Obituaries

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

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,


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Television Icon, Regis Philbin, Remembered

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.   Up Hayes & All Its Loyal Men!Watch “Channel H News interviews Regis Philbin” on #Vimeo https://t.co/3Qxxw4c4O1 — Cardinal Hayes (@CardinalHayes) July 26, 2020   It is with great sadness that we mourn the loss of our loyal


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Brandon Hendricks’ Funeral Held

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


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

Mickey Axelbank
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


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Jules Ira Rubenstein, the Original Inquiring Photographer, Dies at 74

By DAVID GREENE
Life-long Van Cortlandt Park resident Jules Ira Rubenstein, the original “Inquiring Photographer” who produced that popular feature for the Norwood News for 14 years until his retirement more than a decade ago, died from complications of pneumonia. He was 74. A source at Montefiore Hospital, where Rubenstein had been hospitalized since October, stated he had died on Feb. 4, confirming that at around 4:30 a.m., he was found unresponsive. “They tried to resuscitate him [but] he expired,” the source added. Rubenstein was the Norwood News’ first “roving reporter” who covered local breaking news events such as police and fire department activity. He was first hired by


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