Big Apple Greeter News

Greetings!
We are at the beginning of what promises to be a very exciting year for Big Apple Greeter.

Sometime soon, we will cross a milestone and welcome our 100,000th visitor! As we celebrate this milestone, we also are proud to say that we have inspired yet another city to implement a program modeled on Big Apple Greeter. Moscow, Russia, is the newest member of the Global Greeter Network, of which Big Apple Greeter is a founder. The Global Greeter Network now has over 25 programs in over 12 countries!

After a financially challenging year, we are poised to grow. In 2011, Big Apple Greeter will aim for what we call a “Giant Leap Forward,” to have our financial health match the huge success of the program. The funding we received from the Fuserna Foundation last fall will enable us to put the groundwork of this “Giant Leap” in place, including a long-term fundraising plan with a goal of ensuring our financial stability going forward.

We hope you enjoy reading this newsletter and that it will inspire your own exploration of New York City. Please send us your feedback and suggestions for future stories. As always, we would love to hear your comments. We also invite you to read our new annual report, which was produced by volunteers Melissa Weisstuch, Jennifer Chiu and Jack Olive.

Big Apple Greeter is so proud to have inspired cities and individuals to bridge cultures and connect people around the world, and we could not have done so without your support.

Thank you for being a wonderful part of our organization!

With warm wishes for the New Year,
Tom and Alicia

BIG APPLE GREETER
One Centre Street
New York, NY 10007
Office 212-669-8159
Fax 212-669-3685
TTY 212-669-8273
pr@bigapplegreeter.org

Website
www.bigapplegreeter.org

Founder
Lynn Brooks

Executive Director
Alicia Pierro

Director of Programs & Volunteers
Gail Morse

Director of Development
Elizabeth Holmes

Special Events Coordinator/Database Administrator
Alison Brooks

Office Manager and IT Adminstrator
Jennifer Smith

Editor
Melissa Weisstuch

Technical Editor
Michaela Potter

Writers & Contributors
Laurie Norris
Phyllis Taub
Melissa Weisstuch

Photographers
Karen Bell
Paul Margolis
Jerry Ruotolo
Jocelyn Taub
Melissa Weisstuch

BIG APPLE GREETER
BOARD OF DIRECTORS

As of 12/8/2010
Chair* - Thomas G. Lewis, President,
Gray Line New York Sightseeing

Vice Chair* - Louise Morman,
Executive Coach, Management
Consultant, Eldercare Advocate

Treasurer* - Kenneth Smith, CPA,
Partner, EisnerAmper LLP

Founder* - Lynn Brooks,
Big Apple Greeter

Executive Director* - Alicia Pierro, Big Apple Greeter

Barbara Bailey - Assistant Director of Communications, Workers of America Local 1180's Retiree Division (Retired)

Kamal Bhatia, CFA - Managing Director & Head of Asset Management Products, TIAA-CREFF Asset Management

Garrett R. Bowden - Principal,
Affirmative Equities Realty L.P.

Christopher P. Boylan* - Deputy Executive Director, Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Chairman Emeritus)

Patty Clark - Sr. Advisor to the Aviation Director for External Affairs, The Port Authroity of New York & New Jersey

Patrick W. Condren* - President,
Patcon Associates, Ltd.

Kelly Ann Curtin - Senior Vice President, Membership,
NYC & Company

Matthew Daus, Esq.* - Commissiner, NYC Civil Service Commission; Distinguished Lecturer, CUNY; Attorney at Law, Windels Marx Lane & Mittendorf, LLP

Merrie L. Davis - President & Publisher, MVP|NY

Douglas Durst - President, The Durst Organization

Don Eugene* - Senior Officer, R.H. Macy & Co., Inc. (Retired); Callydus Group LLC

Jill Groce - General Manager,
JCPenney Manhattan Mall

Peter Kohlmann - Founder,
PeKo Creative

Jeffrey Lam - Managing Member,
Lam Generation, LLC

Diane McNulty - Director of Community Affairs, The New York Times

Cristyne L. Nicholas* - CEO,
Nicholas & Lence Communications, LLC

David Rothfeld, Esq.* - Partner,
Kane Kessler, P.C.

