Co-op City Times 061425 by Co-op City Times

2025 Riverbay Board of Directors Election Supplement,

Voting Begins Wed., June 11! Please cast your ballot by Tuesday, July 8.

Final Riverbay Board Election Candidates’ Forum to be Held June 17 in Dreiser Voting

By ROZAAN BOONE

Open Until July 8, 2025

The 2025 Election Committee, cochaired by Board Directors Monique Coleman and Leah Graham, have set the date for the third and ﬁnal Candidates’ Forum on Tuesday, June 17, in the Dreiser Auditorium at 7 p.m.

Shareholders can use this opportunity to hear directly from the candidates vying for their votes in this year’s election for the Riverbay Board of Directors. The 11 certiﬁed candidates are:

• Kevin Lambright

• Bishop Angelo Rosario

• Leslie Peterson

• Anika Green-Watson

• Keith Logan

• Daryl Johnson

• Shacara Cudjoe

• Idalia Reyes

• Grace Solomon

• Leah Richardson

• Darnell Lopez

channel 12, and Altice subscribers, to channel 591.

In this issue of the Co-op City Times, the ﬁnal Election Supplement is published on pages 22— 32, where the candidates outline their qualiﬁcations and platforms to support their candidacy for a position on the Riverbay Board. This Supplement also includes the amended Rules & Regulations and Schedule for the 2025 Riverbay Board Election approved by the Board at the June 4 meeting.

Shareholders can submit questions to the Election Committee to be asked at the ﬁnal Candidates’ Forum by emailing them to Riverbay2025election@riverbayboard.com.

In addition to in-person attendance, the June 17th Forum will be live broadcast on the in-house tv channels. MATV subscribers can tune in to

This Management Report for Riverbay Corporation is for the period ending April 30, 2025 and provides updates on the following topics:

• Public Safety – Peace Ofﬁcer Stafﬁng Levels

• Disruptions – Information Technology Systems; and

• Building 4A,B&C Gas Outage Update

Public Safety Staffing Peace Officer head counts in the Department of Public Safety remain at 75 or 81.0% of the 93 Peace Officer positions budgeted in the department. As of May 31, 2025, the following

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The ﬁrst election supplement was published on Saturday, May 10; the second on Saturday, May 17. The Co-op City Times was not published on

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I wish to begin my President’s Report by congratulating our new CCPD Commanding Ofﬁcer Andre Waring. I am certain that Chief Waring (with CCPD since 2019) will lead the men and women of our CCPD by way of his unique perspective as an ofﬁcer, his knowledge of our community from serving here for over six years, and with the leadership quality that you sense from Chief Waring the moment you meet him and engage in talking about his vision of serving our beloved Co-op City community. I would be remiss if I did not acknowledge

Wishing all of Fathers in Co-op City a very Happy Fatherʼs Day.

Candidates’ Debate Budget Priorities, Leadership Styles & Decision-Making Skills at Second Candidates’ Forum

BY DANIELLE CRUZ

The second Candidates’ Forum for the 2025 Riverbay Board of Directors election was held on Wednesday, May 21, in the Einstein Community Center.

The forum was moderated by the League of Women Voters and 10 of the 11 candidates were in attendance along with the Election Committee coChairs Leah Graham and Monique Coleman. Each candidate was given a chance to present an opening statement to the community and then asked eight questions that were submitted by shareholders. The candidates were given one minute to respond to seven of the questions and 15-seconds to answer to a lightning round question.

Q. What are your priorities when allocating funds and how do you determine what deserves the most investment?

Idalia Reyes: So ﬁrst, since this is my ﬁrst go, the budget would have to be looked at. I would consult with the rest of the... but safety has been a really hot problem in our community and cameras would be one

of the issues that we have. Our youth is really in need of having guidance, so that would be another suggestion or maybe having something for the youth to maybe be included, so their time is occupied because we really need to get the guns off the street and cameras are really needed for trying to catch whatever's going on, so we can stop it before it unfolds and gets worse.

Shacara Cudjoe: I think for me it will begin with safety. I think a lot of us are really advocating that we need better lighting paths so that we can

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Sample of Riverbay Board election green ballot envelope.

President’s Report –––––

(Continued from page 1)

the fine job that Capt. Frank Torres performed as our acting CCPD Chief for nearly a year, as he took the command post from former CCPD Chief Joseph Riley.

Last week (Friday, June 6th), I was very proud to be in attendance and address the graduation ceremony of 17 of our newest and finest CCPD officers. I let them know how proud I was of the graduates, and spoke about my understanding of how the original security officers that were hired to be here were actually those who were hired to watch over the property while Co-op City was being built in the late 1960’s, into the early 1970’s. That CCPD’s peace officer status occurred because of a handful of dedicated officers back in the mid-to late 1980’s, were successful in advocating for CCPD’s current status here. Final note: In just this past week, I have already witnessed some of our newest men & women officers patrolling/walking the grounds of our campus. We are rebuilding our great team, seeing more of them walking the grounds, and in the immediate future, you will see them patrolling on two wheels here in Co-op City as well.

Open Board Meetings

Dating back to 2015 when I was first voted onto the Riverbay Board of Directors, I can honestly say that I always advocated for a return to the practice of holding “Open Board Meetings” so that our shareholders/cooperators would be able to weigh-in on whatever they felt was germane for themselves, or the cooperative, in general. There were at least three of us on the 2015 thru 2018 Board who advocated for holding at least four Open Board Meetings a year. While we were successful in having the Board hold a few Open Meetings, which were clearly well attended, we simply (in my opinion) were not holding them nearly as often as a Board should.

As is the custom of every change in leadership, I am proud to have received the support of the Board to institute the return to holding Open Meetings for our shareholders/cooperators each and every month. As most of you know, the format has changed from past Open Meeting, and this Board (under my Presidency) has reverted back to that which was in place during the late 1970’s to the turn of the century.

Equally important, I believe that unless there is something pressing that needs to presented, that our shareholders should be allowed to speak “before” the Board of Directors officially convenes the monthly Open Board Meeting. Actually, that should not be considered equally important – it must remain most important!

The Gallery Session gives cooperators the opportunity to speak out on whatever Co-op City related topic/s they feel is important, and has been placed ahead of all other items on the Board Meeting’s Agenda. I have been particularly insistent upon starting promptly at 7 p.m., so please feel free to come out, sign up (10-speakers per session) and let your views be known.

Advantages of the Open Board Meetings

There are two advantages to cooperators attending Open Board Meetings. In my opinion, having the opportunity to meet with the majority of our 27 department directors of Riverbay Corporation an hour before the beginning of the meeting has many advantages for cooperators who feel that their concerns need to be addressed at an elevated level; this is the opportune moment for shareholders to engage. Our Executive General Manager is in attendance as well, and he is one of the most, if not the most approachable Executive General Manager that Riverbay Corp. has ever had.

Co-op City’s Proposals Addressing NYC & NY State Climate Control Mandates

A segment of the June 4th Open Board Meeting was dedicated to presenting to our shareholders/cooperators, one of the most significant PowerPoint presentations we’ve had regarding Co-op City’s (Riverbay Corp.) proposal to address NYC’s Local Law mandates (LL97 & LL87), and NY State’s Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act.

During the 2023/24 Board of Directors term, a focus group was organized to formally address measures that have been discussed at both Board

& Management levels, however, the needle hadn’t really moved forward. Since the focus group began to meet, the needle has now moved forward, and will continue to do so.

Thanks to four Board directors, our senior-most management team, including the director of our Power Plant, our Corp. General Legal Counsel, and the entity that has played arguably the most significant role in putting all of our recommendations into one “trailblazing” alternative energy package –En-Power, Co-op City is about to embark on a major energy project that we believe will make Co-op City the largest producers of alternative energy of any residential community anywhere in the United States, possibly anywhere in the world.

To introduce Co-op City shareholders and cooperators to the focus group’s proposals, the Board invited Thomas Morrison, P.E., of En-Power, to make a detailed PowerPoint presentation of what the focus group has determined to be the best and most extensive decarbonization effort anywhere currently being proposed in New York City/New York State. “The” Decarbonization Proposal

In great detail, Tom Morrison walked those in attendance through the Co-op City (Riverbay Corp.) project. The initial plan is to erect an array of solar panels atop our Power Plant. The intent here is to reduce the use of fossil fuels while in operation.

Thanks to a share of the monies granted to Co-op City by Assemblyman Michael Benedetto and NY State Senator Jamaal Bailey, we have the money to move forward with that project in hand!

Following the Power Plant’s rooftop project, there are plans to erect solar panels on the roofs of our 8 garage buildings, followed by installation of solar panels on all of our 35-highrise apartment buildings. To accommodate the current & projected increase in the number of electric vehicles being bought here in Co-op City and elsewhere, the plans include building of level-3 fast chargers out on our riverfront property, not within our garages. The consideration in doing so includes existing and possible new legislation which could arise for electric vehicle charging within garages, and the possible property insurance increases that could arise. By placing the chargers outside, we gain the ability to use solar for the chargers, and to install the proposed battery storage units to provide additional charging power for charging during non-daylight hours.

One other future consideration that we would like to see built and installed will be to provide the Power Plant with a Carbon Capture installation. My under-

standing of Carbon Capture is a method by which the hot exhaust from the boilers in the Power Plant will be processed through a system built on our property, that will capture carbon dioxide and nitrogen and turn them into a liquid. The liquid is moved from our property onto a truck. The CO2 can be converted to a solid, and (if the market demands are there) added to a cement mix. Reducing our carbon footprint, selling off a pollutant – win-win!

Should NY State, possibly other governmental resources, grant Co-op City with the available funding, the possibilities for providing all other residential (and commercial) properties in New York with a blueprint for decarbonization and the benefits of increased energy resources are exponentially unlimited.

One last point – contrary to statements made by some legislators in government, after 9/11, and the great blackout that the entire Eastern coast experienced back in 2003, being able to have independent sustainable, renewable (if not profitable) energy, apart from our current electrical grid structure across the State, is as smart a move as any responsible community can make. With NYC & NY State pursuing an all-electric agenda, the concept of their decarbonization may not meet the reality of the existing grid structures’ ability to deliver. If we can achieve what we are proposing at this time (future alternative solutions notwithstanding), Co-op City will deliver on decarbonization, and still remain an independent source to provide energy to our shareholders and possibly our surrounding neighbors as well.

In closing, I want to include two topics that I briefly spoke about as part of the President’s Report during the June 4th Open Board Meeting – my signing of contracts allowing for the continued service of Optimum (Altice) who will now be joined by Verizon whose contract as signed off on as well.

The second point was the filing for the J-51 Tax Abatement Program, which allows for Riverbay Corp. with the possibility to be able to recover up to 70% of the cost of the work done here at 8 1/3% per year for up to 20 years.

Our corporate Legal team, with assistance from Management, had days (not months) to put together a monumental effort to successfully file the J-51 application. Having said that, and because of the devil in the details, we will need some legislative, and NYC Government assistance, if we are to be successful in participating in the program.

Thank you all, please participate in a Juneteenth celebration (June 19th) in any way you can, and thank you for reading my President’s Report.

Co-op City Times

COMBING

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Front Page

Bill Excluding Co-op City from Bus-Trafﬁc Regulations Passes NYS Senate

Senate Bill S7785, sponsored by State Senator Jamaal Bailey, passed the New York State Senate and now heads to the state Assembly (A8842) for a vote before being signed into law by Governor Kathy Hochul.

Disco, Friday, June 27, 5-8 p.m. on the Section 5 Greenway. Bring your own headphones or rent headphones free; bring ID.

Make a Plan & Plan to Vote!...

... in the 2025 Riverbay Board of Directors election. Keep reading the Co-op City Times and vote to help make the quorum to avoid extending the election.

The Voting Period is from June 11–July 8 at 9 p.m. Be sure to return your ballot as soon as it arrives.

"Dropping your kids off at school, waiting for a parking spot, cheering your kids on at a little league game amongst other routine things shouldn’t cost you ﬁnancially," said Senator Jamaal T. Bailey. "The passage of this bill is a major win for Co-op City and our constituents who spoke out

S7785 seeks to amend the vehicle and traffic law in relation to bus operation-related traffic regulations and, specifically, to amend the No-Standing rules at bus stops to exclude such violations on roadways in Mitchell-Lama housing developments with no fewer than 10,000 units,

S7785 amends paragraph 3 of subdivision (d) of section 1111-c-1 of the vehicle and trafﬁc law, as added by section 1 of part MM of chapter 56 of the laws of 2023, as follows: “3. ‘bus operation-related traffic regulations’ shall mean the following provisions set forth in chapter four of title thirty-four of the rules of the city of New York, adopted pursuant to section sixteen hundred forty-two of this chapter: 4-08(c)(3), violation of posted no standing rules prohibited-bus stop, EXCLUDING SUCH VIOLATIONS OCCURRING ON A ROAD-

WAY IN A COOPERATIVE HOUSING DEVELOPMENT CONTAINING MITCHELL-LAMA HOUSING WITH NO FEWER THAN TEN THOUSAND UNITS; 4-08(e)(9), general no stopping zones-bicycle lanes; 4-08(f)(1), general no standing zones-double parking; and 4-08(f)(4), general no standing zones-bus lanes.

“§2. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall have become a law; provided, however, that the amendment to section 1111-c-1 of the vehicle and trafﬁc law made by section one of this act shall not affect the repeal of such section and shall be deemed repealed therewith.”

The bill passed the State Senate’s Rules Committee on June 11, 2025 by a vote of 14-0, with one excusal. On the ﬂoor, it was approved by a vote of 59-0, with four excusals.

State Senator Bailey said that stakeholders were brought to Co-op City to witness the issue ﬁrst-hand and had many discussions.

“And now, we’ve passed this bill!” Senator Bailey exclaimed. “This is about fairness and common sense for our hardworking community members who can engage in regular daily activities without penalty. The next steps are passage in the Assembly, then signature by the Governor!"

The Assembly Bill, A8842, is now in Committee; it is sponsored by State Assemblyman Michael Benedetto.

Comptroller’s Report Reveals Large Gaps in D75 Programming

New York City Comptroller Brad Lander released a report on June 6 highlighting large gaps in programming for students

District 75 schools serve students with disabilities and Mr. Lander’s report underscored the discrepancy in the afterschool funding, vendors and bus transportation for those

The following are some of the key ﬁndings from the Comptroller’s report, which collected results from over 600 public

Twenty-six percent of District 75 schools do not have any form of afterschool programming, while only 7% of the remaining public schools across the city share that problem. Despite District 75 schools only representing a portion of the total number of NYC public schools, the data showed they disproportionately dealt with a lack of

One hundred percent of District 75 respondents cited “the lack of school bus transportation as a barrier to student after-

Currently, NYCPS provides bus transportation for 145,000 students, with roughly 40% of those students having

• While Mayor Eric Adams is hoping to expand publicly funded afterschool seats to 220,351 students, Comptroller Lander’s office estimated that the city will actually need more seats, specifically 392,000. Furthermore, the Comptroller’s office estimated that approximately 15% of those additional 170,000-plus students who need after-school programming have an IEP.

Mr. Lander touched on the importance of providing afterschool programming for all public school students on June 6. “Afterschool programs are essential for student success and support working families,” he said. “The Mayor’s promise of universal afterschool rings hollow while his administration fails to meet the needs of students with disabilities who make up more than one-in-ﬁve of all New York City public school children. For the City’s ‘afterschool for All’ initiative to live up to its name, City Hall must treat the inclusion of students with disabilities as a core commitment, not an afterthought.”

Overall, the Comptroller’s report underlined how bus trans-

portation remains a critical issue for NYCPS. “Unfortunately, DOE’s outdated bus contracts, many virtually untouched since 1979, fail to provide adequate service and do not cover afterschool, weekend programs, or Summer Rising. A 2011 State Court of Appeals decision blocks DOE from rebidding these contracts and including critical labor protections,” the Comptroller’s Ofﬁce said.

In addition to bringing awareness to the discrepancy in programming for District 75 students, the Comptroller’s report also outlined several recommendations to improve the current situation. First among the recommendations was establishing dedicated funding for District 75 afterschool programming, followed by surveying schools annually on their afterschool offerings. Additionally, the Comptroller’s Ofﬁce recommended increasing the funding for the Cultural Afterschool Adventures (CASA) with a particular focus on District 75 programs. In an effort to improve the access to appropriate vendors for District 75 programs, the Comptroller’s Ofﬁce also recommended creating a specialized Multiple Task Award Contract (MTAC).

Submit to Co-op City Creatives!

BY P.M. CAMPBELL

With thousands of residents from all across the globe, Co-op City is home to artists of all kinds. Shareholders have written books, performed poetry, directed ﬁlms, created murals, and they all deserve a spotlight. The column, “Co-op City Creatives,” serves not only to showcase shareholders’ art from Sections 1-5, but to also take a deep dive on what makes that artist unique. If you consider yourself an artist, regardless of age, medium, or education, send your work to cctimes@ riverbaycorp.com with the subject “Co-op Creatives” and include your phone number so you’ll have the chance to be interviewed and your work displayed in the Co-op City Times.

provides the current status of Peace Officers’ staffing in the department:

• 14 officers who graduated from the Training Academy on December 9, 2024, are detailed on every shift/tour and are working closely with other fully commissioned Peace Officers throughout the community.

• 17 recruits from the in-house Peace Officer Training Academy graduated Friday, June 6, 2025.

• 18 vacancies are being advertised for the recruitment of the next class for the Training Academy.

• 2 Peace Officers were promoted to the Detective Squad.

Disruptions – Information Technology Systems

On May 21, 2025, Management was alerted to unusual activity in our Information Technology network. In response, our Information Technology team promptly secured and isolated our system and temporarily took computer systems offline. In addition, Management launched an investigation with the assistance of third-party experts.

• Specifically:

o Management engaged BakerHostetler as outside cybersecurity legal counsel.

o BakerHostetler engaged the forensic investigation firm, Kroll, on behalf of Riverbay, to perform a privileged investigation of the incident.

o In addition, BakerHostetler engaged the Information Technology firm, Entara, through Kroll, on behalf of Riverbay, to assist with the containment and recovery process.

o Law enforcement, including the NYPD and FBI, was notified.

Management is working diligently with the experts to complete our investigation and to restore access to systems as quickly and as safely as possible. We are methodically working to determine which systems and data were involved in this incident. Our investigation is ongoing, and we will provide an appropriate update when additional information becomes available. Due to the sensitive and ongoing nature of our investigation and law enforcement involvement, we are not able to provide further details. This is all of the information we have to share until this assessment is complete, and we understand the full scope of the cybersecurity incident. We appreciate shareholders’ continued patience and support as we work to bring our computer systems back online.

Building 4A, B & C

Gas Outage

As of result of LOCAL LAW 152 – PERIODIC GAS PIPING SYSTEM INSPECTIONS, a leak was detected in the gas meter room that supplies gas to the three (3) buildings (500 apartments) and ConED immediately disconnected the gas to the entire building. Since leaks were detected, the building owner shall immediately take action to correct such condition in compliance with the New York City construction codes.

The Management team met with the shareholders and families who reside in Building 4A,B&C on Thursday, May 8, 2025, in Dreiser Auditorium to discuss the gas restoration process for the building.

Riverbay Corporation contracted with a Certified Master Plumbing contractor to facilitate the repairs and upgrades needed in the buildings in order to have the gas services restored in the apartment. To facilitate the repairs and upgrades, Riverbay Management must gain access to all 500 apartments and laundry rooms. This process began on Tuesday, May 13th, from 8 a.m.-8 p.m. The Certified Master Plumber contractor began knocking on doors to gain access to apartments to replace the gas valves, hoses and place the valves in the closed position. All employees of the contractor were required to have Riverbay IDs visible to shareholders. In addition to replacing the gas valves and hoses, upgrades are re-

Riverbay Directors’ Corner Edgar Perez,

Director, Restoration Department

Good day, my name is Edgar Perez and I am the director of the Restoration department. We are dedicated to ensuring the upkeep and quality of your living spaces, whether they are currently vacant or occupied.

Our team is comprised of five specialized trades: Inspections, Flooring, Ceramic Tiling, Plastering, and Painting. For vacant apartments, our process begins with a thorough inspection to identify any necessary repairs before the apartment is made available for re-occupancy.

For occupied apartments, we kindly ask that you contact our Call Center to schedule any needed repairs. Once the repairs are completed, please schedule an inspection to assess the required work in order to restore your apartment back to its original state. Please remember that all repair work in occupied apartments are scheduled through our Call Center.

In addition to apartment restorations, please be aware that the Restoration Department also conducts repairs in building public spaces, Riverbay offices, commercial spaces, garages, and community centers.

Finally, we want to emphasize a crucial step before any restoration work commences in your apartment: a documented detailed inspection must be completed. This ensures clarity and efficiency in addressing the repairs needed.

We appreciate your cooperation as we work together to maintain and improve your apartments and the development.

Thank you.

quired for the 20 gas risers located throughout the buildings which require wall breaks in certain apartments.

As of Monday, June 2, 2025, Management has completed entry into all 500 apartments and installed new gas valves and hoses as well as upgrades for the 20 gas risers. The piping in the gas meter room has been replaced. The Certified Master Plumber is conducting gas line testing from the basement up to the portico ceiling. If any leaks are detected, necessary repairs will be made before proceeding.

Management will conduct a shareholder information meeting on Tuesday, June 10, 2025, at 7:00 p.m. in Dreiser Community Center Auditorium A – 2nd floor, for shareholders of Buildings 4A,B & C. Important updates and project status will be discussed during this meeting.

Please Note: Reporting on convector initiatives was suspended for this month’s Management Report.

The Corporation’s key performance indicators were discussed with the Board Directors during the briefing session on Tuesday, May 20, 2025, and are available to the community in this edition of the CC Times newspaper.

Riverbay Corporation Fiscal Year 24/25 Budget Overview

The budget summary that follows gives a snapshot of Riverbay Corporation’s Budget vs. Actual performance for Fiscal Year 24/25 for period beginning April 01, 2024, and ending March 31, 2025.

INCOME

There are two (2) sources of Income for the Operating Budget, Carrying Charges and Other Income. A summary of these income sources is as follows at of the end the Fiscal Year March 31, 2025:

• Actual Carrying Charges were greater than anticipated by 6.0% or $13.8 million as a direct result of the 8.1% increase in Carrying Charges that took effect July 1, 2024.

• Other Income includes all other income received by the Corporation (e.g., Garage space rentals, storage room rentals, commercial & professional space leases, fines–Community Complaints, community center rentals, sales of electric power, etc.) was less than anticipated by 5.0% or $2.8 million. These results were primarily due to reduced receipts from the sale of electric power to ConEdison.

SUMMARY OF EXPENSES

Expenses for the Corporation are grouped into three (3) functional expense categories, and they are as follows:

• Department Expenses – Costs associated with operating 25 departments within the Corporation. These departments provide direct and indirect services to the shareholders.

• Corporate Expenses – Costs associated with Corporate-wide expendi-

tures such as Insurance, Real Estate Taxes, Utilities, Water, and other operating expenses.

• Debt Services and Fees – Costs associated the mortgage refinancing inclusive of reserves replacements, Mortgage Insurance Premiums and Debt Services. Departmental Expenses:

Total departmental expenditures, which include salaries, fringe benefits and other expenses associated with the day-to-day departmental activities involved with providing direct and indirect services to the shareholders, was less than anticipated by 5.0% or $7.4 million.

Vacancies in several departments, especially the Public Safety Department, contributed to the positive variances in the departments. Although some departments reported positive budget variances in payroll & fringe benefits, there were also negative budget variances in the operating budgets, and they are as follows:

• Automotive Services is $92k over budget due primarily to increased leased equipment costs.

• Building Janitorial is $281k over budget due to various expense categories including Janitorial Supplies, Welding and Capital Purchases.

• Information Technology reported a negative 14.0% budget variance of $528k. The department was over budget due largely to invoices totaling approximately $495,000 for furniture and equipment that had been encumbered in August 2023. These invoices were billed by SHI International and remained as open purchase orders. These invoices

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Forum –––––– (Continued from page 1) Saturday, May 24 and May 31, due to a network outage. Past issues of the newspaper can be read online at issuu.com/cctimes.

Election ballots were mailed to Co-op City households this week by the independent election vendor, YesElections, and should be arriving soon. The ballots are enclosed in green envelopes. In each ballot envelope, there is an absentee ballot with the names of the certified candidates, along with information on the voting period, how eligible shareholders may vote, the onsite/in-person polling locations and schedule, and the website to view the candidates bios and videos, riverbayvotes.com. Also included in the ballot letter is information on how to obtain a replacement ballot by contacting the election vendor at (855) 970-6106 or by emailing help+riverbay@ yeselections.com.

Shareholders of record as of April 1, 2025 are eligible to vote in the 2025 Riverbay Board election. There is one vote per residential unit. Vote for up to five candidates or check the box to indicate your ballot is being cast for quorum purposes only.

Completed ballots must be placed in the envelope labeled “Secret Ballot Envelope” and sealed. The Secret Ballot Envelope must then be placed into the postage-paid return envelope. Ballots not enclosed in the postage-paid envelope will not be counted!

The postage-paid envelope containing your sealed Secret Ballot Envelope can be mailed directly to YesElections or deposited into the secure ballot drop box (see photo above) located in each of the three community centers next to the ATM machines. If mailed, ballots must be postmarked by July 8 to be counted in the election. Ballots without a postmark or postmarked after July 8, 2025 will not be counted.

Alternatively, shareholders may opt to vote in-person at polling locations which will be available on:

• Wednesday, June 25, Dreiser Community Center, 6 p.m.-10 p.m. at the Annual Meeting

• Thursday, June 26, Einstein Community Center, 12 p.m.-8 p.m.

• Friday, June 27, Bartow Community Center, 12 p.m.-8 p.m.

• Saturday, June 28, Bartow Community Center, 8 a.m.-8 p.m.

ID is required to vote in-person. After checking in with an election official from YesElections, shareholders can choose to vote electronically or by filling out a paper ballot.

“All shareholders were mailed a ballot this week, along with a postage-paid envelope,” said Election co-chair Monique Coleman. “Each household is entitled to one vote and you may vote for up to five candidates. Do not select more than five. If you’re undecided, you may vote for quorum only.”

