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Vol. 27 No. 16
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Celebrations carry on, at a distance By BRIDGet DowNeS bdownes@liherald.com
Bridget Downes/Herald
the eASteR BuNNy rode through the streets of Baldwin last Sunday, waving to children and their families as all practiced appropriate social distancing.
As people avoid large public gatherings and practice social distancing to prevent the further spread of coronavirus, many Baldwin families have turned to car parades and virtual services to celebrate birthdays and holidays. Last Sunday, to celebrate Easter, Kevin Smith, Jess Eckles and Liz Smith drove through Baldwin neighborhoods with the Easter Bunny,
inviting children and families to wave from their windows or from a safe distance. “Our goal is to bring smiles and do something fun for our community,” organizers said on the Facebook event page, “not put anyone at risk.” Look out for the black Jeep with the Easter Bunny waving to you from a safe distance, they wrote, and shared the message in local Facebook groups to spread the word. Originally planned as a three-hour tour to Continued on page 3
Breakfast is on this Baldwin organization By BRIDGet DowNeS bdownes@liherald.com
After losing her father and her former boyfriend within 11 days of each other to Covid-19 last month, Dr. Zodelia Williams decided she would channel her energy into giving to others rather than allowing grief to defeat her. Her father, Fernando Williams Sr., died March 24 in Panama, and her former boyfriend, David Hamilton, who was her best friend for 28 years and the father of her children, died April 3. “This week, I had a decision to make,” said Williams, the Baldwin Herald’s
2019 Person of the Year and the founder and executive director of 3D’s Community Empowerment Center in Baldwin. “Cry all day and night, distance myself from my circle and fall into a deep depression, or listen to the two voices of my dad and David in my head telling me to get up and do what I do best: be intentional about being a rainbow in someone else’s cloud.” She and one of her daughters, Daria, woke up early last Friday and, with the help of Baldwin Bagel Cafe, delivered breakfast to 170 essential employees working at the Baldwin, North Baldwin and Free-
I
t’s the least we can do to show our appreciation for their selflessness and dedication in this war against corona.
DR. ZoDelIA wIllIAmS 3D’s Community Empowerment Center
port post offices, as well as Sanitary District 2 in Baldwin and the South Ozone Park post office.
Ambari Designs, a local accessory shop specializing in custom fashion pieces, provided homemade masks to volunteers. Williams and Daria donated the spreads to honor Williams’s mother, Amelia Musler, who retired from the post office after 30 years of service, and her brother, Fernando Williams, who has worked for the New Yo rk C i t y S a n i t a t i o n Department for 20 years. “It’s the least we can do to show our appreciation for their selflessness and dedication in this war against coronavirus,” Williams said. The donations, she added, were a small gesture to let
the essential employees know that 3D’s Empowerment Center “appreciates you in these tough times.” She knew, she said, that her father and Hamilton would have wanted her to get up and “do what I do best,” which is help others. “Although not together,” Williams said of Hamilton, “there is nothing that we wouldn’t do for each other. David was Daria’s real-life superhero. We were BFF and the epitome of what coparenting should be.” Many of the post office and sanitation workers thanked Williams for her Continued on page 4