THE INNER-CITY NEWS

Jazz Greats Pass the Torch at NXTHVN

By Mindi Rose Englart

An intergenerational jazz band performed for a full house of music lovers tapping their toes and bobbing their heads to a sonic legacy that they helped shape and sustain.

The occasion was a celebration of Black History Month at NXTHVN curated by New-Haven bred drummer Ryan Sands. Featuring Elm City jazz musicians Jeff Fuller, Jesse Hameen II , and Sands, along with Hartford-based musicians Haneef N. Nelson, Andrew Wilcox, Eneji Alungbe, the band played songs they (or their friends and family) had written like “The Mission” by Hameen; “Buds Tune” by Christian Sands, who is Ryan’s brother; and “Clouded Vision” by Nelson.

They also played classic jazz tunes like “On the Que-Tee” by Freddie Hubbard and “My Funny Valentine” by Richard Rogers and Lorenz Hart, at times shifting their style of play to include Brazilian, Samba, Bebop and fusion for the 175 people gathered at NXTHVN.

Sands said the concert was a way of paying homage to New Haven’s jazz legacy, especially to Hameen and Fuller. He counts both men as mentors, having taken lessons with Hameen from the age of four to when he left for Manhattan School of Music at 18.

He’s known Fuller nearly as long. Fuller worked on his brother Christian’s first album in 2000 and Sands studied with him at Neighborhood Music School Jazz Camp and at Educational Center for the Arts.

Sands said he wanted the audience to feel joyful, prideful and to celebrate the arts in New Haven and that NXTHVN was the perfect place to host the event.

“NXTHVN is a relatively new space in New Haven and it’s going to be a very important part of New Haven Black history and Connecticut music culture going forward,” he said.

From the first piece, “Keep Hope Alive” written by Fuller, the crowd enthusiastically engaged. They tapped their feet and nodded their heads as they listened to the rumbling, rolling buildup of Sand's drums, Hameen’s percussion and Nelson’s smooth trumpet.

As the concert progressed, whether

the music was soft and slow, with delicate notes from keyboardist Wilcox or a lively, rock-in-your-seat swell of sound with Alungbe hammering at the bass, the crowd responded. At times, the sound of the audience clapping became part of the music itself.

Sands said the concert was to honor internationally-known jazz created by Black legends in the tradition of Duke Ellington and Miles Davis, but also local legends, like The Buster Brothers and Ronnie Lawrence.

Additionally, he said he wanted to celebrate Black History Month and honor Dixwell’s rich jazz history by bringing together New Haven jazz legends Fuller and Hameen to “pass the torch” onto younger players like himself, Alungbe, Nelson and Wilcox.

Sands, who believes New Haven is starving for jazz, recently started running a monthly jazz jam at Neighborhood Music School with Alexis Robbins and Jamie Berlyn. The next jam is at 6:30 p.m. on March 15.

Jasmin Agosto, NXTHVN’s programs and exhibitions manager, said the event was a perfect example of the kind of work they do at NXTHVN through fellowships and apprenticeships. NXTHVN will host its next event, an art opening, on March 9.

“That’s our mission,” she said. “We want to honor that everyone has something to learn and everyone has something to offer. Each one, teach one.”

The musicians represented four generations on stage, with Sands being the youngest among them. As they performed, sometimes all together, and sometimes in smaller groups, Hameen, who is in his early 80s, wowed the crowd with his drumming, fitting a flurry of beats into each second he played.

He thanked the audience for coming out and told them this was not just a performance; he said the musicians were coming from the heart. “I was born and raised in the neighborhood and moved to New York for 30-something years,” Hameen said. “They try to claim me, but I say no. New Haven is my home.”

Jazz Greats Pass the Torch at NXTHVN

Stephanie and Ryan Sands.

Haneef N. Nelson on trumpet.

Arts Council of greater New Haven

Little Free Library Helps Reading Stay Fresh & Clean

Kapp Singer, The Arts Paper newhavenarts.org

Third graders from L. W. Beecher Museum Magnet School of Arts and Sciences sat on the floor of LaundroMax, wondering what could be underneath the mysterious black cloth in front of them. There were already a few clues around: books on tables, books atop washing machines, books in laundry carts.

Then, to a gasp of surprise and round of applause, Lauren Anderson and Anylah Whyte pulled back the cloth to reveal the “So Fresh and So Clean Little Free Library.”

So went the Friday morning unveiling of the first of 10 little free libraries that the Edgewood Avenue bookstore Possible Futures is installing around the city between February and June. The project is funded by a grant from Read in Color, a program administered by the St. Paul, Minn.-based nonprofit Little Free Library, which aims to increase access to books by and about people of color.

“Even though New Haven is a city with one of the wealthiest institutions in the world right downtown, there are still lots of neighborhoods where young folks don’t have easy access to books,” said Anderson, the founder of Possible Futures. “And when I say young folks, I mean young folks of all ages—the learner in all of us.”

“The idea is to intervene in book deserts,” Anderson added.

For the project’s inaugural library, Anderson teamed up with LaundroMax General Manager Chris Walker. Walker opened the Whalley Avenue laundromat last month with the goal of creating a space for people to not only wash their clothes, but build community.

“It was a miracle that she walked in,” Walker said. “I was trying to figure out how I was gonna do a magazine stand, or something like that in here—when she came with the idea about the books, I was like ‘that’s ten times better than any magazine stand.”

To celebrate the little free library, Anderson and Walker hosted a storytime event for Lauren Canalori’s third grade class. Anderson read aloud The Light She Feels Inside, a book by Connecticut native Gwendolyn Wallace and illustrated by Olivia Duchess in which a character named Maya finds joy in reading about influential Black historical figures. As the book introduced these figures—people like Martha B. Johnson, Ida B. Wells, Fannie Lou Hamer, June Jordan, and Nina Simone—Anderson held up other texts she had brought along that detail their lives.

“I liked the story because it’s showing you how a little girl can have big feelings,” Ivanna McClure said.

“It’s about how you try not to be so hard on yourself and start thinking of all those

good memories you have,” Jayli Cambara said. “She was glowing with emotions.”

Following the read-aloud, students interviewed Walker for their class project about Black leaders in New Haven. They asked about his upbringing in the city, his favorite teachers, how he builds community, and—their most polarizing question—his favorite pizza .

Students each got to take home a free copy of The Light She Feels Inside, and

before ending the day with a dance party to Outkast’s “So Fresh, So Clean,” they helped fill the little free library with books Anderson brought from Possible Futures. “When I go to laundromats, I get bored,” said 10-year-old Anylah Whyte, a junior staff member at Possible Futures who helped run Friday’s launch event. “With books being here, when kids come it’s gonna be more amazing.”

Lauren Canalori's third grade class at L.W. Beecher with LaundroMax's Chris Walker. Photos Kapp Singer.

Students interview Chris Walker.

Teacher Lauren Canalori with Marley Arias (left) and Ivanna McClure.

BOMUS Students See Blacak History Made

by MAYA MCFADDEN

Third and fourth-grade scholars at the Barack H. Obama Magnet University School sat in an audience looking at their future selves through the lens of a business owner, health professional, schools superintendent, state senator, and a motivational speaker/author.

That moment took place at BOMUS’ inaugural Black History Month Panel with leaders and change makers with roots in New Haven.

BOMUS Principal Jamie Baker-Vilsaint and Assistant Principal Melanie Thomas hosted Thursday’s event to inspire BOMUS students and celebrate local heroes.

“We’re all here because we deserve to be here,” Baker-Vilsaint said as students filed into the school’s gym.

Thursday’s panelists included entrepreneur Alisha Crutchfield-McLean, health educator Dondi José Burroughs Sr., State Sen. Gary Winfield, Yale Smilow Cancer Hospital Nurse Manager Shante TeelWilliams, and Hamden Public Schools Superintendent Gary Highsmith. They sat under a projection that read “The Real Heroes of New Haven.”

For the first half hour of the event, panelists introduced themselves, reminded students that they matter, and offered them tips for their futures.

“Exposure is vital for the scholars that we service,” said Baker-Vilsaint, who came up with the event idea three weeks ago. Highsmith gave four tips:

• Never stop reading.

• Choose your friends wisely.

• Be kind to people.

• Listen to the adults in your life.

At the conclusion of the hour-and-ahalf-long event, students asked panelist questions.

“What are some ways that kids can help their communities even if they’re not old enough to have a job yet?” fourth-grader

Jules asked the panel.

The answers: Volunteer in the community, stay out of trouble, share your ideas about your passions with adults, connect with and ask questions of community visitors who come to the school, and do your homework.

Fourth grader Sadaf asked the panelists what their superpowers are. The answers ranged from always believing in them-

selves and not being afraid to fail, to being caring and funny.

Baker-Vilsaint concluded that the Black History Month panel will be an annual event at the school with the goal of exposing students to Black success and a network of heroes that look like them.

“This group is history being made in real time,” she said.

Pilot Preps Kids For Takeoff

by MAYA MCFADDEN

Elijah Johnson walked into King/Robinson School classroom in his United Airlines pilot uniform — on a mission to inspire some of the students one day to take flight.

King/Robinson welcomed Johnson to the school to talk with 4th-8th grade students about a career in aviation. The visit was arranged by CEO Rev. Yvonne and President Earl A. McCoy Sr. of Making A Difference Foundation, along with King/Robinson administrators Jasmin Joiner and Taylor Samuels Gonzalez.

The McCoy’s have been partnering with New Haven schools to host multicultural events since 1998. They are both graduates of Hillhouse High School. Yvonne attended King/Robinson when it was known as Jackie Robinson Middle School; Earl grew up around the corner on Diamond Street.

Johnson, a cousin of the McCoy family, participated in Tuesday’s event to show

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The Inner-City Newspaper is published weekly by Penfield Communications, Inc. from offices located at 50 Fitch Street, 2nd Floor, New Haven, CT 06515. 203-387-0354 phone; 203-3872684 fax. Subscriptions:$260 per year (does not include sales tax for the in State subscriptions). Send name, address, zip code with payment. Postmaster, send address changes to 50 Fitch Street, New Haven, CT 06515. Display ad deadline Friday prior to insertion date at 5:00pm Advertisers are responsible for checking ads for error in publication. Penfield Communications, Inc d.b.a., “The Inner-City Newspaper” , shall not be liable for failure to publish an ad or for typographical errors or errors in publication, except to the extent of the cost of the space in which actual error appeared in the first insertion. The Publisher reserves the right to refuse advertising for any reason and to alter advertising copy or graphics deemed unacceptable for publication. The entire

MAYA MCFADDEN PHOTO

BOMUS leaders and panelists Melanie Thomas, Dondi José Burroughs Sr, Gary Winfield, Shante Teel-Williams, Alisha Crutchfield-McLean, Gary Highsmith, and Jamie Baker-Vilsaint.

The new haven independent

WE WELCOME THE CURIOUS

Edward A. Bouchet was the valedictorian of the Hopkins class of 1870, the first African-American to graduate from Yale College, and the first African-American to receive a Ph.D. in physics. His intellectual drive and dedication to his studies remain hallmarks of a Hopkins student today.

Since 1660, Hopkins School has provided students with an exceptional education and the skills required to succeed in the world.

To learn more, please visit us at hopkins.edu.

CELEBRATING BLACK HISTORY MONTH

HONORING VOICES IN THE ARTS

CEO

Whether it be Muddy Waters changing blues music forever and setting the foundation for rock and roll, Beyoncé transforming pop music as one of the most celebrated artists of the 21st century, Ella Fitzgerald reigning as The Queen of Jazz, Octavia E. Butler breaking barriers in the world of science fiction, August Wilson telling the African-American story on the stage, Jean-Michel Basquiat breaking boundaries in the art scene, Dorothy Dandridge and Denzel Washington lighting up the silver screen, or the countless other African-American artists who have entertained and touched us, Boscov’s salutes them for their contributions to the arts, their influences on pop culture, and their positive impacts on our country.

