High Tide

Was that a fever dream or did you guys have an earthquake and an eclipse in the same week too? With an earthquake on Friday and an eclipse on Monday, let’s hope we’re all still here reading this Rockaway Times on Thursday. The 4.8 magnitude quake from NJ, followed by another 4.0 quake, rattled homes from PA to NY to Vermont! Some people were certainly freaked out with a staggering number of kids being held out of school on eclipse day. As the eclipse occurred, temperatures dropped and the skies darkened slightly but overall, locally, it was a very minor event. Sights from the areas that saw the eclipse in totality were much more shocking with the skies going completely dark at totality.

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All apocalyptic jokes aside, it was nice to see everyone put regular life on hold for a half hour and wander out and stare up into the sky with funny looking paper sunglasses on. O tempora, o mores!

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Speaking of those eclipse glasses, St. Francis de Sales Catholic Academy is organizing a collection of those glasses to be donated to children in Latin America who will be treated to a solar eclipse this summer. The school will be collecting in the main lobby all week and if you would like to ship your glasses yourself, you can send them to Eclipse Glasses USA, LLC PO Box 50571 Provo, UT 846075 by August 1.

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If you are not one of the more than 50,000 following us on Facebook, give us a follow! That’s right, you read that correctly. The Rockaway Times’ Facebook page followers has officially reached over 50K!!!! And if you are already one of our followers, thank you for all your support of The Rockaway Times. We really appreciate it and you!

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Next weekend – You’re not going to want to miss our friends from Jamaica Bay-Rockaway Parks Conservancy’s first ever Public Arts Festival at Floyd Bennett Field from Friday, April 19 through Sunday, April 21. They have a great line up for the weekend. Head to www.jbpc.org/arts for more information and the full schedule of what’s going on all weekend.

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Reminder to all advertisers! If you haven’t reserved space for your ad for The Rockaway Times Summer & Community Guide, do it now. This is the one can’t miss publication of the year. The summer magazine comes out the Thursday before Memorial Day. Advertising deadlines are closing in fast. Thank you in advance for your continued support and participation!

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It is the perfect time of year to get out on the boardwalk and run! So why not sign up for the Rockaway Track Club’s Spring Half Marathon and 5K? The race will be this Saturday, April 13 at 9 a.m. at the Beach 94th Street amphitheater. You can pre-register for the race at https://www.rockawaytc.org

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Our thoughts are with the 16-year-old victim of the shooting on Dickens Street in Far Rockaway on Tuesday afternoon. The victim was shot in the groin and wrist and taken to Cohen Children’s Medical Center in critical condition. The NYPD is searching for the suspect.

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Councilwoman Joann Ariola is sponsoring a rain barrel giveaway. Her Rockaway office giveaway is this Saturday, April 13 from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. and is located at 114-12 Beach Channel Drive. Call her office at 718-738-1083 to reserve your barrel.

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The 100th Precinct Community Council will be having its general meeting, in person, at Knights of Columbus (located at 333 Beach 90th Street) on Wednesday, April 17 at 7:30 p.m. The featured speaker at this meeting will be the NYPD Police Doctor.