The Beach 91st Street Community Garden is organizing a Thanksgiving food drive to support families and individuals in need. Food insecurity affects many and often it goes unseen. During the upcoming holiday season, it’s more important than ever to come together and help our neighbors. And with this, the members of the garden hope to build solidarity and care within Rockaway.
A wide range of donations will be accepted, including non-perishable food, (canned and boxed, etc.) baby food, prenatal vitamins, senior vitamins, essential toiletries, women’s care products, diapers, and pet food. These items will help cover basic needs for individuals and families, so everyone can have a more comfortable and joyful holiday season.
Monetary gifts are also accepted through Venmo – @beach91communitgarden. 100% of these funds will go to purchasing food. Additionally, gift cards from our local eateries and businesses are welcome.
The drop-off location is across from the Beach 91st Street Community Garden at 125 Beach 91st Street, Rockaway Beach, NY 11693. You’ll find a labeled donation bin on the porch. All contributions will be delivered to the St. Rose of Lima Food Pantry, offering essential support to our neighbors just in time for Thanksgiving.
Here are the facts about food insecurity in Queens:*
- Over 250,000 residents of Queens experience food insecurity, struggling to consistently afford nutritious meals.
- Immigrant communities in Queens are particularly impacted, as many families are ineligible for federal aid like SNAP, even though they face significant economic hardship.
- Eastern Queens has some of the city’s most severe food deserts, where access to fresh, affordable groceries is limited, forcing residents to rely on convenience stores and fast food.
- Children are disproportionately affected: Nearly 1 in 4 children in Queens face hunger, often relying on school meal programs for their primary source of nutrition.
- Senior citizens in Queens are highly vulnerable, with many living on fixed incomes and experiencing food insecurity due to rising living costs.
- High housing costs in Queens mean many families are forced to make tough choices between paying rent and buying food.
- Community food pantries and soup kitchens have seen a dramatic increase in demand, with organizations like the Food Bank For NYC and local churches providing critical relief to thousands of households.
- Grassroots efforts: Community gardens and mutual aid groups in Queens have become crucial in addressing food insecurity, distributing fresh produce and groceries to neighbors in need.
Please consider contributing to the Beach 91st Street Community Garden’s Nourishing Neighbors Food Drive. Your support will make a meaningful difference for people in our neighborhood struggling to make ends meet. For updates and more information, follow the Beach 91st Street Community Garden’s IG page – @beach91communitygarden.
*Source: NYC Human Resources Administration (HRA), Feeding America, Queens Together, NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH).
I recently visited the newly opened Far Rockaway Library, and it was such a wonderful experience that I have to share it with you. The modern, pyramid-shaped building sits at the corner of Central and Mott Ave., standing out against the hodgepodge of storefronts that line the street. It’s especially striking if you’re familiar with the area—you can really sense its impact. The building features vibrant yellow and gold ombre tones with graphic, organic line drawings from top to bottom. Combined with reflections of the surrounding buildings and passersby on the façade, it shouts – new and modern Far Rock. It serves as a visual introduction to what awaits inside.
Walking through the door feels expansive and layered. The theme of movement from the exterior continues throughout the interior with translucent colored panels that reflect everything. I watched as people passed by the glass, noticing different shapes and color changes with each step. Looking up, the towering ceiling is stately. The metal, brass-colored material gives the space an urban edge, with a repeating polygon design. Triangles and points are clearly a theme throughout the whole library. Perhaps they symbolize progress, direction, stability, and points of connection.
The museum-like interior
On the upper walls of the library, I noticed a design resembling the modern line tattoos everyone has these days. I was intrigued. It turns out this is an artwork by Mexican artist Pablo Helguera called the “Feynman Code.” It honors Nobel Prize-winning physicist Richard Feynman, who grew up in Far Rockaway. Helguera created an alphabet using Feynman diagrams, replacing letters with symbols representing subatomic particle behavior. Two phrases are encoded in the library: one by poet Emily Dickinson, “The brain is wider than the sky,” and one by Feynman, “I, a universe of atoms, an atom in the universe.” This is so special!
Can you believe a world-renowned architecture firm designed the Far Rockaway Library? I can’t, but it’s true. Snøhetta is the firm responsible. They partnered with Brooklyn-based contemporary artist José Parlá, who designed the panels on the library’s exterior that I mentioned earlier called, Style Writing (2022). The artwork represents a blend of the many languages spoken in the Far Rockaway community and integrates the community’s urban essence.
It feels good to see such a significant architectural and artistic investment in Far Rockaway. It seems to signal a positive step in the neighborhood’s long-promised revitalization by our city officials.
As far as library resources, on the first floor, you’ll find the book drops, an information center, a teen library, and a space for community events like workshops, book readings, and job fairs. There’s also an outdoor garden area with tables. I was sold on the spot.
