UNITY DIVERSITY PASSOVER SEDER 2017

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VHZjey7US-w

A number of elected officials and over 200 community residents came to Flatbush yesterday for a visionary peek into the multiculturalism, making the specter of identity politics look like something of a passing political trend.

The event was the The Bridge Multicultural & Advocacy Project’s (MCP)  Interfaith Unity Seder, where Jews, Muslims, Christians, blacks, whites, and Asians gathered to celebrate the Jewish holiday of Passover, commemorating the Biblical fact that Jews were once slaves until God freed them.

Held at the Bridge’s flagship location, 1894 Flatbush Avenue a block north of Kings Highway, the seder drew a number of elected officials including Public Advocate Letitia James, Congresswoman Yvette D. Clarke Brooklyn DA Eric Gonzalez, Council Member Dr. Mathieu Eugene, Assemblyman Dov Hikind and Dr. Rudy Crew President of Medgar Evers College.

“The Bridge MCP has done an excellent job of standing by their mission of building bridges across the city rather than walls of divisiveness,” said Clarke in awarding The Bridge founder, Mark Meyer Appel with a Certificate of Special Congressional Recognition for his work in bringing all communities together.

Appel founded The Bridge 20 years ago as an avenue for social change within the nation. Its strong advocacy movement has been extremely successful in effecting the local community for change. It has supported more effective laws to protect children from sexual abuse as well as leading an aggressive push for expanding services for children of special needs. Its work in fighting serious health issues including; Diabetes, Asthma, and Obesity has led to changes and the expansion of city-wide programs in addressing these issues.

“We are blessed to live in a nation that not only celebrates, but guarantees us so many liberties,” said Appel. “I cannot think of a better theme [than Passover] for coming together as diverse communities during this moment in our nation’s history.”

Abu Khaliquzzaman, a prominent leader in the Muslim community and the President of The Interfaith Dialogue Project Peaceheals agreed. “We are brothers and sisters, who worship the same God,” he said.

THE BRIDGE MCP IN COLLABORATION WITH THE NYC HAITI CONSULATE TO SEND EMERGENCY RELIEF TO HAITI

Brooklyn, NY (October 28, 2016)   An unprecedented show support for the victims of Haiti overtook the Flatbush Brooklyn community last night as Mark Meyer Appel, founder of The Bridge Multicultural and Advocacy Project in collaboration with The Consulate General of Haiti in NY initiated a massive local movement for emergency relief donations of much needed supplies for Haiti. The Bridge Multicultural and Advocacy Project joined together with The Consulate General of Haiti in NY in a partnership to help   the efforts  for supplying emergency relief donations and much needed supplies for Haiti.

"Hurricane Matthew caused much devastation in so many areas of the Country and the out pouring aid from the people of New York is so great, It is an honor to personally thank you all for your generosity and support for our brothers and sisters in Haiti. Haiti loves New York!", said Consul General Peter Helder Bernard, Esq. -Hurricane Matthew caused much devastation in so many areas of the Country and the out pouring aid from the people of New York is so great, It is an honor to personally thank you all for your generosity and support for our brothers and sisters in Haiti. Haiti loves New York!",.   A surplus of medial supplies, soap, clothing, and personal hygiene products were donated by community members to support the Hurricane Mathew Relief Mission.In attendance were many community organizations HABNET, Haitian American Caucus, United Jewish Community, The New York Rescue Response Team, MIPO, Yemenite American Association, and The American Council of Minority Women. The Consul General of Haiti Peter Helder Bernard, Esq, Assembly Member Helene Weinstein, Rabbi Andre Malek, and Apostle James Duncan were in attendance to personally place non-perishable items into the Haiti bound relief bins.The Bridge MCP Founder, Mark Meyer Appel, proudly stated,  "when the people in Haiti suffer we all suffer. We will continue to work and collaborate with the Consulate General of Haiti on this important mission."  

The Consul General of Haiti Peter Helder Bernard Esq. praised and thanked Mark Meyer Appel and The Bridge Project for this great partnership.The Consul General ensured the community that special precautions are in place to make sure donations can quickly get through customs.  We are working   to ensure that the bins are delivered to the people of Haiti". This is the importance of working with the government official on global initiatives," said  Bernard.  Authorized drop-off location sites are still receiving donations around the tri-state area. For a government supported donation center contact: Vice Consul Rose Guerrier at 347.546.5242. 

