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HUMANS OF

Humans of Hudson Guild Copyright © 2023 by Renee Cai and Hudson Guild All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in whole or in part, or stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted or copied in any form or by any means, electronic or otherwise, without the written permission of the author. Photographs by Renee Cai, Kylan Huang, Maya Inaltong, Joshua Glazer, Alexis Schultz, Malia-Fay Vazquez, and Alicia Zheng Book design by Toshiya Masuda

EDITED BY RENEE CAI

INTRODUCTION

created the Humans of Hudson Guild project in November of 2022 to celebrate Hudson Guild’s special community and the unique stories of its members. Inspired by Brandon Stanton’s popular book, Humans of New York, the pages that follow include memorable profiles of just some of the

many people, young and old, who represent its diverse membership. My hope is that sharing their profiles will give a snapshot of the immense love, support, and gratitude within the community. Over the course of three days in January, our volunteer team of five

high school students from Avenues: The World School conducted interviews and took photographs. Each participant was asked to tell us a little about their background, what their favorite things are, and what makes them happy. In addition, older interviewees were asked to share some advice for younger generations. I am very excited to share this inaugural issue of Humans of Hudson Guild. I look forward to continuing to expand our group of volunteers and to meeting more members of the Hudson Guild community. We are committed to continuing our contribution to Hudson Guild’s important mission of fostering a strong neighborhood community and empowering environment for those who live, learn, and work in and around Chelsea, especially those in need. Happy reading! — Renee Cai Founder and Editor

Kids of Hudson Guild 6

“I

want to be a teacher when I grow up because I love teaching my sister how to do her homework. She doesn’t do her homework a lot. I like doing

homework. It’s my favorite thing in the world! “When I grow older, I want to eat out somewhere nice! I want to get my own car! Red is my favorite color. I really like to do the splits! “Guess what? My mom’s sister lets me eat ice cream, and my mom too! “I want a cute cat. Fat cats aren’t cute, they are ugly! I have a cat, and my cat is having babies! Ahhh! “I like to play with Play-Doh. It’s so squishy. I like playing with toy pizza. My favorite food is Pasta! There’s no spaghetti toys.”

Zo e 8

“I

don’t like being six. I don’t want to grow up. I don’t want to go to a different grade. I don’t

want to do a lot of homework.

Alicia

“I like some of my friends here. We have a lot of different people. “I want to be a police woman, and a doctor, and a detective when I grow up! I like to help people. “I have my first baby brother. But he hasn’t come out yet. He’s gonna come out on my birthday! My baby brother is zero years old! I’m gonna teach him how to walk! I’m gonna be bigger than him! He’s gonna be a chubby baby! “Sleeping really makes me happy. I smile when I sleep. I really like to crack my bones! I also like to play on my phone! My favorite game is Minecraft.”

“W

ell, I’d rather be a single digit. I don’t wanna grow

up. I don’t wanna grow up because then one day we’re officially not gonna be here.”

Yesilee 10

“I

like to play with my sister. I like to play with her dogs. What makes me happy is my family. We like to hang out with each

other and watch movies. I like to watch minions. I like pasta. I like every pasta. My favorite animal is a zebra because it has different patterns on it. My favorite

Abigail

“W

hat makes you happy?

color is black. It’s festive. I want to be a superhero. I want to fly. I like to read. I

Angely

like story books.”

If my mom could be happy. I love my mom so much.

“I like to play hula hoops! I like spinning around. I like strawberries. And pineapple. I want to be a mom when I grow up. I want to be a mom and a sister. Because my mom has a sister. I like my mom’s sister because she loves me so much. Only sometimes my mom lets me eat ice cream. My favorite kind of ice cream is chocolate. My favorite kind of cake is chocolate. I like anything chocolate. I want a baby cat for my birthday! I want a cute, cute little cat.”

“I

“W

With invisibility, you can hide in stores! With flight you can

Argentina? If I had a superpower, I

travel around the world. I would go to Miami and Connecticut.

would want flight or teleportation!

like playing video games. It keeps me from arguing with my sister. Every Christmas we bake cookies. My favorite kind of cookie is chocolate chip. Chocolate chips are the best thing in the world.

e watched the world cup. My brother and I turned on the

TV and saw that one of the football

“If I had a superpower, I would want to have invisibility or flight.

players won. I think he was from

Whenever I’m at school I can just “I like to play the drums and beatbox. I like to play “Blind” by

teleport home! In May I’m going to

SZA. I play the clean version, of course. “I love being at Hudson

Boston with my family for my mom’s

Guild. I love playing and doing karate. I like to play squash and go

birthday. I also want to go to Mexico

outside, and they help us out with our homework. ”

and Puerto Rico.

