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TOUCH Receives Sustainability Grant from Veolia
TOUCH-Together Our Unity Can Heal has received a $7,500 grant from Veolia to support work to prevent hunger and reduce food waste in Rockland County.
The grant from Veolia will help pay for a refrigeration unit for a delivery van that will deliver fresh produce and other healthful food items to more than three dozen food pantries in Rockland County. The food is recovered from excess inventory at local retail stores and from Hudson Valley farms.
“TOUCH is very grateful for Veolia’s recognition of our work,” said Julian Palmer, Executive Director of TOUCH. “Their support will help us get more nutritious food to people who need it and help our environment by rescuing food that would have gone to waste.”
TOUCH is the lead agency for the Rockland Community Against Hunger (RCAH) Food Recovery Program, a collaboration of non-profit agencies and public and private partners that serve diverse constituencies across Rockland County.
The TOUCH/RCAH Food Recovery program has grown consistently since it was launched in 2018, recovering and distributing a record 1.38 million pounds of food in 2023. TOUCH’s program partners include BRIDGES, Catholic Charities Community Services of Rockland, the Martin Luther King Jr. Multi-Purpose Center, and Meals on Wheels of Rockland. TOUCH holds contracts with the Regional Food Bank of Northeastern NY and many local retail stores that facilitate the donation and pickup of food for distribution to local food pantries.
The Hudson Gateway Association of REALTORS® Names Carmen Bauman of RM Friedland as 2024 President
The Hudson Gateway Association of REALTORS® (HGAR) has named Carmen Bauman of RM Friedland in Harrison as 2024 President. HGAR also appointed its 2024 executive officers and directors at its Installation Gala, held at The Opus Westchester in White Plains.
Bauman served as Treasurer of the Board of Directors in 2022 and has been a member of the Board since 2019. Last year, she served on HGAR’s Global Business Council, Legislative Committee and Young Professionals Network.
Bauman has a diversified background in both commercial and residential real estate, as well as law. For the past two years, she has been part of RM Friedland’s Investment Sales Division, and she is the Broker-Owner of her own residential firm, Green Grass Real Estate. She is also an attorney who concentrated her practice in real estate and litigation. She received her law degree from New York Law School and her B.A. in Political Science from St. John’s University.
“We are so excited to welcome Carmen Bauman as our 2024 Association President. She offers a wealth of knowledge as an attorney, commercial and residential broker, and will be a dynamic leader,” said Lynda Fernandez, HGAR CEO. “We are also very fortunate to have such a diverse and vibrant group of 2024 directors from throughout the Hudson Valley and New York City who are dedicated to advancing HGAR’s strategic vision.”
In addition to the new HGAR president, the 2024 HGAR Executive Officers installed include: Vlora Sejdi of HomeSmart Homes & Estates in White Plains as President-Elect; Joseph Lippolis of BHHS Rivertowns Real Estate in Peekskill as Treasurer; Rey Hollingsworth Falu of Hollingsworth Real Estate Group in White Plains as Secretary and Tony D’Anzica of Dynamax Realty NYC Inc. in Manhattan as Immediate Past President.
- Emran Bhuiyan of Exit Realty Premium, Bronx
- Timothy Bohlke of Howard Hanna Rand Realty, Suffern
- Layla Boyles of Century 21 Realty Center, Monroe
- Anthony Domathoti of Exit Realty Premium, Bronx
- Mackenzie Forsberg of Genesis Realty Group LLC, Bronx
- Ron Garafalo of John J. Lease Realtors Inc., Middletown
- Joseph Houlihan of Houlihan & O’Malley Real Estate Services, Bronxville
- Diane Mitchell of Wright Bros Real Estate Inc., Nyack
- Timothy Mullowney of Zillow Inc., Manhattan
- Roseann Paggiotta of Exp Realty, White Plains
- Darin (Nan) Palumbo of Green Grass Real Estate Corp., Bronxville
- Anthony Ruperto of Ally Realty, Beacon
- Christina Stevens of Laujel Realty Corp., Bronx
- Maryann Tercasio, Howard Hanna Rand Realty, Central Valley
- Cheryl Williams of Corcoran Legends Realty, Tarrytown
- Shanese Williams of Exp Realty, White Plains
Bipartisan OC Legislative Delegation Sues to Block Congestion Pricing
Senator James Skoufis (D-42nd District), Senator Rob Rolison (R-39th District), and Assemblymembers Chris Eachus (D-99th District), Aileen Gunther (D-100th District), Brian Maher (R-101st District), and Karl Brabenec (R-98th District) have joined a lawsuit to block the MTA’s ‘congestion pricing’ proposal. The agency’s plan would impose a $15 toll on passenger cars traveling into midtown and lower Manhattan, in addition to existing bridge and highway tolls. This would disproportionately affect Orange County commuters who are without viable public transit options.
Legislators say congestion pricing amounts to triple taxing commuters just for entering the city; through bridge tolls, and the disastrous MTA payroll tax.
“The Hudson Valley is home to a large number of constituents residing in the 101st New York State Assembly District that commute to NYC,” said Maher. “My constituents are police officers, firefighters, nurses, teachers, blue collar union workers, and countless others that represent the backbones of our society. These essential workers are already underpaid, under-thanked and already pay exorbitant tolls for the bridges and tunnels they use to get into the city. We should not be charging them an additional cost just to simply go to work and help keep our state running at its highest potential. Congestion pricing hurts those that help us the most, it cannot and should not stand.”
The lawsuit, which features the legislators as plaintiffs, is being filed by the United Federation of Teachers and argues the MTA’s proposal would inflict environmental and economic damage on many New York residents.
