AUGUST 2014 SPECIAL EDITION WWW.THECOMMUNITIESOFCOLOR.COM

SOUTHEAST QUEENS -FREE AUGUST 2014, SPECIAL EDIT ION Celebrating Communities...Sharing Their Stories

WRITING ARTICLES FOR PUBLICATION

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ADMINISTRATIVE AND OFFICE WORK

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COVERING THE NEWS &

COMMUNITY EVENTS

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COVERING NEWS& EVENTS

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NATIONAL NIGHT OUT On Tuesday, August 5, the Communities of Color news organization covered National Night Out in Far Rocka-way. There was free food, singing, and Ephraim received a fire safety lesson. We interviewed police officers, performers and residents.

This event was the first time any of the summer employees attended a National Night Out event in Far Rocka-way. We all thought it was a good event.

1.Samantha puts aside her shyness and poses with Captain x from the 101 precinct; 2.Ephraim poses with an officer from the 101st precinct; 3.Tiyanna runs into a friend while covering the event; 4. Ephraim’s picture of children and their dog Sandy at the event is being considered for the September 2104 issue; 5. Senator James Sanders Jr. stops for a photo; 6. We interviewed several residents and took their picture even though it won’t make it into the issue; 7.Police officers pose for photos and are inter-viewed during the event; 8. Members of the Rockaway Development Revitalization Corporation, who we met over the summer, were at the Resource Fair that day; 9.Managing Editor, Karen Clements, shouts directions for event coverage; 10.Ephraim gets the scoop from those at the event.; 11.Ephraim makes a friend while getting the story; 12. Ephraim and Samantha working at the National Night Out Event in Far Rockaway; 13. Ephraim gets the story (e.moore, k.clements)

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PLAQUE DEDICATION OF LOST FIREMEN We all attended a plaque dedication where family and friends of the fallen firefighters, WalterTorres and William Quick, got together and spoke of the great memories . It was reminiscent of a funeral gathering . It took place at Engine 264 Ladder 134 on Central Avenue in Far Rockaway (e.moore)

PARTICIPATORY BUDGETTING SESSIONS Karen Clements and Ephraim Moore covered an information session regarding the Par-ticipatory Budgeting Process. It was held in Cambria Heights and despite being held during work hours, it was not limited to only elderly participants. There were pamphlets given out, and Councilman I. Daneek Miller, whose District is participating in the pro-cess attended the event. Public Advocate Letitia ’Tish’ James made a surprise visit. Ephraim recognized the elected official from a previous issue and introduced himself. The Public Advocate wished him luck on his summer program. Ephraim also recognized former NYS Senate candidate Clyde Vanel at the event. It was just one day after he dropped out of the race and Ephraim and Karen were able to get a first interview with the former candidate.. (e.moore)

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HARMONY PICNIC @ ROY WILKINS PARK

On July 15, NYPD from Queens Borough South hosted their annual Harmony Picnic at Roy Wilkins Park. It was a hot and humid day, but people enjoyed themselves anyway. There were bouncy houses, wall climbing, face painting, gift giveaways, and dancing. They had hot-dogs, hamburgers, and cheeseburgers, along with cold-cut sandwiches. There were officers of varying rank sprinkled throughout the park, from auxiliary to top brass. Tiyanna and Samantha tweeted a photo from this event which received a reply from Chief Philip Banks III! Photos: 1. Officer Angel Ramos from the 113th Precinct shakes hands with Ephraim; 2. Denzel Morris shows off his face painting; 3. NYPD Explorers from the 113th precinct hand our food for the day; 4. Assistant Chief David Barrere Queens Bor-ough South Patrol; 5. Dancing and having fun at the picnic; (e. moore)

COVERING NEWS & EVENTS

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COVERING DINNER AT EDGEMERE FARM On July 24th we visited Edgemere farms and participated in Dinner at the Farm. My article about my experience on the farm and talk with owner David Selig made it into the August 2014 issue. The service was very friendly, and the weather was pitch perfect for an outdoor evening dining experi-ence. The dinner, catered by Goody’s, was fantastic! They had BBQ Ribs, Jerk Chicken, Macaroni & Cheese, Ox Tail gravy, rice and peas, and grilled pineapple slices. Visitors were given a tour around the farm. See the full article below. 6. Diners eat buffet style at the farm. 7. owner David Selig displays one of the farm’s chickens; 8. diners chow down at picnic tables; 9. Healing Gardens farm which shares the same space as Edgemere Farms; 10. Ephraim high atop the farm getting a closeup look at the bee-hives. (e. moore)

LUNCH AT ROCKAWAY TACO Ephraim Moore and Managing Editor Karen Clem-ents made a surprise visit to the popular restaurant, Rockaway Taco. The restaurant is owned by David Selig who was one of the hosts at the Dinner at Edgemere Farms. Locals speak highly of the food and we wanted to give it a test run while making a sales call on Da-vid. The service was great and the food was nice. This was the first time Ephraim had tasted tofu when he ordered a tofu taco. It wasn’t bad. Karen had the fish taco which is a favorite of

diners. She didn’t complain and ate it all. Diners who choose to eat-in dine al fresco in the open air on their makeshift back deck. It is a small area and diners have to a do a bit of maneuvering, but it can be an opportunity to say hello and meet new people. While we were there, we met a surfing instructor who spoke about the great waves in the Rockaways. Karen took these photos of me biting into my tofu taco! FYI David was not there that day. (e. moore)

