WWW.QNS.COM RIDGEWOOD TIMES MARCH 11, 2021 33
Life’s WORC names new senior director of development
BY CONNOR WALTER
EDITORIAL@QNS.COM
@QNS
Life’s WORC, the nonprofi t that
helps individuals with intellectual
and developmental disabilities
and autism, has named Shannon
Preston as its new senior director of
development.
Preston previously served as director
of advancement with the Tilles
Center for the Performing Arts and
brings 13 years of senior development
experience to her new role at
Life’s WORC.
Preston believes that her experience
in fundraising, recruiting and
increasing donations will be vital to
her new position as senior director
of development. In this role, Preston
will oversee the organization’s development,
public relations, event management
and community outreach
activities.
“In my most recent role at the Tilles
Center for the Performing Arts at
Long Island University in Brookville,
I am especially proud of having increased
its total contributions by 67
percent over a three-year period,”
Preston said. “Other achievements
at Tilles include my reviving event
fundraising for its annual gala
and golf tournament by recruiting
top-level honorees, committees and
Photo courtesy of Life’s WORC
participants, as well as increasing
annual donations from corporate
and private foundations and state
funding exponentially.”
Preston has also begun securing
funds for individuals with disabilities
as it pertains to Life’s WORC.
“Relating to Life’s WORC, I also
secured funding for Tilles Center’s
Sensory Friendly Program designed
specifically for individuals with
disabilities,” Preston said. “At the
Metropolitan Opera, I lead a staff
responsible for raising an average
of $13 million in unrestricted giving
annually, played a major role in
increasing annual event revenues
by over 100 percent in a 10-year
period, and helped to create, launch
and expand the Met’s International
Council, a group of donors and board
members from all over the world.”
Life’s WORC was founded in the
1970’s by Victoria Schneps with the
help of Geraldo Rivera. Preston
explained the importance of the
organization’s history and expansion
through Queens to the work it
is doing today.
After Willowbrook’s closing, as
Preston explains, Life’s WORC took
on a significant role in the community
by assisting individuals with
developmental disabilities.
The mission of Life’s WORC is to
provide supportive services, programs
and resources which help
individuals with intellectual and
developmental disabilities and autism
lead productive, fulfilling lives.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, it
was important to Life’s WORC that
the organization kept their facilities
clean and their individuals healthy.
“During COVID-19, Life’s WORC’s
role in the community was as important
as ever as we worked diligently
to keep the individuals with disabilities
and autism that we serve safe and
healthy while continuing to provide
a variety of necessary services,”
Preston said.
CityMD opens new urgent care center in Sunnyside
BY BILL PARRY
BPARRY@SCHNEPSMEDIA.COM
@QNS
CityMD, the leading urgent care
provider in the New York metropolitan
area, announced the
opening of a new location in Sunnyside,
its 14th site in Queens.
The facility opened its doors to
the public Monday, March 1, at 47-16
Greenpoint Ave., offering a range of
medical services including COVID-19
testing.
“We understand Queens has been
greatly affected by COVID-19,” said
CityMD NY Region Chief Operating
Officer Vincent Campasano, MD.
“With this new Sunnyside walk-in
urgent care, we look forward to giving
residents the caring emergency
physicians and clinical teams they
need to help fight the pandemic and
treat a large range of other health
care needs. And to help ensure easy
access to everyone in the community,
the clinic’s site is conveniently
located right off Queens Boulevard
and the 46th Street train station.”
With urgent care locations
throughout New York and New
Jersey, CityMD continues to offer
three forms of COVID-19 testing at
all locations: rapid, PCR (nasal swab)
and serum antibody IgG (blood test).
The Sunnyside location also offers a
“virtual line” for patients in need of
COVID-19 testing. This new process
aims to provide a more convenient
experience by eliminating the need
to wait in a physical line outside of
CityMD locations.
Patients of all ages visit CityMD for
many reasons, including treatment
for upper respiratory infections,
colds and flu, asthma, allergies,
minor lacerations, sore throats,
insect bites and rashes, among
other conditions. On-site doctors
can diagnose and treat pink eye,
croup, minor orthopedic injuries
and nosebleeds. Rapid testing for
flu, strep throat, mononucleosis,
UTIs and other conditions are also
among available services.
CityMD will support the emergency
medical needs of families in Sunnyside
and nearby communities with
convenient weekday and weekend
hours, as well as self-check-in kiosks.
The new location also has on-site
state-of-the-art technology, which
includes X-ray and EKG machinery.
“I am delighted to support the
opening of the new state-of-the-art
CityMD in Sunnyside that will offer
our residents and community essential
access to premier urgent care in
order to keep their health strong and
stable when immediate symptoms
arise,” Assemblywoman Catherine
Nolan said. “During these difficult
times in an ongoing pandemic, it
is a high priority for Sunnyside
residents to have rapid testing and
board-certified medical professionals
accessible in our neighborhood
and CityMD’s presence is greatly
appreciated. There has not been
enough testing in Sunnyside and I
am hopeful that this opening will
rectify that.”
The latest CityMD urgent care
center provides coordinated care
through CityMD’s unique, centralized
Aftercare Department. This
expert team of doctors and clinical
assistants helps patients coordinate
their follow-up care, ranging from
referrals to pre-approvals and other
appointments. After visits, patients
can also send bill payments, view
their statements, update their information
and even submit questions
through CityMD’s secure online
portal.
CityMD opens its newest urgent care center in Sunnyside.
Photo courtesy of CityMD
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