Tuesday, June 11, 2013
Bronx News (Bxnews.net): No Seniors Allowed
Bronx News (Bxnews.net): No Seniors Allowed: Seniors Booted from Local McDonald's By David Greene BRONX NEW YORK, JUNE11-They have traded in their Big Macs for golden chicken nu...
No Seniors Allowed
Seniors Booted from Local McDonald's
By David Greene
BRONX NEW YORK, JUNE11-They have traded in their Big Macs for golden chicken nuggets as a group of about a dozen seniors have been tossed from a Norwood McDonald's, and asked to never return.
The group has been meeting at the E. 204 Street location of the hamburger chain for the last two-years and claim they have been harassed by workers from the very beginning.
According to senior Norman Fisher, who claims the group has been singled out by one manager and most recently a security guard, who are enforcing the stores 20-minute policy for tables.
Fisher claimed, "You have some coffee and some apple pie, you're still entitled to go up after 20-minutes and get a hamburger and some french fries and later have a coffee," adding that the seniors usually spend about two-hours in a booth.
The angry senior continued, "She's actually come up and said, 'You don't have the right to sit here, we need the seats,' meanwhile, we have a tray of food in front of us."
According to both sides, offices have been called to McDonald's several times, when after an April 18 incident, when staff members informed the police that the group was no longer welcomed at McDonald's.
An angry Fisher continued, "You have people coming in here dealing drugs and drinking in this place and the guard picks on us... the sign should read no seniors allowed."
The group maintains that they had filed a complaint with the McDonald's corporate headquarters just two-hours before the final confrontation.
Fisher claimed he had also filed a complaint with the Commission for Human Rights.
One manager at the fast food giant, stated, "They've been disturbing a lot of people since they've been coming here."
A second manager claimed the barring of the group was not just because seniors stayed beyond 20-minutes or a claim made by one customer that members panhandle, but stated, "It wasn't just that, it was a lot of stuff."
The group of seniors have since relocated across the street, where the manager of Kennedy Fried Chicken has welcomed the group's business.
Keisha, a spokeswoman with the McDonald's corporate office stated, "We actually don't know what's going on at the local store."
Asked about the 20-minute seating policy, Keisha responded, "That's actually not a national policy, that's the store's decision because 85 percent of our stores are franchised-owned and operated and it may be that owner's decision to set that 20-minute policy at that store."
The spokeswoman also confirmed that it was the individual owners of the McDonald's at both the Jerome Avenue and E. 204 Street locations, who recently banned the placement of free local newspapers.
Repeated attempts to contact the franchise owner of the E. 204 Street location were unsuccessful.
By David Greene
BRONX NEW YORK, JUNE11-They have traded in their Big Macs for golden chicken nuggets as a group of about a dozen seniors have been tossed from a Norwood McDonald's, and asked to never return.
The group has been meeting at the E. 204 Street location of the hamburger chain for the last two-years and claim they have been harassed by workers from the very beginning.
According to senior Norman Fisher, who claims the group has been singled out by one manager and most recently a security guard, who are enforcing the stores 20-minute policy for tables.
Fisher claimed, "You have some coffee and some apple pie, you're still entitled to go up after 20-minutes and get a hamburger and some french fries and later have a coffee," adding that the seniors usually spend about two-hours in a booth.
The angry senior continued, "She's actually come up and said, 'You don't have the right to sit here, we need the seats,' meanwhile, we have a tray of food in front of us."
According to both sides, offices have been called to McDonald's several times, when after an April 18 incident, when staff members informed the police that the group was no longer welcomed at McDonald's.
An angry Fisher continued, "You have people coming in here dealing drugs and drinking in this place and the guard picks on us... the sign should read no seniors allowed."
The group maintains that they had filed a complaint with the McDonald's corporate headquarters just two-hours before the final confrontation.
Fisher claimed he had also filed a complaint with the Commission for Human Rights.
One manager at the fast food giant, stated, "They've been disturbing a lot of people since they've been coming here."
A second manager claimed the barring of the group was not just because seniors stayed beyond 20-minutes or a claim made by one customer that members panhandle, but stated, "It wasn't just that, it was a lot of stuff."
The group of seniors have since relocated across the street, where the manager of Kennedy Fried Chicken has welcomed the group's business.
