Donate supplies to Puerto Rico in Whitestone this weekend
BY SUZANNE MONTEVERDI
smonteverdi@qns.com / @smont76
Th e Queens community is coming
together for Puerto Rico in Whitestone.
Th e Holy Trinity Roman Catholic
Church will serve as a drop-off point for
supplies to be shipped to San Sebastián,
Puerto Rico in the wake of Hurricane
Maria. Th e drive will take place on Oct.
7 and 8 between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m at the
church’s Latona Plaza.
Supplies needed include non-perishable
food (i.e. canned or boxed food and rice),
water, snacks (i.e. cereal and cookies),
over-the-counter medical supplies, feminine
hygiene products, shampoo, soap,
deodorant, toothpaste and toothbrushes,
toilet paper, laundry detergent, diapers,
baby food and wipes, batteries, fl ashlights,
mosquito repellent, portable grills
and charcoal.
Please do not bring clothing, the organizers
ask. Th e items collected will be
packaged in a 40-foot container and
shipped to San Juan.
Th e drive is being organized by Nancy
and Mike Vargas, parishioners of the
church, who are working with the mayor
of San Sebastian, Javier Jimenez, to organize
the logistics.
Aft er the drive, Mike Vargas will be
The Civil Air Patrol, in cooperation with the Air National Guard, conducts an aerial survey over northern Puerto Rico on Sept. 26, 2017.
traveling to San Juan to work with other
volunteers to ensure the supplies make
it from the port to San Sebastián, where
18 CRYDER POINT Courier | OCTOBER 2017 | www.qns.com
Photo by Airman 1st Class Nicholas Dutton/Department of Defense
they will be distributed to families who
need them through a local church.
Th e church is located at 14-51 143rd St.
and can be reached by phone at 718-767-
0095. Questions can also be directed to
Mike Vargas at 718-928-9966.
Puppy Playmates
BY ANGELA MATUA
amatua@qns.com / @AngelaMatua
Students attending six Queens schools
will be able to interact with puppies as
part of the Department of Education’s
(DOE) Comfort Dog program.
Schools Chancellor Carmen Fariña
announced on Sept. 26 that the program,
which was started last year, will expand
to 30 additional schools across the city,
bringing the total number of schools
with a designated pup to 37.
Each dog is adopted from the North
Shore Animal League and are brought in
to “improve school climate and contribute
to social-emotional learning.”
A staff member at each school adopts
the dog and educators can opt in to
receive training in the Mutt-i-Gree curriculum,
which includes lesson plans and
strategies to incorporate the dog into
counseling protocols.
“Th e Comfort Dog program brings a
smile to students and staff on a challenging
day, helps to de-escalate issues and
can even provide bereavement support,”
Fariña said. “We know students need
academic and social-emotional supports
to succeed in the classroom and beyond,
and comfort dogs are helping nearly
40 schools strengthen their culture and
build stronger relationships.”
Schools that will adopt the program
include P.S. 076 William Hallet and P.S.
277 Th e Riverview School in Long Island
City, P.S. 120 in Flushing, P.S. 224 in
Bellerose, P.S. 75 Robert E. Peary School
in Ridgewood and I.S. 204 Oliver W.
Holmes in Astoria.
P.S. 209 Clearview Gardens in
Whitestone adopted the program during
the last school year.
“We are so excited to see that the program
has grown from seven schools to 30
additional schools in just one year — talk
about a good report card,” said Joanne
Yohannan, senior vice president, North
Shore Animal League America. “Our
Mutt-i-Grees curriculum is teaching
many important lessons, helping raise
awareness about the importance of rescue
and imparting life lessons in empathy
while helping prepare the next generation
to be true humanitarians.” Photos courtesy of Department of Education
