This coming Wednesday evening, October 10, from 6:30 to 8:00 the Brooklyn Historical Society will present “Immigrant Women, Labor, and the Quest for Gender Justice,” in which award winning journalist and author Bernice Yeung will discuss her writings and work concerning the protection of immigrant women in the work force from violence, sexual harassment, and exploitation. She will be joined in discussion by three other women active in this field. More information here.

On Thursday evening, October 11 from 6:30 to 8:00, historian, biographer, and Brooklyn resident Ron Chernow, whose biography of Alexander Hamilton inspired Lin-Manuel Miranda to write the musical that became Broadway’s hottest ticket, will read from and discuss his latest work, Grant, a biography of Civil War general and U.S. President Ulysses S. Grant. More information here.

Here, in no particular order, are the people you, the readers, and we nominated for the Brooklyn Heights Ten for the past year, 2015.

Tracy (“Mrs. Fink”) Zamot and daughter Gracie: The sudden and unexpected loss of BHB’s founder, publisher, contributor, and guiding light John “Homer Fink” Loscalzo last April left all of us on the BHB staff in shock and grief, but the keenest loss was to his wife, Tracy, and their then four year old daughter, Gracie (photo by Jason Shaltz). With Tracy’s blessing, we have been able to carry on with the blog, though we miss “Homer’s” always pertinent and often witty contributions, as well as his keen sense of how the on-line world works, and his finger on the pulse of popular culture. As reader Mary commented:

If Homer was the mayor of BK Heights, Mrs. Fink is our first lady. The grace and honesty with which she shared her grief with us, while the neighborhood grieved with her, is deserving of more than this annual fun list. But why not?

We agree, while liking to think this is perhaps more than an “annual fun list”; we also salute Gracie for having endured a terrible loss at a tender age in a manner befitting her name.

Roy Sloane: Yes, he lives in Cobble Hill, but Sloane’s unflagging community advocacy–opposing, though unsuccessfully, the closing of LICH, which served Heights as well as Hill and other nearby residents; fighting against over-development in and around Cobble Hill that would put heavy stress on public facilities and infrastructure on both sides of Atlantic Avenue–drew praise from many readers.

Richard A. Somerby: An architect, interior designer, and contractor, as well as a painter and sculptor, the multi-talented Mr. Somerby, whose office is at 48 Henry Street, has been responsible for several very successful renovations and restorations of houses in Brooklyn Heights. His work at 55 Middagh Street is shown in the video above by our Karl Junkersfeld.

The Public School Advocates: There were several readers who supported including all of the members of the District 13 Community Education Council, who have dealt over the past year with the issue of re-zoning P.S. 8 and P.S. 307, along with many other challenges arising from the rapid population growth in Downtown Brooklyn and nearby areas. Special mention was given to the CEC’s chair, David Goldsmith, a former P.S. 8 PTA president; CEC member and Heights resident Amy Shire; and former P.S. 8 PTA co-president Ansley Samson.

Pepe Montero (photo above, by Heather Quinlan): He’s kept the last of the Heights’ longshoremen’s and sailors’ bars, opened in 1939 and moved once to make way for Robert Moses’ BQE, going since his father’s death some years ago. He may sell to a developer if one comes along willing to pay enough to him and his neighbors along the north side of Atlantic Avenue from Hicks Street down to the BQE on-ramp, but since these buildings are in the Brooklyn Heights Historic District, any developer’s options would be limited. Our guess is that Montero’s has more than a few good years left.

Bjork: She’s bought her ex Matthew Barney’s share of their penthouse at 160 Henry Street, so, unless she’s planning to flip it, it looks like she’s here for a while. She’s also a regular shopper at the Brooklyn Women’s Exchange. And, as reader StudioBrooklyn writes:

The lovely and talented Björk has, in addition to releasing yet another mindblowingly beautiful album “Vulnicura”, helped launch an app for iOS which may contribute to wider participation in new 3D interactivity with recorded media (in other words, VR). And she’s just awesome anyway.

