WWW.QNS.COM RIDGEWOOD TIMES FEBRUARY 8, 2018 13
LETTERS AND COMMENTS OP-ED
VITAL SOCIAL
PROGRAM FACES
DEADLINE
Members of Club Pride, a psycho-social
program for seniors run by Pride
of Judea in Douglaston, are facing a
fateful deadline. Started 20 years
ago, Club Pride put many people
on the road to recovery after they
were discharged from psychiatric
hospitals.
I’m one of them. I joined in April
2003 after being twice hospitalized
for clinical depression. Club Pride
has transformed me from someone
who struggled to get out of bed every
day to a person actively engaged
in community affairs. Many other
members achieved similar transitions,
thanks to the therapy, coping
skills and social support we gained
at Club Pride.
But this vital program will end on
June 30 unless responsible civic and
political leaders act soon.
The crisis stems from a dispute
between two agencies who fund
Club Pride: NYC’s Department of
Health and Mental Hygiene and
the Jewish Board of Family and
Children’s Services. Both share
budget costs but disagree on how
the program should be run.
Club Pride not only helps the
mentally ill, but also serves as a
training ground for college students
majoring in social work and
art therapy. Six interns a year get
hands-on experience working with
a vulnerable segment of Queens’
population. Roughy 120 interns
were trained at Club Pride over
the past 20 years. Many are now
practicing professionals.
Ironically, Club Pride’s demise
occurs shortly after Mayor de
Blasio launched a new program
run by first lady Chirlane
McGray, called NYC Well, to
expand mental health services
to all New Yorkers. Ending a successful
mental health program
that proved its value over the
past 20 years doesn’t mesh with
this initiative.
Perhaps NYC’s Department for
the Aging can co-fund Club Pride
along with the Jewish Board. One
person who could arrange this is
Councilman Paul Vallone, whose
19th District includes Douglaston.
He chairs the sub-committee on
senior centers and raised funds
for several services aiding the
elderly, such as free transportation
for medical visits throughout
Queens.
Douglaston’s Albany legislators
should also use their clout to make
it happen.
Richard Reif,
Kew Gardens Hills
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Leading the way in innovation
and clean energy
BY STATE SENATOR JOE ADDABBO
New York state is on the verge of
becoming a national leader when
it comes to producing clean, renewable
energy thanks in part to Governor
Andrew Cuomo’s Reforming the
Energy Vision plan, which aims to have
50 percent of New York’s energy come
from renewable energy sources by 2030.
As part of achieving this worthy goal,
we will be implementing the New York
State Off shore Wind Master Plan, which
when complete in 2030 will develop 2,400
megawatts of off shore wind energy —
enough to power up to 1.2 million homes.
One major aspect of the state’s Master
Plan includes creating an off shore windfarm
in the waters of Rockaway, which is
within my district. I am thrilled that part
of my district will be involved in moving
New York state to the forefront of the
nation in renewable energy and combating
climate change by mitigating the
negative eff ects of burning fossil fuels
and coal, even as the federal government
moves away from such measures.
According to the New York State
Energy Research and Development
Authority (NYSERDA), the development
of these off shore windfarms will
help mitigate the negative impacts of
using traditional energy sources such
as fossil fuels and coal, which give off
harmful greenhouse gases and harm
the air and water quality for residents
here in Queens, and across the state.
NYSERDA estimates that the creation of
2,400 megawatts of offshore wind energy
will reduce greenhouse gas emissions
each year in New York state by more
than 5 million short tons, which is the
equivalent of removing nearly 1 million
cars from the road by 2030. In addition to
reducing the emission of greenhouse gases,
estimates show that these windfarms
would improve air quality in the state’s
large population centers — like the New
York City metropolitan area.
Aside from the tremendous environmental
benefi ts these windfarms
will have, they will also create thousands
of jobs. Workers will be needed
to design, construct, operate and
maintain the turbines.
The turbines that will be erected
nearly a mile out into the waters off
Rockaway Beach will barely be visible
from the shoreline and will not disrupt
the views of beachgoers. Residents
in the community will not hear any
noise associated with the turbines as
they turn the wind into clean energy.
NYSERDA is also working with fi shing
experts to avoid any negative impact
on the area’s fi shing culture and jobs,
as well as conversing with marine biologists
to learn how the turbines will
aff ect sea life and how to minimize any
damage to the creatures or the sea.
As a member of the Senate Environmental
Conservation Committee, I look
forward to hearing from my constituents
on how they feel about this plan during
future public outreach meetings set up
by NYSERDA and I am eager to work on
this innovative clean energy project.
Addabbo represents the 15th Senatorial
District, which includes much of
southwest Queens and the western
Rockaways.
This May 1923 photo shows a road in
Queens that no longer exists. Strong’s
Causeway crossed the Flushing Creek
and marshy areas that would one day
become the World’s Fairgrounds and,
later, Flushing Meadows Corona Park.
A bridge carrying the causeway over
Flushing Creek is in the background; the
roadway would later be incorporated
into Horace Harding Boulevard and,
later, the Long Island Expressway. Send
us your historic photos of Queens by
email to editorial@qns.com (subject: A
Look Back) or mail printed pictures to A
Look Back, ℅ Schneps Communications,
38-15 Bell Blvd., Bayside, NY 11361.
All mailed pictures will be carefully
returned to you.
A LOOK BACK
Photo courtesy of Queens Library Digital Archives