John J. Ruzich, OBE* - President & CEO, The TIMM Group, LLC

Sergio A. Sanchez - Executive Vice President, LBOA/Partners Executive Transportation

Stephen Schnall* - Regional Sales Manager, Optaros

Joseph E. Spinnato - President, Hotel Association of New York City, Inc.

Steve Swenson - Vice President & General Manager of 1010 WINS and WCBSAM

Vincent J. Tabone - Director of Government Relations, Red Apple Group, Inc.

Barbara M. Tomanelli - Executive Assistant to Vice President, MetLife (Retired); Greeter Representative

Markly Wilson - Director, International Marketing, New York State Division of Tourism

Chairman Emeritus - Joel L. Epstein, Chairman & CEO, AIG Consumer Finance (Retired)

Honorary Lifetime Member - Elizabeth A. Baltz, Global Business Development & Management

Honorary Lifetime Member - Horace Webb, Senior Vice President Public Affairs, Con Edison (Retired)

Honorary Lifetime Member - Paul Insalaco* - President, BF9 Media (Immediate Past Chair)

Ex-Officio Members
Hon. Michael R. Bloomberg, Mayor of the City of New Yrok

Hon. Ruben Diaz Jr., Bronx Borough President

Hon. Marty Markowitz, Brooklyn Borough President

Hon. Helen M. Marshall, Queens Borough President

Hon. James P. Molinaro, Staten Island Borough President

Hon. Scott Stringer, Manhattan Borough President

Executive Committee*

Big Apple Greeter friends and supporters enthusiastically welcomed Fuserna Foundation Founder Ariadne Getty at the Save Big Apple Greeter Special Recognition Reception on November 18. Held at the Audi Forum showroom on Park Avenue, the evening event honored Ms. Getty and recognized Big Apple Greeter Founder Lynn Brooks for her vision in bringing Big Apple Greeter to life 18 years ago.

Sponsored in part by Wells Fargo Advisors, LLC, the reception was a celebration of the success of the Save Big Apple Greeter campaign and an opportunity to look toward the organization’s the future. Maiya Furgason, first vice president-investments at Wells Fargo, shared in the excitement. “We met Big Apple Greeter and Lynn, and decided to get involved and do whatever we could do to help,” she said, expressing enthusiasm for how Big Apple Greeter shows visitors that New York is a friendly place.

The Audi Forum is a unique space, serving as both automobile showroom and chic event venue. Guests enjoyed wine, hors d’oeuvres and night-time views of Park Avenue through panoramic windows wrapped around two sides of the room. Many Greeters were present and excited to meet the woman whose generosity meant that the organization to which they give so much love and commitment did not need to close in September. Chantal Lawrence, one of the Greeters at the celebration, explained that Big Apple Greeter has allowed her to be an ambassador for the City, especially Brooklyn. “I’m very proud of my hometown and love sharing it with others,” she said.

Board Chairman Tom Lewis opened the brief formal program by thanking Wells Fargo, Ms. Getty and all those who support Big Apple Greeter. “Big Apple Greeter is about community and the passion of our Greeters and volunteers for this city,” he said. He recalled the launch of the Save Big Apple Greeter campaign during the summer, and how Ms. Getty, a California resident, saw the CNN story about Big Apple Greeter’s plight and immediately wanted to help. “Her generosity and friendship are truly the work of an angel,” he told the guests.

Ms. Getty explained that what she saw in the CNN story was “truly moving” and that in Big Apple Greeter she saw “a personal commitment, which for me is so important.”

Ms. Getty also shared some exciting news. She announced that the Fuserna Foundation typically makes a three-year commitment to the organizations it supports, and, therefore, will provide two additional years of support for Big Apple Greeter. “The more I learned about Big Apple Greeter, I saw there was so much room for growth,” she said. Big Apple Greeter was one of three organizations to receive support from the foundation in 2010.

Lynn recalled her first telephone conversation with Ms. Getty, and said she “could tell she is a beautiful and wonderful person” even though they had yet to meet in person. She added, “It’s an amazing thing to walk into the office on a Monday and have a message, 'I think I can help you, please call me.'”

