Brooklyn DA honors family front-line workers
By Nelson A. King
Brooklyn District Attorney,
Eric Gonzalez on Sunday
bestowed special awards on a Caribbean
American family whose
members are front-line workers
in the continuing fight against
the COVID-19 pandemic.
The members of the family of
Brooklyn resident James Conolly,
a Cayman Islands-born Vietnam
War veteran and retired deputy
commissioner in the Michael
Bloomberg administration
in New York City, received the
awards during a special ceremony
in Valley Stream, Long Is.
Former Brooklyn Democratic
Congressman Edolphus “Ed”
Towns and Joel Browne, of Local
1180 union, presented the awards
on behalf of Gonzalez to Conolly’s
wife, Emilia, a registered nurse,
who retired, after 40 years, working
in the Neonatal Intensive
Care Unit at Brookdale University
Hospital in Brooklyn; Conolly’s
two daughters, Thalia Conolly
and Taryn Conolly-Ashby, a New
York Police Department (NYPD)
officer and educator, respectively;
and Taryn’s husband, a NYPD
lieutenant detective.
“On behalf of residents of
Brooklyn, I hereby recognize and
honor your exemplary work and
outstanding service in our diverse
borough,” said Gonzalez in the
citation to Police Officer Thalia
Conolly, a forensic firearms specialist
in Jamaica, Queens.
“Your unwavering commitment
to ensuring that all residents
are afforded equal opportunity
and enhancing the quality
of life in our community serves
as an inspiration to all of us,”
he added. “During a time of
immense hardship, your service
brought much-needed relief to
our community.
“As Kings County District
Attorney, I thank you for your
tireless devotion,” Gonzalez continued.
Almost identical words were
inscribed in the citations for the
other honorees.
“I’m proud to represent the
nursing profession,” Mrs. Conolly,
a Honduran native, told Caribbean
Life after the presentation.
“I’m honored and thankful.”
Lt. Det. Ashby, the Barbadian
born commanding officer of
the Animal Cruelty Investigation
Squad, based in Rosedale,
Queens, noted that several of his
colleagues had “to step up” during
the pandemic, giving special
Caribbean L 18 ife, SEPTEMBER 3-9, 2021
The Conolly Family, L-R: James, Thalia, Emelia and Taryn, with retired Congressman Edolphus
“Ed” Towns. Photo by Nelson A. King
thanks to Gonzalez for the
honor.
Conolly, a former district leader
for the 42nd Assembly District
in Brooklyn and executive director
for the Alternative Sentencing
Unit, under late Brooklyn District
Attorney Joe Hinds, expressed
gratitude to Gonzalez for honoring
his family.
“I appreciate the DA (district
attorney) for recognizing those
on the front line,” he told Caribbean
Life. “He’s proven to be one
of the best DAs we’ve had.
“What I find about him is that
he’s very interested in the community
– real humble and downto
earth,” added Conolly, who
also served as executive director
of the Work Experience Program
(WEP) under former New York
City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani.
Towns, who had represented
the then 10th Congressional District,
now the 8th Congressional
District represented by Congressman
Hakeem Jeffries, lauded the
Conolly family for community
service.
"Every day you create something
special with the work you do.
Your effort is a great asset and
deserves to be recognized,
respected, and celebrated.
Happy Labor Day."
Congresswoman
Yvette D. Clarke VoteYvette Vote Yvette
Paid for by Clarke for Congress