Our volunteers arose early to meet the pumpkin delivery and setup for Oktoberfest. So head over at 1 PM start time to Dag Plaza for a fun day. Be sure to load up on raffle tickets. Prizes include seats for Broadway hit shows, summer camp tuition, restaurants, gift shops and salon vouchers. The kids will have the time of their life painting pumpkins and wielding their balloon animals and swords with faces painted for photo ops. There’s even a tennis camp for tots and teens to work off steam.
Proceeds from donations go to bringing you more community events and park beautification.
As the the 69th Session of the UN General Assembly (UNGA 69) convened at UN Headquarters on Tuesday, September 16, local residents braced for mid-town gridlock and the parade of protests aimed at UN leaders. Once again, we’re reminded of Dag Hammarskjold Plaza‘s historic role as Gateway to the UN, enshrining the Rights of Public Assembly and Peaceful Protest. Until the close on October 1, high-level security will extend to the park and surrounding neighborhood Security details are posted on roof tops while boats patrol the East River.
The Assembly’s “General Debate” presents 196 speakers over a period of six days on major issues of international concern, comprising all the 193 UN Member States, as well as the Observer State of the Holy See, the Observer State of Palestine and the delegation of the European Union. In addition, 2000 media accreditations have been processed.
This year’s theme is “Delivering on and Implementing a Transformative Post-2015 Development Agenda” but much of the discussion will focus on urgent crises arising from ongoing conflicts in Syria, Iraq, Ukraine and South Sudan.
Among the high-level meetings, President Barrack Obama chairs a Security Council Summit on Wednesday to address the growing, pervasive threat of terrorism and ISIS. UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon convenes a session on Thursday to focus on the Ebola crisis in West Africa.
Climate change is also of great concern. For the first time, at Tuesday’s Climate Change Summit , China committed to making its economy more carbon efficient. President Obama said climate change was moving faster than efforts to address it, and that the US and China had a responsibility to lead other nations. UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon hailed the collective sense of urgency, saying “never before have so many leaders gathered to commit to action on climate change”.
Ladies of Steel, an installation of four sculptures by Judith Peck, is now on display at Dag Hammarskjold Plaza, highlighting International Women’s Day (March 8) and Women’s History Month. The exhibit remains through August 2023. The park is located on East 47th Street between 2nd Avenue and UN Plaza (1st Ave), Manhattan.
(l-R) Reclining Woman, River Flow, Joyful Company, Women’s Nature–Landscape of Hills and Valleys Photography by Jon Scarlet
“Steel is strong but malleable; it can bend,” states the artist. First she sketches, then cuts and shapes steel sheets with a welding torch.
Of her piece “River Flow,” Peck notes,“I like to think of the sculpture like a woman, relaxed in its soft curves but confident, even with its internal divisions, to make the journey, go with the flow. ”
She sees whimsy in all four “ladies.” The figure with her arm extended walks a dog on a leash. Peck left the dog out to be imagined or filled by real pets. Photographer Jon Scarlet captured the first pooches to pose in Dag Plaza.
Peck’s work is wide-ranging in its diversity and use of mediums, which include bronze, stone and wood. A Professor Emeritus of Art at Ramapo (State) College, during her 42 year tenure, Dr. Peck instituted an on-going program training college students to conduct art workshops in jails, homes for abused children, psychiatric centers, domestic violence shelters and nursing homes. A prolific author, Art and Social Interaction was recently released by Routledge Publishers along with a second book for parents and elementary school teachers, Dynamic Play and Creative Movement: Powering Body and Brain.
Sherrill Kazan, president of Friends of Dag Hammarskjold Plaza, worked with NYC Parks Senior Public Arts Coordinator Elizabeth Masella and Shamina de Gonzaga, executive editor of Centerpoint Now for World Council of Peoples for the United Nations (WCPUN), to bring the exhibit to Dag Hammarskjold Plaza under the Art in the Parks program of NYC Parks & Recreation.
Rain is forecast to start at 1 PM, continuing through Friday. The show will go on, mostly indoors, for the Hammarskjold Plaza Tree Lighting Ceremony, Thursday, December 15, featuring the Manhattan Holiday Carolers.
SANTA LEADS THE WAY!
We’re setting up a tent for Santa, who will conduct the official countdown to Tree Lighting between 5:45 and 6 PM, near the big tree at 2nd Ave/47th St entrance dome, then lead the procession to the Vanderbilt Y gym for festivities.
