BRONX TIMES REPORTER, O BTR CT. 15-21, 2021 73
BY AL D’ANGELO
Heartfelt congratulations
to Phyliss Nastasio for her
hard work and dedication in
putting together a successful
Bronx Columbus Day parade.
Phyliss and her committee
were able to raise money, secure
bands and schools, order
banners and fl oats, send invitations
to our elected offi cials,
and set the line of march. Not
an easy task when you have
nine months to prepare; Phyliss
did it in less than three.
A special thank you goes
out to Councilman Mark
Gjonaj for making sure the
Italian and American fl ags
were positioned along the parade
route. Mark also supplied
free hotdogs and popcorn to
everyone. This parade would
not have been possible if it
weren’t for our donors, many
of whom took a major fi nancial
loss during the past 18
months, yet sacrifi ced so the
community could come together
for a happy occasion.
This year our grand marshalls
represented our fi rst
responders — NYPD represented
by Steven Brancatelli,
Nurses represented by Suzanne
Pennachio, Teachers
represented by Loretta Zaino,
EMT represented by Chief
Austin Rodriguez, FDNY represented
by Matt DeRoso,
DSYN Matt Bruno and food
store workers represented by
Andy Osorio from Big Deal
Supermarket.
Congratulations to Isabella
Vento from Preston High
School who was selected this
year’s Miss Columbus and received
the Morris Park Community
Association scholarship.
Miss Columbus was
wearing a gown donated by
Louise from Gowns by Louise,
who has supported us every
year since we crowned
our fi rst Miss Columbus more
than 10 years ago. The rain did
not deter the marchers, but it
did deter the onlookers; the
crowd was smaller but just as
lively.
We also would like to thank
the elected offi cials who were
in attendance. Regardless
of politics, these men and
women went out of their way
to help us celebrate Columbus
Day: Mayor Bill de Blasio, District
Attorney Darcel Clark,
City Councilwoman Vanessa
Gibson, state Assemblyman
Mike Benedetto, Councilman
Mark Gjnoaj, Tom Lucania
and John Fratta — past Community
Board 11 district managers
and Rev. Irene Estrada
were also in attendance. The
conspicuous absence of Sen.
Alexandra Biaggi (whose
grandfather Mario Biaggi
never missed a parade) and
U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-
Cortez, the senator and councilwoman
didn’t even had the
courtesy to respond to our
invitation. Other elected offi -
cials did send regrets and best
wishes for a successful parade.
The Morris Park Community
Association Patrol members
were on hand to make sure
everything ran smoothly and
a special thank to our friends
in the Yeminis community
for supplying tents and manpower
to help make this a successful
parade.
BY THOMAS X. CASEY
The East Bronx History
Forum and the Huntington
Free Library are pleased to
announce the Forum will
hold its 158th meeting on
Wednesday, Oct. 20 at 8 p.m.,
with a Zoom presentation
about “The Secret History
of Starlight Park” by East
Bronx History member Stephen
Paul DeVillo.
Many Bronx “old-timers”
cherish the memory of
Freedomland USA, for being
the fi rst park dedicated
to educational United States
history and entertainment.
However, the Bronx had an
earlier entertainment chapter
providing amusement
rides alongside art, science
and history, resulting
in Starlight Park. The 1914
plan to host the Bronx International
Exposition of Science,
Arts and Industries
along the Bronx River in
West Farms was expected to
be a permanent exposition.
The transformation of this
site provides a fascinating
story that DeVillo will present
from a lifetime walking
and researching the Bronx
River.
DeVillo is a lifelong
Bronxite and a charter member
of the East Bronx History
Forum. He is a former development
coordinator at the
Bronx River Alliance and
submitted many articles for
their newsletters, resulting
in his fi rst book, “The Bronx
River in History & Folklore.”
In addition, DeVillo used his
informative narrative style
to weave a historical walking
tour in his second book
“The Bowery, the strange
history of New York’s Oldest
Street.”
“The Secret History of
Starlight Park” will explore
the site’s history as the exposition/
amusement park and
as an amusement destination
prior to 1918, including a proposal
to fl oat a replica Half
Moon in Bronx Lake and an
idea to build a “temperance
amusement park” on the site.
DeVillo will offer a peek at the
“Starlight Phase II” expansion
project, expected to open
next year.
Please join us and discover
the history of Starlight Park
and hear about the most recent
changes and the future
to the oldest amusement park
of the Bronx. The East Bronx
History Forum will post the
login details on our web page
at BronxNYC.com. Please
help defray the cost of the
meetings by using the donate
button. We will meet online at
8 p.m., Wednesday, Oct. 20.
CIVIC CENTER
Morris Park Civic
Association
Photo by Photo courtesy Thomas Casey
Photo by Photo Adrian Childress
CIVIC CENTER From Councilman Mark Gjonaj
East Bronx
History Forum
BY COUNCILMAN MARK GJONAJ
Team Gjonaj has been in
full force with community
engagement and outreach,
beginning with this past
weekend.
We commemorated Columbus
Day and Italian-
American Heritage Month
with our tradition of lining
up the Italian and American
fl ags in Morris Park,
honoring the East Bronx’s
historic Italian-American
population and the legacy
they have bequeathed to us.
Much of what we enjoy today
in the Bronx was forged
in no small part by Italian
immigrants and we celebrate
those achievements.
This was followed by the Columbus
Day Parade, also in
Morris Park, where my constituent
services team provided
tasty refreshments.
Coming off the long
weekend and looking into
the week, my district offi ce
has worked hard to beautify
our streets, distribute
essentials and more. Earlier
in the week, we held yet
another cleanup on Sacket
Avenue. Roughly 40 bags
worth of garbage was collected
that outing! Thanks
again to the Wildcats Corporation
for their tireless
cooperation with my offi ce.
We also stopped by the Sue
Ginsburg Senior Center,
giving away hand sanitizers
and disinfecting wipes
to our senior citizens. It is
my mandate to ensure our
most COVID-vulnerable
groups can live in as sterile
an environment was possible.
On the 16th we will have
the latest of our pet-focused
offeings, which had previously
included food giveaways
and medical services.
We will be offering free pet
vaccines and microchips for
all District 13 pets at 10am
at Ferry Point Park. All participants
must be masked.
Please reach out to my offi ce
for further details.
For questions, comments,
or concerns, please
do not hesitate to contact
my district offi ce at either
MGjonaj@council .nyc.
gov<mailto:MGjonaj@council.
nyc.gov> or at (718) 931-
1721. Thank you and stay
safe. It is an honor to serve
Council District 13.
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