Food

Sanchez Chairs Council Committee on Housing & Buildings, as Women Comprise Council Majority

By SÍLE MOLONEY
On Thursday, Jan. 20, the New York City Council appointed recently elected, Bronx, District 14 City Council Member, Pierina Sanchez, as chair of the council’s powerful housing & buildings committee, which has jurisdiction over New York City’s Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) and the Department of Buildings (DOB), as well as rent regulation policies and practices.   HPD is responsible for promoting the quality and affordability of the city’s housing by developing new, affordable housing, enforcing the housing maintenance code, and engaging neighborhoods in planning. DOB is the primary regulator of the construction and real estate industries in


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COVID Closures Return Across The Bronx with Long Lines for Testing, Boosters & Food

By DAVID GREENE
As the COVID-19 Omicron variant continues to spread across the Bronx, local residents have been seen waiting on increasingly longer lines for vaccination boosters, for COVID-19 testing and for food. Meanwhile many local restaurants have, once again, suspended in-person dining.   On Wednesday, Dec. 19, at the COVID-19 mobile testing bus, parked outside St. James’ Park at Jerome Avenue and East 192nd Street in Fordham Manor, moments after being tested, one woman who declined to be identified was asked if she was feeling sick. She replied, “No, but somebody at work got sick, so I’m just being cautious that I


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Bronx Rabbi Brings Food to the Masses during Hanukkah

By DAVID GREENE
A Bronx rabbi continues to actively support the annual menorah lighting events all across the Bronx, amid the celebration of the Jewish festival of Hanukkah while, together with members of his own Morris Park congregation, the annual festival is marked by feeding senior Jewish residents from all across the borough.   Canceled last year amid the pandemic, a public gathering for Hanukkah returned this year to the Bronx Jewish Center, located at 1969 Haight Avenue in Morris Park, once again. The center has been holding gatherings for the Jewish celebration, annually, since 2013. On Sunday, November 28, the congregation returned


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Health Check: Take Steps to Prevent or Control Diabetes over the Holidays & Beyond

By CARLOS TEJEDA
While November marked National Diabetes Awareness Month, for many, it also marked the beginning of the holiday season, a time when many of us tend to eat less healthily and exercise less, two factors which can exacerbate diabetes. To counteract this, Montefiore continues to encourage Bronxites to learn ways to prevent, detect, and manage the condition.   The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that in 2018, 34.2 million people had diabetes. Of this number, 7.3 million didn’t know they had the condition, or did not report having it. Over their lifetimes, U.S. adults have a 40 percent


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POTS & Church Volunteers Serve 600 Free Meals as Physical Thanksgiving Gatherings Resume

By DAVID GREENE
For the 25th consecutive year, volunteers with Part of the Solution (POTS), soup kitchen and food pantry, and the Church of the Resurrection in Rye, New York, joined forces to serve an estimated 350 turkey meals on site to community residents at Our Lady of Refuge Church, located at 290 East 196th Street in Fordham Manor on Thanksgiving Day, Nov. 25.   Another 300 or so residents who had concerns about sitting and eating in a public setting amid the ongoing pandemic, or who were unable to provide proof of vaccination to enter the venue’s cafeteria, were provided with a


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AG James Urges Swift Federal Action to Protect Against Toxic “Forever” Chemicals, Pursues Lawsuit

By SÍLE MOLONEY
New York Attorney General Letitia James announced on Monday, Nov. 15, that she is leading a coalition of 19 attorneys general from around the nation in urging the U.S. Senate’s Committee on Environment and Public Works (EPW) to strengthen public health and environmental protections against “forever chemicals.” These chemicals, a class of highly toxic, chemical compounds known as poly and per-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), are widespread, persistent contaminants in the environment, including in drinking water in New York, and in many other states.   In a letter addressed to EPW leadership, the coalition argues that the serious dangers posed by PFAS, combined


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Price Gouging: What Consumers Can Do to Address the Situation

By SÍLE MOLONEY
Price gouging is illegal. In the early days of the pandemic, some Bronxites had complained of the cost of thermometers, hand sanitizer and other hygiene products, but in recent months, with more and more reports of supply chain and delivery issues, price gouging appears to have become more widespread.   On Wednesday, The New York Post reported that inflation was spiking as prices surged 6.2 percent, the most in over 30 years. It was reported that the Labor Department’s Consumer Price Index, which measures a basket of goods and services as well as energy and food costs, jumped 6.2 percent


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UPDATE U.S. VP Kamala Harris Visits The Bronx as Immigrant New Yorkers Rally for Visa Amnesty

By SÍLE MOLONEY & DAVID GREENE
  The following is an extended version of the story that appeared in the latest print edition of the Norwood News.    U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris and U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services, Xavier Becerra, visited the Bronx on Friday, Oct. 22, at the invitation of Congressman Jamaal Bowman (NY-14). The event took place at the recently opened, state-of-the-art Edenwald YMCA center in the Northeast Bronx, which falls within Bowman’s district.   The purpose of the visit was to promote the Biden administration’s “Build Back Better” agenda, and while the mood among those in attendance, inside the venue,


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Kingsbridge: Food & Book Giveaway Held for 100 Families

By SÍLE MOLONEY
Jessica Woolford, founder of community mutual aid group, Kingsbridge Unidos, Latanya DeVaughn, founder of Bronx Bound Books and representatives from State Sen. Alessandra Biaggi (S.D. 34) held a food and book giveaway in Kingsbridge on Friday, Oct. 29. The event took place at 4 p.m. at 824 Broadway between 238th and 239th Streets.