Culture

Fresh Air Fund Opens Free Outdoor Summer Spaces For Bronx Children

By SÍLE MOLONEY
The Fresh Air Fund, in response to COVID-19, has created Fresh Air Summer Spaces, fun, free and safe play spaces for New York City children, ages five through 13.   Fresh Air Summer Spaces provides children the chance to enjoy safe, supervised outdoor summer activities where they can laugh, smile, play and make new friends. Fresh Air staff supervise arts and crafts, interactive games and even dance parties! Summer Spaces would not be possible without the support of the local community.   Fresh Air Youth Employment program participants will assist at sites.  The Fund is helping to fill the gap


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Advertorial: Jerome Gun Hill BID Merchant Spotlight – Outdoor Dining in the BID!

By ARIANA CIPRIANI
  As New York City’s small businesses transitioned to Phase 3 of the city’s reopening plan earlier this month, restaurants and diners took to the streets and sidewalks for open dining. From now through October, restaurants can offer outdoor seating on the sidewalk and curb lane to customers. With six outdoor dining destinations to choose from in the BID, there are plenty of opportunities to sit back and relax on Jerome Avenue and East Gun Hill Road.   Jennifer Tausig is Executive Director of the Jerome Gun Hill BID. “Open dining has provided a much-needed lifeline for our small, locally


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Volunteers of America Receive $30M To Run Two Bronx Domestic Violence Shelters

By AURÉOLE RIBES  
  Volunteers of America – Greater New York (VOA–GNY) announced on July 13 that it will receive $30 million from the New York City Human Resources Administration (HRA) over five years to take over the running of two domestic violence shelters in the Bronx starting on Oct. 1. VOA–GNY is an affiliate of VoA, a national, faith-based human services non-profit helping individuals and families in need through social service programs.   The two shelters will serve different purposes. The first, Victory I, will be a 120-bed emergency shelter for critical and acute domestic violence situations, and will provide housing to


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Television Icon, Regis Philbin, Remembered

By David Greene
Television icon and chat show host, Regis Philbin, who grew up in the Bronx, died at the age of 88 on Friday, July 24. A spokesperson for the Chief Medical Examiner’s Office in Farmington, CT told E! News that the TV and game show legend died from a myocardial infarction (more commonly known as a heart attack) due to coronary artery disease.   https://twitter.com/CardinalHayes/status/1287506848254500865?s=20   https://twitter.com/CardinalHayes/status/1287121239190974465?s=20   Born in Manhattan, and raised in the Van Nest section of the Bronx, Philbin attended both Our Lady of Solace and Cardinal Hayes High School, before attending and graduating from Notre Dame. On


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NYC COVID-19 Response & Impact Fund Issued over $110 Million to City’s Non-Profits

By Síle Moloney
The NYC COVID-19 Response & Impact Fund announced on July 29 that more than $110 million in emergency support has been distributed to 768 New York City-based social services and arts and cultural nonprofits affected by the coronavirus public health crisis. More than $73 million in grant funding was managed by the New York Community Trust and over $37 million was managed by Nonprofit Finance Fund for no-interest loans.   Small to mid-sized nonprofits across New York’s five boroughs applied for grants or interest-free loans to ensure the continuity of their daily operations and to help counteract lost revenue that


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Six Bronx Schools Close, Late Night BBQs Rage, and Shelter Residents Move to Times Square: The Latest Edition of the Norwood News is Out Now!

By Síle Moloney
Dear Readers, I hope you’re all safe, and surviving the current heatwave! On July 19, it reached 98 degrees in parts of the City. With the hot weather set to continue through the rest of the week, it’s really important for everyone, especially our elderly residents to stay cool and hydrated. Check out some of the tips we published from the American Heart Association on how to manage the heat and protect hearts.   With my sincere apologies for the delay, I confirm that this year’s eighth and latest edition of the Norwood News is out now. Our cover story


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More Overdose Deaths in Bronx Than In Any Other County; Substance Use Treatment Programs In Danger

By Nickolaus Hayes
What Happens when Substance Use Treatment Programs Can No Longer Stay Afloat? Emergency funding could be needed to keep substance use treatment programs in operation as some governments continue to shut down their communities. The Trump administration has repeatedly cited the possible rise of overdoses and suicides when calling for states and businesses to re-open. However, only a hundredth of one percent of the nearly $2.5 trillion was dedicated to mental health and substance use treatment.   Many treatment centers, drug courts, and recovery programs have been forced to close, or they had to scale back during the shutdown. Many


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Black, Brown and Blue in the Bronx: Stories of Pain, Profiling, and Measured Promise – Part II

By JOSÉ A. GIRALT
The following article is the second of a two-part feature story on the resonance of the Black Lives Matter protests in the Bronx.   Part II   Stories like the ones that follow are all too familiar in the Bronx.   It is not only in the streets of the City where tensions are rising between law enforcement officers and the public. The incarcerated population has also been the subject of abusive practices by those sworn to protect.   Norwood resident, José Saldana, is the director of Release Aging People in Prison (RAPP) and has firsthand knowledge of how the


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