Southeast Queens Press Epaper

Volume 12 Issue No. 49 Dec. 9-15, 2011

PAGE 18

PRESS Photo by Ira Cohen

DEN OF INEQUITY

Jamaica High School students protest a lack of programs while other schools in the same building receive more funding.

By Veronica Lewin ‌ Page 3

Online at www.QueensPress.com

News Briefs Boro Mail May Move Citing the need to cut costs, the U.S. Postal Service is eyeing moving some of its operations in its main Queens Processing Center into a center in Brooklyn.

The Queens center is located in College Point, while the Brooklyn Center is located 12 miles away in East New York, on the border with Queens. The proposed move is part of a nationwide effort to cut costs.

USPS said it is losing money because of decreasing volume in what it terms "profitable" types of mail, such as FirstClass letters. In response, the postal service is cutting more than half of their processing centers nationwide, from 487 today to less than 200 by 2013; 252 are either eyed for consolidation or have already been approved to be consolidated.

The Queens center is one of those.

The Queens facility, which handles bulk mail and is not a standard mail post office - serves zip codes that begin with 110, 111, 113 and 114, which includes the entire borough of Queens except the Rockaways and a few neighborhoods in Northwestern Nassau County, including Great Neck, Port Washington, Elmont and Franklin Square.

The consolidation will mean the loss of 702 jobs but save USPS more than $30 million. Some operations in the Brooklyn facility will move to Manhattan.

The move would mean there could be a change in local collection box pick-up times, but delivery mail times to residences and businesses will not change. The proposed consolidation would support a 2- to 3-day service standard for First-Class Mail items. Commercial mailers who ship to Destination Sectional Center Facilities in the 110, 111, 113 and 114 zip codes should expect changes if the plan goes into place.

A spokeswoman for the USPS would not comment on specific changes, but public comment is encouraged and will be accepted until Dec. 19. Those from the public who wish to submit comments can write them to Manager, Consumer and Industry Contact, Triboro District, 1050 Forbell St., Brooklyn, NY 11256-9621 The plan is tentative and will not face final approval until after the public comment period has ended.

Page 2 PRESS of Southeast Queens Dec. 9-15, 2011

Mets Sponsor Coat Drive Join the Mets, SNY, and New York Cares for the 5th Annual Mets Holiday "Warm-Up" Coat Drive on Wednesday, Dec. 14, at Citi Field.

Fans donating one or more coats will receive a voucher redeemable for a pair of tickets to a select Mets game in April 2012 and a coupon to receive 15 percent off regularly priced merchandise in the Mets Team Store on Dec. 14 only. Season Ticket Holders who donate coats will get 20 percent off regularly priced items upon showing their Season Ticket ID card.

Coats will be collected at the Seaver entrance of Citi Field between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. Patrons may use parking Lot B (Entrance 8) on the north side of the ballpark off Shea Road.

Bill May Reduce Deports Mayor Mike Bloomberg signed a bill limiting the Dept. of Corrections cooperation with federal immigration authorities, which immigration advocates believe

will reduce the number of unnecessary deportation of immigrant inmates who do not have criminal records.

The controversial bill, also known as, Intro 656, directs the city's Dept. of Corrections to refrain from turning over many undocumented immigrants to the federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency upon an individual's release from prison.

According to a report provided by the Council's Committee on Immigration, ICE placed "detainers" - orders to hold for deportation proceedings - on 3,506 immigrants in New York City in 2009. While only 22 percent had felony records and 20 percent had committed misdemeanors, the majority had no prior convictions.

Although the measure received an overwhelming amount of support before being signed into law on Nov. 22, Councilman Peter Vallone Jr. (D-Astoria) urged the mayor to not sign what he termed "dangerous legislation" and return to his original position which supported the City's continued cooperation with federal immigration officials.

But Councilman Danny Dromm (DJackson), who heads the Council Committee on Immigration, disagreed with Vallone's stance and said the legislation will begin to build trust between the NYPD and immigrants throughout the City.

Although there is a difference of opinion within the borough, Bloomberg said the legislation has already weighed both sides of the issue.

Residents Protest Meters Dutch Kills residents are in an uproar after the Dept. of Transportation transformed much of their precious parking spaces into Muni-metered spots without prior consultation.

On any given day, vehicles with city agency tags, as well as privately owned vehicles with city placards, saturate the densely populated area, swallowing up any opportunity local residents have to park.

Despite the abundant amount of agency vehicles taking up spaces, community leaders are also alleging a significant amount of the placards are being used illegally, leading to the loss of additional spaces in a neighborhood already struggling for space.

Councilman Jimmy Van Bramer (DSunnyside) joined a concert of community residents who voiced strong opposition to the DOT's installation of new MuniMeters on 29th Street, between 41st Avenue and Queens Plaza North.

To make matters worse, prior to their installation, Lucille Hartmann, district manager of Community Board 1, said they were not notified by DOT officials about the plan.

In addition to the DOT's installation of Muni-Meters within a five-block radius surrounding the corner of 29th Street and 41st Avenue, other local residents are also saying many of the City agency vehicles lining the streets do not feed the meters, robbing not only the residents of parking and the city of revenue it desperately needs.

To address the current situation, the councilman has introduced legislation which would mandate the DOT to gain feedback from Community Boards and consult local residents about the installation of Muni-Meters.

Presstime

Students Struggle With Phase Out

BY VERONICA LEWIN Jamaica High School is one of a handful in the borough that has been educating young people for more than a century. A troubled public education system coupled with low graduation rates led to Jamaica being added to the list of schools on the chopping block. The students who remain have been begging the Dept. of Education all year to give them a chance to have a quality education before the doors shut on them for good.

State Sen. Tony Avella (D-Bayside), along with students, parents and teachers, held a press conference Monday outside of the 119-year-old school on Gothic Drive.

Dozens of students stood on the steps of Jamaica High School to protest the inadequate education they say they have been receiving since the DOE decided to phase out the school. Avella said this action is a disgrace by Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Schools Chancellor Dennis Walcott.

“They’re being shortchanged in the educational resources that they should be given, just like every other student in the

City of New York,” Avella said.

When the DOE announced it would be closing Jamaica High School last January, it was ranked in the bottom 8 percent of schools city-wide.

As part of the plan, the DOE promised students they would be able to complete their graduation requirements during the phasing out process. This has not happened according to the students. According to DOE Spokesman Frank Thomas, students may not have access to certain elective courses that could be applied towards graduation, but every remaining student can get a high school diploma. “Each student definitely has access to the courses they need for graduation,” Thomas said.

A year ago, Jamaica High School offered four programs: Finance and Business, Law Studies, Pre-Engineering/Computer Sciences and Medical Science. As a result of phasing out, some classes for the programs may no longer exist. The Gateway to Higher Education Program at Jamaica High School was moved to a different school, but students were allowed to make a seamless transfer.

“We make a pretty significant effort to bring resources to schools in phase out to improve the outcome of students enrolled there,” Thomas said. In addition to DOE funding, Jamaica High School received federal and state grants last year for resources.

Jamaica students now share the building with three other schools that are not desperate for resources. Students who spoke at the press conference expressed feeling like second-class citizens when they see students in schools on other floors using laptops, while Jamaica students are having trouble finding a computer that can access the Internet. One teacher shouted out that he was using his paycheck to buy supplies for his classroom.

“They give the other schools meals and they give us crumbs,” junior Kymberley Walcott said.

Students no longer have the opportunity to earn an advanced Regents diploma because honors and Advanced Placement courses are no longer offered at the school.

“I, as a senior of Jamaica High School, would have loved to go to an honors class.

I would have loved to have AP classes,” senior Raymond Almonte said. “However, Jamaica High School does not offer that anymore.”

Walcott said she worries the phasing out of Jamaica High School will ruin her chance to get into the college of her choice.

Walcott is considering applying at Syracuse University and the College of Saint Rose, and is worried her efforts to succeed will be undermined by attending a deteriorating school. Walcott said a test date was pushed back because Scantron answer sheets were not available to the students.

“I think the message that the Chancellor is sending is that he wants us to fail. He wants us to drop out,” Walcott said.

Avella has asked the city to live up to the terms of the plan and provide the necessary resources for Jamaica High School. “They have dreams, they have careers they want to go onto. And obviously the mayor and the chancellor are saying, ‘we don’t care,’” said Avella.

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

Huntley Aide, Niece Indicted For Fraud

BY DOMENICK RAFTER

One day after State Sen. Shirley Huntley’s (D-Jamaica) top aide and niece were indicted, the senator defiantly denied any wrongdoing.

“The joint investigation by the Attorney General and the Comptroller found no wrongdoing on my part,” Huntley said in a statement Thursday. “I am confident that when all of the facts are presented they will prove I acted appropriately. I will continue to cooperate fully with any legal proceedings surrounding this case.”

The indictments were handed down by State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman

on Wednesday against Patricia Savage, president of the Parents Workshop, Inc., a non-profit founded by Huntley that received nearly $30,000 in state funding through member items she secured. Others indicted include Lynn Smith, Huntley’s niece and the organization’s treasurer, who shares an address with Huntley. Both were indicted on charges allegedly that they engaged in a fraudulent scheme to steal member item funds planned for the Parent Workshop, Inc. which was founded to hold workshops for and conduct outreach to parents on the workings of the New York City public school system. The indictment alleges that those events were never held and the two sus-

pects instead pocketed $29,950 allocated

by Huntley. Savage has worked on Huntley’s staff, making more than $150,000 as an assistant on the senator’s staff and as Director of Community-Based Programs.

Smith also served on Huntley’s staff as special counsel.

Two other suspects were also indicted; David R. Gantt, who is accused of falsifying records to claim that he was paid in cash for conducting workshops he never conducted as a consultant after The Parent Workshop was subpoenaed by investigators; and Roger N. Scotland, the President of the Southern Queens Park Association, a separate nonprofit corporation located in Queens, also

created a false record in an attempt to hide the theft from investigators. Both are charged with falsifying business records.

According to the website SeeThroughNy.com, Huntley has allocated $125,000 for the Parents Workshop, Inc. during her time in the State Senate, but only $29,950 of that money is eyed under the indictment.

Huntley’s office has been the target of both federal and state investigators for more than a year. She stepped down from the Ethics Committee in March.

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

Residents Revolt Against Relocation

BY ROSS BARKAN

They’re picking on people who are getting along in years, older Americans, who have been living here for many years.”

“NYCHA faces a real crisis with 161,000 people on its waiting list for public housing (and another 120,000 waiting for a Section 8 vouchers),” read a statement issued by NYCHA. “To serve more families in need, it is critical that NYCHA utilize this scarce public resource as it was intended—to assist the greatest number of families eligible for affordable and subsidized housing.”

While Meng was speaking about the short amount of time residents were given to move, Beverley Singer, a resident, cried out to NYCHA that “you don’t threaten people.” Simanowitz’s tone would grow more strident when another resident interrupted Koslowitz to say that, “It’s not just seniors. I want that emphasized.”

“We understand it’s not just seniors,” Simanowitz said, irritation swelling in his voice.

Residents at the press conference were united, however, in their condemnation of NYCHA’s policy, which Corbett referred to as a law that they should understand is written into their lease.

“It’s not personal, it’s business, you sign a contract that says when you become under-occupied, you must move out,” Corbett said.

Edna Sharpe, a longtime resident, said the policy ignores people like her who have a two-bedroom apartment and are supporting adult offspring. Her son, now an adult, lives with her and is not on the lease. He would be homeless if Sharpe changes apartments.

“It’s a crying shame what they’re doing,” she said. “My oldest child is staying with me. He has a medical problem and nowhere to go. $350 is not enough to pay for me to move.”

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

Dec. 9-15, 2011 PRESS of Southeast Queens Page 3

Susan Prescod is 87 and has no idea where she would move if she was forced out of her apartment. With a sad smile, she said she would either have to be put on the street or euthanized. Pomonok Houses has been her home for nearly 60 years.

Monica Corbett, president of the Pomonok Residents Association, said that many growing families live in overcrowded apartments, taking more than a decade in some instances to upgrade from a onebedroom apartment to a two-bedroom apartment.

At a contentious Dec. 5 press conference, elected officials spoke out against the New York City Housing Authority’s apartment downsizing policy. Senior citizens, as well as non-seniors—as a resident at the press conference angrily noted— have been perturbed about recent letters that told them they would need to change apartments because the amount of bed-

rooms they had no longer reflected the number of people living there.