The Fuserna Foundation gift is the largest charitable contribution in Big Apple Greeter’s history. Tom explained that “without it we would have seen a sunset of Big Apple Greeter. This would have been a tragedy for our city.” He stressed that the Fuserna Foundation gift is just the start of a new beginning. “We have plans to raise $2 million to make us a sustainable organization,” he said.

- by Melissa Weisstuch

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Since 2003, Big Apple Greeter has promoted neighborhood tourism throughout the five boroughs through its free Neighborhood Information Profiles. These helpful feature stories now include 28 destinations, with the addition of a profile for Brooklyn’s Antique Atlantic Avenue.

Each six-page Neighborhood Information Profile covers a neighborhood’s history and culture, attractions, shopping and dining, along with photographs, travel instructions for using public transportation, and a street map. The Neighborhood Information Profiles are a user-friendly way for both visitors and native New Yorkers to explore and experience neighborhoods representing our ethnically and culturally diverse City.

The new Atlantic Avenue profile covers the stretch of Atlantic Avenue between the East River and Flatbush Avenue including four distinct historical Brooklyn neighborhoods. This area is known as the home to Brooklyn’s Middle Eastern dining and shopping and as the best spot in town for antiquing. The “antiques row” area, for which the new profile was named, is located between Bond and Hoyt Streets and developed in the 1960s and 1970s when antique stores began to cluster in the area. Some of the Italianate-style buildings feature Victoriana details. The neighborhood also offers a wealth of interesting historic buildings, small shops, restaurants and even an abandoned rail tunnel under Atlantic Avenue.

Each Neighborhood Information Profile is prepared by a team of volunteer writers, editors, photographers and designers, led by Marianne Gennari. Big Apple Greeter extends a special “thank you” to graphic designer Joy Makon and photographers Karen Bell, Paul Katcher, Susan Kroeter, Paul Margolis and Caroline Misan for the pro bono services they give to creating our Neighborhood Information Profiles.

Interested in exploring a New York City neighborhood that’s new to you? Simply visit Neighborhood Information Profiles to review all of them.

- by Melissa Weisstuch

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Lisa Oxborough, a financial advisor, and her husband Andy, a postman, arrived in New York on Sunday, December 5 for their first visit to the City. On Monday – also Andrew’s birthday – the young couple from St. Neots, in Cambridgeshire, England, met with Greeter Barbara Tomanelli at their hotel and then traveled downtown for a walk through lower Manhattan with New York City Council Member Mark S. Weprin, Big Apple Greeter’s newest Greeter for a Day.

Coming from his office near City Hall, Council Member Weprin met the group at the 9/11 Memorial Visitor Preview Site on Vesey Street, where he explained what it was like to be in New York City on and soon after the events of September 11, 2001. He then escorted the Oxboroughs across Vesey Street to St. Paul’s Chapel, which opened in 1766 and is the oldest building in continuous use in New York City. The church building played an important role in the aftermath of September 11, serving as the site of a very active relief ministry for rescue workers.

Leading the group further south, Weprin explained to the Oxboroughs how the part of Broadway known as the Canyon of Heroes has been the site of many parades, and pointed out sidewalk markers commemorating the many famous people, including Queen Elizabeth II, President John F. Kennedy, the New Yankees, and Princess Beatrix of the Netherlands, who participated in the parades. Along the way he pointed out the Equitable Bank Building which, when built in 1916, spurred the beginning of the City’s zoning regulations.

The excursion ended at City Hall Park, where Weprin explained the structure of the City Council and how its 51 members each represent 150,000 city residents. The Oxboroughs greatly enjoyed their visit to New York, and Lisa told us “We had an amazing time, thank you! I really can't praise Big Apple Greeter enough.”

Weprin is from Queens and represents the 23rd City Council District, encompassing Hollis, Queens Village, Little Neck, New Hyde Park and other nearby communities. He was motivated to become a Greeter for a Day because of his own experiences traveling abroad. “Everywhere we went, people were so nice,” he said. “New Yorkers have an unfair image that they are not friendly and hospitable,” he added. “I wanted to do my own myth-busting and Big Apple Greeter seemed like a great way to do my own part.”

