August in Brooklyn, Summers End

It is finally August and summer has taken it’s grip on Brooklyn. This morning (7.30am) it was close to 90 degrees with no breeze and lots of humidity. The summer locusts are making their noises.

Coney Island Philly was out early this morning. He is nearing 85 and has been a fixture of Coney Island for half a century. Philly loves to video tape the people on the boardwalk (especially pretty girls). He is almost blind now. Even with that he manages to get himself up nearly every day early and travel 40 blocks to the beach. Steve the owner of the Grill House takes special care of Philly. He helps him with all his doctors appointments and banking needs.

Religion plays a big part of summer events in Brooklyn. Often the boardwalk is filled with people sharing Christ in one form or another. Churches from around the country visit NYC bringing choirs and kids who sing or share Christ. Sometimes the Choirs are amazing. One year we had a choir come from somewhere and they were great. My memory of that was of Jeannine who stood for nearly two hours quietly enjoying the music with her foot tapping. Her face was so peaceful.

This week the Russian churches who often send people to the Brighton area of the boardwalk to share Christ, put on a special play with kids as actors. They drew quite a crowd. Since it was all in Russian I had no clue what they were talking about as they sang and chanted about the story of the cross.

Down further from this play was the Boardwalk Disco near Gregory and Paul’s. People love to dance and the huge speakers and music always draw a crowd.

The Street Feasts that surround the Catholic Churches are another powerful religious symbol in Brooklyn during the summer months. Most of them bring an array of great Italian Specialties. On my block is one of the few remaining Italian Social Clubs. Each summer they hold a feast to dedicate the Saint that watches over the club. They clean up the place weeks before the feast and then close the block so that the feast can happen uninterrupted by cars. Saturday night the priest comes from the local Catholic Church to bless the club and the statue of the patron saint. It is a full communion service in the middle of the street. The next day is the party and then they march the Saint back to church for safe keeping until next year. This is one of the few times when the wives are allowed inside of the club.

Down the block from the club is a small corner church. Yesterday I noticed two hearses outside the church. There were a steady flow of people coming in and out. This morning they were back. So I stopped and asked what had happened. A family from the church was returning from a Florida vacation and was involved in a crash which killed the wife and 4 year old child instantly. The father and son were left behind and the grandmother was in critical condition. There was an instant shock when I heard this. Memories of life passed so quickly. Christianity takes on a new meaning at that point

Life is unpredictable and short. Never let a moment go by without making the most of it.

Have a wonderful summer. Barre.

Coney Island Or Not

Today is the day the city council votes on what the future of Coney Island will look like. I am writing this because Coney is a national symbol.

For 3 or more years Mayor Bloomberg's team has been preparing a renewal plan for Coney Island. This plan has included many public meetings as well as meetings with industry specialists. As with anything the mayor of any city would present, this plan has it's critics.

Currently Thor Equities owns most of the property under consideration. Deno's wonder wheel park is still owned by the original family. There are about 6 or 7 other owners who would play minor rolls in this process. The city wants to make most of the current amusement area City Park Land which would retain it forever for New Yorkers and not for developers. You can imagine what Thor (Joe Sitt) thinks about this. The city offered him a generous offer for his land, but he wants nearly double what he paid for it which is nearly triple what it is worth with the current zoning. (Joe and his sidekick Sam Sabin will not come onto the boardwalk without body guards. How funny.) In the power struggle against the city, Joe has rendered many once viable entertainment areas, empty or in one case he built a giant flee market. (The city got back at him for this and made him rebuild the structures because it did not meet severe hurricane regulations.).

Several weeks ago when a public meeting on this subject was held at the city council, the presentation from the Mayor's team was seemingly trashed by the city council members. Unions and Acorn also gave their opinions which became hard to imagine since the unions and the poor people would get tons of jobs. After that meeting (9am to 6pm with no breaks for anything) I was sure that Coney would be empty lots for about the next 10 years or more. The CIDC (the mayors team) pulled it together meeting most of the objections. The committee for this project from the City Council approved this plan with a few changes. Now today the plan will go before the entire city council.

If the plan is approved the Grill House where I work will eventually come down. Empty lots and old structures will disappear and Coney Island will become a spectacular place. I can only imagine what that would mean to me being only 5 minutes from Coney by bicycle.

I remember when Lockport got it's urban renewal. That was the end of a wonderful small upstate town. It has never been the same place. I watched as corporations came to Lockport and exercised their better ideas. To that end, big stores and malls came and went leaving the town in dismal shape. Lately (from 1965 to 2009) Downtown is looking better. The Library is beautiful, old churches are renewed and there are some businesses starting to come back.

