May 11th, 2013 - Joe Bataan returns home!

St. Cecilia's Roman Catholic Church

Father  Peter  Mushi 

120  East  106th  St. 

New  York,  NY  10029 

Direct  line:  212.534.1350

FOR  IMMEDIATE  RELEASE:

New  York,  NY  -­  On  Saturday  May  11th,  2013,  St.  Cecilia’s  Roman  Catholic  Church  will  be hosting  their  annual  Street  Fair  on  106th  st.,  between  Lexington  &  Park  Avenue,  in  East  Harlem, NY   from  10am  -­  5pm.    This  years  featured  performance  artist  will  be  the  internationally  known King  of  Latin  Soul  music  Joe  Bataan,  who  grew  up  in  Spanish  Harlem  and  attended  St.  Cecilia’s Church  as  a  youth.    St.  Cecilia’s  Church  &  Joe  Bataan  are  joining  forces  in  order  to  raise  funds to  help  restore  St.  Cecilia’s  weather  damaged  roof.    St.  Cecilia’s  Roman  Catholic  Church  is  a historic  landmark  in  New  York  City,  now  reaching  its  125th  anniversary.    Everyone  in  East Harlem  and  beyond  is  invited  to  help  continue  St.  Cecilia’s  second  century  of  service  in  “El Barrio.”    There  is  an  online  Indiegogo  campaign  entitled,  “Rebuiling  St.  Cecilia:  Our  Church,  Our Home  Capital  Campaign,”  which  has  an  active  goal  of  raising  $50,000  by  June  29th,  2013.

Various  types  of  vendors  include  diverse  cultural  food  booths,  concession  stands,  arts  & handicrafts,  and  areas  for  raffled  prizes.    Additional  performers  include  poetry  by  Carlos  IRO Burgos  &  Taina  the  Poet;;  a  special  BBOY  competition  by  BBOY  Ultimatum;  Frank  Ocasio  &  The Brother  Band  playing  Latin  Funk;  live  salsa  &  bachata  dancers  from  Lorenz  Dance  Studio; remarks  by  Felipe  Luciano;;  and  the  master  of  ceremonies  will  be  public  figure  Crystal  Sutton.

This  will  be  the  third  year  of  active  fundraising  for  the  St.  Cecilia  roof  project,  which  is  estimated to  cost  at  least  $1.5  million.  The  New  York  State  awarded  a  sizable  preservation  grant,  plus  a special  ‘sacred  sites’  grant,  and  the  New  York  Landmarks  Conservancy  granted  additional pledges.  The  Archdiocese  of  New  York  has  been  invaluable  in  providing  both  guidance  and funding  for  this  restoration.    Father  Peter  says,  “because  the  Church  of  St.  Cecilia  has  earned landmark  status,  by  law,  all  restoration  must  be  historically  appropriate,  which  in  our  case means  installing  a  new  lead-­coated  copper  standing-­seam  roof  and  related  masonry,  just  like  the original.    Yes,  in  the  short  term  this  represents  a  very  expensive  undertaking,  but  the  new  original roof  will  be  expected  to  last  through  the  remainder  of  this  century.”

St.  Cecilia  actively  serves  over  500  neighborhood  households,  plus  it  hosts  two  adjacent schools:  Commander  Shea  Elementary  School  and  the  highly  regarded  Cristo  Rey  New  York High  School.

For  more  information  about  the  Street  Fair  please  contact  event  coordinator  Maisha  Rodriguez, at  718-­825-­8699  or  email  Mairodri@comcast.net.  Vendors  who  wish  to  participate  may  contact parishioner  Maria  Nieves  at  646-­732-­3132.    For  general  information  about  St.  Cecilia’s  Roman Catholic  Church  please  visit  their  online  website:    http://www.saintceciliaparishnyc.org