Bronx Heroes

Bronx Woman Becomes First Black Female U-2 Pilot In History

Lt. Col Merryl Tengesdal, a Bronx native, has become the first African-American female to ever pilot the U-2 — an ultra-high altitude reconnaissance aircraft used for intelligence gathering and can fly up to altitudes of 70,000 feet. The aircraft is celebrating 60 years this year in flight.

According to an article by the United States Air Force, Tengesdal, “As a child she imagined flying amongst the stars, thousands of miles above the earth’s surface, and today Lt. Col. Merryl Tengesdal is one of eight female pilots to ever fly the U-2 and the only black female pilot during the aircraft’s history.”

Bronx Kids Who Beat 350 Teams In Country To Create Math App Will Be Featured in Black History Month Verizon Ad

The Bronx really does it best.

Six 13 year old students from The Bronx who attend the Bronx Academy of Promise edged out 350 other teams across the country for a chance to create a math app in a contest sponsored by Verizon. Now these industrious Bronx children have an increased thirst for the STEM field (Science, Technology, Engineering and mathematics) where people of color make up less than 10% of the workforce in this industry and they will also be featured in a Verizon ad that will run all month long for Black History Month.

Morgan Powell’s Coming Home To Rest In Peace In The Bronx

Last September we lost a great pillar of our Bronx family and community, the late Morgan Powell. The void that his passing created in our community was immeasurable along with the outpouring of grief .

Now, months later after fund raising for his memorial, Nilka Martell, one of Morgan’s closest friends, has just announced that his family as agreed to allow his ashes to be placed in Woodlawn Cemetery — a place he loved so very much like all of The Bronx.

The Bronx Remembers: 70 Years Ago Today, Auschwitz Survivors Were Liberated

January 27th, 1945, approximately 200,000 jewish concentration camp survivors of Auschwitz were liberated by Soviet soldiers. Many spread out across the globe with a number finding freedom in The Bronx amongst their mishpocheh (Yiddish for family — a term also often times attributed to extended family and friends).

Why You Should Help The Blk Projek Grow Food & Justice

We can go on and on about the amazing work Tanya Fields has been doing in The Bronx since moving here 13 years ago but I’ll let you read her story below. After you read her story please do NOT forget to donate to this amazing project. Even if it’s $1.00 and you share this with your friends, we can easily help them reach their goal. That’s just $1.00 to help create change.

Bronx Native Bess Myerson, 1st & Only Jewish Miss America Has Died

Without much as a whisper of her passing, Bronx born and raised Bess Myerson, America’s first and only Jewish Miss America, passed away last month on December 14th at the age of 90. She was known as the woman who refused to change her name so it wouldn’t sound too Jewish.

Myerson, who was crowned Miss America in 1945 just days after the end of World War II, lived in Van Cortlandt Village area of The Bronx with her family at Shalom Aleichem Cooperative, one of the country’s first residential cooperatives.

Remembering Bronx Native Bess Myerson, 1st & Only Jewish Miss America

Without much as a whisper of her passing, Bronx born and raised Bess Myerson, America’s first and only Jewish Miss America, passed away last month on December 14th at the age of 90. She was known as the woman who refused to change her name so it wouldn’t sound too Jewish.

Myerson, who was crowned Miss America in 1945 just days after the end of World War II, lived in Van Cortlandt Village area of The Bronx with her family at Shalom Aleichem Cooperative, one of the country’s first residential cooperatives.