— Isa ac

“I like helping my mom with her cooking. One time I helped her make pancakes. My favorite cookies are oreos. My favorite candy is Starbursts! Red is my favorite flavor. And the pink flavor. I also like singing ‘I wanna wish you a Merry Christmas.’”

—Isab el

“M

y favorite soccer player is Pelé. If I could have a superpower, my superpower would be mind reading. And what if someone

says something I don’t want to know? Like ‘I really, really, really hate Jayden?’ Then I would know!’”

— Ja yd e n

Adults of Hudson Guild 18

“I

grew up in Taiwan. My daughter came here for high school. For me, the transition was pretty easy. Even when I was in Taiwan, I would travel to many different countries like Japan, Hong Kong, Thailand, Malaysia, India… so I know how countries differ. So far, New York has been the best place I’ve lived in. You can lead a very quiet life but the city is so rich. There are museums and so much history. I hate the subway, though. I still don’t like it. But the bus. I know how to take the bus. I walk a lot too. It’s a very convenient city. When I was in New Jersey, I used to drive everywhere. But here, I don’t need to drive, and I can go anywhere I want. That’s why New York is the best city. “I go to libraries, I come to Hudson Guild —all the staff here are very generous and take good care of all of us. I also go to South Street Seaport. I just sit down and watch the people. I like crochet and knitting and making jewelry. There’s really so many things to do. I keep myself busy, so I don’t go crazy. “My advice for the younger generation is to continuously reach for everything and learn as much as you can. Your parents won’t live forever. When you learn something, reach for it. Not just for money, but for your spirit. Try to be patient with older people. We open the door for younger people and they don’t say thank you. That’s courtesy. They need to appreciate that their parents are working hard for them to learn and go to school. It’s rewarding to give a little back and help older people —to have a loving heart. Only time can really teach you this. You learn something from us, and we learn something from you too. We don’t know how to use computers or smartphones, but now we have a class that teaches us how to use these devices. I can send an email now. I can send a picture to my loved ones. Accept new things. Old people should not be stuck in the past thinking that the future is too hard. If you don’t try, you’ll never know. After you try, you know, ‘Hey, I’m able to do that.’ “I’m old inside, but on the inside I’m young! I have a young heart!”

Alice 20

“I

grew up all around the country. My dad was in the navy so we lived in all four time zones. We lived everywhere we could live. I don’t think living in that many places influenced me, frankly. It’s perhaps more interesting than staying in just one place. But I don’t have fascinating stories about the west or the east or the north or the south, it’s just the way it was. I didn’t think a whole lot about it. The only downside was not having friends. The minute I made a friend, we moved, and that friend was gone. I was constantly making new friends but never keeping any of them. My sister certainly thinks that we are closer, she and I, because of how we grew up. I have a brother too. My family talks a lot about how much we moved around and reminisces about how different South Carolina was from Las Vegas. For some reason, for me, I just don’t focus on those things. I finally settled down when I came to New York, fifty years ago. The arts, culture, activity—all the things to see and do—brought me to New York. You can’t exhaust New York. I’ve been to a lot of places, but New York seemed the most promising. We came here when the World’s Fair happened in the 60s, so I got a good close-up view while we here, and thought this place really should work for me, and it did. I was at student at Columbia and then I got a job in book publishing and stayed in publishing. I’ve always been interested in literature and language. “I like to read a wide variety of things, especially fiction. Classics, too. I’ve never really had a role model. *laughs* isn’t that a shame? I’ve met people that I’ve learned from but that’s very different than having some sort of role model out there who inspired you. I know a lot of people do have that and it’s valid and legitimate, but for me, it was always people who I knew who were valuable and good to know and enhanced my life, and I enhanced theirs, I think. I like the lunches and the gathering of friends at Hudson Guild. “There’s something nice about just being able to sit and chat with people you’ve known for