The Annual Meeting of Shareholders will take place on Wednesday, June 25, 7 p.m. in Dreiser Auditorium. The order of business will be:

• Proof of Notice of the Meeting

• Reports of the Board President and Executive General Manager

• Election of at least five (5) resident shareholders to serve on the Board of Directors for a period of three years, and as many as may be needed to fill any vacancies for the balance off ay unexpired term created by said vacancy

• Transaction of such other business as may properly come before the meeting.

This year’s quorum is 5,041 certified ballots, the number required to validate the election.

Shareholders are encouraged to vote as soon as they receive their ballot to avoid a voting extension which results in added cost to the Riverbay Corporation and shareholders.

The voting period opened on Wednesday, June 11 and ends on Tuesday, July 8, 2025 at 9 p.m. If a quorum is obtained by 9 p.m. on July 8, the Election Committee will certify the final count of election ballots at a public meeting on Monday, July 14, at 7

p.m. This meeting will be live streamed on the Riverbay in-house tv channels, 12 & 591. The Committee will then certify the election results to the Board and post the results publicly by 10 a.m. on Tuesday, July 15, 2025. The newly-elected members of the Riverbay Board will be sworn in on Wednesday, July 23, 2025. The deadline to file challenges to the election in this scenario is Wednesday, July 16, 2025 by 5 p.m.

On the other hand, if a quorum is not obtained by 9 p.m. on Tuesday, July 8, the election can be extended starting at 9:01 p.m. on Tuesday, July 8, 2025 until Monday, July 28, 2025. (See extended schedule on page 22.)

“The leaders we choose will shape our future and will determine how resources are allocated, how policies are written, and how our commUNITY grows,” said Election co-chair Coleman. “Voting is how we show up for our community. Tell your neighbors. Bring a friend. Together, we decide.”

– • Letters to the Editor • –

The Co-op City Times welcomes issue-oriented letters to the editor to be considered for publication. All letters, in prose, not poetry, must be addressed to the editor, not to third parties. All letters must be signed by the writers and include their addresses and phone numbers, which will be kept conﬁdential, so that the editor can verify the authenticity of the authors. Anonymous or unsigned letters will not be accepted for publication. Letters cannot exceed 350 words. Ideally, they should be typed. All letters must be in the Co-op City Times ofﬁce in Room 21, Bartow Community Center, by 3 p.m. every Monday to be considered for publication in that week’s edition. Views and opinions expressed in letters are solely the writer’s and not necessarily shared by the Co-op City Times or Riverbay Corp.

It is Election Season Again! Why Vote?

Once again, it is time for our election for the Riverbay Board of Directors. When I ask my neighbors if they are going to vote and they tell me, “No, I do not know who I should vote for.”

I agree it is not an easy decision. It requires some effort and the need to juggle the time needed for other things. Nevertheless, it is important because the Riverbay Board of Directors makes decisions about how your money will be spent. What? They do not decide how I spend my money. Yes, they do! They decide on how the Riverbay Corporation spends

money. The shareholders are the Riverbay Corporation. Other than grants, it is predominantly your carrying charges that bear the burden of expenses, so yes, it is our money being allocated by the Riverbay Board of Directors.

Our lives are busy, yet we must invest time in learning about those who are making decisions on our behalf. Take a few moments to tune in and listen to the Candidates’ Forum. Listen to who makes common sense or not and choose wisely.

––Ron Campbell

My Suggestion to Improve Resolution #25-18 on Convectors

To the Editor:

We should look at ways to stop the bleeding ($7–9M a year) for repairing ﬂooring around the convectors.

The drain clogs occur in many apartments and causes considerable damage to the flooring around the convectors. This fix will require modification to the 65,000 convectors. In my opinion, this fix requires the following:

1. Redesign the plastic plate that funnels the condensation water from the convector to the drain in the following way:

A. Increase the height of the rim from ½ into 1.5 in.

B. Create a plastic removable tank below the plate able to hold 1 to 2 quarts of water.

C. Replace the tray that catches the water from the convector with a plastic tray of a liner.

2. Install a sensor in the tank that will detect when wa-

ter is overﬂowing the drain.

The sensor should do the following:

A. Sound an audible alarm that the convector has a problem.

B. Turn off the fan on the convector to reduce the amount of water that is overﬂowing (this is what Riverbay has told shareholders to do for over 50 years).

I believe this suggestion should reduce the water from drain clogs by more than 95+%.

In my opinion, the work is totally within the current convector structure and can be done by our regular repair people when called to do work in a shareholder’s apartment. If we reduce the proposed 8,500/12,000 Btu, in the proposed living room convectors to 6000 Btu, it may reduce the cost enough to cover this change.

––Bruce Gitelson

Early Voting in NY Primary Election Begins in Dreiser today, June 14

New Yorkers can begin early voting in the 2025 Primary Election starting today, Saturday, June 14 — Sunday, June 22.

In Co-op City, the early voting poll site for all shareholders is the Dreiser Auditorium.

Only voters who are registered with a speciﬁc political party can vote in the Primary Election. Today, June 14, is the last day to register, and also to receive an early mail and absentee ballot from the Board of Elections.

The Early Voting Schedule is as follows:

• Saturday, June 14, 9 a.m.-5 p.m.

• Sunday, June 15, 9 a.m.-5 p.m.

• Monday, June 16, 9 a.m.-5 p.m.

• Tuesday, June 17, 10 a.m.-8 p.m.

• Wednesday, June 18, 10 a.m.-8 p.m.

• Thursday, June 19, 9 a.m.-5 p.m.

• Friday, June 20, 8 a.m.-4 p.m.

• Saturday, June 21, 9 a.m.-5 p.m.

• Sunday, June 22, 9 a.m.-5 p.m.

Primary Election Day is Tuesday, June 24. Polls hours are 6 a.m.-9 p.m.

This year’s Primary ballot includes citywide races for NYC Mayor, Public Advocate and City Comptroller. County races include Bronx Borough President, City Council Member, 12th Council District in the Bronx, and Judge of the Civil Court, Bronx County.

The candidates running for NYC Mayor on the Democratic line are Zohran Kwame Mamdani, Scott M. Stringer, Selma K. Bartholomew, Zellnor Myrie, Adrienne E. Adams, Andrew M. Cuomo, Jessica Ramos, Whitney R. Tilson, Michael Blake, Brad Lander and Paperboy Love

Prince.

For Public Advocate, the candidates include Jumaane D. Williams, Marty Dolan and Jenifer Rajkumar. Democratic candidates seeking the office of City Comptroller include Mark D. Levin, Ismael Malave Perez, Justin Brennan and Kevin S. Parker.

On the Republican line, the candidates are Peter Kefalas and Danniel Maio.

For Judge of the Civil Court, Bronx County, the candidates are Shekera Anissa Algarin and George M. Santana.

For Bronx Borough President, Vanessa L. Gibson is being challenged by Rafael Salamanca Jr.

Bronx Council Member Kevin C. Riley is facing off against Andy King in the 12th Council District.

In each race, voters will nominate one candidate to advance to the General Election in November. Voters can also write-in a candidate.

NY voters will use Ranked Choice Voting only for the races for Mayor, Public Advocate, City Comptroller, Borough President and City Council.

For more election-related information, please visit https:// vote.nyc or https://lwvnyc.org.

Be sure to subscribe to the ofﬁcial Co-op City YouTube channel, https:// bit.ly/3h6CrF7. Stay informed!

Important Notice to Shareholders of Bldg. 1 & Earhart Lane T’Houses

Article SIXTH of your Occupancy Agreement provides, in part, that your lease automatically renews for an additional three (3) year period. You need to do nothing if you want your lease to extend for another three (3) year period. If you will be moving out at the end of your lease, notify Riverbay, in writing, Attention: Sales Support Ofﬁce, 2049 Bartow Avenue, Bronx, NY 10475, ninety (90) days prior to lease expiration.

Building 1 A&B

920 & 900 Baychester Ave. & Earhart Lane T’houses

Lease Expiration Date: September 30, 2025

3-Year

Date: September 30, 2028

Co-op City Times

Co-op City’s ofﬁcial newspaper serving the world’s largest cooperative community. (718) 320-3300, ext. 3375 cctimes@riverbaycorp.com

Rozaan Boone Editor-in-Chief

Danielle Cruz Managing Editor

Brandi Simpson

Junior Associate Editor

Ralph Henriquez Production Manager

Jennifer Piovanetti

Operations Manager

John Crow

New Media Producer

Sheldon Green

Multi-Media Advertising Manager

Brandon Ortiz Media Assistant

P.M. Campbell Media Assistant

Writers will be limited to one letter per topic. Anonymous or unsigned letters will not be accepted for publication. Letters cannot exceed 350 words. Ideally, they should be typed. All letters must be submitted to the Co-op City Times by 3 p.m. Monday to be considered for publication in that week’s edition. Email cctimes@riverbaycorp.com or mail to 2049 Bartow Ave., Room 21, Bronx, NY 10475.

Views and opinions expressed in letters and Directors’ Viewpoint are solely the writer’s, and not necessarily shared by the Co-op City Times or Riverbay Corp. Advertisements and classiﬁed advertisements in the Co-op City Times do not necessarily reﬂect an endorsement from Riverbay Corp. of goods and services, but present greater options to cooperators of products and services available.

The Riverbay Corporation does not assume any responsibility nor is it a party to any contract or agreement between the cooperator and the vendor. All matter published herein is copyrighted by the Co-op City Times. Permission for reprints of advertising or editorial contents produced by the Coop City Times must be obtained in writing from Riverbay Corporation, 2049 Bartow Ave., Bronx, NY 10475.

CCPD: Departmental Growth

By SGT. JOSEPH VARGAS

The Co-op City Department of Public Safety is growing as expected in both officer numbers and structure. By providing additional structure and task orientation, CCPD seeks to further reduce crimes and provide answers to quality-of-life concerns. According to Bronx News 12 , NYPD released statistics indicating an approximate 112% increase in minor involved shootings in the borough of the Bronx since 2018. In the last few months, however, Co-op City has experienced an increase in community policing and police visibility contributing to an increasingly positive quality of life.

Investigations

Last month, Co-op City Public Safety Department welcomed two additional officers to the Detectives Squad. The officers were among the finest individuals on patrol, frequently took initiative in reducing crime throughout the Coop City neighborhood and were involved in the apprehension of individuals involved in assaults, larcenies, illegal possession of firearms and more. Now, these officers are putting their skills to work in the investigations of civil and criminal cases.

Community Affairs

Understanding the importance of community involvement in law enforcement, CCPD has launched its Community Affairs Unit which will utilize specialized ofﬁcers for community engagement, outreach and policing. The specialized ofﬁcers

BY BRANDI SIMPSON

The Co-op City Department of Public Safety (CCPD) held a commencement ceremony for 17 new ofﬁcers from the class of 2025 on Friday, June 6, 2025, in the Dreiser Auditorium.

Members of the Riverbay Board of Directors, Riverbay Management, and representatives from the ofﬁcers’ union, the Police Benevolent Association (PBA), attended the ceremony, along with the new ofﬁcers’ family, friends, and colleagues who came out to support and congratulate them.

The program began with the Pledge of Allegiance, followed by the Invocation by CCPD Chaplain, Rev. Dr. Calvin E. Owens of Community Protestant Church. CCPD Training Director Lieutenant Shelda Williams then delivered opening remarks.

“We – meaning everyone – need to … work together, need to get along with one another, respect one another, and abide by the rules written in the law,” Lt. Williams said. She noted that the new class of ofﬁcers learned “the lessons of law,” meaning illegal searches and seizures, report writing, the history of Coop City, and so much more, during their 18-week training program.

The 2025 graduating class includes two Co-op City shareholders.

Chief Andre Waring expressed how proud he was to deliver the commencement speech during the graduation. Commending the new ofﬁcers on the persistence they’ve displayed as they start their careers in law enforcement. “The men and women of the graduating class showed they were able to persevere in their challenge and complete the tasks.” Looking forward to the new Ofﬁcers’ contribution to the department, the Chief added: “They have already shown that their dedication and commitment will pay off, with some of them being involved in critical law enforcement incidents this week. They are a part of our bright future in the department on the horizon.”

Riverbay Board President Rod Saunders said: “You represent everything that is good about Co-op City and about how things are run here. We look to you for protection; we look to you to mediate all kinds of interesting circumstances.” Mr. Saunders also gave special thanks to Lt. Shelda Williams for always giving an excellent commencement ceremony.

will cultivate and foster relationships with other law enforcement agencies involved in the community and foster relationships with Co-op City community organizations themselves, thereby serving as a bridge between the residents of Co-op City and law enforcement. Cooperators should expect to see increased community outreach and service learning, education events on safety and self defense, and organized outreach activities. Through the Community Affairs Unit, CCPD will also designate specialized ofﬁcers to reach out to our community youth and educational institutions.

Intelligence Unit

Finally, CCPD will take our community policing approach to enhance our proactive policing. Specialized groups within police departments across the nation considered police or criminal intelligence teams (units) are tasked with gathering, analyzing and presenting criminal activity trends in relation to geography or/and time. This is often considered “crime mapping.” Intelligence units are involved in criminal risk identiﬁcation and management plans. CCPD will use such information gathered by this unit to proactively patrol and deploy units throughout Co-op City.

CCPD invites community members to say hello to an officer and meet our recruits, patrol officers and specialized unit members to find out how you can participate in our community initiatives.

Public Safety Department Graduates 17 New Ofﬁcers

“Many were called, but few were chosen,” said Executive General Manager Marvin L. Walton. “We are extremely proud of the 17 new officers that completed the CCPD's in-house Training Academy. These additions get up close to the 93 officers that are budgeted within the Department of Public Safety. Our goal is to maintain Co-op City as one of the safest places to live in the five boroughs. The primary reason for this is because of the arduous work of the men and women of CCPD, and for that we are grateful.”

The new ofﬁcers receiving certiﬁcates included Bryant Chavez, John Hernandez Huidobro, Edison Lopez, Danny Lugo, Ilian Marcano Estevez (Valedictorian), Gary Martinez, Jason Martinez, Philipson Mathieu, Princess Mcilwain, Isaiah Nieves, Johanel Perez, Cristian Polanco, Shamika Pope, Stephanie Santiago, Antoine White, Charles Williams, and Nigel Williams. (See page 19 for more pictures)

OPPORTUNITIES AT CO-OP CITY

For information on CONTRACT OPPORTUNITIES ONLY, please contact: Lenya Garcia at Lgarcia@riverbaycorp.com; and Anatoliy Budnitskiy at abudnitskiy@riverbaycorp.com. Please note: emails should be sent to both parties.

Please DO NOT email resumes for EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES to the aforementioned emails. For EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES, please see below for speciﬁc directions.

There are no contract opportunities to list this week. Please check back.

For employment opportunities, please visit these following sites:

www.Indeed.com https://indeedhi.re/ 3SgTKEr

www.Glassdoor.com https://bit.ly/3SgI9Go

www.ZipRecruiter.com https://bit.ly/3Se8bdw

Candidates may review full position descriptions and apply at any site. Current Riverbay employees should submit a transfer request and resumé directly to the HR department.

Thank you for your interest in working for Riverbay Corporation.

Seventeen new officers joined the ranks of the Co-op City Public Safety Department after completing a rigorous 18-week program at the CCPD Academy.

Director’s Viewpoint Mary Pearson, Assistant Secretary

Battling Ballots

What a relief to ﬁnd the Co-op City Times up and running again. Thank you! Thank you!

Last week’s issue was as packed as June in Co-op City. And the month of June itself is jam-packed with elections.

Here are some battling ballots highlights, starting with the Ranked Choice city elections and moving on to our own Riverbay Board elections, because they are both underway, right now.

Civil Elections: Early Voting for the 2025 Primaries starts today, Saturday, June 14, and runs through Sunday, June 22. We all early vote in the same location – Dreiser Auditorium. The hours vary – some days voting starts earlier or the poll stays open later – but the site is open for business at least from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on each of the nine earlyvoting days. For anything more speciﬁc about times and the candidates, you might want to Google ﬁnd my poll site nyc. Or just check your growing stack of election mail for details from the NYC Board of Elections and the NYC Campaign Finance Board.

The red, white, and blue (and black) NYCBOE mailer has poll site information and a virtual Fast Pass Tag you can scan directly into your smart phone’s “wallet.”

The blue on blue, black and white with yellow highlights, NYCCFB booklet is packed with candidate pictures and proﬁles.

And both explain the Ranked Choice process which applies to all city elections (except the race for Bronx Civil Court judge).

Once Early Voting ends, at the end of next weekend, the poll workers take Monday off. Then comes the General Election. Primary Election Day is Tuesday, June 24, 6 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Co-op City is counting on you to mail in your absentee ballot or to show up and vote for your choice – and maybe your 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th choices – for mayor and more. It’s hard getting people to vote in off-year, down-ballot elections.

Please make the effort.

Board Election: Co-op City is really counting on you to vote for your choice of Board Director candidates. To me, the most important thing cooperators need to know about our already ongoing Board elections is that the ballot envelope is GREEN and that it’s probably made its way to your mailbox by now.

This year is trickier than most, so carefully following the directions is quite important. For one thing, it sounds like the green ballot envelope will be extra-stuffed with pages of voting information, pictures and bios of the candidates, and the “absentee” ballot itself.

Additionally, the green ballot envelope will contain the required two envelopes that you need to properly return your ﬁlled-out ballot, either by mail or by putting it in a special Riverbay Election Ofﬁcial Ballot Drop Box installed in each of the community centers.

Electronic voting is still available but we cannot do it on our own anymore. The rules changed. Only in-person, supervised, electronic voting is allowed and only at certain hours on certain days and in just one community center location at a time during those four consecutive certain days.

Yes. It’s complicated. Anyhow, if you do choose the assisted in-person electronic method, make sure to bring sufﬁcient identiﬁcation to let them know you qualify as a one-person-per-apartment voter.

In-person, electronic voting kicks off at the open, televised, rescheduled Annual Shareholders Meeting in Dreiser on Wednesday, June 25, from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m.

Find help and in-person voting in Einstein on Thursday, June 26, 12-8 p.m. and then in Bartow on Friday, June 27, 12-8 p.m., and Saturday, June 28, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Finished? It doesn't matter whether you ﬁll out your Riverbay Board ballot as soon as the fat green envelope arrives and drop it in the mail or deposit

it in the special Drop Box of your choice, or if you wait to vote electronically between June 25 and June 28 at the speciﬁed community center. That’s not important. It only matters – and it only counts – if you vote by the early July deadline.

The official deadline is Tuesday, July 8, but please aim for sooner than later to ensure your ballot is postmarked and received on time.

The goal is to get the newbies or the oldies sworn in on July 23 and that will take a gargantuan effort. We need one ofﬁcial shareholder from a third of our occupied 15,000+ apartments to vote in order to reach quorum. Achieving that magic 5000+ number is a struggle every year but this year (because of the rule change and our other problems), it will be even harder. So, you have got to help.

Talk it up! Of course, you have to cast your own ballot, but you really must do more. Your assignment is simple: get involved.

The candidate selection is so rich this year. Read or reread their statements. Attend or stay home and watch the third and last candidates’ forum this Tuesday, June 17 (on channel 12 or cable channel 591). And here’s the really important part. Talk to your neighbors.

Start small. Did you get your green ballot envelope yet? For the board election? (Carry yours around with you for waving purposes.) Then maybe say… Have you seen those big blue drop boxes in the community center? (The more exaggerated the hand gestures, the better.) Then build to… Did you know you can just vote to make quorum? And then take it from there.

But please encourage every neighbor you encounter to VOTE in BOTH Elections.

Coming Attractions. More election talk, plus lots more on leaky convectors, the BxM7, Smart Curbs, pickleball progress, and who knows what else – next time.

Have a good week, everybody. MPearson@ RiverbayBoard.com/718-219-2211.

Mgmt. Report –––––– (Continued from page 4) were not paid due to ongoing negotiations between Riverbay and SHI International.

• Extermination was $85k over budget due mostly to exterminating supplies.

• Grounds Department was $127k over budget due to an increase in overtime and True Green services.

• Maintenance Department was $1.1 million over budget due primarily to increased plumbing supplies, doors and convector parts and the unbudgeted gas detector project costs.

• Power Plant was $2.4 million over budget due

mostly to unforeseen Ric Will (underground piping) and increased chemical treatment costs, generator, and pump repairs.

• Safety Department was $680K over budget due to increased environmental remediation costs and unbudgeted gas detector project costs.

Corporate Expenses:

Corporate operating expenditures are under budget by 1.0% or $1.4 million primarily due to less than anticipated Insurance costs.

Debt Service & Fees:

Debt service & fees were over budget by 0.0%

or $119K due to greater than expected replacement reserve fees and mortgage

required payments.

OVERALL PERFORMANCE

The overall performance for the Corporation for Fiscal Year 24/25 is as follows:

• Grand total actual expenses of $270,686,000, including departmental, corporate and debt service & fees were less than anticipated when compared to the grand total actual income of $285,736,000 These results yielded a surplus of $15,051,000 for the fiscal year.

RIVERBAY CORPORATION

FISCAL YEAR 24/25 YEAR-TO-DATE BUDGET COMPARISON

APRIL 1, 2024 THRU MARCH 31, 2025 AMOUNTS IN THOUSANDS

F24/25 ANNUAL BUDGET

Forum –––––– (Continued from page 1)

walk around in our community. Some of us come home late at night and we have children. The other thing is the garage, making sure that that’s lit up as well. Packages being stolen, that’s something that people are concerned about. I would look at the budget, go over it, see where our maintenance fees are going and make sure that it’s going to the right places and that we’re making sure it’s budget friendly. Not everything costs a lot of money, but maybe we need to pour more money into certain things like cameras and who’s watching those cameras and what we’re doing with that information and better advertisement as well. Advertisement to me is extremely important in how I would allocate funds, making sure that we have more people here to know what’s going on in the community because there’s so many wonderful events that Co-op City hosts.

Daryl Johnson: One of the big things that I’m always interested in is I don’t like our carrying charge increases here. Like I said, our budget was blown up from $286 million to $315 million. So, expect a tremendous increase after this cycle is over. We received $51 million, but after that money is exhausted, guarantee yourself you’re going to get a big increase. Now, you have to ask yourself, who voted for those increases? Board directors voted for those increases. Now, you have to ask yourself, if you still want those Board directors to be on this Board here. If you want Board directors with integrity, well then you’re going to think twice before you just vote, just because you received a flyer under your door. Now, I would like to see cameras in our building. Did you know that we had an arrest just yesterday? Two guys, they arrested two guys, they robbed somebody, allegedly, from Building 5C, they went to Building 4C. So, we need cameras in our garages and everything.

Keith Logan: I think a main priority with budgeting is focusing on getting more out of our elected officials. We have a lot of mandates that get put on us that are unfunded, and we’re not being helped with the money to take care of some of these mandates. Other than that, safety, as everyone has said, is a main priority. Strategically placing cameras in areas of high crime, in areas where there’s automobile incidents. We don’t want our vehicles getting broken into while we’re sleeping at night. And then another huge thing that we should focus on is our youth and getting a youth center here. That is my three things of what the priority should be with the budget .

Grace Solomon: One of the ways that I think that I would start looking at allocating funds would be first to take a look at our surplus and see how much money we really actually have in order to contribute to some of the things such as maintenance and repair, capital fund projects. Also, how we can actually access money, how can we get money back into our reserves. So, those are the ways that I would try to look at allocating funds, especially working with our general manager who has a two-year projection and that’s what I would do basically.

Darnell Lopez: Yes, now as far as prioritizing funds, we will look at the main thing we could do, sit

with all the executives from every head as far as what we have here in Co-op City, understand exactly what are the costs, understand if we can save costs there. Now we can go back to a surplus and we can allocate funds exactly where they need to be. A lot of people are saying safety is a main concern. But at the same time, we do have cameras, are we making the best use of what we have. So, we need to exactly see what we have, how we know where we can go. The main thing as far as what would be important and what would not be important, we pretty much would see how the quality of life would be. If it would increase quality of life, I would deem that important. If it doesn’t and it’s not with safety, then it wouldn’t be. That could be put on the back end. But we could definitely push forward with anything that can improve quality of life.

Leslie Peterson: Whenever I think about how I would allocate funds, first and foremost, what comes to mind is our obligation that we have in our bylaws to make sure that we uphold our fiduciary responsibility and keep the location affordable, safe, and secure. So that’s always on the forefront. And in doing that, I think what I would like to see budgeted that I think we kind of lack right now is additional skilled training for some of our employees. The unions usually have classes, but I think they’ve been lacking in offering those classes. Always being affordable and keeping the carrying charge down is the main goal. And along with that, looking at the maintenance and the delay that people are experiencing when they call for repairs to be taken care of.

Bishop Angelo Rosario: Yes, I’m always looking and trying to figure out what the departments need in order for them to do their job. So that’s looking into budgeting, but most of all, it’s how do we purchase and how can we buy better so that we can do a better job in Co-op City. Usually buying cheaper doesn’t make it the right decision, because sometimes we buy something inexpensive and they’re not going to last the same way as something that cost a couple of dollars more. But at the same time, then you got to look at what you need for Co-op City because Co-op City is different from every other buildings outside. We have 150 pound... you can’t buy certain tools or certain plungers or wastelines and things like that that are going to burst. We need to be able to buy smart.

Anika Green-Watson: So the allocation of funds from a Board director’s perspective is done primarily through budgeting. So, Co-op City, as you all know, is a monoline business, which means that we have one primary source of income, you all know what that is. And for any one of you who reads the CC Times or attends Board meetings, you’ll be aware that we just completed our biannual budget cycle in which the Board and Management worked together on the budget to develop a zero-based budget, which means the budgeting was not developed solely using historical figures, but in conjunction with each department to determine areas of opportunity and budget from the ground up. So, engagement in that step of the process is, in my estimation, 90% of how a Board director and how I specifically can ensure that we prioritize

the things that are important to the community. But I think, secondarily, I would like to see us maintain and sustain a long-term reserve fund based on professional forecasting to support the funded mandates.