Assemblyman Michael Simanowitz said he understood many families are living in overcrowded apartments, but that NYCHA should be “imploring” residents to move rather than telling them they “must.” Residents asked to move have argued that the tone of NYCHA’s letter to them is threatening.

A letter to a resident states that “failure to move to an appropriate-sized apartment is a violation of your lease.” It also states the resident will be allowed to select any development in the City, including the one they currently live in, to move to. The letter, sent on Nov. 25, gives the resident 10 days to fill out a required transfer form.

“I remember when Pomonok tried to gimmick seniors a number of years ago, and we prevailed,” State Sen. Toby Stavisky (D-Flushing) said. “It seems to me that this is a form of age discrimination.

Med Center Still Serving Area In Need

BY VERONICA LEWIN As hospital closures and cuts to government healthcare have left many in the borough with few primary care options, one center in Jamaica continues to provide care to a community in growing need.

The Queens Hospital Center hosted the annual South Queens Community Leadership Brunch on Dec. 2 at the South Jamaica Multi-Service Center. Each year, the hospital thanks leaders in the community for their efforts to inform people about the services available for free or little cost.

The center, located at 114-02 Guy R. Brewer Blvd., has been providing care to the uninsured and underinsured for the community for more than 30 years. Pam Rios, associate director of the center, said the main mission of the center is to reduce the high rate of teen pregnancy in the area.

“It’s very difficult, it’s beyond difficult,” Rios said, to educate teens about safe sex.

Those in Southeast Queens who need medical help have the option of the medical services available at Queens Hospital Center – one of the borough’s two public hospitals – or travel to Hempstead to utilize the services Planned Parenthood has to offer. According to Queens Hospital Center, 91 percent of the center’s population is below the poverty level. The majority of the center’s visitors are black and under the age of 24.

The multi-service center gives residents access to City programs like WIC and several counseling and mental health programs that uninsured and underinsured patients may not have access to otherwise.

In addition, the center offers a G.E.D. preparation program, parenting skills program for teens, a health clinic and a specialized area for pediatric and geriatric patients. The South Jamaica Center for Children and Parents is located on the

BY DOMENICK RAFTER

In a case that reads like the script of a Martin Scorsese film, the federal government charged 20 people, including five who live in Queens, with a number of crimes, accusing them of smuggling women from Russia and Eastern Europe into the United States illegally to work as exotic dancers at strip clubs in Queens and Long Island.

According to the charges filed by U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara in federal court in Manhattan, the suspects are accused of being involved in an elaborate scheme where they recruited young women in Russia and other Eastern European countries to come to the United States, entering in sham marriages with U.S. citizens, and work as strippers, in violation of their

Page 4 PRESS of Southeast Queens Dec. 9-15, 2011

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nutrition counseling is provided.

The center also offers sexual health screenings and tests for residents of Jamaica, which had the second highest rate of AIDS-related death in the borough in 2009. Every Tuesday, the center hosts a Teen Night from 4 to 7 p.m., where teens can talk about sexual health. For information, call (718) 883-6699.

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

Local Strip Club Owners Arrested

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visas, dating back to 2006.

“As alleged, the schemes in which these defendants participated ran the gamut of criminal activity – from racketeering and extortion to immigration and marriage fraud.

And the defendants themselves had one thing in common – the desire to turn the women they allegedly helped enter this country illegally into their personal profit centers. Today’s arrests have brought an end to their illicit activities,” Bharara said.

The five suspects from Queens include four men: Alphonse Trucchio and Christopher Colon of Howard Beach, Yon Wang of Flushing and Richard Gutkowski of Ridgewood; one Queens woman, Natalia Ivanova of Kew Gardens, was also indicted. The rest of the suspects are from Brooklyn, Long Island, Westchester

County, Binghamton and New Jersey.

Four of the suspects are alleged to be associated with, or are members of, the Gambino crime family. Three more are suspected of being connected to the Bonnano crime family, who allegedly controlled the strip clubs by offering protection in exchange for payments. They were charged with racketeering and extortion crimes related to running the strip clubs.

Those charges carry up to 20 years in prison. Thirteen other suspects were charged with various crimes including visa fraud, marriage fraud and conspiracy to bring illegal aliens in the United States, which can carry five to 10 years in prison.

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

Bill Opens Library Card Access

BY JASON BANREY

As many families with children continue to experience poverty and homelessness, one Queens Councilman hopes to build a bridge between the city’s social services in order to give more children access to libraries.

Continuing his ongoing campaign to provide every child in New York City with a library card, Councilman Jimmy Van Bramer (D-Sunnyside) has introduced a new bill which would require city agencies who interact with at-risk youth to make library card applications available to them.

Gathering with the children of PS 11 at Woodside Library, Van Bramer announced the introduction of the bill, saying he believed it was every child’s right to have access to their local library.

“Library cards are a very real passport to other worlds,” said Van Bramer, chair of the Cultural Affairs, Libraries and International Relations Committee.

“For many young people, libraries represent an oasis of learning, and this bill will ensure that more young New Yorkers have access to the wonders of book and libraries.”

The legislation would require the Administration for Children’s Services, Dept. of Homeless Services, Human Resources Administration and the Dept. of

Youth and Community Development to work with not only the Queens Library but also the Brooklyn Public Library and the New York Public Library in helping the city’s youth gain access to each system’s services.

The new legislation is also an expansion of Van Bramer’s Library Card Act of 2010, which mandated the Dept. of Education to distribute library card applications to students entering kindergarten, sixth grade and ninth grade.

Tom Galante, CEO of the Queens Library, believes the legislation is an oppor-

tunity to do more with less as the borough-wide system is likely to face another phase of funding cuts next year.

“A library card is the key that opens the gate to a world of information, for free, for every child, and the Library Card Act supports putting a key in every child’s hands,” Galante said. “When we are able to pattern children to be lifelong learners by visiting and using their public libraries to enrich their lives, we set them on a path of adult economic independence too.”

With 20 members of the City Council

already co-sponsoring the bill, Van Bramer hopes the legislation will pass through the City Council by January before it could be implemented within the four city agencies.

“It’s probably impossible to reach 100 percent of children,” said Van Bramer, whose first library legislation led to more than 100,000 young people receiving library cards throughout New York City.

“But we should never stop trying.”

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

Partygoers Bring Christmas Gifts For Needy

BY DOMENICK RAFTER Every year, two South Queens Catholic parishes team up during the holiday season to raise money and collect gifts for the needy. For those who donate money and give gifts, their generosity is repaid with a five-hour open bar, buffet and dancing.

The Make A Difference Christmas party was held Dec. 3 in the banquet hall at the Immaculate Conception Center in Douglaston. The party is sponsored by St. Mary Gate of Heaven parish in Ozone Park, Holy Child Jesus parish in Richmond Hill and Austin’s Ale House. The few hundred attendees all brought an un-

wrapped gift and were then treated to a party that included a silent auction and raffle prizes.

This year’s event was attended by the parents of one teenage girl who had been diagnosed with cancer and, thanks to help from the organization, was able to receive treatments. Her mother tearfully thanked the attendees and reminded them of how circumstances can easily turn on anyone.

“I never thought I’d be one of those who needed,” she said.

She finished by telling the audience her daughter, whose picture was displayed in front of the DJ booth, was doing well- news that was met with a

standing ovation.

“All of you, by being here, are helping someone less fortunate,” said Thomas Flood, one of the event’s main organizers and a parishioner at Holy Child Jesus parish. Flood added that this year’s turnout was the largest he has seen yet.

The annual event is dedicated to the late Thomas Heaphy, who was a deacon at St. Mary Gate of Heaven. His daughter, Ann Turner, also daughter-in-law of U.S. Rep. Bob Turner (R-Middle Village), is one of the co-organizers of the event.

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

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

Steven J. Ferrari Contributing Editor:

Marcia Moxam Comrie Production Manager:

Shiek Mohamed Queens Today Editor

Regina Vogel Photo Editor: Ira Cohen

Reporters: Harley Benson Veronica Lewin Domenick Rafter Jason Banrey Ross Barkan Art Dept:

Sara Gold Rhonda Leefoon Candice Lolier Barbara Townsend Advertising Director James Mammarella Sr. Account Executive Shelly Cookson Advertising Executives Merlene Carnegie Martin Moor Shari Strongin

A Queens Tribune Publication. © Copyright 2011 Tribco, LLC

Page 6 PRESS of Southeast Queens Dec. 9-15, 2011

Michael Schenkler, President & Publisher

Michael Nussbaum, Vice President, Associate Publisher

Save The Future The Department of Education may have meant well in the decision to close Jamaica High School. In the end, area students may be better served by the department’s initiative to create better schools in the City.

The future may be protected, but it is the present that poses the problem.

While their school gets phased out, due to low graduation rates, students at Jamaica High School have had advanced courses and programs taken away from them and they are short on resources. To make matters worse, these students have been forced to watch as the building was split into four distinct high schools and those attending the other three are not going without as Jamaica High School students are.

The low graduation rate at Jamaica High School – and many other schools throughout the City – should not be a green light to take away resources. Rather, we should be giving these students more resources, we should make more programs available to them and we should do everything in our power to encourage these kids instead of taking away their opportunities to succeed.

Without access to advanced programs and resources, the DOE has decided to leave these children behind. It is a failure of the DOE’s policy if any student feels like they are not given the chance to succeed, and it is a failure of the system that these students are forced to watch others have what they cannot.

It’s no wonder students at Jamaica High School feel like secondclass citizens, but it is certainly not too late to fix the situation for the last three graduating classes of the once-impressive school.

Letters Pomonok Response To The Editor: As the resident leader I have never had the Goldsteins or anyone in this article attend Pomonok Residents Association Task Force meetings, nor have they ever reached out to the association for help.Our monthly task force meeting is a forum of all Pomonok Staff, Queens Staten Island Management, our

local politician, residents and NYPD. Here residents bring all their complaints to the source NYCHA. Rest assured that whatever the issue is, management resolves it the next business day. As the resident leader, this story was filled with half truths. Did it make you wonder that there are six people living in that apartment and only one is a legal resident? People who have unauthorized people

Letters living with them don’t call housing because that puts the legal resident tenancy in jeopardy.

I know from after my digging to find out the Goldsteins that for 30 years there was carpet, wall to wall carpet, in that apartment and because of their bedbugs, had to remove the carpet, which covered the original brown tiles. The adhesive glue that was used 60 years ago had asbestos in it. During the late 1980s NYCHA started abating apartments to resolve the issue. Most residents were moved out to another apartment so abatement can be done. Some already had carpet or new tile in their apartment, covering the brown, and did not let NYCHA do their job.

NYCHA is still abating apartments to this day.

Long story short, the Goldsteins are at fault, just like NYCHA. Yes, Pomonok has problems, but when residents call myself or a board member, the first thing we ask is if they put a work order in about their complaint and what is the number. If there is no complaint number then there is no complaint. Telling a Housing Assistant should guarantee he or she will address the problem but as you see that is not the case. It is the residents’ responsibility to get work order numbers. My association works 24/7 to resolve residents’ issues.

I would like to have you come to our next task force meeting.

There is always a response, it may not be the one residents want but

there is always response.

Monica Corbett, Queens

Nation of Idiots?

To The Editor: I was reading the letters to the editor in the Daily News and I now know what’s wrong with America. We are a nation of idiots. With the serious problems that our country has, such as getting rid of the American Mafia known as the Federal Reserve, who is robbing us blind or the Federal and State debts that are unpayable without run-away inflation or default, to wars in four countries and planning for a fifth war, to runaway health care caused by our congress, for the Supreme Courts failure to defend the Constitution we are only interested in the fact that Bradley Cooper is or is not the “Sexiest Man in the World.”

That title is so stupid that it should not deserve one minute of thought. But to excite people enough to take their precious time to write letters and circulate petitions on the Internet for such a dumb idea is frightening.

Wake up America, the sky is falling.

John Procida, Flushing WRITE ON: The PRESS of Southeast Queens, 150-50 14th Rd. Whitestone, NY 11357 email news@queenspress.com

The Facebook 20 And The Parade A Personal Perspective

BY MARCIA MOXAM COMRIE

In a city as large and as complex as New York City, we have to count on the dedication and competence of the police force to help keep us safe. Their job is not to decide who deserves protection and who does not.

Their job is certainly not to call us names based on ethnic stereotype. And yet that seems to be exactly what happened with the West Indian Day Parade, when some Facebook posts quote some officers allegedly disparaging the revelers of New York’s most colorful parade.

It is disgusting and dangerous that officers would say it would be good if someone were to drop a bomb and “wipe them all out.” It is also vile to essentially call it a parade of bums, “coconuts,” etc.