The Brooklyn Bridge Animal Welfare Coalition: the BBAWC has been recommended by our Teresa Genaro because they “do a lot for the homeless/needy pets in the neighborhood.” Having seen their–I hope–successful adoption efforts (I do know that Lauren, manager of the late J. McLaughlin store on Hicks, adopted the kitten she’s shown holding in this post) I can only agree.

Robert Furman wrote the book on Brooklyn Heights history. What more can we say? Just what we’ve said here.

Dan Miller: StudioBrooklyn also suggests:

Another neighbor, Dan Miller, has been the lead guitarist for Brooklyn’s “ambassadors of rock” They Might Be Giants since 1998. This year marked a new milestone for the band’s prolific output, releasing something like one new song per week for the entirety of 2015, on top of a busy touring schedule.

Reader BHMommy calls Dan “a nice guy”, and to Mary he’s “a treasure.” Who are we to argue?

Ellie Bishop, and R.I.P. Patti Romp: New Jersey native and Vermont resident Patti Romp began selling Christmas trees in front of Key Food on Montague Street some years ago. See Karl Junkersfeld’s video here of Patti in front of Key Food, made in 2011. In 2014 Patti was too ill to make the trip from Vermont, so her daughter Ellie Bishop (photo) came instead. In October of 2015, we got the sad news of Patti’s death. Ellie was back right after Thanksgiving, with four children and a formidable looking but gentle mastiff named Spartacus. BHMommy sums it up:

I’m a big fan of Ellie, the Christmas tree lady in front of Key Food. She is so lovely and fills the neighborhood with Christmas spirit – even though she is only a Brooklyn Heights resident for 1/12 of the year.

This completes our BHB Ten for 2015. There were several nominees: “Captain Cleanup”; Mary Frost; Sami Rhum of Pet’s Emporium; and Ron Chernow, who weren’t included this year because they have been previous honorees, but that’s not to ignore their continuing contributions to the neighborhood. As we did last year with Judy Stanton, though, we would like to recognize a former honoree, Plymouth Church Historian Lois Rosebrooks, on the occasion of her retirement. The history of Plymouth Church plays a vital role in the history of Brooklyn Heights and of our nation. It is our earnest hope that the church will find a way to keep alive Ms. Rosebrooks’ ministry, and we wish her much happiness in her retirement.

Brooklyn Heights resident Ron Chernow, who won a 2011 Pulitzer Prize for his biography Washington: A Life, as well as a place in the Brooklyn Heights Blog’s Top 10 that year, has received the BIO award from the non-profit Biographers International Organization.

During a gathering May 18 at the Roosevelt Hotel in midtown Manhattan, Chernow, 64, spoke about some of his most famous subjects and how their public reputations often concealed a far more interesting private person: “Once upon a time, biography was a very formal, straight-laced affair. But nowadays we all expect the enterprising biographer to ferret out that hidden self.”

The BIO award is given for making a “major contribution” to the field of biography. Previous winners include Robert Caro and Arnold Rampersad.

Chernow’s other works include bios of Alexander Hamilton, J.P. Morgan, and John D. Rockefeller.

Each year, Brooklyn Heights Blog identifies ten people we feel have made a positive impact on the neighborhood. This year’s list is an eclectic mix of the fascinating personalities who make Brooklyn Heights a very special place.

And now the BHB Ten 2011.

Photo: Nation Parks Service

10. Lois Rosebrooks – Plymouth Church Historian: Since 2002, Ms. Rosebrooks has been the official historian of Plymouth Church. A self-taught historian, Ms. Rosebrooks single-handely keeps the church’s history alive – from the legendary Henry Ward Beecher, its role in the Underground Railroad to Dr. Martin Luther King’s 1963 “American Dream” sermon.

