Thumbs up: for the Rochester Black Men Achieve Awards, held recently at the Joseph A. Floreano Rochester Riverside Convention Center. The inaugural ROC BMA ceremony honored men and young men of color for their service in and contributions to the community of Rochester. The competitive awards recognized individuals and/or organizations in business, education, government, entertainment, public service, non-profit, and community service. This year’s winners included: Leonard Brock, executive director of RMAPI, man of the year; boxer Willie Monroe Jr., sportsman of the year; and Rochester City Court Judge Stephen T. Miller, distinguished lawyer of the year.
Thumbs up: for churches joining the fight to combat addiction by learning to be more understanding. Leaders of churches in the city and suburbs have formed Churches United to Combat Addiction. The organization is scheduled to host its first conference from 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Jan. 27 at Church of Love Faith Center, 700 Exchange St. The free workshop, open to clergy and laypeople, will include speakers from law enforcement and the health and recovery fields, workshops and a panel discussion. “There’s a possibility that many people who are in a church are not saying anything because of the embarrassment and stigma of addiction,” said the Rev. Ronald Gibson of Church of Love Faith Center in Rochester. “We want to be able as a church community to say that we are dropping this stigma.”
Thumbs up: For a proposal to require hospitals to preserve forensic sexual offense evidence kits, known as rape kits, for at least five years or until the victim turns 19, whichever is longer. Currently, hospitals only have to preserve the evidence for 30 days. In 2016, a new state law required law-enforcement agencies to report on how many rape kits they collected that were still untested. There were at least 1,622 rape kits that had not yet been sent out for lab testing as of March 2017, though that only accounted for about half of agencies in New York. The new proposal would also require that survivors be notified before their evidence is destroyed.
Thumbs down: for keeping a pet alligator. Yes, we said alligator. Last month, the state Department of Environmental Conservation investigated and found a 3.5-foot American alligator living in a home in Macedon, Wayne County. Alan the alligator was friendly and seemingly happy but the owner didn’t have a permit for the alligator and that’s illegal in New York. According to the DEC, Alan was too big for the house and tank in Wayne County and would “sometimes be allowed to freely roam the house” where there were two large dogs. Needless to say the DEC confiscated Alan the alligator, who now lives at the Seneca Park Zoo in Monroe County temporarily. "I think the essence of this confiscation that DEC did of the alligator is that wild animals, exotic animals, just don’t make good pets," said Alan. Larry Sorel, the zoo's director.
Thumbs up: for the four members of the New York Army National Guard who have been selected to compete in the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea. Sgt. Emily Sweeney, 24, of Connecticut and Sgt. Matthew Mortensen, 32, of Lake Placid, will both compete in luge at the winter games. Sgt. Justin Olsen, 30, and Sgt. Nick Cunningham, 32, both Lake Placid residents, will compete together on a two-man bobsled team. Mortensen, Cunningham and Olsen are Olympic veterans. This will be the first Olympics for Sweeney.