August Wilson

Denzel Washington Beyoncé KnowlesCarter

Dorothy Dandridge

Ella Fitzgerald

Octavia E. Butler

Muddy Waters

Jean-Michel Basquiat

Election You Never Heard Of Heats Up

by ALLAN APPEL

In a park and then in a pencil museum, separate groups of politicos gathered in the Hill on the same day to rally voters to show up for one of the most obscure, historically least competitive elected positions in town: Democratic Party ward co-chair.

The gatherings took place Saturday. Competing slates of candidates for the positions organized the rallies in advance of March 5 primaries for party co-chair seats in eight different wards, four of them in the Hill.

In most years, elections for those positions go unchallenged. Each of the city’s 30 wards has two Democratic (and two Republican) co-chairs who help get out the vote and officially nominate candidates for city, state, and federal positions at the party conventions.

A challenge slate called New Haven Agenda organized this year to field a competitive race in order to offer an alternative to the UNITE HERE/Yaleunion backed majority that dominates the party and the Board of Alders. They’re challenging the majority’s positions on issues like support of Tweed New Haven Airport’s expansion.

At 9:30 a.m. Saturday in Trowbridge Square Park, a slate of UNITE HEREbacked co-chair candidates, many of them incumbents, showed up along with Mayor Justin Elicker and elected state officials

They were all aided by seven kinds of donuts and hot coffee steaming in the frigid morning air. The mission: Inspire neighboring voters who had never heard of the position candidates were running for.

New Haven Agenda’s slate “made their argument in September and November” declared Democratic Town Committee Chair Vincent Mauro, Jr. “questioning [party-backed alders], and all those alders won.” He was referring to the fact that the two organizers of the New Haven Agenda slate were active in unsuccessful November elections: Tom Goldenberg, as the Republican and Independent Party mayoral candidate, and Jason Bartlett as an operative backing Goldenberg and other challengers.

But, look, Mauro added: “We got coffee and donuts, and that means we are taking it seriously.”

Meanwhile on the other side of the Hill in Krikko Obbott’s soaring Pencil Museum on West Street, the competing New Haven Agenda slate convened for a meet-and-greet.

In the center of the museum’s cathedral-like entryway, Ward 4 co-chair candidate Joe Fekieta, an artist, displayed

a sculpture of tall artificial flowers emerging from litter. It was the object of much discussion among the 20 or so people gathered.

Fekieta is a friend of Obbot and a resident of Adeline Street. The sculpture is in the museum only coincident with the co-chair campaign.

However, litter, Fekieta added, is a major issue for him. The sculpture, titled “Renewal One Million A.D.,” features artificial flowers emerging from genuine chip bags, crushed bleach bottles, wrappers, and even a few condoms, that Fekieta gathered all from near his house.

“It was easy,” he said.

He’s inspired to run, he said, to help address that pervasive, demoralizing litter issue, among many other quality of life concerns like illegal car racing down many of the streets of the Hill.

The last time an organized newcomer slate sought co-chair seats was in 2012, when UNITE HERE-backed candidates won control of the party (after winning control of the Board of Alders) with a collective agenda of more good paying-jobs for New Haveners, community policing, affordable housing, and pressure on Yale to contribute more to the city.

The 2024 New Haven Agenda slate lacks UNITE HERE’s level of organization or resources, with a crew of candidates who are largely new to organized politics. That’s the point of the effort, said Goldenberg, the group’s treasurer, and chair Bartlett: To bring in new blood and new ideas to local politics and government.

Back at Trowbridge Square Park, where the clip-board carrying candidates and their volunteers were about to set off knocking on doors, Mayor Elicker attributed the opposition slate’s challenges to bitterness over November losses: “We overwhelmingly crushed their opposition, not because they are weak, but because we are strong, with New Haven values.”

Goldenberg countered that his group is motivated by principles like broadening democratic participation and involving people not tied to “special interests.”

“Even if they don’t win, they bring forth their experiences of their lives in the city,” he said.

The March 5 primaries are set for Wards 3, 4, and 6 in the Hill; 7 in Downtown; 12 in Quinnipiac Meadows/Bishop Woods; 18 in Morris Cove; 28 in Beaver Hills; and 30 in West Rock/West Hills. Here are the candidates in those eight races (with UNITE HERE-backed candidates listed first, then New Haven Agenda candidates):

ALLAN APPEL PHOTO

Jason Bartlett addresses challenge candidates at the Pencil Museum.

Candidates Dolores Colon and Doris Doward at Trowbridge Square Park rally

Ward 4 candidates Jennifer Chonna and Howard Boyd address the Trowbridge crowd.

The new haven independent

Feds Grant City $3.4M For Health Equity

by LAURA GLESBY

Fair Haven doctors will soon be able to “prescribe” fruits and vegetables to food-insecure patients, thanks to a new round of federal funding for health equity advocacy at CARE.

CARE (the Community Alliance for Research and Engagement) is a local public health organization housed at Southern Connecticut State University and Yale. The group is planning to partner with Fair Haven Community Health Care to help low-income patients access fresh produce, CARE Director Alycia Santilli announced at a press conference at City Hall on Friday.

The logistics of that program are still in the works, according to Santilli, but the vision is for doctors to provide vouchers or gift cards to either an external supermarket or an in-house “food pharmacy” at the clinic.

This future initiative is one of several of CARE’s planned efforts to promote access to nutritious foods, breastfeeding support, and physical activity among low-income Black and Latino New Haveners — made possible by a new $3.4 million federal REACH (Racial

GLESBY

and Ethnic Approaches to Community Health) grant that CARE has secured from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

The grant, which will be administered

over the next five years, is the second batch of REACH funding that CARE has received from the CDC since an initial grant in 2018.

Santilli emphasized a focus on reducing barriers to nutrient-rich foods and

other health-boosting practices, rather than lecturing people to make choices they may not be able to afford. “We need to move past individual behavior changes” like just “telling people to eat five fruits and vegetables a day,” she

said, and instead focus instead on helping people find and afford foods that will improve their health.

Southern Connecticut State University interim President Dwayne Smith praised CARE’s collaboration with community members. Many public health programs talk to communities “about what’s best for them, instead of that community sharing what they feel is best for themselves,” he said, while CARE “uplifts marginalized voices” in “driving meaningful change in their communities.” One community partner working with CARE to destigmatize breastfeeding is Fair Haven-based lactation consultant Dionne Lowndes, who shared her excitement for the work to come from the New Haven Breastfeeding Task Force that collaborates with CARE.

With funding from the REACH grant, the task force created a “Roots of Racial Inequities in Breastfeeding” training for healthcare providers to gain cultural competence in working with Black and Brown patients. It has also launched a “Support Breastfeeding Anytime, Anyplace” campaign advocating for breastfeeding-friendly accommodations at

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LAURA

PHOTO

Lactation consultant Dionne Lowndes: Working to destigmatize and accommodate breastfeeding with renewed REACH funding.

The new haven independent

Advocates Rally Against Higher Education Budget Cuts, Urge Fiscal Flexibility

by Hudson Kamphausen

Advocates, faculty, and students from public institutions of higher learning from across the state gathered at the Capitol Tuesday in protest of what they view as cuts by Gov. Ned Lamont, and to ask for Connecticut’s fiscal guardrails to be loosened.

Advocates representing Connecticut State Colleges & Universities, the American Association of University Professors, and others from the State Employees Bargaining Agent Coalition, said public education is not receiving enough money from the state and that they can no longer depend on insufficient, onetime funding. They were joined by Rep. Gary Turco, D-Newington, to ask for $250 million to completely fund higher education in the state.

Seth Freeman, a computer science professor at Capital Community College who also serves as president of the Congress of Connecticut Community Colleges, said that colleges are facing resource and staffing cuts, and that although the amount of state money that public colleges are receiving has increased, they do not account for new costs such as increased fringe rates and administrative costs.

“Gov. Lamont doesn’t seem to understand the severity of the crisis that we’re in,” Freeman said. The lack of understanding, from his perspective, is that while Lamont is remaining steadfast on the amount of funding allocated in his budget, colleges are evaluating the services they are being forced to cut as a result of different factors.

Community colleges are not the only ones, however, facing cuts.

The University of Connecticut is set to see 15% cuts across the board, as well as significant cuts to UConn Health. In response, they are asking for $47.3 mil-

lion toward the original block grant, as well as an additional $16.9 million for UConn Health. However, there is still an impasse as to whether cuts are actually occurring.

Lamont and his office have remained insistent that there has been no cut to the higher education budget, and that colleges are receiving more funding now than at any point in history.

Dr. Jeffrey Ogbar, a professor of history at UConn and president of UConnAAUP, said that while the raw numbers have increased within the budget, the real numbers that institutions are working with have dropped drastically. The block grants from the state, he said, do

not account for the rate of inflation. At a time when Connecticut seems to be flourishing financially, the fiscal guardrails have those in higher education feeling as those they have hit a recession.

“It seems unwise and borderline unethical to refuse to adequately support higher education in a moment when we have so much in the way of resources,” he said. “The economic distress does not exist, but we are being forced to act as if we are in some great recession.”

In a press conference earlier this month, advocates from CSCU were joined by Senate President Martin Looney in asking the governor to allocate $160 million for public universities and community

colleges to avoid faculty and resource cuts. The additional $90 million that is being requested would be for UConn, in order to attempt to make up for the 15% cuts that are happening across all departments, as well as impending cuts to UConn Health.

Looney suggested that the funds could come from outside the spending cap, and said that the state must fund the engine of higher education. Turco agreed with that suggestion Tuesday, and said that he found it frustrating that in a time of surplus in the state budget, tuition costs across the state are being increased. The legislature, he said, needs to get creative about using the surplus and getting

around the guardrails. Turco said the reduction of federal funding, largely found in ARPA money, has contributed to the feelings of cuts while state funding has increased in recent years.

Grace Easterly, a doctoral student in history who is the president of the Graduate Employees Union at UConn, said in a phone interview that there needs to be a long-term investment in higher education in the state, and that the costs of providing a good public education should not be passed off to students. The value of public higher education, she said, is that it provides equity. Research is important, she said, and tuition should be affordable.

Republican Senate Leader Stephen Harding said in a statement Tuesday morning that he thinks there are still many questions that should be answered before the state allocates more money for public higher education. Large raises being given to senior staff while tuition hikes increase, he noted, is something that should be explained.

“Finally, with regard to all public higher education agencies, we must hear about systemic efficiencies that are being created and implemented in order to safeguard taxpayers’ dollars now and in the future. Those efficiencies will ensure students are getting the education they are paying for,” Harding’s statement read.

Turco, who serves on the Higher Education and Employment Advancement Committee, said that the state needs to do right by its students, and not let tuition costs get to the point where they are unaffordable.

An expected 80 students, both graduate and undergraduate, were expected to appear for the Appropriations Committee public hearing that immediately preceded the press conference.

Mayor Ganim Announces Partnership with Port 5, National Association for Naval Veterans for Two Events Hosted in Bridgeport

Bridgeport, CT – Earlier today, Mayor Ganim announced that the City of Bridgeport is partnering with Port 5, National Association for Naval Veterans for two events this year; The Wall that Heals and the Tunnel to Towers Road Race.

