KATELYN DI SALVO
COMMUNITY SERVICE: Kim Cody is the president of the Greater Whitestone Taxpayers Civic Association, a group that is made up of volunteers devoted to the betterment of the community.
BACKGROUND: Cody has been married to his wife Marlene for 38 years. Both grew up in Whitestone and are very devoted to giving back to their community. Cody has been a resident of Whitestone since 1955, and he still lives in the same house he grew up in. Marlene, now the vice president of the association, is also the reason Cody became involved in the group.
Cody, a retired detective, praised his wife for getting him involved in such an active and important group.
“For some reason she thought I would be a good addition to the board, so I went on as the police liaison, and over the years I moved up and became president two years ago,” Cody said.
GOALS: The association was charted in 1985 and has been located at the State of New York Armory on 6th Avenue in Whitestone for about 30 years. This location serves as both a senior center, and a community center where kids can play sports for free.
“We do all this to try and keep the kids off the street as much as possible,” said Cody.
In the coming year, Cody would like to continue the work the association has been doing, as well as see more people get involved.
“We are seeing a lot of new families coming into the community and we would love to see them get involved, so we try to make ourselves known so people feel welcome to join,” Cody said.
FAVORITE MEMORY: For two years, Greater Whitestone Taxpayers Civic Association has held a community event called the Whitestone Park Family Appreciation Day. The group managed to plan a free festival where there was food and entertainment for kids to raise money for both the senior and community center and the veterans’ memorial parade committee.
INSPIRATION: Cody’s biggest inspiration is his wife Marlene.
“She is totally dedicated to this community,” Cody said. “She and a couple of other women go in and they take care of so much.”
BIGGEST CHALLENGE: With working a full-time job and also being a member of Community Board 7 and attending meetings for other groups, Cody has a full plate. Therefore, his biggest challenge as president of the association is simply not having enough time to serve the community.
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