Keisha, a spokeswoman with the McDonald's corporate office stated, "We actually don't know what's going on at the local store."
Asked about the 20-minute seating policy, Keisha responded, "That's actually not a national policy, that's the store's decision because 85 percent of our stores are franchised-owned and operated and it may be that owner's decision to set that 20-minute policy at that store."
The spokeswoman also confirmed that it was the individual owners of the McDonald's at both the Jerome Avenue and E. 204 Street locations, who recently banned the placement of free local newspapers.
Repeated attempts to contact the franchise owner of the E. 204 Street location were unsuccessful.
Crash? What Crash?
BRONX NEW YORK, JUNE11- Members of the NYPD Highway Patrol and the New York State Police were on the scene of a serious crash reported sometime before 6 a.m., on June 7.
A dump truck left the northbound I-95 roadway, just passed the Bronx border at Pelham Manor and struck a tree. However, repeated calls to the NYPD, FDNY, Pelham Manor Police Department, the New York State Police as well as the Westchester County Police Department all produced the same response and none of the agencies have any record of the incident. The owner of the truck, AMV Trucking of Hillside, NJ., would only say that the accident was not fatal. No other information was available at this time.
A dump truck left the northbound I-95 roadway, just passed the Bronx border at Pelham Manor and struck a tree. However, repeated calls to the NYPD, FDNY, Pelham Manor Police Department, the New York State Police as well as the Westchester County Police Department all produced the same response and none of the agencies have any record of the incident. The owner of the truck, AMV Trucking of Hillside, NJ., would only say that the accident was not fatal. No other information was available at this time.
Monday, June 10, 2013
Bronx News (Bxnews.net): Spellman Honors Student Athletes
Bronx News (Bxnews.net): Spellman Honors Student Athletes: BRONX, NEW YORK, JUNE 10- Cardinal Spellman High School recognized the contributions of over 325 student athletes at the Block "S&qu...
Spellman Honors Student Athletes
BRONX, NEW YORK, JUNE 10- Cardinal Spellman High School recognized the contributions of over 325 student athletes at the Block "S" awards dinner held at the school.
President of Cardinal Spellman, Rev. Trevor Nicholls, and Mr. Daniel O'Keefe, Principal, welcomed everyone in attendance, and acknowledged the hard work and dedication of the coaches in developing the athletic talents of the students. Mr. O'Keefe praised the athletes for developing concepts of self-discipline, motivation, and responsibility as Spellman "Pilots."
The evening included the induction into the Spellman Hall of Fame of three longtime supporters of Spellman athletics: Linda Mazzo, Chairperson of the Foreign Language Department, and Daniel and Gloria (Perri) O'Connell of the Class of 1972. For over 20 years, Linda Mazzo was the Varsity Cheerleading Coach at Spellman, whose teams won many awards in competitions while also performing at numerous school events. Daniel O'Connell (currently on the school's Board of Trustees) played Baseball and Football as a Spellman student, while his wife Gloria was a member of the Cheerleading squad. The O'Connells have been generous donors to Cardinal Spellman High School and its athletic programs over the years.
The night also featured the presentation of the Schiazza "S", which is given to students who have received eight or more varsity letters over their four year high school career. It is named in honor of the late Salvatore Schiazza, who served at the school as Athletic Director, Moderator of the Alumni Association, and member of the Board of Trustees. Seniors Felicia Cantine, Amanda McKenna and Danielle McKenna were recipients of the 2013 Schiazza "S."
Scholar-Athletes, recognized for their excellence in both athletics and academics, were Yugi Paul, (attending St. John's University in September), Chance Peavy (Ithaca), Angelique Arroyo (Syracuse), and Michele Mack (Lehman). Athletes of the Year were Colleen Kallop and Kyle Benjamin. The following received the Most Valuable Player award in their respective sports: Baseball: Joseph Colon and Nick Padilla; Boys' Basketball: Dominic Arena and Anthony Williams; Girls' Basketball: Maria Backman; Bowling: Felicia Cantine and Thomas Montilli; Football: Jalen Miller; Boys' Soccer: Malik Cameron; Girls' Soccer: Rebecca D'Aloia; Cheerleading: Kaliyah Burris; Softball: Angelique Arroyo; Boys' Indoor Track: Lamar Gillespie; Boys' Outdoor Track: Luther Gillespie; Girls' Indoor Track: Luana Bowers; Girls' Outdoor Track: Felicia Cantine; Field: Andrea Amorosa; Boys' Cross-Country: Danny Mota; Girls' Cross-Country: Rebecca Mota and Tori Graves Parker; Boys' Volleyball: Jason Darko and Lloydell McCalla; Girls' Volleyball: Colleen Kallop; Girls' Lacrosse: Jioni Mehciz and Caterina Velazquez, and Boys' Lacrosse: Kyle Phillips.
