Two community advocates lauded by New Rochelle YMCA

Written by Greg Maker

Thursday, 25 June 2009 16:24

What do a radio pundit and the mayor’s assistant have in common? Thursday night, both were honored by the New Rochelle YMCA for their involvement in the 110-year-old organization in the south end of the city.
Bob Marrone and Angela Taylor were recognized by the YMCA for their contributions to “First Night.” The duo was also honored by the New York State Assembly as George Latimer (D-91st District) and Amy Paulin (D-88th District) were on hand to give out the awards.
“In the 60’s you had to have James Earl Jones’ voice or no one wanted you,” Marrone said. “If you grew up in Brooklyn with parents who grew up during the depression like me, you weren’t encouraged to do anything in the arts. Your best future was to go into civil services or go to school.”
Marrone followed this advice, graduating from St. John’s University before earning a certificate of management from Columbia. After a career which involved training schools and communications functions for organizations such as Merrill Lynch, he entered the world of broadcasting in 2002 as a stringer for Time Warner Cable. Marrone came to WVOX in 2007 where he currently hosts their morning show “Good Morning Westchester.”
“When I got into radio in the beginning I did a lot of national news,” Marrone explained. “I said I would do the local news as something that anyone who works for a living does when their boss wants it. The best part of this job turned out to be the local news.”
Past president of the New Rochelle YMCA Bennie Giles said that he listens to Marrone on WVOX every morning.

“Being i

n a marketplace like New Rochelle you are surrounded by large media groups,” Giles said. “You ask where the local media that can give you information is. If you listen you will find that there is so much news information, humor and things you’d like to know on this station.”
Angela Taylor moved to New Rochelle in 1998 after a successful career in events planning that saw her work with the likes of Madonna, Sean Penn and Gwyneth Paltrow. In 2007 she became Mayor Noam Bramson’s assistant.
“Angela’s professional standards put all of us to shame,” Bramson said. “She is an unbelievable organizer. She treats everyone who comes to the office or that calls on the phone with the utmost respect and courtesy whether they deserve it or not. She is fearless in offering unvarnished opinions and no one is better at arranging events.”
Taylor said that being given this award was “humbling,” adding that she is inspired by the commitment of the original pioneers who brought a YMCA to the city.
“I always wanted to be part of a community and New Rochelle has given me that opportunity,” Taylor said. “The YMCA has a spirit of outreach and inclusion that really touches my heart. The most humbling part is to be embraced by this community fulfilling my lifelong dream to be part of a community that values strong kids and families.”

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