RIP Richard Martin – Bay Ridge
On September 28th, there was a serious fire on the corner of 91st Street and 3rd Avenue in Bay Ridge (above Little Cupcake Bakeshop).
Richard Martin was badly burned and his lungs suffered from the smoke.
For four weeks, Richie was in the burn unit at Staten Island University Hospital.
Today, Richie died. He was 89-years-old. He’s with God, his dog, Lucky and his cat Speedy, who died in the fire. Richie is no longer in pain.
Many people in Bay Ridge know Richie because they stopped and talked with him on the Avenue.
Richie’s wake will be at McLaughlin Funeral Home at 9620 – 3rd Avenue on Thursday, October 30th, 2025 from 4:00 pm – 8:00 pm.
The mass will be at St. Patrick’s Church at 9511 – 4th Avenue on Friday, October 31st, 2025 at 9:30 am
RIP Richie
Thank you to Mary Jo for all the updates on our neighbor.
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October 25, 2025Lobster At The Humidor in Bay Ridge?
The Humidor is the cigar shop on 3rd Avenue and 93rd Street. It always has a lot of men inside and outside on the weekends.
Why? Because they treat their customers them like family:
See Charlie’s video – they are having a good time!
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October 25, 2025Owls Head Park’s Design Doesn’t Include the Children’s Input – Why Did They Hold a Meeting?
In October 2020, Councilman Brannan announced a NYC Parks Department meeting for children to help them design Owls Head Park. Children attended the Zoom with their parents and had a lot of great ideas.
I wondered if the Parks Department was just having a fluff meeting or if they would design what the children requested.
COMPLETE FLUFF – so far there isn’t even one item that the children requested. It’s a kit playground that we have seen at other parks. Felix R. shared a video here:
https://www.facebook.com/felix.rivera.988/videos/2101261543949768?idorvanity=1821884731398700
Photo From Felix R’s video
Children asked for:
1) A bridge attached to a boat (like a pirate ship) and a water area with sand. Families thought of this because of the location of the park to the water.
2) Big kids swings
3) A strawberry to climb in
4) Longer slides
5) Monkey bars
From Felix R’s video
The children who attended that meeting during the pandemic five years ago have grown up and would be too big to play in a playground by the time this one opens.
In 2023, a parent shared photos of Owls Head Park because the playground was not being maintained and was dangerous.
More info : https://queenoftheclick.com/2023/09/19/in-october-2020-bay-ridge-children-redesign-owls-head-park-three-years-later-nothing/
Why did they hold a meeting and pretend they were going to design the park with the children’s suggestions if they intended to use a kit? Many NYC Parks have amazing designs like these:
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October 25, 2025Whose Pushing Kayla Santosuosso?
The Brooklyn Young Democrats (BYD) is pushing Kayla Santosuosso.
The Brooklyn Young Democrats pushed a Queens politician (Wai Yee Chan) for the new City Council seat in Brooklyn! They didn’t think a Brooklynite should represent the community.
Thankfully, Brooklyn voted against them and elected Susan Zhuang, who has been an amazing Councilwoman.
The Brooklyn Young Democrats also pushed Iwen Chu for reelection, even after she failed to stand up for her community with the 86th Street shelter!
Brooklyn voted against her as well and elected Senator Steve Chan, who has been an excellent representative.
Last year, the Brooklyn Young Democrats pushed Chris McCreight.
Like, Kayla Santosuosso, Chris McCreight has been silent for years as he worked for Justin Brannan. Brooklyn saw through that and elected Alec Brook Krasny for the NYS Assembly.
*This Summer, Alec Brook Krasny gave his seat to the Coney Island Casino advisory committee to Marissa Solomon, a resident in the community. Solomon and the Coney Island Heroes (I named them that – they aren’t boasting) read all the documents from the casino and fought for their community. They won for Coney Island.
If Chris McCreight had been the Assemblyman, Chris probably would have sided with Justin Brannan. Kayla Santosuosso and Chris McCreight should have spoken out against when Justin Brannan demapped Coney Island for the casino!
