Riding the Wave with Mark Healey

Khaleel Anderson, 24, has been a community activist, a member of Community Board 14, and now this impressive young man from Far Rockaway wants to become the youngest Assembly Member in 20 years. He makes his case with Mark C. Healey, Editor In Chief of The Wave, Rockaway's newspaper since 1893.

Currently on the City Council, Donovan Richards tells Mark C. Healey, Editor In Chief of The Wave, Rockaway's newspaper since 1893, why he's the best person to serve Queens.

New York State Senator Joe Addabbo makes his case for a seventh term as he sits down with Mark C. Healey, Editor In Chief of The Wave, Rockaway's newspaper since 1893.

Breezy Point resident Tom Sullivan thinks he will do a better job than current NYS Senator Joe Addabbo, and stated his case with Mark C. Healey, Editor In Chief of The Wave, Rockaway's newspaper since 1893. 

Assemblywoman Stacey Pheffer Amato discusses her track record with Mark Healey, the Editor In Chief of The Wave, as she runs for re-election.

Joann Ariola sits down with Mark C. Healey, Editor In Chief of The Wave, Rockaway's newspaper since 1893, to state her case to be the next Queens Borough President .

The First Deputy Chancellor's job is to be the "connective tissue that links every school to the things that they need from our superintendents, executive superintendents, and central offices."  Donald Conyers is a Beach Channel graduate and the first person to be named to this brand new post. He joins The Wave's EIC Mark Healey to discuss his new position

Ocean Chief Lifeguard Janet Fash was the first female Chief Lifeguard in Rockaway over 40 years ago and has been a familiar face on Rockaways beaches ever since. As a tireless advocate of public safety, Fash has rescued countless individuals off our shores and trained numerous lifeguards and members in the Rockaway Community. As the city's "plan" to open the beaches begins to take shape, we thought a chat with a Rockaway legend like Fash would he helpfuland educational as well.    

The Joseph P. Addabbo Family Health Center says it is opening of a By-Appointment Only walk-up COVID-19 Testing Site at its 1288 Central Avenue in Far Rockaway to help curb the spread of the deadly virus.  Dr. Miriam Vega, AHC CEO, will join The Wave's Mark C. Healey to discuss the details.  

Dr. Miriam Y. Vega, Ph.D., the Chief Executive Officer of The Joseph P. Addabbo Family Health Center and Dr. Veronica N. Wiltshire will join The Wave’s Mark C. Healey with the latest information and tips on how to deal with the COVID-19 crisis

Liz Crowley says she's a reformer who will fix Queens' problems.  The former Councilwoman says Queens deserves its “fair share” from the city and state, especially transportation, affordable housing and business investment.  She also spoke directly to issues Rockaway residents are facing. On March 11, she sat down with The Wave's Editor In Chief Mark C. Healey to discuss her campaign.

Councilman Costa Constantinides says as Queens Borough President he will make the borough stronger, more equitable, and more resilient in the face of climate change. He says those issues should make him Rockaway's candidate. On March 11, he sat down with The Wave's Editor In Chief Mark C. Healey to discuss his campaign.  

With the last Queens Borough President now serving as Queens DA, crime fighter Jim Quinn now wants to be the next Queens Borough President. Quinn, a former prosecutor, was Senior Executive Assistant District Attorney in charge of the Trial Division. when DA Melinda Katz took office. He quickly resigned and announced his candidacy for the vacant borough president's office. On March 11, he sat down with The Wave's Editor In Chief Mark C. Healey to discuss his campaign.  

A registered Democrat running on the GOP ticket, defense attorney Joe Murray thinks he's a better choice for Queens District attorney than his Democrat opponent Melinda Katz.  He sat down with The Wave's Editor In Chief Mark C. Healey to discuss why he's the better choice.

Returning to New York after its original debut in 2010, the celebrated Vans Joel Tudor Duct Tape Longboarding Series will traverse upon our shores here at Rockaway Beach on October 3-6. Celebrating surf craftsmanship, creativity and innovation, the Vans Duct Tape Festival will feature a world-class longboard competition for men and women, a Vans skate jam, film premieres and board demos.  Joining the podcast will be professional surfers Joel Tudor and Pat Schmidt, who will be part of this weekend's festivites!  

