WESTCHESTER’S OLDEST AND MOST RESPECTED NEWSPAPERS

Vol 112 Number 5 www.RisingMediaGroup.com

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Friday, February 3, 2017

Spano Out for County Executive

What it Means For Yonkers

By Dan Murphy As County Executive Robert Astorino

moves forward with his re-election campaign toward a third term this November, the man who was most likely to be his Democratic op-ponent, Yonkers Mayor Mike Spano, will not run for Westchester County executive in 2017, it has been learned. Sources close to Spano told

Yonkers Rising that after reviewing all options, the mayor decided that the timing was not right to run for Westchester County’s top seat.

“Mayor Spano has three years to complete the progress that has been made in Yonkers under his leadership,” said a close advisor to Spano, who has three years left on his second

Mayor Mike Spano, pictured here at the Cross County Shopping Center, opted to continue serving as Yonkers mayor instead of running for Westchester county executive.

Yonkers firefighters battle an early morning blaze Jan. 27 at the Alexander Carpet Mills buildings.

Continued on Page 8

Giants Hero to Host Casino Super Bowl Party

Fire Rips Through YoHo Artist Studios, Former Carpet Mills

Darcy Sues Hezi for $2MDefamation Charges Against Yonkers Tribune

YFT, Emails & City Council Review; the Saga Continues

Yonkers H.S. Lady BulldogsWin B-Ball Championship

The biggest stage to watch the biggest game of the year is Empire City Casino with New York Giants Legend David Tyree, courtesy of JAG Sports Marketing. Tyree will be stopping by the premier entertainment destination in the northeast to host a viewing party Sunday, when the Atlanta Falcons take on the New England Patriots for all the marbles.

The free festivities begin in the casino’s En-

tertainment Lounge at 5:30 p.m. on game day, where Tyree will mingle with fans, sign mini foot-balls that will be offered to the first 100 guests, and watch the game with fans until 6:30 p.m. Em-pire City Casino is bringing in a 10-by-15-foot jumbo screen to bring football fans as close to the action as possible, with seating on a first-come, first-serve basis, along with $5 beers and hot dogs.

By Dan Murphy More than 80 Yonkers firefighters from 18

companies battled a four-alarm, early-morning blaze that started Monday, Jan. 27 at 4 a.m. at

222 Lake Ave., the location of the former Al-exander Carpet Mills and the current home of YoHo Artist Studios. The 100-year-old indus-

By Dan Murphy Controversial and prominent website “The

Yonkers Tribune” and its publisher Hezi Aris have been hit with a $2 million defamation of character lawsuit by former Yonkers Fire Commissioner John Darcy. The suit, filed in Westchester County Su-preme Court last week, alleges that The Yon-kers Tribune published “inaccurate or false statements” on six occa-sions last year, accusing Darcy of pension fraud.

Most of those six stories penned by Hezi surrounded a long-running claim by the Tribune that Darcy “had applied for federal funds” through a $500,000 grant application while he was assistant chief of

the Yonkers Fire Department and, according to the Tribune, that those funds were misappropri-

ated by Darcy.The lawsuit states

that on Aug. 12, 2016, Hezi wrote, “‘Red Truth: $500,000 in Federal Grant Funding Serves John Darcy and Friends.’” The article associated with that headline also implied that Darcy was taking care of himself and a few friends, asking: “Should this personal gain serve Assistant Chief Darcy to embellish his pension to greater height by to this alleged fraud on the taxpayer’s dime?”

The lawsuit also states that on Sept. 25,

2016, Hezi wrote: “The Darcy situation is one in

By Dan Murphy Last week, Yonkers Rising reported on a

contractual dispute between the Yonkers Fed-eration of Teachers and the Board of Educa-tion, concerning teacher responses to parent emails regarding their students. Over the past week, we have conducted an unofficial re-view of the policies of other school districts in Westchester and other nearby commu-nities, asking parents and teachers how they comply with email re-quests from parents, and if it a negotiated item or a district pol-icy.

The answer we received from all was the same: There is no policy and it’s not in the contract; it’s obvious – teachers should answer par-ents’ emails. Period. That educational goal and standard is not the same at Yonkers Public Schools, and the reason is that YFT has turned email responses from parents into a negotiated and contractual item.

YFT President Pat Puleo disputed and disagreed with our story last week, which Ris-ing columnist Eric Schoen details on page 3 of this issue. While Puleo claims, “The article re-cently reported by Yonkers Rising in regard to emails is inaccurate on several factual points,” she fails to identify what points we were inac-

curate on. Puleo claims

that other issues, like teacher evaluations and health care con-tributions from em-ployees, took up too much time so the issue of teacher emails was put to the side, and “a committee will be formed to negotiate an email usage agree-ment, which shall be implemented by the 2017-18 school year.”

YFT continues: “While there was gen-eral agreement on the issue of emails… The

email language agreed to affords the union and the board the ability to dedicate the time it de-serves.”

By Ailbhe CafferkyYonkers H.S. senior, girls’ basketball team captain

“A dream doesn’t become reality through magic; it takes sweat, determination and hard work.” Colin Powell

The Yonkers Lady Bulldogs roared as they clasped a win in the championship game of the Yonkers City Tournament. Yonkers

High School defeated Gorton 53-48, leaving fans jumping for joy.

Throughout the tournament, each game showed improved strength from the team as a whole. In the first round, rivals Saunders High School came to compete. In an exhilarating game, with the support of a rowdy crowd, the girls pulled out a 42-39 win. Team Captain

New York Giants legend David Tyree will discuss his Super Bowl catch at Dan Rooney’s Sports Pub at Empire Casino on Super Bowl Sunday, Feb. 5.

The Yonkers Lady Bulldogs celebrate their championship win.

Continued on Page 8 Continued on Page 9

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Continued on Page 8

‘We believe the articles are defamatory

and that’s why the lawsuit was brought.

The statements written on the website are false

and my client was never contacted to verify accuracy.’ Darcy attorney Robert Corini

‘The council majority feels strongly that teachers should have to respond to parent emails and there is little that is

more important than parent interaction

with teachers.’ City Council President

Liam McLaughlin

PAGE 2 - YoNkERs RisiNG - FRidAY, FEbRuARY 3, 2017

With one of the new South Broadway BID banners are, from left, Dr. Rosemary J. Uzzo, the mayor’s representative to SBBID; St. Joseph’s Manager of Public Relations, Develop-

ment and Volunteers Maria Calarame; SBBID Executive Director Karel Littman; City Council member Corazon Pineda-Isaac; SBBID Vice President Rick Lowell; SBBID Vice President and

owner of Silvio’s Restaurant Silvio Dimeglio; and SBBID Chairman Dennis Monasebian.

St. Joseph’s Sponsors South Broadway BID Banners

Th e South Broadway Business Im�prove-m�ent District is taking m�ore steps to keep the com�m�erce area m�oving forward, aft er a successful year-end Lincoln Park holiday tree-lighting event that featured an original dance perform�ance by the Saunders High School dance team�; a terrifi c security, set-up and cleanup crew called the “South Broadway Stars” from� the Greyston Foundation; and plenty of free item�s given away by local busi-ness sponsors.

Th e fi rst phase of a new banner program� has begun in six locations along South Broad-way. Th e banners are sponsored by St. Joseph’s

Medical Center and feature som�e things every-one can do on South Broadway – “Enjoy. Cel-ebrate. Stay Healthy. Shop. Dine.”

“South Broadway continues to be a vibrant business district here in Yonkers,” said South Broadway BID Executive Director Karel Litt-m�an. “We have som�e new stores com�ing in and new buildings going up. Adding a series of col-orful new banners is another way to say ‘thank you’ to all of our neighbors who shop, dine and enjoy our district.”

South Broadway BID’s new website, which includes a com�plete business directory, is www.southbroadwaybid.org.

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An Italian Gala with the Yonkers Philharmonic

It was a full house at Saunders High School last week as the Yonkers Philharmonic, led by Maestra Ton Chen, presented an Italian gala of overtures and arias by Verdi, Puccini, di Capua and Mascagni with soprano Jin-Xiang Jx Yu and tenor Victor Starsky.

Pieces performed included most of the classic Italian opera classics, including

Eduardo di Capua’s “O Sole Mio” and “Torna a Surriento;” Pietro Mascagni ‘s “Ca-vallera Rusticana Intermezzo;” Giacomo Puc-cini’s “Se come voi piccina” and “Duet Ro-berto” from “Le Villi,” “Donde Leit usci al tou grido d’amore” and “Duet O soave fanci-ulla” from “La Bohème,” and “Si Mi chiamano Mimi;”

Also, Gioachino Rossini’s “Overture The Barber of Seville;” and Giuseppe Verdi’s “Overture Vespri Siciliani,” “La Traviata Pre-lude No.1,” “dei miei boleti spirit,” and “Duet Libiamo ne’lieti calici” from “La Traviata;”

This concert was made possible in part by ArtsWestchester with funds from Westchester County government, The Thomas and Agnes Carvel Foundation, the East Yonkers Rotary Club, the Westchester Community Foundation, WVOX, and patrons of the arts, as well as the Yonkers Cultural Initiative grant program of the Westchester Arts Council.

For more info on upcoming concerts, visit www.yonkersphilharmonic.org or call 914-631-6674.

From left are fl utist Adam Ray, fi rst violin and Concertmaster Eugene Muneyoshi Takahashi, City Council Minority Leader Michael Sabatino, Conductor Tong Chen, tenor Victor Starsky,

soprano Jin-Xiang Yu, and Co-President of The Fine Arts Orchestral Society of Yonkers Marcia Klein. Photos by Donna Davis.

Ms. Yu and Mr. Starsky perform “Wooing Mimi,” an aria from “La Boheme.”

FRidAY, FEbRuARY 3, 2017 - YoNkERs RisiNG - PAGE 3

By Eric W. Schoen While the brave new

world of a Donald Trump presidency dominates the news, we return to little, old Yonkers to see if the boys and girls are behaving. Some of these things will boggle your mind!

The School Lunch Debt Solution: Starve Children?

Did I hear a member of the Yonkers City Council say that to deal with the $809,000 Yonkers Public Schools lunch debt for unpaid break-fasts and lunches, the district should “simply not give meals to children without money to force parents to either pay their debts or apply for free or reduced-cost meals?”

Yes, I did. Fortunately, the superintendent of schools and the president of the Board of Edu-cation said that no child will be denied lunch or breakfast. The breakfast and lunch students re-ceive in school might be the only meals they get during the course of the day.

The solution to this problem is not overly complex, but requires some thought. For starters, for students with large unpaid bills, the district needs to send a parent coordinator or other offi -cial to the student’s home at the end of the school day, with the student, to fi nd the parent, guardian or family member who can explain what is going on and fi ll out and sign the appropriate forms. Or pay up.

If the parent coordinator or authorized of-fi cial can’t fi nd anyone at the student’s home or fi nds that the student is not living at the Yonkers address listed in district records – which I bet your bottom dollar is the case – we have a much larger problem.

If the student is not living in Yonkers, the student should not be attending school in Yon-kers. The district can go after the family for funds illegally expended in educating the student in Yonkers. Let’s not forget that those funds are taken away from students who legitimately live in Yonkers and attend Yonkers Public Schools.

Everyone in Yonkers knows there are stu-dents who don’t reside in the city who attend YPS, “draining the swamp” (I had to throw in a Trump-ism) of resources that Yonkers students should be enjoying. Someone must step up to the plate to do something about it.

Teachers Don’t have to Respond to Parent Email?

Did I hear there is a contractual question regarding teachers having to respond to emails from parents? I didn’t hear it – I read it in this newspaper.

Let’s just say that for at least 15 years in this country, teachers and administrators have been responding to parent emails, and communicating with parents via email. Granted, not all parents have computer access; but, hey, for those that do, email communication is not something magical coming from the sky. It’s the norm in America.

We fi nally realized that putting fl yers in stu-dent backpacks is not the most advantageous and effi cient way to communicate with parents. It is an insult to any good teacher to tell them they don’t have to respond to emails from parents.