The Brooklyn Young Democrats are also pushing a YES vote on ballot proposals 2-5, while everyone else is saying to vote NO because these are Mayor Adams proposals.
Whose running the Young Brooklyn Democrats? Carlos Calzadilla, who works for Senator Andrew Gounardes. Carlo shared that he lives in Red Hook:
https://nysyd.org/executive-board/carlos-calzadilla
rooklyn vote against Kayla Santosuosso! We need people who want to help and not take pictures/videos for social media. We need a person who isn’t afraid to speak out against corruption and Andrew Gounardes when he is doing the wrong thing.
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October 25, 2025Tree Set On Fire in Owls Head Park – Bay Ridge
Brian shared photos of the tree set on fire in Owls Head Park last night.
The fire department came and put out the fire. Hopefully the tree is alright. It’s sad that some don’t value the park.
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October 25, 2025A Student Was Hit By a Vehicle on 92nd Street and Ft. Hamilton Parkway on 10/20/25
A student was hit by a vehicle on 92nd Street and Fort Hamilton Parkway on Monday, October 20th at 6:40 pm.
Her parent asked on social media for help from anyone who lives nearby.
Days later, not one politician responded to offer help or get information about the accident – it’s just not important to them.
Politicians could have:
a) Asked their followers for help on various social media
b) Called to have that street closed and examined (Two weeks ago, two students were hurt on Narrows Avenue and no changes were made to that street).
The parent wrote:
The bodega provided a video to the parent, but they are looking for other angles.
Bay Ridge we need new leaders. This was written in a private FB group – Justin Brannan, Andrew Gounardes and Kayla Santosuosso are all members of the group.
Since that parent posted, Brannan posted four times in the group (two advertisements for Kayla, one against Mayor Adams ballot measures and one for the recycling event on 10/25).
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October 25, 2025Thanksgiving Volunteering Donating Bay Ridge
There are a lot of great opportunities to help in Bay Ridge or nearby in Brooklyn
1) God’s Love We Deliver needs volunteers to pack and deliver food to people on Thanksgiving Day starting at 9:30 am. They also need people throughout the year.
God’s Love We Deliver is at Liberty (the old Bed Bath and Beyond building at 3rd Ave and 33rd Street) Volunteer here: https://is.gd/MUuWKK [email protected]
Last year, they packed meals for people at First Church at 6501 6th Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11220. Volunteer opportunities are: here.
Volunteer opportunities for children under 16 years old –Volunteer Opportunities for Kids and Families | God’s Love We Deliver
2) Volunteer at Chips kitchen, at 200 – 4th Avenue, where they serve breakfast and lunch from Monday to Saturday. There is also a food pantry and a mobile pantry. See opportunities:
Children 16 and under can volunteer at CHIPS:
Cook a Thanksgiving plate for CHIPS.
Fill out the form:
3) Bay Ridge Cares packs and delivers dinners. They post a sign-up page on their Facebook page at the beginning of November. (Bay Ridge Cares Website)
4) Holding Hands needs people to help with food for Thanksgiving.
5) Homecrest Community Services in Bensonhurst and Sheepshead Bay is delivering meals to seniors. Almost 100 seniors receive both lunch and dinner. They could use volunteers- email Virginia at [email protected] for the contact information.
6) Park Slope Center for Successful Aging has a Thanksgiving Luncheon each year at 463A – 7th Street between 6th and 7th Avenues in the basement of All Saints Church. 718-832-3726
4) The Soup Kitchen at the Greenpoint Reformed Church at 136 Milton Street in Brooklyn. (Sign up here)
5) North Brooklyn Angels at 127 Kent Street Brooklyn 11222. Sign up here
6) St. Johns Bread of Life Soup Kitchen at 795 Lexington Avenue in Brooklyn. They have a soup kitchen and a mobile soup kitchen which serves Coney Island once or twice a week. Groups can volunteer here contact: Jennifer Stephen at 718-574-0058 x164 or by email at [email protected].