The Wall that Heals is expected to be recognized between September 26th29th and will encompass an exhibit that features a three-quarter scale replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C. The replica is 375 feet in length and stands 7.5 feet high at its tallest point. Visitors will experience The Wall rising above them as they walk towards the apex, a key feature of the design of The Wall in D.C. Like the original Memorial, The Wall That Heals is erected in a chevron-shape and visitors can do name rubbings of individual

service member’s names on The Wall. The replica is constructed of avonite, a synthetic granite, and its 140 numbered panels are supported by an aluminum frame. Machine engraving of more than 58,000 names along with modern LED lighting provides readability of The Wall whether during the day or at night. The second event to be hosted is the Tunnel to Towers Road Race that will take place on October 19th within the Black Rock neighborhood. The race will start at Port 5 and will have the same route as the race that takes place during Black Rock Day. The Tunnel to Towers Foundation started in honor of firefighter Stephen Siller who drove his truck to the entrance of the Brooklyn Battery Tunnel, which was closed for security purposes. Determined to carry

out his duty, he strapped sixty pounds of gear to his back, and raced on foot through the tunnel to the Twin Towers, where he gave up his life while saving others. The event symbolizes Stephen Siller’s final footsteps from the foot of the Battery Tunnel to the Twin Towers and pays homage to the 343 FDNY firefighters, law enforcement officers, and thousands of civilians who lost their lives on September 11, 2001.

Mayor Ganim stated, “It means a lot that Bridgeport can be a part of this initiative to honor our veterans and firefighters who fought to save the lives of many. I’m very appreciative of this partnership we have with Port 5 as we continue to recognize all the lives who were lost to protect us during these grave events.”

Seth Freeman, a computer science professor at Capital Community College who also serves as President of the Congress of Connecticut Community Colleges, advocates for funding for higher education on Tuesday, Feb. 20, 2024, at the Legislative Office Building in Hartford along with other advocates. Credit: Hudson Kamphausen / CTNewsJunkie

Public Health Committee Considers Expansion of Podiatric Surgery

CTNewsJunkie

HARTFORD, CT – The Public Health Committee heard testimony Monday regarding whether it should move forward on a bill to allow podiatrists to perform certain surgeries.

HB 5196 would revise the scope of practice for podiatrists in the state to perform a broader range of surgical procedures. Proponents of the bill said that allowing podiatrists to perform these procedures would increase access for patients, especially for patients on Medicaid.

Under current law, podiatrists are allowed to perform some types of surgery, but there are several procedures that they are prohibited from attempting. The new law would allow podiatrists to perform surgeries related to total ankle replacements and amputations within the foot. Podiatric doctors are also calling for permission to perform pilon fracture surgery. As it stands now, only orthopedic surgeons are allowed to perform these procedures.

According to a Scope of Practice Review conducted by the Department of Public Health at the request of the Connecticut Podiatric Medical Association (CPMA), 44 states and the District of Columbia allow podiatrists to perform total ankle replacement surgery.

Dr. Kristin Winters, President of the CPMA, spoke in favor of the bill and also called for full foot amputation to be added into the bill.

“Our current amputation law is a proven obstacle to delivering complete care for our patents,” she said. Winters

Dr. Kristin Winters, President of the Connecticut Podiatric Medical Association, testifies before the Public Health Committee on Monday, Feb. 26, 2024, at the Legislative Office Building in Hartford. Credit: Jamil Ragland / CTNewsJunkie

also pointed out that the bill would keep new podiatric doctors in the state.

“This bill will also attract our residents to stay here. We train them, we want them to stay and practice in the state of Connecticut, and help deliver this care for patients. These residents are being trained to replace ankles, coming back to the state, getting board certified, and simply can’t do it here because the law prohibits it,” she said.

Dr. Amanda Fantry, an orthopedic surgeon at St. Francis hospital, questioned the lack of access to ankle replacement as a reason to allow pediatric surgeons to perform the procedure.

“If people are only doing ankle replacements 10 times a year as high volume in the state, there’s not a shortage

of people available to do these surgeries,” Fantry said. “I think [orthopedic surgeons] are well-trained in the biomechanics of joint replacements.”

The members of the committee had many questions about the ability and training of podiatrists to perform ankle replacement and other procedures.

Sen. Saud Anwar, a South Windsor Democrat who co-chairs the committee and is also a medical doctor, cited a study from January 2022 that found a higher rate of complications after surgery from procedures performed by podiatrists when compared to procedures performed by orthopedic surgeons.

From a 4-year-old orphan to an international award-winning actress The inspiring story of Thuso Nokwanda Mbedu

by Ben Ebuka, Face2FaceAfrica.com

Dr. Winters countered that these

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THE INNER-CITY NEWS - March 15, 2023 - March 21, 2023 14

M&T

Growing up in the early 1990s, Thuso Mbedu never dreamt of being an entertainment figure. At a very young age, she wanted to be a dermatologist, but after taking a dramatic arts class in the 10th grade, she became interested in acting. Her acting career has earned her fame and fortune locally and internationally, rising to become one of the most sought after actresses from South Africa. At 27, she was named in the 2018 Forbes Africa 30 Under 30 List, and one of the 100 Most Influential Africans by New African Magazine. Born on July 8, 1991, at the Midlands Medical Center in Pietermaritzburg, KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa, to a Zulu mother and Xhosa and Sotho father, she never enjoyed the care of her parents who died when she was barely four years old. She was raised by her grandmother, a very strict school principal in school and at home. Her name reflected the multicultural tribes of her parents – Thuso is a Sotho name, Nokwanda is a Zulu name, and Mbedu is Xhosa.

Mbedu went to Pelham Primary School and Pietermaritzburg Girls’ High School and graduated from the University of Witwatersrand in South Africa in 2013, where she studied Physical Theatre and Performing Arts Management. Earlier in 2012, she took a summer course at the Stella Adler Studio of Acting in New York City. Career

Thuso Mbedu. Photo -IOL ‘Black Reel Awards’ (Outstanding Actress

Bank. Understanding what’s important.

Her acting career began in 2014 when she played a minor role of ‘Nosisa’ in the popular South African Soap Opera ‘Isibaya’ from Mzansi Magic. In 2015, she played a guest role as ‘Kheti’ in the Second Season of the SABC 2 youth drama series ‘Snake Park.’

She got her first starring role in the teen drama television series ‘IS’THUNZI’ from Mzansi Magic where she played ‘Winnie.’ Her international debut was in ‘The Underground Railroad’ an American fantasy historical drama series based on the novel ‘The Underground Railroad’ written by Colson Whitehead.

In 2022, she starred in her first film ‘The Woman King’ an epic historical drama about Agosie, where an entire female warrior unit protected the West African Kingdom of Dahomey in the 17 – 19th century. She played ‘Nawi’, a zealous recruit in the military unit.

In 2017, Mbedu was nominated for the ‘DSTV Viewers Choice Awards’ and the ‘International Emmy Awards for the ‘Best Performance by an Actress’ for her role ‘Winnie Bhengu’ in the 2016 -2017 television drama series ‘IS’THUNZI.’

In 2018, she won the ‘South African Film and Television Awards’ for ‘ Best Actress – TV Drama’ for her role ‘Winnie Bhengu’ in the 2016 -2017 television drama series ‘IS’THUNZI.’ She was also nominated for the ‘International Emmy Awards for ‘Best Performance by an Actress’ for her role ‘Winnie Bhengu’ in the television drama series ‘IS’THUNZI.’

She won the ‘TV Breakout Star’ award from the Hollywood Critics Association TV and won the ‘Outstanding Performance in New Series’ award from the Gotham Awards.

In 2022, Mbedu was nominated for the ‘Independent Spirit Awards (Best Female Performance in a New Scripted Series), for her role ‘Cora Randall’ in the 2021 television series ‘The Underground Railroad.’ She won the ‘Critics Choice Television Awards’ for ‘Best Actress in a Miniseries or Television Movie’ for her role ‘Cora Randall’ in ‘The Underground Railroad.’

In 2021, she was nominated for the ‘Television Critics Association Award’ (Individual Achievement in Drama), the

In her keynote speech at TheWrap’s Power Women Summit, Thuso Mbedu tearfully spoke of how she overcame the loss of her dear parents, grandmother, and aunt. But her role in Amanda Lane’s ‘IS’THUNZI’ gradually renewed her hope in life. “…my world was that blur, until Amanda Lane happened in 2016. The role that Amanda Lane gave me was the difference between life and death for me. Receiving that audition brief, I told myself that I would audition like it was my last audition. I gave it the last of everything that I had, that at the time I got the callback, I had nothing left. I secretly made the decision not to do the callback because I had nothing left to give. But fortunately, I received the callback. So I didn’t do the callback because the role was mine. I had given up. I was in a very dark place at the time, and the character, the role, the opportunity, was a much needed light. And I told myself that I will act as if it was the last character that I will play. And through a great script and an amazing director, I earned two International Emmy Awards for that role…”

– TV Movie / Limited Series), the ‘Hollywood Critics Association TV Awards’ (Best Actress in a Limited Series, Anthropology Series or Television Movie), the ‘Gotham Awards’ (Outstanding Performance in New Series), the ‘Hollywood Critics Association TV Awards’ (TV Breakout Star), and the ‘Critics Choice Television Awards’ (Best Actress in a Miniseries or Television Movie), all for her role ‘Cora Randall’ in the 2021 TV series ‘The Underground Railroad.’

by Jamil Ragland

Sickle-Cell Breakthrough Hailed; Affordability Push Comes Next

by KAMINI PURUSHOTHAMAN

A panel of doctors lauded the recent approval of CASGEVY, a gene therapy for sickle-cell disease, but called for advocacy to make the treatment affordable, especially for people on Medicaid.

The panel of clinical experts discussed the breakthrough Thursday evening at Michelle’s House at Chapel and Orchard streets, the site of the Sickle Cell Disease Association of America’s Connecticut chapter.

James Rawlings, the president of Michelle’s House, introduced the panel, which included MDs Biree Andamarian, Cece Calhoun and Lakshmanan Krishnamurti, and keynoter Farrah Gallard of Vertex Pharmaceuticals, the company that manufactures CASGEVY.

CASGEVY is a one-time therapy that works through the modification of the BCL11A gene. Utilizing the patient’s blood stem cells, the treatment does not require healthy cells from a donor. This eliminates the risk of graft-versus-host disease because there are no foreign cells involved for the host to have an immune reaction to.

Treatment with CASGEVY is a multistep procedure that includes preparing for stem cell collection, collecting those cells, making the CASGEVY, chemotherapy, receiving the CASGEVY and

recovery. In all, the process takes over a year — and costs $2.2 million.

Complications include fertility issues in both men and women, and patients can never donate blood, organs, tissue or cells after undergoing the treatment.

Krishnamurti emphasized that the treatment can give someone with sickle-cell disease a sense of normalcy for the first time, enabling life as a full-functioning member of society. Panelist Frank Tavarez-Mora, a third-year medical student at Quinnipiac who suffers from sickle-cell disease himself, said that gene therapies show significant promise in revolutionizing treatment processes and improving patient outcomes.

“The last time I gave a presentation on sickle-cell disease was in the 90s,” said Krishnamurti, who works as the chief of pediatric hematology at Yale and joined the panel from Zoom. “The last slide said, ‘One day we will have gene therapy.’”

In December, that vision came to fruition when the federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved two new sicklecell gene therapies, CASGEVY and Lyfgenia, for patients 12 and older. Although FDA approval ensures treatments are eligible to be covered by Medicaid, implementation is a state-by-state decision. Calhoun emphasized the importance of giving sickle-cell disease the same attention that other diseases are allotted. She

said the disease has not been prioritized adequately because it disproportionately affects Black people in the United States.

Rawlings noted that the hefty $2.2 million pricetag is nowhere near accessible for most patients.

Still, treatments like CASGEVY could re-

duce the lifetime costs of hospital visits, trips to the ER and blood transfusions that those with sickle-cell disease experience. Andamarian added that the treatment could be beneficial for loved ones who serve as caretakers and help those with sickle-cell disease enter the workforce.

Questions about your bill?

Yale New Haven Hospital is pleased to offer patients and their families financial counseling regarding their hospital bills or the availability of financial assistance, including free care funds.

By appointment, patients can speak one-on-one with a financial counselor during regular business hours. For your convenience, extended hours are available in-person at Yale New Haven Hospital once a month.

Date: Monday, March 18, 2024

Time: 5 - 7 pm

Location: Children’s Hospital, 1 Park St., 1st Floor, Admitting

Parking available (handicapped accessible)

An appointment is necessary. Please call 855-547-4584.

