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| Looking up Sixth Avenue and 12th Street towards the Empire State Building. 1:30 PM. Photo: JH. |
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| Wednesday, May 28, 2014. Yesterday in New York was very warm, like an early Summer day, with temps in the low 80s and a “Real Feel” of low 90s. There was a touch of humidity so that it felt even warmer. The air conditioning was on in the cabs for the first time that I noticed. Then, about the time the Sun was beginning to set, the grey skies moved in and brought a calm but somber mood with marine mist. I photographed the river hoping to catch some of it in an image. |
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| Down on the Promenade by the river the tide was flowing in with a strong almost choppy current. The current, and the light and temperature over that vista looking at the RFK bridge evoked in my imagination the famous PS General Slocum disaster that occurred in that area of the river 110 years ago this June 15. The 272-foot-long ship, built ten years before, was used for trips around Manhattan, much like the Circle Line today. It was a Wednesday in 1904 when more than 1400 people – mainly women and children – boarded the General Slocum for an excursion out to a picnic site in Eatons Neck, Long Island. The boat had been chartered by St. Mark’s Evangelical Lutheran Church in Little Germany (the neighborhood around Second Avenue and St. Mark’s Place below 14th Street). The trip had become an annual rite for 17 years. They got underway at 9:30 a.m. About fifteen or twenty minutes later as the ship was passing East 90th Street (a couple of blocks northeast of Gracie Mansion), a fire started in the Lamp Room in the forward section. It may have been a cigarette not properly put out. Straw, oily rags and lamp oil strewn around the room were quickly ignited. |
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| Soon after, by 10 p.m., the fire had spread. The fire hoses hadn’t been in service in so long that when the crew attempted to use them, they fell apart. Also the lifeboats were inaccessible because of the way they were attached to the ship. The life preservers turned out to be cheap imitations and were useless. Pandemonium and chaos ensued in grim, terrifying detail. Captain William Van Schack made the fatal decision of keeping the ship on its course rather than run aground or stop at a landing nearby. Mothers threw their children into the river with life jackets that sunk! Women going overboard were weighted down by their long skirts and garments. Furthermore, most Americans at that time couldn’t swim. More than one thousand passengers burned to death or drowned almost immediately. It was the worst public disaster in American history until 911. It wiped out many families who lived in that section of the city. Many of the survivors moved uptown after that to what became known as Germantown, or Yorkville, just to distract themselves of the memories. Eight people were indicted afterwards, including executives of the Knickerbocker Steamship Company, but only one, Captain Van Schack, was found guilty. He was sentenced to ten years in Sing Sing. (Van Schack was released after three years.) |
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| Meanwhile, yesterday, there was also a warm but cooling breeze sweeping up the avenue. This is when I really appreciate my terrace. Small though it is, it opens to the great outdoors (ignoring the reality of the city’s sooty grit that no doubt comes wafting in). I put my house plants outside. I bought some flowering plants and ferns that might join us inside later on in the year. The weatherman had forecast thunderstorms and a drop in the temperature to the low 60s. As of this writing (10 p.m., Tuesday evening), it’s still just a forecast. |
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| My once-a-week housekeeper Norah Hernandez told me she had very good luck with flowering plants in her house over on the other side of the Hudson during the colder months. She also gave them Miracle Gro regularly. So I have acquired the habit with optimism. The big plant with the green leaves I rescued several years ago from the laundry room. One of the building’s porters had rescued it from the trash. It had two leaves on it and was about ready to fade away. It prospered over time as soon as I took it in. Although it wasn’t until I started the Miracle Gro last January that it has really flourished. I think of these little moments as our guide. |
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| Yesterday was the 12th birthday of my little Missy, aka Madame who came to live here eleven and a half years ago. I met her through a neighbor who had a friend who wanted to find a home for her because her energy overwhelmed the friend’s other, much older dog. She was called “Princess” by the previous owners – a name which she obviously had no problem adapting to (it was, after all, all she knew and has ever known), although I don’t think of myself as her owner so much as her protector and provider. She wouldn’t have it any other way, I can assure you. |
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| She has several “devilish” habits, all of which speak of her deep sense of right and self ... the two being the same in her book. All of which always provokes laughter from me, even in just thinking about it. She’s been quite annoying in her behavior toward Jenny, the (now 14-year-old) blind shih tzu who came to live with us two years ago. Jealousy, female style. Subtle but not really. Those girls know the language. When I reprimand Madame – as I tend to call her – she looks up at me six feet above, and wags her tail. I’m sure she’s just wondering what treat she’s about to get. |
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| The 27th of May is a significant date in my life. Heather Cohane, the English lady who founded Quest magazine and gave me my first break in writing about New York life, celebrates a birthday on this day. It was Heather who first suggested I do a column. She sold the magazine about eighteen years ago to Chris Meigher who has been publisher ever since, and grown it with the same flourish of those beautiful plants on my terrace.
