FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT www.qns.com THE COURIER SUN • JANUARY 26, 2017 3 Youth basketball group helps Richmond Hill Boys & Girls BY ANTHONY GIUDICE [email protected] @A_GiudiceReport A youth basketball group known for developing middle and high school students into strong, hardworking men and women is sharing its skill sets with the Boys & Girls Club of Metro Queens in Richmond Hill. The New York Jayhawks, a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization founded in 2011, will help the kids of the Boys & Girls Club of Metro Queens use basketball as a way to grow on and off the court by building leadership and life-enrichment skills such as responsibility, work ethic, commitment, perseverance, self-discipline and more through several programs. “I am truly excited about the partnership with the New York Jayhawks because our missions align nicely,” said Asia Blume, program director of teens and athletics for the Boys & Girls Club of Metro Queens. “These types of collaborations are important for the growth of the community, as well as the growth of our children. I feel the connection between a sports program and the community is a necessity for our student athletes to become responsible citizens and to reach their full potential.” The key program that both the Boys & Girls Club and the Jayhawks will focus on include mentorship programs, college and SAT prep, community service and fundraising. The two agencies recently came together for a project that sent school supplies and bookbags to children in Haiti, Africa and the Dominican Republic. The Boys & Girls Club of Metro Queens teamed up with the New York Jayhawks to help their kids grow through basketball. “The New York Jayhawks are proud to partner with the Boys & Girls Club of Metro Queens and start a new chapter while upholding the Photo courtesy of the Boys & Girls Club of Metro Queens principles of mentorship, service, integrity and high academic standards,” said Jay David, executive director of the New York Jayhawks. “Together we can build future leaders who are college ready through mentoring, direct skills training and managing our students to high academic standards.” Queens’ Congress members to Trump & GOP: Keep your hands off Obamacare BY ROBERT POZARYCKI [email protected] @robbpoz Every member of Congress representing Queens has urged incoming President Donald Trump not to repeal the Affordable Care Act (also known as Obamacare), charging that it would cause millions of New Yorkers to lose their health insurance. Trump will be sworn into office at noon on Friday, Jan. 20, but two days earlier, 17 members of the New York State Congressional delegation appealed to the Queens native’s roots in a letter warning him of the potential consequences of Obamacare’s demise. More than 20 million people nationwide have insurance coverage through provisions in the Affordable Care Act, but Congressional Republicans have made repealing the law a top priority this session. With a Republican taking office in the White House, the prospects of ending Obamacare are greater than ever, but many are concerned about what — if anything — would replace it. “Repealing the ACA would put New York seniors in danger of paying nearly $1,200 more for prescription drugs,” Congressman Gregory Meeks said in a statement. “Medicaid recipients could lose out on expanded assistance. Those with pre-existing conditions would once again be scrambling to find an insurance company who sic would accept them. These are just some of the folks who have benefited greatly from the ACA and are now at risk of having these very benefits stripped from them.” A study released by Governor Andrew Cuomo’s office indicated that more than 2.7 million New Yorkers — including nearly 500,000 in Queens alone — would lose their health i n s u r a n c e coverage if Obamacare is repealed. The state budget could also take a hit in excess of $3 billion as a result of reduced Medicaid funding. New Yorkers would also lose a combined $250 million in tax credits used to help them afford their own health insurance. “From Manhattan to Massena, New Yorkers reject this starkly ideological plan to repeal the ACA that would throw our entire health care system into disarray and not solve the real problems that families face,” the 17 New York Congress members wrote to Trump. Meeks signed the letter along with Congressmen Joe Crowley, Tom Suozzi and Hakeem Jeffries and Congresswomen Grace Meng, Nydia Velazquez and Carolyn Maloney. Meng and Velazquez also announced this week they would not attend Trump’s inauguration due to his recent comments about Georgia Congressman John Lewis that sought to diminish the civil rights icon’s work. “While we acknowledge that the Affordable Care Act is not perfect, we will not stand idly by as you inflict a great wound on the people of New York we are sworn to represent and protect,” the New York Congressional letter concluded. “We implore you to stop playing politics with the lives of our constituents and stop efforts to repeal this life-saving law.” Photo courtesy of the Long Island Press
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