4.

TWEEN TIME Monday, November 22 at the Arverne library at 4:15.

DUNGEONS & DRAGONS Monday, November 22 at the Baisley Park library. Register.

PJ TIME Monday, November 22 at the Broad Channel at 7.

MOTHER GOOSE Tuesday, November 23 at

the Forest Hills library at 2.

ENGLISH GRAMMAR Tuesday, November 23 at the Hollis library at 3:30.

ARTS & CRAFTS Tuesday, November 23 at the Auburndale library at 4.

POWER OF THE PEN Tuesday, November 23 writing and vocabulary workshops at the Briarwood and Sunnyside libraries. Register.

THANKSGIVING CRAFT Tuesday, November 23 at the Hillcrest library at 4.

THANKSGIVING CRAFT Tuesday, November 23 at the LIC library. Register.

STORY TIME Wednesday, November 24 at the Steinway library at 10:30.

CRAFTS Wednesday, November 24 at the Steinway library at 11.

BABY CRAWL Wednesday, November 24 at 1:30 at the Forest Hills library.

CHESS Wednesdays at the Queens Village library at 3:30.

PAPER DOLL Wednesday, November 24 Pilgrim Paper Doll Craft at the East Flushing library. Register.

KIDS TIME Wednesday, November 24 at the Seaside library at 4.

YOGA WORKSHOP Wednesday, November 24 at t he Lefrak Cit y libra r y.

Register.

S TORY T I M E Friday, November 26 Japanese Story time and Craft at 10:30 at the Briarwood library.

ALL DAY KIDS DAY Friday, November 26 at the Pomonok library starting at 1.

GAME DAY Friday, November 26 at the Bay Terrace library at 2:30.

ORIGAMI Friday, November 26 at the Woodside library. Register.

GAME DAY Friday, November 26 at the Queensboro Hill library at 3.

FLASH FRIDAY Friday, November 26 at the Ozone Park library at 3:30.

GAME DAY Friday, November 26 at the Queens Village library at 3:30.

BOOK BUDDIES Friday, November 26 at 4 at the Fresh Meadows library.

GAME PLAYERS CLUB Friday, November 26 at the Hillcrest library at 4.

GAME TIME Friday, November 26 at the Seaside library at 4.

SCIENCE LAB Saturday, November 27 at the Central library at 11.

SENIORS FREE LUNCH Saturdays, November 20, December 18 at All Saints Church in Richmond Hill.

849-2352 reservations.

STAY WELL Mondays at 10 at the Central library. Tuesdays at 2 at the Flushing library and Wednesdays at 10 at the East Elmhurst library. Special exercises and relaxation tech-

THEATER IRMA VEP Through December 12 the Greek Cultural Center presents the comedy “The Mystery of Irma Vep” in Astoria. $20 adults, $15 children and seniors. 726-7329.

SWEET CHARITY Saturday, November 20 at 8 and Sunday, November 21 a t 3 . F S F C o m m u n i t y Theatre Group presents the musical “Sweet Charit y” at the Free Synagogue of Flushing. $16. 229-8547.

MAME Saturday, November 20 at 8 and Sunday, November 21 at 3 at Bay Terrace Jewi s h C e n t e r , 1 3 - 0 0 2 0 9 th Street, Bayside. $18. 4286363.

I_NY Saturday, December 18 lives of immigrant NYers intersect at Queens Theatre in the Park at 8. Free tickets; reservations required. 7600064.

KILLING KOMPANY The Killing Company performs mystery dinner shows.

1-888-SHOOT-EM for information

niques.

CLEARVIEW Monday, November 22 Music Appreciation at 12:30.

Clearview Senior Center, 208-11 26 th Avenue, Bayside.

224-7888.

STARS Wednesday, November 24 at 10:30 at the Hollis library.

Friday, November 26 at 10:30 at the Queens Village library. Come join this theatrical group.

FREE LUNCH Saturdays, November 27, December 25 at Church of the Resurrection in Kew Gardens. 847-2649 reservations.

AARP 1405 Monday, December 6, 20 Flushing AARP 1405 meets at the Bowne Street Communit y Church, 143-11 Roosevelt Avenue at 1.

AARP 3698 Wednesday, December 8 AARP 3698 meets at the Zion Episcopal Church, 24301 Northern Blvd., Douglaston at 1. Refreshments and social hour at noon.

