Randall's Island Park

The Daily Plant : Friday, May 30, 2003

CONGRATULATIONS APRIL EMPLOYEES OF THE MONTH

The following individuals were awarded Employee of the Month for April on May 22, 2003. The other awardees will be listed next week.

The Commissioner’s Employee of the Month is Philip S. McAuliffe. Scott is a Principal Park Supervisor and has been with Parks & Recreation since July 9, 1984. He oversees Manhattan Garage and supervises the busy and high profile Randalls and Wards Islands, including the ballfields, tennis center, and special events. For many months, Scott and his team have been preparing for the arrival of Cirque du Soleil, which began this April and will run for two months. Scott has coordinated the complex logistics and site work to bring this world class entertainment to Parks. His staff cleared the site, graded, and created access routes for traffic. He coordinated with contractors, TBTA, DEP, New York Waterway, MTA, FDNY, and other agencies to prepare the venue on a very tight schedule. Scott achieved all this while also getting the ballfields ready for the season and completing his myriad other assignments. A key resource and contributor on Randalls Island and boro-wide, Scott pulled off his own circus balancing act and helped make this event a huge success. He was nominated by Deputy Commissioner Kavanagh and Randalls Island Administrator Aimee Boden.

George Adeyemi is the Beyond the Call Award Winner. George is a seasonal PEP officer in Manhattan and has been with Parks since June 1, 2002. On May 11 Officer Adeyemi helped apprehend a dangerous criminal. At the Pier 40 staircase at 5 a.m., George encountered a young male bleeding profusely from the head. The victim’s sister informed George that the perpetrator was nearby fighting with their friends. George went to the scene and chased the man who seemingly escaped. George then moved to cut off the exit route to the pier. Sure enough, a car soon tried to get out but George blocked the vehicle’s access. The perpetrator got out of the car and ran back to the parking lot. Officer Adeyemi chased him and was joined by NYPD officers who were nearby. At the lower level of Pier 40, the perpetrator was finally caught and arrested by NYPD. George’s quick actions and brave conduct led to this arrest and helped safeguard our parks. Officer Adeyemi was nominated by Deputy Commissioner Kevin Jeffrey.

Han S. Lee is the Capital Projects Employee of the Month. Han is a Construction Project Manager in Queens and has been with Parks & Recreation since February 17, 1997. A graduate of Cooper Union Engineering School, Han monitors a wide variety of Parks contracts and helps ensure that contractors follow specifications accurately. His contracts have run the gamut, including skate parks, comfort stations, soccer fields, and playgrounds. He is currently spearheading the Ederle Comfort Station and Pavilion, and the Flushing Meadow Corona Park soccer fields. Highly motivated and skilled, Han is serious about his work and detailed in his approach. He is in every way a team player. Han was nominated by Queens Team Leader Angelyn Chandler.

Emmanuel Nwokelo is the Capital Projects Employee of the Month for March. (Not included in last month’s list). Emmanuel is a Construction Project Manager and has been with Parks & Recreation since February 1, 1993. Emmanuel is leading the way toward a more effective and productive Bronx Team. He has spearheaded the development of computer applications to automate the process of creating and storing the vast array of documents required for supervision of construction projects. One notable result is a program written in Visual Basic, which Emmanuel recently demonstrated throughout Capital and to MIS staff. The program was so well-received that Emmanuel is expected to help make the program universally used at Capital Projects. Creative and dedicated, Emmanuel is a graduate of City College of New York with a degree in Mechanical Engineering and an Adjunct Professor of Computer Science at Monroe College. Emmanuel was nominated by Bronx Team Leader Ray Gomez.

Melody Rodriguez, Assistant to Deputy Commissioner Jeffrey, and her husband, Raymond Cruz are the happy parents of a boy, Raymond Christian Cruz. Raymond was born on Tuesday, May 27^th at 3:30 a.m. We wish the whole family all the best.

"Variety is the soul of pleasure."

(1640-1968)