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NEWS YOU CAN USE: Callao vigil to be held March 24

NEWS YOU CAN USE

No. 7 subway weekend work scheduled

Due to switch replacement work, the No. 7 line will be out of service between the Mets-Willets Point and Flushing-Main Street stations during four weekends over the next two months, the MTA announced.

The No. 7 line will not be running between the times of 4 a.m. Saturday and 10 p.m. Sunday on the weekends of March 26 – 27, April 2 – 3, April 16 – 17 and May 14 – 15.

Free shuttle buses will be available to carry passengers between the Mets-Willets Point and Flushing-Main Street stations on these weekends.

Also, from March 23 to May 13, the last Manhattan-bound express train will leave Flushing-Main Street at 9 a.m. rather 9:55 a.m.

Transit personnel will be on hand during the weekends to provide assistance for those using the shuttle buses.

The No.7 line was also out of service on the weekend of March 11 due to heavy rains on the night before that damaged the signal system in the tunnel.

For more information, visit www.mta.info and click on “Planned Service Changes.”

Register for bone marrow registry; help save a life

A bone marrow registry is being held at the Flushing Library on Monday, March 28.

Queens Library HealthLink Flushing Cancer Action Council and the New York Blood Center are inviting healthy adults to register for the BE THE MATCH marrow registry.

Thousands of people need life-saving marrow transplants and because tissue types are inherited patients are most likely to match someone of their own race and ethnicity.

Most patients – about 70 percent – do not find a match in their family.

For this reason a donors representing diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds are needed so that each patient has a chance finding a match. A patient’s likelihood of having a suitable donor in the registry who is willing and able to donate on their ranges from 66 to 93 percent.

The registration is quick, safe, painless and free. Registration only means that the volunteer will be in a database for possible contact at a later date; not committing to donate.

Volunteers must be between the ages of 18 and 60, meet the health guidelines and be willing to donate to any patient in need.

For more information about The National Marrow Donor Program, please call 1-800-MARROW-2 or visit BeTheMatch.org.

Callao vigil to be held March 24

A vigil will be held honoring the memory of Anthony Callao, who was killed by a group of teenagers shortly after leaving a party last week.

The 7 p.m. vigil will be held at 88-20 90th Street on Thursday, March 24.

According to reports, the group that allegedly attacked him yelled anti-gay slurs at Callao, who was straight.

The vigil is being sponsored by New York City Council Speaker Christine C. Quinn, the NYC Anti-Violence Project, LGBTQ Justice Project/Make the Road NY, FIERCE, the LGBT Community Center, Councilmembers Daniel Dromm and Jimmy Van Bramer, Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer and Generation Q/Queens Community House.

Light change for bikersLocal politicians plan to issue a bill Thursday, March 24 changing the red traffic light to a flashing yellow light at certain public parks when the park is closed to vehicular traffic.

This “flashing yellow” would allow cyclists to proceed through the intersection “with caution.”

New York City cycling groups have requested the bill due to an increase in tickets – which costs $270 – for failing to stop at red lights in public parks.

Last chance to sponsor the Community Business breakfast

Your last chance to be a sponsor at the Community Business Partnership Council of the Samuel Field Y/Central Queens Y breakfast on April 5 is coming up.

Registration for sponsorships will close tomorrow at 5 p.m.

The breakfast at the Flushing Town Hall is honoring Joshua Schneps the Co-Publisher of The Queens Courier and Executive Director of the Queens Chamber of Commerce Jack Friedman.

Sponsors include Flushing Bank, Sterling National Bank, TD Bank, Likeable Media, New York Hospital Queens and also small business partners including Bagel Boss of New Hyde Park and Ryan Walsh, Esq.

For reservations and sponsorship information contact Jennifer Colletti-Membreño at 718-225-6750 ext. 238 or email jcm@sfy.org

Schedule changes on Metro-North

The Metro-North Railroad will implement minor changes to certain train schedule beginning Sunday, April 3.

Changes to the schedules are planned for Hudson, Harlem and New Haven line customers to accommodate various construction projects, to better reflect actual running times and to improve operational reliability.

A new Friday-only train will also be added to the New Haven line.

For more information and the schedule adjustments visit https://mta.info/mnr/html/serviceupdates.htm?story=685 and pick up a new timetable at Info Booths or ticket windows.

