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Volume 13 Issue No. 2 Jan. 13-19, 2012

Online at www.QueensPress.com

VISION QUEST

Greater Jamaica Development Corporation asks the state’s economic development czar for support in redeveloping several sites downtown. By Domenick Rafter … Page 3

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As We Salutethe Memory ofDr. MartinLuther King, Jr.Let Us All...Together...Strive to MakeThat DREAMCome True

Congressman

Gregory W.Meeks

Paid for by Friends for Gregory Meeks

6th Congressional District

News BriefsMLK Events

In honor of the late Dr. Martin Luther

King Jr., local leaders are inviting the com-

munity to honor the civil rights activist in

their own way.

Councilman James Sanders Jr. (D-

Laurelton) will host his third annual Com-

munity or Chaos conference on Jan. 16

at the St. Luke Cathedral’s Multi-Purpose

Center, located at 133-24 233rd St. in

Laurelton. From 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. attend-

ees will learn how to start and run a suc-

cessful non-profit organization.

The program is not only aimed at non-

profits and community activists, but also

community members who may have an

interest in starting a non-profit but do not

know where to start. Monday’s workshop

is co-sponsored by the Community Re-

source Exchange, Citizens Committee of

NY, Cause Effective, The Drug Policy Al-

liance and The Foundation Center. To

register for the event, call (718) 527-

4356.

The Jamaica Branch of the NAACP

has planned a trip to the nation’s capital

to visit King’s memorial for Jan. 21. Chap-

ter President Leroy Gadsden said it is

important for the community to celebrate

King’s life. “We want to pay our respects

and we sure we never forget the contribu-

tions Dr. King made to America,” he said.

In addition to stopping by the King me-

morial in Washington D.C., the group will

visit the Great Blacks in Wax Museum, an

exhibit dedicated to the historical accom-

plishments of blacks. The bus will leave

promptly at 7 a.m. next Saturday from the

chapter office, located at 189-26 Linden

Blvd. Those interested in attending can

call (718) 978-0400.

Clinics Recognized For

Diabetes Care

Two health clinics operated by Com-

munity Healthcare Network were recently

recognized by a national organization for

high-quality and well-managed diabetes

care.

The National Committee for Quality

Assurance (NCQA), a not-for-profit orga-

nization that focuses on honoring quality

care, recognized the LIC Health Center,

36-11 21st

St. in Long Island City, and

Queens Health Center, 97-04 Sutphin

Blvd., for its diabetes care and treatment.

The NCQA checks on whether doc-

tors draw blood and find that patients are

taking care of their condition. They also

check to see that doctors are checking

for feet and eye issues. Diabetics are prone

to retinopathy in the eyes and neuropa-

thy in the feet which, if left unchecked,

can lead to severe complications.

Dr. Peter Tesler, chief medical officer

for CHN, called diabetes care a “team ef-

fort” and said it was “critically important”

to engage the patient so they take care of

the chronic condition.

Dr. Julia Garber, associate medical di-

rector at the Queens Health Center, said

that the clinic sets up appointments with

a podiatrist and an opthamologist to

make sure patients are getting the best care

available.

According to the Dept. of Health, 11

percent of Jamaica residents suffer from

diabetes. An important issue the clinic

also deals with is obese and overweight

patients, which can lead to adult-onset

diabetes. The clinic will refer patients to a

nutritionist who will teach patients what

and how to eat and also advise exercise.

‘A’ Train Improvements

Riders along the Lefferts Boulevard

branch of the A train are going to see

some structural and aesthetic improve-

ments to the nearly century old elevated

line over Liberty Avenue.

Besides that terminus, the MTA also

outlined plans to reconstruct parts of

111th Street, 104th Street, Rockaway

Boulevard, 88th Street and 80th Street

stations.

Linda Tonn, MTA design manager for

station rehabilitation projects said the

Lefferts Boulevard station meets the re-

quirements under the Americans with Dis-

abilities Act to add an elevator and other

“renewal” work.

The elevator at Lefferts Boulevard will

be located on the north side of the sta-

tion where the sidewalk is wider. It will

have stops on the street, the mezzanine

and the platform so those using the el-

evator can go directly to the platform

from the street. The station will also have

other ADA compliant features including

detectable warning strips on platform

edges and braille signs.

The stairs and windscreens at Lefferts

Boulevard will also be replaced and the

columns on the platform will be repaired.

Similar work will be done at the other five

stations, some of which- like Rockaway

Boulevard- have already had new street

stairs installed, but the stairs from the

mezzanine to the platform will be re-

placed.

At Lefferts Boulevard, 80th Street and

104th Street mezzanine level f loors will

be replaced. The platforms will be recon-

structed to make them more level and fix

ponding issues that have been happening

after rain, especially at 88th Street and

104th Street.

Tonn said 104th Street’s platform is in

the worst condition and would need the

most work. She added the MTA is about

a third of the way through the design pro-

cess and the project is scheduled to go to

contract at the end of the year.

Correction:

An incorrect photo of Bishop

Charles Norris Jr. ran in the Jan. 6 issue

of the PRESS of Southeast Queens. We

sincerely apologize for the error.

Bishop Charles Norris Jr.

Presstime

BY BRIANNA ELLIS

Despite persistent efforts to provide

food for seniors, low attendance has

caused an end to J-SPOA’s South Jamaica

Offsite Meals Program. The program will

official come to an end Jan. 13.

“We just didn’t get the numbers,

maybe 2 to 3 people a day,” said Melissa

Evans, J-SPOA’s director of administra-

tion.

Evans said the lack of members was

caused by the previous center closing in

June 2010 due to city budget cuts. Former

director Carol Hunt strived to continue a

program that would allow seniors to get a

hot meal every day.

Senior Offsite Meal

Program Ends Friday

Seniors can still look forward to alter-

nate locations that provide food daily.

Theodora G. Jackson Adult Center is open

Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5

p.m. The center is located at 92-47 165th

Street in Jamaica.

Five blocks down, on 92-33 170th St.,

the Friendship Center offers special ser-

vices to selective senior citizens. Open

Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to

4 p.m., seniors can expect more than just

a hot plate. The center caters exclusively

to seniors with Alzheimer’s disease, de-

mentia, and disability.

Reach Intern Brianna El l is at

intern@queenstribune.com or (718) 357-7100,

Ext. 124.

BY VERONICA LEWIN

When the Black Spectrum Theater’s

proposal for a charter school was turned

down two years ago, Founder Carl Clay

took the rejection as a chance to tweak

their curriculum to the needs of the commu-

nity. This time around, the theater is hope-

ful their plans will turn into classrooms.

The Black Spectrum Theater proposed

to open the Spectrum Charter School of

Performing Arts at Roy Wilkins Park in

Jamaica nearly two years ago. The campus

would educate 360 middle school stu-

dents with the intent to prepare children

for a career in the arts.

“Our mission has been to provide for a

new generation of performing artists in

urban communities,” Clay said. The appli-

cation was rejected by the SUNY Charter

Schools Institute last year for undisclosed

reasons.

The Black Spectrum Theater held a

community meeting Tuesday night to dis-

cuss their plans for the charter school. The

performing arts company already partners

with public schools for theater programs

and hosts theater camps throughout the

year. “We wanted this school to have its

own space,” he said. Clay said he believes

opening the Spectrum Charter School will

integrate performing arts with the class-

room in a way that is not done in city

schools. He said core curriculum at the

school would include performing arts, such

as acting out a play in English class.

Many critics of the plan question why

the Black Spectrum Theater does not part-

ner with an existing school that lacks per-

forming arts curriculum. Clay, a former

New York City school teacher, expressed

concern with a full-partnership with a pub-

lic school. Although a partnership would

be more economically feasible than open-

ing a school on their own, Clay said the

theater did not want to run the risk of

joining a school and having it not work

out. Clay added that the theater opened in

1970 with the intention that it would one

day host a school for young performers.

“Education has always been an under-

pinning for all that we do,” he said.

If the plan is approved this time, Spec-

trum Charter School will enroll 120 stu-

dents a year for three years, until the cam-

pus reaches its capacity of 360 students.

Programs offered will include digital film-

making, production and a theater insti-

tute. Clay is hopeful their revised proposal

will be accepted this time and other groups

in the area will follow suit. “We hope this

is the first of many performing arts schools

in the area,” he said.

Reach Reporter Veronica Lewin at

vlewin@queenspress.com or (718) 357-7400,

Ext. 123.

Theater Seeks

Charter After Denial

BY VERONICA LEWIN

After months of uncertainty, Peninsula

Hospital Center employees can now

breathe a little easier after a union agree-

ment has been reached.

The hospital's largest employee union,

1199 SEIU, will receive $10 million over

the next three years, half of the money that

was owed before the hospital declared

bankruptcy last year.

Peninsula Hospital Center in Far

Rockaway has been on life support since

last summer. Each hospital employee re-

ceived a Warn Act notice on July 29,

which contained an outline of employee

rights, contact information, job retraining

options and benefits employees are en-

titled to in the event of a closure. On Aug.

1, the hospital submitted a draft closure

plan to the State Department of Health for

their review and approval. On Aug. 23

MediSys, which operates Flushing Hospi-

tal Medical Center and Jamaica Hospital

Medical Center, ended its affiliation with

Hospital Union

Reaches Agreementthe Far Rockaway hospital. Closing the

hospital would have left St. John's Episco-

pal Hospital the lone hospital to serve

residents on the peninsula.

In September, Revival Home Health

Care took over the day to day operations

of the hospital, with Chief Operating Of-

ficer Todd Miller becoming Peninsula's

Chief Restructuring Officer to help staff

members with the transition. Councilman

James Sanders Jr. (D-Laurelton), who rep-

resents part of the Rockaways, said he was

pleased the hospital's doors have been

able to stay open.

"Peninsula is not entirely out of the

woods yet, but I have absolute faith that if

all parties continue to work together in the

spirit of compromise to do what's right for

the people of the Rockaways, Peninsula

will be able to sort out its financial issues

and remain in operation for years to come,"

Sanders said.

Reach Reporter Veronica Lewin at

vlewin@queenspress.com or (718) 357-7400,

Ext. 123.

BY DOMENICK RAFTER

Assemblywoman Vivian Cook (D-Ja-

maica) had one simple message to Queens

native Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s economic

development czar to bring back to the

state’s chief executive; “Come home, An-

drew.”

A little more than a week after the

governor outlined his economic develop-

ment proposals, Kenneth Adams, the CEO

of the Empire State Development Corpo-

ration paid a visit to the borough, meeting

with Borough President Helen Marshall at

Borough Hall and touring Southeast

Queens with State Sen. Malcolm Smith

(D-Hollis), first in Jamaica and later on the

Rockaway Peninsula. At a meeting in Ja-

Cuomo’s Econ Vision Wanted in SEQmaica, Cook implored Adams to push

Downtown Jamaica as a priority in Gov.

Cuomo’s economic development plans,

noting that Cuomo is a native of Southeast

Queens and his father, former Gov. Mario

Cuomo – grew up in Jamaica.

“We need [Gov. Cuomo] to bring his

vision home,” she said.

While most of the economic develop-

ment talk has been focused elsewhere in

the borough, the Greater Jamaica Devel-

opment Corp. reached a hand out to Gov.

Cuomo via Adams on Thursday morning

asking for support in redeveloping several

sites in Downtown Jamaica, including

around the LIRR station, the former Won-

der Bread bakery site and the vacant Mary

Immaculate Hospital. GJDC President

Carlisle Towery made a case for hotels and

retail development around the LIRR/

AirTrain terminal, especially in the fairly

underdeveloped areas to the south of the

station. He warned that while he wanted

the see the area developed, he didn’t want

to lose the character of the community.

“We never wanted it to be a megalopo-

lis of hotels,” Towery said.

The area around the LIRR station was

rezoned in 2007, but the financial crisis

thwarted development there. As the

economy rebounds, he hopes it will light a

new spark in the area – with the governor’s

help.

“We don’t do anything without govern-

ment partnership,” Towery added.

The Wonder Bread factory on Douglas

Avenue took up the majority of the brain-

storming meeting Thursday morning, but

the group also touched on the former site

of Mary Immaculate Hospital and the con-

dition of Jamaica Hospital, which Towery

warned was being “overwhelmed with

patients” and would not be able to handle

the population boom that could come

with redevelopment in the area.

Towery also brought up the proposed

convention center at Aqueduct Racetrack

and noted that it took will “have implica-

tions to supporting the Downtown Ja-

maica agenda.”

After his visit to Jamaica, Adams

headed to the Rockaway Peninsula where

he saw the rehabilitation projects current

being undertaken along the A line and

where Smith pushed for more express buses

to Manhattan.

“A lot of work has been put into trans-

portation in the area, but we still need

more,” Smith said.

Adams also toured the Arverne-By-The-

Sea development, Wavecrest Mall, and

O’Donohue Park in Far Rockaway and

also visited the Beach 116th Street retail

corridor in Rockaway Park. He also got a

look at Rockaway’s crown jewel – the

beach. Smith pushed the need for com-

mercial areas to complement the success-

ful growth in residential development in

recent years, especially in Arverne.

“We have the residential, what we need

is the commercial development,” Smith

said.

Reach Reporter Domenick Rafter at

drafter@queenstribune.com or (718) 357-

7400 Ext. 125.

ESDC CEO Ken Adams takes a tour of

Jamaica Thursday morning.