As you head up the wide staircase to the second floor, you’ll find the computer learning and business resource center, where you can use the printer for up to 20 black-and-white copies. There are librarians here, ready to help if you need assistance. There’s a meeting room and many reading areas for both adults and children. There are tables with multiple outlets for charging phones or laptops. The internet is good! The magazine section, one of my favorite places to visit in a library, is ample and current. Finally, there is a collection of over 27,000 books. What stood out to me was how, despite the vast number of books, the space itself feels so expansive that the collection seems smaller than it is. It’s an interesting contrast, but rest assured, the books are certainly there!
Having some fun with light reflections at the Far Rockaway Library!
The Far Rockaway Library is a free WeWork for East Rockaway. It’s a place to think, sit, and absorb ideas. It’s a space to surround yourself with art. It’s a place that feels alive. The library is a community hub for learning, education, and gathering, with endless potential for the Far Rockaway neighborhood and all who visit.
To learn more about Far Rock’s fantastic new library, check out the Queens Library page. The library is located at 1637 Central Ave., with 24/7 book drop-off and wheelchair access. (718) 327-2549.
Source: This is a link to an informative press release outlining some past history of the Far Rockaway Library Branch and the new building’s architectural details, and its use model.
Suspended Banana and Other Fruit
Over the summer, I’ve made many jello sculptures and performed unmoldings! My most successful thus far was a clear vegan fruit jello for a 70’s themed event. What made it stand out?
- It held together! I’ve been doubling my recipe, which strengthens the carrageenan—the thickening agent derived from red seaweed I often use.
- It tasted decent! I’ll take “ok,” considering my past attempts were… well, kind of gross.
- On the aesthetic side, this sculpture was set in a bundt pan for a very retro 70’s look, and I suspended a whole banana with other fruits, which added to the interesting visual.
This piece got me closer to my long-term jello goal: achieving solid form, beauty and great tasting.
Another notable creation was my successful tomato suspension! Originally made for a performance that got rained out, I ended up bringing it to my parents for an unmolding demonstration. It was the first time my folks saw one, and it felt so special to share that moment with them, despite their initial alarming remarks.
While I’ve gotten pretty good with carrageenan, agar agar is still a puzzle.* I’m intrigued by its strength and stability, but I can’t get it to look clear, even with my youtube studies. This fuzzy, translucent result poses a challenge. Many of my works involve suspending food, and the clarity of the medium is crucial for the light reflections and depth it creates. When the jello is clear, the beautiful play of shapes and colors from different angles can be seen, and that’s what captivates me and I hope the audience.
Jello brings its challenges, and so, I’m thinking of experimenting with agar agar once again. I’ll add color to circumvent its lack of clarity. Maybe the problem leads to something wonderful and unexpected? Find out this Saturday at Panino Bozza (@panino_bozza), where I’ll be performing unmoldings during their Opening Anniversary Close-Out Blowout Party! Expect a lively show from 3-6 pm, hosted by Andie Sleaze (@andie.sleaze) and Luxury Bones (@luxury.bones.drag), with music from Sangwich & Sons and Drone Daddies. Of course, there will be plenty of delicious Italian sandwiches and jello to enjoy. It’s going to be a feast for the senses—sight, sound, touch and taste all coming together in one weird celebratory afternoon!
*Both Agar and carrageenan are derived from red seaweed but the difference is agar forms strong gels through hydrogen bonds between agarose molecules, while carrageenan requires other molecules, like sugars or salts, to gel. This creates a different texture and strength.
For more off-season events and random thoughts on jello, follow me – in the world – @theglorifiedtomato.
The warm colors and intricate textures of an autumn garden are often overlooked, but not by nature enthusiasts, earth lovers, mystics, and our witches. We see the world in a different way. We see the big beauty in the small bits. We know the less popular and tainted hold more wonders.
Just the other week, while puttering around the Beach 91st Street Garden, I spotted a songbird feeding on a spent sunflower, its seeds neatly tucked into their own little compartments. How is that even possible? A sleepy grasshopper rested on the soft white petals of a dahlia, too lazy to hop away from my camera. Big Gray, the cat, and a garden member, loves to chill on the neon green bench—he’s a little rough around the edges, and that makes him even more incredibly sweet. Monarchs are slowly arriving, refueling on the marigolds. We still have ripe raspberries, the lettuce has made a comeback, and the rosemary, thyme, and basil are ready for drying.
The Garden is hosting a Community Potluck this Saturday, October 5th, from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m., (Beach 91st Street, beach block). If you’re a cook or baker, bring your favorite fall dish to share with neighbors. This is a free event though, so we encourage you to just come as you are—straight off the street, just out of the water, or on your way home – don’t go home. Eat with us. There will be an art activity for kids (of all ages) and a table with houseplants and pumpkins for purchase as donations.
We hope sharing a meal with our neighbors in our garden will foster a sense of community belonging. Let’s celebrate the joy of growing and the harvest over home-cooked food. Please come and have a seat at our table. It will be a wonderful afternoon!
Follow the @beach91communitygarden for the fall and winter joys ahead.
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Update! Here are some snaps from the Potluck Party!
