Our local parks give us so much, but it takes money and resources to maintain them. Give back with a fundraising gala from North Brooklyn Parks Alliance this Thursday. The gala will take place at Under the K Bridge Park from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m.
All proceeds from the evening will support NBK Parks in their mission to ensure that the parks across our neighborhood are equitable and accessible to all.
“At their 2022 Gala, NBK Parks will celebrate this year’s Honorees and Sister Francis Kress Award Recipients with music, live performances, immersive meditative experiences, food from local vendors, refreshments sponsored by New York Distilling Company, and more at Under the K Bridge Park’s beautiful “Creekside” section that abuts the Newtown Creek, has Manhattan skyline views, and is spectacularly illuminated at night by the light show on the Kosciuszko Bridge,” says a press email from NBK Parks.
NBK Parks recommends people take a car service to 470 Scott Ave. People arriving via public transit should enter the park at 812 Meeker Ave.
The gala will celebrate three different honorees who have shown a commitment to improving the health and wellness of our North Brooklyn community. The three honorees are Dr. Michael F. Timoney, Surgeon in Chief, NYU Langone Hospital of Brooklyn, Debra Benders, President of Cooper Park Houses Resident Association, and Seth Pompan, President of North Brooklyn Runners.
Dr. Timoney treats patients from all over Brooklyn at NYU Langone and is being honored for his valiant efforts during the worst of the COVID-19 pandemic. Ms. Benders is an active community leader at Cooper Park Houses and was instrumental in organizing aid for her fellow residents during the pandemic. Seth Pompan heads one of the most active running groups in the city, whose runs always take advantage of the green space our local parks offer.
Six local groups will be given the Sister Francis Kress Award (whose namesake we recently highlighted for Women’s History Month). Those groups are:
Friends of Cooper Park
McCarren Dog Run Alliance
McCarren Demonstration Garden
North Brooklyn Open Streets Community Coalition
Rodney Park Basketball
Sunshine Community Garden
Greenpointers has written extensively about quite a few of these groups, and we encourage you to click on the links above to refresh your memory and get to know the people dedicated to making our neighborhood a healthier, safer community for us all.