Kevin Lambright: This is not a really hard thing. It seems like it to some people, and when you start talking about the big numbers and millions of dollars, just think how you manage your home. It’s that simple. It is that simple. But yet, hard at the same time when you’re talking about big numbers. I like what Bishop Rosario said, because for so long, I’ve been trying to get the Board to use our buying power. We should not be buying supplies from Home Depot and getting that 20% discount or buying anything retail here in Co-op City. We have buying power. We should be buying from the same place that they buy from so that we can get those real discounts. And so, what I would do is, I would hook up with Procurement, get the Board together, there are a few Board members who are really good in finance, and change our buying.

Q. How would you explain to the community that we cannot pay for an initiative that is popular, but not necessary?

Grace Solomon: Well, I would just basically take a Town Hall meeting, or maybe even one of our Board meetings, allow the cooperators, the shareholders, to come to this meeting and to hear why we can’t actually, what our priorities are, and why we’re gonna stick to our priorities. Even though this initiative is something popular, we have to take care of maintenance, repairs, and some of the other things that’s more important.

Darnell Lopez: Initially, I would explain to the community that we can’t pay and give them all the details why. But at the same time, we’re a community, so I’m sure that we can all come together and find another way to actually get it done without having to use budget funds. We have tons of people here who are very intelligent. We will find a way to bring resources together to get to that initiative without having to use budget funds. We couldn’t just sit here and just say, no we can’t do it just because we can’t pay. We would definitely find it another way, regardless if that would be through community outreach, through some type of way with our elected officials. But, you know, if we don’t try another way it wouldn’t get done and we can’t allow it to be just one way and that’s the only way we could be happy. We have to... the Board has 15 members, if we couldn’t pay for it, I’m sure with all of our experience here we could find a way to get those funds somehow.

Leslie Peterson: First and foremost, I want to preface this statement by saying that we are not an organization or a corporation that manufactures something whereby we can sell or raise the price on something so that we can generate the funds. So, my feeling is that, first and foremost, people are usually more receptive when you tell them the truth and you tell them why. And there are many instances, even though something might be a popular thing to do, it’s not cost effective to do it. And when we are trying to keep our carrying

(Continued on page 12)

Forum ––––– (Continued from page 11) charges low, we want to not have our carrying charges rise, we want to maintain our fiduciary responsibility, some things are just not feasible to do. We can always, yes, sometimes look and see about getting grants and different things like that, but the funds are not always there and available for us to get readily.

Anika Green-Watson: I think it goes back to my initial comment about the monoline nature of our business and our primary source of income. We all, as shareholders, have an obligation to be good stewards of our funds. And I think I could have mentioned a couple of times here, carrying charges are not super popular. But let’s face reality, this is a community that’s over 50 years old and year after year, there’s a surprise or another. We have aging infrastructure. So there is a prioritization and to my colleagues’ point, something that is popular but is not necessary does not necessarily rise to the level of a priority. I mentioned in last week’s edition, the election edition of the Coop City Times, that one of the benefits of cooperative living is the shared costs. And unfortunately, because it is a cooperative, sometimes those costs are not necessarily things that are higher on your list. But when there are over 15,000 units, there’s no way to be a monolith.

Bishop Angelo Rosaria: If it’s popular, then we should try to work with the community to find people that would help us to find the source that we could bring in the funds to be able to create that program. Because everything doesn’t have to come from dayto-day operation. We have 50,000 residents. I believe that, as I said, we have people here that have the knowledge to be able to reach out to other programs. We just finished putting a program together for almost a million and a half for the gymnasium and it came out of North Carolina, and the people came in and they put in the funds to be able to create a gymnasium with a football player. So, if we have these connections around, we could probably reach out to them that they’re looking to invest into our property. And we fill it in with that particular, because we can use day-today operation for our money.

Kevin Lambright: I think most of you know already, but I’m just going to say it. We are the largest cooperative complex in the world, okay. And there are over 40,000 people here. There will always be someone who says, “I want this,” “I want that,” and I want to use something real world, like lobby attendants. Big thing here, big thing here. Lobby attendants have to be paid for, and prior to Covid, it was costing us seven to ten million dollars a year. So, everything else has doubled and quadrupled. So, we would have to determine how badly we really want lobby attendants and garage attendants. We really do if we’re willing to pay for it or we have to find the money outside of us to get it.

Keith Logan: I would just make it plain and simple, just explain to them what the priorities are, why those are the priorities, and kind of move forward. I think everybody that lives here, they should understand what it is. I mean, everybody wants something in particular, and everybody is not going to win at what they want. So, if it’s a priority, then we would tell them that that’s the priority, and we’re moving forward with this, and we’ll figure out how to do that at a later time.

Shacara Cudjoe: This question reminds me of my child who wants things that are not necessary, and I have to then explain to her why there’s a budget for the home, and this may not be something that we can have right now. We live in an era of social media. You see things, you want things, but people sometimes don’t think of the maintenance to keep those things running. So, I believe, as a Board member, I would go in and say, this is the reasons why. Explain it to the people. We’re not children, we’re all adults, and we can understand and comprehend why something may not be able to fit into the budget moving forward. We don’t want to necessarily pull things back that we introduce to the community, right? So, I think just treating our community like adults and saying, this is something that we may want, and I know it’s very popular, but right now we can’t have it. Instead, we could do A, B, and C, and maybe you could give me some ideas of what you would like instead.

Daryl Johnson: Okay, I write very good view-

points every week, and I explain what’s going on here in those viewpoints. The biggest issue that we have here is with our budget. We need to reduce and get rid of the waste within our budget. We have 130 vehicles here. Our insurance policies... do you ever notice that our Board meetings occur at the very last moment when these insurance policies are due? Why? Because a lot of these insurance policies are just horrible. We paid some brokers over $375,000 to give insurance for us; horrible policies. The resolutions that we have are extremely bad. Who are voting for these resolutions? It’s Board members, okay. So, we need good Board members on this Board here. Directors that have good integrity, that are going to really care about you and the overall aspects of this community here. So that is what I want to do, get the fluff out of these budgets here.

Idalia Reyes: Transparency is very important. You cannot make promises... we cannot make empty promises, and I think that’s where people lose their confidence. It’s when you start saying, “Oh, we’ll look at that.” This is important, this is popular, let’s try to do it. This is a problem because then people don’t believe in what you’re saying. So, the best thing is to be honest with people, transparent and really tell them maybe you’ll look at it. Come to the Board meeting, bring a suggestion and maybe it could be looked at. But honestly, this is where people start losing the confidence, when you just start making empty promises.

Q. Can you give an example of a time you helped manage or oversee a budget and what did you learn from the experience?

Leslie Peterson: I’m going to go back to when I was a property manager. I managed the largest development for NYCHA in the Bronx, largest development in the Bronx. And so, often, we had to go over budgets. We had to sign off on contracts and what I learned was that a lot of times, things that you need to pay attention to are in the details. They say the expression is the devil is in the details. And so, oftentimes, it’s very important in doing that budget to pay attention to the scope of work in the contracts, that we have a particular budget and we have an amount that we have to... that we are bound by. But trying not to go over that budget, you have to pay attention to your scope of work and make sure that when you’re signing off on things, that people are not going over or doing things that they should not be doing.

Anika Green-Watson: There are several examples I can give, but I’ll try not to give Board-specific ones. I wanted to use the one about the election of last year, but I’m actually going to go with something a little bit closer to the vest. So, I mentioned earlier that I am a litigator, and obviously, you know, one of the major components that drives decision making and litigation is the cost. And so each specific matter that I litigate has a budget, right? And I have this phrase that I use that is like, “penny wise, but pound foolish.” Where there can be a specific scenario where you’re trying to save a penny, but you end up spending way more. And so I have this concept, and it would not be appropriate for this Board, but the question’s not asking that specifically. I have this concept about nuisance value, and there are just some costs to doing business. We are a housing company, and so we have to buy paint, that’s not something we’re going to get away from.

Bishop Angelo Rosario: One of the experiences that I have had with creating budgets for development is that sometimes you put a budget together, and by the time you come to do the job, everything has changed. Everything has gone up, so you have to be able to consider that you have to have extra, add extra to your budget so that you may be able to fight the changes that are going to come. I just bought a car, and they told me it was going to cost x amount of dollars; by the time I went to buy it, it had changed, it had gone up in price and I had to make changes. And these are the things that sometimes we learn from our mistakes of not having extra in our budget.

Kevin Lambright: My wife was a bookkeeper for 17 years, so that’s why she does all the budgeting in my household and she does it very well. Several years ago, I was the founder of a national nonprofit organization and vice president of that organization, and

they felt that since I’m so good with numbers that I would be great at budgeting and finance, and I recognized right away that it was bigger than me. So what I did was bring all of the people together who were capable and who were already getting paid to do that work and that’s the same thing I would do here in Riverbay because we pay a lot of people money, a lot of money, as consultants, financial and employees, so I would bring them together and let them do their job.

Keith Logan: Being an entrepreneur, I have to manage budgets constantly. I do walkthroughs and estimates with potential clients, and when I give them these estimates and they have agreed to go forward with the work, I have to manage the budget that I set forth with them, and I have to keep to that as far as ordering and paint, labor, making sure everything is accommodated in a timely manner, and keeping to the budget that I set forth, as well as vehicle repairs and everything else that comes along with the business. So, I think I’m pretty well versed in handling budgets.

Daryl Johnson: Okay, in my life, I’ve created hundreds of budgets, okay, for several different entities. So I’m very, very good with budgeting, accounting, finance, everything. I have voted against several budgets that we have here. The current budget that we have here I voted against it. I’ve published my viewpoints in the paper. Why? Because the budgets were very, very bad. This current budget that we have is just bad. When you read the newspapers and things you think it’s good, because we’ve received $51 million... from New York State. But when you look at the issues that I’ve pointed out with this budget here, the fluff in it, the waste in here, okay, that is what this community needs. Do you want to continue to get excessive carrying charge increases? You need to vote for directors... that will not agree to the nonsense that’s going on here with these budgets, and all the other business practices that we have that are just horrible and just bring this community down. That’s my point of view.

Shacara Cudjoe: I run a lot of groups, and in those groups, and I’m also a lead in those groups, you have to manage a budget, and then you also have to allocate for things that you miss. So, one thing that I think is that cheap isn’t always better, right? And then you could also use the resources that you currently have. You don’t always have to buy something new. So, when it comes to this, my advice, or what I’ve learned along the way, is that you can also tap into people that are more knowledgeable, right? So, you may not know it all, but there’s a lot of people on your team that have the knowledge, and therefore you pull those people in and you work together, and then you can come up with an idea that I think may be more advantageous for everybody in the community and in that group.

Idalia Reyes: Given my background in corporate finance, we deal with people all the time, where they have a lot of money, but they also think that that money is going to last forever and they spend it. So, we kind of set up a plan for them in order for them to not outlive their money. And it’s very important because they pay us to guide them and budget them in order for them to be able to live a long-lasting life, if they end up in a nursing home or the private sector with private care. So, we’re in charge of their money, and that’s how we budget their applications on funding or whatever they decide to do for their grandchildren, for schools and stuff like that. So that’s my everyday life for the last like 30 years, is budgeting people and making sure that they don’t outlive their money.

Darnell Lopez: When it comes to managing a large budget, I also have a finance background. I’m an entrepreneur, I have a business as well. But the main thing is being conservative, watching where every dollar is going, making sure there are controls, that money is not just flowing outside of the budget. That’s the main thing here. That’s what I want. Because I’ve never met anyone who wasn’t conservative and they weren’t rich. It’s just that simple. I think what we need to do here and the Board members need to do is be more conservative with the money and have a clean eye on it and understand where money is going and why. If we see an opportunity where maybe the quality of what we’re doing is not great and we may need to

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Forum –––––– (Continued from page 12) spend some more money for longevity, that is something that needs to be looked at. But at the same time, we have to be on top of where every nickel in time is going and question if it doesn’t look sufficient.

Grace Solomon: One of the ways that I have managed a budget is as a building principal; the minute you walk into the door and accept that position, they give you the budget. And all throughout that year, you’re doing quality reviews, you’re doing hiring, buying, but you’re specifically making sure that you’re balancing the budget and you’re staying on top of every cent that is given to you. One of the things I’ve learned throughout balancing a budget is that you have to be able to balance the budget and not fall under the red, not fall or owing people. So that’s one of the main things that I learned is that you have to stay on top of it, you have to stay on top of that budget, and you have to make sure that at the end of the day, it’s balanced.

Q. What’s your approach to making critical decisions when there’s no clear consensus?

Daryl Johnson: You have to work with people in a positive manner. First of all, you have to have very, very good business skills. If you don’t have business skills, then you’re going to have problems on this board here. You need to elect directors that are very, very astute at how to do their job in a very professional way... Directors that are going to work for the best interests of this community here, people that have very good experience working with every type of problem that you can possibly imagine. You have to have a very good knowledge of budgets. You have to have a very good knowledge about how to talk to people, how to work productively. And that is what I bring to this table here. When you read my viewpoints, you see the way I think. You see the way I work with people. You see the way I handle problems. You see the good advice that I give to Management and this Board here. When we have Board meetings, you see the comments that I make, they are very, very educational.

Shacara Cudjoe: I would say prioritizing. You have to prioritize what you want to do when making critical decisions. And also creating goals. You have to create a goal to know, to bring everybody in so they’re all on the same page. If there is something that has to be done and everybody’s moving in different ways, you may not be all moving to the same exact goal. So I think it’s very important whenever you’re making a critical decision, everybody’s on the same page, we have the same mission, and therefore we’re working together. I don’t have to sit next to you to work. I know you’re working on the same goal. That’s my approach for critical decision making.

Idalia Reyes: I say don’t react or don’t make judgements just on impact... So, questions needs to be asked, research needs to take place and discussion needs to take place. We have to work together because if we’re all on different pages, it’s just not gonna come together. And if it’s in the interest of the shareholders, we really need to take the consideration of what they’re doing and what they want into consideration.

Keith Logan: I would say first you have to gather up all the information. So without all the information, you can’t make an educated decision. Then you would have to assess the collateral damage of making the wrong decision and what that would cost the community. Then you have to find the person on the Board that has an area of expertise in that particular area, and then you have to let that person lead, and then you will make a decision based on that.

Grace Solomon: Yes, one of the ways that I would work to make a decision, especially if there isn’t a consensus, would be basically to look at the history, look at what life or experience has taught us, take a look at surveys, take a look at stats, gather the experts together, listen to the voices, and do our research. Also, paying attention to what’s fair, what’s equal. But the bottom line for me would be making sure that I was able to make a conscious decision. Sometimes those decisions are gonna be hard, sometimes those decisions are gonna be unpopular, but the bottom line is you’re making a decision for everyone, and you’re trying to move us forward. This decision should be a conscientious decision that involves all parties that get us together as best we can, but we’re looking for equality, we’re looking for fairness, and we’re think-

ing how we’re gonna problem solve, and then you make that decision.

Darnell Lopez: My approach to making a critical decision with no consensus, it would have to be through collaboration. We would need to speak to each other and understand exactly what needs to be done. We need to work with trusted individuals who know about what the situation can be. Understand... what would work well and what would not. And then we’d vote on it. And then we can go from that direction on critical decisions. It couldn’t be anything rash. We would need to see what the community thinks, what the Board thinks, what our executives at Riverbay think. So that would be my approach.

Anika Green-Watson: So, a consensus is not a requirement for Board decisioning and specifically is not typically required for critical decisioning. But in the vein of answering the question, I will say that we are a 15-member body for a reason. That’s an odd number, right? We all have different backgrounds. We all have different interpretations. Even when you have one data set in front of a group of people, two people can look at the same data and come up with different interpretations. But what I think the question may have been trying to get at is how do you buy-in. How do you get the buy-in from your peers. And I think at the core of that would be data sharing, providing information, engaging the proper subject matter expert/skillset, and that’s something we see with the Insurance Committee, for example. And then when all else fails, professionalism, right? Because at the end of the day, we’re a 15-person board, we have to respect each other, and we have to respect the decision of the body.

Leslie Peterson: In making a decision, there are a lot of things that were mentioned here. One of the things was fact-finding, weighing the pros, weighing the cons... I’m the type of person, I like to look at the worst-case scenario, to make sure that in making any type of decision, I’ve looked at what is the worst that could happen. Because we know what outcome we want, and so that would be the best... We do have a 15-member board, and we do need to discuss and share information, and some of us do come with qualifications, and expertise in certain areas, and listening to those, and taking those as a guide, which I do often, especially in insurance, because we have people in that category, helps make a decision in a critical manner.

Kevin Lambright: Yes, we do have a 15-member board, but also, when we make critical decisions, we have at least 24 to 48 hours before it’s time for us to make that decision. We get it ahead of time. So, we have time to do research if it’s something we know nothing about, if it’s something that we’re confused about, and sometimes, you can come to, you can get to the Board and you’re still not sure. So, you’re gonna listen to your colleagues and the way I do it is whoever is making the best argument for the community is what I go for. I will never, I never have and I never will abstain to ride the fence because the community voted for us to make these crucial decisions, not for us to ride the fence.

Bishop Angelo Rosario: I’m so impressed with everyone’s answer that they gave due to the fact that we need to be able to have respect one for another. Especially when someone has certain knowledge in a certain area that we could allow them to lead and that we will be able to follow... There will be times for us all to lead one time or another. When we sit down and have the conversation and we figure out who has the best understanding of that particular problem that we have... then we follow them, we research it, and we vote on it, so that we can become one team working together, not for our own purpose, but for the community.

Q. Please describe your leadership style in three words. (15-second lightning round question)

Daryl Johnson: Integrity, honesty, transparency. Those are my leadership styles, okay? I like to be transparent with this community here. You can go to the Co-op City Times and read my viewpoints every single week, and you’ll see some powerful issues that I’ve discussed.

Shacara Cudjoe: I will say, giving clear goals, giving grace and communication. I think all of those

are imperative to...

Idalia Reyes: Efficient, passionate, and trustworthy.

Keith Logan: Honest, integrity, out of the box.

Grace Solomon: My leadership style would be transparency, honesty, and integrity. It’s all about being honest and open.

Darnell Lopez: Transparency, integrity, last but not least, fiduciary.

Anika Green-Watson: The most unfortunate acronym. Fairness, accuracy, and transparent (FAT).

Leslie Peterson: My leadership style would be collaboration, democracy, and transparency.

Kevin Lambright: Integrity, passion, and honesty.

Bishop Angelo Rosario: Listening, listening, and respecting.

Q. How do you prepare for Board meetings and ensure you’re contributing meaningfully?

Darnell Lopez: Well, this would be my first time on the board, but what I can say is as far as being prepared for anything else, I would get to know my Board members, understand what my role would be, do research on that role and other roles, try to find things that my Board members don’t see that I can be more or less of a positive and a plus, not more like a negative or a takeaway. Where maybe we could come up with new, innovative ways to do different things that we’ve already done already. Preparing for that, I would take notes, look at the history of the Board, look at the history of Co-op City, and see how I can help with everyone and not be the leader of that.

Grace Solomon: One of the ways that I would prepare, if elected to the Board, would be by reading the bylaws and understanding the rules and regulations. In addition, I would be doing some research and making sure that I’m prepared to answer questions and prepared to give the best advice as an expert in my field. Depending on the committee, I would work with team members and those with experience in order to provide the best information that would help us to make the best resolutions and... come up with the best solutions to solve everyday problems. So those would be some of the ways that I would try to be a meaningful board member by doing my research and being prepared and showing up for every meeting.

Bishop Angelo Rosario: I think that I will try to study the subject first so I can find... and I can understand it so that I may be able to have something to share in the decision making that we are all going to be able to make. So, if we do not study the subject we cannot make a clear decision on the subject. So what we wind up doing is arguing, fighting back and forth to prove our point without us studying it... so that we may be able to be knowledgeable enough to make a decision that is going to help the whole group that’s making the decision because one person doesn’t make it.

Anika Green-Watson: I’m a student at heart and I take a very academic approach, I think, to preparing for Board meetings, but I will start with what happens before we can get to the meeting itself, the briefings. So typically for the past couple of years or so before a Board meeting, we’ll have a briefing the week before and we’ll get some documents to review that we’ll discuss at the briefings. And so I always review the documentation in advance. I do cross-referencing, you probably have all seen me in at least one or two board meetings saying oh but resolution XYZ had this other thing in it. And I do cross-referencing because a lot of the work we do is built on an already existing framework, there’s not a lot of new body of work typically coming out. And then I review the resolution language, typically jot down any questions that I need answered in advanced to feel prepared. So that’s a week before we even get to the Board meeting. But I just like to be prepared for voting and make sure I understand everything I’m voting on.

Kevin Lambright: As I said earlier, as a Board member, you get all the materials ahead of time. So one of the things that I always have done is look at the agenda and I pick at least two things off the agenda that I really want to study and work with. So sometimes there are things that are not on the agenda that should be on the agenda, and I prepare to add them to

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the agenda. So, these are things that I do before and to get myself ready for a meeting before a Board meeting.

Leslie Peterson: Yes, what happens is that we do get resolutions ahead of time and we do have briefings and I’m a reader, so I read. I try to acquaint myself with whatever the resolution is dealing with. I do research and I ask questions because often the resolutions that we get, especially if it’s of a technical nature, are coming from some of our departments that are already here and we have department heads. So, I try to ask questions to find out and to learn and to know and be knowledgeable a little bit more so of what the actual resolution that we have entails. So that when I do go to the Board meetings, I am able to listen, then to, often what other questions come about, maybe something that I overlooked or that I didn’t think of, so that altogether my preparation and preparation from others and asking questions and their expertise help me to make a decision.

Daryl Johnson: I review all of our resolutions before our board meetings. And most of the time I’ll say, and I have to say this honestly, a lot of our resolutions simply do not make good business sense. Therefore, this is why this community is getting hit with annual increases. It’s just unbelievable. So, I point out to the Board and to Management what the issues are with these resolutions here. I give good business advice to them, constructive business advice, not to criticize, but to help everyone to see how resolutions should be written from a good business standpoint. I want this community to see exactly what’s in these resolutions before I write good viewpoints to help this community to see, well this is not Daryl Johnson just arguing with the Board members today, this is Daryl Johnson trying to teach these Board members and Management exactly how our resolution should be written for the best interest of this community here. This is what this community needs.

Shacara Cudjoe: I would prepare for any Board meetings the same way I run my department. I work in IT and there is endless amounts of meetings that I have to conduct or participate in. And one thing is organization, sending out agendas ahead of time, knowing the content, ... in whatever we’re going to go over. Being knowledgeable. I am an avid believer in research. So I do a lot of research, especially on things that I’m unfamiliar with. So I don’t have to always know everything because nobody knows everything. But if I go in there with an open mind, knowing that I’m going to go in talking to people that are experts or myself and not just leave it to whatever they decide. Going in there with... an open mind and working with people to come to a conclusion.

Keith Logan: I would review the materials that were given beforehand. Do as much research I can as possible, trying to understand the material that’s given and be prepared to make the best decision possible. Going with the open mind and keeping the community first. Not being prepared to make a decision with an ulterior motive or somebody else’s decision or something that will benefit myself or someone else but think about the 15,372 units that are here and make the best decision possible for them.

Idalia Reyes: Being on the board, I would definitely prepare myself by reading the material before I go into a meeting. Going with an open mind, a lot of questions, but I’m also first and foremost ready to listen, learn, and really take everything in. Because I am the team player that’s gonna really come together to make things really make sense and whatever knowledge I could bring to the table, I will bring it and I will help to make decisions.

Q. Can you describe a time when you had to resolve a disagreement within the Board or with Management?

Anika Green-Watson: So that question does not sound appropriate for half of the people sitting on this panel, but I can answer it. I will say that with a 15-person board, disagreements abound, and it is not necessarily the duty of one person or another to resolve them. But I think when disagreements arise, the thing that I try to carry with me is this––we are professionals, right? And so disagreements do not need to be personal. You don’t need to have ad hominem attacks. They’re not attacks on personality. I just try to elevate the space in any disagreement that I’m a party to or you know privy

to. I think just being a professional, keeping the goals of the corporation in mind when there’s a disagreement is half the battle, but there’s absolutely no duty for directors to resolve disagreements in the boardroom.

Bishop Angelo Rosario: ... To be able to be respectful to each other is very important. Because once we lose respect to each other, it’s like losing respect in your own home. You will never be able to resolve a problem. So, we should be able to know when to talk and know when to be quiet. At moments, there are times in an argument that it’s better to be quiet and leave it alone and come back and resolve it later on. I would always try to find a way how to talk about it later on...

Leslie Peterson: I agree with my colleague here that, you know, to answer that question is a little difficult because I can think of several things and arguments that do happen in the boardroom and you try to keep a professional stance, but there are times when things do get... we’re all passionate about what we believe, and so sometimes your passions overflow, I’ll say it that way. And so, yes, I have had occasions to have to bring the temperature down. That’s basically what I try to do, is to bring the temperature down. And sometimes it’s passion and the request that somebody’s making is something that’s a simple fix, “okay, we’ll do this,” “okay, we’ll do that,” and let’s move on. So, you just try to, when things happen like that, you just try to get some decorum back and just get everybody to just dial it down a bit.

Kevin Lambright: Well, I can answer for the Board... what happens on the Board because there’s gonna be times when you might have an, you may have an individual who feels that they know more than the attorney, they know more than the accountants, they know more than everybody who comes in the room. They’re the expert at everything. And it’s real easy to get upset because I realize, as I’m getting older, my tolerance for that type of stuff is really short. So, what I do is I sit back, and this is what I’ve done, I’ve sat back because we are a 15-member Board. That’s just one individual. And I sit back because a vote is coming around. And the rest of the Board is going to make that decision. That’s just one individual. So, what I do is I sit back, instead of arguing it, I’ll sit back and wait for the vote to come and watch what happens. And usually it happens the way it’s supposed to happen.

Shacara C. Cudjoe: I would say I would come in... I think of my siblings, right? Fighting happens, disagreements happen. So, with the experience of having siblings, I would say that you have to come and listen, willing to listen and understand where that person is coming from, because sometimes people just need to be heard. That’s my personality as well, to listen and hear where they’re coming from. And then also, nobody’s perfect. And I kind of said it previously, but if there is a goal, then does that align with the goals that we have set already? I have patience, I have understanding, and I’m willing to reason with people if they have a disagreement with something. But I don’t think it’s our job to control people. But I think that we have a duty to listen to one another and be respectful.

