The following is an extended version of the story that appears in our latest edition.

 

Bedford Park resident and community volunteer, Miriam Quiñones, was one of five impressive women honored during a Women’s History Month celebration organized by Bridgefield Civic League in the Williamsbridge section of the Bronx on Saturday, March 18. During the event, Quiñones, who is also a freelance photographer with Norwood News, along with each of the other four honorees, was presented with a plaque by president of Bridgefield Civic League, Debra Garland, as well as proclamations from both the City Council, presented by District 12 City Councilman Kevin Riley, and from the Office of the Bronx Borough President, Vanessa Gibson, presented by David Coulibaly.

 

Two days prior, Gibson had hosted her own 2nd Annual Women’s History Month Celebration on March 16 in the Belmont section of The Bronx, during which she paid tribute to five other trailblazing Bronx women whose strength and persistence, mixed with compassion and empathy, she said, have worked to guide the borough through turbulent times.

 

At the celebration, hosted by Bridgefield Civic League president, Debra Garland, and which was held at 3551 Laconia Avenue in front of an enthusiastic crowd of supporters and family members, in addition to Quiñones, the other honorees were Monique Ferguson Riley, Dr. Minette Francis-Haden, Dr. Hadiza Osuji, and Cheryl A. McNear.

 

Before his remarks about the honorees, the councilmember, who was elected in 2021, spoke about the importance of voting and the prevailing budget, a point which was referenced earlier during the event as part of a separate civic forum discussion. “We do give too much money to our NYPD department, and not enough money to education,” he said. “Last year, as city council members, we did a tremendous disservice to our communities,” he added, explaining that for many council members, it was their first experience of going through a budget.

 

“This year, we plan on doing a better job,” he said, adding that the council members planned to be as transparent as possible. “I’m very big on technology and artificial intelligence because this is the next profession that our kids are going to be presented with,” he said. Saying he was a parent of three, Riley went on to explain that it was important that the majority of the budget went back to the schools for upgrades and investment in public spaces.

 

The councilman also paid tribute to both Bridgefield Civic League and its 2023 honorees, saying, “Women like Ms. Debra care and they give so much back to the community.” He appealed to the attendees to remember the occasion and to appreciate the honorees. “It might be just a certificate. You might get this several times at different events, but it’s not about just a certificate,” he said in part. “It’s about celebrating yourself, and I think during this pandemic, we didn’t realize that we really have to celebrate life, as you never know when the last day is. So, continue to celebrate life, to the women in our community, thank you so much!”

 

During her address, Garland described the six honorees as remarkable women for their service, accomplishments, and achievements. “Your dedication and hard work have not gone un-noticed and we appreciate everything that you do to make our community a better place,” she said, adding, “They say when you educate a boy, you’ve educated an individual, but when you educate a girl, you liberate a community.”

 

Garland went on to describe the Bridgefield Civic League as a program about hope for humanity. “It’s about seeing everyone, human beings, in the image of God. Our community can only achieve hope through collaboration and implementing solutions that promote inclusivity, diversity, and empathy. When we empower individuals, when we empower families, when we empower communities, we get a sense of unity and shared purpose. Rather than being motivated by greed, we should reimagine how we can organize a society to prioritize the well-being of us all,” she said.

Garland said that by working together, it was possible to create more equitable systems that promote access and liberty and justice for all. “Let us focus on what unites us rather than what divides us, and strive to build a world that benefits humanity as a whole. Alice Walker once said, ‘The most common way people can give up their power is by thinking they don’t have any.’ So, today, our Bridgefield colors are purple and yellow. Purple is associated with loyalty, mobility, luxury, power and ambitions and we added the color of yellow to bring in the sunshine, a feeling of positivity and feelings,” she said.

 

Before reading out the bios of each of the honorees ahead of collecting their awards, hosts, “Karen and Kim” said that the event was about uplifting regular everyday women who work to try to make a change in their local community who are not necessarily seen on TV, adding, “You don’t have to move in order to live in a better place, so let’s celebrate the queens that are here.”

