New Yorkers Encouraged to Discover Outdoor Spaces Close to Home

As New Yorkers begin to enjoy the Memorial Day Holiday Weekend, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Commissioner Basil Seggos is encouraging people to engage in responsible recreation close to home during the State’s ongoing response to the COVID-19 pandemic. DEC recommendations incorporate guidance from the CDC and the New York State Department of Health for reducing the spread of infectious diseases. The agency encourages New Yorkers to recreate locally, practice physical distancing, show respect, and use common sense to protect themselves and others. DEC is implementing additional measures at its facilities statewide, particularly in high

Jacqueline Acevedo-Villanueva, Mary Kay Sales Director, along with her colleagues Marina Lopez and Areliz Diaz, made a special trip to North Central Bronx Hospital (NCB) on Wednesday, May 20, to donate 100 ‘Satin Hands’ care packages to front line essential workers as a pampering treat. Acevedo-Villanueva, who was born and raised in the Bronx, and who leads a team of over 50 women in her role at Mary Kay, a global beauty brand, donated the care packages as a thank you gesture to NCB nurses, and to all who she described as “the heroes on the front lines”.

In response to a distinct uptick in midnight fireworks concentrated in the Riverdale neighborhood of the Bronx, Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz, Council Member Andrew Cohen, and Congressman Eliot Engel have issued the following statement: “We appreciate that some of our neighbors want to show their support for essential workers and that using small firecrackers – although illegal in New York City – is a way for them to do that during the 7pm clap. However, the fireworks being set off later into the evening – even after midnight – are not firecrackers. They are massive, loud, and startling for many

New York Botanical Garden will be celebrating its annual Garden Party on Mother’s Day, Sunday, May 10, with a virtual Azalea Garden tour, and is inviting people to share greetings and memories of their moms during a Facebook Watch Party. The community is invited to join the Facebook Watch Party featuring a virtual tour of the garden’s spectacular Maureen K. Chilton Azalea Garden which is in peak bloom, and will also include personalized Mother’s Day greetings from the Garden’s members and patrons. People are encouraged to show their love for their moms with fun at-home activities for the whole family

By David Greene

The long-awaited flattening of the curve that officials had been talking about since the COVID-19 pandemic hit New York State came just as reports began to break about an overflow of bodies at local hospitals, nursing homes, and funeral parlors. This, as the Bronx went on to report the highest number of coronavirus cases in the City relative to the borough’s population, and trail only Queens and Brooklyn in terms of the actual number of statewide positive cases per county. As of Apr. 30, according to the State’s health department, 2,459 people have died from COVID-19 in

By David Greene

After a month of quarantine, Norwood residents are adapting to “life in the COVID-19 zone”, as seen in this series of photos taken on Monday, Apr. 20. While many businesses remained open, the lack of crowds on a weekday in April still seemed strange, but signs on shuttered businesses, in car windows, and writing on the sidewalk tells the real story of the COVID-19 pandemic of 2020. Hospital staff and paramedics were shown plenty of love and appreciation from the windows of the Children’s Hospital at Montefiore. While most residents wore masks in public, as required across

By David Greene

It’s hard to believe that it’s been less than three months since the first person was diagnosed with COVID-19 in the United States on Jan. 20, 2020, or that it’s been less than a month since New York was declared a federal disaster area. Officials reported on Apr. 10, that the daily death toll resulting from the coronavirus in New York State fell for the first time, indicating a possible sign of the long-awaited “flattening of the curve” officials had been expecting. In that one 24-hour period, 777 deaths were reported, down from the previous day’s high of 799.

By Síle Moloney

New measures to curb the spread of the coronavirus were announced on April 2. NYC Parks’ playgrounds and the amenities contained within, such as basketball courts, handball courts and restrooms, are closed until further notice. The citywide enforcement effort to encourage social distancing among park-goers remains in place, involving multiple City agencies, including NYPD, OSE, the Sheriff’s Office, DEP, DSNY, DOB, and FDNY. The City will continue to monitor conditions and determine if more severe restrictions are necessary. As it stands, violators of social distancing requirements will be fined between $250-$500 per violation. The new penalties are needed

Farewell: I Will Miss The Readers (Picture)

By DAVID CRUZ

I never thought I’d reach this moment; writing a farewell article in the Norwood News, which is my last as editor-in-chief. After painstakingly trying to find where to start, I realized I was suffering from writer’s block. To undo that, I took some inspiration from what my predecessor for the Norwood News, Alex Kratz, wrote in his personalized farewell to readers. His exit came as the paper reached its 25-year milestone. “Here’s to the next 25 years of the Norwood News giving voice to the voiceless and a grand purpose to another editor looking for a job,” wrote Alex. Not