I didn’t know there was a farm not far from my home at Beach 45th Street. As part of my summer works program, I had a chance to visit Edgemere farm for din-ner on Thursday night. The hospitality was great and the atmosphere was very welcoming. Best of all, I got an up close look at its beehives located high above the farm and was given a tour by the farms caretaker and creator, David Selig. David gave a very informative lesson on bees and just how important they are to agriculture. Not only do bees pollinate many plants that are incapable of self-pollination, but bees provide many of the ingredients in products that people have been using for decades, including botox, medicines and skincare. Just don’t anger them. Bees sting when they get angry. Several of the bees visited people while they ate dinner. They flew around the tables of food and drink. People mostly moved away or used one of the repellents to deter

them. No stings were reported by any of the people having dinner that night. We talked about chickens and I asked the question, “what comes first the chicken or the egg?” We didn’t come to any conclu-sions that night as we explored the ques-tion philosophically! David also talked about his experience with farming. Most residents don’t know what its like on a farm, so opening one locally, especially in an urban environ-ment, is a rewarding experience for him. David is concerned over how agriculture these days uses artificial means to pro-duce more goods. He wants people to be able to enjoy excellent quality natural foods. Food from a farm is of a better quality produce than that which you buy at a supermarket or fast food restaurant. Tell all your friends to give the local farm a visit!§ Photo: Ephraim Moore talks with David Selig at the bee hives ontop of the storage unit at Edgemere Farms (k.clements)

A Day at the Farm with the Bees

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COMMUNITIES OF COLOR NEWS is a news organization which serves Southeast Queens, Far Rockaway and parts of Central Brooklyn. CofC publishes an in community newspaper every month which is free to residents. The newspaper is released the first week of the month. Newspapers are available at local supermarkets, libraries, coffee shops, various restaurants and other places that distribute free publications. Our online division includes an eNewsletter, social media presence (Facebook ‘Communities of Color” and Twitter @ColorCommunity, @KarenDClements) and website www.thecommunitiesofcolor.com. Subscriptions are available for home delivery of the newspaper for $12/year, $25 for VIP Subscriptions. Sign up for eNewsletter subscriptions at the website or Facebook pages. Communities of Color News is owned and operated by Clements Communications Inc. Contact us at clementscommunications@gmail.com or 917-859-9889.

WORKING IN THE OFFICE

Samantha Charles People call me Sam. I am 15 years old. My fa-vorite subject is United States History. When I graduate high school, I would love to go to law school to become a criminal justice lawyer. In my free time, I like to explore the internet. I enjoy watching television shows that follow criminal investigations. It is very interesting to watch investigators do their job and see where criminal justice lawyers take over. I look up to my mom because she is independent and has a lot of goals which she tries to achieve. Don’t forget my face, you will see me doing something big in the fu-ture.

Samantha was tasked with creating marketing campaigns in the form of posters. She was good at that putting themes together and making them look appealing. Aiding the organization towards success, she took part in group discussions re-garding what adjustments should be made to the website, she helped make editorial decisions and voiced her opinion on what photos should be used

in the August 2014 issue. Samantha also assisted Tiyanna in social media assignments and placing phone calls. Occasionally, Samantha would accompany the group to news events. In the office, she laughed and giggled a lot with other mem-bers of the team. Some might call her the jokester of the group.

Some examples of her work are below. The Line Dancing ad ran in the August 2014 issue. The client liked it so much, they asked for copies so they could produce flyers for the community. The marketing campaigns will be sent to elected officials and key community leaders.

Tiyanna Mullgrav I am 15 years old. My favorite subject is math. I want to be an nurse in the future. I am passionate about dance, step and love being a cheerleader. Hip Hop, Jazz and R&B are the music I most enjoy.

Tiyanna was tasked with a lot of paperwork. She was helping the company file for status as a Mi-nority Woman Owned Business. She had to make sure company owner, Karen Clements, had all the appropriate documents and that they were uploaded to the application. Tiyanna was also the point person for the news organization’s social media. She scheduled Facebook posts, main-tained the website and tweeted out photos that we took at events. One of her tweets got the atten-tion of Chief Philip Banks III. We didn’t know exactly who he was at first, but learned that he is a top commander of the New York City Police Department. Tiyanna also took part in making decision for the news organization in terms of the website design and which should be included in the August 2014 issue. In the office, she also giggled a lot with Sam. She was fun to have around.

Below is the famous tweet that got the attention of Chief Banks. It also made Managing Editor, Karen Clements very happy and excited. It put her in a very good mood. Miss Clements is also happy that she is close to completing her application as a Minority Woman Owned Business.

The newly designed website!

The Communities of Color Facebook Page. Tiyanna schedule posts for all schedule events in the Summer Movies in the Park series!

The tweet which got the attention of Chief Banks!

The response from Chief Banks!

The final version of the advertise-ment. Samantha developed the concept and de-signed the ad! This ran in the August 2014 Is-sue.

Sam choose the color scheme for this one. Looks great!