Councilman Gentile Has Advocated for Disabled Individuals For Years
I couldn’t let the day end without writing about Mr. Gentile. I saw some headlines and I realized something isn’t right with today’s news stories. Councilman Gentile has been an advocate for the disabled for years.
Mr. Gentile does not know us. We are residents in his district who have seen he always does the right thing for people.
In July, when the NYC Council discretionary budget came out, I looked online to see how Gentile spent the money. I don’t think any council person could have spent the money better. Gentile allocated $800,000 for the Martini House. The Martini House is a home for disabled adults. NYS wasn’t funding the Martini House, even though they asked for assistance for six years. Councilman Gentile decided to step in to make sure that disabled adults had somewhere to live and they had the necessary accommodations (elevator, entrance ramps, wider hallways and bathrooms for the handicapped).
Gentile said: “When I walked through the Martini Residence a few months ago, the need for a complete renovation of the home was readily apparent. Most of the residents do not have family support outside of Guild for Exceptional Children. It would be shame for the residents to have to be moved to a long term nursing home due to a lack of accessibility to the facilities in the building.” Here’s how Gentile allocated the rest of the money.
In November 2014, Gentile made a resolution to allow disabled Veteran’s to use the HOV lane.
In 2013, a dilapidated home in Bay Ridge was upsetting people. Vincent Gentile worked for a long time on getting the home purchased for use by a disabled veteran. The veteran decided not to live in NYC so the plans fell through.
In 2013, Gentile stood with Councilman Greenfield in getting rid of the term “mentally retarded.” Gentile said, “It is shocking that in this day and age we are still using this term. Developmentally disabled does not mean mentally retarded, which is why we need to change this, and we need to change it now.”
In 2013, Gentile and former Councilman Domenic Recchia secured a $1.9 million dollar grant for the Guild for Exceptional Children in Bay Ridge. The Guild for Exceptional Children is a nonprofit organization that provides educational services, living options and life skills for children and adults with developmental disabilities
In 2010, Gentile and Marty Golden fought with disabled residents in Bay Ridge to keep the MTA from cutting service on certain bus routes.
In 2006, Vincent Gentile was a State Senator and he introduced Billy’s Law to protect developmentally disabled students who are out of state. Gentile advocated against developmentally disabled children being given shock treatments as a form of discipline in out-of-state boarding schools. (And ten years later)
I remember meeting a younger Vincent Gentile in 1995 or 1996. He spoke about at a community meeting about special education. I remember thinking that he was the most enthusiastic person I had ever met and I could tell he loved his job – helping people!
The news headlines and Mr. Gentile’s advocacy for disabled individuals over the years don’t seem to match up. A leopard doesn’t change his spots ->Vincent Gentile has been an advocate for the underdog for many years, whether it be the disabled, elderly, veteran’s, families, etc. The way he votes and distributes money is driven by how it is fair to all people. Mr. Gentile is someone who has consistently led this community with kindness and professionalism.
Update: Online I saw Bob Capano post this on Twitter:
Capano doesn’t know what is going on in Bay Ridge because he lives in Staten Island. People know Vinnie Gentile and no one is protesting because the whole story isn’t in what the press has told us. Vinnie wouldn’t have hired this man if he was someone who would discriminate against disabled people. Gentile has been an advocate of the disabled for years!
Strangely, Liam McCabe is the only one who retweeted Capano’s message. McCabe works at Dan Donovan’s office so he should know better than to join in with Capano’s “playing politics” posts.
February 10th – The situation is in the news here and here
Hugs,
marlene
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