By Dee Richard
In spite of the consistent controversies surrounding the Independence Party, they seem to be going full speed ahead.At the dinner they passed out a journal complete with ads from an impressive list of elected officials. Among them were Brooklyn District Attorney Charles Hynes, Staten Island Assemblyman Matthew Mirones, state Sen. Martin Golden, Assemblywoman Ann-Margaret Carrozza, U.S. Rep. Gary Ackerman, U.S. Rep. Vito Fossella, state Sen. Frank Padavan, Sen. John Marchi as well as Mayor Michael Bloomberg. While Sen. Serphin Maltese did not take an ad in the journal, he did send a member of his staff to represent him at the dinner. Like we said, it was quite an impressive list.There were also a number of men seeking their endorsement for Council seats. They were Pat Russo, John Carlino, Danny King, Charles Billups and an interesting young man we had the opportunity to have a pleasant chat with, Clifton Stanley Diaz.Sunday, May 22 was a triple header day. The Greek teachers association Prometheus held its 30th Anniversary luncheon at Terrace on the Park. The event was attended by Archbishop Demetrius. There were 15 honorees. The recipients of the Benefactors of Hellenic Education Award were given to Dimitrios and Georgia Kaloids of Terrace on the Park.Stella Kokolis, as well as being the current president of the group, also served as chairwoman of the luncheon. Congratulations, Stella, on a job well done. Not only was it a very nice affair, but it was an important one as well. Their object is to keep Greek culture alive with many programs to teach the children not only to speak Greek, but to be able to read and write it as well.Our second stop was the Reception House in Flushing, where the Northeast Queens Republican Club held a reception honoring both Sen. Padavan and District Leader Joan Vogt. They were both presented with the Distinguished Service Award. Mayor Bloomberg stopped by as well as Assemblyman Brian McLaughlin.Our third and final stop was at the Little Neck Jewish Center, where the sons of Alan and Gail Laufer, Andrew and Michael, were presented with the rank of Eagle Scout. Alan and Gail have triplets – Andrew, Michael and their sister Sarah. It was most unusual for two brothers to be made Eagle Scouts simultaneously. Sen. Padavan presented the new Eagle Scouts with medals of merit for outstanding achievement from the New York State Senate. Congratulations to all.On Monday, May 23, the New York City Comptroller William Thompson Jr. and the Polish American Congress held a reception Celebrating Polish American Heritage in the Comptrollers Board Room in the Municipal Building at Centre St. The honoree was Dr. Jan Moor-Jankowski, co-founder and editor of the Journal of Medical Primatology. He is also a retired professor of forensic medicine at New York University School of Medicine.On Tuesday, May 24, Queens Theater in the Park held its 2005 gala, which is its chief fund-raising drive. The gala was a huge success. Jeff Rosenstock wants to thank everyone who participated in helping the theater to not only meet its objective, but to surpass it. They are all very pleased with your support. This year's event was even better than last year's, if that is possible.This year's honorees were Michael Hegarty, president and CEO of the Flushing Savings Bank, Anthony Woo, vice president of construction at the Battery Park City Authority, and Rotary International of Brooklyn, Queens and Long Island District 7250, which was celebrating its 100th anniversary.The entertainment was “Broadway Salutes Queens, Part II.” It was fabulous. The gala was attended by Mayor Bloomberg, Borough President Helen Marshall and former Borough President Clair Shulman. There were too many luminaries in attendance to list.Congratulations to gala co-chairs Gary Kesner and Ellen Rogoff, as well as all the other co-chairs and all the members of the 2005 Gala Committee too numerous to mention. You all know who you are and how much your efforts are appreciated.We ended the evening by attending another annual gala. This one was for the Metropolitan Repertory Ballet, sponsored by the Tribeca Performing Arts Center. It was followed by a cast party held at Club SCOPA at 28th and Madison. Again, we don't have room to list all the people from Queens in attendance.Wednesday, May 25 was our last event of the week, which was the monthly meeting of the Forest Park Republican Club. The guest speaker was none other than Mayor Bloomberg, who seems to be giving Queens a lot of his attention lately.At this point we are half dead from all this running around and are facing covering four major Memorial Day parades as well as numerous barbecues accompanying the same. It's good to be retired!That's it for this week. We look forward to hearing from you by voice mail at 718-767-6484, fax 728-746-0066 or if you prefer e-mail at deerrichard@aol.com.Till next week,Dee.