Thankfully, Police Commissioner Ray Kelly seems to agree and has ordered an investigation by Internal Affairs. Twenty officers are suspected to have been involved.

This whole incident is offensive on so many levels. Mayor David

Dinkins used to refer to New York City with its diversity as his “gorgeous mosaic.” That being the case, it is now even more gorgeous than when Dinkins was mayor during the first half of the 1990s.

It is because of this diversity that New York City likely has more parades than anywhere else in the country.

The St. Patrick’s Day Parade honors the Irish and Catholics, Columbus Day Parade honors the Italians, the Gay Pride Parade honors our gay New Yorkers, the African American Day Parade honors members of the African Diaspora, the Puerto Rican Day Parade attracts revelers with roots all over Latin America; and the West Indian Day Parade salutes people from all over the Caribbean.

Of all the parades in our city, why pick on the West Indian Day Parade? Unfortunately, a small number of miscreants always show up to cause trouble and the cops involved in Facebook-gate decided to use those few to paint an entire people as undeserving of respect and protection.

How the heck are you going to

paint an entire people with negative stereotypes based on a parade?

Well, let me enlighten them: People from the Caribbean have been coming to this city for centuries and have contributed as much as any other group to the beauty and success of our city, state and nation. Caribbean immigrants and their children have contributed to our military (I give you Colin Powell as one example); government (again, Colin Powell) but along with Powell, right here in New York City you have Una Clarke, born in Jamaica and served as the first person from the region elected to office in New York City when she was elected to the City Council.

Her daughter, Yvette Clark, a first-generation American, succeeded her in the Council and now serves in the U.S. House of Representatives. Leroy Comrie, born here to Jamaican immigrants, also serves in our city government and so does Nick Perry, a Jamaican immigrant who serves on the New York State Assembly; Mathieu Eugene, an immi-

grant from Haiti, serves on the New York City Council as well.

Malcolm X’s mother emigrated from the island of Grenada and produced a son who helped to empower a people; Harry Belafonte, Sidney Poitier, Marcus Garvey and millions of others with Caribbean roots have contributed to this city and nation.

And you cannot go into a hospital, school, law firm or anywhere else and not find people with Caribbean roots serving as doctors, lawyers, nurses, educators, researchers and indeed, on the New York Police Department. In fact, some have given their lives protecting this city.

Every police officer is not bad, but every officer who behaves badly makes the others look bad.

The “Facebook cops” should be ashamed of themselves, talking about, “It’s not racist if it’s true.”

Well, don’t be a cop in New York if you don’t want to deal with people from all over the world.

Shame on those involved in this nasty incident. They ought to get the maximum penalty allowed for such an offense.

Journalistic Jargon: Learning To Speak To A Reporter

By MICHAEL SCHENKLER The concept for this column was born almost 25 years ago in our sister paper the Tribune in “QUIPS” (Queens In Polit ics), which I penned way back then. I reworked it 15 years ago. And now, a bit expanded and updated, I share this idea that has always been fun, and present it as a guidebook to a new editor who is tackling his first edition of our 41-yearold paper. May this serve as the impetus to grow our journalistic

Graphic Design: Making the pap er look pret t y because it’s easier than reporting well.

Hard News: Storie s which are difficult to report accurately.

Headline: The bold-faced words atop an article used to attract attention. If it’s not catchy and accurate, your head is on the line.

Horoscope: Formerly, filler used on the non-news pages. Frequently, one of several national indicators used to predict economic trends.

Hunch: W hen a repor ter plays it, some folks worry.

Hundred: T he smal le st amount that can be used to try to get a reporter not to play a hunch.

In-depth: An announcement by a paper that they took the time to be accurate on a particular story.

Integrity: That which comes after salary and scoops, in order of importance.

“In The Can”: An extra story, already prepared and waiting to be used. What you use if you miss the real story.

Journalistic Ethics: Jump: A story that is continued on another page, or what you do when the publisher is in the newsroom.

Kill: What you want to do to the editor who doe s it to your stor y.

Layout : the page de sign which is done late at night with an appropriate partner; derived from basketball’s lay-up – to score.

Lede: (leed) The catchy intro to a story writ ten to give basic information and catch the reader’s attention. A come-on.

Libel: a writ ten slanderous statement; if used, it’s liable to cost your job.

News: An acronym for North, East, West, South or the direction reporters head in when extra work is needed.

News Hole: What’s left after advertising is sold; or a nickname for the former long-time editor.

Obit: A comprehensive story of a person’s life that you didn’t print in time.

Objectivit y: An ant iquated philosophy that guided journalists in an earlier era. ”Off The Record”: ”You can tell me the story and I won’t mention your name; otherwise, I’ll make you look bad in print.” ”On The Record”: ”You better give me the story in your words or I’ll print them in mine.”

Paper: Used by journalists instead of “Newspaper” because they know the truth.

Pica: A unit of measurement used in printing, equal to 1/6th of an inch; it must have been derived from the measure used to pay journalists.

Point: A measurement of 1/ 72nd of an inch. Also, something often missed by reporters.

Publisher: The ultimate boss named for the place where you can often find him.

Pulitzer Pr ize: Once t he h ighe st honor be stowed upon journalists; more recently, a creative writing award.

“Put ting The Paper To Bed”: What you have to do to the paper before you do to yourself or anyone else.

Refer: (reefer) the creative front-page referral to inside stories written while you’re high.

Retraction: Oops!

Scam: see “Gate” Scandals: Reporters pursue them i n bet ween scams a nd scoops.

Scoop: beating the other papers to the story, or what you want more than one of.

Source: where a repor ter gets his info; derived from grandma’s closely guarded secret marinara recipe (sauce).

Specs: the dimensions of the story space as determined by the editor who wears them.

Spot News: What Dick and Jane write about.

“Stop The Presses”: ”We made an error in a full page ad.”

Story: journalism - A written account of an event; to everyone else - a made up tale; usually somewhere in between.

Str inger: A par t-t ime or freelance reporter who occasionally write s for the paper which strings him along.

Tabloid: The Tribune size of newspaper derived from the Hebraic tablets upon which Moses inscribed the words of God. Well, a couple of commandments are still left.

Thirty: The end of a written piece; likely first coined by some very young journalist who viewed 30 as being over the hill.

Twitter: What people who don’t like to read long pieces use to replace Facebook as a source for news.

Typeface: The style of print; or the nickname for the art director.

Typos: Editorial errors missed by the proofreaders and blamed on the typeset ters.

Website: Where you get trapped giving away the news which has been gathered originally for print which is advertiser supported.

Wire Story: A story supplied by a news service because it’s cheaper than sending reporters.

Zoo: The newsroom.

If you have any of your own, please share them with me at: MSchenkler@gmail.com

iPad & iPhone Apps

Get your Queens Tribune iPad and iPhone apps at the App Store.

Search “Queens Tribune” or go to www.QueensTribune.com /iPad

Not 4 Publication.com by Dom Nunziato

Dec. 9-15, 2011 PRESS of Southeast Queens Page 7

skills, teach and improve the staff, and remember what community journalism is all about. May this help us all in our profession to seek the truth and serve as a sounding board reflecting the sense of the community and to advocate for the people we serve. May we continue to teach, challenge and learn as we have fun as practitioners of the world’s second oldest profession.

Every industry has a language of its own. Journalism is no exception. We share with you the true meaning of some of the words frequently bandied about the newsroom.

For some, this lit tle adventure might be fun. For those in politics, learning how to talk to a reporter could be a first step to getting your name spel led correctly.

“According To Published Repor ts”: Another newspaper got the real story, so this is what they said.

Advertisements: Statements in the paper which are almost as accurate as the news reporting.

Allege: What people do when they don’t know for sure.

App: Shor t for application but in digital talk everything is cut shor.

Ar t: Graphics used to fi ll space because the story ran short.

What you use to interest readers who don’t usually read.

Attr ibution: Naming your source. (i.e. Aunt Millie said). See source.

Beat: A repor ter’s area of coverage or that wh ich make s him/her tired.

Bold: An intense t ypeface used in headlines; also used to describe a type of reporter.

Breaking News: The pieces left over after you missed a hot story. (Broke: the condition of a reporter who missed a “breaking news story”).

Broadsheet: The New York Times size of newspaper — get your mind out of the gutter.

Briefs: Writing short because they’re tight.

Byline: The name of the repor ter re sponsible for the mistakes.

Caption: The few words needed to describe a picture that’s worth less than a thousand.

Censorship: A prerogative exercisable only by editors.

Column: A journalist’s written viewpoint; stemming from the straight line he is unable to walk after being creative.

Confidential Source: A name a reporter won’t reveal until he reveals it.

Copy: The words printed by a newspaper which claims they are original.

Crop: To cut out part of a photo. From crap - the part cut out.

Cut: What you want to do to the editor who doe s it to your stor y.

Dateline: Printed before the first line of a story indicating the city in which the reporter covers the event and looks for companionship.

Deadline: When your story is due, and you know what happens if it’s late. ”Deep Throat”: The code words used to describe an anonymous person who provides a valuable service to a staff member.

Digital Media: The new electronic arm of the information industry which has caused white knuckle concern of the old arm.

Edit: n. A written opinion of the paper. v. To correct. Hence, “Edit Page”: the opinion page of the paper that is absolutely correct.

Exclusive: A label used to brag that you got a scoop.

Expose: Uncovering a scandal or what you hope the young female reporter does.

Facebook: Today’s fir st source for many people’s news.

Fact: That which, according to the paper, is most likely true.

Filler: What you use if you don’t have enough copy.

First Amendment: That which come s bet ween the paycheck and the Bible in order of impor tance.

Follow-up Story: What you write if you missed the point the first time.

Free Press: What corrupt politicians don’t want for newspapers but do want from cleaners.

Freelancer: A non-staff writer who often is paid what his title implies.

Gate: Suffix added onto any word to sensationalize the story. Synonym - Scam.

Gossip Column: A place where fact, fiction and salesmanship meet.

Historical Healing:

Jamaica Woman Who Survived Holocaust Shares Her Story With A New Generation

BY DOMENICK RAFTER There is no one alive today who can tell us what life was like in the Roman Empire, or how serfs survived in Medieval Europe. All of our accounts of Ancient Greece, the Renaissance or the French and American Revolutions come from stories passed down through generations starting with those who lived it who either wrote them down before they passed away, or told their children, who told their children and so on.

Every year, time moves further and further away from the horrors of World War II and the atrocities that surrounded that period of history, including the Holocaust. This week marks 70 years since the United States entered the already-twoyear-old war. Those who survived the concentration camps of Central Europe, or fought in the fields and forests of France, the deserts of North Africa and islands of the Pacific are being replaced by those who only know about the horrors of that time through stories and history books.

The few war survivors who remain are the last to tell their firsthand accounts, before World War II and the Holocaust creep into passed-on histories like all those in time before it.

Page 8 PRESS of Southeast Queens Dec. 9-15, 2011

Inge’s Story One of those survivors is Jamaica resident Inge Auerbacher, who spent part of her childhood in a concentration camp in Eastern Europe and is now sharing her story with students living in the countries where seven decades ago she saw war and atrocity. The friendly reception she has received in Europe today is a stark contrast from the hatred, distrust and repudiation she and her generation experienced in her childhood.

“I consider it somewhat of a healing process,” said Auerbacher of her speaking tours of Europe. Auerbacher was born Jewish in a small town in southwest Germany near the French border on New Year’s Eve 1934, shortly after Adolph Hitler’s Nazi regime rose to power. She

Holocaust survivor Inge Auerbacher of Jamaica sits at the desk of Oskar Schindler in Krakow, Poland. was not yet 4 years old when the regime began targeting Jews. She still has vivid memories of Kristallnacht. Her grandfather was arrested while praying in a synagogue.

Auerbacher spent most of the war and her childhood years in the Terezin concentration camp in Czechoslovakia, where she was one of the few children to survive the war. She was only 10 when Terezin was liberated by the Soviet Army.

While she and both her parents survived, many of her extended family was killed.

In 1946, she immigrated to the United States.

Her family came to New York, where Auerbacher graduated from Queens College with a degree in chemistry. She worked as a chemical researcher for many years, spending three decades working at Elmhurst Hospital. She made her home in Jamaica, where she still lives, on a street with neighbors of diverse backgrounds, only steps from the Civil Courthouse on Sutphin Boulevard and the Jamaica LIRR station.

