In Central Park, people ate ice creams, picnicked, played, exercised, put on shorts, and often wore warm smiles. Carriages lined up for tourists to go sightseeing. Park visitors could hear the chirp of birds and see squirrels seeking food. The grass was growing and  changing the color of the ground from yellow and brown to faint green.

Carriages of Central Park  line up at the entrance of Central Park on W 59th Street, waiting for tourists. Photo by Chuyan Jiang, March 9, 2021

Children play at Heckscher Playground, Central Park. March 9, 2021, Photo by Chuyan Jiang

Children swing at Heckscher Playground, Central Park. March 9, 2021, Photo by Chuyan Jiang

People picnic near Heckscher Playground in Central Park. March 9, 2021, Photo by Chuyan Jiang

People walk and bike in at Central Park. March 9, 2021, Photo by Chuyan Jiang

A cyclist wears shorts in Central Park. March 9, 2021, Photo by Chuyan Jiang

A squirrel nibbles a nut in Central Park. March 9, 2021. Photo by Chuyan Jiang

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 Samaritan’s Purse, a Christian relief organization, is the group behind the effort, bringing in multiple truckloads of beds, tents and gear, including much-needed ventilators, to support COVID-19 treatment in New York City.

 Lead Physician, Dr. Elliot Tenpenny, who treated patients in West Africa during the Ebola outbreak, will command a group of approximately 70 health care workers to tackle the pandemic in the satellite location. Additional volunteers will be on hand to assist his medical staff. Tenpenny and his team are expected to begin treating patients on Tuesday, March 31st.

This is a look inside the field hospital.

Workers lay down the flooring for a medical tent in Central Park’s East Meadow, March 30, 2020. Photo by Thomas Hengge

A person waits to assist with the building of another medical tent for the Central Park field hospital, March 30, 2020. Photo by Thomas Hengge.

Workers with Samaritan’s Purse inside the Central Park field hospital. March 30, 2020. Photo by Thomas Hengge

Workers and volunteers coordinate to build a 68-bed field hospital in Central Park, March 30, 2020. Photo by Thomas Hengge

A team two works to secure a medical tent in Central Park’s East Meadow, March 30, 2020. Photo by Thomas Hengge

A group unwraps equipment, getting ready to move it into medical tents. March 30, 2020. Photo by Thomas Hengge

Workers move equipment into medical tents at the Central Park field hospital, March 30, 2020. Photo by Thomas Hengge

Boxes of tents provided by Samaritans Purse, a Christian relief organization who volunteered to erect the Central Park field hospital, March 30, 2020. Photo by Thomas Hengge

A group of workers at the Central Park field hospital pose for a picture, March 30, 2020. Photo by Thomas Hengge

Central Park’s 68-bed field hospital, March 30, 2020. Photo by Thomas Hengge

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Yolanda Roman ran her first marathon today. She finished the New York City Marathon in about five and a half hours, but her time was not the first thing on her mind.

“I’m running for my daughter and now my grandfather.”

Roman’s baby daughter, Chloe, passed away from a brain disorder. It was shortly after her daughter’s death that she took up running, as something to hold onto and get through her grief. Her grandfather also passed away this year.

“It means everything to be able to run for her,” she said. “Everything. It was hard but I’m doing it for her.”

Roman’s brother, Juan Roman, came to cheer her on. The Roman family are lifelong New Yorkers. They live on 62^nd Street, just a few blocks from where they waited to meet Yolanda after the race. He waited with their mother Viviana and Yolanda’s boyfriend, Charlie Santos, at the family reception area after the finish line.

“I’m used to this,” said Juan Roman. “I was born in New York City, so I know the marathon, but this is the first year we’ve been involved. After my sister’s daughter passed away, we have a reason to be here. And she has a purpose to be here—her daughter and our grandpa.”

Juan Roman proudly explained that to get here today, his sister had to complete trial runs with qualifying times. She began her training schedule a year ago.

Their cousin, Sonia Ariza, and her husband, Eli Modesto, along with their daughters Madelyn,7, and Melanie, 4,, came from Brooklyn to support Roman. Madelyn and Melanie played and ran around while they waited to greet their aunt. Ariza and Modesto took turn holding high a pink sign with glittering letters spelling out, “RUN FOR CHLOE.” When Roman finally reached her family, she was greeted with hugs, tears, and congratulations.

“We saw her running when she ran through Brooklyn,” said Ariza. “We live in Brooklyn, so we wanted to watch her there, and then we came here to see her at the finish line.”

There were two moments along the 26.2-mile run that stood out to Roman. The first occurred during a difficult section of the race.

“In the Bronx, my leg started cramping,” she said. “It was cramping so bad and then I saw on the side of the path, there were Mexican people rubbing people’s legs. That helped me get through. And then, crossing that finish line,I didn’t believe it when I crossed the line. It was a good day. A good run. I’m so happy I finished and saw my family here.”

Roman’s spirit is strong. Even after completing the longest run of her life, she had no intention of resting tonight.

“We’re going to celebrate,” she said.

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A few months ago, school director Sala Cyril, 38, took an opportunity of a lifetime. She would train and run this year’s New York City Marathon for the benefit of her institution, the Little Maroons Childcare Cooperative in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn. It was the school’s 10th anniversary, and around $5,000 was crowdsources and would be given to Cyril when she finished the marathon.

With barely any marathon experience under her belt, she trained for only four months.

“I even had a concussion in the last two weeks,” she said. “I wasn’t able to train fully.”

More than the physical training, Cyril of Bedford-Syuyvesant said that she had to train her mind as well to strengthen her endurance.

