Photo: QueensPost
July 19, 2011 By Christian Murray
The recent marriage equality vote in Albany inspired the management of
Molly Blooms Victorian bar and restaurant in Sunnyside, Queens to make a
generous offer: they decided to hold a raffle offering a free wedding
reception to one lucky same sex couple after gay nuptials become legal on
July 24.
The offer led a flood of entries from far and wide and on Wednesday
evening, July 13, 2011 a pool of over 40 couples gathered at the new bar
and restaurant to witness one couple win.
Janice Velten the popular mail carrier at Sunnyside Post Office for the
past 40 years, and her partner Patrice Pfirmann a civilian employee with
the police department, had their names pulled from the hat as the bar
erupted in cheers. These local Sunnyside residents have been partners for
the past 24 years. “I’ve lived here in Sunnyside for 24 years and my
partner Janice has lived here for 42 years,” Pfirmann said.
The free reception won by the couple will include a three-hour open bar
and buffet lunch at Molly Blooms with a world-class professional
photographer on site to record the sights and sounds of the big day. As
offers go, it’s a remarkable one.
“It is important to be part of this groundbreaking civil rights victory,”
Ciaran Staunton, owner of Molly Blooms, explained. “This is a wonderful
moment for New York State and all of its residents.”
The recently opened Molly Blooms restaurant and beer garden is home to
Sunnyside’s progressive community of writers, artists, Irish traditional
musicians, politicians and community activists. The Victorian style bar
and restaurant has already emerged as one of the most distinctive venues
in the five boroughs.
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33 Comments
Janice is the sister of my oldest friend. Congrats Janice and Patrice! The choices you have made about how and where to live your lives have made a big difference in the work of achieving justice and overcoming prejudice; you are who you are where you are. Courage and integrity. And faith in the lovingkindness of regular people. Read this please: http://www.care2.com/greenliving/cashing-out-of-the-game-of-life.html
Another awesome person of integrity.
Hope I see you again soon.
Jane
Congrats Janice! This couldn’t have happened to nicer people! We are so happy for both of you! -James & Dawn
But whats wrong with “Progressivism”?
Queens is the New . . . whatever, I think for myself. You, however, are into “racist, bigot, homophobe, blahblahblahblahblah.” You really have nothing to say. Nothing at all.
@local
When it comes to gay issues, there are a lot of people who want to be more politically correct than thou, lest they be accused of bigotry, homophobia etc … hence the tendency to cheerleading and conformity rather than objective reporting on these matters. Groupthink I believe it’s called.
Raquel…glad Glen Beck’s talking points are working out for you. You are a true genius.
Thanks, Christian! I really appreciate your candid response and the great work you do in general. I second everything Sunnygripe said above.
Thanks, Christian. We appreciate your blog and its standard of excellence. You are an incredible asset to our community.
Note to N.Dorg: bigots like YOU keep proving my point: and Margaret Sanger is considered an “idol” among “progressives”. BTW: do progressives not support eugenics? 90% of Downs Syndrome babies are aborted in the USA, of course, in the name of “compassion” as you libs would call it. Dead is dead. I guess you would support that, wouldn’t you? Yup, folks: anybody who dares to disagree with N.Dorg is a “bigot”!
uh, that would be…”your”….
And…that is how it is done. If only other “journalists” would follow you’re example, Christian.
Respect.
@Raquel:
Although it has its fair share of competition among your history of comments on this board, equating progressive politics with eugenics has to stand out as one of the most ignorant pieces of tripe to come out of your keyboard. Yes, you should spend your money elsewhere, and consider moving to a neighborhood without the gay people, liberals, and ethnic populations that infuriate bigots of your ilk.
I joinwith others in congratulating the happy couple, and hope that they see and take to heart the good wishes expressed by so many in this board, and ignore the nastiness of the smaller-minded residents of this neighborhood.
Hi Local,
The article was put together by me. It was done in haste and I did fail to meet the standards that I set when I created this site.
