It has been a very busy summer as I have had the honor of being a part of so many exciting announcements regarding the awarding of State grant dollars to local agencies and non-profit groups.
One of the most significant grants was awarded to the prestigious Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra in the amount of $300,000. I was able to present the check to the BPO’s Board of Directors late in August and the money will be used to keep this world renowned orchestra a viable asset to our community.
BPO’s Musical Director JoAnn Falletta issued a very kind statement regarding the grant. “Speaking on behalf of the musicians, we are humbled by the generosity of this support by Senator Stachowski,” BPO Musical Director JoAnn Falletta said. “It allows us to continue our mission of attaining the highest level of artistic integrity in everything we do as an internationally renowned orchestra.”
We were also able to award the Arts in Education Institute of Western New York a $60,000 grant which helped them move to their new location on the Medaille College campus. The Arts in Education Institute of Western New York has been a great program and it avails itself to both public and private school children from all over the region.
The inclusion of art, in all of its forms, is a necessary educational component of a child's development and I was happy to play a small part in providing necessary funding for the continued success of this program and the tremendous work Executive Director Jackie Albarella and her staff does on a daily basis.
We also made a stop at the Buffalo Boys and Girls Club of Buffalo and presented Executive Director Diane Rowe a check for $50,000 for their “Bridging The Gap” program. Bridging the Gap” is an idea unique to the Boys & Girls Clubs of Buffalo to help our youth be high achievers in school. The Boys & Girls Clubs of Buffalo serves over 8,500 youth between the ages of 6-18 and a majority of them attend Buffalo Public Schools. The grant money will assist in purchasing supplies and tutors for the school aged children to improve classroom performance.
Senator Jeff Klein, a good friend of mine and a State Senator from the Bronx paid my District a visit a few weeks ago to promote a Bill we co-sponsored to create a state wide sex offender e-mail notification system.
The legislation would allow New York citizens to register for this free service and then be notified by e-mail if a level two or level three sex offender moves into their zip code. Members of the public can now access this database at local police stations or via a toll-free telephone number. Level 2 and Level 3 offenders are also listed on an internet subdirectory at the DCJS website. However, the information changes constantly as new offenders are added or existing registrants update their information.
E-mail updates would allow New Yorkers to keep tabs on a specific geographic area, such as where they live or where their children attend school, and would save them the time-consuming chore of making regular visits to the subdirectory website. The Bill passed through both the Senate and Assembly and as I write this awaits the Governor’s signature.
In the months ahead we will be awarding State grant money to various groups, including the Kevin Guest House, the Frank Lloyd Wright Boathouse, the South Park Avenue Revitalization Project, the Buffalo Hearing and Speech center, the Seneca Babcock Community Association and many others. I am gratified to know that these funds are helping so many agencies and citizens from my District in such a meaningful way.
