Senate Passes Zeldin Bill to Name Bridge After Grace Peshkur

Waverly Ave Bridge over Long Island Expressway to be named the Grace Peshkur Memorial Bridge

Albany, NY- Senator Lee M. Zeldin (R, C, I- Shirley), announced today Senate passage of S.4385A, a bill to name the Waverly Ave Bridge over Long Island Expressway after Grace Peshkur.

Grace Peshkur of Holtsville, passed away exactly two years ago on May 17, 2009 at the age of seven. She had suffered from Epidermolysis Bullosa (EB), a connective tissue disease causing blisters in the skin and mucosal membranes. EB sufferers resemble burn victims but their wounds never heal.

“It’s a great honor that I can help a community heal after such a tragedy. By naming this bridge after Grace, it can memorialize her and her story as part of the permanent fabric of the Holtsville community,” said Senator Zeldin.

“Grace Peshkur touched the lives of so many people in her short life,” said Assemblyman Dean Murray, who introduced the legislation in the Assembly after speaking with the Peshkur family. “Naming this bridge after her will pay tribute to her courage and determination, and bring awareness to this disease that claimed her life, in the hopes for finding a cure.”

The bill now goes before the Assembly, where it is being sponsored by Assemblyman Dean Murray and Al Graf.