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Community Corner

🌱 Celebrating Small Business + Funeral Visa + Vegan Women's Summit

The quickest way to get caught up on the most important things happening today in Brooklyn.

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Hi all. It's me, Carlie Houser, your host of the Patch newsletter. Here are all the most important things to know about what's happening in town. Today you'll learn about:

  • City officials recognize and honor small business owners at first in-person Black History Month celebration
  • Lawmakers side with mourning mother trying to get a visa to attend her son's funeral after U-Haul attack
  • LuLu's toy store says goodbye — another loss among BK's small business community

But first, today's weather: 🌧 A bit of rain in the morning. High: 47 Low: 43.

🏠 If you're a real estate agent in Brooklyn, of course you're looking for a way to stand out from the crowd and attract new clients. We can help you do that with an exclusive sponsorship in the Brooklyn Patch newsletter. Click here to learn more.

Here are the top stories in Brooklyn today:

1. The Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce honored local leaders at its annual Black History Month celebration. On Tuesday, small shop owners, community representatives, and local supporters gathered at the historic Weeksville Heritage Center — it was the first night that the event was able to be held entirely in person, according to president and CEO of the commerce Randy Peers. A number of attendees took home awards: Kenneth Ebie, executive director and CDO for the Black Entrepreneurs of NYC, received the "Community Leader" award for his efforts made towards to shrink the racial wealth gap by boosting Black-owned small businesses; Jeff Lindor, founder of Gentlemen's Factory which gives Black and brown men a space to strengthen on their personal and professional skills, was awarded the Samuel L. Dunston Award for Business Excellence; Edward Gordon, owner of the Nubian Conservatory of Music took home the Small Business Leader award for his work promoting diversity in the orchestral world; and finally Council Member Mercedes Narcisse was honored for her ongoing commitment to public service.

Brooklyn Paper

2. Brooklyn Democrats have spoken, announcing five picks for its judicial candidates. On Tuesday, Brooklyn Democratic Party Chair, Assemblywoman Rodneyse Bichotte Hermelyn and the Executive Committee of the Kings County Democratic County Committee endorsed four judicial candidates for Civil Court and one for Surrogate Court. In her address, Hermelyn, the daughter of Haitian immigrants, who represents the 42nd Assembly District in Brooklyn, said that the candidates were favored by an overwhelming majority of District Leaders at Friday's Executive Committee meeting — to run for open bench seats in the Primary election in June. The endorsements for Civil Court are Marva Brown, Monique Holaman, Turquoise Haskin, and Betsey Jean-Jacques; and for Surrogate Court, Hon. Bernard J. Graham, now the acting Surrogate Court Judge.

PoliticsNY

3. Brooklyn lawmakers are helping a mourning mother get a visa to attend her son's funeral after he was killed by a wayward U-Haul driver. YiJie Ye, a single father of three, was on the job as a delivery driver when he was struck by a U-Haul truck on a "violent rampage" across Brooklyn on Monday, Feb. 13. Ye, 44 was the only victim to die of the nine who were hit. Two decades ago, Ye left China and came to New York, where he worked as a delivery driver and sometimes would collect recyclables to make a living. Now, his mother, ShuiYing Jiang, needs a visa in order to attend her son's funeral. Democratic Representatives Grace Meng and Dan Goldman and Republican Representative Nicole Malliotakis said on Tuesday that they are coordinating with the United States Embassy in Guangzhou, China to get Jiang to New York.

NBC News

4. The owner of a longtime toy store in Park Slope announced the shop will be closing. Brigitte Prat is the owner of LuLu Cuts & Toys on Fifth Avenue, a kids' hair salon and toy store which opened in 2001, named for Prat's daughter. Prat told Patch that running a small business like LuLu's had never been easy, and the challenges facing it faced — competition from Amazon, mistreatment of retail workers, etc. — were exacerbated by the pandemic. When Prat received an offer to leave the building, which she owns, she made the "bittersweet" decision to leave a business that become "insanely difficult" to manage. But, while LuLu's is closing its doors in Park Slope, the store's life will linger online. In fact, her daughter LuLu built out the store's online presence during the first few months of the pandemic to keep her mother's business running.

Patch

Today in Brooklyn:

  • University Open Air: Training for Body & Speech, 10 Grand army Plaza, Today @ 11 a.m. | Details
  • Free Admission Thursdays, Brooklyn Children's Museum, Today @ 1 - 4 p.m. | Details
  • Brooklyn Experimental Electronic Music Meetup, Wonderville, Today @ 7 p.m. | Details
  • NYC Is Dead Comedy & Brass Show, The Gutter, Today @ 8 - 11 p.m. | Details
  • Dirty Thursdays: Beyonce, House of Yes, Today @ 10 p.m. | Details

🐝 Brooklyn Buzz:

  • 🍕 It's hip to be square at Jet's Pizza: "Pizza-lovers can now get a four-cornered pie from Michigan's wildly popular homegrown chain, Jet's Pizza, right here in Prospect Heights.
    The Motor City franchise opened its Brooklyn restaurant at the corner of Prospect Place and Flatbush Avenue on Monday due the growing demand from across the river for its three Manhattan locations." (Brooklyn Paper)
  • The mayor welcomes annual Vegan Women Summit to BK: "Brooklyn is the place to be vegan, and this May, the borough is coming alive with The Vegan Women Summit. From May 18th to the 20th, The Vegan Women Summit will bring together leaders and professionals to talk about how we deliver better food choices for our people, improve public health, and lower carbon emissions. I know the power of healthier eating; a plant-based diet saved my life. And as mayor, I'm working across our city to transform our food systems and bring healthier food to our communities. I can't wait to welcome The Vegan Women Summit to Brooklyn. All genders are welcome! And remember, good health is not in your genes, it's in your lunch. P.S. Text MAYOR to 1 855 661 2676 to get a special discount!" (Mayor Eric Adams via Instagram)

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That's it for today. I'll see you around!

— Carlie Houser

About me: I'm a recent grad based in Brooklyn, NY. I love to write, run, read, and find new restaurants and venues around the city.

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