Keith Logan: I wouldn’t take what another Board member would say personally. I would try to the best of my ability to work with all other 14 board members, if I were elected, and do the best I can for the community. I feel like some people might get a little possessive, but the goal is to do the best that we can do for the community. So, when we keep that in mind, I know passions might flare up with 15 people and different opinions, but the goal is to keep respect and to work for the betterment of this community and not make it about ourselves.

Daryl Johnson: This is something I do every single week. I write viewpoints every single week. I talk about when we have resolutions, when we have briefing sessions, and everything. Let’s point out a few things. We have 130 vehicles here. None of these vehicles can leave this community here. Why? Why do we have 130 vehicles? That’s just total waste that we have here. Look at our budget. Our budget, as I’ve mentioned before, increased by $29 million, okay? I talked to Management and this Board; pointed out, hey, these are the issues with these budgets here. HCR, their budget, they created one of the worst budgets for the community,

where they gave us an 8.1% increase about a year ago, and we had a discussion with them, and I pointed out several issues that were rough with their budget. So, it’s working with people, educating people, and trying to help this community to see a better way of conducting business here. That’s what I’m about. And trying to make things better for everybody. That’s my goal for this community.

Idalia Reyes: First time being on the board, there’ll be 15 people, and there’s a lot of opinions. I’ve been in a boardroom at work, and I know that things can go different ways, sideways, but you all have to be respectful of each other and also keep an open mind and take in different people’s opinion and then come together with a resolution. Fighting and disrespecting each other is just not, it’s not normal to do that. We all gotta come together for the sake of the community. And they depend on us because we are their representatives.

Grace Solomon: One of the conflicts or disputes that I had with Management happened to be when there was parking on the greenway. And back in those days, I used to drive a luxury car, now I’m driving a little Ford Escort. But back then, I was noticing that my car was being abused. And this was a dispute, this was a conflict. So, I started complaining or bringing my complaints to our building association, then I advanced up to our CSO officer, finally advancing up to our Board of Directors. In the end I did find a resolution, but it was following a chain of command in order to get that resolution.

Darnell Lopez: Now with regards to resolving disagreements, first and foremost, we have to be respectful. Secondly, we need to have an open mind. And thirdly, you need to be able to listen to understand and not respond. Clearly something a lot of people miss. But at the same time, you can always use a whiteboard. You can write down your pros, you can write down your cons and collectively come together to make a solution.

Q. How would you make the community resilient and future ready?

Shacara C. Cudjoe: I think it’s important that we continue to do community outreach. We have a lot of young people who are entrepreneurs, who are techs, who are into a lot of things, and I don’t think we have enough clubs for them here in Co-op City. So, I think that including them in the community and giving them that foundation to say, you know what, build your business here. Why not pour it into our own community and pour it into our own children? There’s also moms, dads, parents, singles. Let’s give them mommy groups, let’s give them man clubs, let’s increase the clubs so that more people are excited to come home to this community. I think that’s important. Communicating, there’s many ways in which we could communicate with our people. Yes, there is the newspaper, there is, but there is a lot of new ways in which we could communicate with our Co-op City cooperators.

Keith Logan: I think we need to focus on our youth. I think that to have a thriving community, you would know by what the condition of the youth is. I don’t feel like we have enough programs for our youth. I think we need to focus on that. I think we definitely need like a YMCA or a community center here to help cultivate our youth. I feel like the future of this community is all wrapped into our youth. So that should be one of the primary focuses.

Daryl Johnson: Okay, the biggest issue that we’re gonna be faced with in the upcoming years, should be about three to four years, is that new train station is going to come in here. When that train station comes in here, the Section Five section is going to change like you’ve never seen before, okay? You’re gonna have folks that will want to buy up this community here. And so therefore we have to maintain our community. Affordable, this place has to stay affordable. We have to reduce the waste within our budget. We have to keep our carrying charges low so that people will be able to afford to stay here. You have to understand, people are gonna be looking to buy this Section Five out first and the rest of the community up. Everybody, you know, we have to get on the same wagon as far as it’s concerned. Also, we need to set up programs, like a daycare program. These rooms that we are sitting in right

(Continued on page 32)

Building 27 Association

Hello, neighbors, summer is here and the trees are blooming everywhere. Please wear your mask, if needed.

Building 27 Association – As of June, the association will be on hiatus until September. Keep reading the Co-op City Times for updates on many activities, trips, etc. The board names and contact info are listed on each bulletin board in all three buildings, if you need to reach someone.

Happy Father’s Day to all the fathers everywhere. We wish all fathers the best and hope that you enjoy the day.

Pokeno Night – June 20th. Come and join us at 6 p.m. and bring the fun with you. There will be light refreshments. See you there in the Building 27C Association Room located in the rear.

Voting/Riverbay Board Election – In-person voting begins at the Dreiser Auditorium, on June 25, from 6-10 p.m. In-person voting will continue from June 26–June 28, the hours are different per day. We trust all will gladly vote, as this is our duty as a shareholder. Every shareholder must understand that the Riverbay Board of Directors has a mandate to oversee and manage the affairs of Co-op City. Therefore, we, as shareholders, have an obligation to vote each year in the effort to maintain our corporation. I am sure we all can agree and put aside our differences. By voting, we can ensure each Director is held accountable.

Early Voting in NY June Primary Election – Voting begins June 14, at the Dreiser Auditorium. This will be a Ranked Choice/vote election, please take your time and only vote once on each line for the political names listed. Bring your voting badge/tab with the bar code; it makes it easy and faster to retrieve your voting info.

Section 5 Family Fun Day – June 28, 12-4 p.m., on the Section 5 Greenway. Information/vendors, please contact 718-684-5509.

Natural Gas Detector – If you missed your appointment, please call the phone number provided and make arrangements to take care of this.

Laundry Room – When you clean the lint from the dryer screen, please empty the lint and the dryer sheets in the garbage containers and not on our clean floors. We are blessed to have a laundry room so let’s be clean and appreciate it.

Happy birthday to all celebrating this month. To those in bereavement, you have our sympathy. We wish all the best of health and safety. Contact Lydia Rondon at 718-583-3040 and she will gladly acknowledge your birthday by sending you a card; she is excellent in sharing goodwill. Also notify her of any illness or if a neighbor has passed away or transferred to a nursing home.

“Not everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it is faced.” –James Baldwin

––H. Overman

Building 26 Association

Hello, Building 26 neighbors!

It’s been a little while since our last update, and we hope this message finds you well and enjoying the early days of summer.

On Saturday, May 31, we celebrated the season finale of our Yummy and Healthy food demonstration series. It was a vibrant event filled with fresh produce, access to free health screenings, and great energy from everyone who attended. We were honored to have Shekera Algarin join us for a brief cameo. Not only did she engage with residents, but she also assisted in our cooking demo, helping prepare fresh, homemade mayonnaise.

While our food demonstrations are now on break for the summer, produce distributions will continue. Please take note of the upcoming dates: Friday, June 14 – In the Association Room, 12 p.m.-1:30 p.m. Friday, June 28 – 12 p.m. on the Greenway during the Section 5 Fun Day

As always, please arrive on time and bring a reusable bag or shopping cart to carry your produce.

Celebrating Our Achievements

As the school year winds down, we’d love to take a moment to celebrate you. If you or your child is graduating, received an award, or reached a milestone, we want to hear about it! Please email us at CoopcityTA26@gmail. com, with the details so we can recognize these achievements in next week’s newsletter. Every accomplishment, big or small, reflects the strength and pride of our community. Let’s lift each other up and celebrate together.

Building 26 Board Elections: Elections for the Building 26 Board are currently underway! We will be present in the lobby over the next few days for residents to cast their votes. Your voice matters—please take a moment to participate.

The candidates running for office are:

• President – Tanya Cruz-Cooke

• Vice President – Jasmine Taby-Jones

• Treasurer – Alice Jackson

• Secretary – Open position

If you or someone you know is interested in running for the Secretary role, please reach out to us.

Honoring Our Fathers: With Father’s Day around the corner, we want to take a moment to honor all the amazing dads, grandfathers, uncles, and father figures in our community.

Your love, strength, and guidance shape the lives of those around you. We

Building 13 Association

Building 13 would like to congratulate our new CCPD graduates on joining the Co-op City family. The ceremony was attended by their family and friends. We wish them well and pray always for their safety.

Section 2 Summer Fun Day will be next week, Saturday, June 21, (rain date: June 22). All are welcome to join us. Please see the flyer located in your bulletin board so you can book your table for this fun-filled day. There will be free shirts given to the first 50 youths. The American Legion Post 1871 will open the ceremony with the honor guard presentation. Enjoy the music by DJ Sid, free cotton candy and hot dogs (while supplies last). We will have carnival games and, of course, Name That Tune and our Salsa Contest. Additionally, our one-man band will be there, Juan Ortega; our City South Steel Band, and Hidden Gems Archery, among other fun events.

By the way: Get your boots on the ground, ours will be! We have our fans! Practice makes perfect!

Funding for SFD was made possible by Councilman Kevin Riley, NYC Department of Youth & Community Development, Assemblyman Michael Benedetto, Congressman George Latimer, Attorney Stephen B. Kaufman PC, Co-op City Tire Co., Bob Cares Charitable Organization, McCall’s Bronxwood Funeral Home, Riverbay Corporation, CCPD, NYPD and FDNY.

Congratulations to the 2025 Graduates. All graduates are welcome to come to the party and celebrate you! With music and light refreshments in the association room. It is being scheduled for Friday, June 27, from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. RSVP by June 23. Call Annice at 917-488-4179.

Building 13 – Summer Sunset Cruise, in collaboration with the NAACP, is being held on Friday, September 12. The yacht is boarding at 6:30 p.m. A charter bus is arranged for transportation to the marina. Please see the flyer in the bulletin board and numbers listed for additional information. Get your seat on the bus ASAP.

Reminders: Do not leave bags with raw food on the floor in the compactor room. Look at the sign located in the compactor room and place the proper items in the recycling bags.

When in public spaces (that includes the lobby and elevators) dogs should be wearing their leash. Additionally refrain from having your pet relieve themselves under the buildings. Take them to the curb and pick up the poop.

“A united people, striving to achieve a common good for all members of the society, will always emerge victorious.” ––Samuel Nujoma, former President of Namibia.

Visit our Facebook page at: Building 13 Association Inc.–Co-op City E-mail us at building13assoc@yahoo.com. Contact: Wendell Mattison, V.P., at 917-330-1380. Thank you for supporting our team.

––Wendell Mattison

Rivers Run Community Garden

The visits from the schools have been everything and pure joy!! It is a joy watching these children use the garden as their open-air classroom and playground. Thank you for filling the space with laughter.

This weekend we will have a Father’s Day Paint and Chat. On Sunday, please bring your favorite person, and let’s have fun. Starting at 3 p.m.

Please tell your friends and family about this amazing place where we not only grow fruits and vegetables, but we grow knowledge and friendships.

Rivers Run Community Garden, located on Co-op City Blvd., next to the baseball field, is a movement towards improved mental and physical health. We provide all types of workshops, including nutrition, meditation, edible and medicinal wilds identification, planting, construction, and crafting. We are the outdoor classroom for the local schools, daycares, residents, and neighbors. We are a place of beauty and peace. Visit. Stay. Experience us.

Event Dates at the Garden (Weather permitting. All are welcome)

June 15 – Father’s Day Paint and Chat, 3 p.m.

Membership Requirements: $20 per year fee and a minimum of 20 volunteer hours. There is a waiting list for beds. Members who are actively fulfilling volunteer time are moved up on the waiting list. Volunteers are welcome.

Email: Rivers_run@yahoo.com

Physical Address: Co-op City Blvd. (Between Bellamy Loop and Peartree Ave)

Mailing address: 100 Casals Pl #32K, Bronx, NY 10475

Phone: 917-232-2982 or 718-671-3801.

Warm regards, Gail Sharbaan

celebrate you this weekend—and every day.

Thank you for continuing to show up, support each other, and invest in the wellbeing of our building. Together, we are building more than a residence— we are building a family.

––Tanya

Cruz-Cooke

Building 10 Association

Greetings, fellow cooperators.

New Cooperators – Welcome, all new cooperators. We look forward to seeing you at the next general membership meeting.

Lift Community Pantry

– The Building 10 Association would like to thank the Lift Community Pantry for coming to Building 10 to distribute fresh produce, non-perishables, frozen meats and frozen fish. A special thank you to Wendy Silverman for facilitating this event. We would also like to thank everyone who helped distribute the items.

General Membership Meeting – The Building 10 Association would like to thank Ms. Lois English, Property Manager, CSO, for coming to our meeting and sharing information and answering our questions.

Building 10 Association Dues – The collection of building association dues for 2025 has begun. Building association dues are $10 per apartment. Please note, the money collected is used for association-related expenses, i.e. flyers, meeting and party supplies, holiday lobby decorations and refreshments, etc.

in-person voting will begin. “Your ballot, your voice. Let your voice be heard.” Let’s do this, Building 10!!!

Section 2 Summer Fun Day – Save the date: Section 2 Summer Fun Day will be held on Saturday, June 21. Rain date: Sunday, June 22. Please see the flyer in the lobby.

Tip of the Week: Riverbay Board of Directors Annual Election – The annual election cycle for the Riverbay Board of Directors is beginning. Be on the look out for your ballot in the mail. Be sure to check out the Co-op City Times for more information as to when

If You See Something, Say Something – For emergencies, call Co-op City Public Safety at 718671-3050 and NYPD at 911. For non-emergencies, call 311. You can also contact CCPD at their anonymous tips hotline: 718-8796311.

Suicide Prevention – If you or someone you know is contemplating suicide or in emotional distress, the number to call for help is 988. You can call or text. Someone is available 24 hours a day.

Questions, Comments and Suggestions – You can contact the Building 10 Association via email at Building10Assoc@ gmail.com or drop a note in the suggestion box in the laundry. We are also on Facebook, “Building 10 ABC Association.” Like our page and get notified of all the happenings in and around Building 10.

We would like to wish all who are born this month an incredibly happy birthday.

Celebrating an anniversary this month? Happy anniversary!!!

To the homebound and sick, we wish you a speedy recovery.

To all who have lost a loved one recently, we offer our deepest condolences.

“The most common way people give up their power is by thinking they don’t have any.” –Alice Walker

Have a great week.

––Jewel Crawford-Duncan

Congratulations on your Graduation, Paige!

Congratulations to our granddaughter, Paige Adele Davisberg, who graduated May 17, 2025, from SUNY New Paltz.

Paige received her Bachelor of Arts degree in Biology and graduated cum laude. We are so proud of you!

–Grandma & Grandpa, Mom & Dad, sister Hailey and brother Bryce.

Share Your Comments & Suggestions with Riverbay

Shareholders are encouraged to submit input on how to improve services and service delivery as well as other ideas that impact quality of life. Visit the Home page of the official Co-op City website, coopcity.com, scroll down to the bottom and click on the “Comments & Suggestions” link.

Engage with Riverbay. Share your comments, compliments and ideas.

Section 5 Association

Make sure to dress properly as we are having very cold and windy days. Enjoy the beautiful pink and white flowers blooming all around because they do not last long.

Section 5 Association – Will be on hiatus from June to September 2025. Enjoy the summer and stay safe.

Happy Father’s Day – To all fathers everywhere, may you get all you want for Fathers Day.

Riverbay Board of Directors – Election in-person voting begins June 25 thru July 8, read the Co-op Times for updates. We encourage all shareholders to vote; this is our responsibility as a shareholder. The vote guarantees the Director position on the Board or no position.

Gas Detectors – We received robocalls notifying the shareholders to expect Riverbay workers to install the new natural gas detectors. Make sure this is taken care of as it is a mandate now.

Interruption of Tech Service – The Co-op City garage gates issue has not been resolved yet.

Spam Interruptions – If you receive constant calls, report it to your provider. It is also best to not answer, nor leave your answering machine on.

SCRIE/DRIE – If you know someone who needs help with SCRIE (Senior Citizen Rent Increase Exemption), DRIE (Disability Rent Increase Exemption), or other assistance, they can call JASA Bartow at 718-320-2066 during business hours, Monday-Friday, 9-5 p.m. No walk-ins are allowed at JASA nor Bartow Centers.

Happy Birthday to those celebrating this month. If you have knowledge of a sick or hospitalized neighbor, please contact Section5association10@gmail. com. To those in bereavement, you have our deepest sympathy.

“Not everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing can be change until it is faced.” –James Baldwin ––H. Overman

National Council of Negro Women

NCNW Co-op City Section – On Sunday, June 8, we held our last hybrid membership meeting until September. Various committees reported on activities that would continue during the summer months. The Membership Committee reminded us that we must all complete the membership application on our website. It is important to have current membership information in our records. Members who want to purchase NCNW logo t-shirts or scarves are encouraged to do so because it will probably be during the late summer when we gather to take the group picture of our Co-op City Section membership. We received the very happy news that our Beautification/Hospitality co-chair, Candacie Daniels, gave birth to a baby girl! Mother and daughter are just fine! Our Section will continue to celebrate outstanding graduates in our community schools. We present Certificates of Achievement to graduating students who have made outstanding contributions in academics and/ or other achievements. This is as thrilling an opportunity for our NCNW members who make the presentation as it is for the students who receive it.

NCNW Youth Group – Our youth group of young women, ages 9-18 years old, who meet regularly on the second Saturday each month (except July and August) are being treated to a trip to the local movies by our member Janice Hemby for their last meeting for this season. This will take place today, Saturday, June 14. The meetings for this group will resume in September.

Social Justice Committee – 2025 Primary Election Voter Guide. Early Voting: June 14–June 22. Polls on June 14, 15, 16, 19, 21 and 22 are open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Polls on June 17 & 18 are open from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Polls on June 20 are open from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Primary Election Day – June 24, polls are open from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. Any registered voter can request a ballot online or by mail by June 14. You may request a ballot in-person by June 23.

The General Election early voting will take place October 25–November 2. General Election Day is November 4, 2025.

NCNW National – The House of Representatives passed HR. 1. The “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” in a 215-214 vote. Here are some of the major provisions: $500 billion cut to Medicare; $700 billion cut to Medicaid, which can be loss of access to life-saving prescription and the ability to see a doctor; $300 billion cut to SNAP; the debt ceiling will be raised by $4 trillion;

Social Media – Remember, you can find us on our website: www.ncnwcoopcitysection.com; on Instagram: NCNW Co-op City and email: ncnwco.opcity@ gmail.com.

––Joyce Howard

Goose Island

135 Einstein Loop, Rm. 39, Bronx, NY 10475.

Happy Father’s Day to all the amazing dads. We celebrate your wisdom, strength and love you give to your family. Your guidance, sacrifices and steady presence means the world.

Tropicana Casino AC – Sun., June 29. Price: $70; bonus: $10 slot play. Call: 646-579-1701.

Resorts Casino – Atlantic City, NJ; Tues., July 15. Waitlist only. Price: $70; bonus: $10 slot play. Balance due: Wed., June 25. Bus pick-up: Einstein Loop at 7:45 a.m. and Dreiser Loop at 8:15 a.m.

Holiday Hills Senior Day Picnic – in Prospect, CT; Tues., Aug. 19. Price: $150; $50 deposit to hold seat on bus. Balance due: Wed., July 2. Seats available. Bus pick-up: Einstein Loop at 7:45 a.m. and Dreiser Loop at 8:15 a.m.

Portrait of Aretha Franklin Show – Resort World Monticello, NY; Wed., Sept. 10. Waitlist only. Price: $150; $50 deposit to hold seat on bus; bonus: $25 slot play. Private buffet lunch in casino. Balance due: Wed., Aug. 20. Wind Creek Casino – Bethlehem, PA; Thurs., Oct. 9. Price: $70; bonus: $25 slot play. Balance due: Wed., Sept. 10. Seats available.

Foxwoods Casino and Tanger Outlet – Thurs., Nov. 6, in Mashantucket, CT. No bonus and no meal voucher. Price: $70. Balance due: Wed., Oct. 15. Seats available.

Brownstone Holiday Party – Mon., Dec. 8, in Patterson, NJ. Price: $165; $50 deposit to hold seat. Delicious luncheon, dancing, DJ and band. Balance due: Wed., Nov. 12. Seats available.

2026 Sight and Sound “Joshua” – Thurs., March 26, 2026. Lunch at Golden Corral, then 3 p.m. show. Price: $215; $50 deposit to hold seat.

2026 Norwegian Greek Isle Cruise – May 18-27, 2026. Price: $3,293$3,945. Call: 646-579-1701.

Notary – with Yvonne Menefee, 10 a.m.-3:30 p.m.

Bingo – Mon., Wed., and Fri., 1 p.m.-3:30 p.m. Members only. Admission: $5 for 3 cards; $0.25 each additional card. Twelve games and jackpot. Refreshments. Game Day – Tues. and Thurs., between 1 p.m.-5 p.m. Dominoes, movies, socializing and more. Members only. Refreshments.

To all members: Happy birthday to our members who celebrate their birthday in the month of June: Rosaura Cruz, Linda Bannerman-Martin, Gloria Fields, Evelyn Jefferson, Alma Travieso, Valerie Santos, Ray Betancourt, Joan (Jackie) Ross, Charles H. Oruam, Joanne Chaney, Sheila Mathis and Julia Rivera. Sick and Shut-in – Mary Roach. Mary Pilla, our former president, sends her love to everyone. Call her at 718-753-1816.

Our club is at 135 Einstein Loop, Rm. 39, Bronx, NY 10475. The Section 5 Community Center. Phone: 718-379-9613. Stephen cell: 347-847-1941. Our email address is goose.island@optonline.net; Cash App: $StephenCarlSr. Good health to all.

––Stephen Roberts, Sr.

NAACP

The NAACP marches to defend democracy and combat racism and discrimination in communities across the country. Located in the Einstein Community Center, Rm. 36, we meet the fourth Sunday of the month at 3 p.m. The NAACP Co-op City Branch Office hours are: 10 a.m.-1 p.m., Mondays & Wednesdays. Notary available on Monday and Wednesday during office hours beginning May 12; call for appointment.

“Calling All Men” – Special thanks to our sponsors: Councilman K. Riley, Congressman G. Latimer, Assemblyman M. Benedetto, State Senator J. Bailey, Ron Hartridge, NYC Public School Sr. Coordinator, Father Advocate; Health Committee Chair Joyce Dixon, RN. A great big shout-out to Dr. Wiltz, MD for the education and information shared. To the men and women who came out in the pouring rain to support this event, thank you. May the blessing you received help save a life.

Keep Hope Alive by VOTING in ALL Elections – beginning in our community. Remember, elections have consequences! If you don’t vote – Don’t Complain! Primary Election Day: June 24, 2025. Visit BOE website at: Vote.nyc or call 866-VOTE-NYC.

Early Voting: Saturday, June 14, to Sunday, June 22. Early Voting Poll Site: Co-op City Dreiser Loop Community Center, 177 Dreiser Loop.

Ranked Choice Voting/RCV applies to NYC local offices: Mayor, Public Advocate, Comptroller, Borough President, City Council, then Flip the Ballot and vote on the Non-Rank Choices, e.g., Civil Court Judges.

Save the Date: Friday, September 12 – Join us on the Skyline Princess Summer Sunset Cruise. Deposit due now! Donation: $150 pp; after August 1, donation: $175 pp. First payment: $75, by June 20. Second payment due by July 15. Final payment due by August 29 (deposit non-refundable.)

Price includes buffet dinner, braised beef ribs, chicken du jour, lemon Sole stuffed with crabmeat, vegetarian entrée, dessert, soda, juice, coffee, herbal tea (cash bar). Boarding Time: 7 p.m. sharp! Returning 11:30 p.m. Info: Jacquie at 917-217-6363; NAACP Office at 718-320-3210; Jewel at 917-488-5237; Tracy at 646-234-4065; Leslie at 718-320-1370; Gail at 718-671-3801. Ask about the charter bus.

Watch & Listen: Our Culture, Our Stories on the NAACP+ YouTube channel. Follow us on Facebook: “Co-op City NAACP”

Looking to make an even greater impact? Become a champion for change and join us to keep advancing Annual membership: Adult: $30; Youth: $10; Silver Life: $750, until 12/31/25. Make ck/mo. payable to: NAACP Co-op City, Mailing address: NAACP Co-op City, 135 Einstein Loop, Rm. 36, Bronx, NY 10475 To become a member online, go to: www.naacp.org membership, select Co-op City (2210) and join. To leave a message, call the office phone at: 718320-3210 or email: naacpccity2210@gmail.com

––Brenda

Brown

By BRANDON ORTIZ

Software Update Results in Delayed OMNY Charges

In the past month, OMNY users have alleged being overcharged when using the tap and go payment system.

Payment issues can be traced back to a May software update, according to MTA ofﬁcials.

Jessie Lazarus, MTA Deputy Chief for Commercial Ventures, explained the situation this month to amNewYork.

“We had a hiccup in one of these software upgrades that our vendor performed; we directed them to perform it,” Ms. Lazarus said on June 3. “We wish that the hiccup did not happen, and we’re doing everything we can to communicate clearly with customers to help smooth the bumps in the road from the last week and a half.”

Notably, Ms. Lazarus also explained that the additional charges customers saw last month were actually delayed ones from prior trips and that the MTA was not aware of any customers having duplicate or erroneous charges.

“We were seeing some delays between when someone taps at the turnstile

The Co-op City and Eleanor Roosevelt Democratic Clubs will be having their ﬁrst joint meeting on June 19, at 6:30 p.m., in the Bartow Community Center, Rm. 31B. The main agenda of the meeting is preparation for the reunion of both clubs. All current members of both clubs are encouraged to attend, and prospective members are invited and welcome.

This is an exciting moment and a victory for the 82nd Assembly District. Our community will ﬁnally have one ofﬁcial Democratic club, which is an objective that has eluded this community for decades. We are casting aside competition and disharmony and are embracing collaboration and unity. We are stronger that way.

This couldn’t have come at a more opportune time. Last year, we spoke a lot about our democracy being in jeopardy. Now it is happening before our eyes. We must unite and organize as Democrats to preserve all that we value. We must win. And to win, we must ﬁght. Our club is both a weapon and a vehicle in this battle.