Today, at around 11:00 am, Cyril found herself in the starting line. She put her game face on. She told herself she would finish the race no matter what.

Eight hours later she crossed the finish line.

“I just really pushed myself to do my best,” she said. “My family went out to support me. My colleagues went as well, so I wanted to show my loved ones that I could finish the race. This is definitely the most intense experience I’ve had in my life so far.”

The marathon, as Cyril put it, was challenging.

“I was slow and I took many bathroom breaks,” she said. “The water and energy stations even malfunctioned so it was hard. It even became discouraging after a while because there were less people cheering me on, so it was a matter of mental strength, too.”

But at the end of the race she was all smiles. She was greeted immediately by her loved ones. She took her hard-earned medal, and grabbed a marathon cape and goodies along the way. The race was officially over.

“I feel really successful and also tired,” she said, as she made her way out of Central Park. “I can’t join the NYC marathon next year as I wasn’t able to participate in the qualifying race for it. I do look forward to running in its 2017 edition, even if I’m not going to raise funds for my school. Next time, I just want to run the whole thing and just enjoy it better. There’s definitely room for improvement in my performance.”

For now, Cyril is happy to fulfill her commitment to Little Maroons. The school, which was established in 2005, aims to “reinforce” African education (ideologies, culture, and history) to black children, as a means of reminding them of their roots and nurturing their love for learning. The money that Cyril was able to raise will go to various educational endeavors, such as school supplies.

Cyril said the marathon gave her a fresher perspective on motherhood, as she felt like an inspiration to her daughters to keep pursuing their dreams no matter what gets in the way. She advised would-be marathoners to “not be afraid of being slow in the race because all you need to succeed are discipline and practice. The goal is to finish the race no matter what.”

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by Joanna Bouras

Ross Carlisle, of Brooklyn, searched through a sea of fluorescent runners, with his family in quest of his brother.

Stationed at the 24-mile mark of the 2014 TCS New York City Marathon in Central Park, this afternoon, they waved brightly colored signs as the family cheered and encouraged runners on. Carlisle, 28, was positioned to give his brother the final kick of adrenaline he needed to finish the race.

His brother Lee Carlisle, 30, was running to qualify for the Boston Marathon in April 2015. He has been trying to for several years.

“Its inspiring to see all the different types of runners from people with disabilities to senior athletes,” said Carlise.

With the predicted wind conditions runners knew that it wasn’t going to be a personal best race or a qualifying time race.

Temperatures were at a frigid 52 degrees and wind speeds up to 26mph. Officials said it was slowing down runners by five minutes on average.

“There’s no denying it was a beautiful fall day, said Carlise. “But for a marathon the wind was a bit much.”

Carlise said the most shocking aspect of the marathon was seeing competitors running without shoes on.

“Them some tough toes,” he joked.

Accompanied by his family, he had also been nervous they would miss his brother when large masses of runners came panting through at once. Dressed in a black hat, white shirt, and black shorts, they figured he would be easy to pick out in the sea of colors.

His mom, aunt, and sister had flown in from Ohio to join in cheering his brother on.

Carlisle thought it was heart warming to see all the fans cheering for strangers as a community, especially at a point where everyone is exhausted.

With reddened noses and jumping to stay warm, Carlisle shouted, “Hit the nos breh,” as he held a sign with the words colored on it.

The phrase is an inside joke between the brothers from the movie The Fast and the Furious.

Being at the 24^th mile, Carlisle chanted encouraging words at runners that looked like they were struggling.

To give them a boost he cheered their names and offered high fives as they passed by.

This is Carlisle’s first time seeing the race up close.

“It’s usually just another NYC road block on my way to work,” he said. “It’s so nice to see how supportive and friendly everyone is.”

Carlisle and his family picked their race location based on good photo opportunities and where the after parties would be.

“Marathon parties complete with mimosas and bloody marys,” he said.

Carlisle has never participated in a marathon before, but is currently training with New York Road Runners to train for next years.

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To view her multimedia package click here.

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Soaring temperatures on the first day of Spring made the famous Wollman ice rink in Central Park look like a swimming pool. But that didn’t prevent a few eager visitors from lacing up their skates and taking a few laps – even if it meant getting wet.

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Honking fowl may no longer be a common sound in New York City parks. The United States Department of Agriculture (U.S.D.A.) and City Hall plan for another round of goose killings this year, drawing criticism from residents ready to rally for bird rights.

“The people will be joining Hands around the Lake in Prospect Park, and that’s really to stand up for wildlife to say we care as New Yorkers,” said Patty Adjamine of the Upper East Side, a bird blogger and wildlife advocate. “We come to the park because we want to connect to nature. And to say that we can’t peacefully coexist with nature is distressing.”

The federal government collaborated with the city last year and implemented the Wildlife Hazard Mitigation Program, an effort to control what it called an overpopulation of geese. The U.S.D.A. along with the Federal Aviation Administration claimed the birds posed a threat to flights in and out of John F. Kennedy International Airport.

That decision incurred widespread public dissent, said Prospect Park spokesman Eugene Patron. After residents protested methods used to terminate the geese — sighting goose gassings as the main concern — Patron said this year, the parks will enforce a no-feed policy and oil unhatched eggs.

Still, Adjamine said such measures will not resolve the problem of overpopulation.

“If we left the geese alone, their population would stabilize,” she said. “They don’t fly all over manhattan or Brooklyn; they stay around a lake or a pond. So it’s difficult to see what the complaints are about and most of them are baseless.”

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