Norwood Football Club Scores on Youth Development

By DEVIN DAE TUCKER

For the Bronx Buccaneers, a Norwood-based youth football program, the mission means more than the game. In the last 11 years, the club has found itself functioning more as a vehicle for cultivating the lives of young athletes, and espousing life lessons intended to enhance critical thinking and athletic abilities. The program throws a veil on the students, general manager Tasha Andrews admits proudly, saying the sport is used to “develop responsibility and focus” for the program’s boys and girls. Andrews calls the program a bridge that brings players “together and to focus on creating young men who are

Editor’s Pick Night Out at the Oval The 52nd Precinct invites the public to a free National Night Out at Williamsbridge Oval, on Aug. 1 from 3 to 6 p.m. Meet and greet the precinct’s officers and executive staff and enjoy snacks and drinks. Events include pony rides, face painting, music, bingo, and raffles. For more information, call (718) 220-5824. Onstage Bronx Council on the Arts presents free concert, Aug. 2 from 7 to 9 p.m., featuring John Benitez and his Salsa Band, at the Amalgamated Train Park, Orloff Avenue and Gale Place. For more information, call (718) 931-9500. Bronx

Neighborhood Notes: Free Immigration Service

By DAVID CRUZ

Following the city’s announcement to combat rats through a $32 million initiative, this week we asked readers how bad the rat population is across the Bronx. I just saw one run into Van Cortlandt Park and run down a hole. I see them sometimes; they come out of an alley and run onto Gun Hill Road. I do think it’s an epidemic. They say they don’t have enough inspectors, so they should hire some more. It’s ridiculous. There are kids in this park and people enjoying cookouts. It’s a beautiful park, but people see that and they’re afraid to come

By DEVIN DAE TUCKER

The latest edition of the Norwood News, covering the Bronx, is out with plenty of community news you can use. Our 15th edition of the year runs for four weeks as the Norwood News takes a break from producing its print publication. With that out of the way, we can start with the beginning…and page one! This week we look at illegal barbecues that swept through Mosholu Parkway during the July 4 weekend, and longtime residents rage over NYPD not enforcing the rules along the parkway. We hear from park advocates and police on could be done about it in the near

As Shelter-Housing Rises, Fordham Hill Shareholders Mobilize

By DAVID CRUZ

Mayor Bill de Blasio may have received the Bronx political machine’s endorsement, but he could have lost hundreds of votes from shareholders of a Fordham cooperative after telling its representatives at a town hall that an impending homeless shelter/affordable housing development just blocks from their home will be there to stay. In an exchange with Chad Royer, secretary for the Fordham Hill Owners Cooperative board, de Blasio backed the shelter project by the Bowery Residents Committee (BRC). The setup is unique: a 200-bed men’s only homeless shelter will double as a 135-unit affordable housing complex for low-income residents. The

At Town Hall Forum, de Blasio Hears Bronx Matters

By DEVIN DAE TUCKER

Mayor Bill de Blasio’s latest town hall in the Bronx once again saw the mayor bring an impromptu, though somewhat scripted, approach, batting around his ambitions while tackling issues of rats, public housing, and crime. The issues were on the minds for those living within the 14th Council District, where the town hall was held. Councilman Fernando Cabrera hosted the forum with de Blasio, with commissioners from key city agencies on tap. The two began the evening offering support for the Bronx community and NYPD following the death of Dr. Tracy Tam in the Bronx-Lebanon Hospital shooting rampage and the

The city is opening a temporary IDNYC center at Norwood’s community center. Representatives from the Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs (MOIA) will set up an office at Mosholu Montefiore Community Center (MMCC) for the week to get Norwood residents signed up to the city’s official identification card. The card comes with several perks, including 50 percent off prescription medications at participating pharmacies, discount movie theater tickets, and free membership to 35 of the city’s museums. Representatives will be there first thing Monday morning, July 17 through Friday, July 21 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Appointments are absolutely necessary. To

By DAVID GREENE

More than 10,000 police officers from across the country joined community and family members to say goodbye to slain NYPD Officer Miosotis Familia in a moving ceremony held at World Changers Church on the Grand Concourse, blocks from where she was killed. Familia, a 12-year veteran of the force was shot in the head as she sat inside a mobile command center at the corner of Morris Avenue and East 183d Street in the early morning hours of July 5. The killer, Alexander Bonds, 34, quickly fled the scene but was shot dead by police minutes later. The shooting

Vigil Honors Victims of Bronx-Lebanon Hospital Shooting

By REGGIE FRANCOIS

At Mount Eden Malls in the West Bronx, mourners gathered around a table to write comforting messages on sheets that read, “We stand with Bronx-Lebanon,” a reference to the hospital at a busy part of Grand Concourse. It was at the hospital where former employee Henry Bello opened fire on six employees and killing Dr. Tracy Sin-Yee Tam, on June 30. Union and hospital officials paid respect to her and the victims at a vigil hosted on Thursday. A makeshift memorial was set up complete with pastel pink and yellow flower sprays along with a photo of Dr. Tam hung