Sharing Their Tales An accomplished author, Auerbacher

Auerbacher and her friend Bozenna Urbanowicz Gilbride, a Polish Catholic survivor, sit for a photo with students at the Catholic University in Lublin.

has published numerous books about her childhood experiences. Her latest book, “Children of Terror,” was co-authored with her friend, Bozenna Urbanowicz Gilbride, a Polish Catholic the same age as she who shared similar experiences as a child in Poland during World War II. The two women met more than two decades ago at a forum dedicated to the Holocaust.

As part of her effort to share their firsthand experiences of war and the Holocaust, Auerbacher and Urbanowicz Gilbride f lew to Poland to share their story with the country’s schoolchildren who are many generations removed from the horrors of the war, and even the tensions of the Cold War. The two visited schools across Poland: in the capital city of Warsaw and the other Polish cities including Lublin, where she spoke at the Catholic University where Pope John Paul II once taught; Krakow; Wachock; and even Kielce, where Jews were targeted even during the Cold War. They spoke about their experiences and shared their book, which has been published in English and Polish and will soon add German to the languages it is available in.

“We received a warm welcome. The people were very friendly.” Auerbacher said. “We went to many, many schools over there.”

It was Auerbacher’s third time in Poland. She has visited concentration camps there, including Terezin, where she spent part of her childhood, now in the Czech Republic. She attended Rosh Hashanah services at a synagogue in Poland and stayed with Polish families. She even visited the Krakow office of Oskar Schindler, the German industrialist credited with saving the lives of more than 1,000 Jews during the Holocaust and whose story was the subject of the 1993 Academy Award-winning f ilm “Schindler’s List.”

“It’s very thrilling really,” she explained. “It’s a trip of healing. This was a trip to meet the people.”

She credited the American Embassy in Warsaw with helping her during the trip and even met with Lee Feinstein, the United States Ambassador to Poland.

Auerbacher said the students in Poland were inquisitive about her experiences and about the history of what happened so close to their homes only a few generations earlier.

“There’s a great interest [in the Holocaust and Second World War] there in Poland, and I speak a great deal in Germany,” she said.

As one of the last people alive with direct experiences and accounts of the Holocaust, it is important to Auerbacher to tell her story while she still can, before her, and other survivors are gone and historical accounts of those events could only be found in books and stories passed down from people like her.

“It’s the last time you can really touch somebody and hear the story,” she said.

“Children of Terror,”, is available on Amazon.com, as are all of Auerbacher’s books. For more information on Auerbacher and her story, visit her website, ingeauerbacher.com Reach Reporter Domenick Rafter at drafter@queenstribune.com or (718) 3577400 Ext. 125

Auerbacher and Urbanowicz Gilbride visited a number of historical sites in Poland, including this Jewish cemetery in Kielce.

Police Blotter Compiled By ROSS BARKAN

105th Precinct Missing Man The NYPD is seeking the public’s assistance in locating James Adams, 80, of 104-35 212th St. He was last seen on Thursday, Dec. 1, at approximately 1:20 p.m. operating a blue 2003 Toyota Camry in front of 38-26 Bell Blvd. He is 5-foot10 and weighs 140 lbs. He was wearing a blue and gray jacket, multicolored shirt, and burgundy shoes.

Anyone with information in regard to this missing person is asked to call Crime Stopper s (800) 577-8477, visit nypdcrimestoppers.com or text tips to 274637, then enter TIP577.

106th Precinct Shot In A Car On Saturday, Dec. 3, at 4:41 a.m. at the intersection of Huron Street and 155th Avenue, a man was shot. Upon arrival, police saw Ronny Valdez, 29, inside a White Acura sedan with numerous gunshot wounds to the torso. EMS responded and transported him to Jamaica Hospital where he was pronounced dead. There were no arrests. The investigation was ongoing.

109th Precinct Armed And Dangerous An unidentified man is wanted in con-

nection with an armed bank robbery of the Capital One Bank at 11203 14th Ave. The man entered the bank and approached the teller from the feeder line.

He passed a demand note to the teller and held up a silver handgun. The man was handed money and was last seen fleeing through College Point Park. He is described as a Hispanic man between the ages of 40 and 50 with salt and pepper hair, between 5-foot-10 and 6-foot-2 and weighing approximately 220 to 300 lbs.

He was last seen wearing a dark brown jacket, blue jeans, black shoes, and a darkcolored hat.

Any information regarding this case should be immediately reported to the FBI, Squad C-19 at (212)-384-5000 or (212)-384-2816. Refer to case A42/11 or file number 91A-NY-307265.

A reward is being offered and all calls will remain confidential.

Burglaries Surge There has been an increase in burglaries in the Whitestone and North Flushing area. The suspect is a Hispanic man, approximately 30-years-old, medium build, 6-feet-tall and possibly wearing gloves. Incidents have occurred at 33rd Avenue and 146th Street, as well as 147th Street and Sanford Avenue .

Three black men, 30-35 years-old, driving a black van are suspected of burglaries of construction sites, factories, and

warehouses in Flushing and College Point. These burglaries occur in the evening or overnight. Burglaries have occurred at 120th Street and 31st Avenue, as well as 28th Avenue and 120th Street.

To report any concerns, call crime prevention Police Officer Anthony LoVerme at (718)-321-2270. Any suspicious activities should be reported immediately to 911.

112th Precinct Struck By Car On Thursday, Dec. 1, at approximately 6:05 a.m., a 68-year-old woman was struck by a vehicle at 62nd Drive and 108th Street. Upon arrival, officers found the woman unconscious and unresponsive.

EMS responded and transported her to North Shore Hospital were she was pronounced dead. It was determined that the woman was struck by a gray Ford Crown Victoria, driven by a white man that was traveling east bound on 108th Street. No criminality was suspected. Identification of the woman was pending proper family notification.

113th Precinct

shot. Upon arrival police found Keith Murrell with a gunshot wound to the chest.

EMS responded and transported the victim to Jamaica Hospital where he was pronounced dead on arrival. The suspect, Damel Burton, 34, allegedly shot Murrell inside of 163-11 Foch Blvd., Apartment 2H. Burton also shot Marvin Gilkes, 36, in the head and an unidentified 29-year-old man in the jaw. Gilkes was pronounced dead. The 29-year-old man is in stable condition. Burton has been charged with second degree murder, criminal possession of a weapon, and assault.

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

Multiple Murders On Friday, Dec. 2, at approximately 3:41 p.m. at the corner of Foch Boulevard and Guy R. Brewer Boulevard, a man was

Dec. 9-15, 2011 PRESS of Southeast Queens Page 9

pix

Fighting Fracking At a rally outside a public hearing in Manhattan on proposed state rules governing hydrofracking, Councilman Jim Gennaro urges foes of the process to remind Gov. Andrew Cuomo of the potential political consequences of allowing the gas industry to drill upstate.

Southeast Queens Events Edited By Harley Benson

102nd Thanksgiving Assemblyman Mike Simanowitz and the Richmond Hill Block Association deliver Thanksgiving Dinner to officers at the 102 Precinct.

Beer Hall Christmas

Page 10 PRESS of Southeast Queens Dec. 9-15, 2011

The oldest beer hall in the five boroughs, the Bohemian Hall Beer Garden, is now home to one of the largest Christmas trees in Queens. Councilman Peter Vallone Jr. attended the second annual tree-lighting ceremony on Dec. 1, which was followed by a Czech children’s choir performance.

Ragusa Meets Gingrich On Saturday, Presidential candidate Newt Gingrich (r.) met with Queens Republican Chairman Phil Ragusa and discussed his campaign plans for the New York and national campaigns.

Turner Meets JPCA U.S. Rep. Bob Turner (c.) met with Bob Holden (r.), President of the Juniper Park Civic Association, and Tony Nunziato (l.), an executive member of the JPCA, Nov. 9.

Borough Beat

College Gets Grant For Language Program

BY ROSS BARKAN Queens College’s Godwin-Ternbach Museum has received a new grant that they hope will be able to improve the lives of adults still learning the English language.

The grant is funding “CALTA 21,” an initiative that will incorporate visual learning strategies through art, which will help immigrants and adult English language learners gain a better grasp of English.

Godwin-Ternbach is one of four institutions receiving the $495,000 grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services. Queensborough Community College, the Rubin Museum of Art, the Katonah Museum of Art, El Museo Del Barrio, as well as Visual Thinking Strategies and the Literary Assistance Center also received grant money.

“This is the beginning of a project that will last three years,” Amy Winter, the director of the Godwin-Ternbach Museum, said.

Patricia Lannes, the project director, Kitty Bateman, director of Queensborough Community College’s literacy programs, and Margot Edlin, an assistance professor in QCC’s Dept. of Basic Educational Skills, wrote the grant to build and support museum–community college partnerships that they hope will dramatically improve the ability of these institutions to serve

immigrants learning English.

Though academic research is inconclusive about whether visual learning strategies can definitively boost literacy skills, Lannes said she is confident that the college-museum partnership will be disseminated nationwide.

“In a nutshell, there are two sides to the project,” Lannes said. “The people who will benefit from the grant will be students and families who will participate in the classrooms that use images to learn English.

Teachers and museums will also benefit.”

She said future teachers who visit the museums will learn about using visual learning strategies and museum professionals themselves will better understand the needs of immigrant communities. While working with children who spoke English as a second language, Lannes realized that a museum setting could create a safe environment in which to learn English.

“It didn’t matter if you knew the language because you were connecting with

the art work emotionally,” she said. “They were bringing and telling experiences through artwork.”

This museum experience, Winter said, will not be so passive.

“It will be a very interactive experience,” she said. “We ask questions like, ‘what is it about this art that you like?’

Then language skills can begin to develop.

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

Ground Breaks On Willets Work

BY JASON BANREY

The redevelopment of Willets Points continues to move forward in the City’s effort to transform the Iron Triangle into New York’s “next great neighborhood.”

On Dec. 1, Queens’ elected officials joined Mayor Mike Bloomberg to break ground on a $50 million infrastructural initiative, which promises to lay the groundwork for future development of the 62acre site, create thousands of jobs and address environmental contamination that has been happening for decades.

“Expanding the city’s sewer network and increasing storm water drainage in the area will address longstanding issues and put new development on a firm foun-

dation for the future,” said Borough President Helen Marshall.

Due to a lack of proper infrastructure, which allowed for the essential drainage of run-off water, the 62-acre site has been plagued by contamination from petroleum, paints, cleaning solvents and automotive fluids which spread throughout the site over decades from local businesses.

The infrastructure work is expected to provide more than 350 construction or construction-related jobs and set the stage for the first phase of the project, which hopes to include 680,000 square feet of retail, up to 400 units of housing, a hotel, parking, two acres of open space and eventually a convention center. Phase 1 promises to create 1,800 permanent jobs

and 4,600 construction jobs, an assurance which many Queens politicians hopes come to pass and be seen as an opportunity through the City’s fiscal crisis.

Prior to the ground breaking ceremony, Michael Gerrard, an attorney representing Willets Point United, claimed to have informed the Dept. of Environmental Conservation (DEC) that the public participation plan instituted by the New York Economic Development Corp.

(NYCEDC), the city-led group overseeing the project, pertaining to its sewer work permit application violated DEC regulations.

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

Dec. 9-15, 2011 PRESS of Southeast Queens Page 11

Profile

Vietnam Protester Joins Occupy Queens

BY VERONICA LEWIN While most Occupy Movement protestors learned about the Vietnam War opposition and Civil Rights Movement through textbooks or relatives, one Hollis man who stands with them marched in those pivotal events himself. Even at 94 years old, Kenneth Neilson is still fighting against inequality.

Neilson joined the 99 percent in Zuccotti Park early this fall. "I'm so delighted that I've lived long enough to see young people speaking up again," Neilson said, "Because the 60s, I say, were wonderful."

He is now a member of the Occupy Queens movement, where he serves on the education committee. Neilson remembers when tuition began at CUNY colleges in 1975. "That is when New York City lost its crown jewel. If you want educated kids, for God's sake, provide for them!" Neilson exclaimed.

Neilson spent three and a half years in the military during World War II. During the Vietnam War, he told his children that he would be okay with them moving to Canada or Sweden to avoid the draft, but they were enrolled in school. During one of the marches, Neilson looked up at a building to see his son and a friend at the march to support his activism. "I'll

Kenneth Neilson never forget that," Neilson said.

