2009 NYBMF Program GrantsMessenger Appreciation Day
Injured Messenger Fundraisers
2009 NYBMF Injury Grants
The following NYC bicycle messengers have received financial assistance from the NYBMF injury grant program. The injuries they sustained prevented them from working and we are proud to be able to assist these messengers in meeting their financial responsibilities while they recover.
Kyle Faust has been awarded $250.00
Kyle was working for Champion Courier when he was struck by a taxicab near Lincoln Center. Kyle is a veteran bicycle courier who is eager to recover and rejoin the NYC messenger workforce.
Injury Update:Kyle has recovered from his injuries and has returned to the NYC messenger workforce.
Joseph Mauceri has been awarded $150.00.
2007 - 2008 NYBMF Injury Grants
Egon Feldman has been awarded $500.00
Egon was working for NY Minute when he was struck by a taxicab in Times Square. We wish Egon a full recovery and await his return to the NYC messenger community.
Injury Update: Egon has decided not to return to the NYC messenger workforce.
Morgan Hafer has been awarded $350.00
Morgan was working for Flash Couriers when he was involved in a midtown accident. A pedestrian caused Morgan to collide with a car, resulting in an injury to his shoulder. The NYBMF wishes Morgan a rapid and full recovery.
Injury Update: Morgon has recovered from his injuries and has returned to the NYC messenger workforce.
Chris Cino has been awarded $200.00
Chris works for Cavalry Couriers as a full time bike messenger. He sustained his injury while assisting a truck courier on a moving and delivery job. A cabinet collapsed and fell onto Chris' back, causing a deep gash that required a hospital emergency room visit.
Injury Update: After six days of convalescing, the NYBMF is happy to report that Chris is back to work for Cavalry Courier.
Anthony "Ninja" Rice has been awarded $500.00
Anthony was returning home after a day at Velocity Express when he was involved in an accident with a truck. A pothole caused Anthony to lose control of his bicycle and fall. Before recovering from the fall, he was struck by a truck and sustained two fractures of his leg. Anthony will be out of work for at least six weeks. The NYBMF wishes him a full recovery and are enthusiastic about his return.
Injury Update:Anthony has recovered from his injuries and has returned to the NYC messenger workforce.
Noyan Tanc has been awarded $300.00
Noyan was struck by a car in midtown and sustained injuries to his back and neck. Noyan contacted the NYBMF for the first time and we were able to guide him through the injury grant process, providing him with some financial relief. We wish Noyan a speedy recovery and return to the NYC messenger workforce.
2007 - 2008 NYBMF Donations
The following businesses and individuals have made financial donations to the NYBMF. We thank them for their generosity and support of the NYC messenger community.
TrackStar Bicycle Shop - NYC James Dunne Louis Haywood Under The Weather - Toronto, Canada Filipe Robayo Sharon McLaughlin Michael Colin Binder Ian Dowden Chicken Switch - Columbus, OH Ashira Siegel David Smith Cranksgiving2007 NYBMF Program Grants
Six artists and the NYBMA have been awarded a total of $1,042.00 in program grants. The awards are part of the NYBMF Messenger Artists Clearing House Project. This project was started in 2006 with the aim of licensing artwork previously created for messenger events and programs. The Messenger Artists Clearing House licenses this artwork to a wholesale T shirt manufacturer in Japan, who in turn produces shirts for sale in specialty stores. The net proceeds are divided equally between the artist and the NYBMF.
We would like to thank the following artists for their participation in this program:
Kevin Bolger, Jason Gandy, Mike Macca, Antonio Rodriguez, Ken Stanek and Greg Ugalde2006 Marcus Cook Award
The International Federation of Bike Messenger Associations (IFBMA) announces the 2006 "Markus Cook Memorial Award" (MCA) for Services to the International Messenger Community
The MCA was conceived as a way for the international messenger community to thank it's most dedicated workers. Nominations are sought from the messenger community for those individuals who have done most for us, for those who have consistently put the rest of us before them.
This year's recipients are Amy and Kevin "Squid" Bolger of New York City who are being honored for their work with the New York messenger community and their contributions to messenger communities around the world. Their contributions separately and jointly range from working as tireless volunteers throughout the world, to organizing major events, to being among the formative members of the New York Bike Messenger Association and the New York Bike Messenger Foundation.
These organizations seek to improve the lot of local messengers through the empowerment and knowledge of such projects as the New York City Messenger Industry Handbook and they serve the community by providing crucial services like an accident fund to aid injured messengers.
In 2005 Amy and Kevin Bolger were among the successful organizers of the monumental task of hosting the Cycle Messenger World Championships in the city with the largest population of messengers in the industrialized world.
Their imaginative and innovative work with new sponsors brought success to unique events like the Velo City Tour and the Body Glove Challenge. The recently completed Velo City Tour rewarded 6 champion messengers with round trip tickets to the Cycle Messenger World Championships in Sydney Australia. The Velo City Tour also brought messengers rare national television coverage as professional athletes.
Squid's pioneering work with Team Puma and Amy's insightful photographic portraits continue to inspire others, challenge the historically narrow view of messengers and expand the diverse opportunities for messengers in the future.
MCA article by Joe Hendry
