Ischia Bravo Sworn in as First Woman and First Latina to Serve as Bronx County Clerk

By JOSÉ A. GIRALT

At a ceremony attended by many local elected officials, judicial dignitaries, and well-wishers, Ischia Bravo, former district manager of Bronx Community Board 7 (CB7), was sworn in as the first woman and first Latina to hold the position of Bronx County clerk and commissioner of jurors on Feb. 9. The ceremony took place at Gould Memorial Library on the campus of Bronx Community College in University Heights, with Bravo sworn in by Rolando T. Acosta, presiding justice of the New York State Supreme Court, Appellate Division, First Department. Among those in attendance for the occasion were NYS Attorney General

By JOSÉ A. GIRALT

To mark Black History Month, we’re spotlighting the history and contribution of members of the Black community in The Bronx who are positively impacting the lives of others. In the early 1980s, Sean Ebony Coleman didn’t see much empathy for a community that was being ravaged by AIDS. “A lot of my friends were victims of the HIV-AIDS epidemic, so we were watching a bunch of our friends die [and we were] trying to figure out what we could do better,” Coleman said in an interview with Norwood News. Over time, the epidemic hit very close to home.

By SÍLE MOLONEY

Dear Readers, We’re currently doing a clear out of some of our older print editions of the newspaper for archival purposes. If anyone would like to pick up a hard copy of a prior print edition, please let us know and we’ll save one for you if we have enough left to go around. You can email smoloney@norwoodnews.org or call (929) 318 6595 and let us know. We won’t be holding on to them for very long so please do let us know quickly if you would like one. Thank you for your ongoing support. Síle Moloney Editor-in-Chief

By SÍLE MOLONEY

It all started last summer when student, Gabrielle Cruz, a member of the St. Barnabas High School (SBHS) choir who also plays the piano, spotted a brochure about a program called “Voices in the Hall” on the desk of SBHS teacher and co-choir director, Sharon Traditi. “We should do this!” Gabrielle excitedly said. “What an experience to perform at Carnegie Hall!” And so, the idea began taking shape with more students in September getting excited about the possibility of taking to the stage of Manhattan’s iconic performance venue. A phone call to executive director, Steve Petrunak, of the “Voices

By SÍLE MOLONEY

Dear Readers, We would like to advise you that due to a recent social media use policy change implemented by our parent organization earlier this week, we are currently unable to post any stories or fliers regarding events etc. on social media, including details of our latest print edition published Feb. 9. We apologize sincerely for this inconvenience. We are addressing the situation with our parent organization and hope to have it resolved soon. In the meantime, please continue to visit our website, Norwood News, for all our latest stories. Thank you for your patience and for your

By ARIEL PACHECO

Rep. Adriano Espaillat (NY-13) hosted his annual State of the District address on Jan. 29 at The Forum at Columbia University in front of a packed auditorium with many more waiting outside. As usual, the event was an occasion to highlight the congressman’s legislative victories and present his legislative agenda for the 118th Congress. During his address, Espaillat, a Democrat, committed to increasing funding for public safety, community and cultural programs, infrastructure development, and educational initiatives. “We created and passed legislation to create jobs, to help small businesses, to address climate change, to lower the cost of healthcare,

By MIRIAM QUIÑONES & SÍLE MOLONEY

The envisioning process to decide on the future use of the Kingsbridge Armory, located at Jerome Avenue in Kingsbridge Heights, is continuing, and follows previous updates on the project. Envisioning workshops took place on Saturday, Nov. 5, 2022, and again on Saturday, Jan. 21, but those involved with the “Together for Kingsbridge” working group as still anxious to hear from more community members about their ideas. District 14 City Council Member Pierina Sanchez gave an overview of the project during Bronx Community Board 7 (CB7)’s general board meeting on Jan. 24, adding that at the Jan. 21 workshop, several

By NEREYDA FRANCO

February is the time of year when people across the country celebrate all matters of the heart. Many focus on the perfect gift or plan the perfect date for their sweetheart on St. Valentine’s Day. At Montefiore Einstein, we bring our attention to the physical health of our hearts. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), one in every three deaths are related to cardiovascular disease, also known as heart disease. With such alarming statistics, we must ask, “What matters when it comes to heart health?” A great place to start, is learning about your

By DAVID GREENE

Members of NY Sun Works, a non-profit that builds innovative science labs in urban schools, through its Greenhouse Project Initiative to educate students and teachers about the science of sustainability, joined Bronx Borough President Vanessa Gibson at Norwood’s P.S. / M.S. 20‘s hydroponic farm on Wednesday, Jan. 25, to announce the expansion of hydroponics farm technology to 20 local schools. According to verticalroots.com, put simply, hydroponics is a way to skip the soil, sub in a different material to support the roots of the plant, and grow crops directly in nutrient-rich water. The $2.5 million boroughwide project would