By Nelson A. King
Vincentian-born, long-standing
Central Brooklyn Lions Club
member Ingrid Andrews-Campbell
on Saturday, May 2 won
unopposed the 2nd Vice District
Governor for Brooklyn and
Queens District 20 K1 Lions.
Seventy-five clubs comprise
Brooklyn and Queens District 20
K1 Lions.
Andrews-Campbell told Caribbean
Life on Sunday that her
former opponent, Phillipinesborn
Dr. Ishmael Holipas, of the
South Ozone Park Empire Medical
Lions Club, withdrew from
the race soon after she delivered
her launch speech at the Lions’s
Mid-Winter Convention in February.
“We must find time to stop
and thank the people who make
a difference in our lives”, said
Andrews-Campbell in quoting
slain US President John F.
Kennedy.
“I am extremely thankful for
your support and vote of confidence
in electing me,” said
Andrews-Campbell in a “Thank
You” message to her home club,
Central Brooklyn Lions Club,
and the Lions of District 20-K1
Brooklyn and Queens. “I am
honored and humbled to serve as
your 2nd Vice District Governor.
“With your support, I know I
shall be able to fulfill the aspirations
Caribbean L 8 ife, May 15-21, 2020
of the Lions and the community
we serve,” she added.
“During these challenging times,
what would most likely be a new
era of service to the communities,
and in defining ways, will
require the continued support of
all the Lions of District 20-K1.”
Andrews-Campbell said she
was “deeply moved by the expression
of support from Lions whose
club’s I have visited.
“My campaign manager, Lion
Beverley and my campaign team
have earned my gratitude for
so generously contributing their
time and talents to my campaign,”
she said. “To my fellow
elected officers, District Governor
Jackie Phillips and 1st Vice
District Governor Anthony
Cochran, Congratulations! I look
forward to working with you as a
team to advance Lionism in our
community.
“Melody Beattie said, ‘Gratitude
makes sense of our past,
brings peace and hope for today
and a vision for tomorrow’. We
are each the sum of our experiences,”
Andrews-Campbell
added. “Every decision that
we make takes us on a different
path. I invite you to believe
against all odds that we, as Lions,
will succeed beyond these difficult
times.”
In her campaign launch, she
said, over 30 years ago, as a
graduating member of the Barbados
Community College Student
Government Council, one
professor Johnson, a Lion, whose
first name was not given, told
her: “Ingrid, we are going to miss
you, but there is an organization
that can utilize your leadership
skills”.
Andrews-Campbell said that
was the first time that she was
introduced to Lionism and “the
wonderful work that Lions do.
“And, here I am today. I am
asking for your vote to be the
next 2nd Vice District Governor
of 20-K1,” said Andrews-Campbell,
stating that her journey
Lions Club member Ingrid Andrews-Campbell.
Ingrid Andrews-Campbell
started as “a Lioness to a Lion” in
Bridgetown, Barbados and continued
as a transfer member in
Central Brooklyn Lions Club.
“My ability to connect with
people to make a difference and
inspiring some of them to be
become great leaders is the main
reason for my candidacy as 2nd
Vice District Governor,” she
added. “I want to be your servant
leader; a leader with a passion for
service and a determination for
action.”
Vincentian wins top post for
Brooklyn, Queens Lions unopposed
Making Sense of the Census
Texting
Counts
By Julie Menin, Director of NYC Census
2020
In December of last year, NYC Census
2020 launched the City’s first-ever
community awards program focused on
census-related education and organizing,
the Complete Count Fund. The more
than 150 awardees serve all 245 New York
City neighborhoods in more than 80 languages.
As New Yorkers continue to shelter in
place, Complete Count Fund awardees have
had to find new ways to conduct outreach.
To that end, NYC Census 2020 has partnered
with Complete Count Fund awardees
to launch a brand new digital organizing
campaign across messaging apps like
WhatsApp, WeChat, KakaoTalk, and Viber
to help spread the word about the 2020 Census.
The campaign is based around 15 new
group chats housed on these platforms,
each designed for a different New York immigrant
and language community, from
Russian to Korean to Urdu and beyond.
These apps often serve as the primary way
community members speak to each other,
especially as they are social distancing.
Each group will act as a hub where trusted
community leaders can share key census
information and resources that other volunteers
can use to help get out the count
across their own networks.
It’s no secret that many of the communities
suffering most from COVID-19 include
immigrants and people whose first
language is not English. And as we at NYC
Census 2020 know, these same communities
tend to suffer some of the worst undercounts
in the census, which results in
them getting far less than their fair share
of funding for important public resources
like hospitals and emergency services.
These communities desperately need a
complete count to get the resources they deserve.
And to reach a complete count, New
Yorkers need ways to share information
from trusted sources and encourage their
friends, families, and neighbors to participate
in the 2020 Census.
Many New Yorkers have already been
doing similar work forming local mutual
aid groups and other groups to share information
and resources as we fight COVID-19,
but language barriers can leave many behind.
We welcome all who speak one of the
over 200 languages spoken in New York
City to join our efforts by joining a WhatsApp
group at nyc.gov/census.
Fill out the census now at my2020census.
gov.
/census