Yonkers Insider: Yonkers City Councilwoman Corazon Pineda Issac 2nd District: City of Yonkers Celebrates Memorial Day May 30, 2022.

 

Yonkers Insider: Yonkers City Council Corazon Pineda Issac 2nd District: Bee Line Buses Free - Summer 2022.

 

Westchester County Executive George Latimer recently announced that rides on Bee-Line buses in Westchester County will be free beginning June 1.

Yonkers Insider: City of Yonkers: St. John's Riverside Hospital.

 

St. John’s Riverside Hospital is conducting a Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA) and would appreciate your input. Please share your thoughts on the health and wellness of your community by completing this 10-minute survey. The survey will ask questions about what you think are the most important health issues in our community and what matters to you most.

Please complete the survey, which will close on June 30, by using the following link: https://www.gnyhasurveys.org/CHNA2022. 

Yonkers Insider: Yonkers City Councilwoman Corazon Pineda Issac 2nd District: Affordable Housing Opportunity - 10 School Street Deadline for Applications: August 31, 2022.

 

Your copy should address 3 key questions: Who am I writing for? (Audience) Why should they care? (Benefit) What do I want them to do here? (Call-to-Action)

Create a great offer by adding words like "free" "personalized" "complimentary" or "customized." A sense of urgency often helps readers take an action, so think about inserting phrases like "for a limited time only" or "only 7 remaining!"

Yonkers Insider: Yonkers City Councilwoman Corazon Pineda Issac 2nd District: Mexican Consular Services Offered in Yonkers.

 

From May 10 - May 14th, the Mexican Consulate in New York set up shop at10 Brook Street in Yonkers to make consular services easily accessible to our City's Mexican residents. I was able to to partner with MHACY and the Mexican Consulate to make this service possible. We will be offering this service again from July 5-July 9th. More information will be forthcoming.

Yonkers Insider: Yonkers City Councilwoman Corazon Pineda Issac 2nd District: Mental Health Awareness Event on South Broadway,.

On Saturday, May 14th, I partnered with Que Paso Latinx and the South Broadway Business Improvement District to bring awareness to the importance of Mental Health within our community. It was a great event that took place at Lincoln Park on South Broadway, with music, free giveaways, and most importantly, education on the 5 Steps to achieve mental health.

Yonkers Insider: Statement from Yonkers City Councilwoman Corazon Pineda Issac 2nd District.

 

This Sunday, June 5, 2022, join me on South Broadway for the Yonkers Puerto Rican/Hispanic Day Parade, starting at 12:30pm. A concert and festival will take place at Chicken Island immediately after the parade. This annual event was cancelled two years in a row due to the covid pandemic, so I'm very excited that it is back. I hope you can join me to celebrate the various Hispanic cultures we have here in Yonkers. It's always a great time.

Hon. Corazon Pineda-Isaac

40 South Broadway, Suite 414

Yonkers, NY 10701

(Tel) 377-6312

(Email) corazon.pineda.isaac@yonkersny.gov

Yonkers Insider/Westchester Insider: Election Desk 2022: Fundraiser for Amy Puerto for NYS Supreme Court Justice: Elections 2022.

 

Reminder to all to please save the date for our Campaign Kick-Off event, happening on June 5th!

Co-hosted by Hon. Jeffrey A. Cohen and Lisa Zeiderman, in the legendary Zeiderman sculpture garden -- you do not want to miss this one!

Tickets at the door, or make a donation in advance at: https://amypuertoforsupreme.com/donate

Supplied by Amy Puerto for Supreme.

Yonkers Insider: News from Yonkers Rotary.

 

Yonkers East Yonkers Rotary Club participated in the Relay for Life event with the American Cancer Society today at Gordon High School In Yonkers. Thank you Yonkers Rotary Members who donated to this noble cause!

Yonkers Insider: Westchester County Legislator Jose Alvarado 17th District: Yonkers Summer Reading Buddies Program.

Summer Reading Buddies.

