It was a heavy-hearted week – and yet as life will have it, a sweet one too.
I lost friends Diana Duarte and Al Cahn, two very special people who had a big impact on life in Whitestone and whom I’d known since I started The Queens Couriers 24 years ago.
Al was a past president of the DAC Little League in Whitestone, a founder and past president of the F.D.R. Democratic Association in Queens and a part-time legislative liaison for Senator Toby Stavisky. He acted as her local representative at numerous civic and community meetings.
Al became a devoted volunteer and fundraiser at Coler/Goldwater Hospital on Roosevelt Island, where his son resided, and was honored for his efforts. He was also recognized recently, and repeatedly, by Transitional Services for New York, Inc. (TSI) in Whitestone.
Diana, a realtor in Whitestone, was active in professional organizations and within the community. To note her passing, countless “family members,” related or not, attended services to honor her memory and share the observation that “She treated everyone like family.”
On a lighter note, a sweet visit to Sarasota, Florida to spend time with Stu’s, grandson, nine-year-old Josh, reminded me just how precious life – and family – is.
It had been months since Stu saw Josh, and it was time for a visit. I call him my “little Josh.” I “adopted” him, but I have my own Josh too. It’s a treat for me to visit him because he’s so joyous to see us – just the right age to still be willing to spend time with his grandparents.
It was a picture-perfect weekend with the sun shining on us on Saturday and Sunday and the warm winds keeping us comfortable. We stayed at the Holiday Inn on Lido Beach, only a few minutes from Josh’s home. I’ve written about many of the luxury hotels we stayed at over the years, but I must admit that the service here was as good as any five-star hotel. The Holiday Inn is just a few blocks from the famous shopping and dining mecca, St. Armands Circle. It’s a quiet part of the city and the beach was almost empty, even on a Saturday.
We had breakfast in the hotel’s rooftop dining room. The wall of windows made me feel that I was on the beach because our window seat gave us a real bird’s eye view.
On the topic of birds, when I got to the beach I was dazzled by the gorgeous tiny creatures, Red Knots and Royal Turns. I thought they were just seagulls, but I met a bird watcher walking along the beach and inquired about them. I learned the little ones, rare to find in such quantity, were an endangered species.
Josh was content to build sand castles and quickly found a friend when a little girl approached him asking if he would help her. What lovely innocence! It was also a treat to watch him play football with his dad and his grandpa. The weekend was a success!
Post a Comment