Rutland Road Renamed To Honor Diplomat Dentist Lamuel Stanislaus

PROSPECT-LEFFERTS GARDENS, BROOKLYN — Flash those pearly whites: a neighborhood block is getting renamed Friday to honor a renowned Grenadian ambassador and beloved Brooklyn dentist.

Rutland Road between Flatbush and Bedford avenues will be dubbed Dr. Lamuel A. Stanislaus Way Friday to honor the Brooklyn man who left behind a long legacy of public service, City Council Member Mathieu Eugene announced.

"Dr. Stanislaus meant a great deal to this community for so many years, not only as a proud son of Grenada, but also as someone who wanted to make a difference,” said Eugene.

“[He] was a statesman whose work contributed to the betterment of New York as well as many countries in the Caribbean.”

The Grenadian diplomat first arrived in Brooklyn in 1956 by way of Washington D.C., where he earned his degrees in dentistry at Howard University. Stanislaus eventually set up a practice in Brooklyn Heights that is still being run by Dr. Eugene Stanislaus, his son.

Stanislaus quickly became a strong voice in Brooklyn's Caribbean community and used that position to "forge meaningful relationships" with Congresswoman Shirley Chisholm and the late governor Mario Cuomo, Eugene noted.

The Brooklyn dentist was appointed Grenada’s Ambassador at Large to the United Nations from 1985 to 1990 and again from 1998 to 2004.

Stanislaus’ legacies include the Small States Joint Office at the U.N. — which has provided rent-free space for Small State representatives to congregate for the past twenty-six years — and his advocacy for Montserrat after the island was devastated by a volcanic eruption.

His work earned Stanislaus the Insignia of the Commander of the British Empire from her Majesty the Queen of England, a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Brooklyn District Attorney’s Office, and the Distinguished Service award from the Brooklyn Historical Society.

Stanislaus is being honored two years after his death in September 2016 at the age of 95.

His work had recently been honored by President Barack Obama, who wrote Stanilaus a letter on 95th birthday, Caribbean Life News reported at the time.

“You have been a part of our great American story," the U.S. president and the first lady reportedly wrote,"lending your voice to the vibrancy of our nation, and offering your experience and wisdom to those around you.”