Times Square changed dramatically and boosted the cities revenue. Coney Island renewal could be a welcomed addition to the city. Regardless of what they do, people still flock the beaches and amusements. Tourists have discovered this area and love it. More news when it becomes available.

Update: 7-30-09 The City Council voted for the CICD Renewal Program - Coney Here We Come!

Barre

A Sad Day

Now it has been a little over a week since our community experienced a real tragedy. This is text from the daily news who says it better than I can:

As hundreds of mourners bid farewell Tuesday to a Brooklyn teen who died mysteriously after a brawl, police arrested four people - including a 42-year-old father and his sons - for their role in the scuffle.
Friends and relatives packed a Cobble Hill funeral home to pay their respects to 17-year-old Sharif Abdallah, who collapsed and died after defending his friend against bullies in Prospect Park.
"People loved my son and were touched by this tragedy," the teen's grieving father, Tony, 48, a Metropolitan Transportation Authority general superintendent of support operations, said Tuesday night.
"I raised him for 17 years, wanted to mold him, shape him into a man," he said. "All of that took 17 years, and in all of two minutes they took him away. That's the most tragic thing."

It was a Saturday evening. Eric was driving the 68 bus in Brooklyn which ends at prospect park. I was riding the bus with him. When we got to the park he noticed a group of people gathered and flowers all over the place. I was given the task to see what was going on.

There at the entrance of the park was a makeshift memorial made in memory of this young person. He was only 17 years old. As a person with little children under my care, it really struck me how brutal this life can be. To Eric's surprise, I returned to the bus in tears. Not everyday in Brooklyn is wonderful. There are days when life is very harsh.

The next day I went back to take a closer look at what was there. There were photos of his life cut short, candles, packs of Newports and a board with thoughts of people who visited this memorial. Next to the flowers was his skate board.

To be the parents of this child has to be very hard. The years of giving your life to your child in hopes that someday they will do well and add good things to the world that we live in freezes at that moment. Dreams are shattered. Love is paralyzed. One becomes numb with sadness and emptiness.

Many of the notes were from friends who will be changed forever by this event. Although for them it might become someday a distant memory, it will always hang in the back of ones mind releasing itself from time to time like an electric shock.

Like a flower that will eventually wither, so life eventually ends. These events need to warn us not to become so involved with life's demands that we forget to spend time with those that we love and Cherish. In a moments notice all can change and there is no retreat from death.

Coney Island Polar Bears New Years 2009

On January 1, 2009 Coney Island was the site of the annual Polar Bear Club Swim. They do this every week during the winter months on Sunday at 1pm. That is every week, regardless of weather, like in the rain, snow, and sometimes freezing cold. One New Years Day, the rest of the nuts from NYC and surrounding areas come to Coney Island. This year there were nearly 2000 participants and on lookers. The famous Grill House was open for that one day. Needless to say, we sold tons of hot dogs and hot coffee. It was about 22 degrees, sunny and windy on the beach. This was good and bad. Good because the colder it is outside the warmer the water feels. The sun was a bright idea, adding slightly to the comfort of the individuals swimming. However, while you were waiting for the release to go into the water, you were freezing and when you got out your body was numb and the wind was blowing the sand like needles into your skin.

I think everyone had a wonderful time. However, there was a reminder for all, that things were changing in Coney Island. Thor Equities, who owns the land where all the amusement parks are has decided to play hard ball with the city of New York. They posted huge signs on all the buildings that these stores are up for rent. This was done without the knowledge of people who own the actual structures. He has also made it known that the rents for these facilities will be more than double the previous year. That means whoever rents the stores will have no chance in making a reasonable profit. And if there are any bad weekends during the summer, then there would be a loss.

When Thor Equities bought this property, their President believed that even with top prices paid for the properties, he would be able to build high rise apartments and do away with the Amusement Parks. However, the city will not budge on the zoning of these properties and now threatens to seize the property under emanate domain.

Coney Island is where millions of people come in the summer months to relax and enjoy the beach. They have for decades enjoyed the amusements that bordered the beach. Coney Island has been a destination of people all over the world. Today it is in need of renovation. It has the potential of being a world renowned recreation area. Two days ago Astroland removed the famous Rocket Ship from the top of Gregory and Paul’s food stand. Paul, who has owned this establishment for 58 years, had tears in his eyes when they lifted the Ship off his building.