In addition to activism, Neilson always had a passion for poetry. Langston Hughes has been a lifelong favorite of Neilson, who helped petition to change the name of PS 134 in Hollis to the Langston Hughes School. "My first love was the correlation of music and poetry,

and I'm never finished with that," Neilson said. Neilson wrote seven musical settings to Langston Hughes poems, including the famous "A Dream Deferred." Neilson said he never deferred his dreams, paying out of pocket to publish his work for All Seasons Art. While still living in Jamaica, West Indies, Neilson met the woman he would eventually marry, a feminist named Kathleen. He and his wife celebrated each change of seasons, sparking the name of his publishing company, All Seasons Art. The two moved to a home in Hollis in 1953, where Neilson still lives.

The couple was married for 45 years until she passed away in 1993.

Neilson taught in the public school system for 29 years. He said he always knew he wanted to be a teacher. When he was a kid, he would call his neighbors to the stoop and give them lectures. "I don't know what I was teaching them," he said with a chuckle.

Instead of "Show and Tell," where students usually share a coveted item, Neilson's classes participated in "This Is Our Life." During that time, children would share a story with his classmates.

One of his student's stories ended up turning into "Magic at Belmar: Glass On the Beach." Neilson's work was published in the New York Times in August 1977.

Neilson still uses a typewriter for all of his work. A few years ago, he tried to upgrade to a new electronic model, but found his old one worked best. "I spent one night doing one perfect line [on the typewriter] and filling a waste basket," he said.

His publishing office is located in his home. Light green paint peeks through under a collage of awards and photos of family and friends, including Jan Berger, who fought to implement a summer jobs program for city teens. The two worked together for 22 years in Harlem. A portrait of Kathleen is prominently placed on the wall, along with a plethora of magazine clippings and inspirational quotes.

Even though most of his loved ones are no longer with him, Neilson said he does not let it disappoint him because they are all remembered on the wall.

Neilson retired in 1976, but tries to stay busy every day. Neilson, who will turn 95 next month, can no longer take the subway because the stairs have become too much for him. He now uses a car service to travel around the city. "I don't take anything for granted," he said. "I try to use every day like a wonderful day. Just to be alive is a miracle."

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

Page 12 PRESS of Southeast Queens Dec. 9-15, 2011

People New York Air National Guard Col. Thomas J. Owens II, commander of the 106th Rescue Wing, recently announced the recent completion of training for members of the New York Air National Guard at F.S. Gabreski Airport.

Airman 1st Class Tandilaya H. Rice from Jamaica completed the Health Services Management Apprentice course at Fort Sam Houston, Texas.

“The 106th Rescue Wing is very proud of the achievements of our Airmen,” Col. Owens said. “The various training courses they complete improve not only their skills but they are then able to better our entire wing in the mission of personnel recovery, ultimately saving lives, both here at home and abroad.”

The 106th Rescue Wing operates HH60 Pavehawk rescue helicopters and HC130 Hercules search and rescue aircraft from its base in Westhampton Beach on eastern Long Island. The wing’s wartime mission is to rescue American and Allied personnel lost behind enemy lines, and members of the wing have been deploying regularly to Afghanistan to support military operations there. The wing’s pararescue jumpers are trained to drop behind enemy lines to secure friendly troops, or into the ocean to rescue crewmen from a sinking ship.

The wing has a peacetime mission of providing search and rescue in the North Atlantic when requested by the United States Coast Guard and also deploys regularly to provide rescue capability in sup-

port of Space Shuttle launches. The wing’s efforts to rescue a yacht crew in a storm at sea are portrayed in the movie “A Perfect Storm” and in 1998 the wing made the longest over-water rescue in history.

“That Others May Live” is the motto of the Air Force Rescue community and is appropriately chosen, since it is the motivating force of those involved in the wing’s rescue mission.

Several local residents are scheduled to complete their baccalaureate studies in December at SUNY Oswego.

The following local residents (with their academic major in parentheses) are eligible to participate in the graduation ceremonies: Tiffany S. McGeary of Arverne (biology); Christian Turner of Astoria (human resource management); Paola Palacios of College Point (graphic design); Anthony J. DiMarco of Glendale (history); Glen Kelly of Glendale (political science); Brittany L. Mischner of Oakland Gardens (elementary education, magna cum laude); Stephen F. Green of Rosedale (theatre); and Kenny Eng of Woodhaven (theatre).

Students who graduate with honors are indicated by the traditional Latin phrases summa cum laude, with highest honor (grade averages of 3.8 to 4.0); magna cum laude, with great honor (grade averages of 3.6 to 3.79); and cum laude, with honor (grade averages of 3.30 to 3.59).

The New York Lottery announced the names of area Lottery players who

claimed a winning ticket from one of the Lottery’s live drawings Nov. 20-26. The following winners each received a cash prize valued at $10,000 or more.

Guylaire Leon of Queens won $10,000 on the Mega Millions drawing of Nov. 18.

Leon’s winning ticket was purchased at the Elmont Deli Plus at 237-01 Linden Blvd. in Elmont.

Richard Kunar of Maspeth won $42,793 on the Take Five drawing of Nov. 18. Kunar’s winning ticket was purchased at the Pauline Grocery Store at 55-47 69th St. in Maspeth.

Major General Patrick A. Murphy, the Adjutant General, recently announced the recent reenlistment of members of the New York Army National Guard in recognition of their continuing commitment to serve community, state and nation as part of the Army National Guard.

Sgt. Katie Jones from Astoria has reenlisted to continue service with the 4th Finance Detachment; Spc. Jennifer Pineda from Ridgewood has reenlisted to continue service with the 4th Finance Detachment; Sgt. Carlos Moralesfebus from Ridgewood has reenlisted to continue service with the 7th Finance Detachment; Staff Sgt. William Elias from Glendale has reenlisted to continue service with the 7th Finance Detachment; Sgt. Kimberly Polk from St. Albans has reenlisted to continue service with the 719 Transportation Company; Sgt. 1st Class Raymond Esquilin from Woodhaven has

reenlisted to continue service with the Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 369th Sustainment Brigade; and Sgt. Eric Cudworth from Rockaway Park has reenlisted to continue service with the 42d Infantry Division Band.

“Over the past three years the New York Army National Guard has come from far below authorized strength to 100 percent strength,” Murphy said in remarks to the force. “Our priority is to provide ready forces for both state and federal missions and readiness starts with maintaining our strength.”

“We have more than 16,000 men and women in the Army and Air National Guard with each individual member having an important role.”

Air National Guard Airman 1st Class Steven Curet 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.

Curet is the son of Madge and Richard Curet of Jamaica. He is a 1997 graduate of St. John’s Prep, Astoria. He earned an associate degree in 2002 from Five Town College, Dix Hills.

A&E

Get The Holiday Spirit With ‘White Christmas’

BY BRIAN M. RAFFERTY With the holiday season well underway, some people are still feeling a bit “Grinchy.” The weather really doesn’t feel right, money is tight and it seems that the Thanksgiving lead-in to the season is over-hyped with commercialism and less about the spirit of the season.

Perhaps what we really need is a classic song and dance number or two to bring

us out of our doldrums and into fullf ledged holiday cheer.

The solution for some may be found in Queens with the Oratorio Society of Queens annual Christmas Concert at Queensborough Community College at 4 p.m. next Sunday, Dec. 18 (tickets are still available at queensoratorio.org), but for some of us, what we really want is a Broadway classic – but without Broadway ticket prices.

Restaurant Review

Go Naked In Astoria BAREBURGER 33-21 31st Ave., Astoria (718) 777-7011 CUISINE: Burgers HOURS: Mon to Thurs 11 a.m. to 11 p.m., Fri 11 a.m. to Midnight, Sat 10 a.m. to Midnight, Sun 10 a.m. to 11 p.m.

CREDIT CARDS: All major PARKING: Street

Theater Takes Dickens Classic To The Caribbean the play. For the past 15 years, their holiday show was “’Twas The Night Before For the next two weekends, one Ja- Kwanzaa.” Clay said the Black Spectrum maica theatre is offering a tropical twist Theatre wanted to switch it up this year. on a popular holiday tale.

“We just decided to change up the The Black Spectrum Theatre will groove this year and reach out to the Carpresent “A Caribbean Christmas Carol” 8 ibbean community and do something a p.m. Dec. 10 and Dec. 17 little different,” Clay in Roy Wilkins Park. The said. show is based on the clasKeeping up with the sic Charles Dickens story theme of the evening, and focuses on the life of the theatre will offer a Scrudge, a plantation menu from The Door, a owner who employs popular Caribbean resmany of the residents on taurant in Jamaica. a fictitious Caribbean isThe play was written land. His employees and

by Jacqueline Wade, a people who live on or Temple University gradunear the plantation have ate. In addition to acting become ill due to poor in regional theatres, working conditions and Wade is the executive dibusiness practices. Derector of Women of spite the troubles of the Color Productions, Inc. island, Scrudge is only She has written more concerned with making Enjoy a new twist on “A Christmas than 30 plays on issues as much money as pos- Carol” this weekend at the Black ranging from human sible during the holiday Spectrum Theatre. rights to historical season. events.

In the middle of the night, Scrudge is Black Spectrum Thevisited by three “duppies” – Jamaican spir- atre, founded in 1970, offers free parking, its - who show Scrudge how his selfish ways wheelchair accessibility and assistive listenhave impacted the island around him. Be- ing devices. Tickets cost $25, with group discause of his overnight revelations, Scrudge counts available. Tickets can be purchased at pledges to be a better person and tries to blackspectrum.com or by calling (718) 723rectify the damage that has been done.

1800.

Carl Clay, founder and executive diReach Reporter Veronica Lewin at rector of the Black Spectrum Theatre, said vlewin@queenspress.com or (718) 357-7400, this is the first year the theatre will present Ext. 123.

BY VERONICA LEWIN

Dec. 9-15, 2011 PRESS of Southeast Queens Page 13

There are few foods that epitomize American cuisine more than the hamburger. Though ethnically German - as are, fittingly, many Americans themselves - the hamburger is a staple of our cuisine. Whether it be barbecues celebrating our nation’s founding, or at America’s famous golden arches, hamburgers are a common food item, despite their reputation for not being healthy. But one chain of burger joints aims to combine healthy and organic food with edible Americana, in so much as an ostrich burger can be Americana.

Bareburger has six - soon to be eight - different restaurants across New York City, including two in Astoria. Its flagship location sits on 31st Avenue between 31st and Steinway Streets. Its corner location mixes the aura of a fastfood joint with that of a sit-down eatery. On the rustic wooden tables, bottles replace pitchers for pouring water.

My guest and I sat near the door.

The restaurant may be small in size, but it is not crowded and uncomfortable.

We only waited a few minutes for that table. Many of Bareburger’s customers come for takeout. We watched as local denizens left the store carrying bags to their Friday night parties.

We started with a plate of freshly cut fries and onion rings. We ordered four different sauces for them and sampled them; tangy curry ketchup, a spicy chipotle mayo, a peppercorn steak sauce that also had a spicy kick to it and the Bareburger special sauce don’t ask what’s in it, they won’t tell you. The fries were cooked perfectly and were crunchy and not at all greasy.

The onion rings were breaded in a flavorful breading. Unless you’re brave, you’ll probably want to slice the onion ring. Its sheer size makes it difficult to eat whole, and the amount of sauce any of them are a treat - you’ll want to

put on it increases the risk of dirtying your clothes. This is not a place for formalwear; it’s for clothing you’ll be willing to get dirty. Napkins are a necessity here.

For entrees, I ordered the Western Bacon Burger on a brioche bun, with Bison meat. That’s about how adventurous I was willing to get. While a simple beef buger is on the menu, there is a variety of options including turkey, veggie, and portabella mushroom and, at an additional cost, elk, bison, lamb or ostrich. Yes, even ostrich.

But the bison was tender and full of juicy flavor. It did not taste much different than regular beef except that it was far less greasy and the patty fell apart easier. For this burger, you wouldn’t feel stupid eating it with a fork and knife.

The burger was topped with a tangy cole slaw, pepperjack, peppercorn steak sauce and a slice of crunchy applewood smoked bacon.

My guest had a Ruby Burger on a multi-grain bun. The Ruby Burger includes pastrami, Swiss cheese, sauerkraut, tomato and Bareburger special sauce. More adventurous than I, my guest had it with elk meat. I sampled the elk, much juicier than venison, but with the same gamey flavor. The toppings gave the burger the essence of a lunchtime Panini.

Besides our options, Bareburger offers a wide selection of salads, so don’t feel unwelcomed if you don’t eat meat (try the veggie burger if you want the burger experience). Don’t forget to try the assorted pickles combo which includes spicy Sriracha-habanero crinklecut pickle chips, bread and butter pickle chips, and garlic dill pickle chips.

Bareburger also offers sandwiches including a BLT and an egg sandwich.