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BY DOMENICK RAFTER

Community Board 10 Chairwoman

Betty Braton had always known that the

casino at Aqueduct Racetrack was not the

end of it. Hotels and convention space

have always been on the table. But when

Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced in his

State of the State speech last Wednesday

that he supported a plan to build the world’s

largest convention center adjacent to the

Resorts World New York City casino on

Aqueduct grounds, Braton’s reaction could

probably be best described as what you get

when you mix concern, confusion and sur-

prise in a blender and add ice.

“We knew this was coming, we just

didn’t know the scale,” Braton said at the

Jan. 5 CB 10 meeting, as apprehensive

laughter rumbled through the room.

That frozen cocktail of emotions was

shared by many in the neighborhoods sur-

rounding Aqueduct Racetrack. Having just

endured the opening of the casino that

brought gridlock to the streets of what has

always been a rather quiet, isolated, even

suburban part of the borough, hearing the

terms “world’s largest” attached to any

proposed development nearby raised

quite a few red f lags.

The message at the first CB 10 meet-

ing of the year was that the community

did not oppose the idea, but felt rather

blindsided by the governor’s announce-

ment so soon after the holidays and after

the chaos of the casino opening had died

Feelings Mixed On Convention Center

down. A community that up until recently

had no major facilities to draw thousands

of people had questions- and a lot of them.

Where is it going to be built? How big

will it be? Is it going to be a “boondoggle?”

How are people going to get there?

Genting’s local subsidiary, Resorts

World New York, is calling the proposed

convention center the New York Interna-

tional Convention and Exhibition Cen-

ter- or by the pleasant acronym; NICE.

The $4 billion project would be entirely

financed by RWNY. 3.8 million square

feet of convention center space would be

built in two phases. The first phase, 2.6

million square feet, will be built on land

leased to RWNY and completed by No-

vember 2014. The second phase- the fi-

nal 1.2 million square feet- will be built

later, on property now leased to the Port

Authority of New York and New Jersey.

A year after the first

phase opens RWNY is

eyeing the completion of

a 1,000 room hotel

somewhere on the site.

All development will

occur on uninhabited

land.

At least 10,000 con-

struction jobs and

10,000 permanent jobs

could be created by the

convention center,

RWNY said, almost 10

times the number of jobs

created by the casino.

Some expressed concern about the

possibility of the massive convention cen-

ter turning into a “white elephant” be-

cause of statistics questioning the profit-

ability of convention centers in recent

years. RWNY spokesman Stefan Fried-

man said the design of the center and its

location leads the company to believe it

will be successful.

The convention center will have one

huge floor- something that does not exist

at the multi-level Jacob Javits Convention

Center in Manhattan, but desired by many

convention organizers. That satisfies one

community concern; whether or not the

development will be an eyesore in the

neighborhood’s skyline. Its location be-

neath a busy f light path to JFK airport

eliminates any possibility of any tall build-

ing, State Sen. Joe Addabbo Jr. (D-Howard

Beach) reminded CB 10.

Transportation issues are a major topic

on the minds of locals. Some wondered

how the expected tens of thousands of visi-

tors get to the convention center. RWNY

said it would work with the State and the

MTA to introduce “uninterrupted” subway

service between Aqueduct and Midtown

Manhattan. “Uninterrupted” subway ser-

vice could come via a new line running to-

gether with the A train making fewer stops

or by use of the so-called “Queensway,” the

abandoned LIRR viaduct that connects to

the Rockaway branch of the A train near

Aqueduct Racetrack and ends at the LIRR

main line in Rego Park.

“Transportation to the site is an issue

that needs to be addressed and we have

been discussing the feasibility of MTA ser-

vice from Manhattan to Aqueduct, with

Genting paying the cost of such service,”

Gov. Cuomo said in a letter to state legis-

lative leaders this week.

At the CB 10 meeting, Braton told the

board that it was too early in the process

for many of the questions to be answered

in full, and her board would need to be

included in discussions.

“At this point, the relationship that we

have with Genting is good,” Braton said.

“When [the casino] first came about, that

was a leap of faith for us. It’s no longer a

leap of faith.”

Reach Reporter Domenick Rafter at

drafter@queenstribune.com or (718) 357-7400

Ext. 125.

The center will have over three and a half million square feet of

convention space.

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Queens Woman Sees Top Of The World

Arverne resident Barbara Hillary became

the first black woman to reach the North

Pole.

BY DOMENICK RAFTER

When Arverne resident Barbara Hillary

retired from her many years working in

nursing education, she realized she hadn’t

traveled as much as she wanted to. She

came across an advertisement for a pho-

tography trip to Canada to take pictures of

polar bears in their natural habitat. That

would be the beginning of a journey that

would literally take her to both ends of the

Earth.

Hillary, a native of Manhattan, attended

nursing school and obtained degrees in

Gerontology, Political Science and Inter-

national Affairs. As a child, she vacationed

in Hilton Head, S.C., where her mother’s

family is from. Back then, the island, now

known for its chic golf courses and resorts,

was only accessible via an old boat where

your crewmates included live poultry.

But the warm coasts of the south are a

far cry from where she most recently vaca-

tioned. After going to the Canadian prov-

ince of Manitoba to see polar bears up

close, she fell in love with her frosty sur-

roundings.

Hillary, who is also a cancer survivor,

later discovered that no black woman had

ever been to the North Pole. After con-

firming that fact with the Russians — who

informally administer the North Pole —the

idea became more enticing.

“The fact that no black woman had ever

set foot on the North Pole, I decided to try

to do it,” Hillary explained.

So she made her decision- she was

going to the North Pole. Now all that she

needed to do was convince everyone else

she was serious.

“The first difficult thing was trying to

reassure people that you haven’t lost your

mind,” she said while laughing.

More serious — she needed money. A

trip to the North Pole costs $22,000 and

that’s without the airfare to the Arctic and

the many layers of clothes you’d need to

survive. She called around trying to raise

the money, while practicing her cold-

weather survival skills. When she finally

raised the money, she was off to the north.

Her trek started in Svalbard, an icy

island about three hours flying time north

of Norway. From there, she flew on a

Russian jet to base camp somewhere in the

middle of the Arctic Ocean. On April 23,

2007, Hillary became the first black woman

ever to reach the North Pole.

“A sea of ice,” Hillary said of the scene.

“It’s mindboggling. It never ends.”

Reaching the top of Earth, Hillary

quickly made the decision she needed to

go to the bottom. The South Pole is nearly

twice the cost of visiting the North Pole.

For one thing, Hillary needed to get to

Chile- a process that was complicated by

a strike in that country at the time. There

she waited.

“When you’re in Chile you must pay

your own room and board until you get the

go ahead weatherwise to reach base

camp,” she explained.

So she did, and when she got the OK

to head into Antarctica, she slept in an

unheated tent in 40-degree below zero

temperatures and saw a different scene

than she had seen on the Arctic. The

Arctic is a frozen ocean, while Antarctica

is a land mass. She saw mountains and

met mountaineers heading to climb the

continent’s tallest peak- Vinson Massif.

In January 2011 - at the age of 79 -

Barbara Hillary reached the South Pole -

the first black woman ever to visit both

ends of the planet.

At the South Pole, she observed the

Amundsen-Scott station with its buildings

built on hydraulic stilts to allow it be raised

above the snow and the actual pole, which,

unlike the North Pole, is marked.

Back home in a more temperate cli-

mate, Hillary has become a motivational

speaker, talking about her adventures that

so many doubted she would go through

with.

“It’s a matter of determination, believ-

ing in yourself, and the way you were

raised,” she explained. “I was raised to

stand on my own two feet. I was raised that

the world didn’t owe me anything. That

you work hard for what you want, and you

don’t lie and you don’t steal.”

As for her trips, “I’m proud I did it,” she

said.

At the age of 80, Hillary is planning her

next adventure. Where? She’s keeping that

a secret for now so no one steals her idea,

but you can learn more about her and her

adventures at her website

barbarahillary.com

Reach Reporter Domenick Rafter at

drafter@queenstribune.com or (718) 357-

7400 Ext. 125.

OF SOUTHEAST QUEENS

150-50 14th Road

Whitestone, NY 11357

(voice) (718) 357-7400 fax (718) 357-9417

email news@queenspress.com

The PRESS of Southeast Queens

Managing Editor:

Steven J. Ferrari

Contributing Editor:

Marcia Moxam Comrie

Production Manager:

Shiek Mohamed

Queens Today Editor

Regina Vogel

Photo Editor: Ira Cohen

Reporters:

Harley Benson

Veronica Lewin

Domenick Rafter

Ross Barkan

Jason Pafundi

Intern:

Brianna Ellis

Art Dept:

Rhonda Leefoon

Candice Lolier

Barbara Townsend

Advertising Director

Shanie Persaud

Sr. Account Executive

Shelly Cookson

Advertising Executives

Merlene Carnegie

Shari Strongin

A Queens Tribune Publication.

© Copyright 2012 Tribco, LLC

Michael Schenkler,

President & Publisher

Michael Nussbaum,

Vice President,

Associate Publisher

Editorial Letters

Letters

Aqueduct On Track to Revitalize Boro

Convention-al Wisdom

No Convention Center

To The Editor:

If Gov. Andrew Cuomo has

his way, the world’s largest con-

vention center could be com-

ing to Queens. (Queens Tribune

Jan. 5-11, 2012) One hopes

Cuomo does not have his mis-

guided way, and is set on a path

to a responsible good govern-

ment that does not exist solely

for the benefit of billionaire real

estate developers. The Gover-

nor needs to do research, which

I believe will demonstrate the

error of his thinking.

Ignoring for the moment this

city in the case of the Javits Con-

vention Center on Manhattan’s

West Side has a structurally sound

center which is slated to be en-

larged and upgraded, to the tune

of $1.4 billion, why do the tax-

payers of this city need a differ-

ent center? Does the Governor

have in mind the removal of Javits

so prime Manhattan real estate

will be turned over to real estate

developer friends together with

huge taxpayer subsidies? Apart

from what one may say about the

Javits Center as is or if demol-

ished, the error in Cuomo’s think-

ing is his failure to understand

convention centers are no longer

viable, lose money and are an

abysmal waste of taxpayer dol-

lars, and make no mistake that

under Cuomo’s plan taxpayer in-

volvement will be in the billions

of dollars.

A Brookings Institution report

in 2005 (before the current wors-

ened economic environment)

raised serious questions about a

convention hall space race with

other cities, stating: You’ve got

cities around the country build-

ing new or expanded convention

space at a very rapid rate in a

market that is already glutted and

over supplied.”

In an environment where ev-

ery major center around the coun-

try is sharply discounting rental

rates or giving space away and

throwing in incentives, the likeli-

hood of any succeeding is re-

markably dim.”

The report also pointed out

that there has been a steady de-

cline in attendance. Doing busi-

ness with huge corporations like

Walmart does not take place in a

convention center. You set up

an office near Walmart’s pur-

chasing center and that is where

you solicit business. Further-

more, enormous amounts of busi-

ness are conducted through the

internet.

The kind of taxpayer fueled

project Cuomo is talking about is

nothing but pie in the sky non-

sense and must be rejected.

Benjamin M. Haber,

Flushing

More Gun Control

To The Editor:

It seems to me that Turner’s

standing with others to raise thou-

sands of dollars for the family of

slain Officer Peter Figoski of the

NYPD might soften his views

against gun control. I implore to

stand with U.S. Rep. Carolyn

McCarthy to ban the sale of ex-

tended capacity ammunition

magazines. Extending back-

ground checks on purchases

made at gun shows and other

sensible laws may prevent the

deaths and maiming of countless

innocent citizens like Arizona’s

U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, and

the senseless deaths of the young

girl and five others attending her

rally a year ago.

I implore you, U.S. Rep. Bob

Turner, to stand up to your re-

sponsibility as our representative

in Congress. Vote for strong gun

control laws. Tell the NRA that

no one hunts with AK-47s!

B. K. Brumberg,

Howard Beach

The borough is experiencing mixed emotions about Gov. Cuomo’s

announcement last week, proposing the world’s largest convention cen-

ter in Queens. While some may zero in on the potentially problematic –

the profitability of convention centers in recent years and a logjam of

visitors clogging transportation – we should focus on the benefits the

Governor’s proposal would bring to the borough.

In this time of economic uncertainty, the creation of 10,000 new

permanent jobs would be nothing short of a boon to the community. And

with the Governor’s announcement that any costs associated with creat-

ing uninterrupted subway service between Aqueduct and Midtown will be

covered by Genting, many financial concerns seem to wash away.

The proposal would also give New York City a state-of-the-art space

with plenty of room to accommodate any number of events looking for a

home that would fit their needs. For years, groups have complained

about the lack of available space in the Jacob Javits Center in Manhat-

tan. Already, groups are planning to move out of the confined spaces of

Manhattan into Queens.

Sure, anything can happen between now and the opening of the first

phase of the center in November 2014. But as it stands, it sounds like

the world’s largest convention center would do a lot of good for the

borough.

A Personal Perspective

BY MARCIA MOXAM COMRIE

I’m not a gambler. I don’t pro-

mote casino or other forms of

monetary gambling. But I do rec-

ognize commercial success when

I see it. And I can appreciate the

gamble of an idea that pays off.

In only two months of opera-

tions, the new casino at Aque-

duct Racetrack has reported a

stunning $90 million in revenue.

Although not an “official casino”

as one would find in Las Vegas or

Atlantic City, these slot machines

have become an irresistible draw

for people who enjoy that sort of

thing.

Officially known as Resorts

World Casino New York City,

the facility has created hundreds

of jobs and inspired part of Gov.

Andrew Cuomo’s recent State of

the State Address. In fact, you

could say it was the centerpiece.

