Broad Channel Bits

By Dan Guarino

It was a very bitter and windy night last Wednesday. Faces were freezer burned, noses were running, and hands were painfully frozen. Nevertheless, over at 17 Road Park there were two young people and a large dog playing basketball. In the dark.

Need a warm up? Zumba is whirling right into the new year. Sessions are Thursdays at 7:30 p.m. and Sundays at 12:30 p.m. Ladies and gentlemen, all you need to do is be 16 or over, wear suitable exercise clothes and be at the Christ Presbyterian Church by the Sea Hall. Get in better shape. Feel good. Lose weight. Drop the workout and join the party! Proceeds go to Christ Presbyterian Church.

Hold onto your vowels. Match words and wits at the BC Library’s Scrabble Hour for adults this Thursday, Jan. 21. Our very own librarian Bill Schulz will be officiating. Interesting note, word fans: If you enter the words ‘Bill Schulz Queens Library’ into Google search, you will be directed to the movie ‘Bon Voyage, Charlie Brown.’ Why? It was directed by ‘Bill’ Melendez, written by Peanuts creator Charles ‘Schulz’ and is available through the ‘Queens Library’. Now that it’s winter, you may want to stop in and explore the library. Recently, head librarian Carol Scheper recommended a terrific and touching short animated film called Lost and Found. It will amaze you with its beauty, give you a few laughs, and even touch your heart, all without stretching beyond 24 minutes.

Looking to mix fact and fiction? Try this one. In the movie Captain America: The Winter Soldier, there is a reference to Operation Paper Clip. At the BC Library you will not only find Captain America, you will also find a book by Annie Jacobsen called Operation Paper Clip. It’s about the real post- WWII program to recruit former German scientists to give the U.S. an edge in the emerging Cold War.

If you’d like to enjoy a fun afternoon of beautiful music, you may want to catch a free concert by my good friends, The Quintet of the Americas. They’ll be warming up those woodwinds next Friday, Jan. 22, 3:30 p.m., at the Beacon Rehabilitation and Nursing Center, 140 Beach 113th St., in Rockaway Park. It’s completely free, open to the public and all are invited!

Last year, this column came out on 1-16-15. This year it’s being published on 1-15-16.

Former Chief and BCVFD historian Ed Wilmarth III let me know that “As is tradition, Elections were held in December's meeting. The winners took office Jan. 1. Here’s the list of new officers Ed helpfully sent.

The new BCVFD Corporation Officers are as follows. The new President is the outgoing Chief of Department, Robert Leonard Jr; Vice President is Captain Mike Delgado; Treasurer, for the second year, is Donna Bassetti; Financial Secretary, for the second year, is Dispatcher Mike Gallagher. Sergeant At Arms (for the “up-teenth year,” says Ed) is Ex-Assistant Chief "Big Ed" Wilmarth; Recording Secretary, also for the second year, is Kelly James.

The new slate of BCVFD Fire Officers includes Chief of Department, for the eleventh time in his career is, Dan McIntyre. Assistant Chief, for the fourth time in his career, is Joe "Skippy" Nocerino. The Supervising Dispatcher is Sean Moss; Assistant Supervising Dispatcher is Jeannie Walsh.

Get tickets now for Broad Channel Volunteer Fire Department’s Annual Officers Installation Dance. That will be on Saturday, Feb. 27, at the American Legion. They will be celebrating 111 years of service. Yep, they were organized in 1905. It is a great ceremony as each officer is proudly sworn in. After that it’s an evening of music, dancing, food, drinks and fun. Those Volies know how to party. Tickets are $45 per person. It’s open to the public, and all proceeds go to help the BCVFD continue to keep our community safe. Contact Captain Spinelli at 917-995-2390 and get your tickets now.

You might be a winner! Were you at the Friend In Need Benefit for Minnie on Saturday, Jan. 9, at the VFW Hall? Were you one of the last to leave around 1:30 a.m.? Check your coat pockets, especially the right hand ones. You might just find a free ticket to see my good friends Ethoscope as they rock Brooklynnext Saturday night, Jan 23, from 7 p.m. on. They’ll be playing at The Shop, 234 Starr St., in Bushwick. Enjoy the show, courtesy of me. If you can’t make it, pass the ticket on to someone who can!

To Cathy from Far Rockaway: Sorry you ended up waiting for Access-ARide last Wednesday night outside the BC library. It must been a very freezing 45 minutes. Glad they finally showed up. Far Rock was my home when I first moved out this way. My late wife, Liz, was, for good and bad, a regular user of Access-A-Ride. And you were in Broad Channel, my beloved hometown now. Believe me, we could not have left you standing in the cold. Either way, you would have gotten a ride to your door.

Speaking of weather, with the very high winds, rain, New Moon and morning high tide, our area was a wet mess. Over in Rockaway, major portions of the new sand were stripped off the beach and back into the sea.

Here in Broad Channel many parts of our island were flooded. On the west side, streets were swimming under water that looked to be rising almost as high as some fire hydrants. The debris line on Shad Creek Road was all the way across the street the next day, on the sidewalk behind the school.

Over on the East side the tide, pushed by the wind, flooded my “backyard.” It stayed high for several hours past normal. It finally went down, but it was deep enough to keep me from being able to leave the house for a while. Not terrible, but it brought back some nasty memories.

Finally, I don’t know why, but I keep hearing “Town Without Pity” playing every time I pass Pete Mahon’s house.

Thanks for reading.