One Brooklyn
BROOKLYN, NY, December 28, 2018: Yesterday, Brooklyn Borough President Eric L. Adams honored Brooklyn’s latest “Heroes of the Month” at a ceremony in the Courtroom of Brooklyn Borough Hall, recognizing a group of individuals helping to save lives in a variety of ways. This included October’s honorees, New York City Police Department (NYPD) Officers Charles Edwards and Damion Graham, based out of Transit District 30 in Downtown Brooklyn, for their heroic act of saving a one-year-old baby who had stopped breathing while traveling with his parents on a downtown C train. On Monday, October 8th, Officers Edwards and Graham immediately responded to the scene following a 911 call alerting to the situation, with Officer Edwards taking the child into his arms and beginning cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) while his partner, Officer Graham, assisting him and readying to transport the baby to the nearest hospital, rather than waiting for an ambulance to arrive. In honoring this heroic duo, Borough President Adams noted how as a state senator he has championed Briana’s Law, which today ensures all NYPD officers are trained in CPR.
“Cases like this are proof positive that these first responders are often in the best position to be the life savers we need,” said Borough President Adams. “Brooklynites join together in extending thanks for the quick-thinking response and compassionate effort these officers demonstrated in saving the life of this child.”
Additionally, Borough President Adams honored NYPD Deputy Inspector Joseph G. Seminara as November’s “Hero of the Month” for helping a Good Samaritan rescue a woman trapped inside a burning car on the Belt Parkway in Canarsie. At the completion of his 14-hour tour as commanding officer of the 23rd Precinct on Wednesday, November 28th, Deputy Inspector Seminara was driving home when he came upon a two-vehicle wreck with both vehicles ablaze. Some bystanders informed him that a woman was trapped in one of the cars and could not get out. As Deputy Inspector Seminara attempted to get 30-year-old Rhonda Alexander out through the driver’s door, he realized that the accident had damaged the door, and it would not open. With the flames engulfing the car, and no time to spare, Deputy Inspector Seminara got in through the passenger door, but still had difficulty getting the woman out. An anonymous motorist jumped into the fray and assisted Deputy Inspector Seminara in removing the woman from the burning car; Borough President Adams extended his thanks to both for their heroism.
“As a former precinct commander, I know the duties of managing a precinct can be wearing and draining, yet Deputy Inspector Seminara sprinted into action, knowing there was a life at stake,” said Borough President Adams. “We are proud and fortunate to have such devoted heroes among the ranks of the NYPD.”
For the month of December, Borough President Adams presented a “Hero of the Month” award to Emma’s Torch, a non-profit restaurant in Carroll Gardens that empowers refugees and survivors of human trafficking to build new lives through the culinary arts. Named after Emma Lazarus, who wrote the poem etched on the Statue of Liberty, the restaurant’s student chefs work to prepare meals while receiving eight weeks of paid apprenticeship training, English language classes, and job placement services. In 2017, 100 percent of their graduates were placed in full-time culinary jobs. Earlier this month, it was announced that the social enterprise will operate the concession program at the Brooklyn Public Library’s (BPL) Central Branch starting in February.
“We’re a nation of immigrants,” said Borough President Adams. “Emma’s Torch personifies what’s great about this country and what’s great about giving back and allowing people to find hope and prosperity in the greatest country alive.”
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