Brooklyn Diocese Mourns Loss of Brother Ralph Darmento, Deputy Superintendent of Catholic Schools

By Emily Drooby

On Aug. 18, family and friends said a final goodbye to Brother Ralph J. Darmento, F.S.C., an indispensable educator in the Brooklyn Diocese. He passed away on August 14 at the age of 68.

“It’s a big loss for the Diocese of Brooklyn,” said Auxiliary Bishop James Massa.

Brother Darmento was the deputy superintendent of schools. He worked closely with Auxiliary Bishop Massa when he held the position of Vicar for Catholic Education.

“He was a tremendous help in assisting our academies to balance their books and to try to maintain a steady enrollment or to increase the number of students in the schools, he was extraordinary in having both those talents,” added Bishop Massa.

Brother Darmento spent seven years helping to shape education in the diocese. Before that, he spent over 15 years working in the Archdiocese of Newark’s education office.

He was also a life-long teacher, working at schools across the country. While he transitioned into a more administrative role, teaching was a gift that even never left him.

“Ralph would sometimes walk into a seventh grade, a sixth grade classroom and he would ask questions of the students of the faith, but then he would do math drills with them,” said Bishop Massa. “It was just always amazing. You knew that was his element, that’s where he felt most comfortable.”

Superintendent of Schools Thomas Chadzutko says education was Brother Darmento’s passion. He would search all over for ways to make Catholic schools in the Diocese of Brooklyn the best.

“He was someone who was always researching, always looking for best practices, always looking for solutions, and a lot of the things That we have adapted in our academy governance model, really became because of him and the work that he has done,” Chadzutko recalled.

Auxiliary Bishop Raymond Chappetto was the main celebrant at Brother Darmento’s Mass of Christian burial. It was held at Immaculate Heart of Mary Church in Windsor Terrace, Brooklyn.

“He was a very big asset to us here in the diocese,” remembered Bishop Chappetto. “He really was a great educator, and we were blessed to have him working here with us.”

What New College Grads Can Do to Find a Job During the Pandemic

Currents News Staff

For those who have already graduated from college the job market isn’t looking so great, thanks to the coronavirus.

According to Forbes, as of June 2020, there were 73% fewer entry level jobs available.

Pew Research Center says young adults have the highest rate of unemployment during the pandemic. In May, it was 25.3% percent among those 16 to 24-years-old, 12 percentage points higher than any other age group.

Joining Currents News to discuss the job market for college grads is Chris Hughes, the Associate Director of Career Development at St. Francis College in Brooklyn. He shares his advice for those who have just graduated college, or are entering their final year.

Hunter Telecom Brings ‘COVID Kiosk’ to Brooklyn Diocese to Help Screen Health in Catholic Schools

By Jessica Easthope

Once the bell rings on September 9, most of the Catholic schools in the Brooklyn Diocese will once again be flooded with students.

Everyone’s face has to be covered and temperatures must be taken. Now there’s new technology designed to make sure those guidelines are followed and kids get into school quickly and safely — the “COVID Kiosk.”

“They need a device to be put in front, just because a parent is sending their child to a school, this is a standalone device with robust software with management tools behind it that can grow within your network,” said Frank Marinello, CEO of Hunter Telecom, the company that sells the COVID Kiosk.

“You walk in front of it, and within one second it will tell you if you answered your COVID questions if that’s part of the entrance policy. It will give you a temperature and also mask detection,” said Frank.

Some schools are using handheld thermometers and even thermal cameras, but the COVID Kiosk, which sells for $2,875, sets itself apart.

“This is more focused individual, one kid at a time, self containing and non intrusive,” said Gene Venturino, the COO of Hunter Telecom.

The COVID Kiosk will detect a person’s temperature and if they’re wearing a mask or not. It can even stop them from entering a building without one.

“It will go into what activates a turnstyle or an electromagnetic door, or a secondary kiosk, it works as a security device if a security guard’s behind a desk and the first thing you need is to know what your temperature is,” Frank explained.