In light of COVID-19, patients may call 855-547-4584 any time during regular weekday hours to speak with a counselor on the phone.

Spanish-speaking counselors available.

For those reasons, she said that legislators must understand that treatment costs need to be covered by Medicaid and insurance providers at large.

Calling the audience to action, Calhoun quoted Frederick Douglass, imploring the attendees to make noise and “to agitate.”

For those in Connecticut with insurance that does not cover treatment, Calhoun suggested participating in a gene-therapy trial that Yale is currently conducting. Krishnamazurti noted that Yale plans to offer the treatments as early as August of 2024, and certainly by December. He urged individuals seeking treatment to begin the process now, highlighting how long it can take.

“I’ve been at this for a very long time,” said Rawlings. “This is a very optimistic time for me. I’m all in with this ‘hope’ thing.” Echoing that sentiment, Krishnamurti asserted that treatments for disenfranchised populations “ought to be covered.”

The primary challenge, said Andamarian, is proving to officials in Connecticut that its Medicaid funds should cover the cost of these gene therapies inside and outside the state. Underscoring that treatment centers providing the gene therapies don’t yet exist in Connecticut, she said the state must be willing to cover the cost for individuals who seek treatment in neighboring states.

KAMINI PURUSHOTHAMAN PHOTO

Biree Andamarian, James Rawlings, Cece Calhoun at Thursday evening's gathering.

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Feds Grant City

Black lactation consultants like Lowndes are significantly undaerrepresented in an overwhelmingly white field.

Black Americans in particular face systemic barriers to breastfeeding — a practice that benefits both babies and parents — made evident by a history dating back to when enslaved Black women were forced to breastfeed the babies of their white enslavers. For decades, formula companies have targeted Black families in advertising campaigns, while Black parents continue to have lower access to breastfeeding education.

“Other professionals like myself might not understand the inequities that families face,” Lowndes said.

Lowndes recalled her own experiences struggling to breastfeed when she was a new mom two decades ago, until a colleague sat down with her and helped her through the process. She felt uncomfortable breastfeeding while out and about; she would feed her baby covertly in retail changing rooms or empty grocery store aisles.

“The environment wasn’t that friendly toward people breastfeeding ‘anytime, anyplace,’” she said.

She has since found a calling in helping to advocate for a more breastfeeding-friendly world through the task force, in collaboration with CARE.

The funding will support CARE’s administration of a variety of health education and advocacy programs, including:

• Supporting Wellness at Pantries (SWAP), which trains food pantry staff to provide nutritional information about the various available foods using “Green,” “Yellow,” and “Red” labels indicating a gradient of nutritional value. The program currently works with 10 food pantries, and with the new REACH funding, CARE plans to expand to another dozen pantries in the area.

• Collaborations with the New Haven Breastfeeding Task Force to provide training for health care institutions on racial inequities in breastfeeding and the “Anytime, Anywhere” campaign.

• Community outreach as the city’s Department of Traffic, Transportation, and Parking implements the “Safe Routes For All” active transit plan.

CARE will also redistribute some of the funding to Fair Haven Community Health Care (which will implement the food “prescription” program), Earth’s Natural Touch (a coalition of Black doulas and perinatal care providers), and Witnesses to Hunger (a local group of policy advocates who have personally experienced food insecurity).

Train in high-growth industries

Gain hands-on work experience

Take community college classes

Participate in clubs and sports

Get involved with community projects

Develop friendships and connections

Receive nutritious meals and basic medical care

Claressa Shields breaks ground as the winner of the first female MMA match in Saudi Arabia

by Dollita Okine, Face2FaceAfrica.com

Making history, undefeated boxing champion Claressa Shields emerged victorious in the first-ever professional female Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) match in Saudi Arabia.

According to CNN, Shields emotionally expressed “I had such a hard camp,” after her triumph. She added, “It’s not easy what I’m trying to do and I’ve been so respectful of the sport. I put a lot of hard work in; I’m going to go back to the gym and work harder.”

“I almost got my arm snapped in the freakin’ armbar,” Shields continued. “I had to fight out of that. There was days in camp where I was literally in tears. I was not considering going back to the gym because it was so hard but I forced myself to go back and that’s how I got the win tonight.”

This was her first professional MMA battle since she was unexpectedly defeated by Abigail Montes in October 2021. In an incredible victory, the 28-year-old unexpectedly defeated USA MMA competitor Kelsey De Santis by wriggling out of a tight hold.

Shields and De Santis competed on the

undercard of Bellator MMA’s PFL vs. Bellator event, which was promoted by the Professional Fighters League.

In addition to Shields’ 14-0 boxing record, her most recent victory helped her achieve a 2-1 record in professional mixed martial arts, according to CNN. Shields, one of the best women boxers in the world, is a two-time gold medalist at the Olympics and was the first unchallenged winner in the light middleweight and middleweight weight classes in a time when there were four titles to be won.

Since the ultra-conservative country, Saudi Arabia, has recently relaxed some of the severe limitations placed on women residing there, there has been an increase in the visibility of female mixed martial arts participants.

“It’s going to inspire the women there. It’s going to inspire their culture and their country,” Shields said of her fight and what it means for the country in an interview with The Athletic.

“If you go and look at my story to see everything that I went through and how sports changed my life, they will feel that every woman and every man deserves sports. Sports change lives and it saves lives.”

Rev. Barber’s bold vision: A revolutionary election year, powered by low-income voters WORD IN BLACK

by The Rev. Dorothy S. Boulware, courtesy of the Afro.com

Imagine working 64 hours a week and being unable to cover basic needs like food, shelter and utilities. Imagine working that many hours at more than one job and still not having adequate health coverage for yourself or your family.

Millions of people in the United States live like this. In 2022, 17.1 percent of Black folks lived in poverty, twice the rate of White people, according to U.S. Census Bureau data — and elected officials often ignore their voices. But the Poor People’s Campaign has a master plan — a 40-week blitz to mobilize the political might of 15 million low-income voters in 30 states in time for the Nov. 5 presidential election.

“For far too long, extremists have blamed poor people and low-wage people for their plight, while moderates too often have ignored poor people, appealing instead to the so-called ‘middle class,’” said campaign co-founder, activist and pastor Bishop William Barber II, while announcing the effort on Feb. 4 at the Press Club in Washington, D.C.

“Meanwhile, poor and low-income, lowwage people have become nearly half of this country. And we are here today to make one thing clear: Poor and low-wage brothers and sisters have the power to de-

termine and decide the 2024 elections and elections beyond,” he said.

Barber made the announcement with his fellow campaign leaders and several folks who will be putting boots on the ground — self-characterized poor people. Together, they’re kicking off the campaign with a bold statement on March 2, orchestrating major actions at 30 statehouses across the United States. And they’re inviting hundreds of thousands of “poor” people, people of faith and activists to show up at their respective statehouses to raise hell and demand to be seen.

And they’re not stopping there. On June 15, these same people– and probably many more– plan to show up at the U.S. Capitol Building in Washington, D.C., to sound the same alarm at Congress’s door. The message? Working folks in the United States shouldn’t be living worse than folks in countries we call “underdeveloped.”

And they have the goods: votes. This campaign could deliver millions of votes from poor people and low-wage workers who haven’t previously voted, although they’re eligible to do so.

According to the Pew Research Center, in the 2020 election, about 158.4 million people headed to the polls, but that was only 62.8 percent of people of voting age. Get those 87 million eligible voters to cast a ballot, and that’s an election game changer.

“It is time for a resurrection and not an insurrection,” Barber said.

By Rev. Dorothy S. Boulware, Word ain Black

and transform the nation.”

Barber’s faith team, determined to restore that hope, includes leaders of all faiths, ordained and lay leaders committed to organizing and mobilizing.

It also includes workers with stories of homelessness, sickness, trying, and rarely succeeding because the system works against them. Beth Shafer said, “I’m exhausted,” and she should be– working 64 hours every week.

Liz Theoharis, director of the campaign partner, the Kairos Center — a national anti-poverty organization housed at Union Theological Seminary — spoke against a political system that could end poverty tomorrow if it chose to. Instead, decisions to end pandemic relief policies will ensure 700,000 people will have lost Medicaid by March.

During the event, Shailly Gupta Brown, national policy director for the campaign, said there are 39,000 eligible non-voters in Georgia alone, nearly four times greater than the 10,000-vote margin of victory in the last election.

This is another move in what Barber has coined the “Third Reconstruction: Fully Addressing Poverty and Low Wages From the Bottom Up.”

“Poverty is claiming 800 lives a day in this country. It’s time to build a 3rd Reconstruction and abolish poverty as the 4th leading cause of death,” according to the Poor People’s Campaign website.

Barber and his team met with Reps. Pramila Jayapal (D-Washington) and Barbara Lee (D-Cali.) to secure a resolution of the same name and intention: to ensure a livable wage, expanded Medicaid, fully funded public education, and an expanded childcare tax.

Indeed, the campaign’s website details that they’re seeking “a revival of our constitutional commitment to establish justice, provide for the general welfare, end decades of austerity, and recognize that policies that center the 140 million poor and low-income people in the country are also good economic policies that can heal

“But we’re mobilizing, organizing, educating and motivating. More than a thousand voter suppression bills have been passed since the last election, and poverty is on the rise since the pandemic policies have lifted,” Theoharis said.

Poverty is the fourth leading cause of death in this country, according to Rev. A. Kazimir Brown, executive director of Repairers of the Breach, who added the fact that “46 million people still don’t have safe drinking water.”

Barber said, “We won’t be silent anymore. If we have to make Election Day a labor strike day, we will.”

This article was originally published by Word in Black.

This was her first professional MMA battle since she was unexpectedly defeated by Abigail Montes in October 2021. Photo Credit: Instagram

Public Health

studies contained “profound biases” that skewed the results, although she did not elaborate on what those biases were.

Dr. Peter Blume, a podiatric foot and ankle surgeon and podiatric medical director at Yale New Haven health system, pointed out that podiatric doctors who have the expertise to perform procedures must sometimes leave the state to do so.

“I’ve got three podiatrists in the New London country area, they operate at Lawrence Memorial Hospital. When they are going to perform the ankle replacement procedure, they have to take the patient to Rhode Island. This must stop. We should be able to provide this care to our community and these populations in the state of Connecticut,” Blume said.

The Scope of Practice Review that was conducted by the Department of Public Health did not reach any consensus on whether podiatric surgeons should be permitted to perform any currently prohibited procedures.

Looney Testifies In Favor Of Two Bills

Senate President Pro Tempore Martin Looney, D-New Haven, testified in favor of two bills during Monday’s hearing.

Senate Bill 180, “An Act Concerning Adverse Determination And Utilization Reviews,” would require that health carriers implement a utilization review plan to determine whether their decisions to deny benefits or coverage, known as an adverse determination, are clinically sound.

Looney testified that SB 180 “would provide a number of innovative protections for patients” and “would benefit all parties involved and make our healthcare system more effective.”

Senate Bill 182 would prevent insurance companies and other health carriers from requiring step therapy “to treat a mental or behavioral health condition or a chronic, disabling or lifethreatening condition.”

“While there may be legitimate uses of step therapy, too often it is implemented in a manner that interferes with patient care and leads to insurers preventing physicians from providing the best care for patients,” Looney said.

“SB 182 would ensure that the physician is able to provide the best treatment for patients who have disabling conditions as well as cancer and behavioral health conditions. It would improve the lives of many of our citizens,” he said in a statement.

New Haven Public Schools Early Childhood Programs

Programs for 3 and 4 Year Olds in New Haven

NEW HAVEN

Free 6-hour early childhood programs for low-income New Haven families in the following New Haven Public Schools:

• Benjamin Jepson Multi-Age School

• Dr. Mayo Early Childhood School (Immediate Openings)

• Fair Haven School

• John Martinez Sea & Sky STEM School

• Lincoln-Bassett School

•

• Truman School (Immediate Openings)

Additional community locations also participate in the program.