And it is an insult to hardworking parents, and many single-parent families with limited time, to tell them that a teacher or administrator does not have to respond to their emails. If parents or guardians take the time to send an email, they deserve the respect of a reply.

This shouldn’t be in contracts; this is basic decency. This is the way education works. Wake up, folks in power in Yonkers – it’s 2017!

Under this cockamamie intermunicipal

agreement that came about due to four levels of checks and balances over the YPS budget failing to do what the Board of Education gets paid highly to do, the board nego-tiated union contracts. Then the board brought the con-tract to the mayor, who must give it his OK and give it to the City Council for approval.

This process was rushed through so that Yonkers could get badly-needed state dol-lars, according to a statement issued by the Yonkers Federa-tion of Teachers: “… The lat-

est contract states that a committee will be formed to negotiate an email usage agreement, which shall be implemented by the 2017-18 school year. The APPR evaluation took most of the negotia-tion hours with other equally important issues, which consumed the balance of the time between the board and the YFT. While there was general agreement on the issue of emails, the risk of los-ing $30 million in state aid pushed both teams to settle the contract by the state-imposed deadline. The email language agreed to afford the union and the board the ability to dedicate the time it deserves.”

The mayor’s spokesperson replied: “Yon-kers Public Schools and (the) mayor put (forth) the reasons you stated (need for email usage) and Yonkers Federation of Teachers negotiated it out... You should ask Yonkers Federation of Teachers why they wouldn’t comply.

“(The) mayor also asked for concessions on workers’ compensation and health care, which Yonkers Public Schools got. That was a major giveback.”

I then made it crystal clear, by asking: “To be clear, YPS negotiates (the) contract, (the) mayor must be in agreement with the contract, and pres-ent it to City Council?” The answer back from City Hall was, “Yes.”

The bottom line is the mayor has requested that the City Council approve a teachers’ contract that doesn’t require teachers to respond to parents’ emails. Out of respect for the hardworking teach-ers, taxpaying parents, and students, until this is-sue – which should not be an issue – is resolved, the City Council should send the contract back to Yonkers Public Schools and the mayor, and ap-prove it only when the issue is resolved. Let’s show some respect to the “customers” of YPS.

Informed Delivery From the Post Offi ce Did you receive a letter from the post offi ce

stating that your zip code is participating in the Informed Delivery program? At fi rst I thought it was a joke: “Participate in this new USPS service enhancement test and get images of the mail that will be placed in your mailbox each day. Black and white images of your actual letter-sized mail pieces, processed by USPS sorting equipment, will be provided to you each morning.”

I don’t know about you, but I want my mail delivered not at 8 o’clock at night, but at a reason-able hour – let’s say by 2 p.m.; maybe 3 p.m. … at the latest.

What does this silly program accomplish? It tells you at 9 a.m. that a check you are waiting on will be delivered at 8 p.m. – at night, long after the bank to cash your check is closed.

Ever wonder why the post offi ce is always in fi nancial trouble? Yep, dumb ideas like this!

Reach Eric Schoen at thistooisyonkers@aol.com and follow him on Twitter @ericyonkers. Catch the Westchester Rising Radio Show featur-ing Dan Murphy and Eric Schoen on Thursdays at 10 a.m. on WVOX 1460 on the A.M. dial or on the Internet at wvox.com and click on “listen live.”

Yonkers, Believe It or Not

Eric W. Schoen

From left are Hebrew teacher Malkah Lesman-Kaplan and students holding completion diplomas written with their Hebrew names: Yosef ben Antonio (Kevon Fernando), Nira

Zippora bat Esther (Zipora Tissera) and Ramon ben Emilio (Ramon Santana). Missing fromthe photo is Benjamin ben Yakov (Ben Tissera). Photo by Robert Kalfus.

Adults Learn to Read Hebrew at Jewish Center

By Robert Kalfus Four students recently com�pleted the Hebrew

reading course taught by Yonkers resident Malkah Lesm�an-Kaplan at the Lincoln Park Jewish Center, which started Dec. 25 and concluded Jan. 29.

In six one-and-a-half-hour sessions, the adult students learned to recognize and pronounce all of the Hebrew alphabet’s 22 letters, som�e of which are silent, and the vowels, which are indicated by dif-ferent dots and dashes under, alongside or on top of the letters, in Sunday sessions totaling nine hours over just six weeks.

Th ese adult students com�e from� such diverse places as the Dom�inican Republic and Sri Lanka, and enjoyed the opportunity to learn how to pray in the traditional language of the Jewish people.

Kaplan has previously taught Hebrew reading and language courses at several diff erent institu-

tions, and m�ade this free course available during the college winter recess to accom�m�odate a m�em�-ber of the Lincoln Park Jewish Center, Kevon Fer-nando, a Hofstra University freshm�an who recog-nized that.

“I learned the basic building blocks of an entire new language in just six weeks, during m�y school winter recess,” said Fernando.

Ram�on Santana added, “Th e class was easy to understand, the teacher was patient, and now I feel that I can pray in Hebrew.”

People of any religious, ethnic or educational background are welcom�e to attend another free class, which will occur over six weeks in the spring of 2017 on weekday evenings. Call the Lincoln Park Jewish Center offi ce at 914-965-7119 or em�ail LPJ-Coffi ce@optonline.net, and leave your nam�e and contact inform�ation.

Yonkers Has Strongest Sales Tax Increase in NYS

New York State Comptroller Tom DiNapoli recently reported that the City of Yonkers had the highest increase in sales tax revenue than any other city or county in New York State. The re-port was considered a warning to municipal gov-ernments across the state about slowing sales tax revenues.

Yonkers was the only positive locality with a strong increase in sales tax revenue. “Eleven cit-ies that impose their own general sales tax had an increase in collections,” wrote DiNapoli. “The strongest increase was for the City of Yonkers, at 16.6 percent.”

“Local sales tax collections showed sluggish growth in 2016 compared to 2015, increasing 2.3 percent last year,” continues the report. “Sales tax collections are a crucial, yet unstable source of rev-

enue for local governments. The impact of little to no growth is felt in several regions across the state, especially in counties and municipalities that may already be struggling fi nancially. As the year pro-gresses, local offi cials will need to closely monitor their budgets, should these collections slip.”

DiNapoli’s report notes that total local collec-tions increased only 0.7 percent due to a $238 mil-lion correction in the fourth quarter of 2015, which distorted New York City’s year-to-year growth calculations. After adjusting for the 2015 correc-tion, however, collections actually increased 2.3 percent statewide, and the city’s collections grew 2.9 percent.

For a copy of the report, visit www.osc.state.ny.us/reports/economic/2016-local-sales-tax-col-lections.pdf.

Rocky has a unique mottled coat.

Consider Adopting RockyThe Yonkers Animal Shelter has many

pets available for adoption.Rocky is a mixed-breed dog about 2 ½

years old and weighing 60 pounds. He wound up at the shelter when his family had landlord issues regarding pet ownership. Rocky was a good family dog and was the companion to a hearing-impaired child. He has beautiful eyes and an unusual mottled coat. He has a lot of energy and would do best in a house with a yard or an active person looking for a walking buddy.

Rocky likes some dogs but would need a meet-and-greet before living with one. He does not do well with kitties.

Visit Rocky between 11 a.m. and 4 p.m. seven days a week. For more information, call 201-981-3215.

PAGE 4 - YoNkERs RisiNG - FRidAY, FEbRuARY 3, 2017

Westchester Pride Lions Club to Receive Charter

Celebrate Presidents’ DayAt Philipse Manor Hall

Westchester Pride Lions Club is one of only four lesbian-gay-bisexual-transgender-questioning Lions Clubs in the United States, and Wednesday, Feb. 22 will celebrate receiv-ing its official charter from Lions Clubs Inter-national. The event will take place from 6 to 8 p.m. at Upstream Gallery, 8 Main St., Hastings on Hudson. In the event of inclement weather, the event will take place Thursday, Feb. 23 at 6 p.m.

Westchester Pride Lions Club has already become involved in several important commu-nity service projects including donation drives for Children’s Village in Valhalla and The Toys for Tots campaign in White Plains. Future plans for the club include a focus on the needs of homeless youth, many of whom are LGBTQ. The club also plans to provide support to LG-BTQ seniors and people with HIV.

It meets the fourth Thursday of the month at 7 p.m. at The Loft, 252 Bryant Ave., White Plains.

Several local dignitaries have been invited to the ceremony, including the mayors of Mount Vernon, New Rochelle, White Plains and Yon-kers. Westchester Pride Lions Club will be sup-ported and welcomed at the ceremony by other Lions Clubs from the region. Lions Immediate Past District Gov. Steve DeName will officiate at the ceremonies.

A Lions Club is a group of men and women who have dedicated themselves to identifying needs within the community, and work together to fulfill those needs. Lions Club International is the world’s largest service club organization with nearly 1.3 million members in approxi-mately 45,000 clubs in more than 200 countries and geographical areas around the world. Since 1917, Lions clubs have aided the blind and visually impaired and made a strong commit-ment to community service and serving youth throughout the world.

For more information about Lions Clubs International, visit www.lionsclubs.org.

Philipse Manor Hall State Historic Site will hold its annual Presidents’ Day celebration Sat-urday, Feb. 18 from noon to 3 p.m. The site, the oldest standing building in Westchester County, is located at 29 Warburton Ave., blocks from the train station in downtown Yonkers, near the day-lighted parts of the Saw Mill River.

Stop by and wish Abraham Lincoln a “hap-py birthday,” and meet and mingle with the 16th president as he tells stories about his life and presidency. The program will include various crafts and activities throughout the day.

Visitors will have a chance to transform into Honest Abe by making their own Lincoln beard and top hat. Also, show off your artistic side by drawing portraits of yourself, your family or your favorite presidents while drawing inspira-tion from the vast collection of presidential por-traits. To further commemorate the occasion, the “president” will recite his “Gettysburg Address” at 1:30 p.m.

The Presidents’ Day celebration is an annual event featuring the Manor Hall’s Cochran Collec-tion of Presidential Portraiture. After his mother donated funds to New York State for the purchase of Philipse Manor Hall in 1908, Alexander Smith Cochran, a Yonkers businessman and philanthro-pist, was eager to transform the building into a place of historic and patriotic interest. From 1912 until his death in 1929, Cochran assembled por-traits of the American presidents from George Washington to Calvin Coolidge. The collection includes the works of noted artists such as Gilbert Stuart, Eastman Johnson and Thomas Eakins.

All activities for the day are free, thanks to the efforts of the Friends of Philipse Manor Hall. For information or questions about the event, call Public Programs Coordinator Robert Lee at 914-965-4027, ext. 102.

For additional information about Philipse Manor Hall, visit http://nysparks.com/historic-sites/37/details.aspx.

St. Paul’s Black History Gospel Concert to Perform

Yonkers, Board of Ed. & Kiwanis to Honor Teachers

St. Paul’s United Methodist Church, located at 130 North Central Ave., Hartsdale, will celebrate Black History Month with its Black History Gos-pel Concert featuring baritone Lawrence Craig and singer and actor Levern Williams, on Saturday, Feb. 11 at 7 p.m. Tickets are $20 in advance or at the door.

Coordinated by its newly appointed pastor the Rev. Bruce Lamb, former associate producer for CNN, St. Paul’s UMC will begin the New Year with a powerhouse program featuring two out-standing vocalists with extensive international and theater credentials.

Craig is known for his “fine baritone” voice (New York Times) and “virtuosic talent” (Zürich Tages-Anzeiger) in opera, concert and recital. He is a protégé of the late internationally-acclaimed bass-baritone William Warfield. Recently, Craig appeared as Slim in Carlisle Floyd’s “Of Mice and Men” with the Phoenicia International Festival of the Voice and Germont in La Traviata with the Berkshire Theatre Festival at Tanglewood.

Levern “the Entertainer” Williams, a versatile performing artist and jazz stylist, has been com-pared to Nat King Cole. His performance repertoire includes appearances at Symphony Space, Jazz at

the Crypt Church of the Intercession, Cleopatra’s Needle, Londel’s Restaurant and super Club, and La Mama. Levern toured internationally with stops in Western Africa, Paris, South America and other countries.

