'Times Square Hero' Picture Program in Cortlandt

Submitted by Bob Foley, Program Director, Van Cortlandtville Historical Society

Duane M. Jackson of Buchanan will tell his story with photos and video of how his alertness thwarted a terrorist attack in Times Square almost six years ago.  Sponsored by the Van Cortlandtville Historical Society at The Little Red  Schoolhouse, 297 Locust Avenue, Cortlandt Manor, the event starts at 2 p.m. and is open free to the public.  

Based on his book---May First:  The Day Times Square Stood Still--- Mr. Jackson will give his first-hand account of the harrowing events of May 1, 2010 when his life changed forever at the Crossroads of the World.  Ever vigilant by nature, his career training and instincts prompted him to quickly question and alert authorities about something he saw that was suspicious.  An illegally-parked and vacant SUV was idling within a few feet of his vending sales stand at 45th Street and Broadway in Times Square.  His “common sense” response to this out-of-place vehicle led the NYPD bomb squad to discover that it was packed with enough explosives to annihilate the entire area. 

Following the warning watch words---see something, say something--- Duane Jackson did on that historic day.

For his heroic act of helping to thwart the terror plot, Mr. Jackson was honored by many local and national organizations and municipalities, including the leaders of the City of New York, New York State, Westchester County and his home communities of Buchanan and Cortlandt. He was personally praised by President Obama. Named one of Time Magazine’s People of the Year for 2010, he was also presented with the prestigious Patriot Award by the American Legion at its 92nd National Convention recognizing him for “his great deed and exemplary act of service” to his country.

Mr. Jackson was hand-picked to participate in the 2010 Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Citizen’s Academy in New York and was chosen the Academy’s class president by his peers. He has addressed and been recognized by many civic and governmental groups across the country, particularly law enforcement, veteran’s affairs, the media and educational institutions. He has received the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund American Patriot Award, the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives (NOBLE) Distinction Award. And locally, the Hendrick Hudson School District Citizenship Award.

He has served as a Trustee on the Buchanan Village Board since 2012 , and he is active in the Buchanan Historical Society.   In addition to being a community and civic leader for various causes, he has been an entrepreneur since 1989 with his own vending business---Duane’s of Times Square. Prior to establishing his own business, he worked with the New York City Department of Housing, Preservation and Development, the NYC Board of Education (Division of School Buildings), and a private engineering firm.

Mr. Jackson earned his BA Degree in City Planning in 1976 from Boston University and did post-graduate work in Transportation Planning at the University of the District of Columbia in Washington, D.C. A U.S. Navy veteran, he served on the aircraft carrier USS Ranger in 1971-72 during the Vietnam War. A longtime advocate of veteran’s rights, in 1998 he established New York Chapter 817 of the Vietnam Veterans of America and currently serves as chapter president. Over the years, he has been active nationally with the American Legion, the Disabled American Veterans and the Black Law Enforcement Executives.

Dedicated to the ideals of community service and guided by his passionate phrase “each one, reaching one and giving back,” he founded the Golden Decade Foundation (GDF) in 2003. He explains that the GDF is “comprised of African-American 1970s graduates of Boston area colleges and universities whose mission is to enhance economic and wealth-building opportunities among its members. And, more importantly, we provide higher education opportunities to the children of our members through personal guidance, scholarship assistance, cultural and political support…whatever is needed to help a young person thrive,” he points out. For more information about GDF, visit: www.goldendecadefoundation.org.

Mr. Jackson and his wife, Linda, have owned a home in Buchanan for 22 years, where they raised their two children:  Tiffany, a graduate of Howard University in Washington, D.C.; and Duane Jr., a student at Marist College in Poughkeepsie.

The Little Red Schoolhouse (the venue for Saturday’s program) is located at the north end of Locust Avenue, next to Old Saint Peter’s Church and cemetery, on the hill just south of Oregon Road in the Town of Cortlandt.                      For more information, visit: www.vancort.net’ or, call (914) 736-7868.