AARP 4158 Tu e s d a y, D e c e m b e r 1 4 North Flushing AARP chapter 4158 meets at noon at Church on the Hill, 167-07 35 th Avenue, Flushing.

ALLEN COMMUNITY Keyboard lessons, crocheting, knitting, art, computer classes for beginners and advanced, Allen Singers, Drama Club, Hair Care, Aerobic, Beginners Bridge.

Allen Communit y Senior Center, 166-01 Linden Blvd., Jamaica. 658-0980.

Nov. 19-25, 2010 PRESS of Southeast Queens Page 23

NARCOTICS ANONYMOUS 7 days a week. 932-6244. www.westernqueensna.org.

SHARP Saturdays, November 20, December 18 Selfhelp Alzheimers Resource Program (SHARP) in Bayside.

631-1886.

CHILD CARE NETWORK Saturday, November 20 information on free nutrition service and planning for child care providers and families at 10 at the Forest Hills library.

ZUMBA Saturdays, November 20, 27 fitness program at the LIC library. Register.

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.

RECOVERY, INC. Monday, November 22 anxiet y, fear, obsession, temper and more at 5:45 at the Forest Hills library.

ZUMBA Monday, November 22 at the Hollis library. Register.

CHAIR YOGA Monday, November 22 a t the North Hills library. Register.

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

670-1695. $5 a class.

FEMALE CANCER Mondays, November 22, December 13, 27 “Look Good, Feel Better” program for women undergoing chemotherapy and radiation therapy in Flushing. 1-800ACS-2345.

MS SELF-HELP Tu e s d a y s , N o ve m b e r 2 3 , December 14, 28 Multiple Sclerosis Self-help group to share a common life experience for support, education and mutual aid 1-2:30 at the Howard Beach library.

ALZHEIMERS Tu e s d a y s , N o ve m b e r 2 3 , December 14, 28 Caregiver Support Group in Forest Hills. 592-5757, ext. 237.

YOGA DANCE Tuesdays 4:30-5:30 at the Cardiac Health Center in Fresh Meadows. 670-1948. $10 class.

CAREGIVERS SUPPORT E ve r y Tu e s d a y We ste r n Queens Caregiver Network in Sunnyside. 784-6173, ext.

431.

ZUMBA Tu e s d a y m o r n i n g s a n d Wednesday evenings through December 8 at the Bay Terrace Jewish Center. $8 members, $10 others.

428-6363.

BRAIN INJURY Wednesdays, November 24, D e c e m b e r 2 2 Tra u m a t i c Brain Injury Support Group at Peninsula Hospital. 7342432.

OA Thursdays at the Howard Beach library at 10:30.

MEMORY LOSS Fridays Couples with one

Profile

SEQ Biz With A Cinderella Story

BY SASHA AUSTRIE

Maybe it is the exuberance and lilt in her voice, or the permanent smile affixed to Cynthia "Cinderella" Newman's face, but her infectious attitude lingers. It invades those around her and dwells in When We Were Queens.

Comments on her beauty are usually followed with, "I'm just a reflection of you."

"When We Were Queens" is a small storefront spa sitting at the edge of Merrick Boulevard and Pineville Lane and is more than it pretends to be. This is a place where everybody knows your name by the end of your first visit, and you leave with more than a facial and a fresh coat of lipstick. It is a haven for hugs and friends.

Before her career in the cosmetics industry, Cinderella wanted to work with children.

"I wanted to be a phys. ed. teacher," she said. "I love sports."

Lucky for her circle of friends, her talent was to beautify one customer at a time.

She started at Bloomingdales, where she outfitted mannequins. A friend who was moving to Texas told her about a position at Fashion Fair, a cosmetics and skincare line for women of color. Though she had limited experience with makeup, Cinderella garnered a position at the company and was in its employ for 10 years. It was her tenure there that prepared her for

a career spanning well over three decades.

Though Fashion Fair was her start, many of her customers knew her best as Vera Moore's "right arm." Moore was the first black tenant at Green Acres Mall and Cinderella stood by her side from inception. The business has blossomed from a mall kiosk to a preferred brand for women of color. For 18 years, Cinderella was part of the formula.

In her years in the employ of others, Cinderella never had a desire to strike out on her own. She was simply doing something she loved.

