Bronxite and Former Fordham H.S. Student Samara Joy Wins Two Grammy Awards

By DAVID GREENE

Bronxite and alum of both Fordham High School of the Arts and SUNY’s Purchase College, Samara Joy [McLendon], was a relatively unknown jazz singer before she was awarded a Grammy for Best New Artist at the 65th Annual Grammy Awards held at the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles on Monday, Feb. 5. Joy beat out a field of newcomers including Anitta, Omar Apolo, JD Beck, Molly Turtle, and Tobe to capture the coveted prize. During her acceptance speech, the 23-year-old Castle Hill native appeared flabbergasted, telling the recording world’s A-list stars, “I am so… Oh my gosh! I can’t

By DAVID GREENE

Members of NY Sun Works, a non-profit that builds innovative science labs in urban schools, through its Greenhouse Project Initiative to educate students and teachers about the science of sustainability, joined Bronx Borough President Vanessa Gibson at Norwood’s P.S. / M.S. 20‘s hydroponic farm on Wednesday, Jan. 25, to announce the expansion of hydroponics farm technology to 20 local schools. According to verticalroots.com, put simply, hydroponics is a way to skip the soil, sub in a different material to support the roots of the plant, and grow crops directly in nutrient-rich water. The $2.5 million boroughwide project would

By SÍLE MOLONEY

As February marks Black History Month, Democrats, Rep. Jamaal Bowman Ed.D (NY-16) and U.S. Sen. Cory Booker reintroduced The African American History Act in both the House and the Senate and are urging leaders across the nation to tell the truth about the United States’ history of racism and white supremacy. The bill was reintroduced on Feb. 2 with over 100 original co-sponsors in the House, representatives for Bowman and Booker said. “It is our moral imperative to tell the truth about our past to finally reconcile with this nation’s history of racism and white nationalism, and our

By NAOMI PEMBERTON

January is Glaucoma Awareness Month, an important time to share information about one of the leading causes of blindness. Glaucoma is part of a group of common eye diseases and disorders that effect vison. It is the second leading cause of blindness worldwide, so it is essential to know the risks and how to prevent the disease. What is Glaucoma? According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Glaucoma effects about 3 million Americans. Glaucoma is part of a group of diseases that damage the eye’s central nerve, also known as the optic nerve. The optic

By SÍLE MOLONEY

New York Lottery officials announced Wednesday, Jan. 18, that there was one second-prize ticket for the Jan. 17 Mega Millions drawing and the ticket was sold in The Bronx. It is worth a guaranteed $20,000,000. Officials said the ticket was purchased at 170th Street Grocery, located at 160 East 170th Street in the Mt. Eden section of The Bronx. The winning numbers for the Mega Millions game are drawn from a field of one to 70, lottery officials said. The Mega Ball is drawn from a separate field one to of 25, they added. The Mega Millions drawing is televised

By ARIEL PACHECO

Bronx Community Board 7 (CB7) held their final board meeting of 2022 on Dec. 13, following a successful annual tree-lighting event in Bedford Park on Dec. 8. The meeting was attended by around two dozen people, updates were shared by the different CB7 committee chairs and concerns of some community members were also heard. The meeting was the first to be presided over by recently elected Bronx CB7 chair, Yajaira Arias, following her election to the position on Nov. 15. As reported, Arias, the incumbent CB7 secretary, succeeds Emmanuel Martinez, who stepped down as chair in the summer of 2022.

By SÍLE MOLONEY

Representatives from the New York Lottery announced on Sunday, Jan. 8, that there was one $1 million-winning ticket for the Jan. 7 Powerball drawing, and four $50,000 winning tickets, including one ticket which was sold in The Bronx. Officials said the winning tickets were sold at the following locations: Shop ‘n Save, located at 10 Buffalo Street in Gowanda, which sold one prize-winning ticket worth $1,000,000.00 Tulip Caterers located at 1020 Tulip Avenue in Franklin Square (Nassau County) which sold one prize-winning ticket worth $50,000.00 7-Eleven #36674B located at 690N French Road in Buffalo, which sold one prize-winning ticket

By SÍLE MOLONEY

Health Commissioner Issues Advisory NYC health commissioner, Dr. Ashwin Vasan, issued a new advisory on Dec. 9 as NYC faces high levels of a triple onslaught of COVID-19, flu, and RSV cases. New Yorkers are strongly urged to wear masks in public, indoor settings, and crowded outdoor settings, to get vaccinated, test regularly, wash hands regularly and stay home, if sick. For more information, visit here. He said this is especially important for people who are – or are meeting – those who are at increased risk for complications from COVID-19, RSV, or the flu, such as those age 65

By SÍLE MOLONEY

The following is an extended version of the story that appears in our latest print edition. When Bryan Cortez started studying Computer Information Systems at Bronx Community College (BCC) in the fall of 2021, New York City, like the rest of the country was still getting to grips with living through a second year of the COVID-19 pandemic. This had followed a summer spike in COVID cases caused by the then-new and highly infectious Delta variant. As a result, Cortez started his first semester at BCC, located at 2155 University Avenue in the University Heights section of The Bronx,