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WESTCHESTER’S OLDEST AND MOST RESPECTED NEWSPAPERS Vol 25 Number 16 www.RisingMediaGroup.com Friday, April 17, 2015 Happy 103rd Birthday to County Board Races Provide Teresa Mautone Tortora Political Intrigue in Westchester Bernice Spreckman Sheila Marcotte Teresa Mautone Tortora celebrates her 103rd birthday. By Dan Murphy What do New Rochelle Mayor Noam Rising Newspapers wishes 103-year-old sons for her longevity, genetics apart, since she Bramson, Yonkers Mayor Mike Spano, Eastches- Teresa Mautone Tortora a happy birthday! lived a normal life; certainly it helped a bit not ter Supervisor Anthony Colavita and Harrison A lifelong resident of Westchester, and to be a drinker or a smoker. Supervisor Ron Belmont all have in common? Yonkers, Teresa remains forever young with a Teresa said she believes that American They are all popular incumbent leaders of captivating smile and a cheerful attitude. Fam- ingenuity in improving products is what made their communities with upcoming elections this ily and friends of Teresa celebrated her birthday our country competitive – and that is the direc- fall. They all also have no formidable or an- at Rory Dolan’s on McLean Avenue in Yonkers. tion we have to take again, since relying on nounced candidate, and while there’s still time Teresa has loved music and the opera China for just about everything is destroying for opponents to arise, the political clock is tick- since she was a little girl. She worked at Far- the texture of this country. ing. and, a bomb-sights factory in Mount Vernon, To all of our Rising readers, if you have The biggest political issue facing West- during WWII and went back to her job during a family member or friend in Westchester who chester voters this fall may be who will hold a the Korean War – a “Rosy the Riveter” of her has celebrated their 100th birthday, email us majority of seats on the County Board of Leg- own. at [email protected] and we will islators. All 17 seats on the county board are up She confesses that there are no good rea- highlight the special day. for election this fall, and the several competitive races may determine who controls the board for another two years. Currently, a bi-partisan coalition of seven Local Mt. Kilimanjaro Republicans and two Democrats hold a 9-8 ma- Peter Harckham jority, and its coalition government, led by Chair- Climber Reaches Summit man Michael Kaplowitz, has effectively worked “The focus of my time on the county board with County Executive Rob Astorino on two has always been the same year after year, to make budgets with no property tax levy increase, and sure that county government operates within our to “tone down” the political rhetoric and try to means while continuing to provide essential ser- work together. vices and fostering economic growth,” she said. Three Republican legislators, Sheila Mar- “My mantra has been no tax increases because cotte, Bernice Spreckman and Gordon Burrows, we simply can’t afford it. By focusing on county and two Democrats on the county board, Virginia issues, we have done it and will continue to do so. Perez and Peter Harckham, make up the five I’ll run on my record.” races that county Democrats and Republicans be- Marcotte’s challenger this year will be Dem- lieve are winnable. ocrat Haina Just-Michael, president of the New Legislator Marcotte, who represents East- Rochelle Library Board, and Rising Newspapers chester, Tuckahoe and parts of New Rochelle will highlight her candidacy once she announces. in the 10th District, sits in the most competitive This county board race could determine the next county board seat, based on the demographics of majority on the BOL. having a Republican stronghold in Eastchester Other interesting county board races this fall and Tuckahoe, and a Democratic edge in New include: Rochelle – both in her district. Legislator Spreckman, who is the longest Marcotte, has narrowly won re-election serving current member on the board, was first three times and has used her five years on the elected in 1995 to the 14th District, which in- county board to serve as a fiscal watchdog for the cludes parts of Yonkers and Mt. Vernon. Spreck- taxpayers in her district. “I have every intention man, who will be 80 years old when she is re- Kurt Kannemeyer, left, at the summit of Mt. Kilimanjaro in Tanzania flying the St. Chris flag. of going out to the residents and asking them to elected, has served as a tireless advocate for After a strenuous seven-day climb and Kannemeyer left the United States last rehire me for another term,” said Marcotte, who seniors and is popular in her district. with overwhelming support from individuals week to travel to Africa and embark on the has not formally announced her re-election plans, Earlier this year, rumors circulated that and groups throughout