His film credits include “The Gospel of Stroke” (2014), “Cotton Club” (1984), “Times Square” (1980) and “The Wiz” (1978). He has ap-peared on stage in “When Black Boys Die” (2015), “Welcome Home Sonny T” (2014), “American Star” (2013), “Selma” (Broadway 1984), “Trem-onisha -Scott Joplin” (Broadway 1977) and “Cam-ouflage” (Broadway 1966).

At its current property, St. Paul’s UMC pro-vides meals for the needy and children’s arts pro-graming. Beginning in 2017, in partnership with the Westchester Arts Council and the New York State Council on the Arts, the St. Paul’s UMC will provide a music performance series beginning with a National Women’s Month Jazz concert featuring vocalist Jackie Flowers. Food and refreshments for all St. Paul’s UMC performances will be available for purchase at affordable prices.

For tickets, directions and more information regarding the February Gospel Concert, visit www.stpaulsumchartsdale.org or call 914-946-0140.

The Yonkers Kiwanis Club, in collaboration with the City of Yonkers and Yonkers Board of Ed-ucation trustees, will soon present the 2017 Teach-er of the Year Awards to three deserving members of the Yonkers Public Schools’ faculty. Teachers will be selected based on nominations submitted by students, parents, teachers and administrators, at www.YonkersNY.gov.

Established in 1956, the Teacher of the Year Award celebrates Yonkers teachers who further ex-cellence in education. A committee comprised of members of the Yonkers Kiwanis Club and trustees of the Board of Education selects the honorees.

“Teachers do some of the most important work in our community and they deserve to be recognized with honor,” said Mayor Mike Spano. “These awards are a gesture of thanks for posi-tively impacting our children’s lives. The partner-ship between the city, the Yonkers Kiwanis Club and YPS celebrates the exceptional dedication and commitment of our everyday heroes in the class-room and, at times, even beyond the classroom.”

“So many Yonkers teachers personify quality teaching,” added Superintendent of Schools Dr. Edwin Quezada. “This award is an opportunity for our community to say ‘thank you’ to those teachers for their daily relentless work with our students. Great teachers impact the academic, social and emotional development of our children. Through this award we celebrate their professionalism and their engagement in effective teaching and learn-ing.”

Board of Education President the Rev. Steve Lopez praised the Yonkers Kiwanis Club for its de-cades of support for local teachers.

“This annual celebration highlights the con-

tributions of our outstanding teachers for their quality instruction, as well as their community ser-vice – the hallmark of the Board of Education and the Kiwanis Club,” he said. “Mayor Spano’s col-laboration has expanded the reach of our message and truly demonstrates a citywide commitment to education.”

Three YPS teachers, representing the elemen-tary, middle and high school levels, will be select-ed. Students, parents, teachers and administrators are encouraged to nominate a teacher at www.YonkersNY.gov. Eligibility requirements for selec-tion as Teacher of the Year include employment as a teacher in YPS for at least five years; dem-onstration of dedication to the teaching profession, which has led his/her students to both knowledge and understanding; initiation of new, meaningful programs for either students, teachers or parents, or having been innovative in the use of existing programs; and displaying significant community involvement.

“The Yonkers Kiwanis Club is once again honored to recognize teachers in our school com-munity who exemplify professionalism and show outstanding dedication,” said Yonkers Kiwanis President Judy Bartunek. “These highly motivated teachers, in their untiring efforts, provide quality education to the students in the Yonkers school system.”

The nomination form is available at www.yonkersny.gov and www.yonkerspublicschools.org. Nominations must be submitted by March 1.

The recipients are expected to attend school district, City of Yonkers and Yonkers Kiwanis Club Teacher of the Year functions, to speak in public and to the press representing all Yonkers teachers.

Enjoy Hikes, Birdwatching & More at County Parks

A number of program and events are sched-uled at Westchester County parks and nature centers the weekend of Feb. 4 and 5, as well as Monday, Feb. 6.

Hike the Purple Trail on Saturday, Feb. 4 from 11 a.m. to noon at Cranberry Lake Preserve in North White Plains. For more information, call 914-428-1005.

The Trailside Nature Museum at Ward Pound Ridge Reservation in Cross River will host a naturalist’s choice hike Saturday at 1 p.m. Seasonal climate and weather will help play a role in deciding where this hike will lead. For more information, call 914-337-6776 or visit www.reformedchurch.org.

Also on Saturday, indoor nature games will be played from 1 to 2 p.m. at Lenoir Preserve in Yonkers. You don’t have to be out in the cold to play nature games – see what’s in store indoors. Pre-registration is required at 914-968-5851.

From 10 a.m. to noon Saturday, enjoy a hike at Muscoot Farm on Route 100 in Somers. Visitors age 8 and older can meet at the reception center and join an intermediate hike in the back of the farm. 914-864-7282.

On Saturday and Sunday, Feb. 4 and 5 (as well as Feb. 11 and 12, 18 and 19, and 25 and 26), “Project Feeder Watch” will take place from 9 to 11 a.m. at Croton Point Park in Croton-on-Hudson. Identify and record bird feeders with

members of Saw Mill River Audubon. 914-862-5290.

Also on Saturday and Sunday, artists may submit up to three pieces of work for “A Differ-ent Point of View” between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. at the Marshlands Conservancy on Route 1 in Rye. Work must be inspired by Marshlands, and framed and wired for hanging. 914-835-4466.

On Sunday, Feb. 5, a historic mansion tour will take place from 1 to 2:30 p.m. at Merestead Estate in Mount Kisco. Visit Westchester’s own version of Downton Abbey, and hear stories about who lived there and learn why the house is important. Reservations are required and can be made by calling 914-447-7497.

Muscoot Farm will host “Tappin’ the Trees” from 1:30 to 3 p.m. Sugaring season is here again – visit the farm and learn the procedures for tapping the maple trees. 914-864-7282.

On Monday, Feb. 6, Muscoot Farm will host a bird walk from 8:30 to 10:30 a.m. Bring binoc-ulars and join naturalist Anne Swaim for a walk focusing on the birds that call Muscoot home. Meet in the parking lot. 914-864-7282.

Also on Monday, make a valentine craft from 3:30 to 5 p.m. at Lenoir Preserve. Pre-reg-istration is required by Feb. 1, at 914-968-5851.

For more information about upcoming pro-grams at Westchester County parks and nature centers, visit parks.westchestergov.com.

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Legislator David Tubiolo of Mount Vernon and Yonkers recently took his second senior trip, to the Jacob Burns Film Center for its senior movie matinee, which took place Jan. 25. The featured films were “The Lady in the Van” star-ring Maggie Smith and “There’s a Future in Our Past” about renowned musician Vince Giordano.

Transportation was free for seniors, pro-vided by Tubiolo via bus, as were refreshments. With more than 30 seniors in attendance, this was the biggest senior trip yet to the film center. The total cost for seniors was $7 each, for admis-sion to the matinee.

“Keeping our seniors active, social and mo-bile is vital to their health and well-being” said Tubiolo. “I’m glad we’re continuing the work of living legend Bernice Spreckman. We’re plan-ning to have several more trips for our amazing senior community of Mount Vernon and Yon-kers.”

Tubiolo said he is proud to have been ap-pointed chairman of the Senior and Constituen-cies Committee – the same position held by his predecessor and mentor – and vowed to continue Spreckman’s legacy as being an active and vocal advocate for seniors.

Tubiolo Continues Spreckman Tradition With Senior Trips

County Legislator David Tubiolo with seniors during a trip to the Jacob Burns Film Center.

By Mary HoarPresident Emerita, Yonkers Historical Society

Monday, Feb. 6 Feb. 6, 1932: Six armed gangsters, fleeing

in a high-powered automobile, waged a running battle with Yonkers police through the streets of Yonkers. The chase started in Riverdale and ended at New Main and Herriot streets, where authorities lost the trail of the fleeing criminals.

Feb. 6, 1935: Yonkers resident William Cronin, newly named Democratic county chair-man, was presented with a car at a testimonial dinner at the New York Athletic Club.

Feb. 6, 1943: The U.S. Employment Ser-vice, working in cooperation with major indus-tries engaged in war work, opened Westchester County’s Labor Control Center at 20 S. Broad-way. It was the first center of its kind to be estab-lished in the country.

Tuesday, Feb. 7 Feb. 7, 1909: At a meeting of the Ameri-

can Chemical Society in New York City, Dr. Leo Baekeland of Yonkers announced a new chemical substance called Bakelite that “would revolutionize the development of long-distance high-speed electric railways.”

Feb. 7, 1917: Members of Company G 10th Regiment of Yonkers were assigned to patrol the Catskill Aqueduct. Unfortunately, they had to do so in knee-deep snow.

Feb. 7, 1933: One of the stormiest and lon-gest controversies caused by an action by the Yonkers Board of Education came to an end. The Board of Trustees voted to re-open the night schools; they had been closed a month earlier as a cost-cutting measure.

Wednesday, Feb. 8 Feb. 8, 1907: A delegation of British head-

masters and teachers on an inspection tour of American schools visited Yonkers High School. The group represented schools in England and Wales.

Feb. 8, 1925: The Common Council passed a resolution petitioning the Board of Supervisors to designate Central Avenue as a county road.

Thursday, Feb. 9 Feb. 9, 1909: The Woman’s Institute held a

photography exhibit sponsored by the New York Child Labor Committee and the New York Con-sumers’ League showing sweatshop conditions some men, women and children had to endure.

Feb. 9, 1922: Quick thinking by Federal Sugar House employee David Condon saved two boys from being carried out into the swift current of the Hudson. Fifteen-year old Harvey Bryant and 14-year old Raymond O’Hara were playing on a cake of ice near shore when it sud-denly broke loose and drifted out.

Condon heard their screams, spotted the two boys on the river between the two sugar refineries, and immediately called the police. Sgt. Jerry Linehan and Patrolmen Henry Mur-phy and Henry Kressick threw a rope to the boys drifting 40 feet from the shore. Since it was dusk by the time they were pulled into shore, the tugs and ships would not have seen the boys if they had drifted into the shipping lanes.

Friday, Feb. 10 Feb. 10, 1900: The Yonkers Public Library

opened temporary quarters in the old Nisbet Mansion in Washington Park. The library previ-ously had been located at Yonkers High School.

Feb. 10, 1952: Charles Agne of Hawthorne Avenue, a survivor of the sinking USS Lincoln, passed away. He was one of several Yonkers men rescued when the Lincoln was torpedoed in 1918 on its return to this country. The Lin-

coln made five voyages to France, transporting about 23,000 American troops. On it last trip it was struck by three torpedoes from the German submarine U-90. Of the 715 people aboard, 26 men were lost with the ship. Lifeboats from de-stroyers Warrington and Smith rescued 689 sur-vivors.

Saturday, Feb. 11 Feb. 11, 1916: John McCormack, noted

Irish tenor, performed at the Palace Theater in Yonkers and sang the “Star Spangled Banner” for the first time in public as a tribute to Yonkers. He said he believed all public American con-certs should end with the singing of the national anthem. His agent was Michael Keane of Ridge Drive in Park Hill, the American Representative of music publisher Boosey and Co. Keane was responsible for bringing McCormack to the U.S.

Feb. 11, 1947: The Common Council sold property at 113 to 125, and 143 to 159 Putnam Ave., to the Westchester County Park Commis-sion at the bargain price of $1,165. The property, acquired for the location of the new tollgate on the county parkway (Saw Mill), was valued at $3,350.

Sunday, Feb. 12 Feb. 12, 1921: Armed with search warrants,

Lt. Henry Blatzheim and Sgt. John Scheibel led raiding parties on 12 Yonkers saloons and netted $20,000 of bootleg liquor for their efforts.

Feb. 12, 1930: Peene’s Wharf Corporation presented a claim for $150,000 for damage done by the Nepperhan River diversion to their prop-erty on the Hudson River. The company claimed the Plaza flume was depositing fill just south of its property, making the location unfit for ship-ping.