Singer-songwriter Walker Hornung is off to jam in jolly old England, but before he does, he stopped by The Wave’s HQ to sit down for an interview.  He plays a few of his new hits and talks about his process.  

Seth Caller is the head of Acquisitions, Leasing, and Sales for The Marcal Group. He'll join The Wave's Editor In Chief Mark C. Healey to discuss the One Sixteen project on Beach 116th Street and what it means for the peninsula's resurgence.

Rockaway Beach resident John Roberts is the Coordinator of AmpSurf’s Rockaway Beach/Breezy Point Chapter.  AmpSurf's mission is to “promote, inspire, educate, and rehabilitate people with disabilities” via adaptive surfing, a sport that is close to Roberts’ heart. He'll join The Wave's EIC Mark C. Healey to discuss the upcoming AmpSurf fundraiser on June 28, followed by the first AmpSurf Clinic on June 29.    

Betty Lugo, a former ADA in Nassau County, is also a founding member of Pacheco and Lugo, PLLC, the first Hispanic women-owned law firm in New York.  According to her website Lugo has “conducted trials, hearings, arbitrations, an appeals in complex matters in both state and federal courts. She'll sit down with The Wave's EIC Mark C. Healey to discuss her campaign.          

Tiffan Cabán, a career public defender, wants to make sweeping restorative changes to the Queens District Attorney’s office, and has assumed  a decisive stance against the decriminalizing of poverty and mass incarceration. She sat down with The Wave's managing Editor In Chief Mark C. Healey to state her case  

NYC Councilman Rory Lancman visited The Wave to discuss his candidacy for Queens DA. Though Lancman has never prosecuted a case, he chairs the Council's Justice System committee, and oversees the Mayor’s Office of Criminal Justice, the district attorneys in all five boroughs, the city’s special narcotics prosecutor, the public defender organizations, as well the civil legal services providers funded by the City, and the courts.    

Former Queens prosecutor Mina Malik  is one of the more experienced candidates running for Queens DA. She's been on both sides of the criminal justice system, as a prosecutor with the Queens District Attorney’s office for 15 years, a defense investigator, and reformer. Most recently she served as the Deputy Attorney General for Public Safety at the Office of the Attorney General for Washington, D.C. On April 8, she sat down with The Wave's Editor In Chief Mark C. Healey to discuss why she's the best person for the job.    

Queens Borough President Melinda Katz is running for Queens DA, and says that more than piling up convictions, the job of a DA is to get justice for victims and defendants.  She stopped by The Wave to discuss her campaign. 

A lifelong Queens resident, Greg Lasak rose through the ranks at the District Attorney's office before being elected a Supreme Court Justice. Now he's running to be our DA to bring experience, integrity, and progressive principles to the office.  He visited The Wave to discuss his campaign with Editor In Chief Mark Heale

Jose Nieves has dedicated his life to public service as a career prosecutor, army combat veteran and community leader for more than twenty years.  On March 18, he stopped by The Wave to state his case to be the next Queens District Attorney

On Wednesday, Feb. 13, The Wave learned that the NYC Department of Homeless Services has decided to place 120 males at a new homeless shelter located at 226 Beach 101st Street. There are two schools nearby, several businesses and many families. Locals business owners and residents are going to fight this tooth and nail. Councilman Eric Ulrich will join the show to discuss what he plans to do to fight it.    

NYC Councilman Eric Ulrich says his campaign for Public Advocate  -- which will take place on Tuesday, Feb. 26 -- represents the best chance for Rockaway to get real representation and recognition from city government.  He stoppoed by the Wave on Wednesday, Jan. 24, ti make his case.  

For the last ten years, Ben Yee has been engaging people to get more involved in the way government operates. On Jan. 14, he stopped by The Wave in Rockaway Beach to discuss his run for NYC Public Advocate with Editor In Chief Mark C. Healey.

Melissa Mark-Viverito isn't new to politics: as Former City Council Speaker, she's proven she will be a rubber stamp for Mayor Bill de Blasio.  But is she the right choice for Rockaway? On Jan. 8, Mark-Viverito will join The Wave's Editor In Chief Mark C. Healey to discuss why she's the best choice to replace Tish james as Public Advocate. The special election for Public Speaker will take place on Feb. 26.  