Yesterday was also the birthday of my former brother-in-law Patrick O’Donnell who lives in the Northwest and would probably be shocked to know that I remember his birthdate. (For a long time I thought it was also JFK’s birthday which is how I remembered Patrick’s). I was wrong: JFK was the 29th. Tomorrow will be the 97th anniversary of his birth. My brother-in-law and I have rarely seen each other in decades and almost as rarely communicate, but he was a great brother-in-law and a great friend; a generous spirit. Catching up. Earlier this month, GenerationOn the youth service division of Points of Light held its Annual Benefit at the Mandarin Oriental. They honored Carolyn Rafaelian, Founder, Creative Director and CEO, at Alex and Ani, Charles F. Lowrey, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, International Businesses, at Prudential Financial, Inc. CBS 2 Anchor Maurice DuBois and wife Andrea for their steadfast commitment to youth service and education. Rafaelian was presented her award by her good friend, Paula Abdul. |
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| GenerationOn, in partnership with Hasbro, also honored six extraordinary young service leaders from across the country as the recipients of the fifth annual Hasbro Community Action Heroes Award. These outstanding superheroes included Ethan Cruikshank (age 15), Gabriele Eggerling (age 10), Neha Gupta (age 17), My’Kah Knowlin (age 13),Kellon Oldenette (age 5), and Remington Youngblood (age 13). The benefit raised more than $730,000 to support GenerationOn’s mission to inspire, equip, and mobilize youth to take action that changes the world and themselves through service. In other words, the mission is to provide kids the tools and means to help others, to empower them with the positive experiences of taking responsibility. It’s a simple idea that produces powerful results. |
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| I first learned of the organization several years ago through Silda Wall Spitzer who was one of its founders and mother of three of its participants. She was amazed at how quickly daughters flourished under the program and soon were actively thinking about how they could be of help to others. It’s a natural antidote to the selfie. More than 300 attended the event, which also included Silda, who is a generationOn Co-Founder and was Benefit Co-Chair; and Olympic medalist skiing stars, Shannon Bahrke and Billy Demong, and others. Also in attendance were celebrity youth ambassadors, Francesca Capaldi (How I Met Your Mother), Cozi Zuehlsdorff(Dolphin Tale), Jordon Fisher (Disney Channel) and Max Page, a 9-year-old who has overcome a heart defect to be a busy actor in TV shows like Prime Suspect and national commercials (he starred as mini-Darth Vader in a 2011 Volkswagen commercial “The Force”). |
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| And just a few days before that at a luncheon at 320 Park Avenue, The Child Mind Institute kicked off its Speak Up for Kids campaign with some of New York’s biggest supporters. Entitled "Anxious Children, Anxious Adults: Why treating children is the best thing we can do for the adults they will become", the attendees heard personal stories and got expert advice about a disorder that impacts millions of Americans, including 1 in every 33 children. |
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| The program included an intimate interview by actress, comic and TV host Ali Wentworth with Atlantic Editor Scott Stossel, who spoke openly about his lifelong struggles with anxiety, a topic he documents in his book My Age of Anxiety: Fear, Hope, Dread and the Search for Peace of Mind. Jerry BubrickPhD, Senior Director, Anxiety & Mood Disorders Center at the Child Mind Institute, discussed his experiences treating children with anxiety, and the gold-standard behavioral therapy that can be very successful, especially when children are treated early. Over 15 million children in the US have a psychiatric disorder and less than half will get the help that they need. This May, the Child Mind Institute convenes 100 partners to battle the stigma and misinformation that can prevent kids and families from seeking life-changing treatment. To see the complete list of Speak Up for Kids partners visit childmind.org/speakup. |
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| The campaign began by asking parents, friends, educators, kids, and advocates to share who or what they speak up for when it comes to children’s mental health by taking an #ISpeakUp Selfie and sharing it on social media. Guests at the luncheon also joined the effort by participating at the #ISpeakUp selfie booth that was be on-site. The selfie booth will be touring the country throughout the month of May, making stops in New York, Washington, DC, and Chicago at campaign events sponsored by Hunter. The event was hosted by: Tania Higgins, Laura Kleinhandler, Tammy Levine, Christine Mack, Valerie Mnuchin and Debra G. Perelman. Guests at the luncheon also received Aerin candles donated by Harry and Laura Slatkin and NEST Fragrances. |
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| Other guests included: Harold S. Koplewicz, MD, President and co-founder of Child Mind Institute; Brooke Garber Neidich (Board Chair), Arthur Altschul, Jr., Julie Minskoff, Amy Phelan, Ginevra Caltagirone, Dori Cooperman, Vanessa Cornell, Jennifer Creel, Diana DiMenna, Lise Evans, Amanda Fuhrman, Isabel Gillies, Deborah Grubman, Valesca Guerrand-Hermes, Marjorie Gubelmann, Marjorie Harris, Molly Jong-Fast, Erica Karsch, Beth Kojima, Ann Leary, Simone Levinson, Lindsay Marx, Roxanne Palin, Paulina Porizkova, Zibby Right, Kelly Rutherford, Mara Sandler, Natasha Silver, Harry Slatkin and Laura Slatkin, and Amy Tucker-Meltzer. The Child Mind Institute (childmind.org) is dedicated to transforming mental health care for children everywhere. Founded by Dr. Harold S. Koplewicz and Brooke Garber Neidich, the organization is committed to finding more effective treatments for childhood psychiatric and learning disorders, building the science of healthy brain development, and empowering children and their families with help, hope, and answers. The Child Mind Institute does not accept funding from the pharmaceutical industry. |
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Contact DPC here. |