7) Catholic Charities in Brooklyn needs help to give out turkeys and the fixings to families. The distribution is done \\in East Flatbush and they need help setting up the room, heavy lifting and moving. It’s a four-hour event. E-mail: [email protected] or call 718-722-6175 to volunteer.
1) Dawn Fox has tennis classes for children/teens with autism called Love Serving Autism. Contact Dawn to volunteer: 251-895-1369.
2) Volunteer at the Open Runs held on Saturday morning on Shore Road. Sign up form is here or here
One of the easiest places to volunteer is at a place that has a lot of volunteer opportunities and updates their site a lot – St. Dominic’s Outreach at 2001 Bay Ridge Pkwy. Just hit the red RSVP on the opportunity you like. St. Dominic’s need help folding and sorting donated clothes AND they bring food to the homeless in Coney Island or NYC. (Check their site)
1) Walk dogs at Sean Casey Animal Rescue – Stop by the shelter at 153 East 3rd Street from 11:00 am – 5:30 and fill out a Volunteer Dog Walker Application to walk a dog.
2) If you like cats, The Itty Bitty Kitty Committee needs people who can help clean up cages and socialize kittens during this week and weekend, sometime between 9 am and 4 pm. See their Facebook page here Fill out the form here or call 646) 339-6995
3) Volunteer for Kiso’s Pet Pantry in Bay Ridge. They give out pet food to seniors.
4) Volunteer for Louie’s Legacy in Staten Island – apply here
5) Volunteer at the Cat Cafe at 76 Montague Street – Register here
6) Volunteer at the NY Aquarium in Coney Island – there are a lot of positions here
Did you realize you could volunteer to help an organization from your home?
1) Louie’s Legacy Animal Rescue in Staten Island has some remote volunteer jobs: (Apply here)
a) Application Screening Teams – Our screeners review each application and help make the best matches.
b) Social Media Team – Help us save more lives by growing our social presence and leveraging each platform to engage our fosters, volunteers, donors, and potential adopters.
c) Marketing & Development Team – Have any experience in graphic design, copywriting, fundraising, event planning, web design or support, brand development, PR, advertising, marketing, or other transferable skills?
d) Accounting / Finance Team – Good with cloud based accounting systems?
2) Help people practice their English online with you at Engin – (See here)
3) Volunteer to do social media for Food Bank of America. (Info here)
1) Saint Ephrem’s Church at 929 Bay Ridge Avenue needs Eucharist Ministers, ushers, altar servers and choir members. Call the rectory (718) 833-1010.
2) Our Lady of Angels Church at 7320 – 4th Avenue needs catechists to teach children on Sunday morning. Call 718-836-7200.
3) Volunteer at St. Athanasius Church on Mondays to help at their food pantry. Or volunteer on Saturday morning to transport and distribute home cooked meals. Call Dawn 718-232-3113
4) St. Dominic’s Church at 2001 Bay Ridge Pkwy needs Spanish speaking volunteers for Thursday evenings. (Sign up here)
1) Volunteer at St. Patrick’s School – (See here)
1) Guild for Exceptional Children Volunteer at GEC in Bay Ridge. Contact the Development Office 718-833-6633 x228
2) Help developmentally disabled adults in Bay Ridge at YAI – see here
1) Holy Cross Church on 84th and Bay Ridge Pkwy cooks meals for those who are homebound or have financial difficulties. Meals are cooked on one Saturday each month starting at 11:00 am. Volunteers are needed to shop for food, prep, cook and deliver the food. More info here. Once a month (on a Friday evening), volunteers feed the homeless on the streets of NYC. 718-836-3510
1) Volunteer at Owl’s Head Park – they post on their Facebook page from April – November. Volunteer opportunities are on Saturday mornings. Questions -> [email protected] NYC Parks Stewardship often lists the park cleanups here
Plant bulbs in Owls Head Park:
2) Narrows Botanical Gardens needs volunteers on Saturday mornings 11:00 am – 1:00 pm. Sign up here —-> Narrows Community Garden in the Spring to Fall if you enjoy gardening and nature. There is more than just planting and gardening to do. If you like talking, you can be a greeter and welcome everyone! Send questions to: Email: [email protected]
3) Fab Scrap in Sunset Park – you can help save the environment by organizing textile scraps. Receive 5lbs of fabric for volunteering.