The governor has proposed

the exciting idea of a super con-

vention center to trump all con-

vention centers; plus hotels and

other businesses. Hello, Gov’na!

At long last, Queens will be the

borough on everybody’s mind.

Queens is now in play as a place

of promising economic vitality

and that’s a great place to be.

According to Cuomo,

Manhattan’s Jacob Javits Con-

vention Center is way too small

for a state and city like New York.

He informed us that our conven-

tion center ranks 12th in the na-

tion and that’s not good enough

for New York. “We should be

number one,” he noted.

With the space, two airports

and an air train, Queens is the

perfect place for this mega in-

vestment; and kudos to the gov-

ernor for having the confidence

to say so. With our economy at its

worst in decades, it will take not

just thinking outside the box, but

thinking without the box to get us

out of it.

Cuomo is anti-big government.

But he certainly is pro-big ideas.

If he gets his way, the pro-

posed convention center would

be about 3.8 million square feet

and would be developed with

private money of approximately

$4 billion. Not our tax dollars. My

understanding is that Genting,

the same outfit which handles

the current facility at Aqueduct,

would again be handling the in-

vestment with Resorts.

Not to look a gift horse in the

mouth but it sounds almost too

good to be true.

And it may well be. The gover-

nor has now sent letters to Assem-

bly Speaker Sheldon Silver and

Senate Majority Leader Dean

Skelos for just that. The matter

will at some point be presented for

legislative approval. And that’s

where the rubber will hit the road.

The legislative bodies will no

doubt go over the proposal like a

fine tooth comb trolling for lice.

We hope that politics don’t get in

the way of a potentially great

idea. But we also expect our leg-

islators to protect our interests so

the coming weeks and months

will be interesting.

If this comes to fruition, then

Aqueduct seems on track to be-

come the borough’s largest em-

ployer after JFK Airport, which

employs about 40,000, and

LaGuardia Airport, which also

has thousands of employees. Not

bad at all for under-utilized land

in Ozone Park.

Like the rest of the nation,

state and city, Queens has been

hit hard by the economic crisis.

The tell-tale signs are in the

boarded up stores on our com-

mercial strips. It is obvious by the

number of residential foreclo-

sures in our neighborhoods due

to unemployment, and indeed in

many other aspects of our lives.

These are indeed hard times

and hard times usually force us to

be creative. Gov. Cuomo’s pro-

posal has the markings of a mean-

ingful economic boon to our bor-

ough. He has wanted to be gover-

nor probably since his father was

governor back in the ’80s and

early ’90s. He finally got his op-

portunity and it behooves him to

distinguish himself as a governor

who cares and who does some-

thing great with that caring.

The proposal has – and will

have — many detractors, but for

the people who can’t find work

and for the borough and city that

need a shot in the arm, this sounds

like a great idea.

Let’s hope it gets off the ground

in a hurry.

WRITE ON:

The PRESS

of Southeast Queens,

150-50 14th Rd.

Whitestone, NY 11357

email news@queenspress.com

fax: (718) 357-9417

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Not 4 Publication.com by Dom Nunziato

Henry Stern

By HENRY J. STERNFifty years ago, I was

appointed and sworn inas Secretary of the Bor-ough of Manhattan. Thatelegant tit le did morethan justice to my actualduties, which were thoseof a staff assistant to theBorough Pre sident ofManhat tan, at the timeEdward R. Dudley.

Judge Dudley had won theDemocratic primary for BoroughPresident over AssemblymanLloyd Dickens in a race that wasa sidebar to the city-wide contestfor the Mayoralty which followedMayor Wagner’s break with Car-mine DeSapio, leader of TammanyHall, the regular Democratic or-ganization. Mr. Dickens is the fa-ther of Inez Dickens, a Cit yCouncilmember from Harlem whohas been mentioned as a candi-date for Council Speaker in 2013.

The Liberal Party, under theleadership of Alex Rose, supportedWagner and was influential in hisprimary victory. The Democraticcounty leaders had suppor tedState Comptroller Arthur Levitt,a regular Democrat from KingsCounty. Dudley ran on Wagner’sticket, which carried Manhattaneasily.

When it came time to select

the staff for his new term,Dudley found a dispens-able Democratic districtleader, Florence M.Ferguson of Inwood,who held the title of Sec-retary of the Borough ofManhat tan. Ms.Ferguson, an affablewoman whose husbandwas an optometrist from

207th Street, resigned, leaving atimely vacancy. To fil l it, Dudleychose a 26-year-old governmentbuff who at the time was servingas law clerk to a State SupremeCourt Justice, Mat thew M. Levy.That is how I entered the full-timeprofession of politics.

To fi l l Ms. Ferguson’s spot,Borough President Dudley reliedon several members of his seniorstaff. Perhaps the most influentialwas Jerome L. Wilson, his presssecretary. Wilson, a man of unusualability and high principle, was laterelected to the State Senate, repre-senting East Harlem and Yorkville.He served two terms in Albany, buthis career in elected office endedwhen he lost a race for Congressin 1966 to incumbent TedKupferman. Wilson later became asuccessful attorney in New YorkCity. A reform Democrat who wasalso a reasonable person, he wouldhave made a fine County Leader.

The small Liberal Party, whichhad supported Dudley, was dividedin its choice. The executive direc-tor of the Party favored an officialwho had been his employee atpar ty headquar ters. Wilson andyounger staff members, as well asthe Liberal Party vice chairman,liked me. The Borough Presidentmade the final decision, and did notregret it.

Two years later, Dudley waselected to the State SupremeCourt. He advanced in the courtsystem and remained until he re-tired. He was succeeded, eventu-ally, by Constance Baker Motley,a civi l rights at torney who hadbeen elected to the New York StateSenate. In 1966, she became thefirst African-American woman tobecome a United States DistrictJudge. She was appointed to thebench by President Lyndon B.Johnson.

The Secretary of the Boroughwas one of a staff of about a hun-dred who conducted the businessof the office. Some were ‘political,’others were civil servants. Theyvaried in ability and industry butwere loyal to their work and totheir employer. Over the years, theBorough President’s office wassharply reduced in size as its linefunctions were transferred to op-erat ing agencies, primari ly the

Politics Can Help Cities to Prosper If Leaders WiseDepar tment of Highways. Themaintenance and repair of streets,a function of the Borough Presi-dent for a century, was in the pro-cess of professionalization anddepoliticization, a task that wouldtake years to complete.

By 1962, much of the Bor-ough President’s work dealt withcommunity relations, and acting asliaison between community boardsand public agencies. The Borough

President is also involved in cityplanning, economic development,and zoning issues. I both repre-sented the Borough President atmeetings and reported to him oncommunity sentiment.

Public service is a privilege. Ifit is done honestly and well, it cansubstantially benefit the people.Over the years, that is what I havetried to do.

StarQuest@NYCivic.org

BY ROSS BARKAN

He was alive then, speaking of another

who was prematurely slain, and the stu-

dents and faculty of Queens College ap-

plauded for two minutes when he had fin-

ished his speech. In May 1965, the Rev.

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was not yet a

martyr. He was a speaker in a packed au-

ditorium, his rhetoric incantatory, urging

students to follow the path of nonvio-

lence a year after one of their own, An-

drew Goodman, had been one of three

young men murdered by Ku Klux Klan

members in Mississippi during 1964’s

Freedom Summer.

As Martin Luther King Day ap-

proaches once again, the usual encomi-

ums will be prepared for a legendary ac-

tivist well deserving of them. But what

will get little attention (or none at all) is

King’s relationship to the borough of

Queens, one that is overlooked in many

historical narratives.

Queens is a borough of startling diver-

sity, a place where legendary black fig-

ures like Louis Armstrong and Ella

Fitzgerald made their homes, and also a

place where civil rights activism f lour-

ished. Malcolm X lived in East Elmhurst

and went to the same doctor as current

Borough President Helen Marshall.

Harry Van Arsdale Jr., the renowned

labor leader of the New York City Cen-

tral Labor Council, knew King well, and

pictures of King and Arsdale can still be

found at Local Union No. 3, the Interna-

tional Brotherhood of Electrical Workers,

in Flushing. Jewel Avenue, as Queens resi-

dents are well aware, was renamed Jewel

Avenue and Harry Van Arsdale, Jr. Av-

enue after the labor leader who once lived

on that avenue and attended Townsend

Harris High School.

Civil Rights Memories

Harlem will always be remembered, as

it should be, as the New York nexus of

the civil rights movement. But Corona,

East Elmhurst, Jamaica, and several other

neighborhoods quietly became hotbeds of

activism. Now 92 and treasurer for the

Corona/East Elmhurst chapter of the

NAACP, Addie M.K. Crawford remem-

bers King speaking at churches and youth

programs on Queens Boulevard. Though

she didn’t see him speak in Queens, when

she did meet him, she knew she was talk-

ing to an individual unlike any other.

“The way he talked was the way he

lived,” Crawford said. “I remember see-

ing him at City Hall once. I was very anx-

ious just to shake his hand. He’s just re-

markable, there’s no match for him.”

Speaking about King at times in the

present tense, Crawford also recalled

another, more human side to the civil

rights leader. As King left City Hall, he

was in a hurry, and seemed rather ner-

vous. Perpetually a target in an era of star-

tlingly public assassinations — Malcolm

X had been assassinated in 1965 and

presidential candidate Rober t F.

Kennedy would be killed months after

King — King was assassinated in 1968,

unleashing waves of grief and anger

throughout the country.

According to Andrew Jackson, the di-

rector of the Langston Hughes Library in

Corona, King spoke at the Corona Con-

gregational Church on 34th Avenue and

102nd Street. King, besides speaking at

churches, was also known to show up at

Queens youth programs and educate teen-

agers about the civil rights movement.

Oft-forgotten in the narrative of King

was his fight for economic justice.

Marshall shook King’s hand on Northern

Boulevard outside of a store dedicated to

servicing the poor with free food and

clothing. A long line, as always, formed

to greet King, and Marshall finally got to

shake his hand.

“I shook hands and started crying. He

hugged me,” Marshall said. “I feel really

blessed I was able to touch that man.”

The Activist College

Situated in South Flushing, Queens

College is as diverse as its namesake, and

in the 1960s, students were galvanized

by the resolute calls for change that

seemed to echo from every corridor in

the nation. A century of dehumanizing

racial and economic oppression was at

last being fought on a public and national

scale; the students of Queens College, like

the youth leaping into the Occupy Wall

Street movements today, saw what was

happening around them and decided

they needed to lend their own energy and

their idealism.

“Queens College has always been a

very politically progressive campus,” said

Ben Alexander, professor of archival stud-

ies and head of special collections and

archives at Queens College. “Certainly,

in the 1960s, a generation of very liberal,

red diaper babies were present on cam-

pus. Their parents had lived through the

Great Depression. The college had a large

contingent of students who began to ex-

ercise interest in social justice, civil rights,

and resistance to segregation and abuses

in the South.”

Queens College has built an increas-

ingly crucial civil rights archive over the

past few years. Though the collection is

not large, it features several singular me-

mentos of a tumultuous era. The collec-

tion includes handwriting of black stu-

dents at a freedom school — an alterna-

tive school established to educate blacks

who had been shut out of all-white schools

— in Meridian, Miss, photographs of a

burning cross at a Klan meeting in South

Carolina, a fading photograph of King

addressing a small crowd in Atlanta, and

a manual for young activists on what to

do when arrested.

Goodman attended Queens College,

though he was a Manhattan native. He

was one of many Queens and CUNY stu-

dents that traveled south in the summer

of 1964 to help register blacks to vote.

Though all races and ethnicities had been

supposedly protected by the 15th Amend-

ment ratified nearly a century earlier,

death threats kept many southern blacks

from exercising voting rights.

Queens College students also traveled

to Prince Edward County, Virginia, to tu-

tor black students after the public school

system was shut down to avoid compli-

ance with Brown v. Board of Education.

King Arrives

On that spring day, May 13, King came

to Queens to tell those in the auditorium,

“It is either nonviolence or nonexist-

ence.” Introduced by then president Jo-

MLK’s Legacy Extends To Queens

seph P. McMurray, King, according to a

story by McCandlish Phillips in the New

York Times, mixed civil rights and peace

advocacy with a discussion of economic

justice. Present that day with King was

Ronald Pollack, then student body presi-

dent.

“King had this manner of speaking

that was just extraordinary,” Pollack said.

“Both the content and tone were very in-

spiring. He had a way of speaking that

reached your head and your heart in ways

that I’ve never heard from anyone from

before and after.”

Pollack, who participated in Freedom

Summer, had invited civil rights and anti-

war activist and politician Al Lowenstein

to speak at the college earlier. Lowenstein

helped Pollack get in contact with King.

Michael Schwerner, murdered along

with Goodman in 1964, also had a brother

who taught at Queens College.

“On campus, all around, they were re-

cruiting people to go to Mississippi,” said

Mark Levy, a Queens College alumnus.

“There were demonstrations at Queens

College around the opening of the

World’s Fair in 1964. Hiring practices

there were pretty segregated. In 1965, af-

ter Freedom Summer, another group of

students went down to Mississippi to help

rebuild churches that had burned.”

Activist students didn’t ignore their

own backyard. Many participated in the

Jamaica Help Project, an initiative com-

mitted to tutoring students in South Ja-

maica. As Ken Cohen, president of the

Northeast Queens NAACP branch noted,

besides newspapers, Queens residents

who wanted to stay up-to-date with a civil

rights movement in flux would make their

way over to Queens College.