 

According to the organizers of the event, McNear, the first honoree retired in 2011 after 44 years of work. “Now, that’s a worker!” they said. Thirty-eight of those years were spent in higher education, the first ten of which were spent at Columbia University. “She then worked as the executive assistant to the Dean of Students of Polytechnic University, now NYU, Transit School of Engineering,” they said.

 

In addition, they said McNear worked as the assistant for the dean of students, director of student development, as associate dean of student affairs, and taught youth. “McNear is a divorced mother of one surviving, adult daughter and two grandchildren,” they said. “She holds a Bachelor of Science and Humanities from Polytech.”  They added that since her retirement, McNear works as an H&R tax preparer.

 

Later, as part of her life in community service, she was encouraged by a colleague to attend a 47th Precinct Community Council meeting and get involved. She also joined the local community board and the board of directors of “Not on My Watch,” an organization which has as its mission to educate, equip, engage, and empower women and girls to lead successful and safe lives.

 

Accepting her award, McNear said it was truly an honor to stand before so many familiar faces. “I’m a background person. It’s not about being in front but supporting whatever it is we’re trying to accomplish,” she said. McNear went on to say in part that she had had a lot of personal accomplishments in her life, working with people with master’s degrees and PhDs. “I didn’t have a degree for a very long time, doing the things that I did, and I’m out here to tell everyone, ‘Yes, you can! Yes, you can, and as long as there’s breath in this body, I’m here to see that you do it!” she said.

For her part, Osuji, another honoree, was described as the founder and executive director of AICC, the African International Collaborative Center, a nonprofit organization focused on empowering African immigrant women and youth with success, building stronger and healthier African immigrant families and communities, as well as working to better the African community within this diaspora. She is also the editor-in-chief of the African Whistle magazine.

 

Additionally, Osuji is an adjunct assistant professor at the New York University’s McSilver School of Social Work. Previously, she was the chief program officer at the McSilver Institute for Poverty Policy and Research, and currently serves as the vice chair of the McSilver Institute Community Collaborative Board. Over the years, the organizers said Osuji has been engaged in direct practice, serving children and families of color residing in poorly resourced neighborhoods.

“These experiences laid the foundation and honed her expertise in the areas of child and adolescent mental health promotion, HIV prevention, and care intervention, community-based participatory research, African immigrant, health and mental health promotion, as well as community health education and promotion,” they said. In response to the current migrant crisis, the organizers said Osuji was working in collaboration with diverse groups, to respond to the plight of migrants by providing basic necessities to enable them to adapt and thrive in their new location.

 

Accepting her award, Osuji said she was honored, touched, and very appreciative of the honor. “We all agree there is a big gap, particularly in the African community, in terms of promoting equity across all levels, and that is why we’re really working determinately trying to make sure we reduce this gap,” she said in part. “So, it is truly an honor for me, and this award really will be in my office and it serves as a motivator and an inspiration to continue to do what we’re doing in the community. Thank you so much.”

 

Honoree, Francis-Haden, was described as a nutritionist, a motivator, a certified holistic health counselor who attended the Institute of Integrative Nutrition, the Pennsylvania College of Optometry and a member of the American Association of Drugless Practitioners. She is also a certified aerobics and fitness instructor, a Zumba instructor, and a certified CPR who works at Lincoln Hospital as a physician and who was educated all over the States.

 

“Dr. Minnette has always been fascinated with the human body,” the organizers said. “As a young girl born and raised in The Bronx, she was always intrigued by the mechanics, taking biology as a sophomore in one of our community schools, Spelman High School, located here in The Bronx. She had an appetite for more knowledge, and a lot of her knowledge is also based in wellness and Christian faith. She wanted to inform others about her knowledge of the human body and how to prevent the onset of disease,” they continued in part, adding that she also volunteers with the American Cancer Society’s Relay for Life in Mount Vernon.

Accepting her award, Francis-Haden said she was grateful for the opportunity, explaining that Garland was the reason why she was at the event because she was her former student when she was an instructor at the College of New Rochelle. “She will tell you that I was a nervous wreck but apparently I didn’t show it to her, and I’m grateful for that, because who knew how many, many years later that we would be together this day?” she said.