Feb. 12, 1941: The Securities and Ex-change Commission in Washington revealed that GE purchased an additional 9,421 shares of Otis Elevator Company stock, bring its holdings in the company to just less than 250,000 shares. This amounted to 12 ½ percent of the outstand-ing common shares, lending strength to the re-ports that GE wanted to buy control of Otis. This deal would be particularly vital because of the multi-million defense orders both companies were handling.

For more information on the Yonkers His-torical Society, Sherwood House and upcoming events, visit www.facebook.com/YonkersHis-toricalSociety or LinkedIn and Twitter @Yon-kersHistoric. For information on membership in HYS, call 914-961-8940 or email yhsociety@aol.com.

The internationally-celebrated Irish tenor John McCormack.

FRidAY, FEbRuARY 3, 2017 - YoNkERs RisiNG - PAGE 5

On This Day in Yonkers History

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Help Wanted Landscaping Luna Landscaping Corporation is looking to fill landscaping

worker positions in West Harrison, NY/ Westchester County (NY). Temporary, full-time peak load position. 5 job openings for employ-ment 4/1/2017- 12/31/2017. Employer assurances: From work ad-dress (28 Jefferson Street, West Harrison, NY 10604), Employer will provide transportation to and from work sites at no charge. Duties: Landscaping maintenance. Planting, weeding, lawn mowing, general maintenance work. Terms and conditions of employment: $15.52/hr, at least 35 hours/week, Mon-Fri, 8AM-4:30PM. No overtime. Transportation: From the place from which the worker has come to work, whether in the US or abroad, to the place of employment, if the worker completes 50% of the work contract period, the employer will provide payment for transportation and subsistence (including meals and to the extent necessary, lodging) from the place of recruitment to the place of employment. Upon completion of the work contract or where the worker is dismissed earlier, employer will provide or pay for worker’s reasonable costs of return transportation and subsistence back home or to the place the worker originally departed to work, ex-cept where the worker will not return due to subsequent employment with another employer. The amount of transportation payment or re-imbursement will be equal to the most economical and reasonable common carrier for the distances involved. Daily subsistence will be provided at a rate of $12.09/day during travel to a maximum $51/day with receipts. 3/4 guarantee: Employer guarantees to offer work for hours equal to at least 3/4 of the workdays in each 12-week pe-riod of the total employment period. Tools, equipment and supplies: The employer will provide workers at no charge all tools, supplies, & equipment required to perform the job. Miscellaneous: Employer will use a single workweek as its standard for computing wages due. The pay period is every week. The employer will make all payroll deductions required by law and will not make any deductions, which are not required by law. The employer will reimburse an H-2B work-er in the first work week for all visa, visa processing, border crossing, and other related fees, including those mandated by the government, incurred by the H-2B worker. Employer contact information: John DiLuna, 28 Jefferson Street, West Harrison, NY 10604. Interested candidates may contact Westchester County Employment Center, 120 Bloomingdale Road, White Plains, NY 10605. T: 914-995-3910.

ANDRUS Approves Salary Hike; Hits State Target Early

Mark Black History Month With Live Motown Music

Yonkers Pops Band To Perform at Library

Library Reveals New5-Year Strategic Plan

ANDRUS President and CEO Bryan Mur-phy announced recently that the Board of Direc-tors has approved raising the minimum base sal-ary for ANDRUS employees, and that the new policies are already effective.

“We appreciate everything our staff does for the families and children that we serve, and part of the plan to recognize that includes increas-ing our wages,” he said. “This is a necessary and welcome step to attracting and retaining the best and brightest talent in our field.”

The ANDRUS Board of Directors and ad-ministration have been meeting regularly to discuss improving earnings and benefits for all employees. In an effort to maintain the high cali-ber of staff and attract more expertise, the board

announced that it has approved raising the mini-mum base salary for full-time employees at AN-DRUS to $15 per hour, effective Dec. 30, 2016.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo recently signed into law an increase to the minimum wage across the state to $15 per hour. The multi-year phase-in plan has already begun, with all businesses to reach the new target for wages by the end of 2018.

ANDRUS said it is proud to be the first of many organizations to have already met the new target, and will continue to work to stay ahead of the curve when it comes to high standards of employment and compensation.

For more information, visit www.An-drus1928.org.

To celebrate and kick off Black History Month, Cody Childs and the Ladies of Soul will perform their smash hit concert “The Music of Motown” on Saturday, Feb. 4 at 2 p.m. at Yon-kers Riverfront Library. Bring the family and lis-ten to classic hits such as “My Girl,” “I Heard it Through the Grapevine,” “For Once in My Life” and more.

Cody Childs and the Ladies of Soul is a New York City pop/soul band that performs tribute con-certs throughout the New York-metropolitan area honoring Motown and soul music. The band, com-posed of a keyboardist, bassist, drummer with lead

and background vocals, covers songs from the Temptations, the Supremes, Four Tops, Jackson Five, Mary Wells, Tammi Terrell, Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder and Martha and the Vandellas.

The concert is free and open to the public and runs approximately 75 minutes. It will be held in the Riverfront Auditorium.

Yonkers Riverfront Library, located at One Larkin Center, is accessible to people with disabil-ities. Parking is available at sidewalk meters and for a fee in the nearby Buena Vista and Warbur-ton parking garages. For more information, visit www.ypl.org.

An afternoon of big band music featuring the Yonkers Pops Band under the direction of Dan Salvi will be presented Sunday, Feb. 19 at 2 p.m. at the Yonkers Public Library, 1500 Cen-tral Park Ave. The snow date is Sunday, Feb. 26.

“Big Band Sunday Afternoon,” sponsored by Friends of the Yonkers Public Library, is

open to the public free of charge, and no tick-ets are required. Seating will be in the 325-seat Pincus Auditorium at the library.

Music from Broadway to popular classics will be featured, and guest performers will in-clude Nicole Pasternak and Bobby LaVell.

For more information, call the library at 914-337-1500.

The Yonkers Public Library has unveiled a new strategic plan for its activities and initiatives over the next five years.

“Improving Lives, Engaging Community, Leading Change” highlights the vital role of the library in the community as a trusted space for discovery, collaboration and personal growth. The library’s mission, “to change lives every day,” emphasizes the importance of staff exper-tise, access to information, and enriching and en-joyable programming.

“The library is beloved by many in Yonkers,” said Board President Nancy Maron. “Our task over the next five years is to continue to expand our range of offerings and to make them even more accessible to all who want and need them.”

The planning process, launched in Septem-ber 2015, engaged nearly 3,000 Yonkers resi-dents and stakeholders, including patrons, staff, community organizations and elected officials, through an online survey, focus groups and town meetings. This broad participation provided the library with valuable feedback about facilities, programs and policies.

“This was a wonderful opportunity to en-gage with our community and discuss the future of library services in Yonkers,” said Library Di-rector Edward Falcone. “We found deep support for YPL, but also high expectations for new and expanded programs. We will strive to meet those expectations.”

Among the strategic approaches outlined in the plan are a re-appraisal of library collections and programming to appeal to specific segments within the community, including early read-ers, teens and new English learners; enhanced outreach activities to further communicate with patrons and bring the riches of the library to all those who need them, including those may not be able to use them onsite; and to assess the need for future growth, including re-assessing exist-ing and new spaces and identifying new funding sources.

To read the full details of the library’s stra-tegic plan, visit www.ypl.org/strategic-plan. Yon-kers Public Library board meetings are open to the public. The calendar of meeting dates is avail-able at ypl.org

PAGE 6 - YoNkERs RisiNG - FRidAY, FEbRuARY 3, 2017

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Legal NoticesLegal NoticesClassifiedsSUPPLEMENTAL SUMMONS

Index No. 55058/20152SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK

COUNTY OF WESTCHESTER

DEUTSCHE BANK NATIONAL TRUST COMPANY, AS TRUSTEE, IN TRUST FOR THE REGISTERED HOLDERS OF MORGAN STANLEY ABS CAPITAL I TRUST 2004-HE1, MORTGAGE PASS-THROUGH CERTIFICATES, SERIES 2004-HE1,

Plaintiff,

-vs-

JESUS M. CASTILLO A/K/A JESUS CASTILLO; MARCOS CASTILLO; UNITED STATES OF AMERICA O/B/O INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE; NEW YORK STATE DEPARTMENT OF TAXATION AND FINANCE; THE ESTATE OF CARLOS RAMOS; GREGORIO NUNEZ; UNKNOWN HEIRS OF THE ESTATE OF CARLOS RAMOS; MARIA RAMOS AS HEIR TO THE ESTATE OF CARLOS RAMOS; CARLOS RAMOS JR. AS HEIR TO THE ESTATE OF CARLOS RAMOS; DAVID RAMOS AS HEIR TO THE ESTATE OF CARLOS RAMOS; MYLENE RAMOS AS HEIR TO THE ESTATE OF CARLOS RAMOS; NANCY RAMOS AS HEIR TO THE ESTATE OF CARLOS RAMOS; “JOHN DOE #1-5” AND “JANE DOE #1-5” said names being fictitious, it being the intention of Plaintiff to designate any and all occupants, tenants, persons or corporations, if any, having or claiming an interest in or lien upon the premises being foreclosed herein, Defendants.

Mortgaged Premises: 95 MARSHALL ROAD, YONKERS, NY 10705

TO THE ABOVE NAMED DEFENDANT(S):YOU ARE HEREBY SUMMONED to answer the Complaint in the above entitled ac-tion and to serve a copy of your Answer on the plaintiff’s attorney within twenty (20) days of the service of this Summons, exclusive of the day of service, or within thirty (30) days after service of the same is complete where service is made in any man-ner other than by personal delivery within the State. The United States of America, if designated as a defendant in this action, may answer or appear within sixty (60) days of service hereof. Your failure to appear or answer will result in a judgment against you by default for the relief demanded in the Complaint. In the event that a deficiency balance remains from the sale proceeds, a judgment may be entered against you, unless the Defendant obtained a bankruptcy discharge and such other or further relief as may be just and equitable.

NOTICEYOU ARE IN DANGER OF LOSING YOUR HOME

If you do not respond to this summons and complaint by serving a copy of the an-swer on the attorney for the mortgage company who filed this foreclosure proceeding against you and filing the answer with the court, a default judgment may be entered and you can lose your home.Speak to an attorney or go to the court where your case is pending for further informa-tion on how to answer the summons and protect your property.Sending a payment to your mortgage company will not stop this foreclosure action. YOU MUST RESPOND BY SERVING A COPY OF THE ANSWER ON THE ATTOR-NEY FOR THE PLAINTIFF (MORTGAGE COMPANY) AND FILING THE ANSWER WITH THE COURT.WESTCHESTER County is designated as the place of trial. The basis of venue is the location of the mortgaged premises.

Dated: JANUARY 9, 2017__________________________________________________________________VICTOR SPINELLI, ESQ.FEIN, SUCH & CRANE, LLPAttorneys for Plaintiff1400 Old Country Road Ste. C103Westbury, NY 11590Telephone No. (516) 394-6921

NATURE AND OBJECT OF ACTIONThe object of the above action is to foreclose a Mortgage held by the Plaintiff and recorded in the County of WESTCHESTER, State of New York as more particularly described in the Complaint herein. TO THE DEFENDANT(S), except JESUS M. CASTILLO A/K/A JESUS CASTILLO; the plaintiff makes no personal claim against you in this action. TO THE DEFENDANT(S), except JESUS M. CASTILLO A/K/A JESUS CASTILLO:IF, AND ONLY IF, you have received or will receive a Bankruptcy discharge Order which includes this debt, the plaintiff is solely attempting to enforce its mortgage lien rights in the subject real property and makes no personal claim against you. In that event, nothing contained in these or any papers served or filed in this action will be an attempt to collect from you or to find you personally liable for the discharged debt.

