Thanks Captain

The following letter was sent to Capt. Manson, Commanding Officer of the 104th Pct., the Juniper Berry was copied.

Dear Capt.Christopher Manson,
On behalf of my nephew Colin and the entire Flood family, I wanted to sincerely thank you for coordinating a day that has instilled an unforgettable and much needed memory in my family’s lives.
Your leadership & coordination with Special Agent John Keeley of the Coast Guard Investigative Service, along with the professionalism of the NYPD, allowed for the unfolding of a perfect event involving multiple governmental law enforcement agencies and the landing of a coast guard helicopter in Juniper Valley Park; an event that has fulfilled a wish of my nephew, Colin. To see the smile on Colin’s face as he interacted with the NYPD Specialized Units (Mounted Unit, Emergency Services Unit, K-9 & NYPD Highway Unit) was something that he & our family will never forget.
More importantly, the personal compassion which was displayed by you and each member of the various agencies was very much felt by our family. It was truly appreciated and reinforced the essential virtue of humanity as well as patriotism. It made our family feel that we are not going through
Colin’s plight by ourselves but have the support of our community. We are proud to be a part of Middle Village and this great country of the United States of America.

Thank you for fulfilling Colin’s wish.

Kindest regards,
Vincent Flood
Middle Village

Peg o' My Heart

Dear Editor,

Hello, my name is James and I have a story of hope, love, despair and loyalty that I feel the need to share with our community.
I grew up on 77 Street between Eliot and Caldwell Avenues and have been in this neighborhood for 51 years as has my wife, Janet. But this story is not about me. It’s about a remarkable woman named Margaret (Peggy) Guez, her family and her extended family.
Peggy and her husband, Dan, had a baby boy on March 8, 1982 named Danny. Danny was a great kid growing up. He attended Resurrection Ascension Grammar School and later starred at Christ the King High School as an outstanding football player. As he grew into an adult so did his popularity. Meanwhile his dad was busy teaching and Peggy was raising half the neighborhood. In the past 30 years, Peggy has cared for more than 40 children from infants to 8th graders, including two of my own. She always says no more, but she can’t help herself when someone needs her, so she does what she knows best. She steps up and continues to take care of our children. My wife and I feel so fortunate for her help and her care for our kids like they were her own. So to say Peggy, Dan and Danny were a family of three would be far from the truth. It was more like Peg and Dan had 40 kids and Danny was both big brother and little brother to all of them.
Recently Danny fell ill and was hospitalized. He fought a hard battle but ultimately succumbed to his illness and passed on at the age of 31. Naturally Peg and Dan were devastated and seemed inconsolable. I have known both for over 21 years and feel like they’re family, which made it hard to see their sadness and even harder to try and console them. I didn’t know what to say or do to ease their pain.
This is when I witnessed something like I never saw before. My wife is Peggy’s best friend and was at her side for the entire ordeal because that’s what friends do and Janet is definitely the best friend anyone could have. Danny was part of a club that some people view stereotypically in a negative way. He was a member of a motorcycle club known as “Legion of Doom.” Most people that don’t know the men and women of this organization might have a misguided view of them.
In this, the hardest of times, “Legion of Doom” was there to hold up Peg and Dan through their ordeal. These people by the dozens were at Peg, Dan and Danny’s side 24/7. They made sure they were never alone, along with taking care of their house and any business they needed done. There was, at all times, three around Danny’s bed and 40 more in the hallway; and they will be there for Peg and Dan for life, they are strong and stand-up individuals and I’m proud to say I know “Legion of Doom” and admire as well as respect each and every one of them because of their actions and integrity. 

Sincerely,
JD 

Betts Offspring

To Whom It May Concern:
My name is Miriam and I am a descendent of Capt. Richard Betts. My mother and I have just completed our lineage for the DAR. We are very interested in finding out if the Betts house is still standing. We would love to come and visit the area and cemeteries. The old house stood on Calvary Cemetery and Maurice Avenue. Capt. Richard Betts was a very interesting person and we would love to learn as much as we can. Thank you so much.

