LEGISLATIVE RESOLUTION honoring Joseph Amoroso upon the occasion of his
designation as recipient of a Liberty Medal, the highest honor bestowed
upon an individual by the New York State Senate

WHEREAS, It is incumbent upon the people of the State of New York to
recognize and acknowledge those within our midst who have made signif-
icant contributions to the quality of life therein; and
WHEREAS, From time to time this Legislative Body takes note of certain
extraordinary individuals it wishes to recognize for their valued
contributions to the success and progress of society and publicly
acknowledge their endeavors which have enhanced the basic humanity among
us all; and
WHEREAS, This Legislative Body is justly proud to honor Joseph Amoroso
upon the occasion of his designation as recipient of a Liberty Medal,
the highest honor bestowed upon an individual by the New York State
Senate; and
WHEREAS, The New York State Senate Liberty Medal was established by
resolution and is awarded to individuals who have merited special
commendation for exceptional, heroic, or humanitarian acts on behalf of
their fellow New Yorkers; and
WHEREAS, After graduating from the Vaughn College of Aeronautics in
1959, Joseph Amoroso went to work at Grumman Aerospace Corporation as a
Mechanical/Structural Aircraft Design Engineer in the Flight Test
Department; a position from which he officially retired in 1994; and
WHEREAS, During this time, Joseph Amoroso furthered his education, by
attending The Cooper Union School of Engineering under a full evening
scholarship; and
WHEREAS, Dedicated to his Flushing, New York, community, Joseph Amoro-
so started getting involved with the Kissena Park Civic Association in
1968; shortly thereafter, he joined his first committee, where he came
to the conclusion that zoning and zoning enforcement had a profound
effect on the quality of life of those living in his community; and
WHEREAS, Joseph Amoroso soon realized that the R3-2 zoning in a large
part of the area could be detrimental to the entire community, and
subsequently, decided to do something about it; and
WHEREAS, After meeting Paul Graziano, who was knowledgeable about
zoning, the two men proposed a plan for a logical zoning change; Paul
presented the plan to John Young, Director of City Planning for Queens
who felt it had strong merit; after the plan was presented to the City
Council it was reviewed by a Councilman, who eventually became instru-
mental in getting it passed into law; and
WHEREAS, For many years, Joseph Amoroso has served on both the Kissena
Park Civic Association and the Queens Civic Congress in the areas of
zoning and zoning enforcement; in addition, he has held numerous civic
leadership positions in various organizations; today, he serves as both
a Board Member and Chair of the Zoning Committee; and
WHEREAS, The Kissena Park Civic Association was first incorporated as
a not-for-profit organization on November 19, 1937, to foster, promote,
and maintain the civic and general welfare of the residents in the
community known as Kissena Park, Borough of Queens, City and State of
New York; promote and encourage improvements in the community, public
and private, affecting the residents of said community; to stimulate the
interest of the residents of the community in civic affairs; to hold
meetings and social gatherings for the better realization of these
purposes; and to do all things legal, convenient or necessary to carry
out these purposes; and

WHEREAS, Currently, this vital organization continues its efforts to
see that the Building and Sanitation Department codes are enforced to
help preserve the quality of life and property values of all of the
residents living in its community; and
WHEREAS, The Kissena Park Civic Association is a member of the Queens
Civic Congress, a group of over 100 Civic Organizations working together
toward common goals; and
WHEREAS, In May of 2006, Joseph Amoroso received an award from the
Queens Civic Congress for his diligent efforts in having been instru-
mental for encouraging zoning changes to his neighborhood and some
surrounding communities; and
WHEREAS, A decade later, Joseph Amoroso was the recipient of the
Outstanding Civic Leader Award by the Queens Civic Congress for his
steadfast and unremitting commitment to the Kissena Park Civic Associ-
ation; and
WHEREAS, Individuals such as Joseph Amoroso, devoted to improving the
quality of life for others, enabling them to build lives of dignity and
self-worth, are deserving of the highest praise and recognition; now,
therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That this Legislative Body pause in its deliberations to
honor Joseph Amoroso upon the occasion of his designation as recipient
of a Liberty Medal, the highest honor bestowed upon an individual by the
New York State Senate; and be it further
RESOLVED, That a copy of this Resolution, suitably engrossed, be tran-
smitted to Joseph Amoroso.