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    Monday Bulletin: May

    May 1, 2023 | 5:57 AM - Updated on May 2, 2023 | 6:35 AM
    in ART, COLUMNS, NEWS
    9
    Azaleas. Photographs by Mildred Alpern.

    Monday, May 1, 2023
    Partly sunny with showers. High 61 degrees.

    Notices
    Our calendar has lots of local events! Click on the link or the lady in the upper righthand corner to check.

    There will be a Full Community Board 7 Meeting on Tuesday, May 2, 2023 at 6:00 p.m. This is when all the proposed resolutions that have come out of committees in the past month are voted on by the full board. The meeting will be held on Zoom. To register, sign up to speak, or read the resolutions in advance, click the following links: Register | Speaker Sign-Up | Proposed Resolutions. Highlights of the meeting will include votes on the 83rd Street safe haven, and the 79th Street Marina dock house. For procedural reasons, the meeting will begin with a separate public hearing on the safe haven. You can speak or submit written comments on the safe haven by using the following links: Speaker sign-up | Submit comments. If you’re unsure about going, read our review of community board meetings here.

    News
    Calendar Project to Continue
    By Carol Tannenhauser

    Mildred Alpern, a poet and photographer, was working on “The Calendar Project” for the West Side Rag, sending a signature poem and accompanying photographs on the first day of every month. We had gotten through April when she died at the age of 91 from a chronic lung disease, which had plagued her from the time she was in her 30s, never letting on to us that she was ill.

    It is the first of May and, if Mildred were here, she would say “the show must go on.” In fact, she made sure that it would. “I don’t know if you know that my mother completed her poem/photo-of-the-month project,” her son, Spenser, wrote, shortly after Mildred’s death. “I have access to her computer so if you wish to print subsequent months, please don’t hesitate to ask.”

    I should have known.

    Peonies.

    “May”
    By Mildred Alpern

    May seems such a pleasant month
    It tips the scale in rhymes
    Like pay and play and happy day
    And gaily skipping on your way

    It also asks permission
    As “May” I have a treat?
    Another slice of chocolate cake
    Would be especially neat

    But getting down to brass tacks
    May is such a class act
    With blooming flowers everywhere
    And warming breezes passing fair

    Yet May ends its reign on a solemn note
    Remembering the tragedy of war
    With speeches and flags on Memorial Day
    Cold comfort forevermore

    Sailor salute.

    Thanks, Mildred. See you in June.

    Read the other Calendar Project months here.

    Have a great week!

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    Please limit comments to 150 words and keep them civil and relevant to the article at hand. Comments are closed after six days. Our primary goal is to create a safe and respectful space where a broad spectrum of voices can be heard. We welcome diverse viewpoints and encourage readers to engage critically with one another’s ideas, but never at the expense of civility. Disagreement is expected—even encouraged—but it must be expressed with care and consideration. Comments that take cheap shots, escalate conflict, or veer into ideological warfare detract from the constructive spirit we aim to cultivate. A detailed statement on comments and WSR policy can be read here.

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    9 Comments
    Spence Halperin
    Spence Halperin
    3 years ago

    Beautiful.

    2
    Reply
    Pat Weich
    Pat Weich
    3 years ago

    How lovely that she left us with a touch of beauty. What a unique and wonderful woman.

    6
    Reply
    Sally Gertz
    Sally Gertz
    3 years ago

    You continue to bless us Mildred

    4
    Reply
    Francine Vale
    Francine Vale
    3 years ago

    Beautiful 💛

    2
    Reply
    Wijmlet
    Wijmlet
    3 years ago

    The sunlight under the bench in the top photo

    8
    Reply
    Kathryn
    Kathryn
    3 years ago

    Wonderful…

    1
    Reply
    Trudy
    Trudy
    3 years ago

    Thank you Spenser for continuing to share the beautiful and loving work on your mother. She was a true treasure.

    3
    Reply
    Westside patron
    Westside patron
    3 years ago

    How poignant. Spencer thank you for bringing your moms words to us. love the photography as well. Really really beautiful.

    1
    Reply
    victoria@westsidemews
    victoria@westsidemews
    3 years ago

    Lovely!

    0
    Reply

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