FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM DECEMBER 9, 2021 • THE QUEENS COURIER 9
Queens leaders condemn menorah vandalism
BY CARLOTTA MOHAMED
cmohamed@schnepsmedia.com
@QNS
Northeast Queens lawmakers were
joined by religious and community leaders
Photo courtesy of Weprin’s offi ce
State Assemblyman David Weprin speaks at a press conference held near the site where the large menorah was vandalized in Hollis Hills.
Queens Chamber honors local business ‘heroes’ with awards dinner
BY BILL PARRY
bparry@schnepsmedia.com
@QNS
As he was driving to work in Long
Island City in late March 2020, Charles
Boyce grew tired of hearing about the
ventilator crisis that was plaguing New
York City days during the early days of the
COVID-19 pandemic.
Th e president of Boyce Technologies
Inc. made up his mind to tackle the
ventilator crisis head-on and convened
a meeting with several engineers at his
company’s Pearson Place headquarters.
Within 24 hours, Boyce and his team
successfully repurposed components and
soft ware from Boyce Technologies’ line
of mass transit emergency communications
equipment and constructed a working
ventilator. A short time later, Boyce
received a call from a friend who asked
him to join a group of manufacturers that
were developing emergency ventilators.
“In the end, we abandoned our internal
design, although we were able to
leverage much of the research that we’d
already done,” Boyce said. “It wasn’t about
commercialization or who got credit for
a ventilator at that point; it was about
saving lives.”
On Dec. 1, Boyce was honored along
with 10 other business leaders at Terrace
on the Park as the Queens Chamber of
Commerce hosted their annual Business
Heroes of the Year Awards Dinner. Th is
year, the event paid special tribute to
the business leaders “who went above
and beyond to support small businesses
and the Queens community” during the
pandemic.
Th e honorees included Nupur Arora
of Queens Curry Kitchen, who began a
food delivery service donating thousands
of Indian meals to seniors, COVID-19
patients and other patients undergoing
intense medical procedures.
Declan Morris of Austin Public &
Stacked Sandwich Shop, who was forced
to close one of his restaurants when the
pandemic hit but quickly pivoted to feed
frontline workers and families in need,
was among the honorees.
So too was Patrick Oropeza of Bolivian
Llama Party, whose crew worked tirelessly
to provide food donations to those
in need and supported local charities in
the face of his restaurant’s fi nancial challenges.
Also honored was Mark Boccia
of Bourbon Street, who in March 2020
launched the “Food for the Fearless” campaign,
which raised more than $100,000
to donate 10,000 meals to frontline
hospital workers.
Frank Russo of Russo’s on the Bay was
recognized for donating grab-and-go
lunches to New Yorkers in need throughout
the pandemic and has raised millions
of dollars to fund education and research
of life-threatening diseases.
“Th e past two years have been incredibly
challenging for our borough, and
throughout this unprecedented time, so
many men and women have gone above
and beyond to support their neighborhoods
and our small business community,”
Queens Chamber of Commerce
President and CEO Th omas J. Grech said.
“It is our pleasure to thank them and recognize
them for their hard work and selflessness
at this year’s Business Heroes of
the Year Awards Dinner. Th ey may come
from diff erent industries and diff erent
walks of life, but they all represent the
very best of Queens.”
Other honorees included Rachel Keller
of Aigner Chocolates, who at the height
of the pandemic donated Easter chocolates
to seniors in isolation and a 2-foottall
chocolate bunny to frontline workers
at Elmhurst Hospital. Melva Miller
of the Association for a Better New York
was recognized for leading the organization’s
outreach eff orts for the 2020 census,
working to ensure a fair and accurate
count of all New Yorkers particularly
those living in historically underserved
communities.
Also honored was NYC Department of
Small Business Services Commissioner
Jonnel Doris, who took the helm at SBS
two months into the pandemic, and has
“tirelessly advocated for entrepreneurs
and small business owners since stepping
into the role.”
Larry Zogby of RDS Same Day Delivery
was recognized for helping the chamber
deliver over 1 million face masks and PPE
to small businesses at the height of the
pandemic, and Michael Peterson of the
Peterson Foundation was recognized for
launching the Small Business Resource
Network, which embedded a team of
small business recovery specialists within
each of the fi ve Chambers of Commerce
in New York City.
in Hollis Hills on Tuesday, Nov. 30,
to denounce the desecration of a large
menorah at the Chabad House of Eastern
Queens during the start of Hanukkah.
State Assembly members David Weprin
and Nily Rozic, along with Senator John
Liu, Councilman Barry Grodenchik,
Rabbi Yerachmiel Zalmanov, Rabbi
David Wise, Rabbi Gary Greene and
Rabbi Mayer Waxman, gathered at the
traffi c island at the intersection of Union
Turnpike and 220th Street where the
menorah was erected.
In the early evening of Saturday, Nov.
27, the large menorah was knocked into
the road and most of its lights were broken,
according to Zalmanov, who reported
the incident to the NYPD.
“Hanukkah is a time of peace and
joy. No acts of vandalism or anti-Semitism
will ever be tolerated,” Weprin said.
“Each incident is dehumanizing and a
repugnant stain on our community. We
are watching. Th e hard-working members
of law enforcement are watching.
And this community — where we always
have each other’s backs — is watching.”
While noting a previous anti-Semitic
incident that took place barely a week ago
at Bagels & Co. where a man entered the
establishment and threatened the owner,
staff and patrons, Liu said they are compelled
to once again gather in defi ance of
yet another act of intolerance.
“Th is vandalism occurred as New
Yorkers celebrated the fi rst night of
Hanukkah stings all the more, but our
community will never waiver in our
determination to fi ght back against
hatred and division in any form,” Liu
said.Th
is isn’t the fi rst time the large menorah
was vandalized. A similar incident
occurred twice in December 2014, when
the menorah was torn down and many of
its bulbs were shattered.
Congresswoman Grace Meng
condemned the “despicable” act of
vandalism as the Jewish community celebrates
Hanukkah.
“Th ere is no place anywhere in our
society for anti-Semitism and hate, particularly
here in Queens, where we welcome
and embrace the great diversity
throughout our borough. We will not tolerate
this disgusting and cowardly behavior,
and we must continue to call out
these crimes. Th ose responsible must be
held accountable,” Meng said.
Photo courtesy of Queens Chamber of Commerce
Queens Chamber of Commerce hosted its annual Business Heroes of the Year awards ceremony at Terrace on the Park.
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