Talk Bronx New York

Parishioners at a Bronx church need to raise a half-million dollars to give their century-old house of worship a major facelift.

On the inside, St. Stephen’s United Methodist Church in Marble Hill, Bronx looks to be in good shape for an 111-year-old building. But on the outside, time has taken its toll. The shingles are falling off and the stained glass windows need repair.

“The church has been here so long. It was given to us by generations in the past, and we have to save this church for the future generations,” said parishioner Urban Ellis.The congregation is moving forward with a three-phase renovation project to make the building more accessible for the disabled, and provide new floors and better lighting.

Donors including The United Methodist City Society and Park Avenue Methodist Trust Fund have already contributed money, but the church still needs about $500,000.

The church has 80 members, and is known for its “Jazz and the Word” services, featuring the Reverend Nathaniel Dixon, a former professional musician, on saxophone. Read more..

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 Edda Lopez-Lennards wears a brave smile despite the threat of foreclosure on her Bronx home.

The bravest smile in New York belongs to a 59-year-old Bronx woman who had it all before one of the worst runs of bad luck in city history.

Many of Edda Lopez-Lennards’ woes reflect the larger problems weighing heavily on the whole country: a subprime mortgage, sudden unemployment, no health coverage in the face of debilitating illness.

Add to that untimely widowhood. A mother with advanced Alzheimer’s. No heat. A basement that floods with raw sewage. A Con Ed turnoff notice.

But even as her foreclosed home is slated for auction next week, she smiles with the kind of grit and faith that we may need to get through to better times.

“God has never let me down yet,” she said Friday. Read more..

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