Librado Romero, born in Los Angeles, in 1942, has been drawing and painting since childhood, exhibiting both photography and paintings in Europe, Mexico and throughout the United States. In 1965, after art school in San Francisco, he enlisted in the U.S Army and while stationed in West Germany, he was assigned as the Regimental Photographer. This marked the beginning of his fifty-year career in photojournalism. Upon returning stateside he was hired as a staff photographer for the Providence Journal. Two years later in 1969, he joined the staff of The New York Times, but resigned four years later to pursue magazine work. He worked for The New York Times Sunday Magazine, Newsweek and Time Magazines and others. In 1976 he was offered an opportunity to work as a consultant to El Sol de Mexico newspaper in Mexico City which he accepted and then decided to try his hand at painting full time and returned to his home-state of California where he opened and operated an art gallery in Venice. After that, he took a summer job with the Los Angeles Times and then settled into a staff position at the San Francisco Examiner where he remained for the next six years. In 1985 he returned to New York and was rehired at The New York Times where he worked until his retirement in 2013. In 2002, he was a awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Breaking News as a staff member of The New York Times’ series on “Race In America”. Lee is a Riverdale resident. He is presently spending his retirement painting full time in his Yonkers studio.

Join us as we meet Rondane Hollar. Rondane was born in Jamaica, and has lived in the Bronx for 30 years. He is a former radio producer & engineer at Whitney Radio in New Rochelle. Rodane has been involved in political & community causes, and has made philanthropic donations to causes such as the Democratic Party & Democratic campaigns, animal rights & causes, the environment & against climate change, women’s rights & causes, causes for children, children’s hospitals, causes for veterans, causes for the disabled, causes for the elderly, donations against diseases like cancer, ALS, Alzheimer’s, heart disease, donations against bullying & domestic violence, donations against poverty & homelessness, support for the Jewish community, etc. Rondane enjoys serving his community and meeting new people. Additionally, in his free time, he enjoys downloading & producing videos, playing video games, watching YouTube videos, going out to events, eating pizza, and most importantly, spending time withn his cat nephews.

Join us as we meet Celia Anzalone Bowers, Mrs. Tennessee International 2024.

Celia is the Founder and President of her non-profit, Lead with Love International, a published author, podcast host and TEDx speaker.

Join us as we meet Lea Torres.

Lea is a true Riverdale local. Born in the Bronx, her family moved to Westchester when she was 6 years old, but she is quick to point out that she went to Fieldston from PreK-12th grade, so Riverdale is who she is and what she knows.

Lea’s love for cooking and baking started at a very young age, she baked cookies and cakes with her mother when she was in elementary school. Christmas sugar cookies and carrot cakes were her favorites!

In late 2021, Lea began to sell cookie and brownie platters to her friends and neighbors for the holidays. It caught on, and people started asking if she could make more custom desserts for occasions, so in early 2022, she officially opened Lea Mommy Chef Treats to the greater Riverdale area. Lea Mommy Chef Treats has gone from a side hustle to a full time passion, making all kinds of cookies and brownies, cakepops, decorated treats and items for dessert tables.

Join us as we meet Mario Curanaj, owner of Salvatores of SoHo and YoBurger.

Salvatores of SoHo: 3738 Riverdale Ave, Bronx, NY 10463

YoBurger: 3726 Riverdale Ave, Bronx, NY 10463

Join us as we meet Peggy Garcia. Peggy is the founder of PrayEatLoveBake LLC, a small baking home based business, offering a wide range of sweet treats that are sure to satisfy your cravings, while sharing inspiration on her journey.

Peggy has always been passionate about being creative & creating through desserts has been a joyous experience for her. She enjoys & takes pride in making birthdays & holidays even more special & memorable.

Peggy is from the Riverdale section of the Bronx, and she promotes her creations through social media groups on Facebook & Instagram.

Make sure to check out her social media pages at PrayEatLoveBakeLLC on Instagram & PrayEat LoveBake on Facebook. For more information, you can direct message on the social media platforms or contact her at 646-793-3900 or via email at prayeatlovebake@gmail.com

Join us as we meet Noah Aris, The Cardamom Man.

“The Cardamom Man is something special to me because it encompasses everything I love about life into one delicious bite! So who am I? My name is Noah Aris and I am the founder of The Cardamom Man. I grew up in The Bronx, NY and come from an Israeli/Iraqi background. I consider myself very lucky for having grown up in New York City because it gave me the opportunity to be exposed to so many different types of food and cultures throughout my life. After I graduated from college I worked at various Hyatt hotels for a few years before joining a tech startup which catered to the hotel industry for another few years. These jobs enabled me to travel around the globe (I was on an airplane about 2-4 times per week at many points!) and gave me the opportunity to really dive into all these new desserts I was encountering with fantastic colors and strange yet alluring tastes. It was truly a dream come true for someone like me who has a HUGE sweet tooth! When I was younger I used to be a picky eater and as I've grown up and out of that phase, I've also discovered that not everyone around us has. I've also met many people who don't like to travel and who don't even have a passport! Creating and transforming new sweets and treats allows me to transport anyone willing to try them across the globe from the comfort of their home. I love to share the experiences I've had travelling all over the world, including living in NYC by using spices and flavors that turn your everyday desserts into quite the unexpected and simply sublime experience for your taste buds to enjoy!"

Join is as we meet Amaurys Grullon.

He is a multipotentialite artist and creative social entrepreneur based in The South Bronx and is the Co-Founder & CEO of Bronx Native & Tag Up Studios. He is a community leader elevating and moving the culture forward by way of his multiple business endeavors and the, Change the Narrative, non-profit dedicated to creating social change and creating equity for all. Amaurys has had the pleasure of collaborating with notable brands such as Nike, Paypal, NYCXDESIGN, Master Card, Netflix and more and his work has been featured in The New York Times, ABC, Business Insider, Forbes, and The New York Post and most recently graced the stage of the TEDx Bronx.