According to the Brooklyn Diocese reopening plan, everyone in school is required to wear a face covering and schools must conduct daily health screenings and temperature checks. Several schools in the Brooklyn Diocese are already looking to use the COVID Kiosk for the start of the school year.

“The budgets are completely different than the DOE budget, we really try to make it affordable and make sure the safety of the employees and the children is far exceeding the price of the machine,” said Frank.

Hunter Telecom says the device was created out of a need, but will outlive the pandemic.

“In schools you can have it where it checks your attendance, we want to continue to develop the software so they get full use out of it,” said Gene.

Hunter Telecom is trying to get the COVID Kiosk into as many schools as possible before the first day back.

U.S. Colleges Quarantine, Close as COVID-19 Cases Climb

Currents News Staff

Many students will be back online for at least part of the fall semester. The ongoing coronavirus pandemic is forcing some schools to shut their doors, sometimes just days after opening.

The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is hitting the brakes on in-person classes for undergraduates, moving online starting Aug. 19

“I only moved in last Friday,” said UNC freshman Chloe Horton.

This decision comes after a rash of COVID-19 cases are confirmed on campus.

“I think the right move from the University initially was to not open at all because back in July, the chancellor sent out an email saying the numbers weren’t where they wanted them to be,” Chloe said.

More than 1,600 miles away, over 150 students at Colorado College are in quarantine due to possible exposure.

CNN Chief Medical Correspondent Sanjay Gupta says there is still a risk.

“The only thing that I think we don’t know is at what point do these schools start to shut down again. The virus is still spreading, I mean this is not the time to open up and I don’t know if I sound like a crazy person saying that or not, but that is the truth,” Sanjay said.

The number of known COVID-19 cases in the U.S. doubles roughly every two months, according to Johns Hopkins University. Health experts say the country needs to be pro-active.

“Clearly we need new testing, we need to be able to scale up testing so that everyone who needs testing, who wants testing can get it,” said Richard Besser, CEO of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, “schools and colleges can use testing as part of their strategy.”

Sanjay has one suggestion.

“If 95 percent of the country just simply wore masks at this point, it would start to bend this curve downward and save tens of thousands of lives,” he said.

What to Expect With the First Virtual Democratic National Convention

Currents News Staff

The Democratic National Convention is virtual this year, which could mean a little less excitement than years past. Political science professor at St. John’s University, Brian Browne, joins Currents News to talk about what viewers can expect when they tune in.

Volunteers Help Clean Prospect Park After a Decrease in Funding and Increase in Attendance

By Emily Drooby

If you take a walk through Prospect Park in Brooklyn, you will likely see trash. It’s a sight that has become common in many NYC public spaces.

“Usage is through the roof, so if usage is through the roof, of course that means more trash,” New York City Councilmember Brad Lander told Currents News.

People using the parks isn’t the only factor behind the garbage, it’s also a lack of money.

City Hall slashed 14 percent of the parks department’s budget. Also, as Sue Donoghue, president of the Prospect Park Alliance explains, the pandemic has hurt their other revenue streams too.

“About 25 percent of our budget was lost because we rely on events and concession revenue in addition to individual donations,” she said. “All of that stopped with COVID the weddings and things that people usually have in the park are no longer happening, so it’s a huge hit to our budget.”

Currently they have about 75 people caring for the park, normally that number is closer to 120.

To bridge the gap, the alliance is asking the community for help, volunteers who can help clean.

“Seeing the garbage is painful, you don’t want to see this beautiful place made ugly and disrespected but the thing we can do about it is roll up our sleeves together and go pick up the trash. It’s a beautiful thing, some problems are hard to solve, garbage all you need are some gloves and a trash bag,” Lander explained while helping to clean the park.