Also, try one of Bareburger’s special drinks, including seven f lavors of milkshakes and hand-crafted sodas, such as cola, root beer, ginger ale, sarsaparilla, orange and blueberry.

Don’t be afraid to take the leftovers home. Two days later, the burgers and even the French fries tasted just as they did at mealtime, even after a spin in the microwave.

Bareburger’s second Astoria location is in the Ditmars section at 23-01 31st St. —Domenick Rafter

Enter the Papermill Playhouse, a small theater in Millburn, NJ, about a 30-minute drive from Queens – even in holiday traffic. It may take you a drive over the river and through the woods to get there, but it’s certainly worth the trip.

Their performance of “White Christmas,” the tale of two former Army buddies whose hijinks and Kick off your holiday with a classic Christmas love interests lead them to stage a musical.

Christmas musical, was popularized by a 1954 Bing Crosby and Danny Kaye star duo is looking to add some ladies to film, and features memorable musical their act – and their love lives.

With an ensemble cast that takes us numbers penned by Queens’ own Irving Berlin, including the eponymous holiday from the stage of the Ed Sullivan Theater to a sleepy Vermont inn owed by the duo’s favorite.

The cast includes a slew of Broadway former General, played sternly – but with regulars, including Tony Yazbeck, who is heart – by Edward James Hyland, the fresh from playing the role of Billy Flynn show is a non-stop celebration of the holiin “Chicago” on Broadway, and Lorna days, with such classics as “Snow,” “Blue Luft, the less-popular but equally-talented Skies,” “Count Your Blessings” and “Let other daughter of stage and screen icon Me Sing And I’m Happy.”

The show is certain to get you into Judy Garland.

A moving tribute to friendship, true the holiday spirit and remind you of days love and the brotherhood of soldiers, gone by when the holidays meant more “White Christmas” opens on Christmas than door-buster sales and “surviving’ the Eve 1944 with Phil (James Clow) and Bob season. The show runs, appropriately, (Yazbeck) entertaining their buddies through Christmas Eve. To learn more go to papermill.org or fighting the good fight in Europe, and the fast-forwards to 10 years later as the now- call (973) 376-4343.

Faith

A Cappella Group To Perform Sunday

BY VERONICA LEWIN

An a cappella group is bringing their talent to a small church in Laurelton this Sunday in honor of the holiday spirit.

Schola Sine Nomine will perform at 4 p.m. on Dec. 11 at the Evangelical Lutheran Church of the Epiphany, 228-01 130th Ave. Tickets are available for $25. Jeanne Roberts-Turner, one of the group’s members, said the group will perform 14 selections, including Christmas favorites such as “Ave Maria.” Schola Sine Nomine will also perform the prelude and closing hymn Sunday evening. “It’s a lot of singing,” RobertsTurner said. There will be a reception following the holiday program.

The eight-member group was estab-

lished four years ago, and got started by word of mouth. Schola Sine Nomine started off doing small musical pieces, including both sacred and secular songs.

Schola Sine Nomine usually sings three-part a cappella pieces, but hopes to push themselves to perform eight-part harmonies, where each group member sings in a different range. “We tend to like challenging kinds of music,” RobertsTurner said.

Roberts-Turner said the a cappella group usually performs one show a season for a member’s congregation. This season, the group is performing at Roberts-Turner’s church. She has been a member of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of the Epiphany for about seven months.

Notebook PS 42

Campus Opportunities Open For Students

Page 14 PRESS of Southeast Queens Dec. 9-15, 2011

BY VERONICA LEWIN

After years of lobbying and waiting for funding, middle school students in Far Rockaway now have a state of the art campus to follow their dreams.

PS 42, located at 488 Beach 66th St. in Arverne, hosted a ribbon cutting ceremony in the school’s cafeteria on Wednesday. Parents, community members and elected officials came to celebrate the new school. The new campus, which used to be a factory, now houses state of the art science labs and the latest technology.

Councilman James Sanders Jr. (DLaurelton), who attended PS 42, was happy to see the building finally remodeled. Sanders secured $100,000 in technology funding for the students at the school. The councilman will give $2 million in science and technology funding for every school in his district, which includes Rosedale, Laurelton, Springfield Gardens, Far Rockaway, Ar verne, Bayswater and Edgemere.

“The highest calling of a Council person is to leave his district better than he found it, and I’ve been honored to help play a role in the future development of our students by providing this funding to keep our kids ahead of the game in science and technology,” Sanders said.

Superintendent Michele Lloyd-Bey said children who learn in aesthetically pleasing and technologically advanced schools perform better than other children. Lloyd-Bey lauded Mayor Mike Bloomberg’s Young Men Initiative, which was launched late this summer. According to studies, black and Latino males in the city are less likely to have access to quality early childhood care and education. This causes significant achievement gaps that appear as early as third grade.

These students are three times more likely to be in special education classrooms than their white counterparts and less likely to graduate from high school.

School progress reports now feature specific statistics on black and Latino students to better measure school performance and to ensure schools are working on closing the achievement gap. Over the next three years, the Dept. of Education will develop a strategy for suspended students to succeed following a return to the classroom. The program also strives to introduce more literacy programs and mentoring for young males.

Prior to the launch of the program, Bloomberg and the City have been taking steps to reduce inequalities. Since 2005, the citywide graduation rate has gone up 13 percentage points. During that same time period, the graduation rate for black and Hispanic students went up 14 percent, which helped close the graduation achievement gap between blacks and whites and Latino and whites by 22 percent and 23 percent respectively. City Comptroller John Liu acknowledged that the city school system has its issues, but also houses some of the best public schools in the country. “PS 42 is a shining example of what can be achieved in our public schools,” Liu said.

Lloyd-Bey said implementing the Young Men’s Initiative will greatly benefit the students of PS 42, but she also gave each student a challenge. “You have a responsibility to make us proud,” she said, “and to also dream, so that you can go out and help start schools. And to heal, and to teach, and do all of the wonderful things that adults are doing for you,” she said.

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

For the last four years, Schola Sine Nomine has been performing at churches around the borough. Last year, the group performed at the Douglaston Arts Festival. Roberts-Turner said the group is always looking for a chance to showcase their talent. “We love to find opportunities to perform,” she said.

The congregation of less than 100 people is celebrating its 80th year in the Laurelton community. The church is run by the Rev. Marva Jenkins. In addition to

Sunday service, the church also hosts Vacation Bible School, Girl Scouts and gender specific ministries. Each Tuesday, the church serves a hot breakfast from 9 to 11 a.m. for $2.50. On Tuesday, Dec. 13, the Evangelical Lutheran Church of the Epiphany is serving a special Christmas breakfast that will be available for $5. For more information about the concert or breakfast, contact (718) 528-8723.

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

Word But we must not forget... this ritual expressed... certain ideas which lie at the very root of true religion, the fellowship of the worshippers with one another in their fellowship with the deity, and the consecration of the bonds of kinship as the type of all right ethical relations between man and man.

—William Robertson Smith

Queens Today SECTION EDITOR: REGINA VOGEL

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

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

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

ENVIRONMENT ECO-FASHION Saturday, December 10 at 2:30 at the Sunnyside library.

Making fashionable goods from recycled products.

FLEA MARKETS

KWANZAA WORKSHOP Saturday, December 10 at the Langston Hughes library at 1.

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

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

PET OWNERS Saturdays (not on holiday weekends) from 1-4 free Doggie Boot Camp at Crocheron Park in Bayside (weather permitting). 4545800. Reservations required. Donations accepted.

BALLROOM DANCE Mondays, December 12, 19, 26 ballroom dancing at the Forest Hills library at 6:30.

BASIC COMPUTER Monday, December 12, 19 at the Douglaston library at 10.

INTRO MICROSOFT Mondays, December 12, 19 at the Central library at 10:30.

JOB INFO Monday, December 12 Job Information Services at the Middle Village library. Register.

LEARN EMAIL Monday, December 12 at the Fresh Meadows library at 10:30.

ACING INTERVIEW Monday, December 12 Acing Your Job Interview at the Central library at 6.

INTRO MICROSOFT Mondays, December 12, 19 at the Central library. 9905102 to register.

JOB INTERVIEW Monday, December 12 “Acing Your Job Interview” at the Central library at 6.

HOLIDAY CAKE Monday, December 12 learn how to make a cake for the holidays – no baking needed at the LIC library at 6.

RESUME Monday, December 12 The Impact of Your Resume at the South Ozone Park library at 6:30.

HOLIDAY ORNAMENTS Monday, December 12 holiday clay ornaments at the Rosedale library at 6.

INTRO EXCEL Tuesday, December 13 at the Central library. 990-0769 to register.

BASIC COMPUTER Tuesdays, December 13, 20, 27 at the Rosedale library at 10:30.

BASIC COMPUTER Tuesdays, December 13, 20, 27 at the Arverne library at 10:30.

PRACTICE LAB TIME Tuesdays, December 13, 20 computer practice lab time at the Far Rockaway library at 4.

INTRO EXCEL Tuesday, December 13 at the Central library. Register.

BASIC COMPUTER Tuesday, December 13 basics at the South Ozone Park library at 10.

INTRO INTERNET Tuesday, December 13 at

the Queens Village library.

Register.

COMPUTER CLASS Tuesday, December 13 at the Sunnyside library at 10:30.

INTRO WORD Tuesday, December 13 at the Maspeth library at 1.

SCRABBLE Tuesday, December 13 at the Fresh Meadows library at 1.

TUESDAY CHESS Tuesday, December 13 at 4:30 at the Rosedale library.

TANGO CLASS Wednesdays, December 14, 21, 28 at Buenos Aires Tango in Forest Hills. 347642-4705.

COMPUTER BASICS Wednesday, December 14 at the Windsor Park library.

Register.

KNIT & CROCHET Wednesday, December 14 at the South Ozone Park library at 1.

INTRO MICROSOFT Wednesday, December 14 at the Central library. Register.

INTERNET SEARCHING Wednesdays, December 14, 28 at the Windsor Park library at 10:30.

COMPUTER TUTORIALS Thursday, December 15 at the Woodside library at 6:30.

FACEBOOK Thursday, December 15 Facebook for Beginners at the Glen Oaks library at 10:15.

SMALL BUSINESS Thursday, December 15 How to Start and Run a Small Business at the Flushing library at 5.

WRITER’S WORKSHOP Thursday, December 15 at the Bayside library at 6.

INTRO EMAIL Friday, December 16 at the Hillcrest library. Register.

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

JOB SEARCH Saturday, December 17 Job Search Boot Camp at 10:30 at the Central library.

PUBLIC SPEAKING Saturday, December 17 Learn to communicate effectively at Elmhurst Hospital.

646-436-7940.

INTRO FACEBOOK Saturday, December 17 introduction to Facebook at the LIC library at 10.

HOLIDAY ORNAMENTS Saturday, December 17 holiday clay ornaments at the Cambria Heights library at 2:30.

DANCE COUNTRY WESTERN Saturday, December 10 Gunsmoke performs at the Christmas Dance with a visit from Santa. $12. Glendale Memorial Building, 72-02 Myrtle Avenue at 7:30. 7634328.

LINE DANCING Saturdays 2-4 at Holy Family RC Parish Church, Msgr.

Mahoney Hall, Fresh Meadows.

ENTERTAINMENT LORCA FLAMENCO Through December 11 flamenco tribute at Thalia Spanish Theatre in Sunnyside.

729-3880.

MOVING IMAGE Through January 16 Jim Henson Screenings and Programs. Museum of the Moving Image, 36-01 35 th Avenue, Astoria. 777-6800. $15.

CLAUS FAMILY Friday, Saturday and Sunday, December 9, 10, 11 Claus Family Christmas Spectacular at St. Margaret’s Parish Hall in Middle Village.

FULL MOON GAZING Saturday, December 10 at Alley Pond Environmental Center. 229-4000.

KWANZA A Saturday, December 10 at the Langston Hughes library starting at 10.

HOLIDAY CONCERT Saturday, December 10 Holiday Music Concert at 2 at the Flushing library.

NINA SIMONE Saturday, December 10 celebrating the life of Nina Simone at the Langston Hughes library at 2.

LOVE SONGS Saturday, December 10 at the Broadway library at 3.

LINDA IPANEMA Saturday, December 10 holiday show at the Fresh Meadows library at 3.

COMEDY Saturday, December 10 Jon Fischer and Tina Giorgi perf o r m a t Te m p l e Ti k va h i n New Hyde Park. $20 advance, $25 at the door. 516746-1120.