The Greeter for a Day program, launched in 2008, matches New York elected officials, corporate leaders and celebrities with global visitors to experience New York through the eyes of real New Yorkers.

- by Melissa Weisstuch

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The weather was cool, sunny and invigorating on Wednesday, November 3, as a group of 16 Big Apple Greeter volunteers met in the Meat Packing District to begin their tour of the High Line. Led by Connie Milner, a docent for Friends of the Highline, the group was treated to a detailed introduction to one of New York City’s newest and most unique public parks.

The High Line, the former site of an elevated railroad built in the early 1930s to lift freight trains off the busy streets, was vacant and deteriorating since trains stopped running along its tracks in 1980. Many sections of the railroad were eventually demolished, with the remaining portion – beginning at Gansevoort Street – preserved by the Friends of the High Line who in 2001 won their lawsuit to keep it from being demolished. Built on the remaining rail line, where train tracks are still visible among the plantings, the Section 1 of the High Line opened as an elevated park in June 2009. It runs from Gansevoort to West 20th Street and is beautifully and abundantly landscaped with various trees, bushes, grasses and flowers. Purple asters were ample throughout, creating a very rich and vibrant landscape. Connie explained that the High Line contains more than 200 different plant species, of which 161 are native to North America.

The High Line is rich with many unexpected experiences. Among them:

• Three art shows, including Steven Vitiello’s “A Bell for Every Minute,” comprised of audio recordings of bells ringing in New York City and surrounding areas
• Lounge chairs with wheels situated on the remaining train tracks
• An outdoor amphitheater at the northern end of the High Line, which is handicapped accessible and is the site of various lectures and other forms of entertainment.

The High Line also offers some amazing views and close-ups, a bit of history, and some interesting architecture. Connie introduced the Greeters to:

• The High Line’s historical role in transporting meat, produce and other foods to factories and warehouses along Manhattan’s West Side
• The Standard Hotel, built in 2007 and the only building that straddles the High Line. The public bar on the top floor offers outstanding views of the City, Hudson River, and New Jersey.
• The arch that opens to Pier 54 and is the last remaining structure from the old Cunard Line. It is at Pier 54 that the Carpathia docked in 1912, bringing survivors from the Titanic, and from where the Lusitania set sail in 1915.
• The original home of the National Biscuit Company, where the Oreo cookie was invented
• The modern architecture of Frank Ghery’s “glass schooner” building at 18th Street, and Nouvel Chelsea condominium, designed by Jean Nouvel and visible from a vantage point above West 19th Street.

Section 2 of the High Line, running from 20th to 30th Streets, will open in Spring 2011 and will include a lawn suitable for picnics. It will also have a flyover (ramp) that goes to the treetops eight feet high, between 25th and 27th Streets.

Connie explained that the High Line “is designed to be an adult park, a passive park…the only thing exercised here is your senses.” To learn more about this new and vibrant green space, visit www.thehighline.org.

The outing to the High Line is one of many created to familiarize greeters with New York City’s many neighborhoods and attractions. Other outings completed last fall include Gracie Mansion and unique, midtown hotel lobbies.

- by Melissa Weisstuch

The holiday season transforms New York’s streets into their sparkling best, but there is one street that sparkles year round—West 47th Street between Fifth and Sixth Avenues, better known as the Diamond District of Manhattan. On November 30, 45 Big Apple Greeters went behind the scenes to learn more about this thriving Business Improvement District (BID), the only one among the city’s 64 BIDs that is a single street. There is no way to miss the district: two giant “diamond” street lights flank both ends of West 47th Street.

After a bountiful buffet breakfast at the Diamond Dealers Club, Michael Grumet, Executive Director of the 47th Street BID, gave the Greeters an overview of the Diamond District and some history of this distinctive neighborhood. West 47th Street is the trading and communications center for the diamond and jewelry industry in New York City, which employs 26,000 New Yorkers. Grumet acknowledged that buying gold and diamond jewelry was a mysterious business to many visitors. He recommended the BID’s website, www.diamonddistrict.org, for consumer information, including shopping tips, the Jewelry Buyer’s Bill of Rights, and a safeguard for smart buying—the list of BID members.

