Start spreadin’ the news, I’m leavin’ today
I want to be a part of it
New York, New York
These vagabond shoes, are longing to stray
Right through the very heart of it
New York, New York

Like Frank Sinatra’s sentiments in his famous song, “New York, New York,” we were all excited that we would spend the day in New York City. Coming from the Massachusetts bay area, we were scheduled to meet with the directors of the New York Society for the Deaf whose offices are located in downtown Manhattan. Despite many warnings from native New Yorkers, we decided to drive the RV downtown because it was, quite frankly, our sole means of transportation! Jed sure had a ball seeing Kevin weave his way around the NYC streets trying to find our destination in our huge RV, and I’m sure his blood pressure should be back to normal soon. We found our way to Tanya Towers, one of five residential complexes directed by the NYSD that provides housing and services for Deaf residents who live there. There was a gathering in one of the social rooms in Tanya Tower where more than 30 residents met us to chat and enjoy some light refreshments.

We really enjoyed meeting the diverse residents who come from all over the world. There were residents from the Dominican Republic, Africa, Mexico and many other places. I also met a resident, Delfin Melo, who worked in the World Trade Center and was inside the towers during the September 11th attacks. He explained to me in a very chilling story how he escaped the towers and saw the second plane crash into the towers. With Delfin becoming teary during his story telling, I heard for myself an unnerving version of the day’s events that certainly unsettled me.

There was also Nelly Myers, who has lived in the Tanya Towers apartments since 1969. She was one of the very first residents of the towers and loves New York with all of her heart. She emigrated here from Austria when she was 11 years old with her mother during WWII and to escape Hitler’s persecution of Jews. She enjoyed telling all kinds of stories and we enjoyed listening. There was no shortage of interesting Deaf people who lived within the apartment complexes and they came form all types of backgrounds.

What the New York Society for the Deaf does is operate five apartment complexes for mostly Deaf residents as well as provide different mental health services, ASL classes, as well as job placement services. The NYSD also provides educational support services for those who emigrate from other countries and help them develop English and necessary work skills to survive in America. With more than 70 staff spread out all over Long Island, making services possible for what is an estimated 500,000 Deaf people all over the island.

Their main office is right downtown, just two blocks away from where the World Trade Center once stood. After visiting Tanya Towers, we went and had dinner with some of the staff and administrators of the NYSD at their Manhattan office. We got a nice tour of their beautiful new office and talked with executive director of NYSD, Kathleen Cox. She has been executive director for the last year and is helping oversee the expansion of services that the NYSD provides. With an operating budget of more than three million dollars, they certainly can provide a multitude of services for the Deaf in all five boroughs and the overall Long Island area. We certainly enjoyed dinner and their company, and Kevin and I couldn’t enough of gazing out the windows and seeing the New York skyline.

After taking a taxi back to our RV, and finding ourselves relieved that our RV was not sitting on cinder blocks, we took the tunnel out of the city and said good bye to the bright lights of the city that never sleeps.

Next stop? Philly.