Brooklyn Heights
Cheers to St. Francis College for bringing the fight against smoking to the borough.
As part of the Great American Smokeout, NYC Smoke-Free collaborated with St. Francis College to encourage smokers on campus and in the larger community to quit for one day and to raise awareness of the importance of smoke-free protections in creating environments where quit attempts are more likely to be successful.
“I commend NYC Smoke-Free and St. Francis College for bringing the fight against smoking to Brooklyn Heights and beyond,” said Borough President Adams. “Smoking is a damaging habit that leads to many long-term health problems, including asthma, cancer, and emphysema.”
Dr. Michele Montecalvo, the event co-organizer and Health Sciences and Health Care Management professor at St. Francis, added: “The Great American Smokeout is an opportunity to continue the conversation about tobacco use, social justice, advocacy, and stress relief.”
Julia Cuthbertson, borough community engagement coordinator for NYC Smoke-Free at Public Health Solutions, added: “NYC Smoke-Free is thrilled to join St. Francis College and many other community partners and local leaders for the Great American Smokeout to draw attention to the devastating tobacco epidemic and need for smoke-free environments to protect the health of all New Yorkers.”
Activities on campus included an #IWantToBeAFormerSmoker Health Fair, presentations by health educators, a screening of the short film Black Lives, Black Lungs, performances by St. Joseph’s High School Choir and Steppers, and an interactive “Lung to Lung” panel on the state of tobacco use in NYC’s most populous borough.
The Great American Smokeout, an event created by the American Cancer Society, is held annually on the third Thursday of November and is observed nationwide.
St. Francis College [Address: 180 Remsen St., between Court and Clinton streets in Brooklyn Heights; (718) 489–5200]
Borough Wide
Who loves you, baby?
BrooklynGives does — The Giving Tuesday campaign has raised over $360,000 in just 24 hours. Wow-wee-Kazowee!
The five non-profits selected for the coming Spark Prize will be announced in early January. Each will receive a “no strings attached” grant of $100,000 and will be honored at the Spark Prize Celebration breakfast on Feb. 8.
Special thanks go to #BrooklynGives sponsors TD Bank, National Grid, the Borough President’s Office, and the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce—especially the Young BK Professionals.
Brooklyn Community Foundation [1000 Dean St. at Bergen Street in Prospect Heights; www.Brook
What a gift!
The Walentas Family Foundation announced the recipients of this year’s Neighborhood School Grants. Local schools will receive a total of $350,000 in grant funding to support diverse initiatives for students in grades K–12. “The Neighborhood School Grants program amplifies the creativity, vision, and energy of the school community, ” said Jed Walentas, CEO of Two Trees Management Company.
The schools that received Neighborhood School Grants include:
PS 282 Music Program, Park Slope; Academy of Arts & Letters, Fort Greene-Clinton Hill; Achievement First Brooklyn High School, Crown Heights; Brooklyn Community Arts & Media High School (BCAM) Clinton Hil-Bedford Stuyvesant;Brooklyn High School for Leadership and Community Service, Clinton Hill; The Brooklyn Latin School, Bushwick; P373K The Brooklyn Transition Center Dance Ability Studio, Williamsburg; PS 23 Carter G Woodson Elementary School, Bedford Stuyvesant; Compass Charter School, Fort Greene; MS 577 Conselyea Preparatory School, Williamsburg; PS 132 The Conselyea School, Williamsburg; IS 318 Eugenio Maria De Hostos School, Williamsburg; PS 257 John F. Hylan Elementary School, Williamsburg; PS 56 Lewis H. Latimer Elementary School, Clinton Hill; PS 44 Marcus Garvey Elementary, Bedford Stuyvesant; The Monitor School, Greenpoint; Park Place Community Middle School. Bedford Stuyvesant; PS 11 Purvis J Behan Elementary, Clinton Hill; PS 9 Teunis G Bergen Elementary, Prospect Heights; Urban Dove Team Charter High School, Bedford Stuyvesant; and Williamsburg Early Childhood Center, Williamsburg.