A car accident in the waning days of 1998 brought her career to a screeching halt and changed the course of her life.

"I couldn't move my neck," Cinderella said. "I had six discs out of place and my equilibrium was out of place, so I couldn't stand."

Moore awaited her return, and every time her comeback drew near, her body did not respond. Behind the scenes, the foundation for When We Were Queens was slowly taking shape. Her husband and three other men from The Nation of Islam approached her about striking out on her own. At first she resisted, but in the summer of 1999, Cinderella gave Vera Moore the dreaded news.

"Leaving her was like leaving my husband for another man," she said.

"God just had a glorious way to make it

easy." Cinderella maintains that the accident was God's doing to help her realize her potential.

Vivian, a client from Brooklyn, is a witness to Cinderella's potential.

"A friend told me she was the bomb diggity bomb," she said. Though there are many places between Queens and Brooklyn where Vivian can get her brows waxed, plucked and shaped, she chooses When We Were Queens.

"We are very particular about our eyebrows and we don't let just anyone touch us," she said. "When you get good service, you don't let it go," she said.

Other than eyebrow shaping, patrons can receive facials; makeovers; how-to classes; skincare and cosmetics; skin consultations for both men and women, and massages.

Cinderella has also developed her own line of cosmetics and skincare products, which are named after her clients.

Cinderella said she welcomes walk-ins, but for body treatments, appointments are greatly appreciated.

De'Anna Sutton, When We Were Queens' license massage therapist, met Cinderella at Green Acres 16 years ago.

The two bonded and have recently started working together.

"She is my fifth sister," Sutton said of Cinderella. "She is wonderful."

The store, located at 186-15 Merrick Blvd., is small in stature, but at its core is

Cynthia "Cinderella" Newman (r.), owner and proprietor of When We Were Queens, along with her shop's masseuse De'Anna Sutton.

Cinderella's gregarious spirit. The main space, lovingly dubbed "the living room" is the site of many announcements - death, birthdays, weddings, engagements. Here she greets the clients with a broad smile.

Every woman who walks through her door is a queen and every man is a king.

"Without God and you, we truly cannot survive," is Cinderella's mantra. "We thank you."

For an appointment at When We Were Queens, call (718) 341-5335.

Reach Reporter Sasha Austrie at saustrie@queenspress.com, or (718) 3577400, Ext. 123.

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Models Of Strutting Her Stuff may be looking at the next Tyra Banks.

Queens ButYou in this success story, adversity is a must.

Addy Adeyeye’s first excursions into the world of modeling weren’t exactly smooth. Though she knew she had the flair to make a pretty Addy Adeyeye always penny off her looks, she didn’t pursue anything Ozone Park until a run-of-the-mill “modeling agency” apAge: 18 proached her with promises of work.

Height: 5' 11'’ The Long Island-based agency charged her Weight: 136 lbs dearly for her first shoot, then piled on fees for Stats: 36-24-36 “marketing.”

“It wasn’t a good experience,” the 18-year-old said.

And shame on them! How can you try to scam such a face?

A face that has kept her modeling aspirations alive since she was 12.

“I’m very photogenic,” Addy said, without a twinge of self-deprecation (or pomposity).

She’s currently pursuing a liberal arts degree at Kingsborough Community College and in the unlikely occurrence that modeling doesn’t work out, she hopes to be a nurse.

In her spare time around the house, when she’s not shopping and hanging out, Addy has the very un-model-like habit of reading. She just coursed through her favorite book, “To Kill A Mockingbird,” for the third time.

Addy models herself after the likes of Naomi Campbell and Tyra. And with heroines like that, who can doubt her potential?

She already has the hardest part down.

“My walk,” she says of her signature strut.

“People say I just walk like a model.”

Vallone Paddled

"Ping Pong" Peter Vallone and "30 Rock's" Judah Friedlander

Peter Vallone Jr., a champion for the people of Queens and a fighter of graffiti, was also once a champion and fighter in another arena – the ping-pong table. He mastered the small-paddle science at an early age and competed in tournaments up until he got sick and was unable to travel to play against China.

Truly, he’s no Forrest Gump, but he certainly did manage to

Page 26 PRESS of Southeast Queens Nov. 19-25, 2010

Chu Strikes Again Meter maid Daniel Chu, who famously ticketed one of our favorite Councilmen last summer, is fighting back – with a $2 million defamation lawsuit against Dan Halloran.