 

Francis-Haden said the award was about community and that she was grateful to have her mom, her husband, and her daughter present for the occasion, explaining that her mother was a nurse. “I wanted to be a nurse because my mom was my first role model,” she said. “She told me at that time that nurses were not getting the pay that they were due at that time, and she told me to pursue higher education because I loved science, and because I did, I was given numerous scholarships, and I thank God for that,” she said.

 

Francis-Haden continued in part, “I give my mother all good credit because it was her that pushed me and made me see there’s more that I could do for my community. When she retired, she didn’t retire. She used her retirement to use her nursing skills in the school system, so we’re talking about education, we’re talking about how we can continue to utilize our skills beyond our working years, so she is my motivator. I’m so grateful and honored that she is here with me at this moment to see me obtain this wonderful honor.”

 

Later, Ferguson Riley was described as “another beautiful soul” by the organizers. “You are in the company of someone that has been a champion for our community, a champion for our children, for our children’s safety, on educating us of the dangers that are around our jewels, which is our children: male and female sex trafficking,” the organizers said.

“Monique Ferguson Riley is a graduate from Bethel University with a bachelor’s degree in ministry,” they said. “She is currently pursuing her MBA at Capella University. Monique has worked in the nonprofit sector for several years with a focus on victim services as it applies to youth, adult and families. In 2019, she founded Freedom Youth Family Justice Center Incorporated, where she works with victim victims and survivors of sex trafficking and domestic violence. Monique is a hero.”

 

The organizers went on to say that Ferguson-Riley also spearheaded the Vulnerable Peoples Project, where she also worked closely with elected officials, the NYPD, and the [U.S.] Department of Homeland Security. “Monique is a newly ordained pastor that is passionate about sharing the Word of God with everyone she meets,” they said. “Monique is resilient. In the fall of 2021, she received the Esteemed Alumna of the Year Award where she was recognized by Bethel University in the State of Minnesota for the work that she has done with our at-risk youth.”

 

Ferguson Riley, whose work has been featured previously in the Norwood News, recently told us the Freedom Youth Family Justice Center has expanded its work on domestic violence and human trafficking prevention to Mount Vernon, in addition to the work done in The Bronx. Accepting her award, she thanked Bridgefield Civic League and Garland for believing in her. “It’s been a long journey. I’ve been out here doing his work since 2019, here in New York, and since 2013 in Minnesota. I am so happy to see the fruition of what.. [inaudible]. This has been a longtime passion and my story, and the reason why I kind of started the organization, so I’m very grateful to stand here today and be honored. Thank you.”

 

When it came to honoring Quiñones, the organizers said she has volunteered with various local community groups like the Albanian American Open Hand Association [for ten years], providing food and clothing to those in need, as reported. The association’s founder and president, Alexander Nilaj, and another member of the group were present at the event to cheer her on. In addition, the organizers said Quiñones has worked as a volunteer photographer for other local nonprofits, has helped Friends of Mosholu Parkland and the Summer Youth Program with gardening, has worked to feed the homeless, and has organized coat and toy drives [for 20+ years] for those in need, more recently with Bronx female-led, volunteer group, B.A.B.E.S., as reported.

The organizers noted, “Miriam began her mission work by providing food to the homeless underneath train stations and at parks. She also distributed blankets and coats to individuals who were on park benches in the Norwood area of the Bronx during the cold seasons. It is Miriam’s desire that one day everyone will be at peace, have a place to call home, and no one will have to sleep on the street or beg for food.”

 

Quiñones, who also works locally in Bedford Park as a school aide, was visibly emotional as she took the mic to address the crowd. Amid supportive applause, she said, “I’m not used to talking in front of people. I’m always behind the camera and not in front. I really appreciate this award.”

 

Quiñones also took time to pay tribute to Garland, who she described as “wonderful.” She concluded by saying, “Thank you again! Wow! I’m actually speaking in front of a room of people!”