Gas Prices

Gas prices in New York City are averaging $3.79 per gallon as of Sunday, March 20. This is a one cent drop from last week.

Nationally the average is $3.53.

The city’s average gas price is 85.9 cents per gallon higher than at the same time a year ago and 32.7 cents/g above last month’s price.

Schumer calls for bus license audit

Senator Charles Schumer recently called on the New York Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) to conduct an audit of licenses issued to drivers of low-cost tour buses.

Schumer called for this audit after evidence emerged that the driver of Saturday’s deadly crash on I-95 may have provided false statements and documents in order to continue operating as a driver.

To help protect customers of these buses Schumer wants to make sure drivers have safe driving records and valid licenses.

“Only a complete vetting of the licenses and driving records of drivers operating these low-cost carriers will prevent people who have no business behind the wheel of a vehicle that carries dozens of passengers from getting there,” said Schumer.

There are over one hundred tour bus companies registered with the Federal Motor Carriers Safety Administration (FMCSA) operating in New York that transport tens of thousands of travelers a month.

Arab-Israeli peace discussion

Queens College students are set to interview high-level foreign affairs experts on how the revolts in the Middle East will affect the prospects for Arab-Israeli peace on Thursday, March 24.

The inquiring students are enrolled in the college’s Center for Ethnic, Racial and Religious Understanding.

The interviewees will include Robert Danin, a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations at LeFrak Hall on one of the countries most diverse campuses.

Assembly votes to extend unemployment

The state assembly recently passed legislation to help unemployed New Yorkers receive extended federally funded unemployment insurance benefits through 2011.

The bill awaits Senate passage.

The new bill will amend state law and allow New Yorkers to qualify for a third year in the program helping an estimated 166,000 unemployed New Yorkers.

Extending unemployment benefits is a fundamental step toward strengthening New York’s economy and aiding those who need it most as they continue searching for job opportunities, said Assemblymember Mike Miller.

Queens eligible for emergency funding

Congressmember Anthony Weiner announced that the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) deemed Queens is eligible for federal funding to help cover the costs of the December blizzard.

Queens has been approved for Category B funding for emergency protective services. The funding can be used to cover the costs of emergency repairs, search and rescue, and the installation of warning devices, among other measures.

State and local governments, as well as certain non-profit organizations, are eligible for assistance.

It is estimated that the blizzard that hit the area cost the city over $60 million, exceeding the snow budget for the whole year.

Start of Maple Syrup Season

Get out the pancake mix – it’s maple syrup season.

From late winter until early spring is prime time for collecting sap for sugar maple trees that will be turned into delicious syrup.

To celebrate the season the 16th Annual Maple Weekend on March 19-20 and March 26-27. This celebration will take place at over 100 sugarhouses throughout New York, where visitors can see the syrup process first hand and take part in free tours.

New York maple syrup accounts for nearly 20 percent of the nation’s maple production, ranking New York third behind Vermont and Maine, respectively

The tours will take place between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. Some sugarhouses are also offering pancake breakfasts, gift shops and horse-drawn sleigh rides.

For more information and for a list of participating sugar houses, visit www.mapleweekend.com.

Win Ray-Ban sunglasses

The Food & Shops at LaGuardia Airport are giving their Twitter followers a chance to win Ray-Ban sunglasses.

Two winners will be announced each Friday in March starting on the eleventh. To win participants must follow @shoplaguardia and tweet hash tag #springshades for a chance to take home the sunglasses. Two tweeting followers will be chosen at random.

The contest will run until March 25.

Get 10 free trees for spring

With spring about to bloom, the Arbor Day Foundation is offering ten free trees for you to plant.

The dogwoods will be sent to you between March 1 and 31, the optimal time for planting these trees, with instructions on how to plant the them enclosed. These white-flowering trees that will grow to between 6-12 inches are guaranteed to grow or they will be replaced for free.

It is just $10 to become a member of the foundation and receive trees that “have showy spring flowers, scarlet autumn foliage, and red berries which attract songbirds all winter,” according to John Rosenow, chief executive and founder of the Arbor Day Foundation

This is part of the non-profit foundation’s Trees for America campaign.

To become a member and receive your ten trees join online at www.arborday.org/March or send a $10 contribution to TEN FREE DOGWOOD TREES, Arbor Day Foundation, 100 Arbor Avenue, Nebraska City, NE 68410, by March 31, 2011