56 The QUEE NS Courier • september 19, 2013 for breaking news visit www.queenscourier.com SCOTT BARON’S STAR OF QUEENS brought to you by SCOTT BARON & ASSOCICATES, P.C. Attorneys & Counselors at Law 1-866-WAS-HURT (866) 927-4878 718.738.9800 star OF queens Alberta Crowley Bricktown Community Garden COMMUNITY SERVICE: The Community Garden on 106th Avenue and 173rd Street in southeast Queens has become a second home to Alberta Crowley for the past five years. Crowley, 70, volunteers at the garden, planting any and every kind of vegetable. She additionally works with a group of developmentally disabled individuals, helping them harvest their own creations. Crowley said many of her participants cannot use their hands properly, so she handles plants for them. “They really enjoy it,” she said. She additionally works with seniors and is working on making the garden wheelchair-friendly to minimize any difficulty for those with decreased mobility. Crowley is the only consistent volunteer the garden has seen, she said. “Basically, I’m doing this by myself. Every now and then I get someone else to come out and work, but it’s a big harvest,” she said. Five days a week, Crowley travels via two buses to the garden and does weeding, digging and planting. BACKGROUND: The Queens Village resident has lived in the borough for roughly 50 years. When she was 15 years old, she came to New York from Mississippi by herself and worked various odd jobs, including one in electronics and another at a zipper factory. Her love for gardening began at the age of six when her mother told her, “Whatever you’re going to eat, you have to work for it.” With that, Crowley began to grow her favorites, such as turnip greens. FAVORITE MEMORY: Crowley’s favorite memories of the garden are from when she first started years ago. She said she started late in the season and didn’t have any vegetables to plant. So she got resourceful, and dried out beans and okra from her own cabinet. She also enjoyed working with the disabled, and said they love coming to the garden. “It’s a challenge, but I know they appreciate it,” she said. “They look forward to harvesting.” Crowley collects everything her participants grow, stores it and every Thanksgiving uses it to prepare a meal for them. BIGGEST CHALLENGE: The 70 year old admitted her biggest challenge is getting people to volunteer to help out at the garden. “People come, and they see how hard the work is, then they don’t want to come back,” she said. “So that leaves me to do it.” INSPIRATION: “It’s very inspiring to use your hands,” she said. “It’s very pleasant in the garden. It’s pleasant to work there,” Crowley said. Aside from her love of gardening and being outside, Crowley said her volunteer work is also great exercise. proud supporter of the 2013 Kings of Queens Awards & Networking Event Congratulations Mark Johnson CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER QSIDE FEDERAL CREDIT UNION and all the 2013 Kings of Queens honorees. Where money makes a better living. Online Banking Free Checking Personal Loans Vehicle Loans Re nancing Low-Rate Credit Cards Savings Accounts Home Loans 30,000 Surcharge-Free ATMs And Much More NOW LOCATED IN QUEENS VILLAGE Federally Insured by NCUA www.QsideFCU.org 211-31 Jamaica Avenue Queens Village, NY 11428 info@QsideFCU.org (718) 353-1300 Legally Speaking By: Scott Baron, Attorney at Law TOTAL DEVASTATION Advertorial Q: Our house was destroyed by a fire. The fire damaged virtually everything. There had been thousands of items. Only one in a thousand went undamaged. Even the documentation for many of the underlying losses was lost in this conflagration. We have a homeowner’s insurance policy that includes coverage for personal property. But our insurer says that our policy is void. The company says that we have misrepresented the value of our personal property. A: In your proofs of loss, did you state that property was lost, which really was not? That property had a value, more than it really did? Did you do this ‘willfully and fraudulently’? If so, then your insurance policy may indeed have become void. However, mere incorrect information is not necessarily tantamount to fraud or material misrepresentation. The jury must find that whatever errors were committed with unacceptable intent. Your attorney will want a comprehensive inventory as well as numerous photographs proving the almost-total destruction of your home and property. He or she will argue that, to the extent that errors were made, these errors were not intentional and were minor when considered in the overall context. The law responds to changed conditions; exceptions and variations abound. Here, the information is general; always seek out competent counsel. This article shall not be construed as legal advice Copyright © 2013 Scott Baron & Associates, P.C. All rights reserved. 159-49 Cross Bay Boulevard, Howard Beach, New York 11414 1750 Central Park Avenue, Yonkers, NY 10710 718-738-9800, 914-337-9800, 1-866-927-4878
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