The Bridge Multicultural Advocacy Project (MCP) is a nonprofit organization created to promote inter-group and intra-group collaboration among diverse communities across New York City and the entire nation. A program sponsored by the Voice of Justice, the Bridge MCP was formed to address the many serious social issues facing society today. Our organization aims to unite and energize the skills of every racial, ethnic, cultural and religious group across NYC and the United States to respond to these very important issues. The Bridge MCP’s mission will be accomplished through the ongoing creation of working relationships and joint task forces made up of people from various cultural and religious backgrounds. By creating a strong coalition of constituencies, and joint tasks forces, The Bridge MCP will work towards solving complex, emerging problems in American culture. For more information,

 visit www.thebridgemcp.com                  

Haiti Relief Project | The Consul General of Haiti Peter Helder Bernard Esq     PROGRAM VIDEO     https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UCKSUitqQ1c ;                                    

  

HAPPY CHANUKAH FROM THE BRIDGE MULTICULTRAL PROJECT

https://youtu.be/jmN5mMdJJss?t=5

https://youtu.be/jmN5mMdJJss

Chanukah (Hanukkah), the Festival of Lights, begins on the 25th day of the Jewish month of Kislev, and lasts for eight days. On the secular calendar, Chanukah generally falls out in December

Hanukkah means “dedication” in Hebrew and celebrates two miracles: In ancient Judea, the Maccabees, or leaders of a rebel Jewish army, liberated a temple in Jerusalem from Greek invaders after waging a three-year war and their victory is considered to be the first miracle. The second miracle occurred in the temple itself, where the Maccabees found a small amount of olive oil to fuel the menorah, a nine-branched candelabrum. There was only enough oil to light the menorah for one day, and it would take eight days to produce new oil. The Maccabees lit the menorah, however, and found that the oil burned for eight days.
                 

     c

What Is The Significance Of The Menorah Today? 

The candelabrum holds oil or candles, and Jews light one branch of the menorah on each of the eight nights of Hanukkah. The ninth flame, which is the flame in the middle,  is called the Shamash and is used to light the other flames.

How Else Do Jews Celebrate The Holiday Around The World?

There are several traditions associated with the festival, including the giving of "gelt" or monetary gifts to children. Children also play with dreidels during the holiday. Foods associated with Hanukkah include several items fried in oil, like donuts and latkes.

https://youtu.be/jmN5mMdJJss

EMERGENCY SAFTEY ALERT .......................... HEATERS ARE A MAIN SOURCE OF HOME FIRES.... BUY A U.L APPROVED HEATER WITH A TILT SHUT OFF AND OVERHEAT SWITCH

IT HAS COME TO OUR ATTENTION  THAT NYC HARDWARE STORES ARE SELLING HEATERS THAT ARE NOT UL APPROVED WITH NO SAFETY FEATURES

Please call our office at  1 800 621 8551 FOR MORE HELPFUL INFORMATION

DAVID SPIRA  DIRECTOR OF FIRE SAFETY

Features to look for

If you're thinking of buying an electric heater, here are the features to consider.

• Fan: A fan is an effective way to break up the layers of cold and warm air in a room. While noisy, you don't have to use them continuously. Just switch them on for a few minutes, to warm up the room.
• Cord storage: This allows you to stow the cord neatly when the heater is not in use.
• Controls: The controls should be clearly visible, easy to access and easy to use. Markings should be easy to read with good contrast. The more heat settings the better – you'll have more flexibility to control the room temperature.

Safety

Issues to be aware of with electric heaters.

Tilt switch
Tilt switches turn the heater off if it falls over to reduce the risk of fire. They turn off the heater in case of a fall and are essential for any portable heater.

Thermal cutout
All models should have a built-in thermal cutout, to turn the heater off if it overheats.

Oil-filled heaters
The relatively low surface temperature makes oil-filled heaters safer than most other heater types. But some models have narrow exposed fins that get quite