More Work to Be Done

Cohen was sanguine as he spoke about

all the contributions King made to the

United States and world, but said progress

doesn’t mean racial and economic jus-

tice has been achieved.

“It seems that at this day and time

we’re in now, our country has become

more diverse, and there are more people

to turn around,” Cohen said. “And it

seems that there are those that will try to

keep people from moving forward; Those

that want to take us back to square one.”

Besides being a movement intended

to bring people together, Cohen said that

the civil rights movement was also a

battle for voting rights. Goodman,

Schwerner, and James Chaney died be-

cause they dared to help blacks vote.

Cohen alluded to efforts today being

made in some states to make voting more

difficult, like asking all voters to provide

proof of identification before they vote.

Critics of the measure see it as a throw-

back to an era when southern states did

all they could to keep minorities from

appearing at the ballot box.

“We’re still working on it, although

we’re getting closer, we’re not quite there

yet,” Cohen said. “We’re still fighting for

the rights of everyone.”

Reach Reporter Ross Barkan at

rbarkan@queenstribune.com or (718) 357-

7400, Ext. 127.

Martin Luther King addressing SCOPE

volunteers at the orientation in Atlanta in

June of 1965 (from the Dean Savage collec-

tion)

King with a QC graduate and rabbi.

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Remembering The Dream:

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from

New York State

Senate President Pro Tempore

Malcolm A. Smith

In Celebration of the Life & Legacy

of the

Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

District Office

P: 718-454-0162

F: 718-454-0186

Albany Office

P: 518-455-2701

F: 518-455-2816

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Police BlotterCompiled by JASON PAFUNDI

105th Precinct

Robbery Suspect Nabbed

Queens detectives arrested a man al-

legedly responsible for 11 recent gunpoint

robberies in the borough and three addi-

tional robberies in Nassau County after

matching fingerprints found on a dis-

carded bottle of brandy.

Gregory “Bubba” Kennedy, 31, from

Queens, was pulled over for speeding on

Jan. 3, while driving a black Chevrolet

Impala on 130th Avenue in Queens. Dur-

ing the stop, the Anti-Crime officers of

the 105th Precinct recognized the driver

from the photograph on a wanted poster

produced after a robbery committed at a

T-Mobile store in November.

According to police, on Nov. 25 at

10:15 a.m., a suspect, his face covered by

a scarf, entered the store at 251-05 Ja-

maica Ave., displayed a firearm, de-

manded money and f led with $2,750.

Detectives recovered a surveillance video

which showed the suspect, his face still

covered, enter a livery cab around the

corner from the store, open its passenger

side door and discard a liquor bottle onto

the street.

The Evidence Collection Unit recov-

ered an empty bottle of Paul Masson

Grande Amber brandy and lifted finger-

prints matching Kennedy. Detectives

were able to retrieve a photo of the sus-

pect, who has multiple prior arrests, and

produced a wanted poster that was circu-

lated within the 105th Precinct.

During questioning after his arrest,

Kennedy implicated himself in 10 other

armed robberies within the confines of

the 103rd, 105th, 106th and 113th pre-

cincts.

According to the suspect, between

Oct. 11 and Dec. 30, he stole approxi-

mately $11,435 in the robberies of the

JFK Inn, three different T-Mobile stores,

three Dunkin Donuts locations (two of

which he robbed twice), a McDonald’s

and a Metro PCS.

He was charged with 11 counts of

Robbery in the first degree.

106th Precinct

City Employee Busted

James Robinson, a City Corrections

officer, was arrested on Jan. 6. Robinson,

a 52-year-old black man, was charged with

rape, assault and unlawful imprisonment.

111th Precinct

Missing Teenager

16-year-old Angela Zheng was re-

ported missing after she was last seen on

Friday, Jan. 6, leaving her residence, lo-

cated at 225-14 59th Ave. in Bayside.

She was last seen at approximately

6:40 a.m. leaving her home, and she never

returned. She is described as being about

5-foot-4 and 110 pounds with black hair.

She was wearing a blue jacket with fur

trim, blue jeans and a black sweatshirt.

She wears glasses and has braces and is

in good physical and mental health.

114th Precinct

Missing Boy

Gerardo Ramos, a 12-year-old His-

panic boy, was last seen on Tuesday, Jan.

10, at approximately 3 p.m. walking home

from I.S. 204, located at 36-41 28th St.

Ramos, who lives at 38-15 9th St.,

Apt. 2R, in Long Island City, is described

as being approximately 5-foot-1, 105

pounds with brown eyes and short black

hair.

He was last seen wearing a brown coat,

grey sweater, blue jeans and blue and grey

sneakers.

Anyone with information in regards

to this missing woman is asked to call the

Crimestoppers hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS.

The public can also submit tips by logging

onto the Crimestoppers website,

nypdcrimestoppers.com, or by texting

274637 (CRIMES) and then entering

TIP577.

All calls are strictly confidential.

Corona Man Charged

According to DA Richard Brown,

Elvis Infante, a 35-year-old man from

Corona, was arraigned on a 3,000

count indictment charging him with

the possession and promotion of more

than 1,000 images and 500 videos of

child pornography.

Infante, of 58-35 Granger St. in Co-

rona, was charged with 1,544 counts of

possessing a sexual performance by a

child and 1,544 counts of promoting a

sexual performance by a child. He was

ordered held on $100,000 cash bail or a

$250,000 bond. His next court date is

April 16.

Brown said that, according to the

charges, NYPD detectives were notified

on Aug. 19, 2010, by the New York

Internet Crimes Against Children agency

about a cyber tip that the username

3SFORI7ZWOW7 had uploaded 12 im-

ages of child pornography to the Ning

social networking website. A Hotmail

email address with the same name was

registered to the defendant.

On Nov. 24, 2010, detectives went

to Infante’s home and recovered his

computer. An initial search found 80

images of child pornography, but a fur-

ther forensic investigation led to the re-

covery of more than 1,000 images and

over 500 videos of children depicted in

a sexual manner or performing sexual

acts.

The investigation was conducted by

Detective Andrew Jackson of the

NYPD’s computer crimes squad.

The defendant faces 2 1/3 to 7 years

in prison for each count.

“These cruel acts cannot and will be

not be tolerated in a civilized society,”

Brown said.

BY DOMENICK RAFTER

President Barack Obama’s new right

hand man is a Queens boy.

Jacob Lew, who has been head of the

Office of Management and Budget since

November 2010, was appointed by Presi-

dent Obama on Tuesday to replace Will-

iam Daley as White House Chief of Staff-

a high ranking White House position and

senior aide to the president who is often

responsible for organizing the president’s

schedule and overseeing the staff in the

West Wing.

An Orthodox Jew, Lew is a native of

Forest Hills and graduated from Forest

Hills High School. He later graduated from

Harvard and Georgetown Law School. Be-

fore being head of OMB, Lew previously

served as an advisor to Secretary of State

Hillary Clinton and also served as head of

OMB in the final three years of President

Bill Clinton’s term. When not in Washing-

ton, Lew and his family live in the

Riverdale section of the Bronx. He has

also worked for Citigroup and was Execu-

tive Vice President for Operations at NYU

and was a professor at NYU’s Wagner

School of Public Service.

Queens Native Now

Leads Obama’s Staff

Lew is Obama’s third Chief of Staff

since taking office, following Daley and

Rahm Emanuel, who was elected Mayor

of Chicago in February 2011. He is the

second member of the President’s staff

from the borough. U.S. Attorney General

Eric Holder is a native of East Elmhurst.

Reach Reporter Domenick Rafter at

drafter@queenstribune.com or (718) 357-

7400 Ext. 125.

Jacob Lew

Borough Beat

Southeast Queens Events Edited By Harley Benson

pix

Day of Pampering

Get On The Court

Counci lman RubenWills sponsored “Pam-pering Day” at Mara’sHair Salon, located at137-42 Guy R. BrewerBlvd. Owner TamaraTelechea hosted morethan a dozen young la-dies, ages 6-12, to anevening of spoils in-c luding f reehairwashes, s ty l ingand manicures. Photoby Craig Roberts.

Assemblyman Rory Lancman andU.S. Sen. Chuck Schumer, afterthe passage of legislation thatprohibits New York companiesfrom doing business with Iran’senergy program.

Bill Passage

Holiday Recycling

Councilman James F. Gennaro(D-Fresh Meadows) joins WestCunningham Park Civic Asso-ciation President Bob Harrisand Lewis Tree Serv iceworker Michael Saraniero forMulchfest on Sunday inCunningham Park. The annualcitywide event, which helpstransform Christmas treesinto useful mulch instead offilling up landfills, attractedmore than 500 fami l ies toCunningham Park over theweekend.

Councilman Leroy Comrie hosted a basketball clinic with New York Knickslegend John Starks at the Jamaica YMCA Jan. 6. In addition to the funda-mentals of basketball, participants got a feel for sportsmanship and theimportance of healthy living during the clinic. Photo by Ira Cohen.

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PeopleFourteen Queens Library locations

will be converted to RFID check-in and

check-out over the next couple of

months. All work will be done over

weekends. Two locations, Fresh Mead-

ows and Far Rockaway, will be closed

for one Saturday each to complete

work. The Fresh Meadows location will

be closed Jan. 21; Far Rockaway will be

closed Jan. 28.

Other libraries that will be converted

within regular public service schedules are

branches at Mitchell-Linden, Richmond

Hill, Lefrak City, North Forest Park, South

Ozone Park, Queens Village, Glendale,

Astoria, Hollis, Howard Beach, Whitestone

and North Hills.

For information, call the library at

(718) 990-070 0 or visit

www.queenslibrary.org.

Home Instead Senior Care seeks entries

for the “I Will Remember For You” fam-

ily reunion giveaway contest. To enter the

contest, submit a story in written or video

form about your experience with a family

member living with Alzheimer’s disease

or other dementias for a chance to win a

family reunion.

Entries must be submitted by 11:59

p.m. Jan. 31. Three finalists will be noti-

fied by Feb. 15.

For information and contest rules,

visit www.rememberforalzheimers.com.

The New York Lottery recently an-

nounced the names of area players who

claimed a winning ticket from one of the

Lottery’s live drawings Jan. 1-7.

Nfri Deveraj of Richmond Hill won

$10,000 on the Win 4 drawing Dec. 30.

Deveraj’s winning ticket was purchased

at the Md And M Lottery, 114-07 Guy R.

Brewer Blvd., Jamaica.

Ralph Mastruzzo of Jamaica Estates

won $10,000 on the Powerball drawing

Oct. 22. Mastruzzo’s winning ticket was

purchased at the MCM Farm Deli Gro-

cery, 179-02 Union Tpke., Fresh Mead-

ows.

Eugene Englese of Bayside won

$10,000 on the Mega Millions drawing

Dec. 13. Englese’s winning ticket was

purchased at the Nor-Cross Service Sta-

t ion, 17-55 Francis Lewis Blvd.,

Whitestone.

Celine Pelerin of Jamaica won $29,207

on the Take Five drawing Dec. 24.

Pelerin’s winning ticket was purchased at

the Palak Mini Market, 85-45 164th St.,

Jamaica.

Yong Ouyang of Maspeth won $10,000

on the Powerball drawing Dec. 28.

Ouyang’s winning ticket was purchased

at the Ming Xing Gif t Shop, 46-17

Kissena Blvd., Flushing.

Ricardo Serrano of Ridgewood won

$10,000 on the Mega Millions drawing

Jan. 3. Serrano’s winning ticket was pur-

chased at the 1115 Pennsylvania Meat

Corp in Brooklyn.

Hsin Yang of Bayside won $10,300

on the Powerball drawing Oct. 29.

Yang’s winning ticket was purchased at

the Yogi 19, 61-19 Springfield Blvd.,

Bayside.

John Munnelly of Flushing won

$25,000 on the Win 4 drawing Dec. 22.

Munnelly’s winning ticket was purchased

at the Pramukh 71, 107-36 71st Ave., For-

est Hills.

Da Ruan of South Richmond Hill

won $67,193 on the Take Five draw-

ing Jan. 2. Ruan’s winning ticket was

purchased at the Mickey Grocery,

113-07 Liberty Ave., South Richmond

Hill.

Jamar Roberson of Jamaica won

$250,000 on the Mega Millions drawing

Jan. 3. Roberson’s winning ticket was

purchased at the F&B Deli Mini Mart,

138-02 Farmer’s Blvd., Jamaica.

Christopher Syntilas of Astoria won

$10,000 on the Mega Millions drawing

Dec. 20. Syntilas’s winning ticket was

purchased at the Astoria Convenience at

22-55 31st St., Astoria.

Lillian Barron of Jackson Heights won

$80,409 on the Take Five drawing Oct.

4. Barron’s winning ticket was purchased

at the Bayside Ems Pharmacy, 40-15 Bell

Blvd., Bayside.

Local students were named to Kent

School’s Honor Roll for the fall 2011 se-

mester. Kent is a co-ed college prep

school in Kent, Conn.

Lucas Bejarano is a 6th form student

from Ozone Park.

Oussama is a 3rd form student from

Astoria.

Anira Figueira is a 6th form student

from St. Albans.

Claudy Nesly Gay of Cambria Heights

recently graduated cum laude with a Bach-

elor of Science degree in Biological Sci-

ences from Clemson University in

Clemson, S.C.

Local students were named to the

Dean’s List for the fall 2011 semester at

the University of New Haven in West

Haven, Conn.