4) Brooklyn Bridge Park is great if you like working with Nature. (Sign up here)
1) To become a USO volunteer at the Fort Hamilton Army Base – (Register here) (USO stands for United Service Organization)
1) To volunteer at the Veteran’s Hospital on Poly Place, call or visit the Voluntary Service Offices: – (See video) (VA Website) Someone said it’s better to connect through @AmeriCorps to volunteers for the VA. Sen an email to: [email protected] to get connected with the VA Volunteer Specialist.
VA New York Harbor Healthcare System 800 Poly Place Brooklyn, NY 11209-7104
Hours: Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Some volunteers:
- Escort – Bring patients to medical clinics, chapel, recreation, and programs.
- Food and nutrition – Help patients select menu items, open containers, cut food into bite-size portions, and eat during mealtimes.
- Cookie bakers– Bake cookies on the neighborhoods of the Community Living Center (CLC)
- Front desk – Greet outpatients, guests, visitors, and patients’ families, answer phones, and transfer calls at the information desk.
- Recreation – Help with activities like arts and crafts projects, bedside games, field trips, and bedside movies.
- Office assistance – Type, file, answer phones, keep records, enter data, and call patients to remind them about appointments.
- No Veteran Dies Alone – Provide companionship to Veterans who are at the final stages of their lives. Additional training is provided.
1) The Arab American Association of New York at 6803 5th Avenue takes volunteers for Citizenship Tutoring. Arabic language skills are preferred, though not require A volunteer receptionist is needed at the office. (Register here) Questions: (718) 745-3523
[email protected]
1) Volunteer at BRAVO Ambulance at 8507 – 7th Avenue. Yhey have many positions including answering calls at the office. Fill out application here.
Bravo also has this program:
1) Saint Athanasius Community Outreach Program needs volunteers to cook and serve food to the homeless on Saturday morning. Contact: Dawn Aiello 718-232-3113
1) Volunteer at Saint Anselm’s Food Pantry on 4th Avenue and 82nd Street – the first or third Wednesday of a month from 10 am – 1 pm. Call Pat 718-986-8738.
2) Volunteer at St. Patrick’s Food Pantry on Tuesdays from 1:00 – 3:00 pm on 4th Avenue and 95th Street. Contact: 718-238-2600.
3) Bay Ridge Center needs volunteers: (See their website)
a) Help with cold pack & preparation for their home delivered meals service. Monday through Friday, 8:00 am to 11;00 am. 718-748-0650, ext. 113, [email protected]
b) Volunteer at Bay Ridge Center Food Pantry at 411 Ovington Avenue – the last Wednesday of the month from 10 to 3 pm – the Center needs volunteers who can translate Cantonese to help people visiting the food pantry.
4) Grandma’s Love 347-432-2408 – Help Grandma’s Love package bags of food that is sent home with students on Friday to help their family on the weekends. Theresa Monforte-Caraballo is the head of Grandma’s Love. [email protected]
5) The Table Food Pantry, 6025 6th Avenue, Second Floor on Fridays from 9:30 am – 1:00 pm. (See schedule). Read more about this organization (here) 718-630-7171
6) Holy Cross Church has a homeless outreach every month. You can help make sandwiches and help bags the food. Some people go to Manhattan and give out the sandwiches (teens don’t need to go) (Register here)
7) Volunteer at City Harvest at 171 – 53rd Street – attend a virtual presentation and then you can volunteer. You packs bags of vegetables for families to take home. (Info here) (Calendar with volunteer events here)
8) Volunteer at St. Athanasius Food Pantry on Mondays from 1:30 – 5:00 pm.
9) Chips Soup Kitchen in Park Slope 200 4th Avenue – it’s between Sackett & Degraw Streets. You don’t need to know how to cook, there are many jobs you can do. Fill out the form here or call Janice, the Director of Food Services at (718) 237-2962 to discuss when you can begin volunteering at CHiPS.