Bronx News (Bxnews.net): Fordham Athletic Dir. Honored
Bronx News (Bxnews.net): Fordham Athletic Dir. Honored: BRONX, NEW YORK, JUNE 10- Long time former Fordham Athletic Director Frank McLaughlin was among the honorees at the inaugural Irish Spo...
Fordham Athletic Dir. Honored
BRONX, NEW YORK, JUNE 10- Long time former Fordham Athletic Director Frank McLaughlin was among the honorees at the inaugural Irish Sports 50 Awards presented by the Irish Voice newspaper on June 6 at the beautiful American Irish Historical Society on Fifth Avenue in New York City.
They came from California, Dallas, Ireland, and of course, “Frankie from the Bronx,” McLaughlin’s longtime calling card. Sports and business figures from all the major U.S sports were present. Tim Brosnan, Executive Vice President of Major League Baseball, was the keynote speaker, describing the Irish journey to success in sports as an example for every immigrant community.
It has been a year filled with honors for the Athletic Director Emeritus, beginning with his induction into the Fordham Athletics Hall of Fame on January 26. He will be inducted into the New England Basketball Hall of Fame on June 22.
Mark Tuohey (Fordham Law ’73), a member of the Fordham board of trustees, and Fordham alumnus Bill Smith, were also among the honorees. McLaughlin was joined by his wife Susan, and daughters Tara, Heather, and Coleen.
Born and bred in the Bronx, McLaughlin spent 27 years as Fordham’s Athletic Director before being promoted to associate vice president of student affairs for athletic alumni relations and external affairs. During his tenure as Athletic Director, Fordham’s teams won a combined 26 conference championships while its student-athletes have maintained tremendous graduation rates. He is a long time resident of Briarcliff Manor, NY.
Back to Brosnan, who pointed out that our forefathers came with nothing and that sport was one of the first arenas in America where Irish were welcome.
At a time when “No Irish Need Apply” signs were still being hung out the Irish were making it in baseball and other sports he pointed out. McLaughlin’s sport, of course, was basketball, and he was a bona fide star at Fordham, where he captained the basketball team before becoming the assistant coach in 1970-71, helping the team to a 26-3 record and an NCAA Tournament appearance.
Other ethnic groups would follow the same path and African Americans would eventually break the barrier too.
Sports were one of the first places that Irish were accepted he said. It was an invaluable lesson for other groups who faced discrimination too.
Now, Brosnan pointed out, sports is open to all “If you have the skill you can play it doesn't matter where you came from.”
It is true. The first thing the child of immigrants will do, whether Irish or these days Hispanic, is grab a bat or a ball and try to compete on the only truly level playing field around -- sports.
Deputy Consul of Ireland Peter Ryan talked about the healing power of sport when it came to the fallout from Hurricane Sandy in the Rockaways.
Some of Ireland’s top athletes, members of the Gaelic Players Association came on their own time to America and rebuilt the sports gymnasium at Breezy Point that had been ruined by the storm. 1,500 members of the Irish community had lent their skills all over the different Rockaway neighborhoods.
GPA Chairman Dessie Farrell talked about the extraordinary response to their gesture including coverage on NBC Nightly News and many other organizations stepping forward to help. This weekend the GPA will conduct a Gaelic sports 7 a side tournament in Breezy Point to aid local charities.
The goodwill engendered between Ireland and America on that trip alone speaks volumes for the power of sport.
The first-ever Irish American Sports 50 was put together by Irish Voice editor Debbie McGoldrick and business manager John Dillon. Judging by the success it won’t be the last!
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