DESCRIPTION OF THE MORTGAGED PREMISESAll that certain plot, piece or parcel of land, with the buildings and improvements thereon erected, situate, lying and being in the City of Yonkers, County of Westches-ter and State of New York, and known as Lots 12, 13 and 14 in Block M, on “Map of Property of Garden Residence Corporation, Loweree Summit Park, in the City of Yon-kers, N.Y.”, made by M. Lorini, C.E., July 21, 1921 and filed in the Westchester Coun-ty Clerk’s Office, Division of Land Records, on August 23, 1921 as Map No. 2342, and on “Map of Lowerre Summit Park, owned by Lowerre Summit Park Realty Co., in the City of Yonkers, New York”, made by M. Lorini, C.E., and filed in the Westchester County Clerk’s Office, Division of Land Records, on June 20, 1913 as Map no. 2024.BEGINNING at a point on the northerly side of Marshall Road distant 78.16 feet east-erly from the corner formed by the Intersection of the northerly side of Marshall Road and the easterly side of Linn Avenue;RUNNING THENCE north 35 degrees 58 minutes 10 seconds east 74.78 feet;THENCE north 85 degrees 31 minutes 03 seconds east 25.00 feet;THENCE south 43 degrees 28 minutes 32 seconds east 32.01 feet;THENCE south 19 degrees 24 minutes 50 seconds east 77.61 feet;THENCE south 4 degrees 28 minutes 57 seconds 50.00 feet;THENCE south 25 degrees 31 minutes 03 seconds west 55.48 feet to the easterly side of Marshall Road;THENCE north 21 degrees 30 minutes 30 seconds west 9.24 feet;THENCE northerly to the easterly side of Marshall Road along a curve to the left having a radius of 180.00 feet and an arc length of 102.17 feet to the point or place of BEGINNING.Premises: 95 MARSHALL ROAD, YONKERS, NY 10705Tax Map/Parcel ID No.: Section: 1. Block:88 Lot 65.69 F/K/A Section 1. Block 88 Lots: 65, 67, & 69

#1502 01/20/2017 – 02/10/2017

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Classifieds

Notice of formation of 10 CENTER PLACE LLC Arts. Of Org. filed with the Sect’y of State of NY (SSNY) on 1/19/17. Office location: WESTCHESTER. The street address is: 145 SAW MILL RIVER RD., YONKERS, NY 10701. SSNY has been des-ignated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process served to: THE LLC, 145 SAW MILL RIVER RD., YONKERS, NY 10701. Purpose: any lawful act.

#6844 02/03/17 – 03/10/17

Notice of formation of GEN-TLE EVENTS LLC Arts. Of Org. filed with the Sect’y of State of NY (SSNY) on SEP-TEMBER 12,2016. Office location: WESTCHESTER. The street address is: 162 CROYDON RD. YONKERS, NY 10710. SSNY has been designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process served to: ALLISON GEN-TLE, 162 CROYDON RD., YONKERS, NY 10710. Pur-pose: any lawful act.

#6838 01/13/17 – 02/17/17

SUPREME COURT – COUNTY OF WESTCHESTER

DEUTSCHE BANK TRUST COMPANY AMERICAS, AS TRUSTEE FOR RESIDEN-TIAL ACCREDIT LOANS, INC., MORTGAGE ASSET-BACKED PASS-THROUGH CERTIFICATES, SERIES 2007-QS1 RALI 2007-QS1,

Plaintiffagainst

MARIA CHARRIA, JOHN CHARRIA, et al Defendant(s).

Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered on February 29, 2016.

I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction at the Lobby of the Westchester County Courthouse, 111 Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Boulevard, White Plains, N.Y. on the 8th day of March, 2017 at 9:30 a.m. premises described as follows: All that lot or parcel of land, in the City of Yonkers, County of Westchester and State of New York. Said premises known as 63 Hearst Street, Yonkers, N.Y. 10703.

(Section: 3, Block: 3335, Lot: 31.32).

Approximate amount of lien $ 845,236.68 plus interest and costs.

Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed judgment and terms of sale.

Index No. 61939-14. Andrew M. Romano, Esq., Referee. McCabe, Weisberg & Conway, P.C.Attorney(s) for Plaintiff145 Huguenot Street – Suite 210New Rochelle, New York 10801(914) 636-8900

#1505 02/03/2017 – 02/24/2017

SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORKCOUNTY OF WESTCHESTER

FRIEDBERG FINANCIAL LLC (2015),Plaintiff (s),

vs.ESTATE OF WILLIAM R. HOLLAND, RESPECTIVE HEIRS-AT-LAW, NEXT OF KIN,

et al. AND ALL PERSONS HAVING OR CLAIMING UNDER, BY OR THROUGH SAID DEFENDANT(S), et al.

Defendant (s).

SUMMONS IN A FORECLOSURE ACTIONIndex No. 59016/2016

Date Filed: June 29, 2016

TO THE ABOVE NAMED DEFENDANTS:

YOU ARE HEREBY SUMMONED to appear and Answer the Complaint in this ac-tion and to serve a copy of your Answer, or, if the Complaint is not served with this Summons, to serve a Notice of Appearance on the Plaintiff’s attorneys within twenty (20) days after the service of this Summons, exclusive of the day of service, or within thirty (30) days after completion of service where service is made in any other man-ner than by personal delivery within the State. In case of your failure to appear or answer, judgment will be taken against you by default for the relief demanded in the Complaint.

WESTCHESTER COUNTY is designated as the place of trial. The basis of venue is the location of the premises that is the subject of the tax lien.

Dated: January 11, 2017Scarsdale, New YorkBARRY NESSON LAW, P.C.Attorneys for Plaintiff700 White Plains Road, Suite 309Scarsdale, New York 10583, (914) 725-4050

Defendant’s Address:321 Prescott StreetYonkers, New York

This is a foreclosure action of City of Yonkers Tax Lien #170110 in the original amount of $6,252.06 which seeks a judgment of foreclosure and sale for principal, interest, attorney fees, costs and disbursements.

The premises affected by this action were and are described as follows:

City of Yonkers, S:1 Blk: 442 L: 18321 Prescott Street, Yonkers, N. Y.

#1503 01/20/17 - 02/10/17

FRidAY, FEbRuARY 3, 2017 - YoNkERs RisiNG - PAGE 7

Seniors and Health Care

The Westchester Institute for Human De-velopment unveiled its newly-renovated child welfare space during a Jan. 17 ribbon-cutting ceremony.

The event was attended by WIHD’s New York Medical College partner Dr. Ben Wat-son, Westchester County Department of So-cial Services Commissioner Kevin McGuire, Department of Health Assistant Commissioner for Children with Special Needs Marina Yoe-gel, WIHD Vice President of Programs Dr. David O’Hara, former WIHD CEO Dr. Ans-ley Bacon, WIHD Board Chairperson Pamela Thornton, and WIHD Board members Monica Sganga, Kate Funk and Kehli Harding.

The redesigned space represents the cul-mination of the Building on Excellence Child Welfare Initiative, a three-year project that included the transformation of eight therapy rooms and the designated waiting area into bright, calm spaces with fresh paint and cheer-ful wall graphics; new carpeting; durable, child-friendly furniture; functional storage; and brand-new therapeutic toys and games, to better serve all the children and families who go to WIHD for services.

“They say good things come to those who wait,” said Danielle Weisberg, director of both Child Welfare Services and the Children’s Ad-vocacy Center at WIHD. “For the clients and staff of WIHD’s child welfare programs, the wait is finally over and great things have in-deed come.”

Weisberg went on to describe the im-provements in detail.

“We hired a very impressive design firm, and they created a look and feel for our space that projected a sense of calm, and introduced elements of the natural environment into our cold, institutional space,” she said. “We chose furniture that would stand up to the daily use of high-energy children. We created a wish list on Amazon.com, with the hope that friends like you and so many others would donate new toys and games for the remodeled space. We added storage so that the children aren’t overwhelmed by the sight of all the toys and games.”

Dr. Susan Fox, president and CEO at WIHD, thanked the many individuals, local foundations and organizations whose dona-

tions and fundraising efforts ultimately raised $180,000 for the project.

“Most importantly, I want to recognize and thank all of our donors who made this hap-pen,” she said. “You are the reason we are here tonight. Your faith in us and your caring for the children and families we serve means so much to us. These renovations are a message to the children that we serve that they are important and that there are many people who care about them.”

Among those recognized for their contri-butions were Aaron Velez, a former social work intern and a driving force behind the success-ful Salome fundraising event at the Hudson River Museum; Anne Hasegawa of ZeroFive Design, a longtime donor of time and talents to the program, whose contributions included the invitations to the Salome event and the signs bearing donors’ names on the newly renovated rooms; Peter and Lindsay Keller for their sup-port in honor of their adopted daughter, Jani-yah; the late Bob Voss, a foster and adoptive parent, teacher and mentor, who so named the program in his estate; the Carvel Foundation for its donation;

Also, Kate Funk and Monica Sganga, members of the WIHD Board of Directors, for breathing new life into the project with their enthusiasm, motivation and commitment to the program; Impact100, a philanthropic women’s group, for its supportive relationships and volunteer efforts, as well as financial contri-butions; and Wendy Breitner, retired director of the Child Welfare Program for 25 years of dedicated service and support to the program, and her husband, Ken Kirshenbaum, who helped kick off the fundraising by earmark-ing a $50,000 donation from the Christensen Fund when he stepped down from their board, as well as offering tireless support and encour-agement.

WIHD, located on the campus of the West-chester Medical Center in Valhalla, has been a leader for more than 40 years in addressing major social and health issues affecting people with disabilities and vulnerable children by de-veloping and delivering medical, clinical and support services to individuals, their families and caregivers.

Institute for Human Dev. Debuts New Children’s Room

VIPs, donors and staff celebrate the newly-renovated child welfare space with a ribbon cutting at WIHD.

The Westchester-Putnam Workforce De-velopment Board will host an IRS-endorsed Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program kickoff Wednesday, Feb. 1 at 5:30 p.m. at 120 Bloomingdale Road, White Plains.

The kickoff is an effort to launch an edu-cational campaign to increase awareness to eli-gible Westchester and Putnam County residents about tax preparation assistance programs and possible qualifications to receive one or more federal tax credits designed to help low-income taxpayers.

The Volunteer Income Tax Assistance pro-gram offers free tax help to people who gener-ally make $54,000 or less, persons with disabil-ities, and limited English-speaking taxpayers

who need assistance in preparing their own tax returns. IRS-certified volunteers provide free basic income tax return preparation with elec-tronic filing to qualified individuals.

In addition to VITA, the Tax Counseling for the Elderly program offers free tax help for all taxpayers, particularly those who are 60 years of age and older, specializing in questions about pensions and retirement-related issues unique to seniors. The IRS-certified volunteers who provide tax counseling are often retired individuals associated with non-profit organiza-tions that receive grants from the IRS.

For more information, visit www.west-chesterputnamonestop.com or call 914-995-3910.

Tax Prep Help Available

Cerebral Palsy of Westchester Board Presi-dent Richard Osterer recently announced the ap-pointment of two new board members, Lisa Giof-fre Baird and David Fisher.

Baird is the senior member of the Gioffre and Gioffre law firm, which was formed by her father and grandfather. Before becoming the senior mem-ber, Baird first became a third-generation lawyer as an associate, then a partner, all at her family’s law firm. She received her law license in both New York and Connecticut, and maintains offices in both states. Her practice is based primarily around transactional real estate – both residential and com-mercial, and she also handles will and estate work.

Baird was born in Port Chester and graduated from Blind Brook High School. She received her bachelor of arts degree from Villanova University and later graduated from Pace University School of Law with a Juris Doctor degree. She has served as president of the Port Chester-Rye Bar Associa-tion, and is a member of many state and local bar organizations.

Baird is listed in the Bar Register of Pre-eminent Lawyers, an international publication of Martindale-Hubbel, which lists lawyers evaluated by their peers to be the pre-eminent members of the legal profession throughout the world, and she, her father and the firm have maintained for many years the highest rating possible by other law-yers and judges. Baird is listed in the New York Magazine 2015 Legal Leaders and Who’s Who in

American Law. David Fisher is a corporate partner in the

New York office of Bryan Cave, LLP, practicing in the areas of mergers and acquisitions and securi-ties. For 20 years, he has worked with private and public companies, including multinational corpo-rations and closely-held businesses, to structure transactions, joint ventures, capital-raisings and financings, and advise on general corporate opera-tions.

