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Hot times at ‘The Year of Our Dragon’ awards fete

Clockwise, from top left: Lawrence B. Goldberg, president of Friends of LaGuardia Place, left, presented Scott Stringer with a LaGuardia Medallion; Goldberg with the staff of C.B. 2, from left, District Manager Bob Gormley, Florence Arenas, Julio Mora and, accepting the award for her daughter, Cynthia Harris; another LaGuardia Medallion honoree, Paul Colby, owner of The Bitter End; and sculptor Neil Estern.    Photos by Tequila Minsky
Clockwise, from top left: Lawrence B. Goldberg, president of Friends of LaGuardia Place, left, presented Scott Stringer with a LaGuardia Medallion; Goldberg with the staff of C.B. 2, from left, District Manager Bob Gormley, Florence Arenas, Julio Mora and, accepting the award for her daughter, Cynthia Harris; another LaGuardia Medallion honoree, Paul Colby, owner of The Bitter End; and sculptor Neil Estern. Photos by Tequila Minsky

Although it’s technically the Year of the Snake, it was “The Year of Our Dragon” at the Friends of LaGuardia’s 18th annual gala event. Earlier this year, Adrienne’s Garden — a new playground with a kid-friendly dragon slide — was finally opened on LaGuardia Place. The community confab was held Oct. 29 at Noho Star, at 330 Lafayette St. As usual, the LaGuardia Medallion was presented to individuals “who have worked tirelessly to improve the quality of life of Greenwich Village.” This year’s recipients included Borough President Scott Stringer, who was recently elected city comptroller; Paul Colby, owner of The Bitter End, the legendary Bleecker St. performance venue; and the veteran staff of Community Board 2 — District Manager Bob Gormley; Community Coordinator Florence Arenas; and Community Associate Julio Mora; with a special remembrance to Gloria Harris, the board’s community assistant, who died this May at age 51. Harris’s mom, Cynthia Harris, was overcome with emotion upon accepting the award on her daughter’s behalf. Also attending  was sculptor Neil Estern, whose Fiorello LaGuardia statue was dedicated on LaGuardia Place in 1994. Showcasing some of the local talent, Peter DeLuca, of Greenwich Village Funeral Home, sang for the crowd, as did Connie Masullo, who performed “God Bless America.” As if that wasn’t enough, dancing Chinese dragons delighted the audience, who were given tangerines to “feed the dragon.”

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