Many people have asked me what they can “do.” Michelle Obama’s answer last year was to “do something.” My answer is much the same. Some of you have done something, but many of you haven’t yet risen to that level. The good news is it isn’t too late. Become politically engaged. Take an active role in deciding what happens to you, your loved ones, your community, and your country. The time for sitting idly has passed.

We are seeing now how important it is for the right candidates to get into elected ofﬁce. Our club goes a step further by jumping into the driver’s seat and helping get those right candidates elected. If you want to have your hands on the wheel and help steer things in the right direction in our community and beyond, join our club. We are working hard to get the right leaders elected. We have chosen a particularly strong batch of candidates this year and we are pleased to formally announce them:

Andrew M. Cuomo, Mayor (City of New York)

Mark D. Levine, Comptroller (City of New York)

Vanessa L. Gibson, Borough President (Bronx)

Shekera Anessa Algarin, Judge of the Civil Court (Bronx)

Kevin C. Riley, Member of the City Council (12th Council District)

Our endorsed candidates have all served the public with distinction and are

and when that tap is showing up and deducting value from their account. That could happen in seconds, but it was taking several days. That was causing some confusion, and the transactions would arrive when the system had more capacity and headroom,” Ms. Lazarus went on to say.

Ms. Lazarus conﬁrmed that the issue had been “largely resolved” by May 29, and going forward, “we (the MTA) want to make sure that nearly 100% of the time the charges are appearing to customers within seconds.”

This past week, there was also an issue for customers using a Visa card to pay for their fare. On June 12, the MTA provided an update on the situation and the mystery overcharges.

“Visa conﬁrmed an issue with its cards impacting customers who used tap and go to pay for transit on June 10. Visa resolved this issue the same day. Rest assured you will not be overcharged,” the MTA said.

For any individuals who experience a problem with their OMNY account, the OMNY Call Center number is 877-789-6669 or visit the OMNY website at omny.info.

best equipped to meet the demands of the positions they are running for. Please get out and vote and consider ranking the above candidates #1 (with the exception of Judge of the Civil Court, where you only pick one candidate, which is hopefully Shekera). We must not only maintain Co-op City’s standing as the highest voting neighborhood in the Bronx, but we must strive to new heights and become the highest voting neighborhood in the city.

Early voting begins on June 14 and runs until June 22. Election day is June 24. There is only one early voting site and that is the Dreiser Community Center.

Tremaine O'Garro

Broun Place Townhouse Association

Broun Place Townhouse Association wishes all fathers and father ﬁgures a happy Father's Day. May you be surrounded with love and special memories.

—Eva Kindaichi Lazaar

Eleanor Roosevelt Democratic Club

2025 Co-op City Public Safety Officer Graduation

Paid for by Friends for Dr Selma Bartholomew

More highlights from CCPD Graduation held Friday, June 6, 2025 in Dreiser Auditorium.

2025 Riverbay Board Election 2025 Riverbay Board Election

2025 RIVERBAY CANDIDATES

1. Kevin Lambright

2. Bishop Angelo Rosario

3. Leslie Peterson

4. Anika Green-Watson

5. Keith Logan

6. Daryl Johnson

7. Shacara Cudjoe

8. Idalia Reyes

9. Grace Solomon

10. Leah Richardson

11. Darnell Lopez

Saturday, May 10

2025 Board Election Schedule

Publication by Co-op City Times of first Election Supplement

Saturday, May 10 First Election Forum, 1 p.m., In-person & broadcast live from Dreiser Audit.

Saturday, May 17

Wednesday, May 21

Wednesday, June 11

Publication by Co-op City Times of second Election Supplement

Second Election Forum, 7:00 p.m., In-person & broadcast live from Einstein Center, Rm. 45,

Mailing of Election Ballots to shareholders June 16-July 8

Absentee Ballots may be received by Independent Election Contractor but not opened or Counted Until Quorum Achieved; Ballots Must be Postmarked by 7-825, unless Date Extended to Obtain Quorum

Tuesday, June 17

Wednesday, June 25

Thursday, June 26

Friday, June 27

Saturday, June 28

Tuesday, July 8

Monday, July 14

Tuesday, July 15

Wednesday, July 16

Wednesday July 23

Third Election Forum, 7:00 P.M. In-person & Broadcast from Dreiser

Annual Meeting, 7:00 P.M., Dreiser; In-person Voting Begins at 6:00 P.M. @ Dreiser

In-person voting continues at Einstein Center, 12 to 8 P.M.

In-person voting continues at Bartow Center, 12 to 8:00 P.M.

ELECTION DAY EVENTS – In-person voting at Bartow Center, 8:00 A.M. to 8:00 P.M.

Election Period & Voting ends Unless Quorum not obtained (see extended voting period)

Election Committee Public Meeting to Certify and Announce Final Count of Ballots, Room 31, Bartow Center, 7:00 P.M.; In-person & Broadcast

Public & Electronic Posting of Official Results, 10 A.M.

Deadline to file Challenges (5 P.M.)

Swearing in of Newly Elected Board Members

Candidates’ Statements appear on pages 23-29

NOTE: THE VIEWS EXPRESSED WITHIN ARE SOLELY THOSE OF THE CANDIDATES AND NOT THOSE OF RIVERBAY CORPORATION.

BALLOTING

Voting will be conducted by absentee mail-in ballot or in-person ballot.

BALLOT RETURN PROCEDURE

To ensure the integrity of the election, ALL ballots must be returned DIRECTLY to the election vendor. Under no circumstance should your election ballot be mailed back or delivered to Riverbay Corporation, or enclosed with your carrying charge payment.

Absentee mail-in ballots must be postmarked by Tuesday, July 8, 2025. Please follow the directions included in your ballot envelope to cast your vote.

Election Committee Notice – Ask the Candidates

There will be three official Candidates’ Forums in the 2025 Riverbay Board of Directors election. The Election Committee is accepting questions from shareholders to be asked at the forums. Questions are being solicited in the following categories: Safety & Quality of Life, Budgeting, Leadership, Future of Co-op City, and miscellaneous topics relevant to the candidates’ election as members of the Board of Directors.

Extended Voting Period (if no quorum)

Tues., July 8-Mon., July 28

Questions should be submitted to the Committee at Riverbay2025Election@riverbaycorp.com. The submission must include your name and building.

The three Candidates’ Forums will take place on: Sat., May 10, 1 p.m., Dreiser Auditorium; Wed., May 21, 7:00 p.m., Einstein, Rm. 45; and Tuesday, June 17, 7:00 p.m., Rm. 31, Dreiser Auditorium.

Extended Voting Schedule

Continue election Until July 28 at 9:00 P.M., or 9:00 P.M. on an earlier day, if Election Committee certifies a Quorum

Tuesday, August 5 Election Committee Review & Certify Final Count of ballots (Bartow Center, Rm. 31, 7:00 P.M.)

Wednesday, August 6 Public & Electronic Posting of Official Results (10 A.M.)

Thursday, August 7 Deadline to file Challenges, In-person, to Legal Dept. by 5 P.M. or by email by 5 P.M. addressed to riverbay2025election@ riverbaycorp.com

Wednesday, August 13 Swearing in of Elected Board Members (Bartow Center, Room 31, 7:00 P.M.)

Additional Extended Voting Period (if no quorum)

Monday, July 28

Continue election (as of 9:01 P.M.) Until Monday, August 18, or An earlier date, if Election Committee certifies a Quorum Monday, August 25 Election Committee Review & Certify Final Count of Ballots (Bartow, Rm. 31, 7:00 P.M.)

Tuesday, August 26 Public & Electronic Posting of Official Results

Wednesday, August 27 Deadline to file Electronic Challenges to Election By 5:00 P.M.

Wednesday, Sept. 3 Swearing in of Newly-Elected Board Members

Leah Richardson

VOTE TO RE-ELECT

Leah Richardson

Riverbay Board Director – Proven, Experienced, Committed

8 Years of Proven Leadership

I have proudly served as your Board Director with integrity, transparency, and a deep commitment to improving life in Co-op City. I'm running for re-election to continue the work we've started-together.

My Commitment to You:

- Safe, healthy, and affordable housing

-Transparent communication between the Board and shareholders

- Long-term planning that enhances quality of life

- Protection of shareholder interests and community values

Innovative and Community-Focused

With a strong background in technology and communications, I bring efﬁcient, cost-effective strategies to Board operations. I believe in better, faster, and more affordable solutions to everyday challenges-always with shareholder input at the center.

Leadership That Listens

- Be experienced and solution-oriented

- Understand the cooperative model and its priorities

- Share the concerns of shareholders and their families

- Stand ﬁrmly with our community-always

Why I'm Running Again

Consistency and continuity in leadership are essential. Critical issues are before us, and I am ready to continue addressing them with focus, responsibility, and respect for our shared history.

My Approach:

- Select the right people

- Set the right goals

- Provide the right resources

- Monitor the results TOGETHER, WE CAN:

- Keep Co-op City thriving

My name is Keith Logan. For 18 years, I've had the privilege of living and working in this vibrant community. At 43, I'm blessed with an amazing wife and three incredible kids who are the center of my universe. But beyond my family, there's one thing that's just as important to me: ensuring this community remains not only affordable but sustainable for generations to come.

My journey here began in 2007 when I started working for Riverbay as a temporary painter. Who would have thought that those humble beginnings would lay the foundation for the career I'd build? By 2015, I'd progressed to managing painting and plastering roles within Co-op, and my passion for quality work only grew stronger.

But I didn't stop there.

In 2018, I took the leap and started my own painting company. It's been an incredible ride, and I'm proud to say we've become a top-rated residential and commercial company in New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut. My team's dedication to excellence and customer satisfaction has earned us a reputation for delivering top-notch results.

As a professional tradesman and entrepreneur, I've gained valuable expertise that I'm eager to share with this Board. If given the opportunity, I'd be honored to contribute my skills and experience to help shape the future of our community. I believe my unique blend of hands-on experience and business acumen would make me a valuable asset to this Board.

I'm excited about the prospect of working together to build a brighter future for our community. I'm looking forward to your vote and to serving this community I love. Let's work together to create a sustainable, thriving neighborhood for all.

Please vote for me, Keith Logan, Kevin Lambright, Bishop Angelo Rosario, Grace Solomon and Darnell Lopez —Team Unity!!

Leah Richardson

Keith Logan

Leslie Peterson

Vote Leslie Peterson For Riverbay Board Director

Experienced – Effective – Resident-Focused

We live in a community where safety, affordability, and quality of life always come ﬁrst. As a candidate dedicated to serving this community, I am committed to upholding my ﬁduciary responsibility to protect and preserve the future of our homes.

First and foremost, keeping our development safe and secure is essential. I work closely with Management, local authorities, and our Safety department to ensure our buildings remain secure for families, seniors, and youth alike. A strong foundation of safety fosters trust and wellbeing for everyone.

Affordability is another cornerstone of Mitchell-Lama living. I ﬁght tirelessly to maintain reasonable costs so current and future residents can continue to call this place home without the burden of rising fees. Through transparent budgeting, careful oversight, and successful resolutions at Board meetings, we have a manageable two-year budget submitted to HCR with no carrying charge increase.

Maintenance and repairs cannot wait. I am known for moving issues forward swiftly because I believe no resident should endure unnecessary delays. As your voice on various committees and in every Board meeting, I advocate for timely service and clear communication. My tenure as a property manager gives me hands-on understanding of how buildings should be maintained, how shareholders should be treated, and how resources should be managed responsibly.

Our community thrives when generations connect. I promote intergenerational events that bring youth and seniors together with cultural programs, holiday gatherings, and health and wellness workshops that remind us how much we can learn from one another. I am ready and willing to listen, answer questions, and serve with genuine joy and dedication.

I ask for your support so I can continue being your voice and your advocate. Vote to elect Leslie Peterson, Anika Green-Watson, Leah Richardson and Idalia Reyes. We are Stronger Together.

Hello everyone, I am Grace Solomon and I wish to thank you for your support as I seek a seat at the Co-op City Board of Directors’ table. I’m pleased that this season, the election process has been running very smoothly and efﬁciently and truly encourage all shareholders to please vote early and to vote for the UNITY TEAM! Kevin Lambright, Keith Logan, Darnell Lopez, Bishop Angelo Rosario and Grace Solomon.

If elected, I am interested in working on the following committees: Budget and Finance, Community Safety, as well as, Information Technology. I wish to specialize in Elder Care laws and Senior Citizen legislation, and continue the good work that’s happening with the Access and Accessibility Committee. I’m qualified, certified and able to contribute to assist with educational research, financial support, and organizational management, by way of grant writing, budget analysis and by showing up and being present at all board meetings. I have over 35 years of experience working with local, state and federal officials, developing innovative initiatives and programs that have strengthened our community.

For me, Grace Solomon, having this opportunity to sit at the Board of Director’s table mean that I’m able to advocate for all groups including: Senior Citizens, Women, Minorities, and the Disabled. I will work tirelessly to maintain what is working well here in Co-op City and then, to work with other leaders and residents to ﬁnd creative solutions for problems that have been left unsolved till now.

I am asking you, the Co-op City shareholders, to please vote for Grace Solomon, Kevin Lambright, Keith Logan, Darnell Lopez and Bishop Angelo Rosario for the Co-op City Board of Directors for the 2025 election year. Vote for The Unity Team, we are the team that will get things done. Thank you.

Leslie Peterson

Grace Solomon

Kevin Lambright

I am Kevin Lambright, at 63 years of age, I am proud to be blessed with amazing people and neighbors that continue to be in my life that I can still call family.

While serving on the Riverbay Board, I simultaneously took on ﬁve committees and temporarily burned myself out. I was overzealous when I ﬁrst got on the Board. I thought that if it wasn't being done, I had to do it. Fortunately, experience is a great teacher. So, I learned early that I cannot take on the world alone and battles are won when there is cooperative collective participation. That is how you pull a community together so that everyone wins. You don’t have to be friends with everyone you work with but there must be mutual respect.

I am aware that just about 90% of quality-of-life issues here can be solved in less than 30 days. It just takes cooperation and at least 8 people on the Board to say Yes. Team Unity is ready. That’s ﬁve. Guarantee those ﬁve and I have commitments from more than 3 others who are not running to get these things done. This is why it is critical to elect all 5 candidates from Team Unity

With Team Unity, the skillset is in place to tackle those things that have been lacking for years. The easy fixes will be the first surface changes while the difficult issues will be working behind the scenes strategically turning things around. These will be things you can actually see and feel immediately.

All we need you to do is get your neighbors out to vote with you. We can all do this together as a community. Elect all ﬁve: Vote for Kevin Lambright, Bishop Angelo Rosario, Keith Logan, Darnel Lopez and Grace Solomon. Team Unity.

Dear shareholders of Co-op City, I have had the pleasure of engaging with numerous residents over the past couple of weeks, listening attentively to their concerns. Some of you have expressed disappointment, loss of conﬁdence, and worry about the safety and well-being of our youth. I share these same concerns. I am committed to restoring conﬁdence in our Board of Directors.

Co-op City is a remarkable community, and it is important that we unite to protect and preserve our shared interests. Failure to do so may compromise our future. The recent safety incidents, including those affecting our youth, are unacceptable and must be addressed.

I have decided to join the Board of Directors, leveraging my professional expertise to ﬁnd solutions to our pressing concerns. My commitment is to promote transparency, communication, and decision-making that prioritizes the best interests of our community. I believe in staying true to our shared principles, I believe in collaborative leadership. I am conﬁdent that, together, we can create a brighter future for Co-op City.

I am honored to seek your support in the upcoming election and to serve on the Board of Directors. It will be an opportunity that requires work and dedication. I am committed to making this community thrive. Let us make this year historic by achieving quorum. We have pressing issues to address and changes to implement, but without shareholder participation, voices will go unheard.

Show up, vote, and be the difference we need.

Vote for the Stronger Together Team, re-electing Leslie Peterson, Anika Green-Watson, Leah Richardson, and electing Idalia Reyes.

Idalia Reyes

Kevin Lambright

Darnell Lopez

I am a seasoned financial professional with over 14 years of experience, announcing my candidacy for the Riverbay Corporation Board of Directors. Raised in Co-op City, I have returned to the community as a shareholder, demonstrating my enduring commitment to the area.

I am the founder of the Co-op City Basketball Classic (CCBC), a tournament that has become a staple in the community, providing youth with opportunities to engage in athletics and build camaraderie. My dedication to youth development extends beyond sports; I aim to implement programs that promote STEM education, business acumen, and athletic involvement.

With my financial expertise, I plan to bring a strategic perspective to the Board, focusing on fiscal responsibility and sustainable growth for the community. My vision includes creating partnerships with organizations that can offer resources and mentorship to young residents, preparing them for future success.

My deep roots in Co-op City and my professional background position me as a candidate who understands the community's needs and possesses the skills to address them effectively.

My campaign emphasizes transparency, community engagement, and the empowerment of residents through education and opportunity.

As the election approaches, I encourage residents to participate in the voting process and share their ideas for the community's future. I believe that collaborative efforts between the Board and shareholders are essential for fostering a thriving and inclusive environment in Co-op City.

For more information on my campaign and initiatives, residents are encouraged to attend upcoming community meetings and engage with campaign materials distributed throughout the neighborhood.

Vote for me, Darnell Lopez, along with Kevin Lambright, Bishop Angelo Rosario, Grace Solomon, and Keith Logan. We are TEAM UNITY!!!

Our board of directors is comprised of fifteen shareholders. These shareholders have a responsibility to work in a positive manner with the NYS Homes and Community Renewal agency, management, and our entire community. But, how did you feel when you received those huge carrying charge increases over the past few years? Furthermore, what opinions did you draw about our board and management when you read factual viewpoints about our budget issues, our poor resolutions, and other negative matters?

Did these issues ever cause you to say that we need to make some changes here. If yes, then, you need to make those changes during this voting period. And, your goal should be to elect candidates that you know are going to conduct our business in a positive manner. To help you, you can go online and read specific sections of the ‘Co-op City Times.’ Thereafter, you can review the actions that board directors took when they voted on carrying charge increases, bad budgets, horrible resolutions, and other matters.

Did they follow management’s advice and vote yes to support all of these negative matters? Have you ever read one viewpoint from them that explained their vote? Moreover, how many viewpoints did they write throughout an entire year to help our community to see what’s going on here? Zero? If yes, then, you need to make some changes during this election.

Bottom line: You want to elect good, honest, and knowledgeable candidates. Thereafter, these no-nonsense candidates are going to evaluate our budgets, our finances, our resolutions, and other matters in a proper manner. Then, they are going to represent our best interests when they vote and when they conduct business. Thereafter, you can call and send messages to them. And, you know that they’re going to do their best to help you. Thank you.

Daryl Johnson

Based on my history, here are a few things that you will get if you vote for Daryl Johnson:

1. You will get a director that will be willing to communicate with you and our entire community.

2. You will get a director that will offer outstanding service to our entire community.

3. You will get a director that will write weekly viewpoints to keep everyone abreast about the important issues that are affecting our community.

4. You will get a director that will analyze resolutions in a proper manner.

5. You will get a director that will analyze our budget and all other matters in a proper manner.

6. You will get a director that will represent this entire community in a proper manner during our board meetings.

7. You will get a director that will not simply vote along with everyone else.

8. You will get a director that will stand up for you when things are not right here.

9. You will get a director that will offer good solutions to avoid the constant carrying charge increases here.

10. You will get a director that will always push to make positive improvements here.

Now, are you new to our community? If yes, then, I want to encourage you to please go online and verify every word within this candidate statement. So, please do a search on the ‘Co-op City Times.’ Then, please read my previous viewpoints.

Thereafter, you will know that you’re voting for a strong director that has always represented this community in a proper manner. I care about you and our entire community. So, please make sure that you vote for candidates that will work in a positive manner for you. Thank you.

Darnell Lopez

Daryl Johnson

Shacara C. Cudjoe

My name is Shacara C. Cudjoe—mom, wife, daughter, sister, and your neighbor—and I’m proud to have called Co-op City my home for the past 17 years. Today, I’m excited to announce my candidacy for the 2025 Co-op City Board of Directors.

I’m running to be a voice for everyone, from young adults building their futures to the seniors who laid the foundation for this community. I believe we all deserve to feel heard, supported, and connected.

With over 15 years of experience in counseling, IT work, and running educational workshops, I’ve led mom groups, managed teams, and worked closely with families. Always balancing people, priorities, and outcomes. I’ve led one-on-one and group sessions focused on personal growth, planning, and communication.

My Commitments to You:

• Preserving Affordable Housing: So residents aren’t priced out of the homes they love, while enjoying beautiful grounds and accessible community programs.

• Smart Maintenance Spending: Ensuring maintenance fees are spent responsibly and that contract opportunities are open to all qualified workers.

• Community Awareness: Expanding how we connect and share information so that every resident feels included, informed, and engaged.

Let’s be honest—Co-op City is more than just buildings. It’s very diverse with hard working residents, and one of the best communities I've witnessed. You’re asked to vote often, but this vote truly matters. The Board directly shapes our everyday experience. Whether you vote or not, decisions are being made, so let’s make sure your voice is part of the major decisions.

Vote Shacara C. Cudjoe for Co-op City Board of Directors – Our Voice. Our Neighborhood. Our Vote.

Bishop Angelo Rosario

I am honored to be running with incumbent and new young adults who are interested in moving our community forward for the future of their families.

As a proud resident of this vibrant and diverse community for 34 years, I am deeply committed to preserving its affordability, enhancing quality of life, and ensuring that all shareholders’ voices are heard.

I have been actively involved in community initiatives and resident advocacy. I understand the challenges and the immense potential of our community, and I am eager to bring a thoughtful, solutions-driven perspective to the board.

If elected, my priorities include:

1. Transparency and Accountability

I will advocate for open communication between the board and shareholders, ensuring decisions are made with clarity and shareholder input.

2. Maintenance and Infrastructure

I will push for timely repairs, modernization efforts, and budget oversight to ensure our buildings and facilities remain safe, clean, and liveable.

3. Affordability and Fiscal Responsibility

I will work to keep maintenance fees stable while exploring cost-saving strategies that do not compromise services.

4. Community Engagement

I believe in fostering unity through programs that support youth, seniors, and working families—ensuring every resident feels represented. For people with special needs, focus on awareness, inclusion and support; to build a more inclusive society so they are fully integrated into schools, workplaces, communities and public spaces.

5. Public Safety and Quality of Life

Partner with Public Safety and local stakeholders to address concerns and promote a peaceful living environment.

The Board of Directors should reflect the diverse backgrounds, experiences, and hopes of all Co-op City residents. Unity Team brings integrity, strong work ethic, and a collaborative mindset. With your support, I will be a proactive, responsive, and a fair advocate for our community.

VOTE FOR TEAM UNITY: BISHOP ANGELO ROSARIO, KEVIN LAMBRIGHT, GRACE SOLOMON, KEITH LOGAN, DARNELL LOPEZ.

Shacara C. Cudjoe

Bishop Angelo Rosario

Anika Green-Watson

Greetings, neighbors, I have experienced the incomparable Co-op City for over 30 years, ﬁrst as a child moving here with my parents, then as a young adult choosing to raise my own family here, and for the past four years, as your Board director. I have a deep connection to what makes this community so special and, as I have engaged with you all over the past four years, I know those qualities are what many of you also hold dear.

As I seek your support for reelection, I urge you to consider the importance of this upcoming vote to elect ﬁve directors. We will need at least 5,041 votes this year to reach quorum!

For three weeks, I have shared my insights into what I think constitutes effective board leadership. I initially joined the board because I thought I could add value with my background as an attorney with 25+ years experience in ﬁnance. While having those core competencies certainly helps, the willingness to actively carry a fair share of the load of board work is what I think separates good directors from great ones.

I ﬁrmly believe that great directors:

• Work collaboratively on behalf of shareholders.

• Are strategic thinkers.

• Are ﬁscally responsible and analyze risks.

• Show up prepared.

The Stronger Together team offers a combination of experience and dedication and we are not afraid to tackle the challenges ahead. Each of us brings unique skills, integrity, and an unwavering commitment to transparency, diligent work, and inclusive leadership that truly serves all shareholders.

By supporting us, you will ensure a blend of fresh perspectives and the continued trusted voices that have consistently served this community with a proven track record.

Re-elect Anika Green-Watson, Leah Richardson, and Leslie Peterson, and elect Idalia Reyes. We are STRONGER TOGETHER!

2025 Riverbay Board Election Rules and Regulations

GENERAL RULES AND REGULATIONS RELATIVE TO THE RIVERBAY CORPORATION’S 2025 BOARD OF DIRECTORS ELECTION (Originally Adopted April 9th, 2025; Revised June 4, 2025)

A. GENERAL RULES

1. The Annual Shareholders Meeting of the Riverbay Corporation, originally called for May 28th, 2025, has been adjourned and shall be held on Wednesday, June 25, 2025, at 7:00 p.m. at the Dreiser Center Auditorium. At said meeting, the following order of business shall be observed:

* Proof of Notice of Meeting.

* Reports of President and Executive Manager.

* The election of at least ﬁve (5) resident shareholders to serve on the Board of Directors of the Riverbay Corporation for a three (3) year term, and as many as may be needed to ﬁll any vacancies for the balance of any unexpired term created by said vacancy

* Transaction of such other business as may properly come before the meeting.

2. In person voting for the election of Directors of the Riverbay Corporation shall commence at 6:00 p.m. on June 25th, 2025, and continue on Thursday, June 26th; Friday, June 27th; Saturday, June 28th, and such other days as may be set by the Election Committee or the Board in order to achieve quorum.

3. If a quorum is not obtained as of 9:00 p.m. on July 8th, 2025, the Annual meeting shall be continued for

such additional period of time as the Board shall determine, for purposes of obtaining a quorum and collecting and counting ballots, (hereafter referred to as “Election Day”).

4. The election shall be supervised by an Election Committee of the Board of Directors of the Riverbay Corporation (hereinafter, the “Election Committee” or “Committee”). The Committee shall be appointed by the President and approved by the Board of Directors. The Election Committee Co-Chairs for the 2025 Election are Monique Coleman and Leah Graham.

(a) The Co-Chairs of the Committee, (hereinafter the “Chairpersons”), shall be members of the Board selected and appointed by the President of the Board (the “President”), and approved by the Board.