Students recognized include: Fran-

cisco Alvarez of Astoria, Audra Clyburn

of South Ozone Park, Tania Gonzalez

of Woodside, Grace Kazlusky of Glen-

dale, James Kazlusky of Glendale,

Iajhiah Lucas of Jamaica, Eliot Pacheco

of Ozone Park, Michelle Peralta of

Ozone Park, Annamaria Primiani of

Eas t E lmhurs t , L o u i s R i z z o o f

Whitestone, Ariel Schiffer of Bayside

and Joseph Totino of Whitestone.

Tell The PRESS

Send notices of graduation, awards,

anniversaries, engagements and

honors to:

PRESS of Southeast Queens

150-50 14th Rd.

Whittestone, NY 111357

All announcements will be consid-

ered for publication without fee.

Profile

BY VERONICA LEWIN

While walking down Hillside Avenue

near Parsons Boulevard, one can't help

but notice the abundance of shops, in-

cluding places to get taxes done, restau-

rants and salons. One royal hair salon

near the bustling intersection is trying to

stand out for their customer service.

Queen of the Wink, located at 159-10B

Hillside Ave. in Jamaica, prides itself on

having a stylist for every kind of hair type.

One stylist specializes in children's hair,

while another is knowledgeable about tak-

ing care of natural hair. The salon itself

specializes in extensions. Each of the six

stylists brings a unique skill to the salon,

according to Manager Sarah Chambers.

Jamaica Salon Gives Royal Treatment

"There's somebody that does some-

thing for everyone," she said.

Queen of the Wink opened its doors

five years ago. In addition to styling ser-

vices, the salon offers massages, spa treat-

ments and makeup services. Chambers

said eyelash extensions attract the most

customers outside of hair styling. Their

temporary lashes, which last two to three

weeks, are a common choice for those

who may want longer lashes for a special

occasion. Queen of the Wink's most

popular eyelash extension is the mink

semi-permanent extension. Fur lashes are

$75, but the long-lasting lashes are easy

to maintain and clients can put makeup

on them like they could with their natural

eyelashes.

"It's really tasteful, and it's pretty,"

Chambers said. Those looking to jazz up

their eyelashes can get extensions with

jewels on them or eyelashes in different

colors.

Chambers was a nurse for 10 years be-

fore earning her cosmetology license. She

said working at Queen of the Wink helps

her express her creativity in a way nursing

could not. "It keeps me challenging my-

self. It keeps me fine-tuned," she said.

What Chambers enjoys most about

working at Queen of the Wink is the cli-

ent interaction. "It's really good to get to

know the community," she said. Accord-

ing to Chambers, their clients range from

working class people to socialites. She

attributes the diverse clientele due to the

salons personalized treatment. "We don't

treat everyone the same," she said. Styl-

ists try to maintain a personal relation-

ship with clients and use top of the line

products for hair and makeup. The owner,

Simone West, makes sure her employees

are knowledgeable about new products

and styles and cater services to each indi-

vidual.

Chambers said each of their stylists

Staff of Queen of the Wink salon on Hillside Avenue.

has been licensed for at least two years,

something that can be hard to find in

small salons throughout the city. She said

this helps Queen of the Wink maintain

an edge over the competition.

On Tuesdays and Wednesdays, the

salon offers a wash, roller set and style

for $25. On Wednesdays, customers can

get a relaxer for $45. For more informa-

tion, call (718) 262-8049.

Reach Reporter Veronica Lewin at

vlewin@queenspress.com or (718) 357-7400,

Ext. 123.

The spacious salon offers a variety of hair

styling options, as well as eyelash extensions.

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A A A A A &&&&& E E E E E

BY JASON PAFUNDI

Steve Hofstetter is a funny guy. But

considering he makes his living as a come-

dian, it’s not a surprise. What may surprise

some, though, is that Hofstetter and some

partners have opened a comedy club in

Long Island City, the first full-time com-

edy location in Queens in nearly 20 years.

The Laughing Devil, located at 47-38

Vernon Blvd., hosted its first show on

Dec. 16 and has been playing regularly to

packed audiences on weekends and above-

average crowds during the week.

“We are past our initial projections

three fold already,” he said. “Our week-

ends have been packed and our weekdays

have been good. People are really having

a good time.”

Hofstetter chose LIC for the club for a

number of reasons, not the least of which

being that he lives on the same block.

“My wife was joking with me that if we

moved even a block away that I would be

annoyed having to walk to work every-

day,” Hofstetter said.

He and his partners also recognized

the growth LIC has shown over the last

few years, and they saw the opportunity to

thrive, especially since Queens has been

devoid of a full-time comedy establish-

ment for the last two decades. In addition,

there are already over a dozen comedy

clubs in Manhattan.

“The growth has been unprecedented.

It’s amazing that there are like 25,000

people in a quarter of a square mile, and

there just aren’t enough entertainment

options,” he said. “So from a selfish stand-

point and a business standpoint, it made

sense.”

Hofstetter said there are things the

Laughing Devil does not do that make it

different from the majority of the clubs in

Manhattan.

And while Hofstetter said that they

cannot compare to the Comedy Cellar –

the famous club off MacDougal Street in

the East Village known for their high vol-

ume of celebrities – he said that the Laugh-

ing Devil has a lineup that can compete

with the other clubs in the City.

“I can’t say that our lineup is as good as

the Cellar’s, but I can say that our lineup

is as good, if not better, than the majority

of the other clubs in New York,” he said.

Hofstetter and his partners operate

three other comedy clubs – the Laughing

Skull and Funny Farm in Atlanta and

Morty’s Comedy Joint in Indianapolis –

and the name for the LIC club was a tie-in

to Laughing Skull in Atlanta.

“Anybody that would get offended by

our name isn’t the type of person that

comes to a comedy club anyway,” he said.

“I asked someone who questioned the

name if they ate deviled eggs. They had no

response.”

One of the things Hofstetter points to

as being a big key to the club’s success is

that he himself is a comic, and throughout

his career, he has established relation-

ships with comedians across the country,

making it easier to bring in top talent.

“These are the guys that I work with,

and it’s a lot easier to get these guys to

come by the club,” he said. “We are a really

cool place to hang out, and every comic

that has come here so far has said that

they like the place.”

He started looking at locations in Sep-

tember and spent the entire month plus

half of October, and he said that everyplace

they found had something wrong with it.

“We would literally just walk up and

down looking for any available space,” he

said. “At the last minute, right before we

were going to give up, this clothing store

went out of business, the owner left in the

middle of the night, and the next day there

was a ‘for rent’ sign. We signed the lease

two weeks later.”

The community has overwhelmingly

embraced the club, and Hofstetter said

that people knock on the door and say

that they are glad the club is in the neigh-

Restaurant Review

Like Eating In Mexico

VEYTA’S BAKERY CAFÉ

35-58 97th St., Corona

(718) 898-0058

CUISINE: Mexican

HOURS: 8 a.m. to 10 p.m.

DELIVERY: Yes

CREDIT CARDS: No

Growing up with a mother from

Mexico, some of my favorite dishes

growing up came from south of the bor-

der. As such, I’ve always been a little

picky about going to eat at Mexican res-

taurants. More often than not, the food

was not up to the standard set by my

mother.

On a whim I decided to stop in to

Veyta’s, a corner café in Corona, one

weekend when I was craving Mexican

food. After just one taste, it quickly be-

came one of my favorite places to go

when I didn’t feel like cooking.

If you’re looking for an elaborate

façade, Veyta’s may not be the place for

you. While some Mexican-themed deco-

rations hang on the walls, the restau-

rant is somewhat plain compared to

some other more f lamboyant Mexican

restaurants that look to hit you over the

head with the fact that they are Mexi-

can restaurants. But the ordinary ap-

pearance actually helps with the authen-

ticity. The décor doesn’t distract from

the food, which is the main draw.

About midway through the first meal

I had there with my parents, they both

agreed that eating at Veyta’s was the clos-

est thing to eating in Mexico they’ve ex-

perienced in the United States.

The best part of the experience of

eating at Veyta’s is the authenticity.

The first time my parents visited me in

Queens, I took them to the café. They

both raved about how it felt like they

were eating in a restaurant in Mexico.

Whenever they come through the bor-

ough now, I can count on walking

across the street for a great Mexican

meal.

Easily my favorite dish on the menu

is the chilequiles – a plate of corn chips

cooked in either a green or red salsa.

Diners can choose to add two fried eggs,

beef and chicken to the serving for an

even more filling meal. I’ll admit to or-

dering the chilequiles on more than one

occasion. Every time I’ve ordered the

dish, though, the plate has had a differ-

ent presentation. Not once, however,

did it ever disappoint.

While I rarely stray from the

chilequiles verdes con huevos y carne,

the menu is filled with traditional Mexi-

can fare that has delighted every time

I’ve gone with guests.

If you have room after your meal, look

to the wall by the door. The wide selec-

tion of traditional Mexican pastries –

combined with the desserts behind the

counter – will satisfy any sweet tooth

(Veyta’s is, after all, a bakery as well).

My favorite treat to bring home is the

orejas, a f laky, sweetened pastry made

to look like ears.

If you’re looking for an authentic

Mexican experience, you can’t do much

better.

—Steven J. Ferrari

borhood. Still, some LIC residents ex-

pressed concern, including one woman

that was afraid the location would be-

come a dance club before long.

“I couldn’t help myself from laughing,”

he said. “I looked and asked if they had

ever seen a 760-square-foot dance club.”

Without endless amounts of money to

spend on advertising, Hofstetter said that

the club has focused on social media,

including a Facebook page and Twitter

account. But the biggest advertisement of

all is word of mouth.

“I’ve been there with some co-workers

and we had a great time,” said Woodside

resident Mark Pachenko. “We’ve told our

friends, and they’ve told their friends. If

you spread the word, a place like this will

really take off.”

As the club continues to sell tickets and

becomes more well-known around the

City, Hofstetter hopes to keep attracting

bigger names to the lineup. Upcoming

shows feature Kyle Grooms, who had his

own Comedy Central special, and Rich

Vos, who starred on NBC’s Last Comic

Standing.

The Laughing Devil has shows every

night at 8 p.m. and also hosts a 10:30 p.m.

show on Fridays and Saturdays. For more

information or to reserve tickets, visit

laughingdevil.com or call (347) 91-

DEVIL.

Reach Reporter Jason Pafundi at

jpafundi@queenstribune.com or call (718)

357-7400, Ext. 128.

BY DOMENICK RAFTER

Flushing-native Christian Peppas grew

up listening to a wide range of electronic

rock and new wave artists. Now his band-

The Amatory Murder- is using their inf lu-

ence for their style of synth rock and they

are finding an interesting fan base both

in New York and far from here.

The Amatory Murder is out with a new

album called “A Different Frequency” and

will be touring New England in January

and the Midwest in February in support

of it. Peppas said the album has a theme-

communication between people.

“It kind of a concept album,” Peppas said

“It’s a rock album, but it tries to play on the

communication thing. Things get so warped

between people. Things are never clear.”

Peppas, who attended PS 32 and IS 25

in Auburndale and later went to LaGuardia

High School of Music & Art and Perform-

ing Arts, lists as his musical influences bands

like Depeche Mode, Nine Inch Nails, New

Order, Marilyn Manson and Placebo and

those influences can be heard in The Ama-

tory Murder’s eclectic aura and futuristic

sound. Like 80s New Wave all grown up

and blended with some of the 1990s most

popular genres: metal, techno and indus-

trial. The Amatory Murder got its starts play-

ing in such venues as Brian Dempsy’s on

Bell Boulevard.

Peppas said their sound comes from

Flushing Native Looks

To Go Far With Bandthe trouble they’ve had finding a drum-

mer, leading them to use electronic music.

“We started experimenting with other

ways of creating music,” he explained. “It

morphed into our sound.”

His band has avoided labeling their mu-

sic, Peppas said, but has found a rather loyal

fan base in the goth community and The

Amatory Murder’s music has received air-

play across the pond in Europe. The video

for the title track for “A Different Frequency”

is done in Claymation and was shown at a

music festival in Poland.

A visual artist himself, Peppas said he

is more than just the band’s frontman.

“Creative direction both visually and

musically, I kind of take the reins on that,”

he explained, noting his experience as a

visual artist- for which he attended

LaGuardia- hoped him design the band’s

cover art and logos.

The Amatory Murder is also releasing

a remix album called ‘Nobody’s Listening:

A Different Frequency Remixed/B-Sides’

in the spring. It is a compilation of some

of the band’s songs re-interpreted by other

DJs and artists, as well as a few alternative

versions and unreleased material.

They can be found online at

theamator ymurder.com or

Facebook.com/theamatorymrdr.

Reach Reporter Domenick Rafter at

drafter@queenstribune.com or (718) 357-

7400 Ext. 125.

Laughing Devil Brings Comedy To LIC

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Faith

NotebookMartin Van Buren

BY VERONICA LEWIN

An honors program at a Queens Vil-

lage School is preparing young adults for

successful futures.

The Scholars Institute at Martin Van

Buren High School is a program designed

to prepare students for higher education.

The scholars are held to rigorous standards,

with each student required to maintain a 90

percent average in all of their classes. If a

student falls below an 80 percent in any of

their classes, it is considered unacceptable.

Students must also have excellent atten-

dance, a requirement that helps students

maintain academic success. Often, students

who are in the Scholar's Institute have com-

pleted their Regents diploma course require-

ments by the end of junior year. Many of

the students choose to take Advance Place-

ment and College Now courses during their

senior year to better prepare them for the

first year of college.

Vice President Jaya Hariprasad said stu-

dents involved in the program are very

committed and spread their enthusiasm

beyond the classroom into the community.

Each of the 90 scholars are required to

serve at least nine hours of community ser-

vice each marking period. Students can

participate by helping teachers grade as-

signments or tutoring peers who need help.