Rob

a long time. That’s the case here. Tim, James, John—it’s all people we know and have known for a long time. This makes me happy. I still go to the arts, and that still brings me joy, but it’s a bit different now. When you get older it has a different effect, but it’s still very much there. I go to the theater and museums and all the things New York has to offer. I’m lucky in that I’m still able to do everything. A number of people I know, when you get older, some people die—I hate to put it like that—when you get to your seventies, you start losing people, which is amazing because you never expect it, and then it happens and oh my god. But a few of us get lucky. I’m really very lucky. I have no significant health issues. And health is everything. That’s really the one thing we learn. Health is really everything. If you have it, you can get anything you don’t have, but if you don’t have it, it really doesn’t matter what you do have. If you don’t have your health—I see young people smoking, for example, and it just kills me. Really? You think you can get away with that forever? You don’t think it’s gonna matter? “I’m not looking forward to a lot. I’ve really got what I wanted. I have enough money so that I’m comfortable, a rent-stabilized apartment, and I have my health. I have a place to live and I have people I know, and it’s all working out pretty well. “My piece of advice for the younger generation is to plan. Really, plan. I see so many people of my generation that didn’t plan and now they’re not coping as a result. Many of them live from social security check to social security check but that’s no way to live. It’s not enough money. And they barely get by. You have to plan and determine that you’re gonna have savings, so you won’t be in trouble later on. But I think a lot of older people give that advice, sometimes in a different way from me. They’ll tell people, ‘Plan because I didn’t, and I’m seeing how bad it is for me.’ You should save some money and have a career path. Don’t just go job to job and wing it. Boy, at the end of the day, you’ll be sorry. I had a career path and I was always planning ahead, and it worked for me. Of course, I was lucky. You can do all that and not get lucky with your health. I know that. You can get cancer out of nowhere and get a heart problem out of nowhere, even though you’ve been good about diet and exercise and the rest. It’s hard to say. But that would be for me the advice I’d give to anybody. Plan. Think about it. Don’t end up at sixty-five or seventy with no money, and with bad health because you didn’t take care of yourself! Easier said than done, but needs to be said.”

“I

studied music and piano a long time ago. I like music very much. I have an ear for it and pick it up on my own. I definitely appreciate good music. “I have a good eye too. I’m not an artist, but I like colors. Colors make me happy.

Ann

“I was a bookkeeper for many years. I was lucky to work for Columbia University. Everyone was really nice.

“My advice to young people is to enjoy life while you can and be true to yourself. Know what your limitations are and know just to breathe. And go to church and sing. “We need each other more than ever, and I think it’s important that we surround ourselves with good people whenever we have the opportunity.”

“T

ry to have a group of friends that are strong. It’s very important, I’m serious. Just have some good friends, at least two good friends. Honey, when you’re down and out, it’s absolutely important. And especially people that have drug problems. One of the best things you could ever tell if you have anybody or any friends that are having problems, go to AA. It’s the best goddamn thing going. “I asked a girl the other day, ‘What do you really wanna do? Do you really want to be doing this cleaning?’ And she said she wants to be a nurse. I said, ‘Go for it. You have to go for something that you really want to do.’ “When I was growing up, we had fun. We went dancing at discos. Oh, that’s nice. You know, it was laughter.

Benedetta

“Cause Chelsea was a hidden gem. I always said that about Chelsea. I was surprised the area was not developed much sooner because it’s near everything, you’ve got the bus, you’ve got the train, you have everything near you. It’s a centrally located place and there’s a lot of good people “My advice is to try to be good to other people. That’s the main thing I would say to you, because I don’t see that anymore.”

The food. Everything. New York City is so busy and has a lot to offer, but sometimes, it’s a little bit too much, especially for older adults. Everybody is tough on each other. Everybody is in a hurry. I’m hoping to get myself into a senior community, and my daughter and my grandchildren will help me out here and there. But I want to remain independent. I love to go to the beach and sit and listen to the waves and take in the smell of the sea. It reminds me of my home in Puerto Rico.

Maria Isabel

“I

grew up in Puerto Rico with nine brothers and sisters. I have very fond memories of my childhood. My family makes me happy. I had a wonderful father who went to work every day, maybe making a dollar a day. I never lacked things like food and clothing. My mother was always around and my brothers were very protective of me. I was definitely a tomboy though. I remember climbing up the trees in our neighbor’s backyard and steal their fruit. “When I was a young adult. I went to live in Europe and then Mexico, and then went back to Puerto Rico. My favorite place was Spain. I loved everything about Spain—the people, the food, everything. It helped that I speak the language. “I’m looking forward to moving to South Carolina to be with my family. When I went to my grandson’s wedding, life was much better out there. There is so much nature. The beaches.

“The best days of my life were when my daughter and son were born. Those two days will always be special to me. My son is in business and works in real estate. My two granddaughters are going to college. I look at my grandchildren differently than I look at my children. When I was raising my son and my daughter, I was too busy running around. Now, when it comes to my grandchildren, I have all the time in the world. When they are with me, that time is for them. “My first job was in housekeeping. My favorite pastime is sewing. I like to read a lot of history. I like history because it brings you back in time. I like to picture those days. My favorite song is “You are the wind beneath my wings” by Bette Midler. “I just turned eight-two. When I look back, and I am content with my life. When I die, I think I will leave a legacy, because in my younger days, I did a lot. I was also an activist. I think I accomplished a lot. “My advice to the younger generation would be to take it easy. You need to take the time to enjoy life. Don’t take chances, don’t try to be a wise guy or a know-it-all. You have a lot to learn from most older people.”