JAMAICA HOLIDAY Saturday, December 10 Centro Hispano and more perform at a tree lighting c e remony and communit y holiday season kick off at 6 in Rufus King Park, 89 th Avenue and 153 rd Street. Entertainment, refreshment follows at the Jamaica Performing Arts Center, 153-10 Jamaica Avenue.

HOLDIAY LIGHTING Sunday, December 11 at Bowne Park, 157 th Street and 32 nd Avenue, Flushing at 4.

MESSIAH Sunday, December 11 Sacred Music Societ y of Our Lady Queen of Mart yrs performs “Messiah” and Christmas Favorites at 4. 2686251. $20 adults, free for children accompanied by an adult.

HOUSE TOUR Sunday, December 11 24 th Annual Historic Holiday H o u s e To u r 1 - 5 w i t h t h e Queens Historical Societ y. $10. 939-0647, ext. 17.

NUTCRACKER Sunday, December 11 at F l u s h i n g Tow n H a l l . 4 6 3 7700, ext. 222.

LIVE JAZZ Sundays through December 18 at 180-25 Linden Blvd., St. Albans from 5-9. $5 donation. 347-262-1169.

FILM SCREENING Monday, December 12 International film screening of “How I Ended This Summer” at the Fresh Meadows library t 2.

FLAMENCO

Monday, December 12 Flamenco Cante and Guitar at 6 at the Astoria library.

HOLIDAY SHOW Monday, December 12 Linda Ipanema Holiday Show at 6 at the Briarwood library.

KLEZMERIDIAN Monday, December 12 traditional Klezmer and other world music at 6 at the Flushing librar y.

JNGLE BELL SWING Monday, December 12 at the Middle Village library at 6:30.

OPEN MIC Monday, December 12 evening of poetry at 7:30 at Barnes & Noble, 176-60 Union Turnpike.

CHRISTMAS CAROL Tuesday, December 13 at the Maspeth library at 2:30.

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

SCRABBLE Tuesdays at the Fresh Meadows library at 1.

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

JINGLE BELL SWING Wednesday, December 14 at the McGoldrick library at 2.

HOLIDAY SHOW Wednesday, December 14 Linda Ipanema Holiday Show at the Rego Park library at 2.

VIOLIN Wednesday, December 14 violin concert at the Flushing library at 6.

JAZZ KIDS Thursday, December 15 celebrate the winter holidays with the East Elmhurst Jazz Kids at the library at 4.

HOLIDAY MIXER Thursday, December 15 at Queens Pride House in Jackson Heights. Call 429-5309 for tickets and details.

HOLIDAY CONCERT Thursday, December 15 holiday concert of your Christmas favorites with Linda Ipanema at 2 at the Howard Beach library.

HOLIDAY SONGS Thursday, December 15 cel3ebrate the holidays with JC Revue at 2:30 at the Auburndale library.

TREE LIGHTING Thursday, December 15 at 4 at the Richmond Hill library.

SONGS OF THE 30S Thursday, December 15 stories, personal narratives and more at the Douglaston library at 6.

JAZZ GUITARIST Thursday, December 15 tribute to jazz guitarist Wes Montgomery at 6 at the Laurelton library.

SCRABBLE GAME DAY Thursday, December 15 at the Bellerose library at 6:30.

GUITAR TRIO Friday, December 16 Bucky Pizzarelli Guitar Trio at Flushi n g Tow n H a l l . 4 6 3 - 7 7 0 0 ,

ext. 22.

LIVE JAZZ Fridays through December 13 at 180-25 Linden Blvd.., St. Albans. 347-262-1169 ticket information.

GAME DAY Fridays at 4:30 at the Woodhaven library.

BANANAGRAM/SCRABBLE Fridays at the Windsor Park library at 2.

GAME PLAYERS CLUB Fridays at 2 at the Hillcrest library.

ASTRONOMY Saturday, December 17 at Alley Pond Environmental Center. 229-4000 to register.

SWING Saturday, December 17 swing into the holidays with Arnie Gruber at 2 at the Bayside library.

HOLIDAY FANTASY Saturday, December 17 holiday fantasy: classical choral and vocal scores from around the world at 2 at the Flushing library.

CAROLING Saturday, December 17 annual winter caroling walk o n 3 1 st A v e n u e a n d 7 6 th Street, Jackson Heights at 7.

SOUL LEGENDS Saturday, December 17 musical tribute to the soul legends – Sam Cooke and Marvin Gaye – at 2 at the Peninsula library.

WINTER SHOW Saturday, December 17 entertainment wit ice-skating solo, duet and group members at the Cit y Ice Pavilion in LIC. Free at 7:30.

HOLIDAY MARKETPLACE Sunday, December 18 seasonal music, children’s activities and unique gifts starting at 11 at the Queens Botanical Gardens in Flushing.

MESSIAH Sunday, December 18 the Oratorio Society of Queens presents “Messiah” at Queensborough Community College. $30 adults. 2793006.

HANUKAH CELEBRATION Sunday, December 18 at F l u s h i n g To w n H a l l . 4 6 3 7700, ext. 22.

HANUKAH FEST & CRAFTS Sunday, December 18 12-5 holiday shopping, children’s activities, entertainment. $5 children, adults free. Central Queens Y, 67-09 108 t h street, Forest Hills.

STAMP SHOW Sunday, December 18 Bayside Stamp Show at the Ramada Inn, 220-33 Northern Blvd., Bayside 10-4:30.

Free admission.

RELIGIOUS TEMPLE BETH Friday, December 9 tot Shabbat at 6, Shabbat service at 8. Sunday, December 11 Jewish Start at 9. Friday, December 16 Shabbat Services at 8. Saturday, December 17 Chanukah Family Service. Friday, December 23 Chanukah Family Service at 7:30. Temple Beth S h o l o m , 1 7 2 nd S t r e e t a n d Northern Blvd., Flushing.

464-4143.

Dec. 9-15, 2011 PRESS of Southeast Queens Page 15

CHRISTMAS SALE Saturday, December 10 102 and Sunday, December 11 12-2 at St. Nicholas Church, 14-65 Clintonville Street.

KWANZAA CELEBRATION Saturday, December 10 crafts, live performances and shopping at the Langston Hughes library starting at 10:30.

CHRISTMAS CRAFT Saturday, December 10 from 10-4 and Sunday, December 11 from 9-3:30 Christmas Craft Sale and Ethnic Polish Bake Sale at St. Josaphat’s, 35 th Avenue and 210 th Street, Bayside.

HANUKAH & BOOK Sunday, December 11 at Temple Tikvah, 3315 Hillside Avenue, New Hyde Park 1012:30.

BOUTIQUE SALE Sunday, December 11 Flushing Town Hall Holiday Boutique Sale at 1. 137-35 Northern Blvd., Flushing.

ARTISAN MARKET Sundays, December 11, 18 12-6 at Bohemian Hall, 2919 24 th Avenue, Astoria.

SNOWFLAKE BOUTIQUE Saturday, December 17 handmade items, holiday crafts and new and used items at the Ridgewood library starting at 10.

HOLIDAY MARKETPLACE Sunday, December 18 seasonal music, children’s activities and unique gifts starting at 11 at the Queens Botanical Gardens in Flushing.

HANUKAH FEST/& CRAFTS Sunday, December 18 12-5 holiday shopping, children’s activities, entertainment. $5 children, adults free. Central Queens Y, 67-09 108 t h street, Forest Hills.

THRIFT SHOPS Saturdays 11-4 at Bargain Boutique Thrift Shop, Queens Baptist Church, 9323 217 th Street, Queens Village.465-2504. First and Third Wednesdays through June at Grace Church, 1415 Clintonville Street, Whitestone. 767-6305.

EDUCATION/GAMES/CRAFTS

Queens Today FM POETS Saturday, December 10 Fresh Meadows Poets meet to discuss and critique their work at the Forest Hills library at 10.

CAMBRIA HTS LIBRARY Saturdays, December 10, January 14 Friends Board of Directors of Queens Library at Cambria Heights meet 4-5:15.

BELLA ITALIA MIA Sunday, December 11 Bella Italia Mia meets at Christ the King High School, 68-02 Metropolitan Avenue, Middle Village. 426-1240.

CHARTER SCHOOLS Monday, December 12 79:30 board meeting for the NYC Charter School Center, 111 Broadway, suite 604.

212-437-8300 to register.

VFW 4787 Mondays, December 12, 26 Whitestone VFW Commu-

HEALTH MAMMOGRAMS Sunday, December 11 free mammograms for those 40 and over. Call 1-800-5646868 for requirements and appointment.

ZUMBA Mondays, December 12, 19 Latin dance fitness program at the Glendale library.

YOUTH

TALKS

MEETINGS nity Post meets. 746-0540.

AMERICAN LEGION Monday, December 12 American Legion Post 510 meets at St. Robert Bellamine in Bayside Hills.

428-2895.

CATHOLIC VETS Monday, December 12 American Mart yrs Catholic Wa r Ve t e r a n s Po s t 1 7 7 1 meets in Bayside. 468-9351.

TELEPHONE PION. Tuesday, December 13 Telephone Pioneers of America meet in College Point. 4634535.

LIONS CLUB Tu e s d a y, D e c e m b e r 1 3 Ravenswood Lion Club meets at 6:30 at Ricardo’s by the Bridge, 21-01 21 st Avenue, Astoria.

TOASTMASTERS Thursdays, December 15, 29 Advance for Leadership/ To a s t m a s t e r s at the Briarwood library at 5:45.

PUBLIC SPEAKING Saturdays, December 17, January 7, 21 public speaking and effective communication 10-12:15 at the Elmhurst Hospital Center Conference Room. 4249754.

P-FLAG Sunday, December 18 PFLAG, a support group for parents, families and friends of lesbians and gays, meet in Forest Hills. 271-6663.

COMMUNITY CAFÉ Saturday, December 10 neighborhood conversation about life in southeastern Queens 8:30-12:30 at Hollis Avenue Congregational Church, 211-04 Hollis Avenue, Queens Village.

AMERICAN DOCUMENTS Saturday, December 10 What do you know about our important American documents 1pm at the Greater Astoria Historical Societ y, 35-20 Broadway, 4 th floor, LIC. $5. $ EMPOWERMENT Monday, December 12Financial Empowerment shows you how to work with your credit, debt, budget and more. Long Island Cit y Lib ra r y. Re g i s te r 6 4 6 - 8 1 0 4050, ext. 112.

SEASIDE BOOK Monday, December 12 “The Assistant”discussed at 6:30 at the Seaside library.

ARTIST WORKSHOP Monday, December 12 learn about Georgia O’Keeffe at 2 at the Forest Hills library.

HILLCREST Tuesday, December 13 “Septembers of Shiraz” discussed at 2 at the Hillcrest library.

NY CARES Tuesday, December 13 NY Cares volunteer management program talk at 4 at the Briarwood library.

CHINESE FUN Saturday, December 10 at the Forest Hills library at 2:30.

LITTLE TOT TIME Mondays, December 12, 19 at the Hillcrest library at 4.

For those 18-24 months and caregivers.

CROCHET FOR BEGINNERS Mondays, December 12, 19 at the Rosedale library at 4.

PRE-SCHOOL CRAFT Monday, December 12 at the Windsor Park library at 1:30.

CRAFT KIDS Monday, December 12 at the Flushing library at 3.

CROCHET FOR BEGINNERS Monday, December 12 at 4 at the Rosedale library.

BOOST Monday, December 12 B O O S T C o m m u n i t y Word Project at the Central library at 4:30.

BOOST MATH Monday, December 12 at the McGoldrick library at 5.

GOING GREEN Tuesdays, December 13, 20 at the Woodside library at 3.

LEGO Tu e s d a y, D e c e m b e r 1 3 LEGO World Builders at the Glendale library at 3:30.

RECYCLED Tuesday, December 13 at the Woodside library. Register. Recycled plastic magnets, pins and barrettes.

TEENS

PUPPY TALES Tuesday, December 13 at the Hillcrest library at 1:15.

GREEN PLANET Tuesday, December 13 at the Broadway library at 3:30.

CROCHET CLUB Tuesday, December 13 at the McGoldrick library at 4.

BOOK MAKING Tuesday, December 13 at the Rego Park library. Register.

MIXING IN MATH Tuesday, December 13 at the Central library at 4:30.

BOOST WORD Tuesday, December 13 at the McGoldrick library at 5.

HAPPY HAPPY STORY TIME Wednesdays, December 14, 21, 28 at the LIC library at 10:30.

CRAFTS Wednesdays, December 14, 21, 28 at the Steinway library at 11.