Chips has an Instagram account (here) that shares when they REALLY need volunteers like this:
10) Volunteer at the Reaching Out Community Food Pantry 7708 New Utrecht Avenue – sign up here or volunteer as a group here
1) Volunteer at the Salvation Army – sign up here
1) Volunteer at the Norwegian Christian Senior Home 1250 – 67th Street
2) Bensonhurst Center for Rehabilitation and Healthcare – 1740 84th Street is looking for volunteers for the Chapel and Eucharistic Ministers Contact Sister Anne, 718-885-8484 x 732
3) Bay Ridge Senior Center at 15 Bay Ridge Avenue has a new building and a lot more activities that volunteers can help with!
They need volunteers for the following:
- Onsite or Virtual Classes: The Center has been honored to have so many volunteers help us expand the number of classes as well as diversity of class types. Our classes range from Ageism to Zoom. Bring your passions and we’ll collaborate to develop a meaningful class for you and our members.
- Special Events: It’s helpful to have volunteers serve meals, encourage the members to dance, and help serve the desserts.
- Administrative. We have several tasks related to communicating with our members and community.
- Home Delivery Meal Preparation (Cold Packing assembly) Every day, our team delivers 650 meals to homebound community members. Our kitchen staff prepare the hot meals and our drivers prepare the Cold Packs. However, both of these tasks require more help than we normally have.
Call Johanna at 718-748-0650 ext. 15 or fill out the form here.
4) Norwegian Christian Home at 1250 – 65th Street – volunteers please commit to four hours a day. For more information, please contact William Mahany at [email protected].
5) Homecrest Community Services in Bensonhurst and Sheepshead Bay is delivering meals to seniors. Almost 100 seniors receive both lunch and dinner. They could use volunteers- email Virginia at [email protected] for the contact information.
6) Volunteers needed for St. Ephrem’s Friendship Club.
1) The Brooklyn Public Library is looking for adult volunteers:
Questions about volunteering at the library 718-230-2406
a) First five years program at the Brooklyn Library
b) Sign up to tutor a high school student at the Brooklyn Library – Volunteers over 18 needed to tutor students in grades 9-12 (help prepare them for standardizes tests, apply for college and complete homework)
c) Volunteer to encourage parents to read to their children at the Brooklyn Library
d) Afterschool tutor – See here
e) Be a citizen exam coach at the Brooklyn Library
f) Be a resume coach at the Brooklyn Library
1) Volunteer as a family to walk dogs at Sean Casey Animal Rescue at 153 East 3rd Street from 11:00 am – 5:30 pm. Students must be 13 to volunteer without a parent present. Children 4-12 years old can volunteer at Sean Casey when accompanied by a parent/guardian (restrictions apply). Application and info here.
2) Chips Soup Kitchen in Park Slope 200 4th Avenue – it’s between Sackett & Degraw Streets. You don’t need to know how to cook, there are many jobs you can do with your family. Call Janice, the Director of Food Services at (718) 237-2962 to discuss when you can begin volunteering at CHiPS,
3) Owl’s Head Park allows children to participate with their family. They post on their Facebook page from April – November. Volunteer opportunities are on Saturday mornings. Questions -> [email protected]
4) Children 10 and Up can volunteer to repack food at City Harvest at 171- 53rd Street. (Info here) (Calendar of volunteer events here)
1) Volunteer at NYU Langone Hospital at 150-55th Street – Duties include limited clerical duties, assisting patients and families, friendly visitations, nutrition education for children, greeting, and more opportunities to make a difference. Customer service experience and the ability to speak Chinese, Spanish, Italian, Arabic, Hebrew, and/or Russian are pluses. Contact the volunteer office at 718-630-7296 for more information. (File out the form on this page)
2) Volunteer at Maimonides Hospital in Borough Park – Get Application here. They have volunteer positions for:
- Clerical/administrative volunteers assist with general office duties such as filing, copying, performing computer data entry, answering phones, etc.
