What You Should Know

WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW

By Senator Rev. Rubén Díaz

32nd Senatorial District, Bronx County, New York

Tel. 718-991-3161

WHEN IT RAINS IT POURS

You should know that sometimes, no matter how good, how decent, or how honest your intentions may be, the way things come out might not always seem too good for you.

In Puerto Rico, there is a saying that “when it rains it pours,” meaning that all at once, everything comes falling on your shoulders.

To me, it started earlier this summer with simple knee replacement surgery that was supposed to take two weeks, after which I’d be as good as new, but the first surgery was complicated. Things did not go as planned, and I had to stay in the hospital for four weeks.

Next, the criminal charge against Mr. Clement Gardner, the bookkeeper for the Christian Community Benevolent Organization, was expanded from the original charge to say that he stole $532,000 from the agency.

You should already know that I founded the Christian Community Benevolent Association (CCBA) in 1977 and it was the jewel of the South Bronx. When the Bronx was burning and the South Bronx was left in ruins, our organization was creating jobs and holding the fort when banks and businesses and landlords abandoned the area. The CCBA was an oasis for senior citizens, for our youth and for the unemployed. We employed more than 1,300 people during the time when the South Bronx was seen as the worst neighborhood in the nation.

You should know that along with the conniving evil work of Mr. Clement Gardner, who destroyed the reputation of everything we had done for 30 years, that in May 2007, instead of arresting Mr. Gardner after he confessed to stealing from CCBA, the FBI sent Mr. Clement Gardner BACK to the Christian Community Benevolent Association where he continued to raid the not-for-profit agency.

And now, to add salt to the wound, my only daughter – the one who I love so dearly – fell in love with a police officer and in a domestic dispute, has been accused of scratching his car with a key.

This must be what they mean in Puerto Rico that “when it rains it pours.”

But, the Lord who I serve always tells us in the Bible that He will never send us more than we can endure. To my God and Savior, Jesus of Nazareth the One who took me out of the gutter and has brought me into His graces and has blessed me with a family and a name and a place in this State – to Him be the honor, glory, and praise.

I am State Senator Reverend Rubén Díaz and this is what you should know.