Over 90 percent of all diamonds sold in the US go through New York, and most go through the current Diamond District. It evolved from earlier districts established in the 1920s near Canal Street and the Bowery. During World War II, thousands of Jewish émigrés fled from diamond centers of Antwerp and Amsterdam and settled in New York. Grumet observed that the various businesses here, such as cutters, importers, and retailers, still provide opportunities for immigrant newcomers.

BID Board Member and jeweler Avery Weinschneider of Weisz Jewelry and Precious Stones described his jewelry-making techniques and his business. Greeter Roselyn Hirsch said, “The jewelry demonstration was fascinating. It was interesting learning more about the process of diamond-setting.” Weinschneider offered Greeters and their visitors additional insight at his store, where he will do demonstrations on Thursday afternoons (call him for details: 212/575-5817; 73 West 47 St.).

Grumet took the Greeters on a short walking tour, stopping at some of the jewelry exchanges: large rooms full of counters representing individual diamond and jewelry retailers. A front window booth in a prime exchange can rent for $20,000 monthly. Grumet advised not to buy through hawkers on the street, but to look for the logos of the BID’s Jewelry Buyer’s Bill of Rights and the Gemologists Institute of America (GIA) displayed by BID-member retailers, symbols he identified during the walk. The BID visit helped the Greeters become more savvy about the district and its stunning array of diamonds and fine jewelry. “We enjoyed learning more about the district and we will be taking visitors there armed with the impact and history of the industry,” said Greeter Jack Victor. Even if visitors are on a budget, window shopping on West 47th Street with a Greeter can be a great deal.

- by Laurie Norris

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Visitors: Whether you were in New York City three days ago or three years ago, help spread the word about Big Apple Greeter! Please go to tripadvisor.com, yelp.com or your favorite travel website to write a brief review of your experience with a Greeter. Thank you!

We love your photos!
We would love to hear what you have to say about your greeter experience. Send a photo of you with your greeter and your comments to eholmes@bigapplegreeter.org. We may use your photo or comment in marketing material (for example, an upcoming newsletter, our website or annual report).

Here are a few comments submitted by our greeters:

“One of the five young ladies tried on a ring at Tiffany’s with a six-figure price tag while the others took photos of the event.”
- Greeter Arnold Strauch

“On the High Line we caught sight of Martha Stewart and Diane von Fustenburg being filmed for a TV show.”
- Greeter Diane Raphael

“Visitor is a fireman. I prearranged permission to tour a firehouse and I gave them directions to the Firefighters Museum.”
- Greeter Patricia Bharath

“Upon learning my barber shop has a karaoke machine, my visitor let me know he sings in his church choir. So at 11AM there was music, and I must admit a little dancing by me to Tina Turner’s Proud Mary! It was the most spontaneous fun I’ve ever had before.”
- Greeter Karen Brueckner

“They didn’t want to leave the housewares section or coffee section in Zabars.”
- Greeter S. Brookes

“Before we met they had been to Macy’s at 5am on Black Friday*. They were interviewed on TV and recognized by others at hotel. They were famous for a NY minute, a trip highlight.”
- Greeter Kevin Flanagan
(*For our visitors who are not from the USA, Black Friday is the day after Thanksgiving and the unofficial start to the holiday shopping season. It is known for very crowded stores that open very early, showcasing fantastic sales.)

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Winter is a great time to visit New York City, and there is much to see and do despite the colder temperatures. We recently asked our Greeters to tell us some of their favorite things to see and do in the City during the winter months. Here is what some of them had to say:

Annick Herbelin Bourbon enjoys eating oysters at the Oyster Bar in Grand Central Terminal, drinking hot chocolate at Charbonnel & Walker on the 8th floor of Saks Fifth Avenue, and treating friends and herself to heart-warming soul food at Dinosaur Barbecue. A native of France, she also enjoys watching the ice float at the surface of the Hudson River from the 125th Street pier in Harlem.