Contact:

Head Start Registration Office

Tel. 475-220-1464

HeadStartNewHaven.com

475-220-1464

NEW HAVEN

Sliding scale, fee-based 6-hour early childhood programs for New Haven families in the following New Haven Public Schools:

• Augusta Lewis Troup School

• Columbus Family Academy

• East Rock Community School

• Hill Central School

• Nathan Hale School

• Additional community locations also participate in the program.

• Free 4-hour programs available at East Rock Community and Nathan Hale Schools.

Contact : School Readiness

Registration Office

Tel. : 475-220-1482

NOW! How to Apply

The

English:

https://registration.powerschool.com/family/gosnap.aspx? action=24982&culture=en

Spanish:

https://registration.powerschool.com/family/gosnap.aspx? action=24982&culture=es

What you will submit with your Application

1) Proof of Age Child’s Birth Certificate OR Legal Custody/Guardianship Papers

2) Proof of Address

Current utility bill (Gas, Electric, Phone, Cable) in your name

3) Proof of Income

• 2 months of Current & Consecutive pay stubs OR W-2 or 1040 Tax Return

• Budget Statement from the CT Department of Social Services or Social Security Office or Child Enforcement Bureau

• Notarized Statement indicating Parent is unemployed

• Additional forms may be requested

4)Proof of a Physical (within one year-to-date)

• CT Department of Education Early Childhood Health Assessment Record

• Anemia and lead level test results

• TB assessment

• Immunizations records

• Seasonal flu vaccination

• Health insurance card

5)Proof of a Dental Exam (within 6-months-to-date)

Dental Exam record

Fourth Annual “Love the People” Block Party Black Panther Mini Museum Oakland

Black Joy On The Block

by ROBIN LAPID

I’m always on the lookout for pockets of joy, specifically in the form of community pride, and particularly where people might not expect them. When I stumbled on the Black Panther Mini Museum in West Oakland, a block from the BART station, it was a beautiful brew of everything I hoped to find on this side of town. Housed in a big blue Victorian decorated with murals by the West Oakland Mural Projects, “Women of the Black Panther Party,” the museum opened on Juneteenth weekend in 2021. Not a great time for an opening, as it was still in the waning days of a global pandemic. But they didn’t seem deterred. Even the flier for their fourth annual block party promised alongside free groceries, a jumpy house, face painting, and bubbles “black joy!” Under dark skies and good vibes, they low-key delivered.

With the weather getting gloomier, I was afraid it might have been canceled. But as I neared the block, I was reassured the party was still on. A DJ played ‘70s soul disco hits by Midnight Star and Michael Jackson as a happy couple danced, tables of free food and groceries were being handed out (everything from Ritual coffee beans to lasagna and jollof rice), and a clutch of kids played in and around the promised jumpy house.

“Welcome to our block party in the beautiful Bottoms! Enjoy yourself. And it’s not going to rain!” the emcee announced confidently. (She was mostly right. It wouldn’t rain until after the party ended.) She encouraged guests to stock up on free groceries and hygiene products, and to bring them to their neighbors in need.

I got an ice cream cone from a volunteer, who said she had since moved to Berkeley but was happy to come help out. I got my hands dirty screen-printing a Black Panther Party poster with the help of another volunteer (although the rain that poured down later sadly ruined it). Her hands were covered in ink. “It’s a little messy,” she acknowledged of the DIY process. “But I like it, because it’s not perfect.”

“These are fourth-generation Black legacy homes,” the emcee noted. “A lot of my neighbors were born and raised in this neighborhood. It’s a beautiful community.“ The homes in this neighborhood, rows and rows of beautiful, stately Victorians with more land to spread out in than the ones you find in more well-known San Francisco neighborhoods, look livedin, sometimes a little run-down, but the beauty still prevailing. Having walked here from the Lunar New Year parade in Chinatown and Little Saigon, I felt like I traversed decades of history and human-

ity, and peeked into the soul of the neighborhood.

Walking through West Oakland embodies the area’s reckoning with its complicated history. The apartment buildings, homes, and sparse businesses that line 7th Street alongside the BART station are just a block away from the storied Victorians and the Black Panther Mini Museum. The neighborhood started as the end-point to the international railroad in the 19th century, developing into a culturally rich working and middle-class hub for the Black community that lived and worked there in the period surrounding World War II (including Maya Angelou), then falling prey to discriminatory housing and zoning laws.

The block party showed evidence of the resilient diversity that you root for to overcome the neighborhood’s challenges. I saw many ethnicities, overheard kids speaking Spanish, saw another volunteer hand out groceries to an elderly Asian woman, and just basked in the neighborhood vibes, which proved good and true. Everyone was welcome.

Above the DJ’s table loomed the threestory tall mural with a quote by Sandra Bland, who died at the hands of police in custody in 2015. “My beautiful kings and queens, someone cares about you, somebody loves you, and knows you can do great things.”

Volunteers hand out free produce at the ‘Love the People’Block Party in West Oakland.

A volunteer helps with screen printing posters at the 'Love the People' Block Par ty in Oakland.

The 'Love the People' Block Party in West Oakland, outside the Black Panther Mini Museum.

Cities or Suburbs: Where Do We Thrive Economically?

ByTaye Johnson BlackHealthMatters.com

We have deep roots in the United States, but we’re still underrepresented in many areas of the country. The reasons for this are complex, but it includes a long history of discrimination and segregation. It resulted in many of our ancestors moving Up North and Out West in search of better economic opportunities and upward mobility. But are we thriving there? It’s a complicated question.

A recent report from McKinsey called The State of Black Resident’s Report examines where we live and the factors that improve or impede our economic prospects. According to their research, 30% of us live in twelve megacities (urban centers), 7% of us live in high-growth hubs (think Austin, Charlotte, Minneapolis, and Silicon Valley), 12% of us reside in the suburbs, and 19% make our homes in what is categorized as stable cities (Jacksonville, Cincinnati, St. Louis) and independent economies (like Lancaster, PA and Winston-Salem, North Carolina).

Why is this the case, you might ask?

Across the U.S., suburban neighborhoods have the highest overall Black outcome scores. These areas are reported to be the top indicator of the critical metrics, “such as median household income

($79,000), workers in management roles (36 percent), life expectancy (78 years), and bachelor’s degree attainment (29 percent).” However, only 52% of Black suburban dwellers own their homes compared to 62% of white residents.

Coming in second are high-growth hubs like Seattle, Las Vegas, and Silicon Valley, where few live. But while there is great potential there, our underrepresentation in tech jobs and the high cost of living, including exorbitant housing,

makes it a less financially stable option for us.

Interestingly, we outearn our peers nationally when we live in megacities.

When we chose these urban and urbanadjacent areas, we faced longer com-

The New Haven Equitable Entrepreneurial Ecosystem (NHE3) is a business-support network partnering with entrepreneurial support organizations (ESOs) to build an inclusive and equitable entrepreneurial ecosystem for historically marginalized entrepreneurs in Greater New Haven.

With a focus on funding BIPOC-and Woman-owned businesses, NHE3 intentionally provides grants to help small businesses thrive.

Grant round dates:

2nd round opens on Dec 1st and closes on Jan 31st (review and awards: end of February)

3rd round opens on Mar 1st and closes April 30th (review and awards: end of May)

4th round opens on June 1st and closes July 31st (review and awards: end of August)

mutes and high housing costs. And we are paid “roughly 60 percent of what white megacity residents do.”

Where has the Black population decreased in the past decade?

“Over the past decade, the Black population declined in large cities and rural counties while growing in the suburbs,” according to McKinsey. This type of movement is something that has been happening for decades. The Black population has been moving out of urban areas and into the suburbs since the 1960s when the Civil Rights Movement began to dismantle segregation laws. This shift was accelerated by white flight from cities in response to desegregation efforts.

Despite moving from urban cities to the suburbs, “Less than 0.1 percent of the Black population lives in a county close to parity.”

This research reminds us that the racial wealth gap is not just an issue of income inequality but also one of opportunity. It is essential to recognize that our community faces unique challenges in our pursuit of economic mobility, and it is critical to address those challenges headon. Without change, the report indicates it would take 300 years for all the communities we live in to reach parity with our white counterparts.

ByCorynne Corbett, BlackHealtMatters.com

Many said Hydeia Broadbent defied the odds when it came to living with HIV/ AIDS; today, it was announced that she passed away at age 39. She dedicated her life to educating and creating dialogue around the disease. Many of us can recall her as a child sitting with Oprah in 1996, detailing how she was born with HIV and describing the symptoms she had when she was diagnosed with AIDS at age five. NBC reports that she was abandoned at birth at the University of Southern Nevada Hospital in Las Vegas. But Loren and Patricia Broadbent adopted her. As a child born with the disease, her willingness to share her story throughout her life educated so many about the disease. The Broadbents were the first Black family to discuss their journey publicly. She told Oprah that the most challenging part of living with the disease was watching people she loved die. In addition to Oprah, she appeared on 20/20, Good Morning America, and

Hydeia’s website states that her mission was “simply to inform & create dialogue around HIV/AIDS in our homes, communities, educational institutions & churches. My life’s mission is met in two folds: first, to use my life as a prevention tool for those who are HIV negative to make informed decisions to stay HIV negative, and also for those living with HIV/AIDS to find hope and inspiration not to allow HIV or AIDS to hold them back from living their best life.”

Hydeia was an advocate before medications were available. As she grew into adulthood, she urged us to take the disease and prevention seriously. She said, “I see so many people living recklessly. At what point do we get it? She said in an interview. “We have the tools here in the United States to have no more HIV infections, but yet we have new HIV infections every day.”

She shared publicly that living with the disease could be tough at times. Revealing that the disease impacted her both physically and mentally and discussed going to therapy. Yet she continued to advocate for those who had HIV/AIDS and educate those who were negative to remain so.

Throughout her life, Hydeai Broadbent made an impact on this earth. Because she shared her story, she has saved many lives. May she rest in eternal peace.

Escuelas Publicas de New Haven

Programas para la Infancia Temprana

Programas GRATUITOS y de escala móvil de 6 horas para la primera infancia para familias de bajos ingresos de New Haven

de NEW HAVEN

Programas para la infancia temprana GRATUITOS de 6 horas para familias de bajos ingresos de New Haven en las siguientes escuelas públicas de New Haven:

• Benjamin Jepson Multi-Age School

• Dr. Mayo Early Childhood School- (Immediate Openings)

• Fair Haven School

• John Martinez Sea & Sky STEM School

• Lincoln-Bassett Community School

• Truman School (Immediate Openings)

• Lugares comunitarios adicionales también participan en el programa.

Tel. 475-220-1464

• Contacto: Head Start Registracion

SCHOOL READINESS

de NEW HAVEN

Programas de educación temprana de 6 horas con tarifa variable y de escala móvil para familias de New Haven en las siguientes escuelas públicas de New Haven:

• Augusta Lewis Troup School

• Columbus Family Academy

• East Rock Community School

• Hill Central School

• Nathan Hale School

• Lugares comunitarios adicionales también participan en el programa.

Programas gratuitos de 4 horas disponibles en las escuelas East Rock Community y Nathan Hale.

Oficina de registro de primera infancia

Se encuentra en: Celentano Observatory

400 Canner Street New Haven, CT 06511 para el registro en persona

¡Aceptamos solicitudes!

Como aplicar

La oficina de Primera Infancia ahora está aceptando aplicaciones electronicamente.