There seems to be a tension in America today. Our pastor in his sermon two weeks ago boldly proclaimed that America has fallen prey to greed. Coney Island has become a new symbol of the tension between greed and good sense. Making (or stealing) money has become more important than the well being of the people in our country.

We have sent our best assets overseas in hopes that the share holders of our Corporations can see amazingly high profits. Our government has taken steps to bail out people who have become wealthy stealing from others.

On 911 when my son and I stood looking at the World Trade Center drop to its knees, I knew that this was going to bankrupt us. “God Bless America” was our slogan on all the highway signs. Some ministers were bold enough to call this a warning sign. Maybe we should have made the signs “Give your hearts back to God”. We also think that God Bless American means that we are entitled to the world’s resources. It may be possible that God may have to break our pride and bring us to our knees in order to pour out his blessing on us. We shall see.

Many Blessings for this New Year.

Barre.

A Brooklyn Christmas

There is no place in the world like Dyker Heights, Brooklyn to see Christmas lights. This being an old Italian neighborhood, it reflects all the wonders of Italian culture. Street after street is lined with lavish Christmas decorations. One street, 84th between 11 & 12th avenues, is by far the most amazing block of all. Cars line up for a 30 to 45 minute wait just to go to up this block. On one of my walks I ventured down this block. It was just about night with the light beginning to sparkle. One home owner who had just moved onto this block did not realize that between thanksgiving and new years his block would be a virtual parking lot. This was his first year to try and match what his neighbor had put up. He had erected a fully animated Ferris wheel in the Christmas theme with lights surrounding. This might seem like a lot, but his neighbor had erected nearly 150 lite wooden soldiers along with a driveway adorned in angels with a magnificent chair that would seat a real Santa Claus. The final home at the end of this block was adorned with a huge Santa and Wooden soldiers.

People who drive by these homes are amazed at the wonder of the lights and decorations. This has been going on since I lived in Brooklyn, for nearly 30 years. There are many stories as to how this all got started. One story, regarding the largest display centers around a child that died earlier in the year and the parents being without their child on the following Christmas took to making their amazing display. Of all the holidays that we Americans celebrate during the year, Christmas holds a lot of emotions. Like Thanksgiving, it is another family day but adds to it the dimension of gift giving. There are many categories of gift giving. We give gifts to some people because we love them, like our children and significant others. Others are on our obligation list. In some cases we have no clue what to buy a person and often get the wrong gift as is demonstrated when the person opens their present with no emotion. My friend collects gifts that she calls “forward gifts”… that will eventually be given in their original state to others.

This year two things have changed my gift giving patterns. Number one – I am broke. Number two – Corporate American has truly shown its cards with all the greed over this past year. The first reason is largely due to the second reason. This situation has given me a good excuse to review what Christmas is really all about. I have enjoyed being in Church several times a week to quietly pray for my life and those around me. I have come to appreciate what it means to “Not be of this world”. Again, American corporate businesses are trying once again to distort Christmas. Bigger and bolder sales, Non-ending emails on the latest and greatest Christmas gifts. This year, I feel like all of this promotion really smells.

If you look around my house, you will find that the longest lasting gifts are the ones people made for me. One is a simple cross my granddaughter created several years ago. One is a book with notes of encouragement from a Bible Study group I taught in the late ‘80’s. What wonderful memories they bring. The gift of Love from our hearts is worth a lot to the recipient. Hopefully in this difficult economic time we can take advantage of what has happened and grow closer to Christ.

I wish everyone a Merry Christmas.

Barre

We are a week and 2 days from Christmas. Yesterday it was 62 degrees out and today it snowed. Each day that it is reasonable nice out, meaning that it is above 20 degrees and not pouring rain, I take a walk. On one walk I go towards Coney Island. The nice part about this walk is that when you get there, you see the ocean and feel the salt air. It is very relaxing.

Unlike my walk along the Hudson river and under the Verrazano Bridge, this walk is mostly on the streets. The attached picture is at Cropsey and Neptune Avenues looking towards the parachute drop. This is a very interesting picture for many reasons. One is that it portrays the intensity of the city with all the wires and buildings and cars. There is a sort of entanglement that is felt. This corner is two blocks from the Boardwalk. Now if you look very closely there is, in the midst of this entanglement an oasis. In the very center of this picture is a Church. This church is a Roman Catholic Church. I happened to visit this church during the early summer months and was very surprised at how many people attended this church. There was a rich balance ethnically and economically. The Priest in charge is a very down to earth man who each week gives a very simple message of hope and a challenge to dedicate ones life to Christ. To my surprise this church seemed to be very evangelical. Most every hymn we sang was of protestant origin. Inside the church was a beautiful sanctuary done in with Spanish influences. There is an amazing quietness there. At that point I started popping in on Sundays before I went to work on the boardwalk. But no more than 5 or so weeks past and the Priest went on vacation and was replaced by a foreign priest from Jamaica that I could not understand. So I stopped.