The carolers, clad in Victorian costumes, await you indoors to kindle our hearts with holiday favorites while children visit with Santa. Enjoy cookies, cocoa and fellowship. Regardless of weather, our light will shine with LED candles, lifted in the spirit of peace, brother-sisterhood and good cheer.
Join the party atthe Vanderbilt YMCA, 224 East 47th Street, 2nd floor gymnasium. Enter through doors to Membership.
SANTA SAYS, MASK UP! Ward off the COVID grinch and stay healthy during flu season.
For preview of the Manhattan Holiday Carolers, click here
Join your neighbors on Thursday, Dec. 15 (rain date 12/16), at 5:45 at the entrance dome (47th St and 2nd Ave) to officially light the Holiday Tree and Menorah when Santa leads the children in a count-down. Festivities continue till 7PM.
Clad in Victorian costumes, the Manhattan Holiday Carolers perform a capella harmonies, spreading the joy with traditional favorites plus a sing-along. A dad from The Family School joins the celebration, playing the oud and singing a Hannukah-inspired songin Turkish.
Let your light shine with a FREE LED safe-flame candle. Enjoy hot chocolate and cookies at our hospitality tent.
IN CASE OF RAIN: Think English Christmas with umbrellas. The weather forecast for Thursday 12/15 and Friday 12/16 (rain date) predict off-on showers. Check FDHP and TBA websites for updates.
Join volunteers in this citywide campaign to beautify and clean our parks. In Dag Plaza’s Katharine Hepburn Garden, we will plant spring-flowering bulbs, clean, rake leaves, mulch and enjoy the spell of autumn. All tools and supplies provided.
Walk-ins allowed but it helps to reserve so we can plan the work.. Email your contact info and estimated arrival time to (click on link) fdhp@hammarskjoldplaza.org
Location: Look for gate and garden shed behind fountain near park cafe. Dag Hammarskjold Plaza is located on E. 47th St. between 1st and 2nd Aves. Manhattan. Zip 10017
On Friday, Oct. 21, corporate volunteers from Pepsico and Google lend a hand.
Enjoy uplifting a cappella choral selections exploring themes of nature with choral music from the 14th to 21st century.
“Dennis Keene has blended this group of New York’s finest professional singers into a richly satisfying ensemble, unique in its flexibility and artistic command of choral music of every period and style.” WNET Art News
On the heels of their outdoor performance in Yonker’s exquisitely restored Untermeyer Gardens, the Voices of Ascension Singers will present a one-hour program in Dag Hammarskjold Plaza,Wednesday, August 24, 6 PM to 7 PM (rain date 8/25).Enjoy uplifting a cappella choral selections exploring themes of nature with choral music from the 14th to 21st century.
The chamber ensemble is drawn from the critically acclaimed Voices of Ascension Chorus and Orchestra, founded and directed by conductor Dennis Keene and based at the Church of the Ascension, the oldest church on 5th Avenue, located in the heart of Greenwich Village. This program draws on universal themes. Its setting in the Center Performance Circle of Dag Plaza, surrounded by trees and flowers, is sure to be uplifting.
This free performance kicks off Hammarskjold Plaza’s participation in the Nature Heals campaign of Parks and Open Space Partners. New York City may have the densest population of any US city, but did you know that we’re also one of the greenest cities, filled with parks and gardens to renew our spirit and help keep us physically fit.
Dag Hammarskjold Plaza and its Katharine Hepburn Garden is the largest public park in midtown east Manhattan.
PRESENTED BY FRIENDS OF DAG HAMMARSKJOLD PLAZA, A NONPROFIT 501C3 ORGANIZATION SERVING IN COOPERATION WITH NYC PARKS & RECREATION.
The hydrangeas are blooming, bees are buzzing. Join us!
5:30 PM Meet artist Cecile Chong on the Sculpture Platform for an up-close intro to “El Dorado, the New Forty Niners”. 5:45 PM Tour the flower border with garden guide. Learn about pollinators, fragrance and what’s in bloom. 6:00 PM Convene at park cafe for artist’s inside story that spans continents, languages and geography. Kid’s art project too.
Coffee beverages and ice cream available for purchase at the Pink Moose Cafe.
Presented by Friends of Dag Hammarskjold Plaza in cooperation with NYC Parks & Recreation.
