For the 41st year in a row, members of the Jewish War Veterans, Neuman Goldman Post No. 69, gathered at the Museum of Bronx History on Bainbridge Avenue on Memorial Day to honor those who have died in American wars. Joining County Commander Mel Sacks, were Frank Vernucci of the Bronx Borough President’s office, Fr. William Kalaldjian, chaplain of the Bronx V.A. Hospital and Bronx historian, Professor Lloyd Ultan.

Sachkerah Woods Playground is open!

The southeast corner of Van Cortlandt Park (at the corner of Jerome Avenue and Gun Hill Road) has a new playground, picnic area, bench-lined pathways and a comfort station. The rehab project is part of more than $200 million in Bronx  park improvements that the city offered Bronx state legislators in exchange for their approval on the controversial construction of a water filtration plant, also in Van Cortlandt Park, adjacent to the new playground.

A formal ribbon-cutting ceremony has not yet been scheduled.

Sachkerah Woods is named for an Algonquin phrase that is loosely translated as "extended land," according to the Parks Department.

Staff members of North Central Bronx Hospital Midwifery Service gathered Wednesday, May 23 to remember former colleague Sonja Dowie, who passed away in 2003. On what would have been the 30th anniversary of her service, the hospital named the Triage Unit after Dowie, a founding member of the service. The program is pioneering because of its synthesis of advanced medicine and midwifery, with obstetricians and nurse-midwives working together to provide intensive care during and after pregnancy.

Volunteers took to area parks for It’s My Park Day on May 19. On Mosholu Parkway at Webster Avenue, 15 youngsters from the 52nd Precinct Explorers Program joined members of the Bedford Mosholu Community Association to rake leaves, pick up garbage and paint walls. They even removed grafitti from one area garage. In Williamsbridge Oval, the Friends of Williamsbridge Oval, a new group of volunteers, planted fresh plants and shrubs.

A fight was going to happen. Somebody brought a gun. Police say this scenario played out to nearly tragic consequences in Norwood two weeks ago, when four young men were shot, two critically, outside of Tracey Towers.

Disagreements among tenant leaders and a management agency bogged down by a constant demand for repairs have caused some Tracey Tower residents to look to the courts for help. The officers of the Tracey Towers Tenant Association gathered signatures on 122 notarized HP (Housing Part) Action forms and sent them to the city’s Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD), prompting building inspections. The forms allow the association to represent tenants, a welcome solution for those unwilling to go to court themselves. “Most people are afraid or don’t have time to go to court,” said Vilasario Rojas, a well-know fixture

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Kids Health Fair Mosholu Montefiore Community Center is sponsoring the Children’s Health Fair 2007 on Sunday, May 20, from noon to 3 p.m. There will be health screenings and education, as well as giveaways, refreshments and entertainment. Admission is free and open to children ages 12 and under when accompanied by an adult. Come rain or shine to the corner of Gun Hill Road, one block east of Jerome Avenue. For more information, call (718) 882-4000 ext. 0. Children’s Safety At MS 80, on Thursday, May 17 from 4 to 9 p.m., the Children’s Collective presents a Community Night Out

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Lessons of Imus
School Policy Threatens Safety
Open Letter to the Community
Tax Would Focus Country on War

Congressman Jose Serrano, a vocal opponent of the U.S. war in Iraq, saw a silver lining in the defeat of a resolution that called for the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq. The measure lost 171 to 255 but Serrano said the effort made an important statement nonetheless.