24 The QUEE NS Courier • JANUARY 2, 2014 for breaking news visit www.queenscourier.com editorial letters Goodbye to a true professional News of the death of senior news correspondent Stan Brooks of 1010 WINS radio was very sad to hear. He was in the field of news reporting for nearly 60 years and was a true professional and a gentleman. He was a credit to the broadcast industry and will be sorely missed by his family, friends and colleagues. He is now in that big broadcast center in the sky. John Amato, Fresh Meadows Need remains Christmas may be gone but the need remains. Our soup kitchens and food pantries are in need -- all year long. And let’s not forget our blood banks that are in desperate need of donations this time of the year when the supplies are low. This I know only too well, since I just ran a blood drive at St. Anastasia parish in Douglaston, as a member of St. Anastasia Knights of Columbus. This year as we all make our New Year’s resolutions, let’s resolve to help the poor, needy and homeless by giving to those religious, community and government groups that help . Even though you may not be able to help personally, you can volunteer your time and donate money for the poor who are in desperate need all year long. Now that is a great New Year’s resolution and that is a beautiful thing to do. For it is in charity that is the greatest gift we can give to others this coming year. Frederick R. Bedell JR. Glen Oaks Village A note of thanks Thank you sincerely for the wonderful holiday drive your newspaper organized for our students with disabilities. Santa Claus made the day very special, and the beautifully wrapped, wonderful gifts for each child quickly became their prized possessions. The visit was very festive, and all members of The Queens Courier were so caring with our children. Please thank them for their efforts on our behalf. We hope they enjoyed their visit and received satisfaction in seeing how happy they made the children. The photo spread and article in The Queens Courier were fabulous. All the children were so excited to see their photos in the newspaper. It will be a great keepsake for their families. It also brings welcome attention to our school. Our staff at the QCP APPLE Preschool joins me in thanking you all, and wishing you a very happy new year. Cindy Heller, Assistant Director of Children’s Services QCP APPLE Preschool Chancellor is a good choice The selection and appointment of former deputy chancellor Carmen Farina to be the next Schools Chancellor by Mayor Bill de Blasio was a very sound and wise choice. With over 40 years experience in our public school system, she is the perfect person for this very important and demanding position. This writer would like to extend to her his very best wishes for much success and happiness in her new position. This job will be a Herculean task, and she will be on the go all of the time, but as her excellent record shows, she is willing to work with teachers, principals, superintendents and parents to insure that every single child receives a good education in our city’s public schools. Welcome, Chancellor Farina! John Amato Fresh Meadows Councilmember welcomes Chancellor As a former NYC public school teacher for 25 years and someone who benefitted from Carmen Farina’s tutelage, I could not be more excited than to have a Chancellor who knows what it means to step inside a classroom. Farina has an incredible depth of experience to guide her. With her selection, our city is gaining a Chancellor who understands that universal early childhood education, highquality after-school programs, a de-emphasis on testing, and consistent parental involvement are key to student success. I look forward to working with Farina to improve our public schools. Councilmember Danny Dromm Jackson Heights, Elmhurst, East Elmhurst, LeFrak City, Corona, Rego Park and Woodside IDENTIFY THIS PLACE Go to www.queenscourier.com and search “Identify This Place” to find out where this is ABOUT TIME Ok. We get it . . . New York is the “city that never sleeps.” But we’re actually very glad the Department of Transportation (DOT) and NYPD are enforcing overnight closures along the Queensboro Bridge. Beginning on Monday, December 30 the single lane of the Queensbound outer roadway of the span will be shut from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m. It’s about time something was done. The closure comes after the DOT conducted a review of current safety measures, traffic volumes and travel speed following the death of 10-year NYPD veteran Elisa Toro, 36, on December 10. Toro was heading off the bridge’s exit ramp around 1:50 a.m., when she struck a guardrail, then a cement barrier. The car then flipped onto its passenger side, hitting a vacant storefront on Queens Plaza South at Crescent Street. Toro, a Bronx resident, was pronounced dead at the scene. No one else was injured in the accident. But it was the latest in a string of accidents that not only left death in its wake, but destruction as well, as numerous cars have careened off the exit ramp into businesses below. We applaud the DOT and the NYPD for starting the New Year off right – and hopefully, increasing safety for drivers, pedestrians and businesses alike. GOOD LUCK CHANCELLOR New Year, new administration, new appointments. And one of the most eagerly anticipated was that of Schools Chancellor. Mayor Bill de Blasio has tapped Carmen Farina, a veteran employee, to lead the New York City public school system, replacing Dennis Walcott. Farina, 70, has more than four decades of experience working in the city’s school system, serving as a teacher at P.S. 29 in Cobble Hill, Brooklyn, a principal at P.S. 6 on the Upper East Side, and a superintendent of Brooklyn’s District 15. She last worked for the Department of Education as a deputy chancellor, before retiring in 2006. Taking lessons from her own experiences as a student in the city’s school system, Farina has promised to make parents real partners in their children’s education and prioritize college and career readiness. She has said she will push for universal pre-k and the expansion of after-school programs for middle schoolers. Among the challenges Farina will face as chancellor of the country’s largest public school system is a contract negotiation with the United Federation of Teachers. So, to Carmen Farina, we say good luck. The future is literally in your hands. THE QUEENS Victoria Schneps-Yunis Joshua A. Schneps Bob Brennan Tonia N. Cimino Amy Amato-Sanchez Nirmal Singh Graziella Zerilli Stephen Reina Ron Torina, Jennifer Decio, Cheryl Gallagher Melisa Chan, Liam La Guerre, Cristabelle Tumola Maggie Hayes, Angy Altamirano Cliff Kasden, Samantha Sohmer, Elizabeth Aloni Cristabelle Tumola Bill Krese Maria Romero 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 Editorial Cartoonist 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 website: www.queenscourier.com e-mail:editorial@queenscourier.com ads@queenscourier.com queenscourier@queenscourier.com Entire Contents Copyright 2013 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.
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