READ TO ME Wednesdays, December 14, 21, 28 Read to Me program at the Bay Terrace library at 10:30.

MOVIE DAY Wednesday, December 14 at 4 at the Baisley Park library.

GAME DAY Wednesday, December 14 at the Howard Beach library at 4.

CHESS CLUB Wednesdays, December 14, 21 at the Poppenhusen library at 4.

YOGA FOR TEENS Monday, December 12 Cambria Heights library at 4.

LIBRARY LEGERDEMAIN Monday, December 12 at the Astoria library at 3:30.

Tuesday, December 13 at the Briarwood library at 3:30. Learn the art of magic and prestidigitation.

TEEN STUDY Mondays, December 12, 19, 26 Lefrak Cit y library at 4.

YOGA Monday, December 12 Cambria Heights library at 4.

ACE AN INTERVIEW Monday, December 12 Acing Your Job Interview at the Central library at 6.

HOLIDAY CAKE Monday, December 12 No Bake Holiday Cake at the LIC library at 6.

TEEN STUDY Tuesdays, December 13, 20, 27 Lefrak Cit y library at 4.

TEEN JEOPARDY Tuesday, December 13 at the Flushing library at 4.

ENTERTAINMENT Tuesday, December 13 listen to new music and give your opinions at the LIC library at 4.

TUESDAY CHESS Tuesday, December 13 at the Rosedale library at 4:30.

TEEN STUDY Wednesdays, December 14, 21, 28 at the Lefrak Cit y library at 4.

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Funky Fromage One Italian restaurant in Astoria is offering a lively treat for those who are brave enough to try.

WhyLeaveAstoria.com relates that Ornella Trattoria offers casu marzu, also known as rotten cheese in Sardinian. Cheese fly larvae are deliberately introduced into the cheese to break down the cheese’s fats. The result is a soft, flavorful Casu Marzu: Cheese that squirms cheese bursting with tiny worms.

Not only is the cheese moving, but the worms can jump up to six inches!

Prefer to get your dairy sans worms? Experts recommend placing the casu marzu in a bag until the pitter-patter inside stops. Yum. Still interested? This live delicacy is only offered by request at Ornella Trattoria. We’ll take a worms-in-dirt sundae anytime, but we may have to pass on the worms in cheese.

Ain’t Callin You A Gold Digger The recession has caused many of us to tighten our belts and think of creative ways to make extra money on the side. Ever thought of doing it by dating?

The website whatsyourprice.com brings sugar daddies and gold diggers together in an unprecedented way. “Generous people,” including some from the borough, name a price to take an attractive single out on the town. If you’re ambitious enough, you can turn dating into a part-time job.

Just make sure you choose carefully, sugar daddies – the Web site doesn’t offer refunds.

After graduating from Hofstra in 2003, Cindy wasn’t sure what to do with her life. She landed in an interesting place – The Dugout, a famous bar near Yankee Stadium, where she spent a few years as a bartender, mulling over the options her Social Sciences degree would afford her.

Today, no longer slinging cocktails, she is ready to make her break into the world of print ad modeling.

“It’s a very big deal,” she said.

“I’ve always been interest in modeling, but I figured that I wasn’t ready because everything you see on TV and in magazines is somebody really tall and really skinny.

You have other people out there who want to do this, and they get discouraged – I could have done this a long time ago if I really wanted to, but it takes some courage.”

Having just started this year, Cindy has done some shoots in order to put her materials together to send to agents. The Jamaica native who now lives in Kew Gardens also thinks she may have discovered a way to mix her modeling with bartending in creating and marketing creative cocktail menus.

“Hopefully I’ll be able to use my two professions to work together,” she said.

A world traveler, Cindy spent some time in London while in school and recently enjoyed a trip to the Dominican Republic, but she also enjoys spending her time in Queens at such places as Tropix in Rego Park or dining at Su Casa in Kew Gardens.

Models Of Queens

Whether abroad or in her diverse neighborhood, she’s always interested in learning about different cultures. “Everything you see is cool,” she said, “and you always learn about so many different things.”

Cindy Martinez Home; Kew Gardens Age: 30 Height: 5’ 3" Weight: 140 lbs Stats: 34-28-37

Do You Haiku?

Bobby Valentine back in the day

Page 18 PRESS of Southeast Queens Dec. 9-15, 2011

My Valentine Well, it’s official, everyone’s favorite fiery former Mets Manager is now wearing Boston Red. Bobby Valentine announced on Nov. 29 that he would be taking over the beer-swilling, chickengobbling and video-game playing Boston Red Sox, who collapsed almost as badly in 2011 as the Mets in 2007.

Though he could be smug, Mets fans remember Bobby V fondly as the man who guided the Mets to the World Series and made them (briefly) as relevant as the Yankees. He was the guy who always thought he was right, and usually was.

At least Bobby V didn’t convince Yankee front office brass to fire Joe Girardi and give him the reins. He’s a charming guy, that Bobby. Better to have him beating up the pinstripes than wearing them.

The DOT is waxing poetic about street safety. Literally. The agency is teaching lessons in street safety in haiku forms. Writing such whimsical lessons as: Aggressive driver/Aggressive pedestrian/two crash dummies.

The haikus are showing up on signs in some of the city’s busiest areas, including Jamaica, Flushing and Long Island City.

DOT Commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan said the haikus are meant to “get through to the public so they pay more attention.”

She’s inspired us to try our hand at our own: Complex Poetry / Used to teach us common sense / Janette Sadik-Khan?

Or how about: Rushing Commuters / Do Not Stop To Read The Signs / Witty Haikus Though.

We apologize.

The Weiner’s Stash Who’s the man with the skinny lip whiskers? Salvador Dali? Leroy Neimann?

John Waters?

No, it’s just disgraced former Queens Congressman Anthony Weiner.

On Nov. 26, residents of SoHo in New York City got a chance to witness how Weiner’s social media (kind of) sex scandal finally rubbed off on him.

Weiner walked through the City streets sporting a wispy set of whiskers with his wife, Huma Abedin, who is expecting their first child.

He may have grown the nose tickler in the spirit of Movember, the month-long internet-based event that involved the growing moustaches in November, but we’d love to see it stay year-round.

Confidentially, New York . . .

What’s Up SATURDAY, DEC. 10 Walkers for Wellness Club Looking for a fun way to improve your health? Join the Walkers for Wellness Club at New Hope Lutheran Church of Jamaica. Under the guidance of a Walking Leader, you will walk two to three times each week at a comfortable pace with others along routes throughout Southeast Queens. The club is open to walkers of all ages and abilities. The walking schedule is Tuesdays and Thursdays at 7 p.m., and Saturdays at 8 a.m. Walkers meet at New Hope Lutheran Church, located at 167-24 118th Ave. T-shirts and pedometers will be provided. Contact Thurkessa Brown at (917) 553-1089 for more information.

Mobile Cancer Screenings Early detection of breast cancer can save lives. Here is your chance to receive a no-cost mammogram and clinical breast exam. An appointment is necessary.

Women 40 and older with a local mailing address who have not received a mammogram in the past year qualify. Call (877) 628-9090 to make an appointment. On the day of your visit, you should: wear a two-piece outfit; and, do not use any oil, powder, deodorant, or perfume in the breast, underarm or chest area. If you have Medicare, Medicaid or other health insurance, you must bring your card with you.

This free event will be held at the office of Councilman Leroy Comrie, 113-43 Farmers Blvd.

Youth Violence Forum The Eastern Queens Alliance Inc. invites you to participate in its Community Cafe - a neighborhood conversation about life in Southeast Queens. What can we do about the growing incidence of bullying, gangs, shootings, assaults, drugs, among the young people in our neighborhoods?

Come out and learn about the things that make a difference. Bring your teenager. In order to attend, you must RSVP! Breakfast will be served. For info and to RSVP: info@easternqueensalliance.org or (347) 824-2301.

This free event will be held at Hollis Avenue Congregational Church - 211-04 Hollis Ave. from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

Snowed In At the Manor

SUNDAY, DEC. 11 Annual Scholarship and Awards Banquet We are paying tribute to our honorees for their contributions to the Sickle Cell Community. We will be honoring professionals, community leaders, families and individuals with sickle cell anemia. Our scholarship awards are given to young people who are affected with sickle cell anemia. Tickets are $90 per person. For additional information, contact Tiffiney at (718) 712-0873 or qscan08@gmail.com.

This event will be held at Antun's, 9643 Springfield Blvd., from 3 to 7 p.m.

MONDAY, DEC. 12 Adult Chess Club Practice your chess skills weekly, on 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.

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

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

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

Ace Your Job Interview So you've got a big interview scheduled...now what? Participants will learn about: What to wear and when to arrive; researching your potential employer; frequently asked interview questions; general guidelines for success; following up after an interview.

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

TUESDAY, DEC. 13 Walkers For Wellness Club See Saturday's listing. At 7 p.m.

Own Your Own Business Learn how to develop your idea into a business plan. Participants will learn how to create demand for your product or service, set goals and objectives, budgeting and timelines, and identifying resources and networks. To register, call (718) 990-5102.

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

Holiday Family Fun Day Looking to have some holiday fun?

Then show up at the Jamaica Center for Arts and Learning for their Holiday Family Fun Day. Here is a line-up for the afternoon. 1:00 pm - Arts and Crafts, Treats, Holiday Movies and Music; 2:00 pm - Drawing of Holiday Raffle; 2:30 pm - A special holiday performance from Puppetry Arts Theatre! Performance seating is limited. Please RSVP to reserve your seat!

WEDNESDAY, NOV. 14 CB 12 Monthly Meeting Concerned about the future of the community? Then participate in your local community board meeting. Community Board 12 is bounded by Hillside Avenue (south), the Van Wyck Expressway (west), North Conduit Avenue (south), and Francis Lewis Boulevard/Springfield Boulevard (east) encompassing the communi-

ties of Jamaica, South Jamaica, South Ozone Park, Hollis, St. Albans and North Springfield Gardens.

This free event will be held at Robert Ross Johnson Family Life Center, 172-17 Linden Blvd., at 7 p.m.

Big Band Fall Concert Be there when the York College Big Band takes the intimate stage of the Illinois Jacquet Performance Space at the Chapel of the Three Sisters. Come on out for the big band's fall concert.

This free event will be held at York College Illinois Jacquet Performance Space at the Chapel of the Three Sisters, 94-15 159th St., at 7 p.m.

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.

Group Sessions THURSDAY, DEC. 15 Walkers For Wellness Club See Saturday's listing. At 7 p.m.

Spanish Computer Classes Learn how to turn on your computer or write an email to someone. Registration at the Reference Desk beforehand.

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

FRIDAY, DEC. 16 Tree Lighting Ceremony The Southern Queens Park Association cordially invites you to a community tree lighting ceremony. Come on out for the tree lighting ceremony and to hear a special performance by The Roy Wilkins Senior's Choir. Light refreshments will be served. For more information, please call (718) 276-4630 ext 105.

This free event will be held at Roy Wilkins Park, Merrick Boulevard at Baisley Boulevard, at 4:30 p.m.

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

For additional information, contact Ethan Chazin, Job Coach, at (718) 739-2060, Ext. 18 or echazin67@gmail.com.

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

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

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

Volunteers for the class follow along using the CPR Anytime Personal Learning

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

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

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

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

HIV Awareness Clergy United for Community Empowerment provides intervention and curriculum-based prevention education sessions on HIV/AIDS, to reduce risk behaviors that lead to HIV transmission. Services are located at 89-31 161st St., Jamaica. Call (718) 297-0720 ask about our presentation to adolescents and men/women of color. Services are available Tue.-Thurs., 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.

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

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

CPR Class Learn to protect yourself and others at Heron Care with a CPR class that includes a certification from the American Heart Association. Please call (718) 291-8788 for more details. Heron is located at 16830 89th Ave., Jamaica.

Dec. 9-15, 2011 PRESS of Southeast Queens Page 19

The King Manor Museum's Hands-on History workshops are free drop-in programs designed for families with children.

Imagine holidays of the 19th century and hear stories written about historic winter fun. As a special treat, make a traditional scented ornament (a pomander, made of citrus fruit, cloves and cinnamon) and much more.

This free event will be held at King Manor Museum, Rufus King Park, from noon to 3 p.m.

For additional information, contact the front desk at info@jcal.org or (718) 6587400 ext. 123. Admission is free! All ages are welcome.

When: Saturday December 10th - 1:00 pm This free event will be held at Jamaica Center for Arts and Learning, 161-04 Jamaica Ave., at 1 p.m.

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