Reading delays in children have become a major problem because of the pandemic, and kids often suffer from the "summer slide" during which they lose their literacy skills and "slide back" over the summer months. Volunteer Summer Reading Buddies can be a part of the solution by assisting underserved children with their literacy work and reading practice.

Summer Reading Buddies will be given books and worksheets to work one-on-one or in small groups with children in preschool through fifth grade. Volunteers may sign up for their choice of sessions; a commitment of at least one day per week is encouraged, but not required. This is an in-person project that will run on Tuesdays and Wednesdays from 12-2:30 p.m. from July 5 to August 10 at Yonkers Riverfront Library, 1 Larkin Center, Yonkers, NY 10701.

Registration is required: tinyurl.com/2p8jd5c7

For more information contact Claudia at cbarbieri@fssy.org or 914-963-5118 x536 or Elida at egarcia@fssy.org or 914-258-2423.

Spots filled on a first come, first served basis. Space is limited.

Yonkers Insider/Westchester Insider: Election Desk 2022: Fundraiser for David Squirrell for New York State Supreme Court Justice: Elections 2022.

 

Please mark your calendars for our Campaign Kick-Off event on June 2nd!

We are grateful to Hon. Robert Spolzino and Bill Serratore for hosting, and we hope to see many of you there!

Supplied by Squirrell for Supreme Court.

Yonkers Insider/Westchester Insider: Election Desk 2022 News: Democrat MaryJane Shimsky Criticizes Incumbent Tom Abinanti for Siding with GOP by Voting Against Local Control of Handgun Fees.

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: June 1, 2022. ***PRESS RELEASE*** Democrat MaryJane Shimsky Criticizes Incumbent Tom Abinanti for Siding with GOP by Voting Against Local Control of Handgun Fees.   Shimsky Calls on Abinanti to Change His Vote Before Final Bill Comes to Assembly Floor.   WESTCHESTER, N.Y. – MaryJane Shimsky, Democrat for State Assembly in the 92nd District, today called out incumbent Tom Abinanti for being the lone Democrat in the Assembly Codes Committee to side with Republicans against legislation giving Westchester County control of handgun licensing fees, which have not been raised in 20 years. The bill, A7939, passed the Codes Committee despite Mr. Abinanti’s opposition and is currently in the Assembly Rules Committee. According to Westchester County, the outdated processing fee—capped at $10 by New York State law—costs taxpayers approximately $300,000 annually.    “I want to know why Mr. Abinanti thinks Westchester taxpayers should subsidize the cost of procuring pistol licenses, rather than those who are buying the firearms,” said Shimsky. “This is unsound fiscal policy at any time, and an especially callous vote to cast at a time when our nation is shaken and grieving from the tragedies in Buffalo and Uvalde. Westchester County has been covering the costs of processing new pistol licenses. But that commitment could change in a future administration, putting the long-term financial sustainability of these essential investigations at risk.” Currently in Westchester County, original applicants pay $10 for a pistol license fee, which is kept by the County, and $105.25 for a fingerprint processing fee, which the County deposits and then sends to the State. By contrast, Nassau County and New York City are exempt from the cap and charge fees that meet their processing costs. The application cost is $200 in Nassau County and $340 in New York City. Both Nassau County and New York City require an additional $88.25 fingerprint processing fee.

Yonkers Insider: Yonkers City Councilman Anthony Merante 6th District: Yonkers Street Re-Naming Dedication For Rita Gross Nelson.

COUNCILMEMBER ANTHONY MERANTE AND THE YONKERS CITY  COUNCIL ARE PROUD TO ANNOUNCE THE HONORARY RE-NAMING OF HORATIO STREET TO RITA GROSS NELSON WAY.

