I am excited to be contributing my first article to Laurelton.NYC! I thought I would start by writing about who I am, where I’m from and my connection to Laurelton. I was born in Brooklyn and moved to Laurelton, Queens in 1979. I was five years old at the time and this is where the foundation of my life started.
Laurelton was not only the place where you would call home, it was a place where your neighbors would become your extended family. Each block had a special bond. You could have issues with another block about sports, who had the coolest block, or any number of other things. However, if someone from Rosedale or Cambia Heights had issues with us, all of us from Laurelton would stand together.
I love all of Laurelton, but I love 229th Street even more! Join me as I go down memory lane.
229th Street, or “the block”, was filled with the most exciting people, the hottest events, and was the center of all the action. I was fortunate to be right in the middle of it, seeing a lot of it up close. One thing the block was known for was our annual Block Party. This was the biggest event every year. Even though it was originally for the families and friends from the block, it eventually turned into Laurelton’s party of the summer! There was music, food, games, rides and raffles. We even had a pool truck to swim in. The block parties got so big that the committee decided to stop having music. Even without the music it was still special. The kids who could never go out in the street, or even cross it, were the first ones outside because the streets were blocked off from corner to corner. They had smiles on their faces from ear to ear because they could finally go out in the street for this one day!
As the summer went on there were other special things that all of us Laurelton kids remember. There was Mister Softee, driven by Garfield, as well as the candy truck, driven by Gus. Both drivers knew that most kids were only getting a dollar from their parents and it would go to whichever truck came around first. That driver would be the lucky guy for the day. We liked both guys but weren’t loyal to one specifically. Once the candy or ice cream transaction was done, the driver would speed off to make sure they stayed ahead of the other driver. One thing was certain, the kids on our block would not go without. There was one parent that lived two houses down from me that would buy for anyone who didn’t have the money. When you’re young you don’t realize how special that is. As an adult with children, doing things for them and their friends brings me great joy. Now I know why he did that all those years for us. I just want to say thank you to Mr. Kent.
Going to school in Laurelton was the best thing that could happen. That is where you met most of the other kids outside your own block. Most of the kids went to P.S. 156. I have such great memories of playing on the playground, lunchtime, the teachers, field trips and even the summer program! The one thing that stands out the most was walking to and from school. P.S. 156 was on the same block (229th Street). I was on 131st Avenue and the school was on 137th Avenue. What made walking so fun was that there were two stores on Merrick Blvd., Pop-N-Kim’s and The Bee Hive. Each store had their own unique flavor. Pop-N-Kim’s had candy, chips, quarter waters and anything else we needed for a sugar rush. Kim was a great owner and looked out for all the people who came to her store. The Bee Hive, on the other hand, had video games in the back. All the times I was late to school was because of one video game, “Return of the Jedi”. Trying to finish it on the four quarters I had after breaking the dollar in my pocket. Just an FYI, I did finish the game, but the cost was high, (parent / teacher night), but was well worth it!
There were other stores that made Laurelton great. The Jamaica store was where you could get the best beef patties. If you added cheese, it would take you on another level! The KFC on 230th was definitely was a place to stop. You could pick up a few things from Associated if you didn’t need to do big shopping. Merrick Blvd. also had Pizza Places, Barbershops, Hair Salons and Woolworths. You could take the Van or Q5 to Green Acres to take pictures in the booth, to Sunrise Cinema to see a movie or the opposite direction to Jamaica Avenue.
Before I close, I have to mention one of the best things that Laurelton had for me and a lot of other young men. Laurelton Little League was where dreams started with playing Big League Baseball. Every summer you knew that Tuesdays and Wednesdays were practice days and Thursday and Saturday were game days. Starting at age 8 and playing until my teens, I fell in love with the game of baseball. The only thing that would put a damper on those days was when it rained. From Laurelton West to Cambia Heights and Montbellier Park, it was a great way to keep us kids out of the streets.
I could go on and on about growing up in Laurelton. I made many great, lifelong friends. Facebook has helped a lot of us reconnect, but we lost a lot of friends as well (RIP). No matter where we are now, Laurelton will always and forever be home. For the people that live there now, the only thing I ask is that you take care of what the people before you have left for their legacy. Family, friendship and the feeling of home.
I hope you enjoyed this trip down memory lane. It brought back a lot of fond memories. I will be writing more articles in the future about things I feel are important to anyone’s lifestyle. Things that can help you to “Stop Renting Life, Start Owning It”. There are three things that can help you achieve more of what you’re getting out of life and they are Faith, Fitness and Finances.
Beautifully written!!!!
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