RED HOOK GETS A “GREEN” VEHICLE FOR ITS GREEN SPACES

On May 4, Deputy Borough President Yvonne Graham and Eugene Zeltmann, President and CEO of the New York Power Authority (NYPA), presented the gift of a Ford Th!nk electric vehicle to David Rivel, Executive Director of the City Parks Foundation (CPF), on behalf of CPF and the New York City Department of Parks & Recreation. The vehicle will be used in Red Hook as part of the “Catalyst for Neighborhood Parks” initiative, a $25 million public/private partnership focusing intensive resources in 16 New York City parks. Throughout the next year, the environmentally-friendly, rechargeable vehicle will be used to increase the amount and variety of activities at the Red Hook Park and Recreation Area and at Coffey Park, and to engage neighborhood youth in park programs. “Red Hook needs a vehicle to help get its local parks into the fast lane," said Marty. "With this Th!nk vehicle, the Red Hook Catalyst Initiative will have better access to local residents and businesses, in the most energy-efficient and cost-efficient way possible.”

ECUADOR AND BROOKLYN UNITE IN SOLIDARITY FOR OIL CLEAN-UP

On May 6, tribal leaders from Ecuador’s Amazon jungle traveled to Brooklyn’s Borough Hall to declare solidarity with their legal battle to clean up an oil disaster larger than that of the 1989 Exxon Valdez in Alaska. Marty was joined on the Borough Hall steps by Humberto Piaguaje, President of the Secoya Nation; Manuela Ima, a leader of the Huaroni tribe; and Luis Yanza, president of the Amazon Defense Front. Ecuadorian tribes have been engaged in a legal struggle with ChevronTexaco for more than a decade to remediate the dumping of 18.5 billion gallons of oil - more than 150% larger than the Valdez incident - on their land in open waste pits from 1971 to 1992. Marty drew parallels between the Ecuadorians’ struggle and the lawsuit filed in January by Brooklyn and Queens residents and groups against ExxonMobil, ChevronTexaco and others under the Clean Water Act to clean up an oil spill under Newtown Creek (which divides western Brooklyn and Queens) that has leaked 17 million gallons of oil. “Whether you’re in Brooklyn or the Ecuadorian Amazon,” Marty demanded, “you’ve got to clean up your act!”

MARTY POPS THE CORK AT NEW ZEALAND WINE TASTING

On May 6, Brooklynites gathered at the Botanic Garden’s lush Palm House to sample the fine wines of New Zealand at the 12th Annual International Wine Tasting. Proceeds from the event went to Camp Brooklyn, Marty’s program to send underprivileged kids to summer camp, and many parallels were drawn between Brooklyn, New York, and the tiny hilltop town of Brooklyn, New Zealand.

BROOKLYN KICKS OFF NATIONAL “COVER THE UNINSURED” WEEK

On May 10, Brooklyn marked the beginning of national “Cover the Uninsured Week” with an announcement of the details of the new Brooklyn HealthWorks plan at a Borough Hall press conference. “Cover the Uninsured Week” featured events across the country May 10-16 highlighting the 44 million Americans without health insurance. Marty detailed the recently launched Brooklyn HealthWorks plan, which makes affordable health insurance available to the borough’s small businesses and their employees. There are an estimated 700,000 uninsured Brooklynites. “In Brooklyn, we are proud to have some of the country's finest hospitals, which offer world-class care to Brooklynites,” said Marty. “And we are proud to have the health care industry as our borough's largest employer. But really, if Brooklynites lack the health insurance they need to access our great care, what good is it all?”

BROOKLYN’S WORKFORCE 1 CAREER CENTER - NOW HIRING!

On May 12, Marty joined Mayor Bloomberg and Department of Small Business Services Commissioner Robert Walsh at a ribbon-cutting for Brooklyn’s Workforce 1 Career Center at 9 Bond Street near the Fulton Mall. Workforce 1 is the City’s new one-stop job center for both employees seeing work and businesses looking to hire. The center offers job training, resume assistance, space for job fairs and other employment services. Marty hailed the businesses in the new Atlantic Terminal Shopping Center - including Target, Daffy’s and Chuck E.Cheese - that are working with Workforce 1 to hire up to 800 employees from the local area. “I think we need to coin a new phrase for Workforce 1 and businesses who hire within their Brooklyn communities - YIMBY: Yes, in my backyard!” said Marty. The City will also be hiring a consultant to facilitate local hiring at the new Steiner Studios in the Brooklyn Navy Yard, especially from the nearby Whitman, Ingersoll and Farragut public-housing complexes.

MARTY JOINS CALL FOR ACCOUNTABILITY AT DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

On May 13, Marty joined Assemblyman James Brennan, State Senator Eric Schneiderman, and other leaders at a press conference on the steps of Tweed Courthouse to voice his support for a State bill that would increase accountability within the New York City Department of Education to parents, workers, and the public. “Accountability, checks and balances, and openness are the keys to success if we want to keep politics out of our educational system. Our children and parents deserve nothing less,” said Marty. The bill would require that all non-competitive contracts above a certain amount be voted on by the Department of Education; set mandatory terms for members of the Panel on Educational Policy; and mandate attendance of Education Department officials at regional parent council meetings.

NOSTRAND AVENUE RENAMED FOR HAITIAN REVOLUTIONARY HERO

On May 13, Marty joined Brooklyn elected officials and Haitian diplomats at the public unveiling of a street sign to co-name portions of Nostrand Avenue in Flatbush in honor of Toussaint L’Ouverture, the Haitian revolutionary hero. Haiti’s Ambassador to the United States, Raymond Joseph, and the new Haitian Counsel General, Felix Augustin, were in attendance at the event, which was a highlight of Haiti’s bicentennial celebration in New York City. The stretch of Nostrand Avenue that will be co-named Toussaint L’Ouverture Boulevard is home to many Haitians. "Now all who travel on or live near Toussaint L’Ouverture Boulevard will know that Brooklyn is as proud as can be of its Haitian community and the powerful history this great revolutionary hero symbolizes,” said Marty, “and that Brooklyn is the Haitian capital of America."

“LIGHTEN UP BROOKLYN” SEES SOME SLIMMING ACTION

On May 15 & 16, Marty hosted the third annual “Lighten Up Brooklyn” weight-loss campaign at five locations around the borough. In addition to four free “Spring Training Camps,” which included free fitness classes, health screenings and weigh-ins, Marty led the second annual KidsWalk for Health, organized by the AppleCare Foundation to increase health awareness among New York City youth. The goal of “Lighten Up Brooklyn” is to raise public awareness about the benefits of achieving and maintaining a healthy weight, and to educate kids and parents that positive attitudes toward exercise and eating right start in childhood. “As Brooklyn’s economic health improves, Brooklynites need to follow suit and improve their physical health,” said Marty. “Maintaining a weight that works for you and exercising regularly is the first step toward making all Brooklynites healthy, wealthy and wise.”

BROOKLYN MOURNS

Henry Everett, longtime philanthropist and City University of New York supporter. Henry and Edith, his wife of 54 years, co-founded the Everett Public Service Internship Program in 1989 to encourage students to work in the public sector, as well as the Children’s Adventure Garden in the New York Botanical Garden. He is in our thoughts.

Ofelia Sealey Johnson was a devoted and responsible leader at the Department of Education for 30 years, and she imparted her wisdom to family, friends and all who knew her. She was a great Brooklynite, and will be missed.