Four of the five Women’s History Month Council Proclamation recipients stand with Councilmember Jimmy Van Bramer (wearing suit), bookended by the Costello brothers, Justin (holding proclamation) and Niall (holding flowers), standing in for Jean Clancy of Claret Wine Bar. The others are (l. to r.); Ebony Conely-Young of the Long Island City YMCA; Dr. Moitri Chowdhury Savard of Queens West Health and Wellness; Patrice Lee of April Glass, and Sherilyn Jo Sabba of the Woodside Herald.Councilmember Jimmy Van Bramer held his second annual Women’s History Month Awards ceremony in a morning gathering last Saturday, March 24, at his local office, 47-01 Queens Blvd. Framed Council Proclamations were presented to Patrice Lee, owner of April Glass; Sherilyn Sabba, editor of the Woodside Herald; Jean Clancy, co-owner of Claret Wine Bar; Moitri Chowdhury Savard M.D., head of Queens West Health and Wellness, and Ebony Conely-Young, executive director of the Long Island City YMCA. Van Bramer also held an Open House for his constituents after the ceremony.
Van Bramer introduced Lee by calling April Glass, 43-42 40th St., Sunnyside, purveyor of glassware and household items, “one of the nicest stores in all New York City” and his mother one of its loyal customers. He cited Lee’s charitable and philanthropic work as he presented her with the first of the Council Proclamations and bouquets of flowers from Flowers by Giorgie, 45-17 Greenpoint Ave.
Accepting the Council Proclamation for Jean Clancy, co-owner of Claret Wine Bar, 46-02 Skillman Ave., Sunnyside, were Claret Wine Bar’s other co-owners, Justin and Niall Costello.Van Bramer said that Clancy has held fundraising events at her restaurant for Haitian earthquake victims and Queens Community House, among others, and on one Sunday last summer, provided the place for Van Bramer’s public party celebrating the state legislature’s passing of the gay marriage bill.
Sherilyn Sabba received a Council Proclamation as the third generation owner and editor of the Woodside Herald, 13-05 44th Ave., following her grandfather, Joe Sabba and father, Buster Sabba. On Buster Sabba’s unexpected death in March 2009, she became responsible for keeping the weekly paper going and, with her husband’s help, has maintained it since then.
Dr. Moitri Chowdhury Savard received a Council Proclamation for operating Queens West Health and Wellness, 5-31 50th Ave., Long Island City, with Dr. Suzanne Cole. A humanities student as a Harvard undergraduate, Savard went on to earn a medical degree at SUNY Stony Brook, with further studies at the University of New Mexico. Queens West Health and Maintenance provides services from family medicine and gynecologic and pediatric care to acupuncture and cranial sacral therapy. Savard is also a member of Community Board 2.
Ebony Conely-Young, the final woman to receive a Council Proclamation, has been executive director of the Long Island City YMCA, 32-23 Queens Blvd. for five months. Van Bramer said her presence at the Y after less than half a year has been “like a bolt of lightning”, particularly in the way she has revitalized the athletic leagues there. She said she subscribes to Gandhi’s motto, “Be the change you want to see,” which, she said, could be applied also to Van Bramer.
Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer briefly saluted the event before having to leave. Having recently become a parent himself, he said his current stage of fatherhood requires him to get up early, “about the same time that Jimmy is already out working”. He also said he has some experience with dynamic women, having begun his political life as a teenage campaigner for his cousin, the late Congressmenber Bella Abzug. In his farewell to Stringer, Van Bramer noted that Manhattan is “a wonderful place to visit”. He also described his staff as the best in the city while also managing to praise Stringer’s. And he again hailed one of last year’s Women’s History Month Award winners, Gert McDonald, who was standing nearby, noting that this August she will turn 96.