 

In recognition of her life achievements, community service and dedication to the City of Yonkers, Councilmember Anthony Merante, Mayor Mike Spano and the Yonkers City Council will honorarily dedicate the portion of Horatio Street between Dunbar Street and Clement Street to Rita Gross Nelson Way. Rita was the “First Permanent African American Female Yonkers Police Officer, first Woman to walk "patrol"" in the State of New York in 1964.” This is only a few of her many accomplishments (see full bio below)

 

DATE:  Thursday, June 2, 2022

TIME:  1:30 pm

PLACE:  Horatio Street between Dunbar Street and Clement Street

ABOUT RITA GROSS NELSON

Rita Gross Nelson, born in 1937 in Harlem, was a Yonkers native who grew up on Bushey Avenue, attended Yonkers Public Schools, and graduated from Roosevelt High School as her father before her. She then joined the United States Air Force and honorably discharged in 1958. She attended Paul Quinn College, Waco Texas and Fordham University, N.Y.C.

 

Rita Gross Nelson joined the Yonkers Police Force as a Parking Enforcement Officer (Meter Maid) and was appointed the first Permanent African American Female Police Officer, and the first Woman to walk ""patrol"" in the State of New York in 1964.  After 23 years of service, she retired and became the first African American Director of Security for the Hudson River Museum.  After ten years, she again ""retired"", but shortly accepted a position at Columbia University where she trained Security Officers, as a Licensed State Security Officer Instructor.

 

For many of these years she also served as Private Security for VIP's such as Coretta Scott King, Shirley Chisolm, Robin Givens and Dorothy Irene Height.  In 2000, at the request of then Superintendent Joseph Farmer, Rita came out of retirement again, accepting a position in Yonkers Public Schools System as Court Liaison for at risk youths and State Trainer for School Safety Officers.  She also had the distinction of being the first female to hold these positions.

 

COMMUNITY SERVICE

Rita Gross Nelson was the first Female member of the Westchester and Rockland Guardians Assoc. and served as Secretary for 6 years. She was also a charter member of the National Council of Police Societies; and served as 1st  Vice President of Council of Police Societies.

 

Rita was a concerned citizen of Yonkers.  She served in, as well as supported, many local organizations, including: serving as Past Matron of Terrace City Chapter #26; Yonkers Prince Hall Order of Eastern Stars; Life Member of the Yonkers Branch NAACP; and Board Member of the Nepperhan Community Center, serving as Secretary until her illness and passing. Rita was a Life Member of Runyon Heights Improvement Association, the neighborhood she loved, lived in, and resided until her death in 2015.

 

FAMILY

Rita was the proud mother of 3 daughters; Carol Gross, Celleste Gilbert, and Maria George. She was an even prouder Grandmother of the late Miranda George, Nikhol George Yoshii, Keith and Kyle Gilbert, and blessed with a Son-in-Law Shige Yoshii and Great Grand-Daughter Luna Yoshii. Rita never met a child that she did not love and nurture as her own, claiming many young men and women as sons and daughters.

 

Rita used to say that she was second-generation Yonkers, gave birth to the third, and lived to see the fourth and fifth arrive. "I AM Yonkers, I'm not just passing through" was her motto with regard to her City.

 

Yonkers Insider: Westchester County Legislator James Nolan 15th District: Black Bear Spotted in Yonkers.

 

Dear Friends and Neighbors, 

The Yonkers Police Department received reports Sunday regarding black bear sightings in the Fox Terrace area adjacent to Dunwoodie Golf Course. The animal retreated into the wooded area without incident.

The NYS Department of Environmental Conservation provides helpful information about black bear encounters:                                                                                                                    

• Black bear info: https://www.dec.ny.gov/animals/6960.html
• Reducing conflicts: https://www.dec.ny.gov/animals/6995.html
• Black bear encounters: https://www.dec.ny.gov/animals/94710.html
• Nuisance wildlife reports can be made to the DEC here: https://www.dec.ny.gov/about/259.html

Any aggressive, attacking, or emergency behavior should be reported. Please do not leave any food sources outside as black bears are skilled scavengers. Please be wary of leaving your pets outside without supervision.

Sincerely,

Yonkers Insider: City of Yonkers: ***NEWS RELEASE***: CITY OF YONKERS TO UNVEILTHE ENSLAVED AFRICANS’ RAIN GARDEN, AN URBAN-HERITAGE SCULPTURE GARDEN, ON JUNE 17 ALONG HUDSON RIVER.

