Rockaway Comes Together for Denim Day
By Katie McFadden and Theresa Racine
Everyone’s stronger when people come together. The 2nd annual Rockaway Denim Day was another success.
On Saturday, April 27, Rockaway came out to Hammel Playground for a special event to raise awareness for sexual assault awareness. The day was organized by Theresa Racine of Xtrememeasure, but she didn’t do it alone.
Several organizations pitched in and participated in the event including Partnership for Parks. Queens Community Justice Center-The Rockaways, New Day Treatment Center, Rockaway YMCA, Queen Royal Priesthood, Bikers Against Child Abuse, Wheel Chairs Against Guns, Brothers for Peace and Social Change, Safe Horizon, Flowers of Hope NY and Ocean Bay Community Development Corporation. The offices of Assemblywoman Stacey Pheffer Amato and Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz contributed. Community Affairs Officers from the 100th and 101st Precincts, the Domestic Violence Unit from the 100th Precinct, and Mike Dougherty of the FBI spoke and hosted tables with resources.
The St. Rose of Lima Church choir and the Rockaway Lighthouse Choir performed. Moises Reyes taught self-defense seminars with Valiant Karate and Zin Gina led a Zumba class. Some brave speakers stood up to share their own stories of sexual and domestic violence. Rosa Caba shared her about her daughter who went missing in 2016 and Rose Gulston shared her story of domestic violence at home, resulting in her father murdering her mother.
Everyone at the event was able to enjoy food thanks to Rebecca Speller, Alania Knox, Elegante Pizza and Stop and Shop. Judy of Communities for Change helped to document the event through videos and photos.
Racine said, “I want to give special thanks for the three hundred jeans collected by Al at the Community Ocean Bay Child Center, The Bridge Family enrichment Center, Owen for his donation, and the Rockaway families for supplying the needs for this denim day to come into fruition. My takeaway as a community is we can accomplish so much and keep our community safe by coming together as one.”
Racine is already looking towards next year’s event. “Thank you and see you all in April 2025.” If interested in helping with future Xtrememeasure events, contact Racine at 646-408-1200.