He has formed long-term client relationships, particularly in the manufacturing, technology and consumer products industries, serving clients such as Terex Corporation and Analysis and Design Ap-plication, Co., Ltd., among others.

Fisher received his bachelor’s degree from Washington University and later graduated from Columbia University Law School with a Juris Doctor degree. He grew up in Westchester County, and has lived with his family in Purchase for 16 years, where he is active in the community.

For more than 65 years, Cerebral Palsy of Westchester has been the leading non-profit orga-nization in Westchester County, providing essential services to children and adults with all develop-mental disabilities, including autism, neurological impairments, intellectual disabilities, epilepsy and cerebral palsy. It has always aimed to help people realize their goals, build brighter futures, and lead more independent lives as members of their com-munity.

Cerebral Palsy of WestchesterNames New Board Members

David Fisher Lisa Gioffre Baird

STATE OF NEW YORKSUPREME COURT : COUNTY OF WESTCHESTER

Index No. 60014/2013

STEPHEN DONATI, JR., Plaintiff,

v.

LOUIS P. CIMINELLI CONSTRUCTION CO., INC., YONKERS RACEWAY PRO-GRAMS, INC. and YONKERS RACEWAY MANAGEMENT AND CONSULTING CORP. d/b/a YONKERS RACING CORPORATION, Defendants.

NOTICE OF ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE

TAKE NOTICE that any persons interested in the estate of Stephen Donati, Jr., (Date of Birth 09/12/1960, Date of Death 10/20/2013) have been ordered by the Hon. Lewis J. Lubell, J.S.C. to show cause on March 3, 2017 at 9:30 AM at the Westchester County Supreme Court, Courtroom 1601, 111 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, White Plains, New York, 10601 why the above-captioned case should not be dis-missed for failure to substitute the deceased plaintiff, Stephen Donati, Jr., with a prop-er estate representative. Failure to appear and show cause may result in dismissal of the above-captioned case.

#1504 02/03/2017 – 02/24/2017

SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK COUNTY OF WESTCHES-TER

INDEX NO. 70044/2015

Plaintiff designates WESTCHESTER as the place of trial situs of the real property SUPPLEMENTAL SUMMONS Mortgaged Premises: 163 SHONNARD TERRACE

YONKERS, NY 10701 District: Section: 2 Block: 2136 Lot: 39 CIT BANK, N.A.,Plaintiff,

vs.DAVID LATOUNDJI, HEIR AND DISTRIBUTEE OF THE ESTATE OF MARY LYNN MORSE, any and all persons unknown to plaintiff, claiming, or who may claim to have an interest in, or general or specific lien upon the real property described in this action; such unknown persons being herein generally described and intended to be included in the following designation, namely: the wife, widow, husband, widower, heirs at law, next of kin, descendants, executors, administrators, devisees, legatees, creditors, trustees, committees, lienors, and assignees of such deceased, any and all persons deriving interest in or lien upon, or title to said real property by, through or under them, or either of them, and their respective wives, widows, husbands, widow-ers, heirs at law, next of kin, descendants, executors, administrators, devisees, lega-tees, creditors, trustees, committees, lienors and assigns, all of whom and whose names, except as stated, are unknown to plaintiff; SECRETARY OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT; NEW YORK STATE DEPARTMENT OF TAXATION AND FINANCE; UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, “JOHN DOE #1” through “JOHN DOE #12,” the last twelve names being fictitious and unknown to plaintiff, the persons or parties intended being the tenants, occupants, persons or corporations, if any, hav-ing or claiming an interest in or lien upon the premises, described in the complaint, Defendants. To the above named Defendants YOU ARE HEREBY SUMMONED to answer the complaint in this action and to serve a copy of your answer, or, if the complaint is not served with this summons, to serve a notice of appearance on the Plaintiff’s Attorney within 20 days after the service of this summons, exclusive of the day of service (or within 30 days after the service is complete if this summons is not personally delivered to you within the State of New York) in the event the United States of America is made a party defendant, the time to answer for the said United States of America shall not expire until (60) days after service of the Summons; and in case of your failure to appear or answer, judgment will be taken against you by default for the relief demanded in the complaint. NOTICE OF NATURE OF ACTION AND RELIEF SOUGHT THE OBJECT of the above caption action is to foreclose a Mortgage to secure the sum of $922,500.00 and interest, recorded on June 23, 2009, at Instrument number 491660108, of the Public Records of WESTCHESTER County, New York, covering premises known as 163 SHONNARD TERRACE YONKERS, NY 10701. The relief sought in the within action is a final judgment directing the sale of the premises described above to satisfy the debt secured by the Mortgage described above. WESTCHESTER County is designated as the place of trial because the real property affected by this action is located in said county. NOTICE YOU ARE IN DAN-GER OF LOSING YOUR HOME

If you do not respond to this summons and complaint by serving a copy of the an-swer on the attorney for the mortgage company who filed this foreclosure proceeding against you and filing the answer with the court, a default judgment may be entered and you can lose your home. Speak to an attorney or go to the court where your case is pending for further information on how to answer the summons and protect your property. Sending a payment to the mortgage company will not stop the foreclosure action. YOU MUST RESPOND BY SERVING A COPY OF THE ANSWER ON THE ATTORNEY FOR THE PLAINTIFF (MORTGAGE COMPANY) AND FILING THE AN-SWER WITH THE COURT.

Dated: September 22, 2016 RAS BORISKIN, LLC Attorney for Plaintiff BY: DANIEL GREENBAUM, ESQ. 900 Merchants Concourse, Suite 106 Westbury, NY 11590516-280-7675 #1500 01/13/2017 – 02/03/2017

PAGE 8 - YoNkERs RisiNG - FRidAY, FEbRuARY 3, 2017

Send photos of your recent event, fundraiser or celebration to us at risingmediagroup@gmail.com

term, then will be term-limited from running again in 2019. “He enjoys his job as mayor and wants to finish the job and then reassess what he wants to do,”

Spano’s decision to opt out of the race was not based on his ability to raise money, or any doubt that he could defeat Astorino. In fact, sources tell Rising that Gov. Andrew Cuomo was “clearing the deck” for Spano to run, and removing all Democratic opposition.

“Gov. Cuomo wants to have a Democrat in the county executive’s seat in Westchester, and clearly the top Democrat was Mayor Spano,” said the source. “So I would say that while the governor was disappointed that Mayor Spano decided not to run, he respects his decision.”

Polling from a Spano-Astorino matchup had Astorino with a lead in the single digits, with Spano’s name recognition and favorabil-ity high. “We were in striking distance to run a close race, and the big-money people in West-chester would have taken a chance with Mayor Spano,” said the same source. “But you also need to focus your full attention if you want to run for county executive and beat Astorino, and, as tempting as it was, the time just wasn’t right.”

Spano also has teenage children and along with his wife, WCBS NY television news an-chor Mary Calvi, has a busy but working fam-ily dynamic. “Personal reasons were not the fi-nal factor, but did play a role,” said the source. “The mayor enjoys his time with his children, going to their hockey games, and he knew he would have to give something up and give 110 percent if he were to serve as Yonkers mayor and run for county executive.”

Yonkers County Legislator Ken Jenkins is now the only announced Democrat running for county executive, with less than nine months before Election Day, Nov. 7. With Spano’s de-cision not to run leaking out last week, some Democrats are searching for another candidate to run against Astorino.

Spano’s decision to finish out his term has vast political implications for Yonkers. If he were to run for county executive and if he were to defeat Astorino, many have suggested the city hold a special election in 2018 to elect a new mayor.

City Council President Liam McLaugh-lin was the presumptive Republican nominee for mayor in that hypothetical special election, and at least four Democrats – Assemblymem-ber Shelley Mayer, former Councilman Dennis Robertson, former Council President Chuck Lesnick and City Court Judge Ed Gaffney – are also interested in running.

If McLaughlin were to win a special elec-tion for mayor, that would create a vacancy for council president, which would then also require a special election. Republican City Council Majority Leader John Larkin and Democratic Council Minority Leader Michael Sabatino were possible candidates for that seat.

None of this will happen now, as Spano will complete the last three years of his sec-ond term, which runs through the end of 2019.

Any rumors or published reports that Spano, or anyone in city government, is interested in eliminating term limits is what one councilman described to Yonkers Rising as “nonsense and fantasy.”

The long list of candidates who want to run for Yonkers mayor will now have to wait two years before the mayoral election of 2019 will begin. All of the candidates listed above have expressed an interest, or have allowed their fellow party members to discuss their fu-ture candidacy for mayor.

But for this year, the top election of 2017 in Yonkers will be the race for City Council president. McLaughlin, a Republican, is run-ning for a second term. His popularity and name recognition in the city has resulted in several prominent Democrats passing on the opportunity to take him on. Most notable are the two senior Democrats on the City Coun-cil, Minority Leader Sabatino and Councilman Christopher Johnson, not running for the seat.

Sabatino is said to be seeking a post with a new Democratic mayor, and Johnson is said to be interested in running for the county legisla-tor seat currently held by Ken Jenkins, who, as stated, is running for county executive. Sourc-es tell Yonkers Rising that another prominent Democrat is interested in Jenkins’ County Board seat – more on that next week.

The current Democratic frontrunner to challenge McLaughlin in November is first-time candidate attorney Mike Khader, who has been raising money for his upcoming race but has not formally announced his candidacy.

Khader will likely attempt to portray McLaughlin as an extremist, as he did in a re-cent release (issued from his law firm’s email – which is a political no-no), which was critical of McLaughlin’s recent comments about try-ing to get parents whose children qualify for reduced-price breakfast and lunch at school to pay their required fee.

“After all the wasteful spending extrem-ist Liam McLaughlin has incurred over his 20 years in City Hall, he now wants to drag Yon-kers parents to court because they failed to pay for school lunches,” said Khader. “Since 72 percent of the students qualify for free lunch paid by the state, the problem seems to be poor oversight, and understaffing by school officials that was allowed under his time in City Coun-cil.”

McLaughlin responded, saying “If he is challenging my attempts to collect on a hand-ful of parents basically robbing the school dis-trict of $800,000, then I guess he wants this type of behavior to continue.”

The question now becomes: Will Khader have a Democratic opponent, and a Demo-cratic primary for City Council president? Stay tuned.

The two other key races in Yonkers this fall will be for City Council in the fourth and sixth districts, both of which will have open seats as Councilmen Dennis Shepherd and John Larkin are term-limited from running again. Yonkers Rising is compiling a list of candidates and will run a story next week. If you are an interested candidate in either the fourth or sixth district, email us at dmurphy@risingmediagroup.com and let us know.

Spano Out Continued from Page 1

Junior League of Bronxville Accepting Grant Applications

The Junior League of Bronxville is now ac-cepting Community Grant Applications for 2017.

Applications will be accepted from 501(c)3 organizations that serve communities within the Junior League of Bronxville’s service area. This includes Yonkers, Mount Vernon, Eastches-ter, Tuckahoe and Bronxville. The grant request should be for an immediate and specific need re-lated to the alleviation of hunger, the improve-ment of nutrition or the improvement of the

health and/or welfare of girls or women within the communities served.

If your organization would like to apply, vis-it JLBronxville.org to access the application, or contact Sheridan Denfeld at CommunityGrants@JLBronxville.org, and an application and instruc-tions will be forwarded to you. The deadline for submission is Feb. 25.

For more information, visit www.jlbronx-ville.org.

Ailbhe Cafferky assisted Point Guard Ileana Santiago with great communication on the floor. A tight and aggressive defense, along with fluent ball movement offensively, were leading factors in the win. These tactics con-tinued to lead the team through the semifinal in a 50-37 win over Roosevelt.

This season, Coach Meagan Fitzpatrick took on a young team of six freshman, two sophomores, three juniors and two seniors. With only four returning players, this team of fresh faces mended well. In addition to a strong performance by leading scorer Lauren Rodican, freshman Santiago took on her posi-tion of the team’s new point guard with stride. Her leadership and skill played a huge role in the team’s victory, and she was awarded Most Valuable Player of the tournament.

