PA NEWS - Port Authority Retirees Association, Inc.

PA NEWS
Published weekly for Port Authority and PATH employees May 13, 2010/Volume 9/Number 19
Staff Update
Alexander Heil
named Chief Economist;
formerly Group Leader/
Economist, CDM.
Calendar
Biking for Cause
Retiree Michael Bowen and his 10-
member Iron Eagles team, which includes
Artie Coombs, Rich Danko, and Jim
Hanson –are participating in their 13th
annual 170-mile Coast the Coast Bike Tour
on May 22 and 23 to benefit the National
Multiple Sclerosis Society.
They’re hoping to raise $60,000 for
MS research. Their team page is at
http://main.nationalmssociety.org/site/TRpx
=2096765&fr_id=13544&pg=personal.
NBE Spring Mixer
The PA Network of Black Employees’
Spring Fling Networking and Mixer is set for
Thursday, May 20, 5:30 to 8:30 p.m., at the
Newark Legal and Communications Center’s
Riverfront Café.
Tickets are $15 for members and $20
for nonmembers. See Employee Bulletins
for details.
March with Shomrim
The PA Shomrim Society invites fellow
employees to march in the Salute to Israel
Parade in Manhattan on Sunday, May 23,
10:30 a.m., at Fifth Avenue and 56th Street.
There will be a pre-parade collation for
Shomrim members and guests at 8:30 a.m.
at the Central Synagogue, Lexington Avenue
and 55th Street.
RSVP by Monday to Shomrim President
Scot Pomerantz at president@panynjshomrim.org.
Bistate Jazz
Retiree and jazz vocalist Steve Cromity
(acorns4u@aol.com) and retiree and jazz
guitarist Joe Frame (jframejr@msn.com)
both perform this Sunday, May 16, in
Brooklyn and Rumson respectively. e-mail
them for more information.
EWR Welcome Center Opens
Deputy Executive
Director Bill
Baroni,
Aviation Assistant
Director Lysa Scully,
and New Jersey
Airports General
Manager John Jacoby
opened the Port
Authority’s second
Welcome Center at
Newark Liberty
International Airport last
week, the seventh in
a customer-service
program that calls for
installing them in all
the agency’s airport passenger
terminals by the end of this year.
“The Welcome Centers assist
arriving passengers with information
about airline locations, shops, restaurants,
ATMs, travelers aid, ground
transportation, rental cars, local hotels,
and tourist attractions,” Mr. Baroni said.
Cutting the ribbon for Terminal A’s new Welcome Center on
May 7 are Bill Baroni (right), Lysa Scully, and John Jacoby.
EWR’s other Welcome Center opened in Terminal B last August.
“They provide our customers a truly
welcoming entry into our region.”
The PA’s first Welcome Center
debuted at Kennedy International
Airport in 2008. In addition to the two
at EWR, there are two at LaGuardia
Airport and three at JFK.
Susan Baer Named to U.S. Committee
Aviation
Director
Susan
Baer has been
named to the
Future of Aviation
Advisory
Committee, formally
established
in March to provide
information,
advice, and recommendations to the
U.S. Secretary of Transportation on
ensuring the competitiveness of the
U.S. aviation industry.
The committee members were
announced
yesterday by
Transportation
Secretary Ray
LaHood. Ms.
Baer is one of
only three
members representing
airports.
The committee
will hold its first meeting on May
25 in Washington and is expected to
meet at least four times over the next
year, after which it will issue its recommendations.
Mike Dombrowski
Mike Dombrowski

Stewart International Means Business
The Stewart Air Service
Development Office and the
Orange County Chamber of
Commerce hosted a small business
opportunity forum, “How to do
Business with the Port Authority and
Aviation Companies at Stewart
International Airport,” on April 23 at
the OCCC offices in Montgomery, NY.
“The goal of the forum was to
engage the talent and resources of
local businesses for future opportunities
with aviation and airport buyers at
Stewart International Airport,” said
General Manager Diannae Ehler.
“About one-third of the contracts and
Achievements
Perfect in Aviation
dollars to date have been awarded
to local firms, and in the two most
recent bids the apparent low bidders
were local firms as well. We’re grateful
to ASDO, OBJO, and Procurement
for their good work making this happen.”
Speakers included Ms. Ehler; SWF
Plant, Structures & Redevelopment
Manager Greg Reszka; OBJO
Program Development Manager Ida
Perich; Procurement Senior Contract
Specialist Phyllis Esnes; ASDO
Program Manager Helene Gibbs; Eric
Billowitz of AvPORTS, the airport management
firm; and Giovanni Pirraglia
of the FAA.
Aviation recognized 36 central office staff members on April 27 for achieving perfect
attendance in 2009.
Gail Mitchell leads the central office staff with 22 consecutive years of perfect attendance,
followed by John Cuccurullo with 21, Hui Xu with 15, Director Susan Baer with 13, Bill
Radinson and Bill Myers with 11, and Hema Iyer with 10.
At the business opportunities forum last
month are (from left) Diannae Ehler,
Helene Gibbs, Phyllis Esnes, Eric Billowitz,
Gregory Reszka, Giovanni Perraglia, and
Ida Perich. Representatives of the
Dutchess County Chamber of Commerce
also attended.
Distinguished Partner
The PA received the Newark Museum’s
Distinguished Community Partner award on
May 1 at the museum’s annual ball. The
PA was cited for its longstanding commitment
and contributions to the museum.
Aviation Director Susan Baer accepted
the award on behalf of the agency.
Two Arshile Gorky murals, important
works in the museum’s current Centennial
exhibition, are on permanent loan to the
museum from the PA.
Aviation Director Susan Baer (front row, 6th from left) with perfect attendance honorees
last month at 225 Park Avenue South. The airports hold separate recognition
events.
Pi Alpha Alpha
Brian Jacob of
Engineering Management
Services is graduating
with honors this
month from the Master
of Public Administration
program at Seton Hall
University.
He completed his degree with a 3.97
GPA, earning him admission to Pi Alpha
Alpha, the National Honor Society for public
administration students.
He also will have his first policy paper
published this month in the academic
journal Georgetown Public Policy Review.
The title is “Closing the Gaps: The
Challenge to Protect Costa Rica's Health
Care System.”
Yasmeen Anderson
Life Member
Alan Hicks
Retired Chief Traffic
Engineer Mel Wasserman
was elected as a Life
Member of the American
Society of Civil Engineers at
ASCE’s Metropolitan Section
Awards Dinner and Life
Member Installation ceremony
on April 29 at NYU’s
Polytechnic Institute.
The honor is bestowed on members
who have made a lifetime commitment to
ASCE and to the civil engineering profession.
Mr. Wasserman offered a few words to
the students attending, many of whom
received ASCE awards and scholarships, and
described the benefits of working for the
Port Authority.
Volunteer of the Year
Maria Luongo of the
Port Authority’s Office of
Strategic Initiatives was
named Volunteer of the
Year by the Staten Island
YMCA at the YMCA of
Greater New York’s annual
General Assembly and Volunteer
Recognition Ceremony on April 28 in
Manhattan.
She was cited for her “tireless efforts as
the co-chair of the Staten Island YMCA’s
Strong Kids Campaign for the past two years.”
Alumnus of the Year
LaGuardia Airport General
Manager Warren Kroeppel
was named Alumnus of the
Year by the Alumni Association
of SUNY Farmingdale State
College at its annual Alumni
Awards Dinner at the Crest
Hollow Country Club in
Woodbury on March 26.
He was honored for his “successful
career in aviation and continuing assistance
to the SUNY Farmingdale student community.”
2 PA News / May 13, 2010