On holidays such as World AIDS Day,

scholars will present lectures about the is-

sue in hopes to increase awareness among

the student body.

This past year, the Scholar's Institute

raised more than $1,000 for the American

Cancer Society. Hariprasad attributed the

program's success to the work of Scholars

Institute Advisor Shane Sweeting. She said

Sweeting prepares her and the other stu-

dents to be successful after graduating by

highlighting their strengths, in hopes to

become the leaders of tomorrow.

Reach Reporter Veronica Lewin at

vlewin@queenspress.com or (718) 357-7400,

Ext. 123.

School's Brightest Learn To Lead

BY VERONICA LEWIN

In 1662, a group of Dutch settlers built

a 40 square foot church on

what is now Jamaica Avenue.

At the time, they did not know

their house of worship would

become one of the oldest Pres-

byterian churches in the coun-

try, or that Donald Trump

would be confirmed at the

church. They just wanted a

place to worship.

"They believed this is where

they were called to do minis-

try," said current Pastor Patrick

O'Connor. He attributes the

continued success of the First Presbyte-

rian Church in Jamaica to the fact that

the church has always been an open door.

The church, located at 89-60 164th

St., is celebrating its 350th anniversary

Sunday at 3 p.m. The Rev. Scott Johnson

of the Fifth Avenue Presbyterian Church

Community Staple Salutes 350 Years

in Manhattan will be the guest preacher

at the event. "It's an opportunity for us to

ref lect on the journey that we've come

on to be able to rejoice about so

many good things that have

happened," O'Connor said.

In addition to building a con-

gregation, the First Presbyterian

Church also housed many ac-

tivities for the community on its

campus. One of the church's

buildings served as a movie the-

ater, while other buildings had

playhouses, bowling alleys or

gyms. All of these amenities

transformed the church from

solely being a place where

people can come to praise the Lord to a

place people could go to feel a sense of

community. "We've always seen ourselves

as being here to serve the community,"

O'Connor said.

The family-like qualities of the First

Presbyterian Church may be responsible

for the birth of several staples in the neigh-

borhood. According to O'Connor, the

Jamaica YMCA, Jamaica Hospital Cen-

ter and J-SPOA all got their start inside

the First Presbyterian Church. The church

also contributed money for the founding

of Princeton University. "The church has

not just lived for itself but has reached out

beyond," he said.

O'Connor has been the church's pas-

tor since August 1992 and said it has been

a life-changing experience. He cites the

upcoming Tree of Life Outreach Center

as one of the church's accomplishments

since he began leading

the congregation. The

church acquired land

next door to build the

family resource center,

which O'Connor called

a blessing.

"We think that God

just somehow made it

possible," he said. The

Tree of Life will seek to

help those who are just

starting out or ready to

change their lives. The

Tree of Life encourages

people to take the next

steps, with its focus on

helping youth, immi-

grants and those in recovery. The out-

reach center will open later this year.

Ishmael Carter has been a member of

the First Presbyterian Church for nearly

20 years. He was not a Presbyterian at the

time, but fell in love with the congrega-

tion and decided to join.

"It was a dynamic church in the area

when I was looking for a church home,"

he said.

He went on to teach Sunday School

for 10 years and has been a part of several

of the church's ministries. Carter said he

has noticed the changes at the church

since he joined and attributes O'Connor's

"radical outreach" to the church's rapid

growth.

Dora Sawh became a member in 1990

and said she is grateful the church opened

up the doors for her to serve. "It's just

quite amazing," she said. Sawh also taught

Sunday School at the church and later

became the school superintendent. She

said O'Connor saw potential in her that

she did not recognize in herself. "The

church has become my family. The church

has allowed me to grow in so many ways,"

Sawh said.

O'Connor is hopeful for the longevity

of the church and will create a 5-year plan

to keep expanding the church's outreach.

Sunday's event is the first of six through-

out the year to commemorate the church's

milestone. The community is invited to

celebrate with the congregation. For more

information about the 350th anniversary

celebration, visit firstchurchjamaica.org.

Reach Reporter Veronica Lewin at

vlewin@queenspress.com or (718) 357-7400,

Ext. 123.

WordIf God did not exist it

would be necessary

for us to invent Him.

— Voltaire

The 2011-2012 Scholars Institute at Martin Van Buren High School.

The First Presbyterian Church in Jamaica is often packed for

Sunday service.

Pastor Patrick

O’Connor

Ph

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Queens TodaySECTION EDITOR: REGINA VOGEL

Send typed announcementsfor your club or

organization’s events atleast TWO weeks in

advance to “Queens Today”Editor, Queens Tribune,

150-50 14 Road,Whitestone NY 11357.

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

IF YOUR ORGANIZATIONMEETS ON A REGULARBASIS, SEND ALL DATESFOR THE ENTIRE YEAR.

YOUTHTEENS

M.L. KING TRIBUTESaturday, January 14 trib-ute to Dr. Martin Luther Kingstarting at 11:30 at the Cen-tral library.CHESS CLUBEvery Saturday at the Flush-ing library at 2.OPEN MICSunday, January 15 at theCentral library at 2.LAPTOP USEWeekdays a t 3 a t theLaurelton library.HOMEWORK HELPWeekdays at the LIC libraryat 3.TEEN STUDYMondays through Thursdaysat the Lefrak City library at4 .KNIT & CROCHETMondays at the Douglaston/Little Neck library at 4.TEEN CHESSMondays at 6 at the Baysidelibrary.BOOK BUDDIESTuesday, January 17 at theHillcrest library at 3:30.JEOPARDYTuesday, January 17 TeenJeopardy Challenge at theFlushing library at 4.COMIC BOOKSTuesday, January 17 writ-i ng and c rea t ing comicbooks at the Seaside libraryat 4.PRACTICE SATTuesday, Januar y 17 SATPractice Test with Kaplan atthe Seaside library at 4.HOMEWORK & GAMESTuesdays, Wednesdays andThursdays homework helpand teen gaming at the FreshMeadows library at 4.LIC CHESS CLUBTuesdays at the LIC libraryat 4.BOOK BUDDIESTuesdays at the WindsorPark library at 4.CROCHET & KNITWednesday, January 18 atthe Far Rockaway library at2:30.WORK WITH ANIMALSWednesday, January 18 at3:30 at the Steinway library.Thursday, January 19 at theAstoria library at 3:30. AlleyPond Environmental Centershow you how you can workwith animals.MOVIE MAKERSWednesday , January 18Movie Makers Club showsyou how to create your ownmini-movies at 4 at the Flush-ing library.TEEN ZUMBAWednesday, January 18 atthe St. Albans library. Regis-ter .RESUME WRITINGWednesday resume writingfor young adults at 4 at theArverne library.GAME DAYWednesdays at the HowardBeach library at 4.GAME DAYWednesdays a t the S t .Albans library at 4.CHESSWednesdays at 3:30 at theQueens Village library.KNIT & CROCHETWednesdays at the SouthOzone Park library at 1.KNITTING CLUBWednesdays at the Baysidelibrary. Register.INTERNET SAFETY

QUEENS LIBRARIESMany b ranches o f theQueensborough Library of-fer toddler and pre-schoolprograms. Contact your lo-cal branch for dates.APEC PROGRAMSJanuary , February andMarch Alley Pond Environ-mental Center will hold Tod-dler time Nature Programs,Sunny Bunnies and Fledg-l ings ( for those 3-4) . 229-4000.DR. KINGSaturday, January 14 trib-ute to Dr. Martin Luther KingJr. starting at 11:30 at theCentral library.STORY TIMESaturday, January 14 Pic-ture Book Story time for 5-8year olds at 1:30 at the Broad-way library.PENGUIN PARTYSaturday, January 14 forthose 3-5 at Alley Pond Envi-ronmenta l Cen te r . 229 -4000.ANIMAL CARESaturday, January 14 andSunday , January 29 fo rthose 8-12 at Alley Pond En-v i ronmenta l Center . 229 -4000.STORY TIMESSaturdays at 11 and Tues-days at 10:30 weekly storytimes at Barnes & Noble, 176-60 Union Turnpike , F reshMeadows.DR. KINGMonday, January 16 tributeto Dr. King at the Bais leyPark library at 4:30.BOOK BUDDIESTuesday, January 17 at theHillcrest library at 3:30.BOOK BUDDIESTuesday, January 17 at theWindsor Park library at 4.BOOST WORDTuesday, Januar y 17BOOST Word of the Weekat the McGoldrick library at5 .ARTS & CRAFTSTuesdays, January 17, 24, 31fo r those 5 -12 a t theAuburndale library at 4.CHINESE CALLIGRAPHYTuesday, January 17 Chi-nese calligraphy workshop atthe Sunnyside library at 4.BOOST WORD PROJECTTuesday, Januar y 17BOOST Communit y WordProject at 4:30 at the Cen-tral library.STORY HOURWednesday , January 18story hour at 10:30 at theBaisley Park library.FAMILY COLORINGWednesday, January 18 fam-ily coloring and story time at10:30 at the Bay Terrace li-brary.HAPPY HAPPY STORYWednesday , January 18story time at the LIC libraryat 10:30.LIBRARY BUDDIESWednesday, January 18 atthe Auburndale library at 4.BOOST HEALTHWednesday , January 18BOOST health and scienceat 5 at the McGoldrick l i -brary.STORY TIMEWednesdays, January 18,25 for 18 months-3 years atthe East Flushing library at11:30.STORY TIME

Wednesday, January 18 atthe Hollis library at 10:30.MORNING STORY TIMEWednesday, January 18 atthe Kew Gardens Hi l l s l i -brary at 10:30 and 11:15.CHINESE NEW YEARWednesday, January 18 atthe Fresh Meadows libraryat 3:30 for those in gradesK-6 and at 4 at the Centrallibrary for those 6-12.STICK PEOPLEWednesday , January 18multicultural stick people atthe East Flushing library. Reg-ister.BOOST READINGT h u r s d a y , J a n u a r y 1 9BOOST Read ing Budd ie sat 5 at the McGoldrick l i -bra ry.STORY TIMEThursday, January 19 at theKew Gardens Hills library forthose 3-5 at 2:30.DESIGN DAYThursday, January 19 build,write, draw, paint and moreat the Central l ibrary at 4.For those in K-3.WIMPY KIDThursday , January 19games and activities about“Diary of a Wimpy Kid” at 4at the Seaside library.CHINESE NEW YEARThursday, January 19 cel -ebrate Lunar New Year withmusic and folktales at theHillcrest library at 5.LITTLE KIDS CRAFTSThursday, January 19 at theHoward Beach l ib ra ry a t3:30. For those 4-12.FAMILY STORYTIMEThursdays, January 19, 26

at the Auburndale library at4 .COLOR & CRAFTFr iday , January 20 K idsColoring and Craft at 11 atthe Queensboro Hill library.CHESS & CHECKERSFriday, January 20 at theAstoria library at 3:30.ACTIVITY TIMEFriday, January 20 at theBriarwood library at 3:30.LIBRARY BUDDIESFriday, January 20 at theAuburndale library at 4.ARTS & CRAFTSFriday, January 20 at theEast Flushing library. Regis-ter .BOOK BUDDIESFriday, January 20 at theFresh Meadows library at 4.GIRL SCOUTSFriday, January 20 at theCentral library at 4:30.STORY TIMEFriday, January 20 stories,crafts and playtime at theHollis library at 10:30.STORY TIMEFriday, January 20 s toryt ime a t 11 :30 a t theQueensboro Hill library.PRE-SCHOOL CRAFTSFriday, January 20 at theSunnys ide l i b ra r y. Reg i s -ter .CHINESE NEW YEARFriday, January 20 at the BayTerrace library at 3 and at theMcGoldrick library at 5.ORIGAMIFriday, January 20 at theMcGoldrick library at 4.FAMILY STORY TIMESaturday, January 21 at theFlushing library at 11.

Thursday , January 19i n te rne t sa fe t y a t t heCambr ia He igh t s l i b rar y.Register .COLLEGE CHOICEThursday, January 19 Ac-cepted: Gett ing Into YourFirst Choice School at theBriarwood library at 3:30.CHINESE NEW YEARThursday, January 19 sto-r ies and crafts at 5 at theHillcrest library.ANIME CLUBThursday, January 19 Flush-ing Anime Club at 4 at theFlushing library.DRAMA POSSEThursday, January 19 at theHillcrest library at 3:30.TEEN THURSDAYSThursdays at the Bay Terracelibrary at 3.CHESS CLUBThursdays 4 -5 :30 a t theDouglaston/Li t t le Neck l i -brary.CHESS CLUBThursdays at the East Flush-ing library at 5.CHESS & CHECKERSFriday, January 20 chess andcheckers club at 3:30 at theAstoria library.HAPPY HOURFriday, Januar y 20 TeenHappy Hour at the Flushinglibrary at 4.ARTS & CRAFTSFr idays c ra f t s a t theBriarwood library at 4.YOUNG REFORMERSFr idays , January 20 , 27Young Reformers Group atthe Laurelton library. Regis-ter .MANGA BOOK TALKFriday, January 20 learnabout Japan and Japaneseculture in the Manga seriesRuroun i Kensh in a t theBroadway library at 4.ORIGAMI CLUBFriday, January 20 at theMcGoldrick library at 4.GREEN COMIC BOOKFriday, January 20 make ag reen comic a t theWoodside library at 3:30.BOOK BUDDIESFriday, January 20 at theFresh Meadows library at 4.CHESS CLUBFridays at the Auburndalelibrary at 3:30.CHESS TUTORIALFridays at the Woodside li-brary at 4.GAME DAYFridays at the Woodhavenlibrary at 4:30.GAME PLAYERS CLUBEvery Fr iday a t 4 at theHillcrest library.TEEN FRIDAYSFridays at the Seaside l i -brary at 4.BOY SCOUT TROOP 1Eve ry F r iday Men 12 -17who are interested in fun,f r iendsh ip and adventurea re i n v i t ed to j o i n BoyScou t Troop 1 F l u sh ing /Bayside 8-10 at RedeemerLutheran Church, 36-01 BellBlvd.SCI FI MOVIESSaturday, January 21 sci fimovie marathon for teens atthe Flushing library startingat 10:15.PRACTICE SATS a t u r d a y , J a n u a r y 2 1Practice Test for SAT at theR i d g e w o o d l i b r a r y a t10:30 .