(b) No member of the Committee shall be a candidate for election to the Board of Directors, or a member of a candidate’s family or household. All members of the Committee shall be resident shareholders.

(d) No member of the Committee or their immediate family shall in any way engage in any campaigning either for or against a candidate or slate of candidates. Committee

members shall, to the extent possible, refrain from publicly commenting upon any issue in the campaign and shall not engage in any activity that may create the appearance of partiality.

(e) A member of the Committee who violates the provisions of Paragraph A (4)(d) or whose family member violates the provisions of Paragraph A (4)(d) shall immediately be removed from the Committee.

(f) Nothing contained herein shall be construed as limiting a member of the Committee or a member of his/ her immediate family from voting.

(g) The Committee shall be allowed to conduct various “get out the vote” activities provided said activities are conducted in a manner which does not support any particular candidate for election.

5. There will be one vote per occupied unit by residents who were shareholders of record on April 1, 2025. Quorum shall be determined based upon one share per occupied unit and not based upon a percentage of dwelling units.

6. Voting shall be in person or by absentee mail-in ballots in accordance with Private Housing Finance Law 13-c, as interpreted by NYS Homes and Community Renewal Housing Management Memo

# 2023-B-11, dated September 24, 2023.

7. Casting a vote via an electronic voting machine located at the housing company’s designated polling site where it is overseen by the election company is allowed. Remote voting through an election company’s on-line voting system is not permitted. In the event that onsite electronic voting machines are employed, the system must preserve a paper or electronic record of each ballot which may be audited in the case of a contested election result.

8. The deposit of a duly completed absentee ballot in a secure on-site drop-box accessible only by an independent election company is allowed and shall constitute “in-person” voting.

9. Building-wide mailing of absentee ballots shall occur on or about June 11, 2025, to all shareholders of record.

10. The building-wide mailing shall be made by an independent, third party election company. The mailing shall include a notice advising shareholders of the date of the election, how eligible shareholders may vote, the name of all candidates,

(Continued on next page)

Anika Green-Watson

2025 Riverbay Board Election Rules and Regulations

GENERAL RULES AND REGULATIONS RELATIVE TO THE RIVERBAY CORPORATION’S 2025 BOARD OF DIRECTORS ELECTION

(Continued from previous page)

a brief biography of each candidate, if provided, a photograph of each candidate, the URL address of an official election web page created and maintained by the independent election company containing information approved by the Election Committee regarding the election and the candidates, and an absentee ballot.

11. Absentee ballots shall be sealed within two envelopes. The outer envelope shall include the shareholder’s signature and name to allow the election company to validate the votes and certify the election results. The absentee ballot itself is not to be signed by the shareholder entitled to vote. Absentee ballots may be mailed to the independent election company prior to the date set for the election, but must be postmarked no later than July 8, 2025 in order to be counted. Ballots without a postmark, or postmarked after July 8, 2025, will not be counted.

12. All voting must be conducted using secret ballots. Shareholders’ ballots, and how they voted, must be kept confidential by the election company and may not be accessible by other shareholders, including board members and Election Committee members

B. RULES FOR ELIGIBILITY OF CANDIDATES

1. A candidate must be a resident shareholder as indicated on the candidate’s stock certificate, occupancy agreement and the current Occupants Annual Affidavit of Family Income. Candidates must continue to reside in Co-op City for the entire term of office in order to serve as a Director.

2. No more than one resident shareholder of a single unit may be a candidate for the Board; and no more than one resident shareholder from a single unit may concurrently serve as a Director.

3. No candidate may be indebted to Riverbay on the date candidates are certified or on the date votes are counted. In addition, all candidates must remain current throughout the election period for unpaid carrying charges or other debts to Riverbay until the candidate is sworn in, if elected. A candidate shall not be indebted to Riverbay for purposes of this rule if their monthly carrying charges and maintenance are fully paid by the 10th day of the month in which it is due, or if they are current on a payment plan issued in the ordinary course of business on terms available to all shareholders. At the close of business one day prior to the certification of candidates, and on the 10th day of each month thereafter during the Election, Riverbay’s Finance Director will provide a written list to the Chairpersons of the Election Committee of all candidates’ indebtedness to Riverbay, if any. If a

(Originally Adopted April 9th, 2025; Revised June 4, 2025)

candidate is indebted to Riverbay on any of those days, the Chairpersons shall provide written notice of the indebtedness to the candidate. If the candidate fails to cure said indebtedness within three (3) business days of receiving notice of their indebtedness from the Chairpersons, the candidate will be disqualified.

4. Prospective candidates may, after signing the required authorizations for background checks and upon verification that they are current on their indebtedness to Riverbay, be certified as candidates for election to the Board if they:

• are shareholders of record;

• maintain their primary residence at Riverbay,

• do not hold a political party position or public office subject to the New York State Election Law,

• have not been convicted of a crime against the Corporation, or of a violent felony, or be a convicted sex offender,

• have not been removed from the Corporation’s Board of Directors, or from employment with the Corporation for cause;

• are not subject to an outstanding federal tax lien for which a payment plan has not been negotiated and accepted; and

• are otherwise in compliance with the requirements and qualifications of the Corporation’s by-laws, governing documents and their occupancy agreement, and not party to any pending hold-over proceeding.

(a) Prospective candidates shall sign and complete a Statement of Intent in the form annexed hereto as Exhibit A, and submit the executed Statement of Intent to the Election Committee by email, addressed to Riverbay2025Election@riverbaycorp.com, on or before 10:00 P.M. on April 21, 2025. In the event that the prospective candidate lacks access to email, the prospective candidate shall return the completed Statement of Intent to the Legal Department during normal business hours, or to the Public Safety Department outside of normal business hours, attention Riverbay 2025 Election Committee. On the following business day, the financial status of the prospective candidate will be checked, and a background check shall be initiated.

(b) In addition to the Statement of Intent, prospective candidates must also execute and return with the Statement a document acknowledging the candidate’s receipt of these Rules, the candidate’s agreement to abide by these Rules, and an authorization to perform a confidential background check of the candidate by the Riverbay Legal Department.

C. CERTIFICATION OF CANDIDATES

1. The Committee will verify a prospective candidate’s eligibility as valid or reject them as invalid

by 12:00 noon on Friday, April 25, 2025. Notice of the Committee’s certification will be provided to each candidate by the close of business on April 25th, 2025, and published in the Co-op City Times on Saturday, April 26, 2025.

2. The Committee shall hold a briefing on the Rules for all candidates or their designees on Monday, April 28th, 2025 at 8:00 P.M. in Room 31 of the Bartow Administrative Building, at 2049 Bartow Avenue, Bronx, N.Y.

3. A random drawing will be made at the April 28th meeting to determine the order of placement of candidate statements and free campaign ads in each of the three election issues of the Co-op City Times and the order of speakers at the candidates’ forum. The drawing will also determine the relative position of each candidate’s name on a ballot, but candidate names on the ballot will automatically rotate. The name of each candidate on the ballot must correspond to the name of the candidate as it appears on his/her occupancy agreement and signature card, or the name by which each candidate is commonly known.

D. CAMPAIGNING STANDARDS OF CONDUCT

1. Except as provided in Rule E (3), no audio and/or video equipment, other than personal electronic devices, may be used at Election Forums, outdoors in Co-op City, or in building lobbies, elevators, or common areas, by candidates or by those campaigning for candidates in connection with the election.

2. The posting of all campaign signs, literature and other material (posters, gummed stickers, etc.) in Co-op City is prohibited except on personal property, or within a shareholder’s premises, with the owner’s permission. This specifically includes, but is not limited to, lobbies, elevators, bulletin boards, laundry rooms, walls, doors, garages, vehicles, commercial stores located on Riverbay property, and common areas. Candidates and their supporters are prohibited from posting campaign material on New York City property if said posting violates any City, State or Federal law.

(a) Residents, employees, candidates and their supporters may remove any improperly posted non-electronic campaign material, as a service to Co-op City, and the Committee will cause a notice to this effect to be published in the Co-op City Times.

(b) Candidates shall, if requested by the Committee, remove or modify any electronic campaign material or data posted to any website, Facebook page, Twitter, X, Instagram, Snap Chat, Tik Tok, or similar electronic forum, under the Candidate’s control, if the Committee, in its opinion believes that said material is

false, defamatory, deceptive, or constitutes a personal attack on another candidate. Examples of a personal attack include, but are not limited to, comments upon a candidate’s physical appearance, disability, religious beliefs, gender, race, mental state, mental capacity, or false assertions of criminal acts.

(c) In addition, Candidates shall, if requested by the Committee, disassociate themselves from, and request that any third-party or third-party website, Facebook page, Twitter, X, Instagram, Snap Chat, Tik Tok, or similar electronic forum, cease and desist from the publication of any emails, materials or posting relating to the election or any candidate for election, if the Committee, in its opinion, believes that said material is false, defamatory, deceptive or constitutes a personal attack on a candidate.

(d) Candidates shall not (i) use social media or email anonymously or under an assumed name, (ii) engage in personal attacks on fellow candidates or shareholders, or (iii) make defamatory statements. Any such conduct shall be a violation of these rules and the candidate may be subject to sanction by the Committee.

(e) Candidates and/or their supporters, shall not use robo-calling or similar systems to contact shareholders for campaigning or election related purposes.

3. Except for the material prepared and published by Riverbay as described herein, all campaign material used, posted, transmitted or distributed by or for a candidate must include the name, address, or post office box of the person or organization who issued such email or campaign material, and in the case of an organization, the name of the chairperson or treasurer.

4. Campaign literature may be slipped under apartment doors between the hours of 8:00 A.M. and 10:00 P.M., and campaign handouts are permitted.

5. The unauthorized use of the Riverbay logo in any form is prohibited for use in or on campaign materials, including electronic forms such as social media and e-mail.

6. No member of the Election Committee, the Board, or any of Riverbay’s employees, management staff, or contractors, can participate in, or receive any prize(s) or award approved by the Board during the election period for the purpose of increasing shareholder participation in the election.

7. Riverbay shall not be liable for any defamatory statements made by any candidate, or by any person or entity in the course of the election campaign, nor shall Riverbay be required to insure, defend or indemnify

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any such candidate or conduct. Candidates agree to indemnify Riverbay for any and all costs and expense incurred by Riverbay, including attorney’s fees, incurred by Riverbay in the defense of any defamation claim arising out of any statement or publication of any kind made by said candidate, or by any person or entity acting on their behalf, during the election.

8. It is inappropriate for any person or entity doing business, or soliciting business with Riverbay, including present or prospective managing agents, contractors, vendors, professionals, unions, their employees, commercial tenants, or persons having a direct or indirect interest in such companies, to make campaign contributions or pay campaign expenses, whether in cash or in-kind, of persons running for the Board. Directors of a corporation act in a fiduciary capacity with respect to the corporation and are required to place the corporation’s interest above their personal interests. Accepting campaign contributions from parties who contract with the corporation creates an appearance of a conflict of interest and, in most circumstances, an actual conflict as well. Any candidate who knowingly accepts campaign contributions or payment of campaign expenses, direct or indirect, in cash or in-kind from any person or entity doing business or soliciting business from Riverbay, including but not limited to the managing agent, or any vendor, union, commercial tenant, professional or contractor, their employees, or persons having a direct or indirect interest in such companies, will be disqualified.

9. No campaigning by any candidate or prospective candidate, or any person or committee acting on behalf of a candidate or prospective candidate, shall begin until April 29th, 2025, the day after prospective candidates have been certified as eligible candidates for election. This includes, but is not limited to the distribution of campaign materials, the publication of campaign related articles, letters, viewpoints or ads in the Co-op City Times or on any social media platform, canvassing, or public meetings. Any candidate engaged in campaigning activities prior to certification will be subject to sanction by the election committee, including the possibility of disqualification.

E. USE OF CO-OP CITY FACILITIES FOR CAMPAIGN ACTIVITIES

1. There shall be three official candidates’ forums conducted in person, if possible, and virtually. One forum shall take place on Saturday, May 10, 2025, at 1:00 P.M. in the Dreiser Auditorium. The second forum shall take place on Wednesday, May 21st, 2025, at 7:00 P.M. in the Einstein Auditorium. The third forum shall take

place on a date to be determined by the Committee, at 7:00 P.M. in Room 31 at Bartow.

(a) The Committee shall televise the forums over Riverbay’s public access channel and re-broadcast them on the web throughout the election period. The transmission by Riverbay of any statement made by any person at the forum shall not be an endorsement of any such comment or statement by Riverbay and Riverbay shall not be responsible for, nor shall it indemnify, any person or candidate who makes any false or defamatory statement.

(b) All certified candidates will be invited to participate in the forums in accordance with the rules and procedures established by the Committee. If a candidate cannot participate in the forum, and the candidate provides the Chairperson with the reason for nonparticipation, the Chairpersons may announce the reason the candidate cannot participate to the audience.

(c) The Committee shall establish rules and procedures for the civil conduct of all forums, including the establishment of time limits for questions and answers, the limiting of participation, the editing of statements, and the muting, either visual or auditory, or both, of individuals, including candidates, who, in the opinion of the Chairperson, are disruptive to the orderly conduct of the virtual forum or who engage in personal or malicious attacks, or who make defamatory statements.

2. The use of any outdoor space owned by Riverbay for campaign rallies or organized campaign activities related to the 2025 Board election is prohibited.

3. No candidate or organization may use the facilities or public meeting areas, community rooms, lobbies, hallways, mail rooms, building association rooms, or similar areas of the Riverbay Corporation for campaign rallies or activities, except as provided herein.

4. Building Associations may actively promote voter participation in the election in a manner which does not endorse or oppose a particular candidate, or slate of candidates. Building Association rooms, which are property of the Corporation, shall not be used for meetings to support or oppose any candidate.

5. At no cost, Riverbay will publish pictures of each candidate and up to three (3) different narrative statements or articles by each candidate in successive print and electronic issues of the Co-op City Times beginning with the Saturday, May 10th, 2025, issue. The Editor shall set the deadlines and technical standards for these submissions. The Editor shall attend the Candidate Orientation meeting on April 28th, 2025, to distribute the rules and procedures governing publication of candidate articles and advertisements. All candidates’ articles will be

reviewed by the Committee prior to publication. The Committee reserves the right to delete any material which in its exclusive opinion contains libelous statements, personal attacks, or material misstatement of fact.

(a) In conjunction with the statements described herein, Riverbay will also publish at no charge a ¼-page campaign ad by each candidate in successive print and electronic issues of the Co-op City Times beginning with the Saturday, May 10th, 2025, issue. The same ad will be used in each of the issues and will appear opposite each candidate’s article for that week. The Editor shall set the deadlines and technical standards for these submissions. All ad copy will be reviewed by the Committee prior to publication. The Committee reserves the right not to publish, or to delete any material, which in its opinion constitutes a libelous statement, personal attack, or material misstatement of fact.

(b) Starting on the day candidates are certified and continuing during the period of the campaign, board members who are not running for election shall be free to write Viewpoints of a “non-political” nature, except that a board member may endorse candidates in one viewpoint only. It shall not be deemed to be “political” for a non-candidate Board member to describe the activities and achievements of the Board as a whole, including the activities of any incumbent candidates. In the event Board members wish to publish a joint Viewpoint, they may do so, but only if the Viewpoint has been unanimously approved by the full Board, excluding any Board members who are candidates.

(c) Management shall not endorse any candidate or slate of candidates. However, information of a non-political nature, for example, relating to the operation, management, finances, budget, maintenance of the property, or to an emergency may be published by Management during this period of time.

(d) In the event that an article appears in a print or electronic publication other than the Riverbay sponsored publication, which is currently titled the “Co-op City Times,” in which the actions of the Board as a whole, or of an individual Board member are challenged, the Board, or the individual Board member who is challenged, shall have the right to respond in the Co-op City Times to such challenge, without regard to whether the Board member is a candidate in the election and without regard to the political nature of the comment. Any such response shall be limited to the subject matter of the challenge.

(e) Similarly, a candidate who is not a Board member may respond to a challenge directed at the conduct or action(s) of that individual candidate.

6. Campaign ads other than those provided by Riverbay may be placed in the Co-op City Times, subject to

Paragraph D (3), but must be paid in full at least 48 hours before the normal deadline of an issue. The Committee will review all paid campaign ads prior to publication and reserves the right to reject any copy which, in its sole judgment, contains libelous statements, personal attacks or a material misstatement of fact.

7. (a) The election of directors to the Board is a right of residents of Coop City. Employees living in Co-op City are encouraged to exercise their rights as residents of the community during the election within the scope of this policy. All Riverbay employees are reminded that as employees they have a duty of loyalty to Riverbay and should not engage in any activity that raises the appearance of impropriety. Participation in the electoral process must not interfere with employees’ work duties. All employees shall refrain from engaging in any activity that may be construed as an attempt to abuse their positions as employees to influence the outcome of the election. Examples of acts that may be an abuse of an employee position include soliciting donations for candidate(s), distributing campaign material for or against particular candidate(s), or engaging in any other activity that may be viewed as an abuse of position.

(b) Candidates who encourage, accept, or knowingly benefit from such prohibited participation are subject to disqualification by the Committee.

(c) This policy does not affect employees’ right to engage in other concerted activities for the purpose of collective bargaining or other mutual aid or protection, or their right to refrain from any or all such activities.

F. BALLOTING AND CERTIFICATION

1. Voting will be in person or by absentee, mail-in ballots, in accordance with Private Housing Finance Law 13-c, as interpreted by NYS HCR Housing Management Memorandum 2023-B-11, revised as of September 24, 2023. The form and content of the ballot shall be approved by the Election Committee.

2. In accordance with Riverbay’s by-laws, only one vote per occupied residential unit, cast by a resident shareholder of record residing in said unit, shall be counted.

3. All ballots must be cast by an eligible, residential shareholder of record, and verified by such means as the Election Committee determines to be reasonable, in its sole discretion.

4. Any eligible, resident shareholder of record residing in an occupied unit may vote, but only one ballot may be cast by a unit, regardless of the number of shareholders of record residing within said unit.

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be conducted by an independent, third-party company, selected by the Board pursuant to a written contract, duly approved in accordance with all corporate and regulatory requirements. The name and address of any such independent third party shall be published in the Co-op City Times

6. One ballot will be mailed by the independent third-party on or about Wednesday, June 11th, 2025 to each residential unit occupied by one or more eligible residential shareholders of record at the address set forth for said shareholder(s) of record on Riverbay’s books and records as of April 1, 2025.

7. In the event that more than one ballot is received from a single unit, only the earliest dated ballot, shall be counted. All other ballots received from said unit shall be disregarded, but preserved until five (5) days after the period to challenge the election has passed.

8. Unless the voting period is extended or modified by the Board of Directors and/or the Election Committee, any mail-in ballot must be postmarked no later than July 8th, 2025, and received on or before 12:00 p.m. on Monday, July 14th, 2025.

9. In the event that the voting period is extended or modified by the Election Committee for purposes of obtaining a quorum, the Election Committee may count any valid ballot postmarked or cast by a shareholder eligible to vote during the modified period.

10. All ballots received, including disqualified ballots, shall be preserved until the time to challenge the election has lapsed.

11. The initial count, as recorded by the third-party independent company, shall be provided to the Election Committee no later than 2:00 P.M. on Monday, July 14th, 2025. The initial count shall set forth the total number of ballots cast, the total number of votes received by each candidate, the total number of votes cast for each candidate by building, the number of votes disqualified and the basis therefore, and the total number of ballots required for a quorum.

12. The Election Committee shall, in an open, public meeting to be conducted at 7:00 P.M. on Monday, July 14th, 2025, certify the final count of the election ballots. The meeting shall also be broadcast on Riverbay’s public access channel.

13. Upon completion of the count, the Committee shall certify to the Board that a quorum has been obtained, the total number of votes cast, the total number of votes disqualified, the total number of votes cast for each candidate, and the names of the candidates who have been elected, as follows:

(a) The five candidates who have received the highest number of votes will be certified to the Board as having

been elected to full three-year terms.

(b) The candidate receiving the sixth highest vote shall be certified as having been elected to a vacant Board seat, if any, which will have the longest unexpired term.

(c) The Committee shall continue the certification of candidates by certifying the candidate with the next highest vote for each vacancy by the longest unexpired terms, if necessary, until all vacant seats on the Board are filled.

14. Unless an extended schedule is in effect, the Election Committee shall cause the official Certification of the Election to be publicly posted by 10:00 A.M. on July 15th, 2025 or if the Certification has not yet been completed, as soon thereafter as possible after the conclusion of the Election Certification Meeting. Posting may be by electronic means.

15. If a quorum is not reached, the Committee may recommend that the voting period be extended during which time shareholders eligible to vote in the election who received a ballot but did not cast a vote, shall be allowed to cast their ballot.

16. If a quorum is not reached at the end of the second extended voting period, the Board may, in its discretion, either extend the voting period for an additional extended voting period, schedule a new election, or cancel the election. The fact that a director may be a candidate for re-election shall not disqualify any such director from voting on any such resolution. Until such time as a quorum is obtained and a valid election conducted, existing Directors shall continue to hold their office.

G. DISQUALIFICATION OF CANDIDATES FOR MISCONDUCT

1. The Committee may recommend the disqualification of a candidate for violation of these rules, or impose an administrative charge, not to exceed $300.00 per violation, on any candidate that it determines has violated, caused or knowingly permitted others to violate these Rules. The Committee may do so on its own initiative, or upon the complaint of another candidate or resident. However, the Committee is under no obligation to initiate a proceeding under this Section, or Section H, unless the Committee, in its sole discretion, believes it to be appropriate.

2. No candidate may be disqualified for election to the Board unless the Committee has provided the candidate with notice of its intention to consider the candidate’s disqualification for election, and conducted a hearing in accordance with the procedures set forth in Section H below.

3. The Committee may impose an administrative charge, without conducting a formal hearing in accordance with Section H, if the Committee has provided the candidate with prior, writ-

ten notice that it may impose such a fee, the reason the Committee is considering imposing a fee, and an opportunity for the candidate to appear before the Committee to contest the imposition of an administrative fee.

4. Notification of the Election Committee’s decision to impose an administrative fee will be delivered both electronically and personally to the candidate at the email address and street address provided by the candidate to the Election Committee.

5. Upon delivery of the notification of a fine, the candidate is indebted to Riverbay and payment is due on the third business day following personal delivery of the notice. Failure to pay shall render the candidate ineligible for election.

6. Any candidate may object to a determination of the Committee to impose an administrative charge, and may, within three (3) days of delivery of said determination to the candidate, request a review of such determination by the Board. The Board, in its discretion, may affirm, modify, or reverse the determination, or decline, with written explanation, to review the Committee’s determination. A request for a review shall not stay a candidate’s obligation to make payment of any administrative charge levied by the Committee.

H. CHALLENGES TO VOTING RESULTS

1. Any aggrieved resident or aggrieved candidate may challenge the certification of a candidate for election, or the results of the election, or the election of any one candidate, based upon election irregularities or the failure of a candidate to meet required qualifications, by notifying the Chairperson of the challenge, by an email addressed to Riverbay2025 Election@riverbayboard.com

2. The challenge must be in writing. Such written challenge must specifically set forth the reason and the factual basis for the challenge. Any challenge by the Committee shall be on written electronic notice to the candidate, or candidates impacted by the challenge, delivered to the candidate(s) by email and personally at the addresses provided by the Candidate when they are certified.

3. A written challenge by a candidate or shareholder eligible to vote in the election must be delivered electronically to Riverbay2025Election @riverbayboard.com no later than 5:00 P.M. on Wednesday, July 16th, 2025. The written challenge shall state the factual or legal basis for the challenge. Failure to file a timely electronic challenge by 5:00 P.M. on Wednesday, July 16th, 2025, shall preclude consideration of the challenge by the Committee. In the event a quorum was not obtained by close of the Election Period, the time to file an objection to the Election shall be extended until one (1) business day

after the Election has been certified, to 5:00 P.M. on said day.

4. Should the Committee find the challenge to be without merit, it may dispense with a hearing and reject the challenge in writing.

5. If, after reviewing the challenge, the Committee determines that the challenge sets forth substantial questions concerning the certification of any candidate or candidates, or the results of the election, the Committee may hold a formal hearing, virtually or in-person at the discretion of the Committee, to review the challenge.

6. All hearings under this Section H shall be scheduled upon prior notice to the challenger and to the candidate(s) whose qualifications, certifications, or election are being challenged.

7. The hearing shall commence no later than five (5) business days after the Committee’s receipt of the challenge. The Chairperson may request that a member of the Committee recuse him/herself from the hearing if such committee member has a conflict of interest.

8. Upon notice of a formal hearing by the Committee, the challenger or candidate whose certification is being challenged may submit electronic affidavits to the Chairperson, setting forth the charges and facts upon which the challenge is based. Such affidavits and supporting documents shall also be delivered by the challenging party, to the opposing party’s e-mail address, at least one day before the scheduled hearing.

9. At the hearing, either party may present live, or virtual testimony supporting the challenge, subject to cross-examination.

10. The proceedings shall be recorded; however, any person or party requesting a copy or transcript of any such recording shall be responsible for the costs of producing said recording or transcript.

11. No witness will be allowed to present testimony except under oath as administered by the Chairpersons. No witness will be called on behalf of a challenger, unless the challenger has submitted an affidavit from the witness prior to such testimony providing the sum and substance of the witness’ testimony and served said affidavit upon the Committee and the opposing party in the manner set forth above. The challenger(s) shall also be required to appear at such hearing and may be subject to examination by the Committee or the challenged candidate(s).

12. At any hearing, General Counsel to Riverbay, or an attorney designated by General Counsel, shall advise the Committee. Any candidate or resident participant shall be entitled to be represented at the hearing by counsel of his or her own choice at his or her own expense.

13. At such hearing, the Chairper-

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sons shall be the presiding ofﬁcer and shall make any ruling with respect to the procedure to be followed, or the testimony or evidence to be introduced. The Committee need not follow formal evidentiary rules applicable to the Courts of this State. In the event a member of the Committee present shall dispute any such procedural or evidentiary ruling by the Chairpersons, the Chairpersons may be overruled by a majority vote of those members present. After testimony by a witness for either party, the opposing party shall have the right to question the witness.

