Caribbean L 38 ife, May 17–23, 2019
Annual Tribute to Ancestors
of the Middle Passage
By Nelson A. King
The People of the Sun Middle Passage
at Brooklyn’s Medgar Evers College
says it will hold its 30th Annual Tribute
to Our Ancestors of the Middle Passage,
between 16th and 17th streets on the
Boardwalk, Coney Island, on Saturday,
June 8, from noon to sun down.
“This is our 30th year of paying tribute
to our ancestors, and therefore, an
historic marking of the event,” said the
group in a statement on Monday.
It said the tribute will be hosted by
Ras Osagyefo and Habte Selasse.
“At this year’s tribute, we will be paying
respects to our ancestors who lost
their lives in the Middle Passage and
those in our families who are no longer
with us now,” The People of the Sun
Middle Passage said.
It said it will be making special tributes
to Baba Bill Jones, Medgar Evers
College’s Dr. George Irish and Maxwell
Haywood, Director John Singleton,
“and performance artists Nipsey Hussle,
Nancy Wilson, and Della Reese, and,
as always, remembering Prof. Dr. Mary
Umolu.”
“We invite you to join us in the celebrations
of music, spoken word and
dance that will take place throughout
the day,” the group said.
It said the Tribute will feature performances
Prof. Dr. Mary Umolu.
by: Shanto, Ras Atiba & The
Sarabita World Band, Congo Square
Drummers, and special performances
by Sister Carol and Zafem World Entertainment,
among others.
“At the end of the day, we will go
down to the water’s edge to place flowers
on the water in honor of those lost
in the Middle Passage,” The People of
the Sun Middle Passage said.
For more information, contact: Akeem
@718-659-4999 or at akeem476@gmail.
com.
Bay Ridge Center and
Eric Adams, Brooklyn Borough
President, hosted the
third annual Senior Tech
Fair. This year 35 organizations
displayed the technologies
that they have created to
enrich the quality of life for
older adults.
“The Senior Tech Fair
showcased both the cuttingedge
technologies, including
starts-ups, as well as provide
training and support for laptops,
smart phones and tablets,”
said Marianne Nicolosi,
Executive Director of the Bay
Ridge Center.
“I came because I don’t
want to be left behind,” said
Joan D. “I want to remain active
in the future and it seems
that technology is involved in
everything these days.”
“May is older American’s
month so there are lots of resource
fairs, so we decided
to be different and showcase
the vitality of older adults
through technology, said
Todd W. Fliedner, Deputy Director
of the Bay Ridge Center.
“This is a very special
event. And, given how many
companies participated this
year, we’re excited about what
the future holds.”
Rachael Marotta, Bay
Ridge Center’s Tea & Technology
trainer as well as coorganizer
of Senior Tech Fair
2019 said, “At the Center we
make technology accessible
to our members. We offer
classes, one-on-one instruction,
guidance and support
and whenever possible we go
on trips to see technology in
development.”
“I was so impressed with
all of the government departments
that came and informed
our attendees about
the important services and
products that they make
available to older adults,”
said Pat Kaufman, organizer
of the area known for the day
as “Spark Park.” Government
tablers, included: CERT,
FDNY, NYC Transit, NYPD,
THRIVE, and TLC.
The event was divided
into three phases: General
Sessions, Technology Showcase
and the Brooklyn Boost,
a pitch competition among
start-up tech companies from
the tri-state area.
“We are grateful to our
lead sponsors: Grimaldi & Yeung,
TD Bank and ClearCaptions.
As well as NYC Council
Member Justin Brannan
for providing the support to
make this event possible,”
said Josephine Beckman,
District Manager for Community
Board 10 who is a partner
with Bay Ridge Center on Age
Friendly initiatives.
“The phrase should really
be ‘digital exclusion,’ said Ms.
Nicolosi. “There are more seniors
not included in the digital
economy than those that
are, especially when income
and educational attainment
are considered. Our Senior
Tech Fair is a great equalizer.”
A new addition to this
year’s Senior Tech Fair was
the Brooklyn Boost. This
start-up business pitch competition
was considered a great
success. Rose from Orah.
Care won the event, which
included winning a $1,500
“check” to help grow her company.
This was the second
pitch competition that Elder
Productions Company hosted
in the last six months. More
will be announced shortly.
For more information
about the Bay Ridge Center,
please call 718.748.0650 or visit
www.BayRidgeCenter.org.
BUS INES S , B ROOKLYN S T Y LE
Third Annual Senior Tech Expo Another Successful Event!
/www.BayRidgeCenter.org
/www.BayRidgeCenter.org
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