Photos and reporting by Stacie Joy
A packed St. Mark's Church in-the-Bowery hosted a memorial service Saturday afternoon for longtime Lower East Side activist Carlos “Chino” Garcia.
Before the service, Mayor Zohran Mamdani met privately with Garcia's family, the Revs. Anne-Marie Witchger and Amanda Hambrick, and David Soto.
He later addressed the gathering, speaking about Garcia's life, family and decades of community work — and the responsibility of carrying that legacy forward.
After his remarks, Mamdani spent time greeting and comforting Garcia's loved ones and other attendees.
The afternoon also included remarks from elected officials and community members, along with a slideshow, music, food and fellowship.
Among those attending here on Second Avenue and 10th Street were actor and LES native Luis Guzmán, former City Councilmember Margarita López, Councilmember Harvey Epstein and many longtime residents.
Garcia, who died on July 24 at age 80, co-founded CHARAS and was a pioneering neighborhood organizer.
His decades of work included housing advocacy, sweat-equity rehabilitation, community gardens, environmental initiatives, the arts and the continuing campaign to preserve the former P.S. 64 for use as a community center.
6 comments:
That looks to also be the former Ambassador to South Africa, Patrick Gaspard, in the photos. Good to see such a large turnout.
Thank you for the coverage, Stacie and EVG.
Great to see you there Stacy.
One small clarification. CHARAS was an organization that predates and has continued past the occupation of ps64 as El Bohio Cultural and Community Center. Chino always emphasized that CHARAS was more than a building.
Chino Garcia led a life of service to the neighborhood. He will be missed. Activists are the best.
Rest well, sir.
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