Lighten Up Brooklyn: join our Monday, Wednesday and Saturday walks and see the borough

    The Lighten Up Brooklyn campaign got into high gear last week as Brooklynites started to register and officially weigh-in at their local Lighten Up Brooklyn weigh-in stations. To find out the location of the station nearest you, log into www.brooklynbp.org or call 718-802-3777. Soon after the program’s last day on June 15th, the results will be tallied for each weigh-in station and the neighborhood that loses the most weight per-capita will be declared the winner. The prize? Winners get to appear live on NBC’s Today Show and have their neighborhood flag hoisted above Borough Hall.
    Since exercise is an important element of an effective weight reduction program, Marty is urging Brooklynites to follow his lead and walk to work on Mondays, take a vigorous lunchtime power walk on Wednesdays, and take another good, healthy walk in a nearby park on Saturday mornings. So at noon this Wednesday, Marty was joined by several dozen down-towners and Borough Hall staff as he stepped off on a fast-paced lunchtime jaunt in the Borough Hall vicinity. On Saturday morning, he was joined by Community Board 5 Chairperson Earl L. Williams, Brooklyn Parks Commissioner Julius Spiegel, and Brownsville residents in a hike around Betsey Head Park.
    Channel 4’s "Today in New York" program is covering Lighten Up Brooklyn three mornings a week. The program, which is broadcast weekdays between 5:00 and 7:00 AM, showed Marty being officially weighed-in during a live broadcast last Monday morning from the Flatbush YMCA. This morning Marty was slated to be weighed-in during a live broadcast from the Greenpoint "Y."

Praise for Lighten Up Brooklyn

Marty recently received a letter from Ann Cea, MD, President of the Medical Society of the State of New York congratulating him "on your program, `Lighten Up Brooklyn.’ You have brought a serious matter to the forefront in an effort to help your constituents enjoy healthier, longer lives." She concluded, "Thank you, on behalf of my physician colleagues throughout New York State, for your innovative program."
    Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton also endorsed the program in a recent letter to Marty: "It was a true measure of leadership when you courageously suggested Brooklynites adjust their eating habits for a healthier borough."
    And Marty has also been informed by Dr. Thomas Frieden, NYC Commissioner of Health, that his agency will use the statistical results of the Lighten Up Brooklyn campaign in its public health research and program development efforts.

Important role of Housing Authority tenant leaders recognized at BH reception

    Tenant Association presidents and tenant patrol leaders are crucial to the success of New York City public housing. To recognize their importance, last week Marty held a special reception for Brooklyn housing project tenant leaders in the Borough Hall rotunda. He told them how his own experience growing up in Brooklyn public housing made him particularly sensitive to their concerns, and he assured them that maintaining quality public housing is a high priority for Borough Hall.
    Marty also used the reception as an opportunity to give tenant leaders some useful information to pass along to residents. Michael McCormick, an official with the Internal Revenue Service who heads the agency’s community outreach efforts in the New York area, urged the tenant leaders to tell their neighbors about the federal Child Tax Credit.
    McCormick explained that prior to the 2001 tax year, taxpayers could benefit from the $600-per child tax credit could only if they had sufficient tax liability from which to deduct it. But last year Congress made the Child Tax Credit refundable. This means that even if a taxpayer earned too little to take the credit they can now receive it in a refund check. Low-income families who did not file tax returns for last year because they didn’t make enough to pay taxes can still file and receive the check. If they filed and did not claim the credit, they can still claim it by filing an amended return. On March 27th, Marty held a press conference at the Bedford-Stuyvesant Early Childhood Development Center to publicize refundability of the credit. He intends to continue telling Brooklynutes about the credit through an outreach program involving churches and community-based organizations as well as the housing authority.
    Last Wednesday, Marty met at Borough Hall with Tino Hernandez, the new Housing Authority Chairman. They discussed many of the front-burner issues that have been raised by Brooklyn’s public housing tenants.