14. At the conclusion of such hearing, the Committee may uphold or void the election results, disqualify the candidate for a violation of these Rules, apply other sanctions as set forth in Paragraph G (1) of these Rules, or dismiss the charges brought. To void any election result, or to disqualify a candidate, such violation

must be deemed to be material by the Committee in light of the number of votes cast for the candidate and the number cast in the election.

15. If a candidate who is disqualified received one of the highest vote counts, the disqualified candidate shall be ineligible to take office. The candidate who received the next highest count will be certified to the Board in their place. (If more than one candidate is disqualified, the next candidate or candidates with the highest vote will be certified.)

16. The decision of the Committee shall be addressed to the Board, shall be in writing, shall state the basis for its recommendation, and shall constitute the Committee’s final certification of the election results, or the qualification of a candidate.

17. The Board, by majority vote, shall determine whether to conﬁrm or reject the Committee’s determination. The Board shall make such determination within ten (10) days of the date

Forum –––––– (Continued from page 14) now are empty all day long. We can have daycare programs in here. We can have programs for youths, okay? There’s a lot of things that we need to do here.

Idalia Reyes: Well, we have to start with bringing back the community, the conﬁdence in the community. If we can prove that, we can become resilient. But really, our youth is really going astray, and there’s not enough activities for them to get into, so they have a lot of downtime and they get into trouble. So, before anything else, and like you said, the train station is coming, but if we don’t keep ourselves together as a community, someone’s gonna take us over, because it’s an easy buy. And you know what? Again, the conﬁdence has to come. I’ve talked to a lot of people this past weekend at the block party, and a lot of them are like, “I don’t have faith,” “I don’t really want to vote,” “I don’t want to do any of that.” And I said, “We cannot do that, because we’re gonna lose. We have to become a unity in our community.”

Darnell Lopez: Keeping our community resilient and future ready. Number one, like all the other ones said, utilize our community. Deﬁnitely do collaboration. But what I want to touch on is basically the youth are our future. We need to invest in them. We need to create programs for their future. We have a high school right here. We need to create programs where there are slight internships to the best companies. The best companies do them now in other schools. We are the largest community. We can do those same things. We can dictate the future for our youth by these programs through workshops, through tech, through service, through coding. There’s so many different things that we can do to help our youth with what we already have.

Grace Solomon: Yes, some of the ways that I would be working to keep our community resilient and future ready would be taking a look at our ﬁnancial management, staying on top of providing updates to our shareholders and being transparent in regards to open communication. I am a grant writer, and I would be writing grants in order to keep money in our pockets and keep our community affordable. Also paying attention to the changes that’s coming in our future, such as our Metro-North Station, keeping full access for all of our constituents. And in addition to maintenance and building infrastructure, our buildings are sinking. We have to stay on top of it. And lastly, state-of-the-art technology and keeping our students and children ﬁrst.

Bishop Angelo Rosario: I think that it is important to ﬁnd a way to unite all the different groups that we have here, whether it’s the houses of worship that are here, the different organizations, to work together to be able to help the young adults that are here. We could do this. We have a lot of retirees here that have a lot of experience, a lot of knowledge that they’re just sitting back and can’t use it. We could be using them to be able to help our young people and help those parents that have children that are trying to bring them up here. Everything is not about money, it’s about volunteers. How do we volunteer to make sure that our community becomes stronger and that we can take care of each other. If we think about throwing money at everything, that’s what the

of any written recommendation of the Committee. The Board’s failure to determine the issue within ten (10) days shall, except for good cause shown, be deemed an acceptance of the Committee’s recommendation.

18. Any candidate or resident aggrieved by the Board’s ﬁnal determination shall have the right to seek judicial review of the Board’s determination, provided that any such Court challenge is commenced within ten (10) days of the Board’s decision, or within ten (10) days of the Board’s failure to render a decision.

19. The Committee may call for a recount of all ballots cast, if it is determined by the Committee that such an action is warranted. Such recount of the ballots must be completed, and the result certified by the Committee to the Board, within four days of the date the Committee determines such recount is necessary. The results of this recount, upon certification by the Committee, will constitute the final election results.

20. The Committee may call for a new election if the Committee has determined that material irregularities cast doubt on the election results, or in the event the number of votes cast did not constitute the legally required quorum. Such a new election must take place in accordance with these rules on a date within thirty (30) days after the ﬁnal decision on the challenge and such election held among the previously qualiﬁed candidates.

21. By participating in the election process, candidates, prospective candidates, shareholders, and their respective agents, representatives or supporters, agree to fully comply with and be bound by these election Rules.

Rod Saunders, President of Riverbay Corporation Date: June 4, 2025

government does. It does not work. The community is a family that works together and that can make changes. That is our future.

Leslie Peterson: I said it in the last forum, but since I’ve been on the board, I’ve been a proponent of having a youth center here, a youth center. I want there to be vocational training in that youth center for our youngsters and for things that are going to be, you know, prepare them for the future. The other thing that I want to make mention of is to make us future ready. We have a Board of Directors election coming up and we need to vote. But even more so, we need to vote; we need to go to precinct meetings; we need to go to community board meetings. We need to stay abreast of what’s going on in our community and around our community because people are coming and they’re making changes in our community that we don’t know about. We have a diamond here and if we want to keep the diamond, we need to become more engaged in what is going on and vote. Vote because your elections in your community are even more important than your national election.

Kevin Lambright: We have a lot of departments here in Riverbay itself. We should have an apprenticeship program for our youth, not only for our youth, but also there are seniors who are retired professionals here who have a lot of skillset that we are not taking advantage of. Some of them just want something to do and we can give them that and putting them together with some of our youth. Also, what we should do is open up for an auxiliary police department or a group of auxiliaries here in Co-op City that are trained, because we’re always talking about Public Safety. Public Safety sometimes there isn’t enough ofﬁcers. In the last 10 years, there haven’t been enough ofﬁcers. If we had auxiliary training that would help out a great deal. Also, a resource committee, a resource committee that puts money not only back into Riverbay, money that comes from outside, but also in the pockets of shareholders directly.

Anika Green-Watson: I think one of the ways we can make sure that we are being resilient and future-ready is to ensure our affordability and viability, which starts with investing in our two biggest assets, which personally, I think, are our property and our people. I’m part of the sandwich generation, so three generations of my family live here. So, step one is protecting what we already have. That’s... capital investments. Step two, I think, is protecting our shareholder interest. There’s no reason this room shouldn’t be overflowing. As my colleague mentioned, we’re in an election season, and our election is one of the easiest ways to make an investment in this community, via staffing the board with working directors, independent directors, who are gonna work on our behalf to keep this community going. And then step three, which a lot of people have mentioned already, my colleagues specifically, and I agree with, is make more investments into what’s to come. Leave something for the next generation. I believe we need a youth center, I believe we need vocational programs. After the final question, each candidate was then given one minute to present their closing statements.

135 Einstein Loop, Rm. 33, Bronx, NY 10475

Mateo 11:28: “Venid a mí todos los que estáis cansados... y te daré descanso.”

Paz de Dios sea con ustedes.

Iglesia Cristiana Marcos 16:15 les hace una cordial invitación a la comunidad hispana a congregarse con nosotros.

Si buscas una iglesia para adorar a nuestro Señor y Salvador, si te sientes solo, herido, deprimido, si necesitas liberación, nuestras puertas están abiertas para recibirte. Jesús está dispuesto y puede liberarte y sanarte. Al seguir a Jesús, nos liberamos del control del pecado y nos volvemos verdaderamente libres para vivir una vida de rectitud.

Isaías 41:10: “No temas, porque yo estoy contigo; no desmayes, porque yo soy tu Dios que te fortalezco; siempre te ayudaré; siempre te sustentaré con la diestra de mi justicia.”

Esperamos verlos los domingos. Nuestra iglesia está ubicada en el Centro Comunitario Einstein Loop 135, segundo piso, salón 33.

We Celebrate Juneteenth

Iglesia Cristiana Marcos 16:15

Servicios Ofrecidos

Lunes: Estudios Bíblicos Español/telefónico, 9 p.m. (564-888-5521; Código: 696248)

Martes/Viernes: Estudios Bíblicos Zoom, 8 p.m. (ID 3447367643; Código: 3jEJ2W)

Jueves: Estudios Bíblicos telefónico, Ingles/7 p.m. y en Español/9 p.m. (564-888-5521; Código: 696248)

Domingos: Culto de Adoración, 11:30 a.m. La Santa Cena es el 1er Domingo del mes. Que Dios le bendiga y recuerda que Cristo te ama. 135 Einstein Loop, Room 33, Bronx, NY 10475 Matthew 11:28: “Come to me, all who are weary... and I will give you rest.”

May the peace of the Lord be with you all.

Iglesia Cristiana Marcos 16:15 cordially invites the Hispanic community to come gather and worship with us.

If you are looking for a church to worship our Lord and Savior, if you feel alone, wounded, depressed, if you need liberation, our doors are open to receive you. Jesus is willing and able to free you and heal you. By becoming a follower of Je-

sus, one is freed from the control of sin and becomes truly free to live a life of righteousness.

Isaiah 41:10: “Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.”

We hope to see you on Sundays. Our church is located at 135 Einstein Loop Community Center, 2nd ﬂoor, Rm. 33.

Services Offered

Monday: Spanish Bible Studies/phone, 9 p.m. (564-888-5521; Code: 696248)

Tuesday / Friday: Zoom Bible Studies: 8 p.m. (ID 3447367643; Code: 3jEJ2W)

Thursday: Telephone Bible Studies: English/7 p.m. and in Spanish/9 p.m. (564-888-5521; Code: 696248)

Sundays: Worship Service, 11:30 a.m.

Holy Communion is the ﬁrst Sunday of the month.

God bless you and remember, Jesus loves you.

––Blanca Santana

African-American Association of Co-op City

Juneteenth is a powerful celebration of freedom and resilience, marking the day when the last enslaved African Americans in the United States were finally freed. It's a time to reflect on our ancestors' struggles and the long journey toward equality. As Black people, Juneteenth reminds us of our history, our strength, and the importance of community. Let's honor our heritage by embracing our culture, supporting one another, and continuing to push for justice and equality. Juneteenth is a celebration of our past, present, and future, and it's a moment to reaffirm our commitment to one another and to our collective freedom.

Join us on June 22nd when the AAACC will offer a programed celebration that stirs the souls of our ancestors. Won’t you come and experience this bliss with the African-American Association of Co-op City, aka the AAACC?

Excellence: Here in Our Own Neighborhood

The special guest speaker on Sunday, June 22, will be Professor Kaba Hiawatha Kamene. He earned his ﬁrst Masters of Art in World History from Hunter College, NY, (June 87) and received

his second Masters of Science in Educational Administration and Supervision, from City College of New York (Feb. 88). Professor Kaba Hiawatha Kamene is the bestselling author of “Honoring Professor William Leo Hansberry (1894-1965): An Intellectual Libation for the Architect of America's African Studies Department” and recognized as an internationally acclaimed Pan African Historian. He is also the star expert of the Hidden Colors documentary series, as well as the narrator of the international hit ﬁlm, Out of Darkness.

As an educator, consultant, curriculum and community developer. You don’t want to miss his address on Sunday, June 22. Credits: The African American Literature Book Club Coming Events!

Saturday, June 14 – Visit our table at the Coop City Fair, 12 p.m.-6 p.m.

Sunday, June 22 – 2nd Annual Juneteenth Celebration, 3 p.m., Dreiser Center, Auditorium C. Sunday, August 17 – Marcus Garvey Drum Circle Celebration, Section 1 Greenway or Dreiser, Rm. 15 (in case of rain).

Saturday, September 6 – Visit us at the Co-op

Retirees of Dreiser Loop

Greetings, retirees, and friends, Fellows, it is your turn to be celebrated. We wish all the fathers, grandfathers, and father-ﬁgures, a very Happy Father’s Day. As the saying goes, “anyone can be a father, but it takes a special man to be a dad.”

June Luncheon – Are you ready to party? Our June 18th luncheon at the Marina del Rey is just a few days away. If you are interested in purchasing a ticket (tickets are $110), please contact Daisy Young at 917-292-7010, as soon as possible.

Atlantic City – Seats are still available. Wednesday, July 9, a day trip to the Tropicana Casino. Tickets are $70 with a $15 slot-play giveback. The bus will pick up on Dreiser Loop, in front of H&R Block and will depart at 8 a.m. sharp. On our return, the bus will drop off at Einstein, Asch, and Dreiser Loop. Contact Serita for additional information at 347-564-5722.

Hunterdon Hills Playhouse – Seats are still available; Hampton, NJ, on Tuesday, September 16. Tickets are $160 and includes lunch and a show, “Never Too Late.” A $50 deposit is required now to hold a seat. The bus will pick up on Dreiser Loop in front of H&R Block and depart promptly at 9 a.m. Contact Serita at 347-564-5722 for additional information.

Happy Birthday – We wish all our June celebrants an incredibly happy birthday and continued peace and happiness throughout the year.

Condolences – Please continue to pray for all our bereaved members and their families.

Good and Welfare – We also ask that you continue to pray for those who are ill and/or shut-in. Please notify Lorraine Parker at 718-671-6403 of any member illnesses or deaths.

Membership Committee – Annual membership dues are $25. Personal checks payable to the “Retirees of Dreiser Loop” can be mailed to: Retirees of Dreiser Loop, 177 Dreiser Loop, Rm. 19, Bronx, NY 10475. Questions may be addressed to Mary at 718-655-9170.

General Meeting – Our general meetings will be suspended in July and August, for summer break. Meetings will resume in September, the date to be announced.

––Georgianna Rodriguez

City Fair, 12 p.m.-6 p.m.

Saturday, September 13 – Open Mic Fundraiser, 4 p.m.-8 p.m., Dreiser, Rm. 15

Sunday, September 21 – General Meeting, 3 p.m., Dreiser, Rm. 15

Saturday, October 11 – Open Mic Fundraiser, 4 p.m.-8 p.m.

Sunday, October 19 – General Meeting, 3 p.m., Dreiser, Rm. 15

AAACC Programs

Belly Dance Classes – Contact Xonia Wilson at 646-301-9438

Evening Line Dance Classes – Contact Cynthia Dixon at 917-903-7073

Co-op City Baptist Church “Gospel Line Dancers” – Contact Joyce Smith at 718-320-0714. AAACC Membership

$25/year for single membership and $35/year for family/household membership. Zelle your payment using our email address. Email: aaaccpower@gmail.com. Call: 646-883-9095. The African-American Association of Co-op City, P.O. Box 702, Co-op City Station, Bronx, NY 10475. ––Michelle Marbury

Building 28 Association

Our association meeting is Wednesday, June 18, at 7:30 p.m. Guest Speaker Julesa Grimes, a JASA case worker, will share information on SCRIE/Senior Citizen Rent Increase Exemption, DRIE/Disability Rent Increase Exemption, STAR and STAR Enhanced programs. 50/50 Rafﬂe and association dues, $10, will be collected.

Save The Dates

Annual Riverbay Board of Directors Election. Be on the lookout for your ballot in the mail. Voting period is: Monday, June 16 to Tuesday, July 8. Check out the Co-op City Times for more information. Remember: Every Vote Counts! Voting has consequences! If You Don’t Vote–Don’t Complain! Extended voting costs us more money. Let’s get it done ASAP. Early Voting for the Primary Election is June 14 to June 22 and the Early Voting Poll Site is: Co-op City Dreiser Loop Community Center – 177 Dreiser Loop. Primary Election Day is Tuesday, June 24, 6 a.m.-9 p.m.

Gentle Reminders

Compactor Room: All bagged garbage and trash is to be disposed of into the garbage chute, not on the floor. The recycling bag is for recycled items only. Newspapers are placed on the shelf. If you spill it or drop it, clean it/pick it up. Postings are on each floor, each compactor door, and inside the compactor room. Please follow directions to avoid community complaints and fines. Laundry Room Etiquette: Continue to respect our laundry room and your neighbors by getting your clothes on time (within 15-minute window) and maintaining a clean and healthy working space.

If You See Something, Say Something: For emergencies, call Co-op City Public Safety at 718-671-3050 and NYPD at 911. For non-emergencies, call 311. You can also call CCPD at their anonymous tip hotline: 718-879-6311. The secretary position is open, if interested, and if there are any suggestions for the association, please send an email to: building28association@gmail.com

––Brenda Brown

Stay Vigilant

Be mindful of your surroundings at all times.

Co-op City United Methodist Church/ IEMU de Co-op City

Open Doors, Open Hearts, and Open Minds

Come and Visit Us – We are a multi-ethnic and bilingual, Bible centered congregation with spirit-filled worship. Services are held in person at 2350 Palmer Avenue, across from Building 30. Parking is available. You can also participate with us via Zoom (904 4685745), or Facebook live (UMC Coop City). –Pastor, Rev. Sara Girón-Ortiz

“For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, ‘Abba, Father.” —Romans 8:14–16 (NIV)

Father’s Day is a time to honor and celebrate the vital role of fathers in our lives. It is also a powerful reminder of the ultimate Father—God Himself.

The passage above beautifully reminds us that through faith in Christ, believers are children of God. We are adopted into His family, and we share an intimate relationship with Him as our Father. Jesus, throughout the Gospels, called God “Our Father,” revealing the deeply personal and loving connection believers can have with Him. In the same way, we are invited into that relationship and called sons and daughters of the Most High.

It is truly awe-inspiring to reflect on the fact that we—undeserving sinners—can be redeemed, saved, and welcomed into God’s family. This gift of grace should fill our hearts with humility and gratitude. Let us give thanks to our Lord Jesus Christ, whose sacrifice on the cross changed our status forever and made our adoption into God’s family possible. Let us also thank the Holy Spirit, who dwells within us and enables us to cry out to God as a child calls out to a loving father — “Abba, Father.”

So, on this Father’s Day, let us lift our voices in praise and thanksgiving to our Holy Father in Heaven—the most loving and faithful Father of all. He is compassionate, steadfast, and endlessly caring. Even when we stray, He protects us, provides for us, and welcomes us back with open arms. Hallelujah! All praise be to God!

As we celebrate, we also pray a special blessing over all those who step into the role of a father. We encourage you to seek God's wisdom daily and to be led by the Holy Spirit. One of the greatest needs in our world today is for fathers who will rise up and embrace the God-given responsibility of leading their families in love, truth, and faith.

Come and Receive a Blessing: All are Welcome! Theme for 2025: “God’s Love in Action with Joy and Thanksgiving” Tuesday: Grief Share in Rm. 43, Einstein Community Center, 1 p.m. New Thursdays: Pantry and in-person prayer meeting at 11a.m. Upcoming Events – Save The Dates Sunday, June 15: Escuela Dominical at 10 a.m.

Bilingual Service at 11:15 a.m. and Father’s Day Celebration

––Grace Abadia

• Large Chapel on premises

Community Protestant Church

Rev. Dr. Calvin E. Owens and the Community Protestant Church family welcome you to worship with us. We are located at 2053 Asch Loop, Bronx, NY 10475. You may contact us by phone: 718-862-9172, fax: 718-671-4416 or email: Administration@thecpcchurch.org.

Worship Schedule

In-person Sunday Morning Worship, 11a.m.; Adult Sunday School, 9:15 a.m.

Every Wednesday: “Hour of Power Noon Day Prayer” – 12 p.m. on the conference call line: 712-432-3900; Access Code: 343284#.

Every Wednesday: 7 p.m. Online Bible Study via Zoom. Log in on Zoom.com or dial One Tap Mobile: 646-931-3860 or 929-205-6099; Meeting ID: 813 089 803 39.

Summer Worship Schedule

Sunday, July 6 – Sunday, September 7, worship begins at 10 a.m.

Adult Sunday School is on summer hiatus.

Sunday, September 14, 11 a.m., Worship and Adult Sunday School at 9:15 a.m.

Save the Date

Sunday, June 22: Men and Women’s Day

Sunday, July 20: Family & Friends Day BBQ

“God is Doing a New Thing.” Isaiah 43:18-19. That was the theme of our 56th Church Anniversary celebrated on June 1, and it was a grand affair. Members and friends accepted the assignment and donned navy outfits complimented with light blue accessories. It was a beautiful sight to see. We began with Praise and Worship testifying to the goodness of the Lord. We felt the warmth from Senior Usher Sharon Harris as she welcomed and greeted visitors including Sister Olive Glasgow, still spry at 101 years old. Trustee Synii Mann read our history highlighting the best from 1969. Sister Elaine McClain, dramatist extraordinaire, voiced her original poem “Changes.” In “What My Church Means to Me,” Deacon Frances Wilson, shared her experiences as a founder, an active member and officer. The CPC Choir led by Rev. Tyrone Richardson joyfully sang “We Give You Praise.” Our guest preacher was Rev. Jeffrey Crenshaw, Associate, New Mt. Zion Baptist Church, Harlem. The Bronxite delivered a relatable and energetic word, “Let Go and Let God,” taken from Mark 2:12, 18-22. Rev. Crenshaw declared in order for us to accept a new season, we have to block out the noise and hear what God is saying because He is still working miracles. Praise God! Thank you for your fellowship. Are you looking for a church home? We invite you to worship with us. Come explore and experience all the new possibilities at Community Protestant, a church of love and understanding.

Our sincere and heartfelt condolences are extended to all who are in a season of mourning. To our sick and homebound members, please know that we are praying mightily for you and for your speedy recovery. Our best Happy Birthday wishes to Sister Vashti Sanders, our Dorcas birthday shawl recipient, and everyone celebrating their special day this month. To Pastor and all of the amazing fathers of our church and community, Happy Father’s Day!

“Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past.” Isaiah 43:18

Lexa M. Mingo

Amid ongoing concerns about the Coronavirus COVID-19, McCall’s

The Church of St. Thomas The Apostle

177 Dreiser Loop, second floor, Rm. 2.

Greetings, in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. The congregation and clergy of St. Thomas invite you to worship with us. Jesus said, “For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.” (Matthew 18:20)

This Sunday is Trinity Sunday. On this day, we give thanks to God for all that he is and all that he has done in the unity of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The book of Revelation tells us about an age yet to come where our Lord will be praised continuously. We need not wait until we are with the angels to praise God continuously for even at this time we can recognize that “Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power” (Rev. 4:11)

Trinity Sunday, June 15th, 2025

● 11 a.m., Communion Service.

● Fellowship with light refreshments following the service.

Scripture Lessons:

● Revelation 4:2-11

● John 14:6,9,11, 10:30, 15:9,12,26,27, 13:35

Prayer: ALMIGHTY and everlasting God, who hast given unto us Thy servants by the confession of a true faith to acknowledge the glory of the eternal Trinity, and in the power of the Divine Majesty to worship the Unity; we pray Thee that Thou wouldest keep us steadfast in this knowledge, and evermore defend us from all error, who livest and reignest, one God, throughout all ages of ages. Amen.

––Rev. Dorian Miceli

Greetings, in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. The Church of the New Vision and Pastors Kenneth and Deborah Hodge welcome you to worship with us at 115 Einstein Loop North, Bronx, NY 10475. Church phone: 718-671-8746 and Pastor’s phone: 914-522-5039.

Our scripture verse for 2025 is: 2 Corinthians 2:14 KJV, “Now thanks be unto God, which always causes us to triumph in Christ and maketh manifest the savior of his knowledge by us in every place ”

Sunday School for Adults and Youths begin at 9:30 a.m.

Sunday service is at 11 a.m. All are welcome. Masks are required.

Fasting, prayer and meditation is the last Wednesday of each month.

God Meets Us In Our Mess

“When the angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon, he said, ‘The Lord is with you, mighty warrior.’”–Judges 6:12 (NIV)

When we first meet Gideon, he’s a hot mess. He’s not only living his life apart from God (he and his family were also worshiping idols) but he’s down in a winepress, afraid and hiding. What I love about Jesus is that He meets us in our mess. All other religions teach that, in order to reach “God” you’ve got to clean yourself up first. But Christianity is the only religion that teaches that no matter how “good” we think we are, we’ll never be good enough to reach God. This is why God reaches out to us through Jesus. Jesus meets us in our mess and there's no mess that He can’t clean up! Are you a hot mess right now? It’s time to cry out to Jesus, He's the only One who is able to clean you up and set you free! Join us this Sunday as we continue our teaching series in the Book of Judges!

About Us

Newsong Church is a life-giving church right

Church of the New Vision

Daily Noon Day Prayer Line – 12-12:30 p.m., Monday–Friday. Join us for Wednesday Night Bible study and prayer. The conference line number is 646-769-9900; Access Code: 3099388#. Please mute your phone.

Worship Message: “We Must Contend for the Faith.”

Service Scripture: Jude 3 KJV, “Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you, of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you, and exhort you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints.”

Save The Dates

June 15 – Father’s Day Service at 11 a.m.

June 28 – Councilman Kevin Riley hosts Summer Fun Day in Section 5. Visit our tables.

Newsong Church

here in Co-op City! We believe that every person can know God, find freedom, discover their purpose, and make a difference in this world! No matter what you’ve been through or where you come from, you are welcome here. Join us for Sunday worship and see why God’s family is no ordinary family. Check us out, we’re located at 135 Einstein Loop!

Sunday Worship Experience – Every Sunday at 11 a.m., our Sunday worship experience starts with celebration. We make music to please God and to build others up. Colossians 3:16 says, “Sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs to God with thankful hearts.” We sing to bring glory and honor to God and celebrate who He is and what He’s doing in our church!

Newsong Deaf Church, Rm. 35 – Our deaf worship experience is in ASL so that our deaf and hearing impaired can worship and fellowship in their own language!

Kidsong, Rm. 49 – We’ve created a place where children can have fun and learn about Jesus on their own level!

Co-op City Baptist Church

Rev. Dr. Sheldon E. Williams and the Co-op City Baptist Church family invite you to join us for Worship Service tomorrow at 8 a.m., in-person only and at 11 a.m. in-person and on Zoom. Sunday School classes for all ages will be held at 9:30 a.m. We are located at 135 Einstein Loop, Rm. 50 (lower level), Bronx, NY 10475. Telephone: 718-320-3774. Email: ccbc135@optimum.net or coopcitybc@gmail.com. Website: www.coopcitybaptistchurch.org Masks are optional.