Caring for the environment is a major issue for Pope Francis and for Brother Joseph Bach of the Franciscan Brothers of Brooklyn. He’s impressed by what the Prospect Park volunteers are doing, it’s a step everyone can take.

“We do see a lot of trash lately, especially because of the pandemic, we will see masks or gloves or whatever out there. And I think part of being a good steward, is, let’s try to pick some of this up,” Brother Bach said.

In the park, volunteers like Tamar Cohn and her daughter are enthused so many are cleaning up.

“I think it just validates my point that New York is going to get better, and I think it gives me hope for humanity,” Cohn said.

The Prospect Park Alliance is looking for volunteers every Monday through the month of August. For more information you can check out their website: https://www.prospectpark.org/get-involved/volunteer/

Catholic Charities Brooklyn and Queens Serves 45,000 People During Pandemic

By Jessica Easthope

On the frontlines of the pandemic along with first responders is Catholic Charities, the agency feeding the communities most in need. Across the country, the agency has given out more than $400 million worth of assistance, the impact of that help has been priceless.

Debbie Hampson the Senior Director of Community Health and Wellness for Catholic Charities Brooklyn and Queens says the pandemic is putting her team to the test.

“I was on our 9/11 disaster team and our Hurricane Sandy disaster relief team so I’ve seen disasters but I think in a way this is the worst one because it’s affected people across the country,” Hampson said.

From April until the end of June, Catholic Charities Brooklyn and Queens held 11 pop-up food pantries across the Brooklyn Diocese.

The agency gave out more than 400,000 meals and served more than 45,000 people.

“My staff and our volunteers were willing to go out and be that frontline, giving out that food to people, they’re putting their health and their families health at risk by doing that but the need was so great,” said Hampson.

During the height of the pandemic the agency’s team grew from just a handful of people to nearly 150 volunteers, help they say they couldn’t do without.

“People come forward to help us, we couldn’t do this alone with our teams, we’ve had the Knights of Columbus, Ladies of Charity, people who want to help out their community,” said Richard Slizeski, the Senior Vice President for Mission for Catholic Charities Brooklyn and Queens.

Slizeski says donations are keeping the agency going. In addition to the pop-up food pantries, Catholic Charities Brooklyn and Queens is seeing a 1000 percent increase at the 20 food pantries it runs year-round. Slizeski says when they were feeding people who thought they would never be at a food pantry, the agency’s true mission came into play.

“Part of our mission is we recognize the dignity of every single person and part of that dignity is to be able to live and feed your families and we’re walking with people on that journey,” Slizeski said.

Pandemic or not, for Catholic Charities Brooklyn and Queens, the work is never done.

Currents News full broadcast for Mon, 8/17/20 (Catholic news)

Currents News reports secular and religious news from the Catholic perspective.

Some of the top stories on this newscast:

The Democratic National Convention is different this year but they could be choosing America’s second Catholic president.

No end in sight for New York City’s gun violence. Could the President step in? He says he’s ready for action.

And in Sunset Park, Brooklyn investigators going door to door trying to control the new COVID spike.

How the heroes of Catholic Charities continue to make a huge difference in the lives of so many New Yorkers.

Currents News full broadcast for Fri, 8/14/20 (Catholic news)

Currents News reports secular and religious news from the Catholic perspective.

Some of the top stories on this newscast:

The governor has given the green light to New York’s schools, but some parents still have their foot on the brakes.

You’ll hear from a teacher who says Catholic schools can be the safest in the city because they have the room to social distance.

How does Kamala Harris stack up with the so-called “Catholic vote?”

Currents News full broadcast for Thurs, 8/13/20 (Catholic news)

Currents News reports secular and religious news from the Catholic perspective.

Some of the top stories on this newscast:

A Brooklyn neighborhood is on high alert and we’re taking the pulse of the people.

A big roadblock could stand in the way of reopening the Big Apple’s public schools.

Catholic parents in the city are hoping they’re not forgotten when it comes to new pandemic aid.