Se alienta a los pandres de ninos de 3 y 4 años a presentar su solicitud en linea.4

Spanish:

https://registration.powerschool.com/family/gosnap.aspx? action=24982&culture=es

English:

https://registration.powerschool.com/family/gosnap.aspx? action=24982&culture=en

Que incluir en su inscripcion

1) Demostración de edad Certificado de nacimiento del niño/a O Documentos legales de custodia / tutela

2) Demostración de dirección

Factura de servicio actual (gas, electricidad, teléfono) a su nombre

Formulario de declaración jurada de residencia

3) Demostración de ingresos

• 2 meses de talones de pago actuales y consecutivos O W-2 o Devolución de impuestos 1040

• Declaración de presupuesto del Departamento de Servicios Sociales de CT,

o de la Oficina del Seguro Social, o de la Oficina de Cumplimiento de Menores (Child Enforcement Bureau)

• Declaración ante notario indicando que el padre o la madre es desempleado/a

4) Físico (dentro del último año)

• Registro de evaluación de la salud del Departamento CT de educación de primera infancia

• Resultados de exámenes de anemia y plomo

• Evaluación TB

• Registros de inmunizaciones Vacunación de la gripe de estación

• Tarjeta de seguro de salud

Contacto: School Readiness Office 475-220-1482

5) Examen dental

• Registro de examen dental (dentro de los últimos 6 meses)

Hydeia Broadbent, The 39-Year-Old HIV/ AIDS Activist Has Passed Away

Garrity Asphalt Reclaiming, Inc seeks:

NOTICE

Construction Equipment Mechanic preferably experienced in Reclaiming and Road Milling Equipment. We offer factory training on equipment we operate. Location: Bloomfield CT We offer excellent hourly rate & excellent benefits

Construction

NOW ACCEPTING PRE-APPLICATIONS

GREENFIELD COMMONS, 580 Villa Avenue Fairfield, CT

VALENTINA MACRI RENTAL HOUSING PRE- APPLICATIONS AVAILABLE

Contact: Tom Dunay

Phone: 860- 243-2300

Email: tom.dunay@garrityasphalt.com

Women & Minority Applicants are encouraged to apply Affirmative Action/ Equal Opportunity Employer

Garrity Asphalt Reclaiming, Inc seeks:

Reclaimer Operators and Milling Operators with current licensing and clean driving record, be willing to travel throughout the Northeast & NY. We offer excellent hourly rate & excellent benefits

Seeking to employ experienced individuals in the labor, foreman, operator and teamster trades for a heavy outside work statewide. Reliable personal transportation and a valid drivers license required. To apply please call (860) 6211720 or send resume to: Personnel Department, P.O. Box 368, Cheshire, CT06410.

HOME INC, on behalf of Columbus House and the New Haven Housing Authority, is accepting pre-applications for studio and one-bedroom apartments at this development located at 108 Frank Street, New Haven. Maximum income limitations apply. Pre-applications will be available from 9AM TO 5PM beginning Monday Ju;y 25, 2016 and ending when sufficient pre-applications (approximately 100) have been received at the offices of HOME INC. Applications will be mailied upon request by calling HOME INC at 203-562-4663 during those hours. Completed preapplications must be returned to HOME INC’s offices at 171 Orange Street, Third Floor, New Haven, CT 06510.

Contact: Rick Tousignant Phone: 860- 243-2300

Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer M/F/V Drug Free Workforce

PVC FENCE PRODUCTION

Preliminary Applications will be accepted beginning on 02/16/2024 AND ENDS with a postmark date of 03/15/2024. Pre-Applications received after the end date as postmarked will be automatically rejected. Pre-Applications are to be mailed only to Owner’s offices located at 15 Pine Tree Lane, Fairfield CT 06825.

Owner: Greenfield Commons, Inc

Funded by:

U. S. Dept. of Housing and Urban Development through its Section 202 housing program

NOTICIA

Email: rick.tousignant@garrityasphalt.com

Women & Minority Applicants are encouraged to apply Affirmative Action/ Equal Opportunity Employer

VALENTINA MACRI VIVIENDAS DE ALQUILER PRE-SOLICITUDES DISPONIBLES

Union Company seeks:

Tractor Trailer Driver for Heavy & Highway Construction Equipment. Must have a CDL License, clean driving record, capable of operating heavy equipment; be willing to travel throughout the Northeast & NY. We offer excellent hourly rate & excellent benefits

Contact Dana at 860-243-2300

Email: dana.briere@garrityasphalt.com

Large CT Fence Company looking for an individual for our PVC Fence Production Shop. Experience preferred but will train the right person. Must be familiar with carpentry hand & power tools and be able to read a CAD drawing and tape measure. Use of CNC Router machine a plus but not required, will train the right person. This is an in-shop production position. Duties include building fence panels, posts, gates and more. Must have a valid CT driver’s license & be able to obtain a Drivers Medical Card. Must be able to pass a physical and drug test. Please email resume to pboucher@atlasoutdoor.com.

AA/EOE-MF

Applicants will need to meet the income requirements based on family size for 50% of Area Median Income, or less. Eligible applicant households must have a head, co-head, or spouse age 62 or older. Preliminary Applications will be received during the period noted above and placement on the wait list will be made through the random selection method, once the period has ended. The maximum number of pre-applications to be placed on the wait list is fifty (50). Pre-applications will not be accepted by hand-delivery, facsimile, email or any other electronic transmission.

Income Limits: One Person - $41,100 Two Persons $47,000

HOME INC, en nombre de la Columbus House y de la New Haven Housing Authority, está aceptando pre-solicitudes para estudios y apartamentos de un dormitorio en este desarrollo ubicado en la calle 109 Frank Street, New Haven. Se aplican limitaciones de ingresos máximos. Las pre-solicitudes estarán disponibles 09 a.m.-5 p.m. comenzando Martes 25 julio, 2016 hasta cuando se han recibido suficientes pre-solicitudes (aproximadamente 100) en las oficinas de HOME INC. Las pre-solicitudes serán enviadas por correo a petición llamando a HOME INC al 203-562-4663 durante esas horas.Pre-solicitudes deberán remitirse a las oficinas de HOME INC en 171 Orange Street, tercer piso, New Haven , CT 06510

Women & Minority Applicants are encouraged to apply

Affirmative Action/ Equal Opportunity Employer

THE GLENDOWER GROUP, INC.

Full Time Administrative assistant position for a steel & misc metals fabrication shop who will oversee the daily operations of clerical duties such as answering phones, accounts payable purchase orders/invoicing and certified payroll. Email resumes to jillherbert@gwfabrication.com State of Connecticut

Pre-Applications will be provided to any & all interested persons. Individuals or families may pick up a hard copy of the pre-application at the Owner’s offices located at 15 Pine Tree Lane, Fairfield, CT or online at https://www.fairfieldhc.org. You may request a preapplication be mailed to you by contacting us at 203-366-6578.

For Additional Information Contact Carol Martin: Phone: (203)366-6578

TRS/TDD: (800) 842-9710

NOW ACCEPTING PRE-APPLICATIONS FOR PINE TREE

Affordable Rental Housing - ONE- & TWO-BEDROOM UNITS

Request for Proposals

242-258 Fairmont Ave

Invitation to Bid: 2nd Notice

15 Pine Tree Lane, Fairfield CT

Historic Preservation Consultant

2BR Townhouse, 1.5 BA, 3BR, 1 level , 1BA

All new apartments, new appliances, new carpet, close to I-91 & I-95 highways, near bus stop & shopping center Pet under 40lb allowed. Interested parties contact Maria @ 860-985-8258

The Glendower Group, Inc. is currently seeking proposals for Historic Preservation Consultant(s). A complete copy of the requirement may be obtained from Glendower’s Vendor Collaboration Portal https://newhavenhousing.cobblestonesystems.com/gateway

beginning on Wednesday, February 21, 2024, at 3:00PM.

Firefighter/EMT

SEYMOUR HOUSING AUTHORITY

The State of Connecticut, Office of Policy and Management is recruiting for an OPM Assistant

SAYEBROOKE VILLAGE

Old Saybrook, CT (4 Buildings, 17 Units)

Preliminary Applications will be accepted beginning on 02/16/2024 AND ENDS with a postmark date of 03/15/2024. Pre-Applications received after the end date as postmarked will be automatically rejected. Pre-Applications are to be mailed only to Owner’s offices located at 15 Pine Tree Lane, Fairfield, CT 06825.

Tax Exempt & Not Prevailing Wage Rate Project

New Construction, Wood Framed, Housing, Selective Demolition, Site-work, Castin-place Concrete, Asphalt Shingles, Vinyl Siding, Flooring, Painting, Division 10 Specialties, Appliances, Residential Casework, Mechanical, Electrical, Plumbing and Fire Protection. This contract is subject to state set-aside and contract compliance requirements.

Preliminary Applications will be received during the period noted above and placement on the wait list will be made through the random selection method, once the period has ended. The maximum number of pre-applications to be placed on the wait list is one hundred (100). Pre-Applications will not be accepted by hand-delivery, facsimile, email or any other electronic transmission.

Bid Extended, Due Date: August 5, 2016

Anticipated Start: August 15, 2016

Sealed bids are invited by the Housing Authority of the Town of Seymour until 3:00 pm on Tuesday, August 2, 2016 at its office at 28 Smith Street, Seymour, CT 06483 for Concrete Sidewalk Repairs and Replacement at the Smithfield Gardens Assisted Living Facility, 26 Smith Street Seymour.

A pre-bid conference will be held at the Housing Authority Office 28 Smith Street Seymour, CT at 10:00 am, on Wednesday, July 20, 2016.

Bidding documents are available from the Seymour Housing Authority Office, 28 Smith Street, Seymour, CT 06483 (203) 888-4579.

The Town of Wallingford is currently accepting applications for the position of Firefighter/EMT. Applicants must possess: a valid CPAT Card (issued within 12 months of the closing date), H.S. diploma/GED, valid driver’s license and hold a valid EMTA license that meets CT State Regulations. Copies of EMT-A licenses and CPAT certification must be submitted with application materials. The Town of Wallingford offers a competitive wage of $1,176.60 - $1,516.91 weekly. In addition, there is a $2,000 annual EMT bonus plus an excellent fringe benefit package. Application deadline is March 18, 2024 or the date the 40th application is received, whichever occurs first. Apply: Human Resources Department, Town of Wallingford, 45 South Main St., Wallingford, CT 06492. Forms will be mailed upon request from the Department of Human Resources or may be downloaded from the Department of Human Resources Web Page and emailed to wlfdhr@wallingfordct.gov. Phone: (203) 294-2080; Fax: (203) 294-2084. EOE.

The Housing Authority reserves the right to accept or reject any or all bids, to reduce the scope of the project to reflect available funding, and to waive any

Four Person family 80% AMI Max Income Limit $93,900/year: 2 Bedroom unit Maximum current rent- $1,180/month

Project documents available via ftp link below: http://ftp.cbtghosting.com/loginok.html?username=sayebrookevillage

Fax or Email Questions & Bids to: Dawn Lang @ 203-881-8372 dawnlang@haynesconstruction.com

Pre-Applications will be provided to any & all interested persons. Individuals or families may pick up a hard copy of the pre-application at the Owner’s offices located at 15 Pine Tree Lane, Fairfield, CT or online at https://www.fairfieldhc.org. You may request a preapplication be mailed to you by contacting us at 203-366-6578.

HCC encourages the participation of all Veteran, S/W/MBE & Section 3 Certified Businesses Haynes Construction Company, 32 Progress Ave, Seymour, CT 06483 AA/EEO

For Additional Information Contact Carol Martin:

Phone: (203)366-6578

TRS/TDD: (800) 842-9710

NOTICE OF REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL HOUSING AUTHORITY OF THE CITY OF DANBURY

NOTICE

Fee Accountant

RFP NO. P24001

VALENTINA MACRI RENTAL HOUSING PRE- APPLICATIONS AVAILABLE

Please register here to obtain Bid Package: https://ha.internationaleprocurement. com/requests.html?company_id=49968

PROPOSAL SUBMITTAL RETURN:

Housing Authority of the City of Danbury, 2 Mill Ridge Rd, Danbury, CT 06811

Envelope Must be Marked: RFP No. P24001, Fee Accountant

HOME INC, on behalf of Columbus House and the New Haven Housing Authority, is accepting pre-applications for studio and one-bedroom apartments at this development located at 108 Frank Street, New Haven. Maximum income limitations apply. Pre-applications will be available from 9AM TO 5PM beginning Monday Ju;y 25, 2016 and ending when sufficient pre-applications (approximately 100) have been received at the offices of HOME INC. Applications will be mailied upon request by calling HOME INC at 203-562-4663 during those hours. Completed preapplications must be returned to HOME INC’s offices at 171 Orange Street, Third Floor, New Haven, CT 06510.