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: CITY OF YONKERS TO UNVEIL

THE ENSLAVED AFRICANS’ RAIN GARDEN,

AN URBAN-HERITAGE SCULPTURE GARDEN, ON JUNE 17 ALONG HUDSON RIVER.

 

Public Art Exhibit Honors Legacy of Nation’s First Slaves Freed Decades Before the Emancipation Proclamation.

 

Yonkers, NY – June 1, 2022 – Kicking off the City’s Juneteenth celebration weekend, Yonkers Mayor Mike Spano along with sculptor Vinnie Bagwell, local artists and community leaders officially will unveil The Enslaved Africans’ Rain Garden (EARG), along the Yonkers waterfront at 20 Water Grant Street, on Friday, June 17 at 11:30AM. The urban-heritage sculpture garden honors the legacy of enslaved Africans who resided and worked at Philipse Manor Hall in Yonkers. The garden’s opening will feature the presentation of five life-size bronze sculptures of the enslaved Africans who were freed decades before the Emancipation Proclamation.

 

“On behalf of the residents of Yonkers, I am proud our City is the permanent home to this poignant art exhibit that not only tells the remarkable story of some of our first residents but the place they and our city have in the nation’s complicated history,” comments Mayor Spano. “Public art has become a hallmark of Yonkers’ diversity and vibrancy – and the Rain Garden joins the growing landscape of beautiful expression here. Through Vinnie’s artistry and devotion to their journey, we are paying homage to the lives and sacrifices of our early ancestors and ensuring their voices are heard for future generations.”

 

Created by sculptor Vinnie Bagwell, the public artwork interprets the legacy of five enslaved Africans who were among the first to be manumitted by law in the United States in 1799 (64 years before the Emancipation Proclamation). The sculptures named “Themba the Boatman," "I’Satta," "Bibi," "Sola," and "Olumide,” will reside in a half-acre rain garden along the Hudson River esplanade.  Each sculpture will be set in a vignette that includes a unique bench and landscape features of trees, shrubs and flowers with the backdrop of a stone-lined ravine flowing behind the sculptures.   Each sculpture is designed to explore it for the entire 360 degrees, accented with prominent features on the backs of their garments.

 

Vinnie Bagwell states, “Public art sends a message about the values and priorities of a community. In the spirit of transformative justice for acts against the humanity of black people, I am grateful for those who supported this collective effort. The strongest aspect of the Enslaved Africans’ Rain Garden coming to fruition is that it begins to address the righting of so many wrongs by giving voice to the previously unheard via accessible art in a public place, while connecting the goals of artistic and cultural  opportunities to improving educational opportunities and economic development. Here is the impetus for the realization of the Enslaved Africans’ Rain Garden.” 

 

The Enslaved Africans Rain Garden Initiative was incorporated in 2015 as a non-profit 501.c.3 arts organization. The mission is to enlarge the perspectives on the subject of slavery, bring humanity and dignity to the memory of enslaved Africans; foster environmental responsibility and green stewardship; employ artists to create culturally-resonant artwork to map the assets of communities; educate students in an art medium and advanced concepts unavailable in public-school programs; and foster cross-cultural dialogue worldwide. 

 

The Enslaved Africans’ Rain Garden is funded by the City of Yonkers, the County of Westchester, the State of New York Office of Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation, the New York State Council on the Arts, the National Endowment for the Arts, ArtsWestchester, Con Edison, and Entergy. 

 

Former Yonkers City Council Majority Leader, Patricia McDow, ArtsWestchester’s CEO, Janet Langsam, the Yonkers Board of Education, Sarah Lawrence College, historians, scholars, community-based organizations, and community members collaborated with Bagwell to develop the creation of the Enslaved Africans’ Rain Garden.

 

The design, construction and landscape architectural plans of the Enslaved Africans’ Rain Garden were completed by BCT Design Studio, TJR Excavating Contractors, Inc., and Bowman Design Company.