​On Wednesday, August 29th, Borough President Oddo hosted a ceremony to honor the Mid-Island Little League team for their achievements in the Little League World Series and present them with a proclamation declaring the day “Mid-Island Little League Baseball Team Day.” Also in attendance were District Attorney Michael McMahon and State Senator Andrew Lanza, who joined BP Oddo to talk with the team and congratulate them on their trip to the tournament.
 
In addition, representatives from Modell’s Sporting Goods attended to present a check for $11,930 from the proceeds of a t-shirt fundraiser hosted at all Staten Island Modell’s Sporting Goods stores. A representative from Dave & Busters also attended to invite the team for a party following the Borough Hall ceremony at the new Staten Island Dave & Busters location.
 
Following the brief ceremony, BP Oddo challenged the 2018 Mid-Atlantic Regional Champions to play wiffle ball with him. Staten Island Yankees mascot Scooter presented the team with wiffle bats for the Borough Hall showdown. Afterwards, BP Oddo welcomed the players, coaches, and parents into to his office for cake donated by Staten Island’s Alfonso's Pastry Shoppe.
 
“The work these kids put in and all they accomplished is impressive,” said BP Oddo. “You are all a wonderful reflection on our borough and you make Staten Island proud!”
 
Congratulations to the Mid-Island Little League team for their achievements in the Little League World Series!

​On Saturday, August 18th, hundreds of music lovers gathered at Midland Beach Splaza to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the hit song "Little Star."

The Diamond Jubilee concert featured Vinnie Medugno and Midlife Crisis NYC before headliners Vito Picone and the Elegants took the stage.
 
“The rainy weather didn’t dampen the spirits of the bands or the fans,” said BP Oddo. “It was a fun show celebrating a truly special anniversary. Congratulations to Vito and the boys for hitting this major milestone!”
 
Following the concert, beach-goers were treated to a fireworks show.

On Tuesday, August 7th, BP Oddo joined with staff at Richmond University Medical Center to cut the ribbon on the hospital’s new cardiac rehab facility. Cardiac rehab is a medically supervised program consisting of exercise training. It is recommended for patients who have had a heart attack, bypass surgery, heart failure, and other cardiovascular disease. RUMC’s cardiac rehab will also include educational programming on maintaining a healthy diet, smoking cessation, pulmonary rehab, and other services.
 
There has been no cardiac rehab facility on Staten Island for several years, forcing recovering heart patients to go to other boroughs or New Jersey for this important service. The initial request to open a cardiac rehab on Staten Island came out of one of BP Oddo’s Heart Health Roundtables in 2016. BP Oddo then worked with those in the health and wellness community to turn this idea into a reality.
 
To get the programs up and running, BP Oddo allocated $250,000 of taxpayer money to both of the hospitals to start their own cardiac rehab programs. Staten Island University Hospital opened up their own cardiac rehab facility in June.

BP Oddo said, "Two years ago, we had no such facility on Staten Island, and now we have two serving our borough. This the most recent example of how good things happen when we put people in a room at Borough Hall, and we have fierce conversations."
 
For more information on RUMC’s cardiac rehab, click here.

On Monday, August 6th, Borough President James Oddo joined with representatives of the Department of Education at South Richmond High School to announce his funding allocations for air conditioning in several Island schools. The funding is part of over $17,000,000 of taxpayer money BP Oddo allocated to educational projects in Fiscal Year ’19.
 
As part of his capital funding, BP Oddo allocated $80,000 to P.S. 3 and $250,000 to P.S. 52 for air conditioning. He also allocated expense funding to Catholic Charities to fund air conditioning for P.S. 25/South Richmond High School ($6,000) and Tender Care Preschool ($11,000), which are both on the campus of Mount Loretto. This brings the total allocation for air conditioning for FY ’19 to $347,000.
 
“We’ve experienced some recent heat waves, which have highlighted the importance of having our students learn in a cool, comfortable environment. Air conditioning is especially important for students in special needs programs that operate year-round,” said BP Oddo. “Education is, as it should be, the priority of my administration. Every scientific and social advancement stems from a well-educated citizenry, which is why I dedicated such a large percentage of the taxpayer dollars at my disposal to Staten Island schools. I’m pleased to be able to allocate funding to so many school projects this year.”

“Borough President Oddo has been a champion for students on Staten Island, and we are thankful for his continued support,” said Kevin Moran, Executive Director, Staten Island Field Support Center. “Through collaboration with the Borough Student Advisory Committee, BP Oddo has heard the needs of our schools directly from students and is meeting needs with additional resources.”

“I just want to thank Borough President Oddo and the Department of Education for ensuring that our most special kids have a comfortable place to learn during these hot summer months.  It has already been put to great use this year,” said Vincent Ignizio, CEO of Catholic Charities of Staten Island.
 
"Once again, our Borough President Jim Oddo understands the concerns for children with special needs and has responded," said James McKeon, Principal of P.S. 25/South Richmond High School.
 
Funding comes at the request of the principals of each school, so all funding goes towards specific projects the school needs or wants.