After ten successful years, Gwendolyn Wilson, our Director of the Older Adult Center (OAC), announced her retirement last month. Gwen began her journey with Riis as an administrative assistant in our Older Adult Services program. In 2018, she was promoted to engagement coordinator for our NSTAT program— a key initiative in the Mayor’s Action Plan for Neighborhood Safety (MAP)—and assumed leadership of our older adult center in 2020. Throughout her time at Riis, Gwen helped lead many vital community initiatives, including our ongoing voter engagement project and several public safety projects with the MAP NSTAT. She received many accolades for her work, including the Community Advocacy Award from United Neighborhood Houses of New York.
While we were sad to say goodbye to Gwen, we are thrilled to announce her replacement: Frank McCrea. Frank has had an extensive career with the New York City Department for Aging (DFTA) that has spanned 24 years, bringing a wealth of knowledge and experience to his role at Riis. Although Frank officially joined Riis this year, he has worked closely with our Older Adult Services team as a community advocate in DFTA’s Grandparent Resource Center for the past decade. He has also advocated for many Queensbridge residents under the MAP. We are thrilled that Frank has joined us and look forward to working with him more closely.