Steven Spielberg to Marty: I’ll premiere one of my next movies in Brooklyn

Brooklynites are getting accustomed to seeing major motion pictures being produced in their neighborhoods. Now the borough will finally get to host an opening night movie premiere. When Marty’s cell phone rang yesterday, it was Sen. Clinton on the line. "I’m in front of your house," she said, "Come on down."

The "house" she was referring to was Borough Hall. And when Marty got there, he saw the Dreamworks movie "Catch Me If You Can" with Leonard DeCaprio, Tom Hanks and other stars being filmed in front of the Brooklyn Municipal Building with Borough Hall in the background. Hillary then introduced Marty to Steven Spielberg.
   Spielberg asked Marty if there was anything he could do for him. "Yes," the BP replied, "How about if you premiere a movie right here in Brooklyn - with the red carpet, the stars, the whole treatment?" The director of some of the biggest movie blockbusters of all time said yes, he’ll do it. One of the ten or so films being produced this year by his company, Dreamworks, will premiere at a Brooklyn theater. Marty said he’d be back in touch about the arrangements.

Marty speaks at Boys and Girls Town School dedication

    Last Monday, Marty attended the dedication of the new Boys and Girls Town High School located at 167 Willoughby Street. The school, which will accommodate up to 45 girls and boys, is the first stand-alone school facility operated by Boys and Girls Town of America – the organization founded over 80 years ago by the immortal Father Flanagan that has long been a leader in the treatment and care of abuse, abandoned, and neglected children. The students, aged 12 to 17, come from non-secure detention and residence facilities. Marty said that he was proud that Boys and Girls Town of America selected Brooklyn for three of their new facilities.

Prospect Park Picnic House becomes Audubon Society’s first Urban Center

    Last Friday, BP Markowitz spoke at the dedication Prospect Park’s beautifully restored Boathouse and delivered a proclamation to commemorate the occasion. While the National Audubon Society is commonly known for its bird-watching and environmental advocacy programs in rural areas, the Society now recognizes that it has an important urban mission as well. So the Boathouse has been designated as the National Audubon Society’s first Urban Center. Visitors to the Center will see bird mobiles, bird models, and bird books and can view nature videotapes. They will also be able to participate in a fascinating series of weekend activities such as an introduction to bird watching and nature crafts where you can build your own nest. For more information, click on www.prospectpark.org. or call 718-287-3400. And, finally, after many years when the Boathouse had no boats, the public will once again be able to take a boat ride on the Lullwater — now on a 15-seat canopied electric boat. . Marty told the crowd attending the ribbon-cutting ceremony, "If anyone ever tells you, `Brooklyn is for the birds,’ I want you to tell them, `Yes indeed!’ And we’re proud of it."

In brief

   Among Marty’s numerous appearances around Brooklyn last week: He greeted attendees at the SUNY Downstate Medical Center Volunteer Luncheon; addressed the Bedford-Stuyvesant Crown Heights Community Coalition Conference at the Brooklyn Marriott; spoke to the 19th Annual Meeting of Neighborhood Housing Services; and delivered remarks at the Brooklyn Women’s Bar Association dinner.
   Among his Saturday engagements was the annual Cherry Blossom Festival at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, which attracted a record crowd this year.
   On Sunday, Marty addressed the Brooklyn Public Library, National Volunteer Recognition Week luncheon at the Marriott after speaking at the Rally in Support of Israel at Seaside Park. Over 10,000 people, including Governor Pataki and numerous other elected officials, attended the Rally. Later that evening he spoke at the annual dinner dance of the the Kingsbrook Jewish Medical Center where he commended Dr. Linda Brady on her outstanding leadership of the hospital.

Marty serves as Principal for a Day at his alma mater — and then at Jamie’s too

   The Principal for a Day Program gives public figures a chance to stand-in as a public school "principal," giving them first-hand knowledge of how a school functions and a chance to get to know a school’s administrators, teachers and students. On April 19th, Marty was "Principal for a Day" — actually for part of the day — at two schools: first at Wingate High School, from which he graduated in 1962, and later on at PS 195, The Manhattan Beach School, from which Marty’s wife Jamie graduated. The citywide Principal for a Day program is sponsored by PENCIL (Public Education Needs Civic Involvement in Learning).