Friedrich fundraiser is a success

Glen Oaks civic activist Bob Friedrich isn’t letting any grass roots grow under his feet as he prepares for a run to replace David Weprin as City Councilmember for the 23rd District.
Friedrich, an accountant by profession, is also the president of Glen Oaks Village co-op, a sprawling complex of what were formally “garden apartments” built in 1947 to accommodate the housing market for returning World War II veterans.
He points to the job he’s done for the 10,000 co-op residents he administers, and his cooperation with and support from other tenant/shareholder organizations as proof that he’s the man to beat in the Democratic primary in September of 2009.
“Look around,” he said at his first fundraiser, on Tuesday, June 10 at BKNY Restaurant in Bayside, “My campaign is all about grass roots - there aren’t any big-shots here.”
Indeed, of approximately 130 people who showed up, most were either Glen Oaks residents or from similar neighborhoods nearby. For their contributions, they got to enjoy tasty food and live music at the Thai restaurant, located at 47-11 Francis Lewis Boulevard, as they hobnobbed with each other and the prospective candidate.
“My campaign is all about the grass roots,” Friedrich said, as he happily accepted tokens of support from a number of representatives for the stakeholders from Parkway Village, Hollis Court, Bell Park Manor and Bay Terrace.
He proudly points out that most of his financial support is in the form of small donations from local residents. With the six-to-one matching funds ratio from the Campaign Finance Board, the event would raise “slightly more than $50,000” he said.
Considering the $120,000 Friedrich claims to already have in his war chest, he already has more than the $161,000 maximum expenditure allowed for the primary next September. “Now that the fundraising is pretty much out of the way I can continue to concentrate on the issues, as I have for years,” he said, continuing, “I won’t need ‘on-the-job’ training.”