FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT www.qns.com THE COURIER SUN • FEBRUARY 16, 2017 23 Black History Month Borough Hall celebration tonight honors prominent African-American leaders in Queens BY THE QUEENS COURIER STAFF editorial@qns.com @QNS Six Queens men and women who have made a difference in the communities they live in will be honored tonight (Thursday) during Queens Borough President Melinda Katz’s fourth Black History Month celebration at Queens Borough Hall in Kew Gardens. The festivities will take place at 6 p.m. on Feb. 16 inside the Helen Marshall Cultural Center within Borough Hall, which is located at 120-55 Queens Blvd. This year’s festivities will pay special tribute to Jacqueline Grace Boyce, executive director of the Southern Queens Park Association; Elsie Saint Louis, executive director of Haitian Americans United for Progress (HAUP); photojournalist Nathaniel Valentine; film and television producer Ralph McDaniels; Shearon Smith, owner of St. Best Jerk Spot restaurant in Springfield Gardens; and Bill Briggs of the Youth & Tennis Academy. Biographical information on the honorees follows on the next page. The celebration was organized and planned by the Borough President’s African American Heritage Committee, which is composed of local business and community leaders. In addition to the annual Black History Month event, the committee also hosts the borough president’s annual Kwanzaa celebration every December and works with the Queens Borough Public Library to hold its annual celebration of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s life every January. File photo/THE COURIER Committee members include Andrew P. Jackson, (Sekou Molefi Baako), Committee Chair; Sonia R. Banks, PhD, LCP, Atled, Inc.; Pastor John Boyd, New Greater Bethel Ministries; Bill Briggs, Youth & Tennis Academy; Cedric Dew, Jamaica YMCA; Marc A. Haken, Community Board 8; John Harrison, Community Mediation Services; Harbachan Singh, Community Board 8 & Queens General Assembly; and Roslin V. Spigner, Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. For more information, visit www. queensbp.org. Queens Borough President Melinda Katz with honorees from the 2016 Black History Month ceremony. Louis Armstrong House Check out the Louis Armstrong House Museum in Corona The Louis Armstrong House Museum, located at 34-55 107th St. in Corona, was once home of jazz legend Louis “Satchmo” Armstrong. He and his wife, Lucille, purchased the modest home in 1943. They lived their until their deaths (Louis died in 1971; Lucille died in 1983). Armstrong became famous for his trumpet playing and raspy vocals. While living at the house, he acted in the 1946 movie “New Orleans,” went on worldwide concert tours and achieved success with his recordings of “Hello Dolly” and “What a Wonderful World.” The historic site is owned by the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs and administered by Queens College under a long-term license agreement. Source: NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission and Louis Armstrong House Museum
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