Captains Cafferky and Jenna DeDomeni-co said they were ecstatic to have accom-plished winning the tournament as seniors this year. The last time Yonkers H.S. won the tournament was during the 2013 season, when the two girls were freshman.

“We won our freshman year because of our hard work and dedication as a team,” said DeDomenico. “It was nice to win again on our way out of high school with a new team who showed just as much dedication and determi-nation. Most importantly, we all had fun, no matter how hard we worked to get here. Our new team is full of laughs, jokes and love.”

Coach Fitzpatrick has believed in her team from the very beginning of the season.

“The city tournament comes with great pride; it is an honor to be at the top,” she said. “We sought out to be the best, we prepared for it, and we didn’t settle for anything but first place. I am so proud of my team. Their hard work and commitment is evident day-in and day-out, and we have high hopes for future success.”

YHS’ girls’ basketball team is stronger than ever and will continue to push through the season with support from administra-tion, staff and students. The girls send their appreciation for this support, as they claim they couldn’t be where they are without it. A special thanks was expressed to Ms. Connally, their role model and mentor, who has been a motivating factor in their success.

Let’s go, Bulldogs!

Yonkers H.S.Continued from Page 1

Most fans know Tyree for his miraculous helmet grab on a third down and long on the final drive of the 2008 Super Bowl that helped propel the Giants to their first championship win in 17 years and ruined New England’s bid for a perfect season. During the viewing party, Tyree will also provide some insight on what it was like playing the undefeated Patriots nine years ago.

“David Tyree is a big ‘catch’ for Empire City Casino,” said Taryn Duffy, director of pub-lic affairs. “We encourage fans from all over the tristate area to come watch the Falcons and the

Patriots with a local football legend.”Additional viewing and food options are

available at Empire City with Dan Rooney’s Sports Pub offering a $35 buffet menu along with $5 bud and bud light drafts, and more than 40 high-definition televisions. Highlights of the buf-fet include football classics like wings, burgers, sliders and nachos, and a special regional dish for each team.

As an added bonus, the first 5,000 Empire Club members to check in at the main promo-tions booth will receive a free beanie cap. Fans who are not Empire Club members can sign up for free.

For more information, visit www.empirec-itycasino.com.

Giants HeroContinued from Page 1

Notice of Real Estate AuctionBy Order of the City of Yonkers

Notice is hereby given of a public real estate auction of properties located in Yonkers, NY acquired by the City of Yonkers through In Rem foreclosure.

The public auction will take place on Monday, Feb 27, 2017 at 12:00 pm in the Com-munity Room of the Yonkers Riverfront Library located at 1 Larkin Center, 2nd Floor, Yonkers, NY. Bidding is open to the public live and online. All sales subject to seller acceptance.

Properties are sold “As Is, Where Is” and not subject to contingencies. High bidder will be required to make a 10% down payment immediately after the auction, and provide the balance of purchase price at closing in 30 days.

In Rem Auction Properties

240 Oak St - 1800-001-000-00211-000-0110101 Frederic St -1800-002-000-02432-000-0062-6933 Woodycrest Ave - 1800-002-000-02207-000-002361 Palisade Ave – 1800-002-000-02027-000-004040 Alta Vista Dr – 1800-004-000-04651-000-0018

For online bidding or to see complete terms and more information:

WilliamsAuction.com/Yonkers or call 800.801.8003.Dean C. Williams Re Lic 32WI0834875Williams & Williams Re Lic 109911428 #1506 02/03/2017 – 02/24/2017

We do not agree with Puleo’s character-ization that there was general agreement on the issue of emails. If there was agreement, then teachers would be responding to emails today, and not waiting for a committee to ne-gotiate the topic. “What is there to negotiate?” is the refrain we hear again and again in Yon-kers.

Last week, Puleo wrote the following let-ter to YPS Superintendent Dr. Edwin Quezada, and all YFT members. It is written in “legal-ese” and concerns the City Council’s authority to negotiate and intervene in the YFT contract negotiated by the BOE and the union.

“Please note that in initiating/enforcing the CBA between the Board of Education of the City of Yonkers and the Yonkers Federa-tion of Teachers 2014-2021, under the Civil Service Law 204-a(1), ‘the appropriate legis-lative body has given approval.’ The Board of Education approved the MOA and the funds required for it by resolution passed unani-mously on Dec. 30, 2016. The Board of Edu-cation is that appropriate legislative body – no other entity. No further approval is required for the agreement to be effective.

“Any oversight the city might have over the Board of Education comes from the Yon-kers City School District Deficit Financing Act. While that act required the city and the Board of Education to enter into an inter-mu-nicipal agreement, it did not give the city, let alone the Yonkers City Council, the authority to approve or disapprove of collective bar-gaining agreements. The authority the city has under the act with respect to collecting bar-gaining agreements is the right to ‘consulta-tion on all labor contracts.’

“Unlike in other situations where the Leg-islature imposed control boards and expressly gave such boards the power to review and ap-prove and disapprove collective bargaining agreements, the Legislature did not do so in the act at issue here.

“Respectfully, the act did not give the au-thority to the city to approve and disapprove teacher collective bargaining agreements, and the city cannot give itself that power through the inter-municipal agreement, since that would exceed its authority. And, it did not. Rather, the inter-municipal agreement rec-ognizes that, at least with respect to teacher collective bargaining agreements, the power to negotiate was retained by the Board of Education, with the city having only the right to consult. They have consulted. The city’s representative was the lead negotiator for the district and the Board of Education’s attorney, who works for the Yonkers City Corporate Council, were always present. The Yonkers City Corporation Council was present when the MOA was signed by the superintendent and the YFT president.

“So, having said all that, while we are confident the Yonkers City Council will give its approval to the MOA and that a City Coun-cil vote approving the MOA would certainly be seen as a vote of confidence in the Board of Education, it is not necessary for our collec-tive bargaining agreement to have full force and effect.

“Accordingly, please immediately take all

necessary steps to put each and every provi-sion of the collective bargaining agreement into effect. Please advise when teachers will be receiving their appropriate salaries as ne-gotiated. (End of YFT letter.)

While Puleo and YFT write in the letter above that the City Council has no authority to intervene in the contract, just a few days later, Puelo emailed City Council President Liam McLaughlin the following:

“The teachers of Yonkers are asking why the Budget Committee has not brought forth the memorandum of agreement signed in late December 2016 between the Yonkers Board of Education and YFT. While other Board of Ed-ucation departments are moving forward with agreed-upon contract issues, the omission of a City Council vote is delaying the Finance De-partment from handling the salary issues for our members.”

In her email, Puleo wants the council to take action, but in her letter to members, she says the council has no power to act on the YFT contract. Puleo also refuses to address the inter-municipal agreement, which gives the City of Yonkers, and the City Council and the mayor, the power to review all YPS ex-penses – the largest of which are the costs for teachers.

“The council majority feels strongly that teachers should have to respond to parent emails, and there is little that is more impor-tant than parent interaction with teachers,” said City Council President Liam McLaugh-lin. “The current YFT leadership is more con-cerned about lashing out than about having civil discussions with the council… There is a process, where the council has to look into and review the contract and have discussions with the superintendent and BOE trustees. Based on discussions with a responsible group of leaders from YFT, which did not include Puleo or the executive board, the council has scheduled a joint Budget and Education Com-mittee meeting for Feb. 7.”

Puleo’s defiance, and unwillingness to sit down and have a discussion with council members, may be reaching a boiling point with both the council and her own members. “She has personal problems and issue that she can’t rise above from to represent her mem-bers,” said Council Majority Leader John Lar-kin, referring to the undercover Project Veritas video that showed Puleo and YFT Vice Presi-dent Paul Diamond explaining how to sweep allegations of child abuse and racial epithets against a teacher under the rug.

“Pat has never sat down and talked to us in a normal manner about some of the ques-tions and concerns we have; she was so fix-ated on her personal issues and problems that a discussion on the contract was not possible,” said Larkin. “Our concern is that, in this day and age when everyone is communicating via email, why not just do it? It’s ludicrous to have to negotiate this issue and I would think the vast majority of teachers in Yonkers are not opposed to responding to parent emails. The new IMA has changed everything and she should have known that. On Feb. 7, we will be asking administrators about the email policy.”

Editor’s note: This story could have wait-ed until the council budget meeting next week, but we reported on Puleo’s continued dissatis-faction with members of the City Council and our coverage.

YFT, EmailsContinued from Page 1

FRidAY, FEbRuARY 3, 2017 - YoNkERs RisiNG - PAGE 9

Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of New York – which includes Catholic Charities Community Services in Dutchess, Orange, Sul-livan, Westchester and Ulster counties – and ShopRite Supermarkets are teaming up once again for the archdiocesan-wide Feeding Our Neighbors campaign.

ShopRite’s 28 stores in the Hudson Valley are participating in the annual mid-winter drive to collect food and funds to replenish food pan-tries throughout the Archdiocese of New York. Participating ShopRite stores will coordinate point-of-sale collections through Sunday, Feb. 4. At checkout, shoppers will be asked to make donations of cash or non-perishable food to the annual food drive.

“We are extremely grateful for the ongo-ing support from ShopRite and their custom-ers,” said Monsignor Kevin Sullivan, executive director of Catholic Charities of the Archdio-cese of New York. “The donations they make to Feeding Our Neighbors come at a time when food pantries are struggling to keep their shelves stocked and clients fed. Both the food collected and the funds raised will go a long way in helping local food pantries and soup kitchens replenish their inventory and feed our hungry neighbors.”

This is ShopRite’s third year participating in the Feeding Our Neighbors campaign. In the first two years, ShopRite collected more than $218,000 and 24,000 pounds of non-perishable food through the generosity of donations from ShopRite customers. Last year, Feeding Our Neighbors donations from throughout the Arch-diocese of New York raised the equivalent of more than

1.5 million meals. The donations were

distributed to food pantries, soup kitchens, and other anti-poverty programs throughout the Archdiocese. This year, in recognition of their Centennial celebration, Catholic Chari-ties hopes to raise the equivalent of two million meals through the annual Feeding Our Neigh-bors campaign.

“ShopRite is extremely fortunate to have both staff and customers that embrace our com-mitment to give back to the community,” said Tom Urtz, ShopRite’s vice president of opera-tions. “After the holiday season, food pantry supplies are low and donations drop off signifi-cantly, but the need remains high. Feeding Our Neighbors helps restock the shelves at a critical time. Our stores get firmly behind this initiative and enjoy a little friendly competition to keep everyone on their toes and motivated to make this a successful campaign for the good of our friends and neighbors in need.”

The 2017 Feeding Our Neighbors cam-paign kicked-off with a press conference at ShopRite’s Greenway Plaza store in Yonkers last week. Catholic Charities and ShopRite leadership joined with elected officials, includ-ing Yonkers Mayor Mike Spano, Father Jose Felix Ortega of St. Peter’s Parish in Yonkers, and other local officials and clergy, store em-ployees and customers to launch the food drive and bring attention to issues of hunger through-out the region.

While the Feeding Our Neighbors cam-paign takes place just two weeks each year, the need to feed the hungry lasts all year long. For more information about making a donation of cash or food, contact your local food pantry or Catholic Charities office, or visit www.catholic-charitiesny.org.

The fourth annual “Quinn for the Win” three-on-three basketball tournament is com-ing up next month, on Saturday, Feb. 25 at the Yonkers Police Athletic League. To enter a team and begin fundraising, email q4twin@gmail.com.

Start stretching, running and practicing the old jump shot, because the competition is always tough. Can anyone take down the two-time champion, G-Ink?

For more information, email q4twin@gmail.com.

By Phil Foley The only reported high school basketball

action last week came out of Yonkers Montes-sori Academy. Coach Tony Negrin, thank you for the information!

In a league game Jan. 17 at YMA, the academy defeated Palisade Prep 64-38. Leading the way for YMA was Phil Ladson, who scored a game-leading 26 points. Louis Barge scored a double-double with 16 points and 11 rebounds.