Dolores Morris also finds interesting things to do in Grand Central Terminal. She says, “The main hall is always amazing with its large size, architecture and depictions of the constellations on the ceiling. The enormous American flag is inspirational. I like to take visitors outside the Oyster Bar where they are always surprised at the Whispering Walls, where a normal speaking voice can be clearly heard across the hallway. The downstairs food court has a great selection of foods, including the cookies and cupcakes at Magnolia Bakery. The Transit Museum is interesting and a good place for me to pick up extra subway maps, which I always give to people at the start of each Big Apple visit.”

Peter Wood’s favorites include ice skating in Central Park, a visit to the Polar Bears at the Central Park Zoo and a hot chocolate at Le Pain, just north of the Sheep Meadow. “That is winter in New York,” he says.

Greenwich Village resident Doris Woolfe recommends Hudson River Park, which is open all winter. There you can watch lumps of ice floating along and see the Statue of Liberty covered in snow from the end of Pier 45. “The view along the waterfront and the sunsets are well worth it,” she says. “Of course, the Village is full of excellent restaurants and bakeries, coffee shops and hot chocolate, and plenty of benches. You can always duck inside for a snack if you're cold.”

Bob Lurie enjoys stopping at the Housing Works Bookstore Café for a hot coffee & scone while browsing the books. The shop is located at 126 Crosby Street, just south of Houston Street.

Our Greeters also report many fun things to do outside of Manhattan. Robert Sand likes to visit the Fountain at the Bronx Zoo. He says, “Warm boots and a furry hat help, but there are indoor exhibits and quiet outdoor wonderlands. A car helps, but easily reachable by subway.”

“Brooklyn has much to offer in the winter,” says Rosemary Goldford. “I’ve taken visitors on an excursion through the outskirts of Brooklyn Heights to Atlantic Avenue where I show them the old Lebanese stores, talk about the old railroad tracks that run underneath Atlantic Avenue up to Court Street, and then catch the B61 bus to head over to Red Hook. On the way we talk about the old and new waterfronts, the BQE [Brooklyn-Queens Expressway], Carroll Gardens and Cobble Hill and end up at Fairway [supermarket] where you can get a cup of coffee and enjoy the best vistas of the Statue of Liberty, Staten Island, Verrazano Bridge and the Manhattan skyline.”

Winter can be beautiful in any of the City’s five boroughs. Jocelyn Taub tells us one of her favorite things to do in the winter is walk around the city after a major snowstorm. “It's beautiful and the city is quiet,” she says. Jocelyn's beautiful photo at the top of this story says it all.

What are your favorite places to visit in New York City? E-mail us at volunteerdepartment@bigapplegreeter.org.

Great Offers from nycgo.com

This January and February, New York City is full of exciting things to do and see, plus ways to save big on dining, shopping, arts, entertainment, Broadway, Off Broadway and more.

There’s never been a better time to catch a show. Broadway Week (January 24–February 10) offers two-for-one tickets to some of Broadway’s hottest shows. And from January 24 through February 13, On the House invites you to experience Off Broadway at incredible savings, with two-for-one theater tickets and two-for-one drinks after the show at nearby bars and lounges.

Looking for great dining deals? NYC Restaurant Week® (January 24–February 6) is bigger and better than ever, featuring over 300 restaurants. Enjoy three-course prix-fixe lunch for $24.07 and dinner for $35. Get a $15 statement credit when you register and use any eligible American Express® Card to dine out three or more times at any participating restaurants during NYC Restaurant Week, January 24–February 6.

And as part of our Get More NYC™ winter campaign, from January 24 to February 28, you can earn triple Membership Rewards® points from American Express when you register and use your rewards program–enrolled American Express Card at over 300 shops, restaurants, entertainment venues and other destinations throughout the City.

Finally, this February, head uptown during Black History Month and take advantage of Destination: Harlem, featuring six incredible nights of culture, dining and nightlife.

Take advantage of these great opportunities and all the City has to offer right now at nycgo.com.

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