Obituary: Omara Flores, A Jewel in our Lives

By PS/MS 95 Staff

Members of the PS/MS 95, The Sheila Mencher Van Cortlandt School community in Van Cortlandt Village, held a socially distanced, outdoor remembrance event on April 21 in tribute to our colleague, Omara Flores, beloved, long-time assistant principal at the school who died tragically and unexpectedly on April 6, 2020 of COVID-19. She left behind a husband and two adult children, both graduates of PS/MS 95. The event which was attended by about 35 people was filled with sweet remembrances of an esteemed and admired colleague, with the participants immersed in a collective sea of sorrow. Under the leadership of

By DAVID GREENE & MIRIAM QUIÑONES

One year on from a previously unimaginable pandemic that, so far, has taken the lives of three million people worldwide, a dozen or so nurses and hospital staff gathered at Jacobi Medical Center in the Morris Park section of The Bronx, to honor the late RN Freda Ocran who, it is understood, was the first nurse based at a New York City public hospital to have died in the line of duty from COVID-19. On Sunday, March 28, hospital staff joined family members and elected officials to remember Freda on the first anniversary of her passing, and to honor

By SÍLE MOLONEY

To honor the thousands of beloved New Yorkers lost during the COVID-19 pandemic this year, the City of New York will host an official Day of Remembrance this Sunday, March 14, 2021 at 7:45 p.m. Readers are encouraged to join online to honor family, friends, frontline essential workers, and fellow New Yorkers. All New Yorkers are invited to tune in and share the name and photograph of a person they lost.The photograph may be featured as part of the City’s ceremony. The photo should be a clear image of the family’s loved one, and the photo specifications are as

By SÍLE MOLONEY

As the number of hospitalizations due to COVID-19 continues to rise across New York City, during a press conference on Tuesday, Nov. 24, the De Blasio administration outlined the steps that will be taken in the coming months to address the increase in the context of the upcoming holidays, including the consequences for those who do not comply with quarantine restrictions if traveling. Health Commissioner Dr. Dave A. Chokshi paid tribute to front line workers, asking New Yorkers to remember that those same front line workers will be working through the holiday period and will not be able to

By DAVID GREENE

Bronxites observed the exact moment when hijackers crashed two jetliners into the World Trade Center at several events marking the 19th anniversary of 9/11, as a number of somber ceremonies took place at various venues including police stations and fire houses across the borough. On Friday, Sept. 11, an estimated two dozen officers stood to attention outside of the 49th precinct on Eastchester Road. The officers gathered with members of the 49th Precinct Clergy Council and saluted the names of the 23 police officers who were killed in the line of duty during the terrorist attacks on September 11,

By DAVID GREENE

Almost two years after the death of Staff Sergeant Santiago Frias, a local hero and army veteran who was seriously wounded during the Iraq war, a street renaming ceremony was held in his honor in the University Heights section of the Bronx last month. Following his return to the U.S., the young man recovered from his wounds, helped raise a family, and devoted time to local children, teaching them the art of self defense. He was one semester shy of a degree in social work. Family and friends of Frias gathered at West 183rd Street and Grand Avenue,

By David Greene

Television icon and chat show host, Regis Philbin, who grew up in the Bronx, died at the age of 88 on Friday, July 24. A spokesperson for the Chief Medical Examiner’s Office in Farmington, CT told E! News that the TV and game show legend died from a myocardial infarction (more commonly known as a heart attack) due to coronary artery disease. https://twitter.com/CardinalHayes/status/1287506848254500865?s=20 https://twitter.com/CardinalHayes/status/1287121239190974465?s=20 Born in Manhattan, and raised in the Van Nest section of the Bronx, Philbin attended both Our Lady of Solace and Cardinal Hayes High School, before attending and graduating from Notre Dame. On

By JASON GONZALEZ

Being the oldest sibling in her household, Tanya Downer did everything in her might to ensure her baby brother, Brandon Hendricks, was protected. Like many times before, Downer ensured that Hendricks was both safe and doing okay before she left town on vacation in late June 2020. In need of some rest and relaxation following the stress and aggravation of the recent lockdown, she was looking forward to a change of scenery. As soon as it was safe to fly again, Downer and her family traveled to Puerto Rico, her favorite holiday destination. The time spent in the Caribbean

Muriel “Mickey” Axelbank, 91, who was beloved by her devoted family and the broader community and well-respected as an early childhood educator, died early Saturday, Apr. 4, 2020. Mickey led a stellar life of more than nine decades and was widely revered as an exceptional woman with a big heart that touched everyone around her. Mickey’s mother immigrated to America alone on a boat at the age of 16. Mickey’s father died when she was just two, and she was raised with her older sister in a building across the street from the George Washington Bridge by her mother and

Norwood News

Serving Norwood, Bedford Park, Fordham and University Heights

Obituaries

Obituary: Omara Flores, A Jewel in our Lives

Beloved Head Nurse Who Died from COVID-19 in the Line of Duty Honored One Year Later

Submit Photos of Loved Ones Lost to COVID for City Memorial Service on March 14

De Blasio Outlines Quarantine Enforcement, Pays Tribute to Former NYC Mayor David Dinkins

University Heights: Street Renamed in Honor of Local Hero, Purple Heart Recipient

Television Icon, Regis Philbin, Remembered

Brandon Hendricks’ Funeral Held

Mickey Axelbank, 91, Dies; Beloved Grandmother, Community Icon, Nursery School Educator