Westchester County, journey that raised awareness and funds for to date. Continued on Page 10 Ossining resident and St. Christopher’s, Inc. an independent living services center for St. Development Director Kurt Kannemeyer has Christopher’s children with developmental dis- reached the top of the 19,500-foot Mt. Kiliman- abilities at its Valhalla campus in the REACH jaro in Tanzania – one of the tallest mountains program. Op-Ed: Bring Our Police & in the world. Continued on Page 9 Communities Closer Together By Frank Spotorno News Anchor Lou Young As all Americans watch with sadness at the recent events in North Charleston, Ferguson and Staten Island, we should understand and realize Emcees Spelling Bee that our police officers and the people in the com- munities they serve need to come closer together. When I was young, we use to have Police Athletic League picnics and barbeques, and oc- casions where we can interact with our police- men and women, and learn that the police officer is our friend. In my hometown Yonkers, Mayor Mike Spano has created a “Stop and Shake” initiative, which encourages this type of positive interaction, and the Yonkers PAL does a great job with their programs and services. But due to budget cuts, these types of pro- grams are too few in our nation. What we need is a national day of celebra- tion for our first responders in communities across the country, and a true celebration of the Frank Spotorno overwhelming number of good police officers and the diverse communities they serve – which loss of millions of manufacturing American jobs makes our country great. over three decades of outsourcing by American We are no longer investing in the poverty- corporations and from free trade agreements stricken communities that now see a rash of po- that have allowed these jobs to leave our shores. Last year’s winning spelling bee team, from left, the Rev. Dorothy Green, Barbara Grae and lice shootings, and the real underlying cause for A lack of jobs in many communities has led to Margaret Winestock, with CBS 2 News’ Lou Young who served as emcee for the night. the troubles in many of our cities, towns and vil- crime and despair. The Friends of the Larchmont Public Li- a place dedicated to the accumulation and or- lages exist in the high rates of poverty and unem- Congress is to blame for our loss of jobs and brary have announced that Lou Young, Larch- ganization of knowledge in an age that seems ployment. With 42 percent of Americans living for our national struggle to bring the police and mont resident and CBS-TV Channel 2 News to balance on the brink of information chaos,” in poverty, something must be done to address the community together. By not properly fund- personality, will serve as master of ceremonies she said. the hopes and dreams of those who cannot find a ing our nation’s inner cities and small communi- for its upcoming third annual Larchmont Spell- Ellie Fredston, an organizer of the Spell- job and who now occupy the new soup kitchens ties, the resulting poverty and decay has resulted ing Bee for adults and teens. ing Bee and a Friends board member, added: of America in the form of an EBT card to pay for in police officers choosing to live outside the “It’s especially exciting to participate in an “Having Lou as master of ceremonies will give their groceries. communities they serve. event that focuses our attention on the library, Continued on Page 9 And the underlying cause of poverty is the Continued on Page 12 PAGE 2 - MOUNT VERNON RISING - FRIDAY, APRIL 17, 2015 Lou Gehrig & Marty Appel Burdick & Gordon Elected Become Larchmont Luminaries Co-Chairmen of Sustainable West. Chris Burdick and Mike Gordon Chris Burdick, supervisor of the Town of More recently, Gordon has been an architect Bedford, and Mike Gordon, CEO and co-founder of new financing solutions for the energy efficiency of Joule Assets, Inc., have been elected co-chair- marketplace, coining the term “Energy Reduction men of the Board of Directors of Sustainable Assets.” He has also served as counsel to U.S. and Westchester, Inc., the recently-formed consortium European governmental bodies and regulators, in- of municipalities organized to work together to- cluding FERC and the European Commission. He ward a more sustainable future for Westchester holds a master’s degree in public administration Lou Gehrig during his farewell address at Yankees Stadium. County. from Harvard’s Kennedy School, a master’s in The election was held at a meeting of the business administration from the Wharton School board at the White Plains Library on March 31. at the University of Pennsylvania, and bachelor’s The Larchmont Historical Society will He lived with his wife, Eleanor, in the Before becoming supervisor in 2014, Burdick degree from SUNY Binghamton.

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