Attn: Lisa Gilchrist, Purchasing Agent

SUBMITTAL DEADLINE

March 4th, 2024 at 10:30am (EST)

CONTACT PERSON FOR IFB DOCUMENT:

NOW ACCEPTING PRE-APPLICATIONS

TREFOIL COURT Apartments, Fairfield, CT

Preliminary Applications will be accepted beginning on 02/16/2024 AND ENDS with a postmark date of 03/15/2024. Pre-Applications received after the end date as postmarked will be automatically rejected. Pre-Applications are to be mailed only to Owner’s offices located at 15 Pine Tree Lane, Fairfield CT 06825.

Owner: Trefoil, LLC

Funded by:

Connecticut State Department of Economic and Community Development, and U. S. Dept. of Housing and Urban Development through its Section 8 housing program

NOW ACCEPTING PRE-APPLICATIONS

GREENFIELD COMMONS, 580 Villa Avenue Fairfield, CT

NOTICIA

Lisa Gilchrist – Purchasing Agent

Telephone: 203-744-2500 x1421

E-Mail: lgilchrist@hacdct.org

VALENTINA MACRI VIVIENDAS DE ALQUILER PRE-SOLICITUDES DISPONIBLES

[Minority- and/or women-owned businesses are encouraged to respond]

HOME INC, en nombre de la Columbus House y de la New Haven Housing Authority, está aceptando pre-solicitudes para estudios y apartamentos de un dormitorio en este desarrollo ubicado en la calle 109 Frank Street, New Haven. Se aplican limitaciones de ingresos máximos. Las pre-solicitudes estarán disponibles 09 a.m.-5 p.m. comenzando Martes 25 julio, 2016 hasta cuando se han recibido suficientes pre-solicitudes (aproximadamente 100) en las oficinas de HOME INC. Las pre-solicitudes serán enviadas por correo a petición llamando a HOME INC al 203-562-4663 durante esas horas.Pre-solicitudes deberán remitirse a las oficinas de HOME INC en 171 Orange Street, tercer piso, New Haven , CT 06510

at 3:00

Eastern Standard Time. Late Submissions and facsimiles will not be considered.

The State of Connecticut, Office of Policy and Management is recruiting for a Finance Director (OPM Assistant Division Director) in the Office of Finance.

Further information regarding the duties, eligibility requirements and application instructions are available at: https://www.jobapscloud.com/ CT/sup/bulpreview.asp?b=&R1= 240125&R2=0104MP&R3=001

The State of Connecticut is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer and strongly encourages the applications of women, minorities, and persons with disabilities.

Applicants will need to meet the income requirements based on family size for 50% of Area Median Income, or less. Eligible applicant households must have a head, co-head, or spouse age 62 or older, or a disability determination from the Social Security Admin. to qualify. Preliminary Applications will be received during the period noted above and placement on the wait list will be made through the random selection method, once the period has ended. The maximum number of pre-applications to be placed on the wait list is one hundred (100). Pre-applications will not be accepted by hand-delivery, facsimile, email or any other electronic transmission.

Income Limits: One Person - $41,000 Two Persons $47,000

Pre-Applications will be provided to any & all interested persons. Individuals or families may pick up a hard copy of the pre-application at the Owner’s offices located at 15 Pine Tree Lane, Fairfield, CT or online at https://www.fairfieldhc.org. You may request a preapplication be mailed to you by contacting us at 203-366-6578.

For Additional Information Contact Carol Martin: Phone: (203)366-6578

TRS/TDD: (800) 842-9710

Invitation to Bid: 2nd Notice

SAYEBROOKE VILLAGE

Old Saybrook, CT (4 Buildings, 17 Units)

Tax Exempt & Not Prevailing Wage Rate Project

RETURN:

Housing Authority of the City of Danbury, 2 Mill Ridge Rd, Danbury, CT 06811

Envelope Must be Marked: IFB No. B24002, Security Monitoring and Repairs

Attn: Lisa Gilchrist, Purchasing Agent

SUBMITTAL DEADLINE

SEYMOUR HOUSING AUTHORITY

March 18th, 2024 at 10:30am (EST)

CONTACT PERSON FOR IFB DOCUMENT:

Lisa Gilchrist – Purchasing Agent

Telephone: 203-744-2500 x1421

E-Mail: lgilchrist@hacdct.org

Sealed bids are invited by the Housing Authority of the Town of Seymour until 3:00 pm on Tuesday, August 2, 2016 at its office at 28 Smith Street, Seymour, CT 06483 for Concrete Sidewalk Repairs and Replacement at the Smithfield Gardens Assisted Living Facility, 26 Smith Street Seymour.

[Minority- and/or women-owned businesses are encouraged to respond]

A pre-bid conference will be held at the Housing Authority Office 28 Smith Street Seymour, CT at 10:00 am, on Wednesday, July 20, 2016.

Listing: Technician Pre-Apprentice

New Construction, Wood Framed, Housing, Selective Demolition, Site-work, Castin-place Concrete, Asphalt Shingles, Vinyl Siding, Flooring, Painting, Division 10 Specialties, Appliances, Residential Casework, Mechanical, Electrical, Plumbing and Fire

copy of the RFP visit www.nbhact.org

Maintainer I

Bidding documents are available from the Seymour Housing Authority Office, 28 Smith Street, Seymour, CT 06483 (203) 888-4579.

Petroleum Company has an opening for a HVAC/Oil/Heating Technician PreApprentice. Send resume to: HR Manager, P. O. Box 388, Guilford, CT 06437 or email HRDept@eastriverenergy.com

**An Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer, including disabled and veterans**

The Housing Authority reserves the right to accept or reject any or all bids, to reduce the scope of the project to reflect available funding, and to waive any informalities in the bidding, if such actions are in the best interest of the

Entry-level position performing a variety of maintenance, repair and construction tasks. Must have a valid State of CT driver’s license and a clean driving record, a CDL Class B is preferred. Requires 3 years experience in construction, grounds or building maintenance or in work involving the operation and care of construction equipment. Pay rate: $23.56 to $27.94 hourly, plus an excellent fringe benefits package. Applications may be downloaded from the Department of Human Resources Web Page and can be mailed or faxed to the Department of Human Resources, Town of Wallingford, 45 South Main Street, Wallingford, CT 06492, or emailed to: wlfdhr@wallingfordct.gov. by the closing date of March 11, 2024. Phone: (203)294-2080; Fax: (203) 294-2084. EOE

Senior Sales Representative

NOTICE

Penfield Communications, Inc. Publishers of The Inner-City News Weekly Print Publication is seeking a Senior Sales Representative The Inner-City News is a legacy, Black owned print publication, celebrating 30+ years as Greater New Haven’s urban news and information outlet.

VALENTINA MACRI RENTAL HOUSING PRE- APPLICATIONS AVAILABLE

The Inner-City News is a weekly print publication with a readership spanning across Greater New Haven. From Hamden, New Haven, West Haven, Stratford, Milford, Bridgeport. This free weekly print publication is committed to sharing news and information important to the Black community.

Salary Range:

$87,727 to $136,071

Human Resources Assistant

HOME INC, on behalf of Columbus House and the New Haven Housing Authority, is accepting pre-applications for studio and one-bedroom apartments at this development located at 108 Frank Street, New Haven. Maximum income limitations apply. Pre-applications will be available from 9AM TO 5PM beginning Monday Ju;y 25, 2016 and ending when sufficient pre-applications (approximately 100) have been received at the offices of HOME INC. Applications will be mailied upon request by calling HOME INC at 203-562-4663 during those hours. Completed preapplications must be returned to HOME INC’s offices at 171 Orange Street, Third Floor, New Haven, CT 06510.

Deputy Finance Director/Controller

Advertising and the cultivation of existing and new advertising clients is key to the growth and continued success of The Inner-City News. The paper is delivered weekly to businesses, schools, shopping outlets and wherever newspapers can be found. This is a remote sales position.

Senior Sales Representative Job Responsibilities:

Work closely with the Publisher and editor to create a successful sales strategy. Must be a self-starter and highly motivated.

NOTICIA

• Builds and manages the sales pipeline.

Pre-employment drug testing. AA/EOE.

For Details go to  www.bloomfieldct.org

The Town of Wallingford is seeking a highly motivated individual to perform a variety of confidential human resources support activities. Requires a H.S. diploma or equivalent and 3 years’ responsible office experience that includes performing human resources work. $24.82 to $29.72 hourly plus an excellent fringe benefits package. Applications may be downloaded from the Department of Human Resources Web Page and can be faxed or mailed to the Department of Human Resources, Town of Wallingford, 45 South Main Street, Wallingford, CT 06492, or emailed to: wlfdhr@wallingfordct.gov by the closing date of March 6, 2024. Phone: (203) 294-2080; Fax: (203) 294-2084. EOE

THE GLENDOWER GROUP, INC.

Request for Proposals

Architectural Design

34 Level Street New Haven CT

VALENTINA MACRI VIVIENDAS DE ALQUILER PRE-SOLICITUDES DISPONIBLES

• Creates monthly sales forecasts.

• Develops strategies to reach sales goals.

• Writes sales pitches for all products and services.

• Completes competitive analysis reports.

• Presents monthly sales reports.

• Contacts potential customers and makes sales pitches.

• Develops relationships with top customers.

HOME INC, en nombre de la Columbus House y de la New Haven Housing Authority, está aceptando pre-solicitudes para estudios y apartamentos de un dormitorio en este desarrollo ubicado en la calle 109 Frank Street, New Haven. Se aplican limitaciones de ingresos máximos. Las pre-solicitudes estarán disponibles 09 a.m.-5 p.m. comenzando Martes 25 julio, 2016 hasta cuando se han recibido suficientes pre-solicitudes (aproximadamente 100) en las oficinas de HOME INC. Las pre-solicitudes serán enviadas por correo a petición llamando a HOME INC al 203-562-4663 durante esas horas.Pre-solicitudes deberán remitirse a las oficinas de HOME INC en 171 Orange Street, tercer piso, New Haven , CT 06510

• Meets or exceeds sales quotas.

• Collaborates with customer service, billing, and other departments.

• Uses popular sales management software.

[Work

242-258 Fairmont Ave

2BR Townhouse, 1.5 BA, 3BR, 1 level , 1BA

An associate or bachelor’s degree in marketing, business, or a related major is a plus but not required. At least [number] years of sales representative experience is preferred. Interested candidates should apply to John Thomas, JThomas@penfieldcomm.com

All new apartments, new appliances, new carpet, close to I-91 & I-95 highways, near bus stop & shopping center Pet under 40lb allowed. Interested parties contact Maria @ 860-985-8258

pay maximum is mid-range)

Fully Benefited – 35 hours weekly

Pre-employment drug testing. For more details, visit our website –www.bloomfieldct.org

and have a valid CT driver’s license. Must be able to pass a physical and drug test. All necessary equipment is provided.

SEYMOUR HOUSING AUTHORITY

Benefits include medical, dental, vision, 401k match, Life Insurance and vacation. Send resume to gforshee@atlasoutdoor.com We are an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action employer.

Sealed bids are invited by the Housing Authority of the Town of Seymour until 3:00 pm on Tuesday, August 2, 2016 at its office at 28 Smith Street, Seymour, CT 06483 for Concrete Sidewalk Repairs and Replacement at the Smithfield Gardens Assisted Living Facility, 26 Smith Street Seymour.