On Jan. 19, YMA defeated the Biondi School 64-57. The score was tied 39-39 at the end of three quarters. However, the boys from YMA got a double-digit lead in the fourth quar-ter, then had to hold off Biondi, which was surg-ing in the end. With a minute to go, YMA made two crucial rebounds and a couple of critical foul shots to ice the game

On Jan. 26, YMA lost a heartbreaker to Alexander Hamilton High School 70-68 in a league game. YMA shot a cold 3-13 in the fourth quarter from the free throw line, and Hamilton took the lead with 0.05 seconds remaining on the scoreboard. On YMA’s last possession, the

team could not get off a good shot. Leading the way for YMA was Louis Barge with 23 points and 11 rebounds; Philip Ladson also had 17 points for YMA.

The YMA boys’ basketball record for the year is now 7-6, and 3-2 in league play. It was nice to hear from Palisades Prep Varsity Coach Sean Stahn, who reported that the team lost to Alexander H.S. Jan. 24. The score was 61-56 in overtime.

The game was tied 51-51 by Pal Prep sophomore Emmanuel Owusu sending the game into overtime. At one point in the game, Pal Prep had a nine-point lead, but found itself down by six points in the fourth quarter before tying the game. Pal Prep eventually ran out of gas in overtime and lost.

Seniors Devon Hossack and Jayden Horne had 17 points each for the Prep boys. Senior Starling Morillo also had 11 points, and Em-manuel Owusu had six points and17 rebounds.

Pal Prep is now 4-9 on the year, going 2-4 in league play. Thank you, Coach Stahn, for the information.

Catholic Charities, ShopRite Replenish Food Pantries

Pat Quinn B-Ball Tourney is Feb. 25

Yonkers High School Basketball Roundup

From left are Store Manager Jerry Galella; Msgr. Kevin Sullivan, executive director of Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of New York; Tom Urtz, vice president of operations

for ShopRite Supermarkets; Yonkers Mayor Mike Spano; Corazon Pineda Isaac, Yonkers City Council member; and Fr. Jose Felix Ortega, pastor of St. Peter’s Parish in Yonkers.

Pat Quinn, seated, with the winning team from last year’s three-on-three basketball tourna-ment. Photo by Donna Davis.

Members of the Palisades Prep High School women’s basketball team, which recently partici-pated in the Hoops for Hero Showcase at Croton Harmon.

The aftermath of the fire at 222 Lake Ave.

trial brick exterior building caught fire on the third floor, with the blaze quickly spreading to the top three floors before firefighters were able to control the fire and future damage.

The set of buildings extend from Nep-perhan Avenue to Saw Mill River Road, and Yonkers’ bravest kept the fire contained to the northwest corner of the building and away from many artist studios. However, many of the stu-dios were flooded as the fire was contained.

Firefighters battling the inferno suffered only a few minor injuries.

Yonkers Fire Department Commissioner

Robert Sweeney deemed the fire “suspicious” because of the time it began, and the fact that most of the buildings and studios were empty at the time.

The artistic movement in Yonkers is an-chored in the set of buildings and anchored by YoHo Artist Studios. While the future of many of the flooded studios and other businesses re-mains unclear, City Council Minority Leader Michael Sabatino he will do “whatever needed to make sure that this art district moves for-ward.”

Sabatino, who represents the buildings af-fected by the fire, worked last year to pass an Ar-tisan District around the carpet mill buildings, and to create an artistic experience complete with retail spaces and cafes.

Fire RipsContinued from Page 1

which he is padding his pension by now having been paid approximately 20 percent of a $500,000 grant which he applied for.”

Further, the lawsuit states that on Nov. 8, 2016, Hezi wrote: “John Darcy and Mayor Mike Spano Allegedly Engage in Pension Padding,” and “worse assertions of his incendiary and al-legedly ‘steroid-induced’ verbal and physical out-bursts against his fellow Yonkers firefighters have earned him a soiled and tarnished reputation.”

The lawsuit claims that the above statements, and others, “were defamatory statements of fact” and that Hezi gave statements to other third par-ties. The lawsuit characterizes the statements as “defamatory and libelous,” claiming they were “materially false and accused the plaintiff (Darcy) of criminal activity.”

Defamation lawsuits are usually difficult to prove to a jury, if the case even ends up going to trial. The key for the plaintiff, Darcy, will be to prove two standards held in every defamation case:

First, were Hezi’s written statements on the Yonkers Tribune website false, or published with a reckless disregard for the truth? And if they were false, did Hezi know they were false but printed them anyway?

The second standard is, what damages did

Darcy, who is now retired from the Yonkers Fire Department, incur as a result of Hezi’s comments?

Darcy’s attorney Robert Corini explained: “We believe the articles are defamatory and that’s why the lawsuit was brought. The statements written on the website are false and my client was never contacted to verify accuracy.”

Darcy is also seeking to collect per se libel damages, which come automatically as a result of the defendant’s alleged actions, and whereby Darcy does not have to prove the financial cost of the statements made against him.

Darcy’s lawsuit highlights the troubles and concerns that many in Yonkers have about the Yonkers Tribune and its editor. Not included in Darcy’s lawsuit are the horrendous comments that are posted with the stories, penned by Hezi, against innocent family members of the public figures he writes about.

These negative posts are permitted and sometimes even encouraged by the editor of the Yonkers Tribune, and remain on the website. This has resulted in an overall fear by many in Yonkers of the toxic nature of the website and a boycott by almost every elected official in the city.

The time has come for Yonkers to have a positive website, with no permission to post nega-tive comments on anyone – just the news, so that when someone searches “City of Yonkers web-sites,” they have something that reflects the city and all of its people. We hope to have some news for you on this concept in the near future.

Darcy Sues Continued from Page 1

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Residents Invited to Comment on State Budget

State Sen. George Latimer and Assembly-woman Shelley Mayer announced last week that they will be hosting a joint forum to obtain public input on the proposed 2017-18 New York State budget. The event is scheduled to take place Wednesday, Feb. 22 from 5 to 8 p.m. at the Grin-ton I. Will Library, 1500 Central Park Ave., Yon-kers, and is open to the public

“The state budget affects every member of our community, and every member of the com-munity should be heard as we deliberate and de-bate its enactment,” said Latimer.

No registration is required, and the public is invited to speak and will be heard on a first-come basis. Written testimony can be provided at the hearing, or in advance to Latimer at latimer@nysenate.gov, or Mayer at mayers@nyassembly.gov.

Oral remarks should be limited to 4 minutes per speaker.

“As I work with my colleagues to advocate for the strongest budget for Yonkers residents and all New Yorkers, it is essential that I hear from those most affected by our efforts,” said Mayer. “I encourage residents to attend, speak and reach out to express their concerns and priorities.”

Proposed in mid-January by the governor,

the state’s executive budget sets forth the gover-nor’s budget and policy priorities in adopting a spending plan for New York’s next fiscal year, which runs from April 1, 2017 to March 31, 2018. The proposal would provide $152 billion in funds to support state programs and services. The larg-est areas included in the spending plan are for education, public protection and health care, in-cluding Medicaid.

After the governor presents his proposal, each house of the Legislature adopts its own pri-orities in a separate budget proposal, and then both parties seek a compromise spending plan that can be adopted before the budget deadline.

PAGE 10 - YoNkERs RisiNG - FRidAY, FEbRuARY 3, 2017

Yonkers City Court Judge Tom� Quinones recently took the oath of office to continue serv-ing on the bench for a 10-year term�, following his elected to the post in Novem�ber. Quinones was ap-pointed last year by Mayor Mike Spano to fill a va-cancy on the court, and his one year of service on the City Court in 2016 was validated by the voters.

Quinones has m�ore than 30 years of service as a Fam�ily Court support m�agistrate, and in the New York City Office of Legal Affairs. He attended Cornell University and Hunter College, and ob-tained his Juris doctorate degree from� CUNY Law School.

Last year, Quinones was the first appointed

Yonkers City Court judge of Hispanic heritage; now he is the first elected City Court judge of His-panic heritage. More im�portantly, he serves all of the people of Yonkers in a fair and professional m�anner, living by the credo of his law school, “Law in the service of hum�an needs.”

“Serving as a Yonkers City Court judge pro-vides m�e the great opportunity to continue m�y life’s m�ission to serve others with fairness and com�passion,” he said.

Congratulations, judge – we hear m�any good things about your tim�e on the bench, but we all hope we don’t have to go to court and see you in action firsthand!

Quinones Begins 10-Year Term on City Court Bench

Yonkers City Court Judge Tom Quinones, pictured with his family, takes the oath of office.

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Designated as a REWARD SCHOOL FOR 2014, 2015 and 2016 by the New York State Department of Education

We are accepting new studentapplications for Grades K-8

INFORMATIONAL SESSIONS

• January 26, 2017 at 2:30 p.m.

• February 7, 2017 at 5:00 p.m.

• March 7, 2017 at 9:00 a.m.

260 Warburton AvenueYonkers, NY 10701

APPLICATION DEADLINE: March 29, 2017 at 4:00 p.m.

LOTTERY DATE: April 5, 2017

For an application or moreinformation please call

914-476-5070 Ext. 18

Estamos aceptandosolicitudes para los grados K-8

SESIONES INFORMATIVAS

• 26 de enero a las 2:30 p.m.

• 7 de febrero a las 5:00 p.m.

• 7 de marzo a las 9:00 a.m.

260 Warburton AvenueYonkers, NY 10701

LA FECHA LIMITE PARA ENTREGAR LASOLICITUD DEL SORTEO ES

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LA LOTERIA SE LLEVARA A CABO ELDIA 5 DE ABRIL DEL 2017

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Latimer Takes Oath;Decries Albany Hypocrisy

By Dan Murphy State Sen. George Latimer held two cer-

emonial inaugurations last week in New Ro-chelle to launch his third term in the New York State Senate. Latimer, a Rye Democrat, was sworn in at an Assembly at Jefferson Elemen-tary School on Jan. 25, and repeated the oath at the Hugh Doyle Seniors Center later that day. New Rochelle City Court Judge Susan Kettner officiated at both events.

New Rochelle City Councilman Jared Rice and State Assemblyman Steve Otis spoke at the morning school service, as students sang and participated. Otis, Mayor Noam Bramson and District Attorney Anthony Scarpino all addressed the senior’s event after lunch. City Judge Susan Kettner administered the oath.

In his addresses, Latimer spoke of the need for respect among those who disagree on policies –understanding that this is a govern-ment of laws, not a government of men – in order to deal with the problems we face. “My election does not mean you have given me a blank check,” he said. “It is I who have given you a promissory note; a promise to work hard, to listen, and to fight for your best interests.”

Latimer also commented about the recent decision by the State Senate to pass a bill that would prohibit New York City from institut-ing a 5 cent fee on the distribution of plastic bags at local stores. NYC had been debating the possibility of the plastic bag fee for years before narrowly passing the nickel fee per bag

last year. The bill was supposed to go into effect

in NYC only Feb. 15, but a bill by State Sen. Simcha Felder to prohibit plastic bag fees state-wide passed 42-18. Latimer, who voted “No” on Felder’s bill, commented on this strange ac-tion in Albany.

“Today’s action exemplifies everything that is wrong with Albany,” he said. “A rushed bill intended to overrule lawfully made deci-sions of a local government, offering positive environmental impact, for some barely dis-cernible political gain. The legislation fails to recognize that the underlying act is supported in other states and even adopted in other mu-nicipalities in our state. Government should never be petty and vindictive. And that is what this legislation is.”

While some believe the plastic bag tax is another government power grab, others say the state should not interfere with NYC legislation and that the law has merit. The bag fee is just that – a fee that goes directly to store owners. Supporters of the fee claim it will cut bag us-age by 60 percent, and save New York City $12.5 million in garbage costs.

Reminiscent of the bottle bill, the plastic bag fee is a nuisance tax, which would hope-fully get all of us to use the recyclable bags that we have in our garages, and remember to take them to the supermarket next time.

Latimer will spend the next two years try-ing, one again, to bring some sanity to Albany.

State Sen. George Latimer takes the oath of office from Judge Susan Kettner, to begin his third term.