9. The Lost (and sometimes found) –  From the abandoned yorkie who found a home thanks to a BHB reader to the still-lost Willowtown cat Beebop or the shaggy poodle a reader reunited with his owner or  that errant Blackberry  still looking for its owner, the Lost (and sometimes found) earn a spot on the BHB Ten.   And who can forget “Otis” the one-armed something lost in Brooklyn Heights. Thanks to two big hearted BHB readers he was reunited with Luna his loving owner who had posted fliers around the nabe in her frantic search (photo).

8. Joe and Mary Merz – Architects, Willowtown Visionaries :  In 2010, the Willowtown Association honored Joe and Mary (who we lost in 2011)  by dedicating its annual fair to the couple.  In its announcement of the event the association wrote:  “Fifty years ago this year Joe Merz and his wife Mary started an architectural firm in their carriage house on Grace Court Alley in Brooklyn Heights. They met at Brooklyn’s Pratt Institute, from which they both earned degrees in architecture. They soon became the owners of four lots on Willow Place in the nearby Willowtown neighborhood. The city had razed the original deteriorated structures on the lots. The three new houses they designed and built there in “international style,” one of which became their own home, sensitively blended the new with the old while respecting the nature and scale of the historic community.

Throughout their meritorious careers Joe and Mary Merz pursued a similar vision even as they did the same for Willowtown and the wider community.”

7. Ron Chernow – Author:  Does winning a Pulitzer Prize get you on the BHB Ten?   Totally.  Mr. Chernow won the 2011 Pulitzer Prize for biography for his Washington: A Life.

6. Tony Manheim – Activist:  Mr. Manheim a pioneer advocate of Brooklyn Bridge Park continues to jump into the moshpit decades after he began fighting for the park.  In 2010 he was  named to the Community Advisory Council of the Brooklyn Bridge Park Corporation.

5. Julie Feinstein – Urban Wildlife Expert:  A Brooklyn Heights resident for over 20 years, Feinstein is also a collections manager at the Museum of Natural History.  In 2011, she published A Field Guide to Urban Wildlife and gave BHB’s Julie Kanfer a super-fantastic tour of wildlife at Brooklyn Bridge Park’s Pier One.

4. Dan Horan – Five Acre Farms: Montague Terrace resident Horan sells milk to grocers from farms within 275 miles of New York City with a personal touch. Each bottle is labeled with the name of the farm and farmers who produced the milk.   Read our profile of Horan here.

The Brooklyn Heights Promenade from Karl Junkersfeld on Vimeo.

3. Henrik Krogius – Brooklyn Heights Press Writer/Historian:  Like Martin Schneider and Otis Pearsall, among others, Krogius lived and fought through the battle with Robert Moses to save Brooklyn Heights.  Last year, Schneider shared his story in Battling for Brooklyn Heights.In 2011, Krogius writes about the twisted history of The Brooklyn Heights Promenade.

2. Kenn Lowy – Owner, Brooklyn Heights Cinema: After former owner Norman Adie’s sordid dealings came to life, it appeared that the Brooklyn Heights Cinema’s days were numbered. But the theater was saved by new owner journalist/computer guy/musician/activist Kenn Lowy. Under his watch, the theater is serving up a mix of important indie and major motion pictures as well as adding live music to the BHC calendar. Who knows what’s next – maybe some tasty snacks and bevvys?

1. Jerry Morin and Michael Davidson – Overtures: After 30 years, Morin and Davidson are closing their Hicks Street shop. Sad for all of us who loved shopping there but a very happy occasion for them. After decades together, neighbors familiar with the couple say they will marry (now that it’s legal in New York State) and travel the world. So, goodbye Mr. Morin and Mr. Davidson and thanks for all the gifts.

Ron Chernow, Heights resident and biographer of several important historical figures, including Alexander Hamilton, J.P. Morgan, and John D. Rockefeller, has been awarded the 2011 Pulitzer Prize for biography for his Washington: A Life.

New York Times: No American is so revered as George Washington, yet Mr. Chernow, 62, was troubled that “in recent years people had an image of Washington as wooden, bland and boring,” far from the “passionate, complex and sensitive man — dynamic and commanding and charismatic,” whose contemporaries viewed him as an authentic hero, the author said Monday.