n e w s M A R C H 12 op-ed Inquiring Photographer: COMPILED BY KATELYN DI SALVO What are you most looking forward to in the spring? I’ll be glad to see some greenery and no more snow! I’ve lived here for 32 years and it’s beautiful here in the spring, but mostly I’ll be happy not having to wear a jacket all the time. Stephanie Gamboni I’m looking forward to going to some Yankee games Patrick Davis I actually like the snow so I’ll be sad to see it go. I’m not looking forward to the humidity of the spring and summer. Jackie Mazgala I’ll be happy to finally get some sunshine. Margorie Lesem “We’re All About You” Publisher & Editor Victoria Schneps-Yunis Associate Publisher Joshua A. Schneps Editor In Chief Toni Cimino We’re excited to be able to play some sports without snow on the ground Marios & Dionysios Zervos LeHavre Courier, 38-15 Bell Blvd. Bayside, NY 11361 718-224-5863 • Fax 718-224-5441 Sales fax: 718-631-3498 e-mail: [email protected] Art Director Jennifer Decio Artists Stephen Reina Nirmal Singh Ron Torina Entire Contents Copyright 2013 by the LeHavre Courier. All letters sent to LEHAVRE COURIER should be brief and are subject to condensing. Writers should include a full address and home and office telephone numbers, where available, as well as affiliation, indicating special interest. Anonymous letters are not printed. Only letters with a name given will be accepted. No such ad or any part thereof may be reproduced without prior permission of LEHAVRE COURIER. The publishers will not be responsible for any error in advertising beyond the cost of the space occupied by the error. Errors must be reported to LEHAVRE COURIER within five days of publication. Ad position cannot be guaranteed unless paid prior to publication. LEHAVRE COURIER assumes no liability for the content or reply to any ads. The advertiser assumes all liability for the content of and all replies. The advertiser agrees to hold LEHAVRE COURIER and its employees harmless from all cost, expenses, liabilities, and damages resulting from or caused by the publication or recording placed by the advertiser or any reply to any such advertisement. L E h a V R e Let’s be their voice BY U.S. SENATOR CHARLES SCHUMER The heartbreak and agony that Avonte Oquendo’s family has had to endure is one that I can’t even begin to imagine. Over the course of the past few months, Avonte became more than just a face on a missing poster. New Yorkers came together to search for Avonte and pray for his safe return; we felt like he was a child we knew personally. While we cannot change the past, we must take the necessary steps to prevent this from happening again—and that’s why I am introducing “Avonte’s Law.” Avonte’s running away was not an isolated incident; running away or wandering among children and teens U.S. Senator Charles Schumer with Autism Spectrum Disorder is more common than one may think. In fact, nearly half of children with autism over the age of four have attempted to wander. Often times, these children wander due to being over-stimulated by loud noises or bright lights – something that is a particular challenge for children with autism in New York City. I recently met with Vanessa Fontaine and Doris McCoy, Avonte’s mother and grandmother, as well as Michael Rosen, the Executive Vice President of Autism Speaks. Mr. Rosen shared personal stories about his son, Nicky, who has autism and is nonverbal. He spoke about Nicky’s experience with wandering. I listened intently when Mr. Rosen said that Nicky once ran out of the house and made his way into the neighbor’s living room to watch Disney movies—a fascination of Nicky’s. Thankfully, Nicky was found safe. Our children are too precious for us to wait another day when life-saving technology and precautionary measures are right at our fingertips. Technology such as GPS or Radio Frequency (RF) tracking is on the market now, and they allow parents, schools and law enforcement to locate a child if he or she wanders or goes missing. The Department of Justice runs a very successful program that provides tracking devices to individuals with Alzheimer’s disease who have similar wandering tendencies. So, after Avonte went missing, I urged the Department of Justice to use their existing grant funds to allow children with autism access to these life-saving tracking devices. That is why when the world learned of the tragic fate of Avonte Oquendo, I drafted legislation that will create a permanent program with dedicated federal funding to provide tracking devices for children with autism, as well as training and education for parents and communities. The legislation, “Avonte’s Law,” will allow Avonte’s memory to live on while helping to prevent any more children with autism from going missing. Attorney General Eric Holder announced that the Department of Justice will allow existing DOJ grant funds to be used for children with autism. This is terrific news, as it means that localities can soon put federal funds towards these life-saving tracking devices as well as education for law enforcement that deal with this issue on a daily basis. This is a major step in the right direction, and I will continue to work on this very important issue until “Avonte’s Law” is passed, which would provide a more solid stream of funding to help children across New York and the rest of the country. Schumer was elected to the U.S. Senate in 1998. Following the elections of 2006, Majority Leader Harry Reid appointed him to serve as Vice Chair of the Democratic Conference, the number three position on the Democratic Leadership team and a position he continues to hold. In 2009, Schumer was selected as the Chairman of the Senate Rules Committee, which oversees federal elections, voting rights, campaign finance, and the operation of the Senate complex. He also sits on the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs; the Judiciary Committee, where he is Chairman of the Subcommittee on Immigration, Refugees, and Border Security; the Joint Economic Committee, where he is the Vice Chairman; and the Joint Committee on the Library. 12 Lehavre courier | MARCH 2014 | WWW.QUEENSCOURIER.COM I’m looking forward to enjoying some warmth, sunshine and seeing some smiling faces. Socrates Vourkas
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