Miriam Crispin
Maryland

Overcrowded School

My son starts kindergarten this year and we registered him online in January. We live two blocks from the local school on 80th Street (PS49). To our surprise the school is overcrowded and they cannot accommodate him. Instead he has been placed at PS102 at Van Horn St. over 1/2 mile away. He may even have to take a school bus. The Department of Education says tough luck.
Didn’t they recently expand the school with new construction? The lottery was suppose to help education, I didn’t know you have to win a lottery to go to your local school? This is bizarre and wrong. By the way, found out that Maspeth HS is not a zoned school. Another free for all. There goes the neighborhood we try to preserve.

Peter Gontzes, MD
Middle Village

Wet Grounds

Hi! today is Sunday April 27 and I just came back from Juniper Valley Park. I was there for my nephew’s baseball game. They were over an hour delayed in playing. The cause of the delay was the fields condition. Second and third base had BIG puddles on them. The Parks workers were alerted to the situation and said they would alert the supervisor, we never heard back from them. The workers were riding around in a truck. I left a hour and a half later and the fathers were still working on the field to get the kids to play. It’s a shame and a waste of time for all! I would have thought that the park workers could help out. Who is responsible for the up keep of those fields?
Sandra Madlinger

Response
Dear Ms. Madlinger,
Unfortunately, the Parks Department does not have the budget or the personnel to handle field maintenance. Historically, it has been the responsibility of the permit holders to remove standing water.

Additionally, Juniper Valley Park baseball diamonds have very poor drainage and are in need of reconstruction. The funds for the capital projects have not been provided by Council Member Elizabeth Crowley. I suggest you contact her office (718) 366-3900 with your complaint and also 311. In her last budget she provided $750,000 for the reconstruction of the bocce courts but has yet to provide any money for either the maintenance or reconstruction of the ballfields in her 5+ years in office.

FYI, the three upper enclosed fields are maintained by volunteers. Robert Holden

Route of Q38 is Great

Dear Mr. Holden:
I am writing to you to state that I object to the rerouting of the Q38 bus. It would be a hardship for me since I rely on the bus every day to go to work, appointments and shopping. The rerouting is not near where I live. Many people rely on the convenience of the Q38 bus to help them get around Middle Village and to other connecting buses. They live along Juniper Valley Road, 75 Place, Furmanville and Penelope.

Please Mr. Holden keep the Q38 bus with its current route.

Thank you,
Helen Hirst
Middle Village

Berry Nice to Meet You

Dear JPCA
I would like to join the JPCA. I'm in this neighborhood since 2003 and I would like to learn more about it. I love your Juniper Berry magazine that I picked up in my supermarket, Food Dynasty, last year. It looks like you are doing a great job! I hope I will find the time to join your meetings. I have several issues with 311 services that were never resolved. One is crackling manhole cover on 64 Road between 84 Place and 84 Street. I filed three complaints with 311 and no results. We are tired of the noise day and night which is loud crackling when car is going down this two-way street. Overall this is lovely neighborhood and we should all take care of it. With best wishes,

Agnieszka (Agnes) Wojtal
Middle Village

Taxi Takeover

Dear JPCA:
I am very concerned about the overwhelming number of Taxi cabs that have turned Maspeth into a commercial parking lot in our neighborhood. It seems that this problem is becoming worse each week. From 58 ave to 58 road along and on side streets of 69 Street. Now they are parking on the surrounding blocks as well 59 place etc…. I had brought this to the attention of authorities and even they cannot give a straight answer.

This abuse / oversight is turning the neighborhood into an industrial parking lot .

Thank you
Robert Marchetta
Maspeth

Happy Shuffle boarding

Dear Lorraine:
I thank you for the legwork you did for the shuffleboard court. All the stencils are looking good, all the shuffleboarders are happy and thank you again. Please put a picture in the Juniper Berry.

Dieter Keppler
Middle Village

Response: Dieter I'm glad the shuffleboarders are happy with the job done by the NYC Parks Department. I know how seriously the shuffleboarders take their game and that all the work be done accurately. We thank also Parks' Joanne Amagrande, Chief of Staff, for following through on the repair job after I contacted her. Enjoy another great shuffleboard season in Juniper Valley Park and I hope you like the picture.

Lorraine Sciulli