Transportation Planner

The Glendower Group, Inc. is currently seeking proposals for architectural design services for the 34 Level Street located in New Haven CT. A complete copy of the requirement may be obtained from Glendower’s Vendor Collaboration Portal https://newhavenhousing.cobblestonesystems.com/gateway beginning on Monday, February 5, 2024, at 3:00PM.

MONROE HOUSING AUTHORITY/FAIRWAY ACRES IS NOW ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS FOR ELDERLY HOUSING!

Invitation to Bid: 2nd Notice

SAYEBROOKE VILLAGE

Old Saybrook, CT (4 Buildings, 17 Units)

Tax Exempt & Not Prevailing Wage Rate Project

New Construction, Wood Framed, Housing, Selective Demolition, Site-work, Castin-place Concrete, Asphalt Shingles, Vinyl Siding, Flooring, Painting, Division 10 Specialties, Appliances, Residential Casework, Mechanical, Electrical, Plumbing and Fire Protection.

APPLICATIONS WILL BE AVAILABLE FROM FEBRUARY 1st, 2024 – MAY 1st, 2024. APPLICATIONS RECEIVED OR POSTMARKED AFTER MAY 1st, 2024, WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED. Eligible applicants must be 62+ OR 18+ if disabled. Rent calculation is based on 30% of your income. Tenants cannot pay lower than the base rent: $420/efficiency, $430/one -bedroom and ADA. Applications can be picked up at the office Mondays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays from 9-2 pm at: 358 Wheeler Road, Monroe, CT 06468, or by email at: housing@monroect.gov. Those that need assistance with obtaining the application and/or applying can call 203-261-7685. Assistance in another language will be made available to those that need it. Eligible applications will be chosen by lottery system and subject to background checking. The Monroe Housing Authority does not determine eligibility based on age, ancestry, color, sex, race, creed, marital status, sexual orientation, national origin, religion, lawful source of income, familial status, learning disability, physical or mental disability, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or veteran status.

Bid Extended, Due Date: August 5, 2016

Anticipated Start: August 15, 2016

Request for Proposals

Project documents available via ftp link below: http://ftp.cbtghosting.com/loginok.html?username=sayebrookevillage

Construction Manager at Risk 34 Level Street New Haven CT

Fax

A pre-bid conference will be held at the Housing Authority Office 28 Smith Street Seymour, CT at 10:00 am, on Wednesday, July 20, 2016.

Bidding documents are available from the Seymour Housing Authority Office, 28 Smith Street, Seymour, CT 06483 (203) 888-4579.

The South Central Regional Council of Governments (SCRCOG) is seeking to fill the Transportation Planner position. Visit www.scrcog.org for the full position description, qualifications, and application requirements. Applications are to be submitted by noon on Monday February 5, 2023 or until the position is filled. Questions may be emailed to jobs@scrcog.org. SCRCOG is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer.

The Housing Authority reserves the right to accept or reject any or all bids, to reduce the scope of the project to reflect available funding, and to waive any informalities

The Glendower Group, Inc. is currently seeking proposals for Construction Manager at Risk 34 Level Street located in New Haven CT. A complete copy of the requirement may be obtained from Glendower’s Vendor Collaboration Portal https://newhavenhousing.cobblestonesystems.com/gateway beginning on Monday, February 12, 2024, at 3:00PM.

Continue from page 04

Kids For Take off

children “you can achieve this.”

Johnson, 28, was introduced to a career in aviation in the sixth grade after spending his youth playing flight simulator computer games. That same year he flew his first ever plane thanks to a youth aviation program in New Jersey. He fell in love with the career path and pursued it. Johnson is now a first officer pilot for United Airlines.

Johnson told the dozens of students present about his job as a co-pilot flying a United Airlines Boeing 737. He typically flies up to 190 passengers per flight. He said he works in a cockpit with a captain; they take shifts flying the plane.

“Have you ever had an incident” while flying a plane? one student asked. Johnson said on a flight to Costa Rica a passenger was feeling lightheaded and needed medical attention. This resulted in the flight crew calling a doctor mid-flight to help support the unwell passenger.

Johnson said pilots use an iPad device that helps them detect weather conditions that may affect flights and turbulence.

As Johnson answered questions, students passed around a miniature model of a 737 plane.

“Have you ever passed out while flying a plane?” a student asked. Johnson said he hasn’t because an important part of his job is to always come to work well rested. Johnson said he must go about 180 miles per hour to get off the ground and lands at a similar speed in less than a mile.

Johnson explained that pilot schedules are made through a seniority-based system. As he reaches nearly a year on the job with United Airlines, he works only on the weekends and on holidays like Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years. In response to several other questions Johnson said he has hit birds and bats before while flying a plane. His longest flight was from Seattle to Hawaii around seven hours.

“Who wants to be pilot now?” Johnson concluded. A dozen students raised their hands.

Elijah Johnson with students at King/Robinson.

At 27, Zoey Williams is Air Canada’s first Black female pilot to fly a Boeing 777

by Abu Mubarik, Face2FaceAfrica.com

Get to know Zoey Williams, who is the first Black female pilot to fly a Boeing 777 for Air Canada. A daughter of a pilot, her childhood was characterized by travels across the world, growing up in places like Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam; Doha, Qatar; Trinidad and Tobago; and London, England.

Due to her childhood experience traveling around the world, becoming a pilot seemed like a natural course, however, she was initially hesitant about going into piloting. She opted to pursue the engineering side of aviation because she did not like the sporadic schedules of airline pilots, she told Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University.

However, things changed after she took an introductory flight in a Cessna as a teenager. According to Williams, the idea was suggested by her dad, Orrett Williams, a Boeing 777 captain at Air Canada.

“I had travelled commercially and at the airline level as a passenger for my whole life. But in that small plane, I was terrified. My knees were shaking, it was bumpy, and my hands were sweating. I went home, and I said, ‘I’ll never do that again,’” she told Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University.

After that terrifying experience, she said she did some soul-searching and decided to conquer her fears by pursuing flight training.

“I did my recreational pilot permit in high school, and through the process of

flight training, I went from ‘terrified,’ to ‘this is alright,’ to’really loving it.’ That’s what pivoted everything from aerospace engineering into flying.”

By age 19, Williams was a certified flight instructor before going on to teach college-level aviation lecture courses while building her flight time through airborne flight instruction. She subsequently earned her A.S. in Aeronautics from Embry-Riddle in 2018 and went on to work on her B.S. in Aeronautics.

Today, the 27-year-old has four college degrees, three from Embry-Riddle. Before joining Air Canada, she performed many roles in the aviation industry, including flying the Beechcraft 1900, becoming a First Officer on the Embraer 175 for Sky Regional Airlines, and later being called to Air Transat.

While pursuing an MBA in Aviation program, she also started a short-term rental business and did a lot of odd jobs to “get my footing in the business world”, she said.

As Air Canada’s first Black female pilot and a Boeing 777 First Officer, she has been featured in videos by Air Canada and the Elevate Aviation 2023 Women of Inspire. The Ontario, Canada native was also selected among the Top 20 Under 40 by Wings Magazine.

As a Boeing 777 first officer at Air Canada, she often shares the flight deck with her dad, Captain Williams. Besides flying, Williams is a singer and songwriter as well as an author behind the book, Go Where You Belong, which is being published in English and French to inspire “little girls” that they could fly too.

Powerball player wins $340 million jackpot but lottery says winning number was an error

by Stephen Nartey, Face2FaceAfrica.com

A Powerball player has alleged that he was denied a $340 million jackpot despite his numbers matching the lottery’s website, which Powerball dismisses as a “mistake.”

John Cheeks, the plaintiff, purchased a ticket on January 6, 2023, during the jackpot’s rise, leading to a lawsuit against Powerball and the DC Lottery. Cheeks, who chose his ticket numbers based on family birthdates, missed the live drawing but checked the DC Lottery’s website the next day, according to the New York Post. He wasn’t in a hurry because he knew winning the jackpot was usually one in 292.2 million. But, to his amazement, when he checked the DC Lottery’s website, he saw his numbers matched, believ-

ing he had won the jackpot, despite the daunting odds.

“I just politely called a friend. I took a picture as he recommended, and that was it. I went to sleep,” Cheeks said. He found his ticket numbers displayed on the DC Lottery website for three days after the drawing, only to realize they didn’t match the live broadcast numbers when he attempted to redeem his ticket on January 10.

Despite his efforts, he was informed by a retailer and the DC Office of Lottery and Gaming prize center that he did not win the jackpot.

“Hey, this ticket is no good. Just throw it in the trash can,’” Cheeks recalled to the outlet. “And I gave him a stern look. I said, ‘In the trash can?’ ‘Oh yeah, just throw it away. You’re not gonna get paid.

There’s a trash can right there.’”

Cheeks has since placed the disputed ticket in a secure deposit box. His lawyer, Richard Evans, disclosed that a lottery contractor informed Cheeks that Taoti Enterprises, a digital advertising agency in DC managing the lottery website, made an error by posting inaccurate numbers.

“They have said that one of their contractors made a mistake,” Evans told NBC 4. “I haven’t seen the evidence to support that yet.”

Evans believes that despite Cheeks not having the correct numbers from the live drawing, action should be taken to address the situation for his client.

“Even if a mistake was made, the question becomes: What do you do about that?”

Black-owned whiskey brand created to honor former slave on its way to unicorn status after latest raise by

Abu Mubarik, Face2FaceAfrica.com

Since its launch in 2017, the Black woman-owned whisky brand, Uncle Nearest, has achieved unrivaled success in the spirits industry. Not only is it the bestselling brand among black-owned wines, but it is also competing favorably with established brands.

It, therefore, came as no surprise when, in 2022, it was announced that its sales had exceeded $100 million, cementing its position as one of the most successful black-owned distilleries in the world. The U.S. distillery also became the seventhmost visited in the world, with well over 200,000 visitors in 2023.

In 2021, the brand became the best-selling African-American-owned and founded spirit brand in the U.S. after selling nearly 1.5 million bottles of its soughtafter super-premium whiskey. The company’s whisky portfolio of seven offerings is available at its distillery in Shelbyville, Tennessee, and in all 50 states, territories,

Nearest recently became

and districts nationwide, it said in a statement released at the time.

Today, Uncle Nearest is approaching unicorn status, a feat few black businesses have been able to achieve. This follows the brand’s recent capital raise for its forthcoming French subsidiary, which was oversubscribed, according to Fortune.

CEO Fawn Weaver has raised a total of $220 million since Uncle Nearest was founded, which values the company at $900 million, Fortune added. The latest capital round is crucial to scaling the first women- and minority-owned spirits conglomerate, according to Weaver.

Uncle Nearest Premium Whisky was founded by Weaver to honor the memory of Nearest Green, an enslaved African American who helped Jack Daniel start his distillery.

The distillery became the first in U.S. history to honor an African-American whisky maker and one of the few distilleries in the country owned and operated

by a black, female lead. The whisky brand debuted in 2017.

“Built on its knack for sourcing the best of Tennessee whiskies and bourbons, the whisky is made using a non-temperaturecontrolled ageing process and a unique post-ageing double filtration method, which is then blended to perfection by fifth-generation Nearest Green descendant and Uncle Nearest’s master blender, Victoria Eady Butle,” the company wrote in a statement.

Despite the effect of COVID-19 on many businesses, particularly black businesses, Weaver weathered the storm to top the chart of bestselling African-Americanowned whisky brands.

“Our bottling and distilling partner did an incredible job of ensuring every area of the distillery was socially distanced and followed the strictest COVID-19 guidelines, which meant we could only move so quickly and had to cap our third full year at 120,000 cases sold,” said Weaver.

Uncle

the Best-Selling Black-Owned and Founded Spirit Brand. Photo Credit: Instagram / @unclenearest

John Cheeks/Photo credit: NBC Washington

Photos: Linkedin/Zoey Williams

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