SENIORS

STAY WELLMondays at the Central li-brary at 10. Learn how spe-cial exercise and relaxationtechniques make a differencein your life.SNAP BELL PARFKTuesday, January 17 11 amObesity and healthy alterna-tives. Tuesday, January 2411 am Medicare eligibil it yand coverage. SNAP Bel lPark Senior Center, 227-02AHi l l s ide Avenue , QueensVillage.CAREGIVERSEver y Tuesday CaregiversSupport group at 3:30-4:30at the Se l fhe lp Clearv iewSenior Center, 208-11 26th

Avenue, Bayside. 631-1886.CHAIR EXERCISETuesdays low impact chairexercise at 11 at the Flush-ing-Fresh Meadows JewishCenter. $5. 357-5100.STARSWednesday , January 18Senior Theater Acting Rep-ertory meets at 10:30 at theHollis library.KEW GARDENSWednesday , January 18special dance class at 11,ba l l room dance a t noon .Monday, January 23 MenOnly workshop a t 10 .Wednesday , January 25Line Dancing Class at noon.Mondays Falun Gong (topur i f y mind and body) atnoon, comedy writing 2:30-3:30. Wednesdays Spanishconversation at 10 and Build-ing muscle and strength at

11 . Fr idays Ta i Ch i /Ch iKung classes at 10 and Draw-ing/Painting at 1 (no experi-ence needed). Kew GardensCommunit y Center, 80-02Kew Gardens Road, su i te202.COMPUTER BASICSWednesday , January 18computer basics for olderadults at the Central library.990-0769.HOWARD BEACHWednesdays mah jongg at10 and Zumba Gold 1:30-2 :30 . 156 -45 84 th S t ree t .738-8100.STAY WELLWednesdays at 10:15 at theEast Elmhurst library for ex-ercise and other health re-lated programs.WOMANSPACEWednesdays Womanspace,a discussion group devotedto i s sues concern ingwomen, meets 1 -3 at theGreat Neck Senior Center,80 Grace Avenue . Newmembers welcome.DEFENSIVE DRIVINGThursday, January 19 AARPDriver Safety Program at theAuburndale library. 641-3911to register.STARSFridays, January 20, 27 Se-nior Theater Acting Reper-tory meets at 10:30 at theQueens Village library.FREE LUNCHSaturdays, January 21, Feb-ruary 18 , March 17 A l lSaints Church in RichmondHill. 849-2352 reservations.

PARENTS

SINGLES

STORY TIMEThursday, January 19 fam-i ly s tory t ime at 4 at theAuburndale library.INTERNET SAFETYThursday , January 26Internet Safet y for Parentsat the Cambria Heights l i -brary at 6.

SIMCHA SINGLESFriday, January 20 SimchaSingles for those 30s-60+ atthe Little Neck Jewish Cen-ter, 49-10 Little Neck Park-way at 8. Friday Night ser-vices followed by discussion.Re f reshments . 516 -487 -1466.SINGLESWednesday , January 11“Crea t ing Exc i tement i n2012.” Wednesday, Janu-ary 25 “Coulda, Woulda,Shoulda.” Wednesday, Feb-ruary 8 “What’s Love GotTo Do With It?” Wednes-day, February 22 “Is ThereSuch A Th ing As Pe r fec tLove?” Wednesday, March14 New member openhouse and “Make NewFrie4nds & Keep The Old.”Wednesday Night S ing lesGroup of the Samuel Field Yin Little Neck. 7-9. $7 AdultCenter members, $9 others.Hot beverages and bagels.225-6750, ext. 236.

FLEA MARKETS

VENDOR MARKETSaturday, January 14 9-5Tr in i t y Un i ted Met hod i stChurch, 86-02 108th Street,Richmond Hill.WINTER TREASURESaturday, January 21 9:30-2:30 and Sunday, January22 11:30-3:30 Winter Trea-sure Sale, Bake & Book Saleat Church of the Resurrec-tion, 85-09 118th Street, Rich-mond Hill.

MISCELLANEOUS

FIRST REHEARSALSMondays, January 16, 23Oratorio Society of Queenswill start rehearsing at 7 atTemple Beth Sholom in Flush-ing. 279-3006 if interestedin becoming a member. Res-ervations required.

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Queens Today

KILLING KOMPANYFriday, February 3 “Murderby Marriage” at Riccardo’sin Astoria. The Killing Com-pany performs mystery din-ner shows. 1-888-SHOOT-EM for information.

MEETINGS

CAMBRIA HTS LIBRARYSaturday , January 14Friends Board of Directors ofQueens Library at CambriaHeights meet 4-5:15.P-FLAGSundays, January 15, Feb-ruary 19, March 18 P-FLAG,a support group for parents,families and friends of lesbi-ans and gays, meet in ForestHills. 271-6663.REPUBLICAN CLUB

THEATER

DINNER

ST. NICHOLASSunday , January 15 S t .Josaphat’s in Bayside will holda St. Nicholas Dinner Dancef rom 2-6 . 746-5138. $35.Reservations.DEMOCRATIC CLUBSaturday, January 21 theR idgewood Democra t i cClub will hold their annualmembersh ip b runch . $20renewa l dues inc ludebrunch. 229-4201.

HEALTH

FITNESS PARTYSaturday, January 14 f i t -ness party 7:30-9:30 at theCentral Queens YM-YWHA.Workouts , s t ra teg ies andtips. $5 advance, $8 at thedoor . Rese rva t ions 268 -5011.NUTRITIONAL SUPPLE.Wednesday , January 18Understanding Today’s Nu-tritional Supplements at theDouglaston/Li t t le Neck l i -brary at 11.NAMIWednesday , January 18Nat iona l As soc ia t ion fo rMental Illness meets at 7:30in the Sloman Auditorium ofZucker Hi l l s ide Hosp i ta l ,266 th S t ree t and 76 th Av -enue, Glen Oaks. Supportgroup for families meet at 6.ZUMBAWednesdays the Sisterhoodof Bay Terrace Jewish Cen-te r , 13 -00 209 th S t ree t ,Bayside, will hold Zumba Fit-ness classes from 7:30-8:30.$8 members , $10 others .428-6363.YOGAWednesdays 5:30-6 :30 atthe Cardiac Health Centerin F resh Meadows . 670 -1695. $10 class.WINTER BLUESThursday, January 19 learnmore about seasonal moodchanges and what to do tooffset the symptoms at theLIC library at 2.

Tuesday, January 17 RegoHills Republican Club meetsat 7:30 at the Sizzler at 100-27 Met ropo l i tan Avenue ,Forest Hills.AMERICAN LEGIONTuesdays, January 17, Feb-ruary 21, March 20 Ameri-can Legion 131 meets at 8 at10 -20 Cl in tonv i l le S t reet ,Whitestone. 767-4323.AUBURNDALE CIVICTuesdays, January 17, Feb-ruary 21 , March 20Auburndale residents meetat St. Kevin’s, 45-21 194th

Street at 7:30.BEREAVEMENTWednesdays, January 17,February 21, March 20 Be-reavement Support Group atHoly Family in Fresh Mead-ows at 7:30. 969-2448.TALK OF THE TOWNTuesdays, January 17, Feb-ruary 7, 21, March 6, 20learn the art of public speak-ing at 7:15 in St. Albans. 640-7092.MEN’S CLUB SOCCERTuesday evenings at the For-est Hi l ls Jewish Center 8-9:30. 263-7000.FRESH MEADOW CAMERATuesdays the Fresh Mead-ows Camera C lub meets .917-612-3463.FLUSHING CAMERAWednesdays, January 18,February 1, 15, 29 FlushingCamera C lub a t F lush ingHospital. 479-0643.

ENTERTAINMENT

JACKSON HTS 3AMJanuary 13 through January22 “Jackson Heights 3AM”world premiere involving cardispatchers , drag queens,emergency room sta f fers ,gamblers and insomniacs .Free at PS69, 77-02 37th Av-enue, Jackson Heights at 7and 8.ADVANCE MANJanuary 12 through Janu-a ry 29 pa r t 1 o f MacRoger’s sci-fi epic “The Hon-eycomb Trilogy” at 3 and 8.$15 students and seniors ,$18 general admission. Se-c r e t Thea t r e , 44 -02 23 r d

Street, LIC.CON BRIO ENSEMBLESaturday, January 14 ConBrio Ensemble performs vir-tuoso masterpieces for vio-lin, oboe and piano at 2 atthe Flushing library.ASTRONOMYSaturday, January 14 AnEvening with the Stars at Al-l ey Pond Env i ronmenta lCenter. 229-4000 to regis-ter .KING TRIBUTESaturday, January 14 trib-u te to Dr . Mar t in Lu therKing, Jr. starting at 11:30 atthe Central library.STEAM OF LIFESaturday , January 14“Steam of Life” fi lm at theSteinway library at 1.WORLD OF MUSICSaturday, January 14 at the

Ridgewood library at 2.CLIFFORD OWENSSaturday , January 14Clifford Owens: AnthologyPerformance. Live with se-lected scores – written orgraphical instructions for ac-tions – of African-Americanart. MoMA at PS1, 22-25 Jack-son Avenue, LIC at 3. Sug-gested donation.CONSTITUTIONS a t u r d a y , J a n u a r y 1 4D o c u m e n t s i n A m e r i c a nHistory presents the Ameri-can Constitutional Govern-ment and its future at 1 atthe Greater Astoria Histori-ca l Societ y, 35-20 Broad-way , 4 th f l oo r , L IC . 278 -0700. Free.RECEPTIONSunday, January 15 BaysideHistorical Society’s openingreception for “Celebrationof the Arts,” a mixed-mediaart exhibition and concert.2. $5 suggested donation.352-1548.WINGS OF SONGSunday , January 15 S t .Luke ’ s Ep i scopa l Churchpresents Music for a WinterAfternoon at 3 at the churchat 85 Greenway South, For-est Hills. $12 suggested do-nation. 268-7772.LIVE JAZZ & R&BSundays, January 15, 22, 29live jazz and r&b 6-10 at Déjàvu, 180-25 Linden Blvd., St.Albans.

EDUCATION/

SMARTPHONESSaturday, January 14 in -formative session on e-read-ers, smart phones and otherdevices at 2 at the LIC l i -brary.POETRY WRITINGTuesday, January 17 poetrywriting workshop at Barnes& Noble, 176-60 Union Turn-p i ke , F resh Meadows a t7:30.INTRO INTERNETTuesday, January 17 at theMcGoldrick library. Register.INTRO MICROSOFTTuesday, January 17 at theMaspeth library at 1.ACING THE INTERVIEWTuesday, January 17 LIC li-brary at 1:30.COMPUTER ESSENTIALSTuesday, Wednesday andThursday, January 17, 18,19 at the Samuel Field Y inLittle Neck. $75. 225-6750,ext. 236.INTRO E-MAILWednesday , January 18Central library. 990-0769.INTRO INTERNETWednesday , January 18Windsor Park library. Regis-ter .KNIT & CROCHETWednesday, January 18 So.Ozone Park library at 1.COVER LETTERSWednesday , January 18Microsoft Word for CoverLetters at the Central library.990-5102 to register.

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ext 151

Sara is a natural! This modelof Queens sports naturally-highlighted strawberry blondhair, beautiful curves and a tinywaist. She is a standout at anyevent. Although she is oftenperceived as shy by strangers,her friends and family alreadyknow she is the most naturallybeautiful girl in the world.

Sara’s modeling resume in-cludes shoots for hair care giantNexus. She has also appeared atvarious car shows.

Although she grew up inLevittown (and graduatedLevittown High School),Sarahas lived in Queens the past 10years and attended QueensboroCommunity College.

She is very interested inhealth as she has also attendedmedical assistant school (al-though she does not work inthat field).

When she is not out lookingfor modeling work, Sara enjoysshopping at Queens CenterMall.

She also enjoys hanging outwith friends and enjoying theCajun cuisine at Bourbon Streeton Bell Blvd.

Sara also enjoys ice skatingat Flushing Meadow Park.

Sara GoldGlen OaksAge:33Height 5’6"Weight 117Stats 34-26-34

Models OfQueens

Good As GoldHe may not be running for President - at least for now- but Jamaica

native Donald Trump is not disappearing from the lime light.The Queens native is back with

his reality show, “The CelebrityApprentice,” with a cast thatsounds like Wikipedia’s list of “Fa-mous Italian-Americans”

Among those on this season;Adam Carolla, Lou Ferrigno, PennJillette, Michael Andretti, PaulTeutul, Lisa Lampanelli, and RealHousewife of New Jersey TeresaGiudice.

Howard Beach’s own VictoriaGotti will be on the show. Whetheror not she will have enough“backup” to keep herself from get-ting fired remains to be seen.

