6 NOVEMBER 17, 2016 RIDGEWOOD TIMES WWW.QNS.COM Maspeth honors its Irish roots with ‘Step Street’ renaming Committee to help vets in CB 5 area BY ANTHONY GIUDICE [email protected]/ @A_GIUDICEREPORT As the nation paused last week to honor its veterans, Community Board 5 (CB 5) agreed to create a subcommittee of its Health and Human Services Committee to deal with veterans aff airs on their board. Michael O’Kane, CB 5 member and president of the Vietnam Veterans of America Queens Chapter 32, proposed during CB 5’s monthly meeting at Christ the King High School in Middle Village on Nov. 9 a brand new Veterans Aff airs Committee. “These guys are underserved, they’re uninformed,” O’Kane said of the veterans in Queens. “What we’re trying to do is, we’re trying to help them navigate through the VA Veterans Aff airs … these guys that are coming home now, don’t know what’s going to happen down the road. It’s important for them to put in claim in as soon as they can with the VA, and doing so can be a daunting task.” O’Kane laid out a proposal for this new committee which would: • provide veterans with a resource for identifying benefi ts information and how to access VA benefi ts; • assist veterans in navigating the Department of Veterans Aff airs; and • refer veterans to a qualified Veterans Services Officer within the CB 5 area. “What I hope to do with this committee is establish a referral service to probably some of the best veterans service offi cers in New York State, we have a network of them that we deal with, they are all good,” O’Kane told the board. “And then just help the guys out. Welcome them home. It wasn’t there when I came home. Nobody told me what I was entitled to do, how I was I was entitled, or the benefi ts I was entitled to.” O’Kane would also like to see the committee made up of no less than fi ve members, preferably veterans themselves, and they would meet at the CB 5 offi ce on Myrtle Avenue once every other month. CB 5 Chairperson Vincent Arcuri, along with members of the board’s Executive Committee — who were all present at the meeting — agreed to create the subcommittee and allow them to operate once they are set up. BY ANTHONY GIUDICE [email protected]/ @A_GIUDICEREPORT To celebrate the 100th anniversary of the 1916 Irish rebellion for independence, the City Council designated the municipal staircase known as “Step Street,” in Maspeth as “Easter Rising Way” on Saturday, Nov. 12. The street co-naming ceremony featured Councilwoman Elizabeth Crowley, Councilman Daniel Dromm, state Senator Joseph Addabbo, Consul General of Ireland Barbara Jones, and chair of Community Board 2 (CB 2) Denise Keehan-Smith. Gerry Adams, president of Sinn Fein, the oldest political movement in Ireland, provided the keynote address about the Easter Rising rebellion, in which the Irish people rose up and fought for their independence from Great Britain. “Step Street” is located near 53rd Avenue and 64th Street, and sits on the Maspeth Plateau, which is the highest ground in western Queens and provides a view of the Manhattan skyline and Calvary Cemetery. Since 1848, Calvary Cemetery has been the final resting place for many deceased Irish Americans and a cherished location for monuments celebrating Irish contributions to American history, including the Fenian Monument, erected by veterans of the Irish Republican Brotherhood. Photo courtesy of City Councilwoman Elizabeth Crowley Queensboro UNICO celebrated their Annual Cigar Night fundraiser Queensboro UNICO held their Annual Cigar Night fundraising event on Sept. 21, at Giando’s on the Water in Brooklyn. The event was attended by approximately 190 guests and raised over $15,000. Ciro Randazzo was the winner of the evening’s 50/50 raffle and donated half of the winnings back to the chapter. Pictured from left to right: Gaspare Mistretta, event co-chair and chapter fi rst vice president; Samantha Batista; Laura Tremulis; Milena Stancati; Ciro Randazzo, Garfi eld Chapter member; and Mike Mucaria, c hapter president. Photo via Shutterstock Community Board 5 agreed to create a Veterans Aff airs subcommittee.
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