- Volunteer patient/unit assistants assist with clerical duties at the nursing station and perform some direct patient care functions such as feeding and keeping companionship to the patients.
- ER volunteers provide companionship to lonely and anxious patients, escort patients and visitors to and from various areas within Maimonides, assist staff with meal distribution, perform errands and deliver messages.
- Volunteers in research areas such as Emergency Medicine, Pediatric Endocrinology, Hematology/Oncology, GI, ID, etc. participate in clinical research under the supervision of the principal investigator and perform other related duties as assigned such as computer data entry, literature search and data collection.
- Support Service volunteers assist staff in the main kitchen, cafeteria, laundry, warehouse, patient transport, etc.
- Chaplaincy volunteers (Chevrah Kadishah, Catholic Volunteers, etc.) assist patients with religious needs.
Maimonides needs people in the Pediatric Ward – Info here
Teens see volunteer opportunities here.
1) Bravo Youth Squad at 8507 – 7th Avenue is for students 14 – 17 years old. If interested, fill out the form here.
2) Brooklyn Art House – Susan accepts teens to be volunteer Art Studio Assistants and help young children- See Facebook page Brooklyn Art House
3) Holy Cross Church has a homeless outreach every month. You can help make sandwiches and help bags the food. Some people go to Manhattan and give out the sandwiches (teens don’t need to go) (Register here)
4) Owls Head Park (or any park) Stewardship. NYC Parks Stewardship often lists the park cleanups here (when you get to that site choose Brooklyn)
5) Many teens contact their elementary schools and volunteer to tutor during their afterschool program:
o The Heartshare Program at PS 102
o The Latchkey Kids Program at PS 112
o Student Leadership at PS 169
o PS 230 Saturday Program
o PS 186 NIA Program and School Play
Or Tutor on Saturday at some of the centers in the area: Mustard Seed on 18th Avenue or Angel Advantage Center on 57th Street and 8th Avenue
6) Volunteer at the Nursing Home:
a) Norwegian Christian Home at 1250 – 65th Street – volunteers must be at least 14 years of age and work for four hours a day. For more information, please contact William Mahany at [email protected].
b) Rehabilitation Center on 84th Street and 17th Avenue. (See here)
7) NYU Langone Hospital 150-55th Street during the Summer – students must be 16 years old to participate in the Junior Volunteer programs. Individuals under the age of eighteen years old must obtain parent/guardian consent to volunteer. Valid state issued “Working Papers” are required for all volunteers under the age of eighteen years old. (Info here and Form here
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October 24, 2025George Saratopoulos Supports Intro Bill 1096
In the past, NYC retirees had to contact Justin Brannan because he was not on bills for retirees. Your calls got him to get on board. Info:
George Saratopoulos is running for NYC Council. George’ss Mom is a former NYC worker. George said he supports Intro Bill 1096.
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October 24, 202586th Street in Bay Ridge – Because There Are No Leaders Here
If you didn’t see the title above, would you know that this photo was taken on 86th Street in Bay Ridge?
This was taken outside the building that our district owns on the corner of 86th Street and Gatling Avenue. No one has used the building in the past 8 years. A group asked for access years ago and they were denied.
A woman sleeps in the doorway of the unused building regularly.
The building can’t even be used to house someone who is a victim of domestic violence. Why? Failed political leaders here.
We need new leaders, Bay Ridge.
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October 24, 2025Sixty-Two Days to Christmas – Bay Ridge Lights
They started to put up the Christmas Lights in Bay Ridge. MightyMasha shared the video above.
While it may be too early for you, it takes time to get everything ready, so they have to start early.
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October 24, 2025Co-ops in Bay Ridge Are Shown on Instagram
9977 Shore Rd #11D
1 Bed / 1 Bath – $349K
Luisa: 917-832-5532 | @luisa_inbayridge
10106 4th Ave #26E
2 Bed / 2 Bath – $499K
Juliette: 646-721-0113 | @jewelbabe
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October 24, 2025BayRidge11209 Shared This Beautiful Picture
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