The new season premiers Feb.12, so expect the publicity houndfrom Queens to hint at a presiden-

tial run in late January and then announce he’s not running for Presidentaround Feb. 4.

Celebrity Apprentice President

He's baaack!

Rapper Nas, a native of theQueensbridge housing develop-ment in Long Island City, foundhimself in a pickle to start 2012,though it was a concert promoterwho was in the biggest jam of all —kidnapped and held for ransom inAngola.

Nas was booked by AllGoodEntertainment CEO PatrickAllocco to perform on New Year’sEve in Angola, a country on thesouthwest coast of Africa.

Nas was paid an advance of$315,000, but never got on hisflight. According to a representa-tive from AllGood Entertainment,Allocco and his son were snatched

by goons working for a local “con-cert impresario” named HenriqueMiguel.

Sources close to Nas told TMZthat he wants to help and said thewhole thing was a “miscommuni-cation.”

Tell that to Allocco, who whilehe was being held captive by hiredthugs, Nas had taken his talents toSouth Beach to ring in the NewYear with LeBron James, DwayneWade and company.

No-Show Leads To Kidnapping

Nas is at the center of an international incident.

Mr MetFormer Queens Tribune re-

porter and now NY Times scribe,Richard Sandomir wrote recentlyin the Times that even though theMets are going through dark times,Mr. Met is as lovable as ever.Sandomir quotes Dave Raymond,the first Phillie Phanatic, “As aperformer, as I was, you’re a reflec-tion of your fan base. Fans loveMr. Met because he’s very pro-tective of them. Even when he’sused to poke fun at the Mets, yousmile.”

The Mets, it turns out, are tight-lipped about who plays Mr. Met orhow large his head exactly is. Aspokesman for Mr. Met declinedto tell Sandomir anything otherthan to say, “Mr. Met neverspeaks.”

Sounds like the perfect newowner for the Mets. He’ll speaksoftly and carry a big head. Butdoes he have any cash stored upin that noggin?

Better hope so.

Have you ever wanted to be ona game show but haven’t heardback from “Who Wants To Be AMillionaire” yet?

Starting this week, you have achance to compete in front of amuch smaller audience: your drink-ing buddies. For the next nineTuesdays at 9:30 p.m. aspiringcontestants can play “Game On”at Play in East Elmhurst (77-17Queens Blvd).

The game starts with a generalknowledge question being posedto the audience, and whoever textsthe correct answer first gets tocome on stage and answer morequestions for prizes.

Winners can walk home withprizes ranging from iTunes giftcards to cruises. Who needsMeredith Vieira when you can wina cruise without having to leavethe borough?

Mike Hope, host of “Game On” which begins this week in Elmhurst's Play.

"Game On" To Take Off

The former “King of Queens”is now the king of Redbox.

For its inaugural lifetimeachievement award, the DVD rentalservice honored comedian KevinJames, who starred as DougHeffernan in the TV show based inRego Park from 1998-2007. In hon-oring James, Redbox noted thepopularity of many of his movieswith the service’s customers, in-cluding Grown Ups and Paul BlartMall Cop – the fastest movie inRedbox history to reach 1 millionrentals.

Here at QConf, we won’t ques-tion the choice to honor James.But we may question the 1 millionRedbox customers who rentedPaul Blart. The mall wasn’t even inQueens.

Long LiveThe King

Kevin James, The King of Queens,

has a new Red Box crown.

Conf ident ia l ly, New York . . .

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What’s UpSATURDAY, JAN. 14

Walkers For Wellness Club

Looking for a fun way to improve your

health? Join the Walkers for Wellness Club

at New Hope Lutheran Church of Ja-

maica. Under the guidance of a Walking

Leader, you will walk two to three times

each week at a comfortable pace with

others along routes throughout Southeast

Queens. The club is open to walkers of all

ages and abilities. The walking schedule is

Tuesdays and Thursdays at 7 p.m., and

Saturdays at 8 a.m. Walkers meet at New

Hope Lutheran Church, located at 167-24

118th Ave. T-shirts and pedometers will

be provided. Contact Thurkessa Brown at

(917) 553-1089 for more information.

Enrichment Classes

The Queens Baptist Church is offering

free reading and math enrichment classes

every Saturday. Stop by the church and ask

for Barbara Montgomery or Linda Day to

register, or call (718) 465-2504.

This free event will be held at the Queens

Baptist Church, 93-23 217th St., from 10

a.m. to noon.

Winter Basketball Program

The Lincoln Park Basketball Associa-

tion is offering a Fall/Winter Basketball

Clinic for children ages 8-16 on Saturdays

from Oct. 22 through Jan. 28. The $50

registration fee includes insurance, weekly

training and a T-shirt. For more informa-

tion, contact (347) 234-6833 or (718)

682-6938.

This event will be held at the Queens

Transition Center, located at 142-10 Lin-

den Blvd., from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Queens Book Fair

The Blackcurrant Press Company and

the Black Spectrum Theatre Company

invite all students, teachers, authors, and

lovers of books to the first annual Queens

book fair. The book fair will feature many

authors including Tonya Pinkins, author

of “Get Over Yourself,” Cheryl Wills, au-

thor of “Die Free”, Cathleen Williams,

author of “Single Mother, The New Fa-

ther”, Beverly A. Burchett, author of “Queen

Kinni”, and the Black Spectrum Theatre

Company’s own Carl Clay, author of “Poor-

ducing Theatre and Film at Black Spec-

trum.” For additional information, call

(718) 723-1800.

This free event will be held at Black

Spectrum Theatre, 177th Street and

Baisley Boulevard, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

MLK Tribute

For children ages 6 to 14 and their

families. 11:30 am: Songs and Stories of

Freedom; 12:30 pm: Dear Dr. King recep-

tion; 1:30 pm: A Man and His Dream

documentary.

This free event will be held at Queens

Public Library’s Central Branch, 89-11

Merrick Blvd., at 11:30 a.m.

SUNDAY, JAN. 15

Poetry Open Mic

Nicole Cooley will read with Tatiana

Alvarado. She is from New Orleans and is

now a Professor of English at Queens

College where she directs the new MFA

Program in creative writing and literary

translation. She has published five books,

most recently the poetry collections Breach

(Louisiana State University Press) and

Milk Dress (Alice James Books). Tatiana

Alvarado grew up in Astoria where she

currently resides.

This free event will be held at Queens

Public Library’s Central Branch, 89-11

Merrick Blvd., at 2 p.m.

350th Anniversary Celebration

The First Presbyterian Church in Ja-

maica invites you to worship with us as we

celebrate our historic 350th Church Anni-

versary. As one of the oldest continually

serving Presbyterian churches in the

United States, this milestone will be a day

of reminiscing, rejoicing, and spiritual en-

richment. Refreshments will be served

and the event is Free for everyone. The

ceremony is the kick-off to a host of excit-

ing 2012 events for the church and the

community. For more information con-

tact (718) 526-4775.

This free event will be held at 89-60

164th St, from 3 to 5 p.m.

The Life and Legacy of MLK

The Afrikan Poetry Theatre and Sistahs

Collective are proud to present the 7th

annual Celebration of the Life and Legacy

of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. The after-

noon will feature a film clip on Dr. King;

cultural performances and poets. The spe-

cial guest speaker will be Dr. Umar Johnson,

a nationally recognized child psycholo-

gist and motivational speaker who will

discuss the significance of Dr. King’s legacy

and the development of our children as

the leaders of tomorrow. Refreshments

will be available. There will also be a mini

vendors market!

This free event will be held at 176-03

Jamaica Ave. from 3:30 to 6:30 p.m.

MONDAY, JAN. 16

Happy Martin Luther King Jr. Day!

Community or Chaos Conference

Councilman James Sanders presents

the 3rd annual Martin Luther King, Jr.

Community or Chaos Conference. Look-

ing to start your own organization? Are

you a non-profit looking to expand your

organization? Are you tired of the sense-

less in your community? Need advice on

fundraising? Are you a faith-based organi-

zation looking to build your kingdom?

Well don’t miss the Councilman James

Sanders’ 3rd annual Community or Chaos

Conference. Come out and learn from

non-profit experts on how to build your

organization and community. you must

R.S.V.P. by phone, (718) 527-4356, or

email drichards@council.nyc.gov.

This free event will be held at 133-24

233rd St. from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

DREAM to R.E.A.D.

The Queens Community PTSA and The

National PTA Urban Family Engagement

Initiative (UFEI) would like to invite your

organization to our Author Showcase at

the 2nd Annual DREAM to R.E.A.D

event. This event is designed for children,

parents, grandparents and community

partners to come together and celebrate

the dream of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King

Jr. through fathers and literacy. The par-

ticipants of the event will relish in a day of

empowerment with Reading and Art. The

children in attendance will also receive a

free book to help build their personal li-

brary. This is an opportunity to promote

and strengthen the partnership between

parents, schools, community and encour-

age the importance of reading for student

success. Lunch will be provided followed

by a dynamic keynote speaker. Key com-

munity partners, local school administra-

tors/teachers and local UFEI Engagement

Team members will provide resources

materials for all. Register by phone at

(800) 307-4782 Ext. 3322 or online at

ptaspeakers.wufoo.com/forms/z7p7r9/

This free event will be held at Presbyte-

rian Church of St. Albans, 190-02 119th

Ave., from 10:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.

TUESDAY, JAN. 17

Walkers For Wellness Club

See Tuesday’s listing. At 7 p.m.

Laptops For Students

Laptops are available Monday through

Thursday for teens and children to use

from 3:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. on a first

come, first serve basis. For more informa-

tion, call (718) 528-2822.

This free event will be held at the Queens

Library Laurelton Branch, 134-26 225 St.

from 3 to 5 p.m.

Introduction to Word

In this two-session workshop, custom-

ers will learn how to save files, cut, copy

and paste text, and format documents.

Participants must possess basic mouse and

keyboarding skills. Registration in advance

is required in person at the Cyber Center

Desk. For details, please call (718) 990-

0769.

This free event will be held at Queens

Library’s Central Branch, 89-11 Merrick

Blvd., from 6 to 7:30 p.m.

Own Your Own Business

Learn how to develop your idea into a

business plan. Participants will learn how

to create demand for your product or ser-

vice, set goals and objectives, budgeting

and timelines, and identifying resources

and networks. To register, call (718) 990-

5102.

This free event will be held at Queens

Library’s Central Branch, 89-11 Merrick

Blvd., at 6:30 p.m.

Talk of the Town Toastmasters

Have you made a Resolution to become

a better leader and speaker in 2012? If so,

come to Talk of the Town’s Next Meeting.

Talk of the Town is an enthusiastic, fun

Toastmasters Club with Members from all

walks of life, who share the desire to learn

how to be better leaders and communica-

tors. If parking in the Family Life Center

lot, please only use the spaces along the

side of the building. There is plenty of free

street parking available after 7:00 pm. All

guests interested in improving speaking or

leadership skills, while meeting fun friends

and neighbors are welcome!

This free event will be held at Robert

Ross Johnson Family Life Center, 172-17

Linden Blvd., at 7:15 p.m.

WEDNESDAY, JAN. 18

Picture Book Storytime

Enjoy picture books, stories, songs, fin-

ger plays and crafts with your toddler.

Recommended for ages 18 months-pre-

school.

This free event will be held at the Queens

Library Rosedale Branch, 144-20 243 St.,

at 10:30 a.m.

Social Media and Job Hunting

Did you know that social media is quickly

becoming one of the most popular ways to

find a job? Participants will learn what

social media is, top social media websites,

how best to use different social media sites

and tools for your job search and how to

use social media to build your professional

network. To register, call (718) 990-5102

or visit the Job Information Center.

This free event will be held at Queens

Library’s Central Branch, 89-11 Merrick

Blvd., at 4 p.m.

THURSDAY, JAN. 19

Walkers For Wellness Club

See Saturday’s listing. At 7 p.m.

Laptops For Students

Laptops are available Monday through

Thursday for teens and children to use

from 3:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. on a first

come, first serve basis. For more informa-

tion, call (718) 528-2822.

This free event will be held at the Queens

Library Laurelton Branch, 134-26 225 St.

from 3 to 5 p.m.

Zumba

Come join us for a free Zumba dance

class, health screenings and referrals for

care at the Joseph P. Addabbo Family

Health Center. This program is made pos-

sible through a generous grant from the

New York State Health Foundation.

This free event will be held at Queens

Public Library’s Central Branch, 89-11

Merrick Blvd., at 7 p.m.

FRIDAY, JAN. 20

Outreach and Assistance

Are you a young woman 17-24 years of

age and need assistance in applying for

housing, completing college applications,

financial aid or just need assistance and

don’t know where to turn? The Daughters

of Isis Foundation is available for support!

Contact the foundation for information or

to schedule an appointment. For addi-

t ional information, visit

www.thedaughtersofisisfoundation.org,

call Simone Williams at (347) 731-1721

or email isis.staff@gmail.com.

This free event will be held on the sec-

ond floor of the Young Queens Loft, 148-

14 Liberty Ave., from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Annual Children’s Foundation

Fundraiser

Come one, come all to the Laurelton

School’s annual children’s foundation

fundraiser. On tap for the evening will be

a fashion show, silent auction, a dance

party, catered food, and a live DJ. Semi

formal attire is requested. All funds raised

by alumni and friends will go directly to

benefit the education of the children of

156. For more information, please con-

tact Kim Esteva at (917) 306-7183 or

email psma156q@earthlink.net.

This free event will be held at PS 156,

229-02 137th Ave., from 7 to 11 p.m.

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