28 The QUEE NS Courier • JANUARY 1, 2015 for breaking news visit www.queenscourier.com editorial letters IDENTIFY THIS PLACE Go to www.queenscourier.com and search “Identify This Place” to find out where this is THE QUEENS Victoria Schneps-Yunis Joshua A. Schneps Bob Brennan Tom Topousis Amy Amato-Sanchez Nirmal Singh Graziella Zerilli Stephen Reina Ron Torina, Jennifer Decio, Cheryl Gallagher Liam La Guerre, Cristabelle Tumola, Angy Altamirano Katrina Medoff, Eric Jankiewicz, Salvatore Licata Cliff Kasden, Samantha Sohmer, Elizabeth Aloni Cristabelle Tumola Demetra Plagakis Louise Cavaliere Celeste Alamin Maria Valencia Daphne Fortunate Victoria Schneps-Yunis Joshua A. Schneps Publisher & E ditor Co-Publisher Associate Publisher Editor-In-Chief VP, Events, Web & Social Media Art Director Assistant to Publisher Assistant Art Director Artists Staff Reporters Contributing Reporters Web Editor Events Manager Senior Acc ount Executive Classified Manager Controller Office Manager President & CEO Vice President Schneps Communications, 38-15 Bell Blvd., Bayside, NY 11361 718-224-5863 • Fax 718-224-5441 www.queenscourier.com editorial e-mail: editorial@queenscourier.com for advertising e-mail: ads@queenscourier.com Entire Contents Copyright 2014 by The Queens Courier All letters sent to THE QUEENS 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. Name withheld on request. LETTERS TO THE EDITOR, AS WELL AS OP-ED PIECES IN NO WAY REFLECT THE PAPER’S POSITION. No such ad or any part thereof may be reproduced without prior permission of THE QUEENS 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 THE QUEENS COURIER within five days of publication. Ad position cannot be guaranteed unless paid prior to publication. Schneps Communications 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 The Quens 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. R.I.P. ANDREW ROTHMAN Andrew Rothman passed away on December 24, 2014, at much too young an age. We served together as members of Community Board 11 for a number of years. I was always impressed by the amount of time and effort that Andy contributed toward his duties as a board member. When any landuse case came up, he always visited the site, researched the property in question on the Internet, and composed many well-thought-out and pertinent questions for the applicant when the case was heard at committee level and when it came before the full board. Andy always had maps, zoning regulations and other material at the ready when a case was heard. His point of view always reflected the interests of the neighborhoods that are part of the community board and he always expressed himself in a positive way. Andy also was co-chair of the Aviation Committee along with Joan Garippa. They worked with others to lobby for the reduction of air traffic noise and pollution over our communities. This fight continues, but it is now missing one of its most prominent voices of advocacy. Andy also served on several other board committees. He also attended many community events, rallies and press conferences that focused on important, community-based issues. More than anything else, Andy was a good friend. He always had a smile, he always expressed concern for others and he always cared deeply for his community. He was a fighter for Bayside and beyond. I will miss him greatly. May he rest in peace and may his family be comforted in their sorrow. Henry Euler, Bayside NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTION It’s time for New Year’s resolutions, particularly those about our health. Although gun violence remains the leading cause of death among young people, our most dangerous weapon is still our fork. Forty-five times as many die of chronic diseases linked to a diet containing animal products, sugar and salt. Hardly a month goes by without another study linking consumption of animal products with obesity, high blood pressure, diabetes, heart disease, stroke and certain cancers. No reputable study has ever shown an opposite result. But times are changing. Hundreds of schools, colleges, hospitals and corporate cafeterias have embraced Meatless Monday. According to a Gallup poll, 22 percent of American consumers are avoiding meat and 12 percent are avoiding dairy products. Harris Interactive claims that 47 percent of American consumers are reducing consumption of animal products. Accordingly, plant-based alternatives to meat and dairy products are growing explosively, and fast-food chains are rolling out vegan options. Let this New Year’s resolution be about exploring the rich variety of plant-based entrees, lunch meats, cheeses, ice creams and milks in our supermarket. The Internet offers tons of recipes and transition tips. Freddy Green, Flushing AN INTRODUCTION I want to introduce myself to the residents of Queens. I started my library career as a children’s librarian trainee in Suffolk County while pursuing my master’s degree in library science at St. John’s University. I served customers at the front desk for many years and then managed small and large public libraries in Iowa, Connecticut and New York State. After several years as director of the Buffalo and Erie County Public Library System, I came to Queens Library because of its reputation as one of the world’s best. I’m a working parent, with school-aged daughters, and am also studying for my MBA at St. John’s. I understand the challenges that many of us experience every day, juggling work life with home life and trying to find a precious few minutes to read and relax. Queens Library customers have told us repeatedly that they wish the library were open later in the evenings and earlier in the mornings to accommodate their busy schedules. I am pleased to let you know that as of January 5, 2015, we will be modifying customer service schedules so every library is open at least two evenings until 8 p.m., and at least two mornings at 10 a.m. Central Library and Flushing Library will maintain their expanded hours (until 9 p.m. Monday - Thursday) and several of our libraries are open at 9 a.m. on Monday mornings. We hope that many more people will find it convenient and enriching to come to the library. We want to build on the powerful people, places, partners and programs that are the heart of your Queens Library. Our goal is to surprise everyone in Queens with how much value they get from their library, whether they are downloading e-books, learning to code their own websites, attending a concert, borrowing a tablet to use at home or grabbing a great book to while away a rainy afternoon. I look forward to seeing you at the library and wish you all a bright 2015. Bridget Quinn-Carey, Interim President and CEO, Queens Library A TIME FOR HEALING Last week, New York City laid to rest one of its Finest, Officer Rafael Ramos. It was a brutally painful weekend that will be repeated a second time on Jan. 4 when Officer Wenjian Liu’s funeral is held in Brooklyn. Both officers died in the line of duty, protecting our city. Their tragic deaths at the hands of a killer bent on the assassination of police officers should remind us of the dangers our police face in what is often a thankless job. With the mourning underway, we should also be turning our attention to healing this city. A rift has grown between Mayor de Blasio and much of the rank and file within the Police Department as some union leaders even went so far as to blame him for creating the climate in which two officers were targeted. It’s now time for our leaders to bring this city back together. We need our mayor and the police who patrol our streets to be on the same page. They appeared to take a first step on Tuesday, here in Queens, at the new Police Academy in College Point. The mayor called the meeting with police union leaders, including PBA President Pat Lynch, who had suggested responsibility for the two slayings “starts on the steps of City Hall, in the office of the mayor.” The mayor, in speaking to a new class of police cadets this week, sought to assure them that the city will stand alongside them. Now it’s the police unions’ turn. For weeks, police officers have used amazing restraint in dealing with protests and, in some cases, verbal and physical abuse. Turning their backs on the mayor is no longer the way to solve our problems. Discussion, compromise and leadership is what we need now. For the sake of the city, we hope the two sides can work to bridge their divide. A HELPING HAND The families of Officers Ramos and Liu can use all the help we can give them. So we urge New Yorkers to contribute to a fundraising drive that will help the families pay off the mortgages on their homes. The Stephen Siller Tunnel to Towers Foundation has so far raised more than $300,000 of the estimated $800,000 needed to pay off the mortgages for the Ramos and Liu families. For details on how to donate, head to the foundation’s website, http://tunnel2towers.org. The organization was founded after 9/11 in memory of firefighter Stephen Sillers who was among the 343 FDNY members to die at the World Trade Center.
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