El Dorado, the New Forty Niners, an installation in Dag Hammarskjold Plaza with figures displayed on platforms representing the 17 United Nations Goals for Sustainable Development. Artist: Cecile Chong
Tulips are the joy of spring gardens, emerging in April and May from bulbs planted in autumn . We have learned to choose varieties with strong stems that can stand up to the wind in Hammarskjold Plaza. Tulips are classified as early, middle and late, and the trick is to select a varieties for each bloom period to achieve a longer floral display. Hopefully, the late-season tulips will be in their glory when we celebrate the Katharine Hepburn Garden Party around May 12, her birthday,
Red was Hepburn’s favorite color and we make sure to include a vivid red in our selection.
Also blooming in May is the fragrant cherry laurel shrub. Your nose will let you know when the lacy flowers emerge.
Join us on May 14, 1 PM to 3 PM to celebrate Katharine Hepburn’s birthday (May 12) with a garden party in Dag Hammarskjold Plaza, East 47th Street, Manhattan, featuring FREE live music, refreshments and garden tours. Meet your neighbors, greet city officials and enjoy the unfolding flower palette of spring. (Rain date May 15, same time).
The long-standing tradition dates back to 1997 and the park’s reconstruction when the community dedicated the new garden to the celebrated actress and good neighbor who fought to save the trees, sunlight and the charming character of Turtle Bay. Since then, Friends of DHP has organized the event, co-hosted with the Turtle Bay Association.
Award-winning vocalist Kimberly Hawkey and her band will perform tunes from the Great American Songbook and the Golden Age of Hollywood. Twice-winner of the NYC Cabaret Showdown and a recipient of the prestigious Johnny Mercer Award, her performance style and musical virtuosity continue to wow fans and earn plaudits. BroadwayWorld.com calls her “a delightfully fresh-voiced treat,” while Cabaret Scenes notes Kimberly’s “exceptional musicality”; New York Music Daily praises “an irrepressibly cheery update on 30s and 40s sounds.” She has performed at Birdland Jazz Club, the Iridium, Symphony Space, and the acclaimed Caramoor Center (Katonah, NY). Her international booking circuit includes the Northeast corridor with frequent appearances in the Hudson River Valley and Catskills.
Kimberly has produced three genre-spanning CDs, showcasing both her intimate chanteuse/piano offerings, and her versatility as a bandleader. Her brand, Elvanelle Music, conveys story through song with concerts, education programs, and music for special events that bring communities together and transcend time.
This year, the Bryn Mawr Club, NYC, will be joining the festivities. Hepburn began acting at Bryn Mawr College and graduated in 1928 with a degree in history and philosophy. The actress remained loyal to her alma mater, speaking at graduation ceremonies and other events. In 2006, Bryn Mawr established the Katharine Houghton Hepburn Center and Medal, honoring both the actress and her mother, an 1889 alum, suffragist, and reproductive rights activist. The Hepburn Medal recognizes women whose work embodies the intelligence and independence of the 4-time Oscar winner known for her speaking her mind and breaking the Hollywood mold.
LOCATION: Dag Hammarskjold Plaza is located on the south side of East 47th Street between 1st Ave (UN Plaza) and 2nd Avenue in Manhattan. The performance will be in the center of park known as the “colonnade performance circle.”
The Friends of Dag Hammarskjold Plaza is a tax exempt, nonprofit 501(c)(3) community organization serving in cooperation with NYC Dept. of Parks & Recreation.
This year’s Annual Meeting will be VIRTUAL. Members/Donors of Friends of Dag Hammarskjold Plaza will receive an email invitation to attend via ZOOM 24 hours in advance of the meeting set for Thursday, Dec. 9 at 6:00 PM. At this meeting, members vote for the proposed slate of officers and directors. An annual review is presented, including financial statements and committee reports.
Even with cuts to city services, the garden flourished and Dag Hammarskjold Plaza provided a welcoming public space. Summer concerts and Cafe Salon Talks brought us together, and the Annual Tree and Menorah Lighting closes out the year with Santa and holiday carolers. Our cleanliness program includes the services of a part-time custodian and the Doe Fund. We meet with city officials and agencies about public health and safety, and keep you informed through timely e-blasts.
None of this would happen without the dedicated volunteers who serve as FDHP Officers and Directors.
