A "home-town" has the power to shape, to influence, or to even destroy.
In the City of NY, within the borough of Queens, lies a town, Queens Village.
A "neighborhood", actually. It's probably like a thousand others, and to the outside observer is likely nothing special, but to me it holds life, my life as a child, a teenager and now as an adult.
QV, you could say, is a shell of it's former self.
Gone are the block-parties, the Mom & Pop Stores, and the Little League Parades.
Gone are the armies of kids on bikes, the whiffle-ball, and kick-ball games.
Gone are the days of leaving the strollers outside the store WITH the kids inside them.
Long gone is the Blade Sharpening Truck, Good Humor Man, and Milkman.
Hence, no more trucks with bells. No more paper-boys, no more girl-scouts.
No more St. Patrick's Day bashes at Downey's Bar. No more Downey's Bar
In the City of NY, within the borough of Queens, lies a town, Queens Village.
A "neighborhood", actually. It's probably like a thousand others, and to the outside observer is likely nothing special, but to me it holds life, my life as a child, a teenager and now as an adult.
QV, you could say, is a shell of it's former self.
Gone are the block-parties, the Mom & Pop Stores, and the Little League Parades.
Gone are the armies of kids on bikes, the whiffle-ball, and kick-ball games.
Gone are the days of leaving the strollers outside the store WITH the kids inside them.
Long gone is the Blade Sharpening Truck, Good Humor Man, and Milkman.
Hence, no more trucks with bells. No more paper-boys, no more girl-scouts.
No more St. Patrick's Day bashes at Downey's Bar. No more Downey's Bar
Walking down to Jamaica Ave. was called "going to the Village".
Everyone bought their school uniforms at Jon Gordon's.
A few stores down was Woolworth's, which had a lunch counter that every kid loved.
Richie Rich was where we got our custom made t-shirts.
QV boasted two movie theatres and a rock n Roll night club, Beggars Opera.
Kitty's Pizza was famous for their Zeppoles.
Of course, the greatest asset to any community is it's people. The neighbors.
Mrs. Levin gave me a dollar a week to roll up her hose. I listened to Met games in Mr. Hemmingers garage. I swam in the Gaughgran's pool.
Then there were the kids. The kids on the block, the kids in my class, the kids at my school and the kids at the Little League field.
Now just about everyone's gone, on to greener pastures, the suburbs. Tried it. Didn't like.
Running into someone from the old neighborhood spurs enthusiasm and manifests a bond, a bond that can only come from growing up in the same neighborhood.
Queens Village is a great place to come from.
A few stores down was Woolworth's, which had a lunch counter that every kid loved.
Richie Rich was where we got our custom made t-shirts.
QV boasted two movie theatres and a rock n Roll night club, Beggars Opera.
Kitty's Pizza was famous for their Zeppoles.
Of course, the greatest asset to any community is it's people. The neighbors.
Mrs. Levin gave me a dollar a week to roll up her hose. I listened to Met games in Mr. Hemmingers garage. I swam in the Gaughgran's pool.
Then there were the kids. The kids on the block, the kids in my class, the kids at my school and the kids at the Little League field.
Now just about everyone's gone, on to greener pastures, the suburbs. Tried it. Didn't like.
Running into someone from the old neighborhood spurs enthusiasm and manifests a bond, a bond that can only come from growing up in the same neighborhood.
Queens Village is a great place to come from.
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