Seven months past and I again began passing this church on my newly established daily walk. So one day I opened the front door (it was unlocked) and walked in to sit and be quiet. The morning communion service was just starting so I joined the 10 people and received communion. How absolutely wonderful I felt after this refreshing meal. I prayed for a while and continued to the boardwalk. The next day I was back for more.

Although there are only 10 older people during the week at this 8am service, on Sundays there are about 600 people attending.

People today are very stressed with life. The greedy American corporations and our leaders have led our country down a pretty difficult path. I don’t know about you, but the most wonderful place to be is the House of the Lord. No matter what is happening in the world outside, inside is always protected by God’s presence. There is a young mother that works at one of the businesses I program for. She makes virtually nothing and has the total responsibility of caring for her child. On Friday night after I finish my work I offer her a ride home. Last week I asked her if she was feeling stressed by all that was going on. Without hesitation she replied, “I am not of this world!”. How simple is that thought.

Halfway along my walk to Coney Island is a house that is set back from the street. There are several trees in the yard and on one tree stump is a beautiful figurine. A little Tinkerbelle as it were is laying exhausted from life’s challenges. Thank God for the Christ’s Church that offers hope in the midst of our exhaustion.

Many Blessings,
Barre.

Brooklyn Bus Driver Killed

Last Wednesday a NYC bus driver was stabbed to death while driving his bus in Brooklyn. My Godson, Eric was just about to start his route when this event happened. Eric drives in the same area of Brooklyn where this incident took place. Needless to say we were very disturbed at this event.

The buses in NYC are a major means of transportation. Taking a bus is very different than taking the Subway. Buses are much more personal than trains and people are more likely to engage in conversations with strangers on a bus than on a train. On a bus it is very easy to beat a fare. Fare beaters often enter by the back of the bus. Some fare beaters pass the driver and ask to be let on and many drivers will let that happen. Some fare beaters after they are on will ask for a transfer so as to not have to beg a second driver for a free ride. For a bus driver it is one thing to sneak on a bus without paying for a fare, but a far different thing to sneak on and then want a transfer. There are some people whose brains don’t calculate the fact that they are not entitled to a transfer.

I often ride the bus with Eric and there isn’t a run that he drives without several people who get on the bus for free. Saturday evening for example one guy got on with no less than 12 zero balance fare cards, which is another trick. Eric wanting to get going just told him to go ahead. For a while I used to categorize the fare beaters and count them so as to see what kind of patterns would develop.

On Wednesday a young man of 21 entered the bus through the back door. He went a few stops and got off through the front door. He asked the bus driver for a transfer and the driver hesitated but gave the kid the transfer. The young man punched him in the head and started to get off the bus. Then the young man turned around and stabbed the bus driver multiple times, at which point the man fled on foot and the bus driver slumped over his wheel and died there on the bus. The driver of the bus that had pulled up behind him got off her bus to see what was going on. She freaked out seeing the sight of the driver slumped over the wheel with his guts hanging out. The police arrived first and pulled the driver from the seat and took him to the hospital in their car. He was DOA.

The shock of this horrible event sent waves throughout our city. Every bus changed it Outside Title to the B46 in honor and respect of their fellow bus driver. Eric and his family were very shaken by this event. By the end of the week all were exhausted from thinking about whether there would be copy cat events. Eric was especially worried, wondering whether he would make it home from work without incident. In all of our minds was what affect it would have on his 2 year old son if he did not come home after work because of a violent event.

A day after the crime was committed the man was arrested. His drug supplier had turned him in. The man had a long history of violent crimes and was currently on probation.

New Yorkers viewed this differently than when a policeman or firefighter was killed in the line of duty. It is not the duty of a bus driver to be killed over a fare. There was a sense of enragement over this event and a deep sadness that his family would be forever affected. The funeral viewing is today. The MTA has arranged special buses to take its employees to the funeral home and again tomorrow for the actual funeral.

Not everyday is bright and sunny here in Brooklyn.


Pictures: 1. Barre on the B15 2. Eric on the B61 3. Barre And Little Eric at the beginning of the B46, the line where on which the bus driver was killed.