WFAN radio host John Jastremski is joining The Wave newspaper as a columnist, and his column "JJ After Dark" will make it's Rockaway debut on Friday, Dec. 7. JJ visited The Wave Rockaway Beach HQ to talk about his new column, his popular overnight show and what's next for New York's baseball teams. 

Assemblywoman Stacey Pheffer Amato is running for re-election, and stopped by The Wave this morning to talk about it with The Wave's Mark C. Healey.  

Inspiring kids to make healthy choices is about to get a lot less “tricky.” Right after leading a school assembly with 4th and 5th graders at PS 104 in Bayswater, hip-hop legend, TV personality and Netflix series actor Rev Run is going back to his Queens roots by joining The Wave's Editor-in-Chief Mark Healey on this week's Riding The Wave. Rev will discuss his personal connection to diabetes, and how his health journey began  How he makes smart, healthy choices while traveling around the globe to deejay, act, film, cook, and tourEncouraging Americans to find out about their risk of type 2 diabetes and raise awareness about the need for early screeningThe importance of educating the African American community about their risk, considering African Americans are twice as likely to develop diabetesHow he and his family revamped the way they eat and the lifestyle they live once he and his wife Justine became spokespeople for Novo Nordisk’s Ask.Screen.Know campaign

State Senator James Sanders Jr. joined The Wave’s Managing Editor Mark Healey for this week’s edition of the “Riding the Wave” podcast. Sanders began the conversation with an enthusiastic plug for Rockaway’s Caribbean Carnival on August 18th—an event that has been a rousing success each year since its inception.  

Attorney Slawomir Platta is hoping his legal skills can convince the Republican voters of the 15th Senatorial District that he -- not Thomas Sullivan -- should be the candidate to face State Senator Joseph P. Addabbo, Jr. in the upcoming election. Platta stopped by The Wave to talk with Managing Editor Mark Healey about his campaign.  

“Proven leader,” “fighter” and “environmentalist” were a few of the words used to describe Tom Sullivan, says he will use his two decades of experience in the military and the private sector to reduce wasteful spending, lower property taxes and curb the overdevelopment of local neighborhoods if the GOP hopeful is elected to office. On Aug. 7, he sat down at The Wave with our managing editor Mark Healey to discuss his candidacy.  

Assemblywoman Stacey Pheffer Amato has announced that she will be seeking re-election for the 23rd Assembly District. Pheffer Amato was elected to her first term as Assemblywoman in 2016 and has been endorsed by the Democratic, Independence, and Working Family parties.  She joined The Wave's managing Editor Mark C. Healey to discuss her campaign and to discuss local issues.

Mike Stoller — part of the iconic songwriting team Leiber and Stoller -- will join the podcast this week to discuss the return of Broadway’s longest-running musical revue, Smokey Joe’s Café  , currently playing at Off-Broadway’s Stage 42 in Times Square.  Born in Belle Harbor, Stoller has real Rockaway roots and will talk about growing up by the beach with The Wave's Managing Editor Mark Healey.  Stoller will also discuss his partnership with Jerry Leiber, and how they changed the sound of American music forever.  

Walker Hornung, Jimmy Dowd and Steve Stathis are throwing the 12th consecutive Rockstock & Barrels Surf and Music on Saturday June 23!  The live music, surf competition includes all kinds of vendors and things to do.  It’s a family-friendly day on the boardwalk at Beach 90th Street all day long and 100 percent free!   Walker, Ecstatic Madmen, Baked Shrimp, Grits, Trick Candles, Phil and Family Band, Indaculture and the Skells will perform all day, and Exit Verona and Disfunction will play the after-party, starting at 6 p.m. at Epstein’s Beach! On this segment of Riding The Wave, Dowd joins the show to promote the awesome annual festival!

New York City Councilman Donovan Richards visited The Wave on June 4 to discuss the ongoing plans to develop Downtown Far Rockaway and other projects including the proposed affordable housing development at the former site of Peninsula Hospital. 