“I

grew up in the Dominican Republic. I came here when I was sixteen years old. I’ve been in New York City for fifty-five years. We all come here for some reason. My first job was being a delivery boy. I liked it. It was in 1969. “I used to work on tenth avenue. There used to be many stores, back-to-back. Now there’s so many new buildings. Everything has changed. “I played baseball, I was pretty good. I loved baseball.”

Hermogeno

“I

grew up on the island of Trinidad and Tobago. I came here when I was fortytwo years old. Now I’m seventy-seven years old. Growing up there made me want to see all parts of the world. I love to travel. Because I grew up in the islands of Trinidad and Tobago, I always had that urge to see all of the countries and all of the places, new places. “My first job was working in the Ministry of Education in Trinidad and Tobago.

Patsy 28

“My favorite activity is sports. I used to play basketball. I also used to play something very similar to baseball in the islands. “I love reading. I’m all for fiction. I do like Jackie Collins and Stephen King. I like the suspense.

“Who is someone important to you? Myself! *laughs* Myself. The reason I say that is because I’m not married, I’m divorced, I have no kids and I’m getting older. So I have to make myself important to me. The important thing to me is reading. Because reading and understanding will help you concentrate and stay focused. “In my culture, the music that I grew up with really, is Trinidad and Tobago steel bands. I listen to that sometimes. The best time to listen is during what we call the “Carnival,” when you have bands and parades and people in beautiful costumes. That will be on the 20th and 21st of February. It is fantastic. Everyone should see it and enjoy it and experience it, I should say. “When I travel, I like to look at the different foods in the places I visit. I went to Guyana recently, and they have something that I like that is a combination of different meats that they took with a special sauce called “cassareep”. It is really delicious. I also love the Portuguese “piri-piri” sauce. I love Guyana. Everywhere you go, you can see water and land. You come here you see a canal, with water, and beyond that canal over there you have houses. That is one of the reasons why they call it the “land of many waters.” The other place I love is Saint Lucia. I love Saint Lucia because the scenery is out of this world. The waters are blue and the people are so friendly and hospitable. So I love that. Seeing these two places made me want to travel more. The next place I want to go is Hawaii. I would also really like to go to London and Europe. “The best day of my life is when I get married. Unfortunately, it did not last. January 4th would have been 54 years married. I was really, really, really happy. So that was the happiest day of my life. “I love the Fourth of July. I love it. In Trinidad, Christmas is a big thing. We celebrate with Spanish music and we have music competitions among different villages. We have Christmas carols and just visit neighbors. People go house to house on their island. They have cake and ginger beer. It’s really, really nice. “What I have heard—I have not been there in over twenty years—that it is not like when I was there anymore. It’s slowly dying now. There is crime and you can’t trust people. You don’t know who will come into your home.”

Volunteers of Hudson Guild Joshua Glazer ‘25

I am a born and raised New Yorker with a passion for exploration, learning, and debate. I love playing baseball and golf, singing and playing musical instruments, and getting to meet new people. A few fun facts about me are that I am fluent in Spanish, I can name all of the countries and capitals of the world, and I love country music.

Maya Inaltong ‘28

I love reading and writing, as well as chemistry, math, and other STEM-related subjects. Outside of school, I enjoy listening to music, running, and exploring new places in the city!

Alexis Schultz ‘25

I am a student in the Mastery program at Avenues: The World School. I enjoy writing and making films, hiking, and playing tennis. I am also a huge fan of Seth Rogen. :)

Kylan Huang ‘26

I love all things mathematics, whether I’m reading textbooks, solving problems with others, or attending math competitions. I’m also a student and a teacher’s assistant at MathM-Addicts, a weekend mathematics program that serves low-income families. My primary hobbies include chess and playing the piano, and solving Wordle!

Malia-Fay Vazquez ‘25

I grew up two buildings away from Hudson Guild in NYCHA Elliott/Chelsea Houses, which makes this a particularly personal and exciting project and collaboration for me! I enjoy telling impactful stories and interacting with other creative people.

Book Editor of Hudson Guild/Founder of Humans of Hudson Guild

Acknowledgments

R e nee Ca i ‘24

I was born and raised in New York City. I have been writing stories and reading all types of books for as long as I can remember. My favorite book genres are memoir and narrative nonfiction. I am also interested in political science, and love to play tennis! Published in partnership with Avenues: The World School (Chelsea). A special thank you to Daisy for believing in the project and introducing us to the children and older adults at Hudson Guild! Thank you to Mr. Jones for initially believing in the project and helping us connect with Hudson Guild!