Saturday October 23, 2021
The Stars:
The Turtle Whisperer, Richard and the Turtle Guardian Angel, Ted:
The Talent:
The Teaching:
Off to their Winter home:
all photos taken by Steve Elson.
He was killed in during the mugging. There is a Go Fund Me page HERE
From the page:
“The world lost Salauddin bablu unexpectedly as a result of horrific brutally murder by robber.. while [on] his bike during bike delivery in lower Manhattan. The world never be the same without him. He was a loving son, best big brother and friend to everyone who he crossed paths with.
Salauddin bablu was the only earning person in his family. He leaves behind a loving family his son and daughter who have been devastated by this loss. Salauddin bablu was the hardest worker. He was driven to provide the lifestyle he felt his family deserved. It was important to him that he can continue to support his family.”
Grateful to the Borough President Gale Brewer and her staff, Brian Lewis, for standing with the neighborhood in this harsh time, funding the Rivington Playground and the Stanton Building renovations.
And especially for this letter of support for the park. It is thorough. And kind.
Also grateful to Council Member Chin and her staff Gigi Li and Pat Olan, for advocating for needle boxes for this park, tracking the MTA work and the funding to renovate the Rivington Playground and the Stanton Building.
Thank you to District Manager Stetzer for relentlessly advocating for needle boxes for this park.
Thank you to Jamil Phillips, Park’s staff, the 5th Precinct, Goddard and Alliance, and all our volunteers (housed or not) and gardeners in this Park who go above and beyond.
For a glimpse of the years of activism on behalf of the search Stanton Park House, Stanton Building, Design Trust, etc
Photograph from July 1st, 2017 Town Hall with Mayor de Blasio: https://sdrpc.mkgarden.org/town-hall-with-council-member-margaret-chin-and-mayor-de-blasio-on-sdr-parks-stanton-buildings-return/
Photo from Psychology Today
Lee passed away on October 3rd, 2021 after a two week hospitalization with severe pneumonia.
He was an artist, advocate, imaginer, a beloved Clinical Social Worker/Therapist, neighbor and activist, husband and father. In particular he was an advocate for people who were blind or seeing impaired.
Kind and loving and determined to set the world right, he filled the room with his vibrant ways.
“An education and community-building art project with Neighbors to Save Rivington House, local artist Lee Brozgol, and the youth of University Settlement.”
Lee was the architect of the “Hands Around Rivington House” action. An very different kind of activism.
“one of our most lovely and moving protests regarding Rivington House” – K Webster.
Ted Glass: “I am so sorry to hear this shocking and sad news about Lee. I was thinking about him recently seeing the nice piece in the Washington Post about “Die Jim Crow” and Fury [Lee’s son]. I dug around in my files to look at the images of Lee’s ceramics and murals on his old website. This is a great loss to you, your boys, his patients and this neighborhood. I am so sorry.”
There was a Memorial held for Lee in the M’Finda Kalunga Garden last weekend.
Condolences to Alizah, Fury and to the entire family.
We lost a good man.
Rest in Peace Lee.
The best kept secret in the Sara Roosevelt Park:
“Every year about this time, we pull the turtles out of the pond and move them indoors for the winter. It’s one of our small garden events of interest to children and adults alike and is actually a bit dramatic. We net the fish into tubs temporarily and pump most of the water out of the pond. Someone climbs down into the bottom of the pond and searches around in the muck for reluctant turtles, then passes them up to into tubs that we take to their winter quarters in the basement of my building.
Neither Richard, our turtle guru, nor I are spry enough to do it this year. Or more correctly, to climb back out. So I’m looking for a volunteer willing to get wet up to the knees and wallow around in the muck, and who will enjoy handling turtles. We’re expecting to find 20 turtles of all sizes, Cooters, Red Bellied Sliders, Yellow Bellied Cooters and 3 small Painted turtles. Let me know if you’re interested.
We’ll start around noon on Saturday, Oct. 23.”
Ted
Thank you Alisanne, Elizabeth, Jen, Jenifer and Bud! And Audubon NY for the binoculars (and of course thank the birds). (photographs by Jen, flyer by Alisanne)
Sukkot Celebration at M’finda Kalunga Community Garden
Sunday, Sept 26, 10:30 AM-12:30 PM, Rivington Street b/t Forsyth & Chrystie
Please join the MK Community Garden and the Manhattan Workers Circle School
for a family celebration of the Jewish harvest holiday Sukkot!
Parents and kids of all ages are invited to make sukkah decorations & learn Sukkot songs and traditions.
“Great to see such a happy event and so many people in the garden today. “
“Workers Circle was fantastic – welcoming, kind, respectful..”
NYTimes “Some devastating impacts of global warming are now unavoidable, a major new scientific report finds. But there is still a short window to stop things from getting even worse.”
Nations have delayed curbing their fossil-fuel emissions for so long that they can no longer stop global warming from intensifying over the next 30 years, though there is still a short window to prevent the most harrowing future, a major new United Nations scientific report has concluded.
Thanks to Alison, Jennifer, Bud, Colleen, Irit, Rainer, Sam, Diego, Sgt Kakit Yip, PO Urena, “man of steele” and Explorers, Paul, Christina, Chris and – and everyone i’m forgetting!!
Beautiful day!
Photos Christina Tsang-Fox and K Webster