The tête-à-tête began when Halloran saw the officer speed by, sirens blazing, while talking on a cell phone. After parking illegally in front of a Dunkin Donuts, Chu emerged with an iced coffee in hand.

The incident was nothing more than a Councilman Dan Halloran false report, the lawsuit alleges.

Halloran, an attorney, has called the suit “completely frivolous.”

In Hotmanager Oilsaw the same truck the

It’s a sign of the times when cooking oil becomes a hot commodity. Police arrested two Queens men who alleged stole 1,400 gallons of used cooking oil in North Bergen.

Youngil Kim, 48, and Byung Ho Choi, 55, were apprehended after the manager of the Five Guys Burgers spotted someone stealing the restaurants cooking oil.

The yellow truck the two traveled in was a dead giveaway as the

last time cooking oil was stolen.

The truck was outfitted with a plastic bladder used to store the oil and a pump that sucked the oil out of their containers.

We know some may be saying, “What good is used cooking oil?”

How about $1,400. The oil can be turned into biodiesel fuel and one gallon cost about $1.

We are now storing all of our cooking oil.

hold his own at a celebrity pingpong throwdown at Lincoln Center last week in a benefit for 826NYC, a nonprofit organization, dedicated to helping children develop their writing skills.

Though he may have faltered, fouled or otherwise failed, he came out a winner rubbing elbows with – and possibly the hat of – “30 Rock” actor and writer Judah Friedlander, who did take home the ridiculously tall trophy that night.

Perhaps if Vallone had worn his own “World Champion” shirt, the result would have been different.

Confidentially, New

Rascals Wrapped

Getting a little frisky? Make sure your stock of Trojans is up to snuff.

Not to start a panic, but Queens resident Jian Hu and his sister Lin pleaded guilty to charges of selling counterfeit brand-name merchandise as part of a massive ring that brought in fake goods that included clothing, power cords and a million faux Trojan condoms.

The duo delivered a teary-eyed apology, saying they were dragged into the ring by a brother.

A Brooklyn judge sentenced Jian to 18 months in prison while his sister got a full two years. Both will follow their jail stints with three years of supervised release.

The knock-off clothing is bad

No glove, no love? Just make sure it’s the real deal. enough, but the condoms failed leakage tests. The city’s population is thriving already, so let’s hope this doesn’t lead to a second baby boom.

Gone To The Dogs When you hear the term “crappy neighborhood,” Glendale is not usually what comes to mind, but according to the Sanitation Dept., the title fits….literally.

No, the quiet, family-orientated neighborhood surrounded by parks isn’t suffering from high crime, crumbling buildings, or vandalism.

Instead, Glendale tops the list of having the most violations for dog poop.

Glendale dog owners were issued 41 summonses in the fiscal year that ended this past July for not picking up canine excrement. That number is nearly half the entire number of violations handed out in the borough. According to the Sanitation Dept., the worst places for poop are along Myrtle, Cooper and Metropolitan Avenues.

Glendale is still a gorgeous neighborhood, but the next time you’re enjoying its beauty, watch where you’re walking. Oh, and if you a pet owner and live in Glendale, curb your dogs people!

WTF, WFP? When the final vote count in the state is tallied, it seems that the Working Families Party will get the fourth column in the next statewide election, just past Democrats, Republicans and Conservatives. Fresh off the balHey WFP, sometimes pols from other lot-line victory, WFP Execuparties even give us the coffee for free. tive Director Dan Cantor sent out an e-mail asking people to donate to the party for five York . . . bucks a month (or $60).

What struck us as odd was that the description of $5 was “the cost of two cups of coffee.” Now, sure, if you go to Starbucks that might fit your income bracket, but we’ve noticed most places we pick up coffee here in Queens that same five bucks can get us at least five cups of coffee – and if you go to the bodega just across from the ER at Elmhurst Hospital, at 75 cents a cup that same cost for two at your yuppie coffee bar can get you better than six cups.

C’mon, Working Families, let’s not forget where your bread is buttered – or, better yet, where your coffee is poured – when reaching into our pockets.

QConfidential is edited by: Michael Schenkler. Contributors: Jessica Ablamsky, Sasha Austrie, Marcia Moxom Comrie, Mike Nussbaum, Joe Orovic, Brian Rafferty, Domenick Rafter.

