City To Honor Community Leaders
An Elmhurst civic leader, a former Queens County Clerk and a fighter for gay and Hispanic rights in Jackson Heights are among those to be honored with street renamings under a bill passed by the City Council on Monday, Sept. 24 and signed into law by Mayor Michael Bloomberg on Tuesday, Oct. 2.
A total of 41 streets will be renamed throughout the five boroughs. Among those to be honored locally:
– The late Steven R. Trimboli, the founder of the Elmhurst Development Corporation, former president of the Italian Charities of America and the first chair of Queens Community Board 4, will be honored with the renaming of Ketcham Street between Elmhurst Avenue and Whitney Avenue as “Steven R. Trimboli Way.”
Trimboli, a recipient of the Pearl Harbor Survivor Medal, died in 2003. His renaming was sponsored by City Council Member Daniel Dromm.
– The late Guillermo Vasquez, a Jackson Heights resident who helped found the Latin American Cultural Center of Queens and the Queens Hispanic Coalition, will be recognized with the renaming of the southeast corner of 77th Street and Broadway as “Guillermo Vasquez Corner.”
Vasquez, who died in 1996, funded a recreating room in an AIDS hospice in the country of Columbia which is now named in his memory. His renaming was also sponsored by City Council Member Daniel Dromm.
– Sister Mary Patrick McCarthy, former principal of Blessed Sacrament School in Jackson Heights, will be honored with the renaming of 94th Street between 34th and 35th avenues (where the school is located) as “Sister Mary Patrick McCarthyWay.”
McCarthy, who died in 2002, founded Marguerite’s Pantry and organized the church’s homeless shelter. Her renaming was also sponsored by City Council Member Daniel Dromm.
– Patricia Dolan, the former president of the Queens Civic Congress, former president of the Kew Gardens Hills Civic Association and founder of the Flushing Meadows Corona Park conservancy, will be honored with the renaming of Vleigh Place between 72nd Road and 72nd Drive in Kew Gardens Hills as “Pat Dolan Way.”
Dolan died in a car accident in November 2011. Her renaming was sponsored by City Council Member James Gennaro.
– Former Queens County Clerk Gloria D’Amico, a longtime Astoria resident who served on the board of the Variety Boys and Girls Club, will be remembered with the renaming of the intersection of 21st Road and Shore Boulevard in Astoria as “The Honorable Gloria D’Amico Place.”
D’Amico was the first person to ever hold the position of Queens County Clerk, a job she held for 19 years until her death in 2010. Her street renaming was sponsored by City Council Member Peter Vallone.
