16 THE QUEENS COURIER • JANUARY 18, 2018 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM
Woodhaven remembers,
mourns Maria Thomson
BY RYAN KELLEY
rkelley@ridgewoodtimes.com
Twitter @R_Kelley6
Th e community of Woodhaven lost one
of its warmest personalities and strongest
Apply for a unit at this aff ordable housing complex for seniors in Corona
BY ANGELA MATUA
amatua@qns.com / @angelamatua
Th e lottery process for an aff ordable housing
complex for seniors in Corona offi cially
began on Jan. 10.
HANAC Corona Senior Residence, located
at 54-17 101st St., features 68 units that
are income-restricted and 21 units reserved
for vulnerable seniors. It is also the fi rst
aff ordable housing site for seniors built in
Corona in more than 30 years.
Offi cials broke ground on the building in
2016 and touted its energy-effi ciency standards,
which will limit the building’s energy
consumption by approximately 75 percent.
Th ese strict standards will result in lower
utility bills for tenants and lower operating
costs for owners, offi cials said.
Th e studio and one-bedroom units range
from $26,720 to $38,200 with residents paying
30 percent of their income.
The Hellenic Action
Neighborhood Committee
will provide seniors with
a social service coordinator
and health screening
program to prevent
avoidable hospitalizations.
A preschool will also be
constructed on the site by
the School Construction
Authority. Th e building
also features a shared rear
yard with a vegetable garden,
seating and tables for
residents and a children’s
natural play area.
Th e deadline to apply for
an apartment is March 14.
To apply online, visit nyc.
gov/housingconnect.
You can request an application by sending
a self addressed stamped envelope to:
HANAC Corona Senior Residence, P.O. Box
249, 135 S. Black Horse Pike, Williamstown,
NJ 08094.
advocates on Wednesday when Maria
Th omson died aft er dedicating the last 40
years of her life to civic activism.
Th omson’s list of achievements is practically
endless. As the president of the 102nd
Precinct Community Council, she served
fi ve terms and was named the fi rst and only
102nd Precinct Honorary Police Offi cer of
the Month.
In her role as executive director of
the Greater Woodhaven Development
Corporation, Thomson organized the
Wonderful Woodhaven Street Festival
and founded the Woodhaven Business
Improvement District. Th omson was also a
longtime member of Community Board 9.
She also served as president of the
Woodhaven Residents’ Block Association,
she actively reported illegal conversions in
the community and prevented the reopening
of a bar where two homicides took
place.
Th anks, in a large part, to Th omson’s persistent
activism, the Forest Park Carousel
was named a city landmark; Fire Engine
Company 294 reopened; Fire Engine
Company 293 was saved from planned
closure more than a decade ago; and the
Jamaica Avenue elevated train line was
repaired and re-painted.
Councilman Eric Ulrich, who worked
with Th omson on a number of local issues
in the past decade, fi rst announced the
news of her passing in a statement on
Facebook.
“She was a legend and someone who truly
cared,” Ulrich said in the statement. “Maria
had a heart of gold and dedicated decades
of her life to the betterment of her neighborhood
and borough.”
Th omson’s longevity is one of the traits
that stood out the most to Senator Joseph
Addabbo. He was just a kid when Addabbo
fi rst met Th omson during the late 1970s
when his father, the late Congressman
Joseph Addabbo Sr., interacted with
Th omson on the civic scene, he said.
As the younger Addabbo became active
in the community, he developed a working
relationship with Th omson and went on to
collaborate with her while serving as a City
Council member in 2003 on the Jamaica
Avenue elevated train line.
Senator Addabbo said he was always
amazed by Th omson’s drive, and while he
described her personality as warm and welcoming,
he added that “on the other side
of the coin she was tough for what she
believed in.”
“She’s the only person on earth that can
get me to wear a cowboy hat,” Addabo said
with a laugh. “Every street fair on Jamaica
Avenue, she nicely suggests that we all wear
a Woodhaven cowboy hat. I don’t really
like hats, but for Maria, I’ll do it.”
Other local politicians who worked
with Th omson throughout the years also
expressed their condolences upon hearing
the news.
“Maria represents the best of the strong
civic life trademark to Queens, and her
service spanned across many capacities,”
said Queens Borough President Melinda
Katz in a statement. “Maria’s ideas and
energy are refl ected throughout many of
Woodhaven’s top initiatives, such as the
Wonderful Woodhaven Street Festival and
street beautifi cation projects. Our thoughts
and prayers are with Maria’s family and
friends during this diffi cult time.”
Councilman Robert Holden, a former
civic activist whose district includes a sliver
of Woodhaven released a statement on
Facebook.
“I am saddened to hear of the passing
of fellow civic leader Maria Th omson,”
Holden said. “She will be missed by many.”
Ed Wendell, who served as president
of the Woodhaven Residents’ Block
Association while Th omson was on the
board of directors, said that once he got
to know Th omson he realized that nobody
really understands how much work it takes
to be as involved as she was.
Aft er hearing the news of her passing last
night, Wendell said he was out in the community
and saw the Christmas lights on
Jamaica Avenue that go up year aft er year
thanks to Th omson wanting to uphold that
tradition, and he could think of no better
tribute.
“I didn’t have a conversation with her that
didn’t involve the community,” Wendell
said. “Everyone has something they were
born to do, and I think this is what Maria
was born to do.”
Photo courtesy of Ridgewood Savings Bank
Pictured above: Chairman and
CEO Lenoard Stekol
Ridgewood
Bank has a
brand new
chairman
Ridgewood Savings Bank
announced Leonard Stekol
is the new Chairman of the
Board of Trustees and Chief
Executive Offi cer, replacing
Peter M. Boger, who
retired from his role as the
Bank’s Chairman and CEO
as of Dec. 31, 2017. Stekol
will also continue to serve as
the bank’s president. Stekol
has over 25 years of banking
experience at Ridgewood.
Most recently, he served as a
member of the Bank’s Board
of Trustees since July 2016,
as the Bank’s President and
Chief Operating Officer
since January 2016, and as
the Bank’s Chief Financial
Offi cer from 2009 to 2016. He
is a member of the American
Institute of Certifi ed Public
Accountants, the New
York Bankers Association,
the American Bankers
Association, and is a Trustee
of MercyFirst, a not-forprofi
t human service agency.
“Leonard’s appointment
fulfi lls the formal succession
planning process put in place
by our Board of Trustees,”
said Boger, who remains
a member of the Board of
Trustees. “I am grateful for
Leonard’s support throughout
my tenure at the Bank,
and have enjoyed working
closely with him these past
several years.”
“I am grateful for the trust
the Bank’s Board of Trustees
has placed in me. I want to
thank Peter for his steadfast
leadership throughout his 18
years of service to the Bank,”
Stekol added. “I will continuously
strive to build upon
his successes and meet the
ongoing challenges of a rapidly
evolving banking industry,
while maintaining the
commitment of Peter and
his predecessors to retain
Ridgewood Savings Bank as
a mutual savings bank.”
File Photo/QNS
Maria A. Thomson, longtime advocate and leader
for Woodhaven, has died.
Photo via HANAC
An aff ordable housing lottery for a building catering to seniors in Corona
has opened.