On May 21, just days before the scheduled opening of Rockaway’s beaches, NYC Parks Commissioner Mitch Silver announced that because of “safety concerns,” the beaches from Beach 91st Street to Beach 102nd Street would be closed for the summer. When we asked how Parks how it will address the loss of revenue – as well as thousands spent on seasonal workers, food, drink, supplies, improvements for the vendors and businesses that are located within the closure area – the response was the agency would try to come up with supplemental opportunities to draw patrons to the area; including possibly bringing in more music and events. As the city and its agencies figure out how to deal with the impact of its decision; we sat down with members of the Rockaway Business Alliance to see what ideas they have. 

NYC Parks has announced that Rockaway Beach will be closed this summer in the area between Beach 91st Street and Beach 102nd just days before the beaches were supposed to be opened for the summer. The community's concerns have been unheeded for years, Councilman Eric Ulrich will join the podcast to share his thoughts on a possible solution.

For years, the QueensWay -- the effort to build a "High Line" style of park on the abandoned right of way of the former Rockaway Beach Rail Line (RBRL) -- has been at odds with those who want to reactivate the  RBRL (QueensRail). Now, Rick Horan, the Coalition for QueensRail’s Executive Director and Director of the Task Force., says why not both? Horan joined "Riding The Wave" on May 17 to discuss how his new coalition "the Queens RAIL and WAY Task Force" can jumpstart what could a really great comprimise.

 Alex Zablocki, Executive Director of the Jamaica Bay-Rockaway Parks Conservancy joins the podcast to discuss The National Park Service' s release of a Request for Expressions of Interest (RFEI) for the re-use of buildings and land at Fort Tilden East and Riis Landing in Gateway. The  hope is that individuals and/or organizations will submit proposals that include interbay ferry service to and from Riis Landing to points across Jamaica Bay like Canarsie Pier, connecting parks in Brooklyn and Queens.  

Robert W. Walsh, who served as Commissioner of the New York City Department of Small Business Services (SBS) from January 2002 to December 2013. During his twelve year tenure, he reshaped SBS to become one of the city's most innovative agencies in serving the needs of its 200,000 small businesses. After Superstorm Sandy, Walsh worked side by side with local businesses in Rockaway to help them get back to business.  He's now a host on 1010 wins and a member of the Baruch College faculty He recently spoke at the annual meeting for the Rockaway Business Alliance. Walsh will join The Wave's Managing Editor to discuss the past, present, and future of Rockaway's business district 

Luis Mendes, deputy commissioner at the Department of Design and Construction, was hired in 2016 to get the city's troubled Build It Back program back on track.  He's been the point man for BIB since, and joins the show to talk about the progress of the program in Broad Channel.  

Actress Aesha Waks, recently crowned Ms. New York, joins the Wave to discuss her next chapter.

After Superstorm Sandy hit the peninsula, then-college student Nick Compagnone worked with the Graybeards to help collect hundreds of thousands of dollars for the non-profit’s Sandy Relief fund. Almost five years later, the now up and coming real estate executive is still giving back to the community. The Wave invited Compagnone to our offices to sit down for an interview, hoping to learn more about what he’s up to now.

Michel Faulkner is the Republican candidate for NYC Comptroller, and is running against the Democratic incumbent Scott Stringer.  He will sit down with The Wave's Managing Editor Mark C. Healey to discuss his campaign and his career.  

William Ruiz is running against Mike Scala and Helal Sheikh, hoping to win the Democratic nomination for the City Council’s 32nd District.  The winner of the primary, which will be held today, Tuesday, Sept. 12, will then have the opportunity to face Republican incumbent Councilman Eric Ulrich. Ruiz, who recently visited The Wave, talked about his grassroots candidacy with The Wave's managing Editor Mark Healey..  

Dennis Walcott, president and CEO of Queens Library sits down with The Wave's Managing Editor Mark C. Healey to discuss the upcoming 31-Hour Marathon that the Peninsula branch will be hosting on Aug 26 and 27.  He'll also discuss how Queens Library is evolving and adapting to technology and the needs of the various community that the library serves.      

For more than 68 years, the Belle Harbor Property Owners Association has represented the people of Belle Harbor, New York. Its mission is to protect and enhance the quality of life in the Belle Harbor community. Hank Iori, who has been the president of the organization for the last five years, recently sat down with The Wave's Managing Editor Mark C. Healey to discuss the challenges facing Rockaway.