Young Leader, Big Dreams

---

District Leader  - RICHARD S. David

---

Citi Termite Control believes in the community it serves and is using its platform to bring IN Focus the ordinary and extraordinary people who work tirelessly and consistently, to shape our community to the Present Day. I am Sarah Bacchus and I will be navigating you as we seek these folks out, have meaningful conversations, and find out what role or roles they play to bring subtle yet substantial changes to the community we see everyday, the community that's growing with us.

Richard S. David is a Guyanese-born, living in Queens; New Yorker. He has lived here for 25+ years, Co-founded the Indo-Caribbean Alliance, which is a Welcome Center for newly arriving residents from Guyana and Trinidad. This Non-Profit Organization offers assistance with registering for Food, Housing, other public benefits, as well as, legal assistance, and cultural programs.  Mr. David has also serves in Politics as a District Leader in Queens. He's built relationships throughout the borough and finds himself in the midst of those whom we consider the Movers and Shakers in and out of our Community. Most recently, he's feature on the City and State 2024 Queens Power 100 List!

I caught up with Richard and spent a few moments talking about the imminent projects he's working on, as well as, how he sees them benefiting our community.

1 - SB: How do you describe yourself for the folks who've seen you but not sure of your Community involvement?
RD: My name is really Richard David and I did not change it to appear more American.  I get that often in politics, but it’s my family name. 
I've worked in Government for over a decade, then for private companies. I currently work for an Energy company and lead a Consulting Firm.
In addition, I am on the Boards of the Indo-Caribbean Alliance, Queens Library, and I served on the Community Board for 10 years. I am elected as a District Leader in Assembly District 31 in Queens. This is an unpaid position that I utilize to increase political literacy in New York. It's a position that aides in solving some of the challenges we as residents experience, on a daily basis. I live in South Ozone Park with my family and I feel blessed to have some amazing friends, whilst surrounded by a community I love. Working hard, constantly celebrating, and traveling makes me very happy and fulfilled. 

---

---

---

2 - SB: Would you say you're an individual who welcomes collaboration in our community?
RD: Yes, I enjoy collaboration, and often find that I can do a lot more together, than alone. The co-naming of Little Guyana was a collaboration, as was bringing funding to improve the neighborhood. Another more recent collaboration was Diwali becoming a public school holiday and getting Judges and other elected officials into office is always a collaborative effort.
I partner and support others regularly and I get their support in return. 
​
3 - SB: Children of today are our future! At your vantage point, how and what can we put in place to ensure that our future leaders have the right tools to continue growing this community and the communities they will live in? 
RD:  A lot of my friends are at a stage in their lives where they have young children and are finding it easier and potentially more affordable to raise them on Long Island. While those areas are diverse, they commonly run into challenges finding culturally relevant programming for their kids and as a result, return to the greater Richmond Hill area for classes, food shopping or for religious services. To keep families here, and to make them feel like their tax dollars are serving them, we can improve sanitation, reduce the fines and taxes on housing and on small businesses, and create more community centers with programming for kids and for adults.  

---

---

4 - SB: Since knowing you, you're constantly setting things in motion. What are you working on now, and, how do those things translate to a better Community in 5 or 10 years from now?
RD: I'm working on a few things:  
(1) As a District Leader I envision a more politically literate community in the next 5-10 years, and we are doing that by having better candidates run for office, having regular and consistent political conversations about what we stand to gain from the process, and having those in office invest more in our community. One of the biggest misconceptions I still hear is US Citizens who are registered to vote in New York who don’t have a political party affiliation - that means they can’t vote in primaries which are the most important elections. So we still have a lot of political education that is needed but people seem more open to discussing politics today than in the past. 
(2) I'm working on a project to document and celebrate the progress the community has made and presenting that to audiences outside of the community, and
(3) bringing programs and resources to the community through the Indo-Caribbean Alliance and a number of other organizations serving the community. We're more powerful, more educated, wealthier, and more involved in New York City today, than at any other point in history and we're poised for a great decade ahead.

5 - SB: For the adults reading this and wanting to give back to our Community, how can they become more involved?
RD: There are endless opportunities to create civic organizations or to join one if you want to improve the quality of life where you live. You can start clean-up drives and do them regularly or join one. You can find candidates to support, challenge elected officials in office to do more for the neighborhoods, or run for office, Yourself. Donating to organizations either financially or with your ideas or your time, remains valuable today as it did in the past.

6 - SB: What are some changes coming to our Community that our residents ought to be aware of?
RD: (1) If you rely on public transportation, the MTA is changing all of our bus routes and some of the changes may not be in your best interest.
For example, they recently removed the Q10 bus stop in South Ozone Park and residents had to fight for almost a year to get it restored. It was a brutal process, and the MTA showed little compassion for the hardship they caused. Being involved, will increase the chances that those bus routes you depend on will remain available to you.
- (2) Presidential elections are in April and November, and both are important to participate in. Then, we have elections for the City Council and those will be pivotal for the future of our community. We have to asks ourselves, are we currently being served properly? For instance, which candidates will best advocate for our interests in the next election. Not voting will only guarantee that your opinion will not count, so get involved.
- (3) Housing laws are currently unfavorable to both tenants and landlords in our neighborhood. Many of our families are now in housing court or have experienced the debacle. The housing laws are constantly changing and we have to keep monitoring the latest changes to protect ourselves and our investments. 

7 - SB: After these series of project involvement, what are your plans for the future, another run for office?
RD: I get asked that often, but I do not plan to run for office. I just don't see a path to victory for a candidate like me but if one comes up, I will be ready. In the meantime, I will continue to work hard and fight for what I believe in, as I've always done. 

​Conclusion- Thank you Richard for spending your time with us, allowing us to dissect your approach to Community Service.
You can find more on Richard David on his social links:
Instagram  |  Twitter  |   Facebook 
​
It's with great pleasure that we announce that Citi Termite Control will continue to bring In Focus the people in our community, who are aligned with our convictions of Community Service.
Citi Termite Control is especially proud to be one of those entities that continues to serve our Community, as it has for almost 30 years.

---

---

Written and Presented by Sarah A. Bacchus. Produced by Neil A. Bacchus.
​INFocus was created exclusively for Citi Termite Control by​ Stealth Productions LLC. 

---