People She is the sister of Deborah Ashley of Jamaica. Ashley is a 2007 graduate of Hillcrest High School, Jamaica.

Air Force Airman Olivia L. Ashley Air Force Airman Olivia L. Ashley graduated from basic military training at Lackland Air Force Base, San Antonio, Texas.

The airman completed an intensive, eight-week program that included training in military discipline and studies, Air Force core values, physical fitness, and basic warfare principles and skills.

Airmen who complete basic training earn four credits toward an associate in applied science degree through the Community College of the Air Force.

The faculty and staff at the SUNY College at Plattsburgh announced that the following local residents were awarded degrees during the college’s commencement services this spring: Camice Miquel Allen of Rosedale, bachelor’s in nursing; Amanda Renee Allison of Long Island City, bachelor’s in English literature; Jessica Bahn of Oakland Gardens, bachelor’s in English literature; Daniel Bennette of South Ozone Park, bachelor’s in hotel, restaurant and tourism management; Yashuda Gurung of Ridgewood, bachelor’s in biochemistry; Munim Jalil of Astoria, bachelor’s in business; Jacynth Joyce Johnson of St. Albans, combined bachelor’s/master’s in adolescence education; Troy Roger Joseph of Jamaica, bachelor’s in geography; Adrian Felipe Tejeda of Richmond Hill, bachelor’s in accounting; Nicole Vanacore of Astoria, bachelor’s in criminal justice; Simone I. Williams of Corona, bachelor’s in international business; and Ivan Edward Wohner of Jamaica, bachelor’s in English (writing).

The following students enrolled at Binghamton University recently received American Dream Scholarships: Matthew L. Lugo of Astoria, Laura Park of Sunnyside, Dimka S. Aleksandrova of Astoria, Han Wang of Flushing,

Danping Chen of Whitestone, Won J. Yoon of Whitestone, Robin S. Choi of Bayside, Alison R. Entin of Bayside, Avalon N. Siegel of Oakland Gardens, Warren Caison of Fresh Meadows, Moonju Lee of Flushing, Lydia Gyampoh of Corona, Mandip Kaur of New York City, Meifang Jian of Jackson Heights, Daniel Park of Jackson Heights, Shiqi Chen of Elmhurst, Vanessa A. Vargas of Elmhurst, Victoria Brunshtein of Forest Hills, Ariel R. Friedman of Forest Hills, Sadia Hannan of Woodside, Aleisha A. Forbes of Cambira Heights, Janice C. Mcfarlane of St Albans, Bonnie Li of Woodhaven, Rushni Z. Shaikh of Queens Village, Janie Cherestal of Queens Village and Shakeema D. Pride of Far Rockaway.

These scholarships are awarded to women and minorities with academic merit.

Army Reserve Spec. Troy O. Malcolm is returning to the U.S. after a deployment to Iraq or Afghanistan in support of Operations Iraqi Freedom or Enduring Freedom, respectively.

The soldiers return to Joint Base DixMcGuire-Lakehurst, N.J., for debriefing, evaluations and out-processing procedures before returning to their regularly assigned Army Reserve or National Guard units.

Malcolm, a petroleum supply specialist, is assigned to the 716th Quartermaster Company, located at the Joint Base Dix-McGuire-Lakehurst, N.J. He has

served in the military for four years.

He is the son of Beverly Malcolm of Mott Avenue, Far Rockaway. The specialist graduated in 2002 from Far Rockaway High School.

Army National Guard Pvt. Kareem J. Gibbs has graduated from basic combat training at Fort Jackson, Columbia, S.C. During the nine weeks of training, the soldier studied the Army mission, history, tradition and core values, physical fitness, and received instruction and practice in basic combat skills, military weapons, chemical warfare and bayonet training, drill and ceremony, marching, rifle marksmanship, armed and unarmed combat, map reading, field tactics, military courtesy, military justice system, basic first aid, foot marches, and field training exercises.

He is the son of Adrain Smith and Kevin Gibbs both of Jamaica. Gibbs graduated in 2007 from Flushing High School.

Tell The PRESS

Send notices of graduation, awards, anniversaries, engagements and honors to: PRESS of Southeast Queens 150-50 14th Rd., Whitestone, NY 11357 All announcements will be considered for publication without fee.

Nov. 19-25, 2010 PRESS of Southeast Queens Page 27