The site was established to be an independent voice that focused purely on the news.
The story in question does not necessarily support my views– it was done quickly.
I thank you for pointing this out. Sometimes we all need to be put in our place/corrected from time to time.
I would like to apologise,
Regards, Christian
“Progressive” – gee, I liked the place for the beer. But if they are going to push “progressive” (extremely liberal) dogma with their drinks, maybe I should spend my money elsewhere. Will they host a reception for somebody who has a late term abortion? Eugenics is part of “progressive” dogma also. Progressives such as Margaret Sanger did not believe that minorities (and that included Italian and Jewish immigrants) should reproduce.
I join “Sunnygripe Post” in tipping my hat to “local” for his/her astute observations. I wish I’d written what “local” did. In addition, I would caution the article’s author…and readers of it…to be wary of this word, “progressive”. It seems to be the new word of choice for those who previously may have described themselves as “liberal”. The history of “Progressivism” in this country, tied in as it is with Eugenics and other nasty forms of social engineering, would preclude my using the word to describe myself if I were still the Lefty I was for most of my life; but, to each their own, I suppose. Maybe those who refer to themselves as “progressive” should look into it. Just sayin’.
As for the editorial nature of the article…I would say that it is an exception for this site. Christian Murray and the SUNNYSIDE POST are true assets to our community. But, perhaps the article was written by someone new? Just askin’.
Well stated, Local.
Hey, I know those guys!
Just kidding. I do recognize them from the neighborhood. Congrats!
This is not a comment on the article itself — I think the marriage between these longtime partners is wonderful and that Molly Blooms should be cheered for offering the free wedding and supporting equal rights — but that aside…
This concluding paragraph:
“The recently opened Molly Blooms restaurant and beer garden is home to
Sunnyside’s progressive community of writers, artists, Irish traditional
musicians, politicians and community activists. The Victorian style bar
and restaurant has already emerged as one of the most distinctive venues
in the five boroughs.”
… seems totally out of place. That reads like ad copy. I know we are lucky to have a great free blog reporting on the news of the neighborhood — and penned by a dedicated actual journalist, no less — but that last paragraph really rubbed me the wrong way. Has Molly Blooms, lovely though it may be, really “emerged as one of the most distinctive venues in the five boroughs”? I’d say that’s a big stretch, but even if you disagree — that’s without question editorializing at best, and a paid promotion by Molly Blooms at worst.
I hope this site gains many advertisers and keeps on publishing for many years to come, but I also hope that — as readers who turn to this blog daily for news — we can trust that the line between editorial content and advertorial content will not be blurred.
Thanks for all the great work you do, Christian, and my sincere congratulations to Janice & Patrice and thanks to Molly Blooms.
I miss how cool Queens, New York was. Recently moved to the tropics, but here’s a long distance congrats!
Congradulations to the happy couple, many happy years of marital bliss, glad this site has updated us with this happy couple.this is the wedding we have been waiting for.
Congrats to the lucky couple. May you have many more years together.
Two members of our community – who have been partners for 24 years – finally get the same legal benefits that everyone else takes for granted.
Congratulations!
I have mixed feelings about gay marriage but these women seem nice. So, good luck.
Yay, Janis is our favorite! Duncan and the rest of us say congratulations!!!
Yay, Janis! We’re so happy for you both.
Congratulations to the happy couple! My wife and I are quite proud to see such great support from the community.
Congratulations to the winning couple!
Let’s hope the bartenders move faster than the postal workers at the Sunnyside post office. People will be dying of thirst if they don’t.
Congrats to one helluva a couple – All the best!
Congratulations Janice and Patrice! Here’s to a happy and healthy marriage!!!
awesome to janice & patricia!!! she’s ours carrier too!! she’s awesome with michael & hannah
Congrats to the lucky winners!
How wonderful! Janice is my mail carrier, she’s a lovely person. What a great thing for them both