The 11 a.m. service is also available on Zoom at https://us04web.zoom. us/j/9623430102 or Zoom Telephone Conference Line 646-568-7788; Meeting ID: 962 343 0102#; Password: 788175#. You can also go to YouTube, search for Co-op City Baptist Church, and watch us there.

The church’s free conference call line dial in number is 857-357-0254; Access Code is 660065#.

Rev. Williams asks everyone who calls into the Sunday Worship service to use Zoom through your computer or dial-in using the Zoom information shown above.

Today, Saturday, June 14, our Gospel Line Dance Class will be held from 10 a.m. until 12 noon in the Einstein Community Center, Rm. 35. There is no fee for this class. Come pray, dance and worship the Lord. Sis. Joyce Smith, Dance Instructor.

This Week’s Events: Wednesday Bible Study Classes will not be held this week. They will resume on Wednesday, June 25, at 1 p.m. and 5 p.m. Prayer Warriors Prayer Service on Thursday at 12 p.m. is on the church conference call line; Thursday at 2 p.m., the Circle of Grace Knit and Crochet Group will meet in person at the Church, in Rm. 51. Friday Mid-Morning Prayer Service at 10 a.m. and 7:30 p.m. are on the church conference call line.

Our Youth and Young Adult Ministry invites you to “Kingdom Agents Weekend.” Saturday, June 21, at 2 p.m., there will be a free concert in the Einstein Community Center, Rm. 45. Sunday, June 22, at 11 a.m., our Children’s Day Service will be held at the church. The guest preacher will be Min. Jermaine Antonetty. Everyone is invited.

The next CCBC Food Giveaway will be distributed on Friday, June 27, from 2 p.m. until 5 p.m. in front of the Einstein Community Center. Please remember to bring your own bag and perhaps a cart. Some products can be heavy.

“GOD is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.” Psalm 46:1

The Co-op City Baptist Church exists to glorify God and to establish a living community of people who follow the teachings of Jesus the Christ through worship, prayer, Bible Study and fellowship. We seek to meet the spiritual and physical needs of the church through ministry.

Marilyn C. Williams

June 8 – Senior, Family and Friends Sunday Service at 11 a.m. All are invited. Each one, bring one.

June 28 – Section Five Summer Fun Day sponsored by Councilman Kevin Riley.

August 9 – Family & Friends Picnic at Glenn Island Park. See ushers for parking permits.

Tuesday, August 12 – NOAH at Sight & Sound is sold out.

We continue to pray for speedy recovery for the sick and shut-in. Grace, mercy, strength, comfort, healing, and condolences to families who have lost loved ones and good health and wellness for all.

Please mail contributions, tithes and offerings to: Church of New Vision, P.O. Box 75-3037, Einstein Station, Bronx, New York 10475. Thank you.

––Brenda Brown

Against The Flow – Every Friday at 6:30 p.m. in Rm. 42. ATF is Newsong’s student ministry. Today’s middle and high school students will lead the next generation of the church and change the world. At ATF, our goal is to graduate students into a lifetime of following Jesus.

So, what are you waiting for? There’s a God in heaven who loves you and has a purpose and plan for your life! Do you live outside of Section 5? Remember, a church alive is worth the drive! Come and find hope. Come and find healing. Come and find freedom.

Mailing Address: 135 Einstein Loop, Rm. 42

Phone: 917-342-2559

Email: CentralTeam@newsongchurchnyc.org

Prayer Request Line: Text “Prayer” to 877899-7323

Website: www.newsongchurchnyc.org

Social Media: Facebook/IG/X: @newsongchurchbx; YouTube: Newsong Church NYC

—Pastor Mike Tolone

Congratulations!

Dr. Adeyemi LaCrown Oloruntoba, President of the Coalition of African-American Churches & Community Organizations of Co-op City, Inc., was honored with a Proclamation presented by NYC Councilman Kevin C. Riley at the Africa Day 2025 Celebration in the Council Chambers at City Hall on May 22, 2025. In attendance for the occasion were Coalition officers, Francine Jones (R), and Merville Chambers (L). Congratulations!

Building 2 Association

Community Comes Together at Building 2 Association’s May Meeting

The Building 2 Association welcomed residents to a dynamic and informative community meeting on Tuesday, May 20, with two distinguished guest speakers who addressed key issues impacting Co-op City.

Shekera Anessa Algarin opened the meeting with a presentation. As the June 24, Democratic Primary approaches, she urged residents to vote during the early voting period from June 14 to June 22.

Following Algarin, Joshua Blake, deputy general manager for Riverbay Cooperation, delivered critical updates on infrastructure and resident services. He addressed concerns related to parking garage maintenance and the efficiency of the work order process. Blake also announced the upcoming installation of the Amazon lockers for Building 2, aiming to streamline package delivery for residents. In a candid Q&A session, he offered actionable solutions and encouraged residents to stay engaged and to be vocal about community needs.

The Building 2 Association extends a heartfelt thanks to both speakers for their dedication and engagement. We are grateful for their time and commitment to strengthening our community needs.

Upcoming Events

Food Pantry Distribution – Saturday, June 21, 11:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m.

Checkmate Society’s Chess Club – Wednesday, June 25, 4 p.m.-7 p.m.

May Birthdays: Warm wishes to all who celebrated their birthdays this month. May your year be filled with joy, health, and happiness.

Together, let’s continue to building a stronger, more unified Co-op City.

Community Recognition of Excellence

The Building 2 Association cordially extends a “Job Well Done” to Ana Rivera, 2nd vice president, for decorating both lobbies so vibrantly. Your hard work and dedication is greatly appreciated.

Cheers to our graduates in June.

Adelina Martinez

Black Forum

Emergency Food Pantry

920 Baychester Ave., Bldg. 1A (opposite basketball court). The pantry is open on Thursday and Friday from 11 a.m.-12:45 p.m. for grocery distribution. Guests are eligible to pick up food once a month. All guests must present a pantry card, at least four to six clean shopping bags with handles and a shopping cart to receive food. We will not place food in black bags because they pose a safety hazard.

Section 5 guests should visit the Co-op City United Methodist Church at 2350 Palmer Avenue to pick up groceries. This distribution site is open Thursdays from 11 a.m.-1 p.m. The groceries are supplied by and distributed by Black Forum. Religious affiliation is not required. For the safety of our staff and other guests, mask-wearing is required when picking up food.

Our priority at Black Forum Emergency Food Pantry is to provide a safe and respectful environment for everyone accessing our services. To ensure the well-being of our staff, volunteers, and all guests, we have established guidelines for appropriate conduct. While we are committed to serving our community, we reserve the right to refuse service to anyone who engages in disruptive or aggressive behavior. We will also cease service if an individual poses a risk to the safety of our staff or other guests. We appreciate your understanding and cooperation in maintaining a positive and supportive atmosphere for everyone.

New Client Registration & Re-certification for Returners

New client registration and returning client re-certification for 2025 are now closed. Check back here for the latest information on registration and recertification dates. Thank you for your patience during the process this year.

Events

Take a peek at our exciting upcoming event. We'd love to see you there: Saturday, June 28: Get ready for a day of fun at Caesars Atlantic City Casino, NJ. The trip fee is $65. Casino Slot Play is $10. Payments are due by May 16.

Note: No refunds will be issued. For trip information only, please call 917209-5334 or 929-464-5520. All proceeds go to the Black Forum to support Co-op City through our Emergency Food Pantry. Contact Us – coopcityblackforum@gmail.com D. Illis

Building 6 Association

Happy Saturday, neighbors. I hope when you read this it finds you in good standing. Before we start with the pleasantries of June Father’s Day, Caribbean Heritage Month, graduations, Juneteenth, and Pride Month, the Building 6 neighbors would like to thank Riverbay Deputy Manager Joshua Blake for his leadership. Several neighbors have experienced flooding resulting in property damage. Riverbay personnel have been onsite to resolve these pressing matters.

Riverbay phones and emails have been offline for a time; hopefully this will be resolved soon.

Late Thursday night, a Black male was seen vandalizing the Pride banner in the lobby, defacing it with a racial slur. This type of behavior is unacceptable. Hate crimes are just that – hateful. CCPD was notified and hopefully running back the cameras, along with the assistance of neighbors giving the description, he will be caught and disciplined. We should respect all of Co-op City residents regardless of race, creed, religion, or sexual orientation. Neighbors showing up for one another is essential. This what CommUNITY is about.

Between the NYC-wide and the Riverbay Board of Directors elections, all Building 6 celebratory events have been postponed till further notice. Always look to your association bulletin board for announcements.

Early voting starts today, June 14, please go to NYCVotes to see your voting status and polling sites. A well-informed neighbor is the best neighbor.

Please keep up good laundry room etiquette. Never spray aerosols into the machine as they can ignite a fire. As always, if you see something, say something, call 718-671-3050 or dial 911. If you or anyone is experiencing a mental health crisis, dial 988, the hotline is available 24/7.

We all desire to live in a safe, clean, and harmonious environment. This is our home, let’s act like so. If you have a dilemma that you need assistance with, feel free to contact President Lassiter, 347-366-7690, or Vice President Centeno, 917-417-5709.

As always, I pray for safety over all. God speed.

“A community is like a ship; everyone ought to be prepared to take the helm.”

Lauren K. Lassiter

Pagado por Amigos de la Dra. Selma Bartholomew

JASA Co-op City NORC Program Invites You for These In-Person & Virtual Activities

Bartow OAC Shopping trips – Wegmans, 6/17; Trader Joe’s, 6/18; Walmart, 6/24; Stew Leonard’s, 6/25; and Costco, 6/27. Trips are $6, except for Walmart & Wegman’s, which are $12.

JASA closed on June 19 in celebration of Juneteenth.

Tentative dates for Acupuncture are July 16 & August 6 at 11 a.m., in the JASA NORC office. Call 718-320-2066.

Bartow OAC Apple Picking – Trip to OCHS Apple Orchard on Aug. 28. Price: $45, includes lunch.

Su Casa programming is back at Dreiser OAC. Please join us every Wed. at 1 p.m., until June 25, for a Caribbean & Dance workshop in Rm. 2.

Caringkind: The Heart of Alzheimer’s Care-

giving Rep. will be in the Bartow main office every third Monday of the month, 10 a.m.-1 p.m., for Alzheimer & Dementia Consultation/Health Care Proxy & Power of Attorney Consultation and other services. Please call 646-744-2921 for an appointment.

Technology Class – Thurs., 6:30-7:30 p.m. Dial in number: 929-205-6099; Meeting ID: 862 5043 9695; Passcode: 896989.

Steel Drum Classes – Wed., 1-3 p.m., NORC Office.

Notary JASA NORC Office – Weds. & Thurs., 10 a.m.-1 p.m. Call 718-320-2066 for an appointment.

Notary Dreiser OAC – Weds., 10 a.m.-1 p.m. Call 718-320-1345 for an appointment. Rm. 7

Beware of Telephone Scammers

If you receive a telephone call demanding immediate payment using a pre-paid card, wire transfer or bitcoin, even if your Caller ID identifies a legitimate business, HANG UP and report the call. Do not divulge personal information such as Social Security number, bank account number, date of birth or any other information. Be smart, be safe!

BARTOW CENTER CLOSED

Walk w/Odessa, 9:30-10:30

a.m.

Blood Pressure, 12-1 p.m., (1st & 3rd Tues.)

Health & Wellness w/Ann 11-12 p.m.

Smart Phone & Tablet Class w/ Julesa, 1:45-2:45 p.m.

Dinner Hour: 3-4:30 p.m.

JASA NORC OFFICE, new Zumba class every Tues., until June 17, at 11a.m.

June 18

Juneteenth Party

Arthritis Exercise w/Damion, 10 a.m.-11:15 a.m.

Mindful Mornings Tai Chi, 9-10 a.m.

Line Dance w/Sassy 10:30-11:30 a.m.

Book Club, 11 a.m.-12 p.m.

Ageless Facials & Self Care, 1-3 p.m. (Appointment only)

Movie w/Dennis: “Fruitvale Station,” 1 p.m.-3 p.m.

Trip: Ridgehill Mall

Never Too Old to Learn Spanish, 10-11 a.m., Rm. 35

Bridge to Care Arthritis Exercise w/ Damion, 11 a.m.-12 p.m., Rm. 45

Technology Lab w/ Steve, 1-2 p.m.

Hair Care 4 U, 9-11 a.m. (appt. only)

Stretch & Tone w/Ola 10 a.m.-11 a.m.

Bodies In Motion w/Ola 11 a.m.-12 p.m.

Tech w/KJ 1-2 p.m.

Board Games 1 p.m.-2 p.m.

Trip: City Island

Weekend Recap Discussion, 9-10 a.m. (twice a month)

Stay Well Exercise w/Denise, 10-11 a.m., Rm.2 Chair Yoga w/ Charles,10-11 a.m., (twice a month, Virtual)

Piano Sing Along, 11 a.m.-12 p.m., Rm.2 (twice a month)

Leisure TV, 11 a.m.-12 p.m.

Yoga Class w/ Adira,1:15-2:15 p.m., Rm. 2

Nutrition Presentation w/Amelia, 1:15-2:15 p.m., Meeting ID: 816 1164 3463; Passcode: dreiser23

Leisure TV, 2-4 p.m.

Current Events, 10-11 a.m.

Art w/ Gerry, 11 a.m.-12 p.m., Rm. 6

Leisure Games w/Clara, 1-3:30 p.m.

Zumba w/Ola, 1-2 p.m., Aud. A Tai Chi w/Jimmy, 2-3 p.m., Aud. A Computer & Tablet Class w/Ralph 6:30 p.m.-7:30 p.m. (Virtual)

Arthritis Exercise w/Damion, 11 a.m.-12 p.m., Aud. A

Caribbean Music & Dance Workshop w/ Juan, 1-2:15 p.m., Rm. 2

Technology Class w/Steve, 1:15-2:15 p.m. Drama Club, 1:30-3:30 p.m., Rm. 4

Sewing Class w/Joy, 9-11 a.m., Rm. 2

LUNCH & DINNER MENUS

Alternate Kosher Meals are available

LUNCH : KOSHER :Vegan Stuffed Peppers, Brown Rice, Roasted Eggplant; NON-KOSHER: Spanish Style Catfish, Chinese Style Spaghetti, Oriental Blend Vegetables

NO DINNER SERVED

LUNCH: KOSHER: Turkey Burger w/ Bun, Baked Red Potato Wedges; NON KOSHER: Aromatic Lentil Stew w/ Carrots & Turnips, White Rice, Steamed Cauliflower

DINNER: BARTOW ONLY

KOSHER:Turkey Burger w/ Bun, Baked Red Potato Wedges, Cabbage Slaw, Apple; NON KOSHER: Spanish Style Catfish, Chinese Style Spaghetti, Oriental Blend Vegetables, Apple

LUNCH: KOSHER: Beef Stew, Yellow Rice, California Blend Vegetables; NON KOSHER: Spanish Style Beef Stew, Mashed Potatoes, Vegetables Mix

DINNER: BARTOW ONLY

KOSHER Beef Stew, Yellow Rice, California Blend Vegetables, Banana; NON-KOSHER: Jerk Chicken, Black Bean & Rice, Steamed Broccoli, Banana

Visual Arts w/Laura via Zoom 10 a.m.-12 p.m.

Visual Arts, 10 a.m.-12 p.m.

JASA Closed in celebration of Juneteenth

Knitting/Crocheting with Lynne and Betty, 11 a.m.-12:30 p.m.

Card Games with Frankie, 1 p.m.-2 p.m.

Dinner Hour, 3 p.m.-4:30 p.m.

Massage Therapy, 10 a.m.-12 p.m.

Manicure, 10:30 a.m-12 p.m.

Line Dance with Cynthia, 12:30 p.m.-1:45 p.m.

Drama Club w/Dazee Windley 2 p.m.-4:30 p.m., in Bartow OAC, Rm.31

Dinner Hour, 3 p.m.-4:30 p.m.

Intergenerational Arts & Crafts w/Denise, 10 a.m.-12 p.m.

Salsa with Rasheem,10 a.m.11 a.m., Dreiser, 2nd floor Word Games

10:30 a.m.-11:30 a.m.

Bingo on Saturdays

1:30-3:30 p.m. in the back of JASA NORC Of fice

Salsa Dancing w/George, 12-1 p.m.

JASA Closed in celebration of Juneteenth

Chit Chat, 1 p.m.-2 p.m. Fit for Life Exercise w/Gail, 1-2 p.m.

Coloring for Calmness, 9:30-10:30 a.m

Su Casa Art w/Tijay, 10 a.m.-12 p.m.

Chess Club, 10 a.m.-12 p.m.

Blood Pressure Screening

10:30 a.m.-12 p.m.

June Birthday Celebration & Art

Exhibit, 11 a.m.-2 p.m.

Health & Wellness 2.0-Self Care Journey, 11 a.m.-12 p.m.

Let’s Get It on Zumba, 1 p.m.-2 p.m.

Manicure Services, 10-11:30 a.m. (twice a month)

Cardio Exercise w/Gail, 11 a.m.12 p.m., Aud. A Body in Motion w/Ola, 1-2 p.m., Aud.A

JASA Closed in celebration of Juneteenth

Leisure Games w/Clara, 1-3:30 p.m., Rm. 2

Coney Island Beach/Boardwalk, 10 a.m.-3 p.m.

Sewing Class w/Joy, 9-11 a.m., Rm. 2

Knitting /Crocheting w/Loretta 10-12 p.m.

Alert & Alive w/Cathy & Essie, 10-11 a.m., Rm. 4

Line Dance w/Sassy, 11 a.m.-12 p.m., Aud. A Bingo, 1-2:50 p.m.

Menu fee for lunch is $2 & $5 for guest. ALL meals served with margarine and fresh milk. Menu subject to change without notice. For information, please call: (718) 320-2066. Schedule subject to change without notice.

Payments for trips can be made where noted, Mon.–Fri., 9 a.m.-12 p.m. and 2-4 p.m. only.

Funded by: The NYC Department for the Aging, the NYS Office for the Aging and Riverbay Corporation

Must be 60 or older to become a JASA participant.

LUNCH: KOSHER: Beef Stew, Garlic Mashed Potatoes, Prince Edward Blend Vegetables; NON KOSHER: Beef Meatballs w/ Sofrito/Pasta, Baby Carrots & Parsley

DINNER: BARTOW ONLY

JASA Closed in celebration of Juneteenth

KOSHER: Grilled Chciken Breast, Garlic Mashed Potatoes, Green Bean Salad, Orange; NON-KOSHER: Black Bean w/ Sweet Potato Chilli, Brown Rice, Steamed Green Beans, Apple

LUNCH : KOSHER: Chicken Legs w/Stewed Tomatoes, Bowtie Pasta w/Kasha, Sautéed Green Beans w/ Onions; NON-KOSHER: Coconut Breaded Fish, Brown Rice, Quinoa, Sautéed Spinach

DINNER: BARTOW ONLY

KOSHER: Chicken w/Stewed Tomatoes, Bowtie Pasta, Sautéed Green Beans w/Onions, Pear (10 Grab & Go); NON-KOSHER: Spanish Style Beef Stew, Homemade Mashed Potatoes, Mixed Vegetables, Apple

Saturday: Lunch served at 12:30 p.m. until finished: BARTOW ONLY

KOSHER: Vegetarian Stuffed Cabbage, Garlic Mashed Potatoes, Beet Salad, Applesauce; NON-KOSHER: Homemade Coconut Breaded Fish, Brown rice/ Quinoa, Sautéed Spinach, Orange

Traditional Synagogue of Co-op City

The synagogue would appreciate donations to keep our shul open. If you would like to help, go to www.Gofundme.com/Traditional-Synagogue-of-Co-op-City to donate, or mail to The Traditional Synagogue located in Section 5, 120 Erdman Place in the rear lobby of 27B.

The synagogue has services on Saturday morning starting at 10 a.m. After service, we serve hot/cold kiddush meal. Entrance to our synagogue for Saturday services is on the side door of Building 27B.

General Information: The Traditional Synagogue located in Section 5, 120 Erdman Place in the rear lobby of 27B. It is on the ground floor and is handicap accessible, with no steps. Phone #: 718-379-6920. Office hours are Thursday and Sunday from 12 p.m. to 2 p.m. Please call the office before you attempt to come over. If no one is in the office, please leave a message. The synagogue has a Facebook page: “Traditional Synagogue.”

The synagogue needs donations. Whatever amount you can donate, big or small, would help. The synagogue needs men, to help make a minyan. There are a lot of Jewish men who live in Co-op City who do not come to services. Please come by 10 a.m., so we can take out the Torah.

The Traditional Synagogue is the only synagogue in Co-op City.

Sabbath ends on Saturday, June 14, at 9:20 p.m.

Candle Lighting for Friday, June 13, at 8:10 p.m.

Good and Welfare: The congregation welcomes donations in honor or memory of a loved one. Any amount is greatly appreciated. For information about the congregation and its services, please call 646-285-1206.

To all Members: Happy Birthday to all other members who will be celebrating their birthday in June, please send me your name and I will add it to the list.

Fun and Games: After services and kiddush, members play games. Your support for the Traditional Synagogue, is greatly appreciated. Wishing all our members and friends peace and good health.

–Bruce Gitelson

St. Joseph’s Episcopal Anglican Church

St. Joseph’s is located at 155 Dreiser Loop, lower level, Co-op City, Bronx, NY 10475. Email: stjosephsepc@aol.com. Church phone number: 718-320-0844. Priest-in-charge: Fr. Simeon Johnson, cell phone: 917-227-4303.

In-person worship service for The First Sunday after Pentecost: Trinity Sunday, will be conducted by Father Simeon Johnson at the church on Sunday, June 15, at 9 a.m. as well as via teleconference. It is also a day when we celebrate fathers.

Please remember to tune in for the daily noonday prayer service. To participate by teleconference, dial 1-425-436-6344, Access Code: 509898, followed by the # sign.

Pledge Cards for 2025 are still available. Please collect, complete, and return yours to the church as soon as possible. We know that you want to help your church, so it is on these cards that you tell us about your areas of interest and expertise.

Events and Fundraising Activities

June 15: Father’s Day. All fathers are welcome at our 9 a.m. church service.

June 28: Winery Trip to Pindar Vineyards in Long Island, sit-down luncheon at the Cooperage Inn and discount shopping at the Tanger Outlets; $160 per person; $50 to hold your seat. The balance of $110 is due by June 15, after which there will be no refunds. The bus departs at 8:30 a.m. from in front of the Rehab Center, 177 Dreiser Loop, Co-op City. For more infor-

mation, please contact Sheila at 718-320-0844 or 718-320-2654. If no answer, please leave a detailed message.

August 15: The Episcopal Church Women (ECW) of St. Joseph’s are having an Essex Steam Train & Riverboat Ride to Connecticut (luncheon included) on Friday, August 15. The bus departs promptly at 8 a.m. from in front of the Rehab Center, 177 Dreiser Loop, Co-op City. Donation: $165 per person. Deposit of $50 due as soon as possible with the balance of $110 due by July 25, after which there will be no refunds. Contact: Valrie at 718-320-0844 or 347-200-5850. If no answer, please leave a detailed message.

Condolences: Our thoughts and prayers go out to all our bereaved members, families and friends who have recently lost loved ones. Please remember to keep them in your prayers.

Sick and Shut-in: We extend our well wishes and prayers for a speedy recovery. If possible, please visit them, call them on the phone or send them a card.

Birthday Greetings: Best wishes and blessings to everyone celebrating a birthday this month.

We continue to collect food (cans and dry goods) for the pantry at Grace Episcopal Church, West Farms. If you can, please contribute to those in need.

Grace and Peace!

Merville Chambers

Circle of Christ Church Iglesia Circulo de Cristo

Your Name Shall Be We are born with different characteristics and as we mature, they begin to form our personality. However, our families will sometimes burden us with names or assume things about us that diminish our personhood. Whatever you were called is changed by God!

The angel changes Jacob from deceiver/supplanter to Prince with God.

Genesis 32:27, “The man asked, ‘What is your name?’ ‘Jacob’ (grasps heel/ deceiver), he answered. Then the man said, ‘Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel (Struggles with God/Prince with God), because you have struggled with God and with humans and have overcome.’”

The deceiver, grasper, supplanter encounters God in his wilderness and enters into conflict with him. He becomes bold in his desperation and is changed by God. He no longer grasps at things but grabs onto God. He stops being a deceiver and becomes a Prince with God.

Jacob does not allow Benjamin to be wrongly named.

Genesis 35:16-18, “Then they moved on from Bethel. While they were still some distance from Ephrath, Rachel began to give birth and had great difficulty. As she was having great difficulty in childbirth, the midwife said to her, ‘Don’t despair, for you have another son.’ As she breathed her last, for she was dying, she named her son Ben-Oni (Son of my Trouble), But his father named him Benjamin (Son of my right hand).”

Rachel in her agony imposes upon her son her trouble and despair. She burdens him with her negative situation for a lifetime! Jacob, now Israel, remembers how his name trapped him in sin and he quickly prevents and reverses the curse of a misplaced name.

The negative power of Jabez’s name is turned around by God’s authority.

1 Chronicles 4:9-10, “Jabez was more honorable than his brothers. His mother had named him Jabez, saying, I gave birth to him in pain. (Jabez sounds like Hebrew for pain). Jabez cried out to the God of Israel, ‘Oh, that you would bless me and enlarge my territory! Let your hand be with me, and keep me from harm so that I will be free from pain.’ And God granted his request.”

Here we again see how one person’s pain leads another into prolonged suffering. His mother, focused on her pain, drags him into her personality and diminishes his capacity to detach from her. He cries out to God to remove the name and God grants him success.

Schedule (147 Dreiser Loop)

First Sunday of the month, Bilingual Communion Service is at 10:30 a.m.

Sunday: Spanish Service at 9:30 a.m. & English Service at 11:30 a.m.

Tuesday: Prayer at 10 a.m.

Wednesday: Nonperishable food distribution, 12-2 p.m.

Thursday: Prayer/Bible Study, 6:30-8 p.m.

Friday: Youth Service, 6:30-9 p.m.

Saturday: Women’s Fellowship, second Saturday, 12-3 p.m.

Young Adults, third Saturday, 12-3 p.m.

Men’s Fellowship, fourth Saturday, 12-3 p.m.

Blessings in Christ, ––Pastor Luis F. Ramos Jr.