A Message from Jane Carroll McGroarty

It is both exciting and a sincere honor to be the new President of the Brooklyn Heights Association – in its Centennial Year. Succeeding Tom Van den Bout will be no easy chore, but I am fortunate to have an energized Board with some new younger faces and the wise counsel of senior Board members as well as our indomitable Executive Director, Judy Stanton.

I would be remiss if I didn't thank retiring Board members Nancy Bowe, Dick Dadey and Alex Herrera, whose hard work, intelligence and perseverance have benefitted all of us who live in Brooklyn Heights.

In the first six months of its second hundred years, the BHA has embraced the cyber world with an elegant new website that is interactive – you can now pay your dues online, find out about and sign up for events, and read position papers that the Association has taken about issues. I hope to continue improving the website and our e-presence so that everyone in the neighborhood will bookmark the Brooklyn Heights Association along with the Brooklyn Heights Blog.

The recent openings of Pier 1 and Pier 6 of Brooklyn Bridge Park have been extremely gratifying and very long in coming. Seeing children playing in Sandbox Village or Swing Valley is such a joy and makes me deeply appreciative of the years of work, activism and struggle by so many people.

I hope to see you at one of our many Centennial events or simply walking on one of our lovely streets. Perhaps we can chat about what's on your mind or what you would like to see improved in the neighborhood. But before we complain to each other, let's stop and remember what a wonderful neighborhood we live in, thanks to many volunteers and activists who have come before us.

Jane Carroll McGroarty
President
Brooklyn Heights Association