
New York City Gold Medal Awards 4th Ceremony

( NYC Board of Education Photo / WNYC Archive Collections )
Mayor Wagner presents the mayor's medal for excellent performance in the service of the city. The mayor's medal was established in 1962 for achievement in the contributions to the welfare of the people to New York City. It is a high honor.
The first medal goes to Nathan D. Brodkin, the chief engineer of NYC Transit Authority and the second to Jerome B. Trichter, assistant New York City health commissioner.
Other speakers include Dr. George James, from the Department of Health and Joseph P. O'Grady of the NYC Transit Authority.
Robert Dowling is the emcee for the event.
Audio courtesy of the NYC Municipal Archives WNYC Collection
WNYC archives id: 150565
Municipal archives id: T1246
This is a machine-generated transcript. Text is unformatted and may contain errors.
Ladies and gentleman Zauner the mare's joined us from. The stainless gas award when I was just a man like you to know that this year. Forty two. The province sent in nominations to the awards committee on the seventy. Seven labor and professional groups all together one hundred nominations were received this is the largest number we've ever had quite a job to reduce. And take from among those who. Were of top quality to. Not at all easy I would like to say that those. Were numerous A might very well be recommended in another year and might very well be receiving. A new years to come I like to remind you all that this is the fourth annual awards ceremony and that there previously been six who have been honored in this way I'd like to call it the city's own Hall of Fame and so welcome to Day two. Of that hall of fame you know that the awards are given for the demonstration. Of. Excellence a particular. Dedication and a man who is perhaps had the most important effect on a major city departments efficiency and effectiveness and so Mr Mayor I ask you now it's yours. Podium and present the medals and citations. Doesn't always. We didn't want to Jules it would be second because there's no difference in the. Alphabetically health comes before transit but also alphabetically. Man when. I'm off. The medal. Citation Thank you Robin Dally because of the transit authority. Grady Little. Dance can all. James said Langham. Personnel Director and ladies and gentlemen I'm very delighted to be had to present the mayor's medal for distinguished performance in the service of the city to two outstanding employees who have been selected for this distinction and I want to thank Dr Luke the Gillick Deputy Mayor Ed Cavanaugh Mr Robert Dowling Mr not gamble and Dr Lang for their assistance in selecting the award winners I also express my appreciation to the agency heads into the civic professional and labor organizations who nominated so many of our outstanding employees for this award and they has met a legend I was established in one thousand nine hundred sixty two is the highest honor that the city could bestow on employees for achievement and contributions to the welfare of the people of our city. This ceremony today is designed not only to honor and reward to fine civil servants but also to call public attention to the accomplishments of the entire civil service and in particular to the highest civil service to the men and women who have dedicated their lives to the operation of the city services and who as administrator manages and professionals do the day to day work in developing programs solving problems and handling the essential business of us setting the problems of the world's great cities a major concern to concern for the cause of democracy it is generally accepted today that the most difficult governmental problems are those which face the cities of the nation and as mayor of the city for almost twelve years I can testify to this and then only on a day I have played a major roles in two of the most difficult areas of public responsibility public health and public transportation the life of the city and its people depend upon the effective handling of these two fields of responsibility. When it is have developed in administered creative and effective programs in these two crucial areas and I know that you present here today share with me of feeling a pride in the dignity and stature that I. Have brought to the city service during long careers have earned the loyalty respect and cooperation of some barriers and subordinates while they followed a single minded purpose to improve a city and it is with pleasure that I asked to award when it is. The New York City Transit Authority. Joined me here at the front of the room and. With great appreciation that we present this medal for outstanding service but before I present the citation with the company's the medal I would like to read it. And I have it down here so I put my glasses on. For outstanding performance in the service of the city of. Its contributions to the efficiency and quality of the city's transportation services for its people. And. Has with great engineering ingenuity and exceptional administrative. Supervise the design and construction of very complex projects for mass transportation he said Vance planning and coordination. Have to be executed with a minimum of inconvenience to passenger and surface traffic. In the transportation system which will be estimable to the people of. This personal appreciation. One hundred sixty five and signed by myself. With the darling. Of the transit authority I would be extremely remiss. If I did not acknowledge the help. And cooperation of the hundreds of able and dedicated engineers in the service of the city of New York and the New York City Transit Authority this is a debt which I can. Express my deep feeling for I also want to acknowledge the patience the understanding and encourage him and. The members of the transit authority without which I could not have accomplished the work symbolized by this award and I also want to acknowledge the inspiration given to me by my late wife thank you thank you. For a great. Case and this is. His medal for outstanding performance in the service of the city of New York is awarded to. His contributions to the health and safety of our city and its people of America highest commendation he has distinguished himself in the Public Health Service the dedication steps of judgment and extraordinary ability to. Public health. Pioneering educational and preventive public health programs have been adopted throughout the world and contributed significantly to the international reputation for excellence by the city's public health services the personal appreciation. Signed by myself. A certain extracurricular activity which I sometimes engage in made me to the awareness that the sting wished to form and invariably is dependent upon a distinguished audience I would like you to meet part of that distinguished audience Jeanne my wife. Teddy Jack and Linda. As the man it was eight years ago that you stood at this point and convened a group of city department heads representatives of utilities and community leaders and asked them to do something about the problem of gas poisoning in New York City your participation in this program led to the conclusion that inevitably occurred and that was that at that time there were some two hundred fifty gas poisoning death a year in New York City and last year as a result of this and very many others in which you are personally involved there were no carbon monoxide poisoning deaths so this means to me a special honor to receive this reward from you was but at the forefront and fighting for our kind of good government all the kids I appreciate this very much Mr Mayor as for the part of my distinguished audience Dr James the commissioner of the members of the Board of Health Dr Thomas General Brown to was in charge of the world's bad health department Dr Melton help and was also here at that meeting along with my associates in the department who have been a stimulus. Critical evaluation for me finally inspiration and a source of considerable hope to all of you my deep appreciation I would like to say that I'm going to share them with you but I really don't want to I want to keep it all to myself one other person who. Worked in the. Office to me many times banks which I do not does my secretary Miss O.E. and as an indication of her critical evaluation I may point out that when there was a discussion with him as representative about this matter she wanted to know what diamonds and that. Is how I would just stand up. To the metal was can paste in Lucite she still persisted and want to know whether that were done if there is anything in the work that we have done and these past but lessons it is you distinguish audience distinguished people. All of you that have made this performance possible thank you. Mr your permission I'll call upon the head of the department that's been honored. Those of the old lady chairman of the greatest railroad in the world. The mayor of the. Mr James. Fellow commissioners and the transit authority. My many fellow workers in the transit authority who are here today and ladies and gentlemen I think there's very little that I could add to what the mayor has already said which justifies the award to Mr Brock in a level I would not want and I'm sure my fellow commissioners and those who work with me would not want this occasion to pass without personally expressing to the brought in and all of those in his engineering department and all of those and all of the departments work. To give the transfer of authority the reputation that has in the transfer of Mr Broad work in this area close to forty four. He worked on some of our subways and the city in the arc he heads up a very large engineering. We rely on him completely for our engineering advice and guidance and I tell you that his advice and guidance is always dictated by what is best for the people of the city and the France of the. Most. Congratulations of my fellow commissioners and myself and of your fellow workers on this very. Exciting day. May we hear from Dr George. Head of the greatest. In any city anywhere thank you. That gives us. Distinguished commissioners and friends. Next year it will be one hundred years that the city health department has been in existence that has been my privilege to join with and honoring a man whose career has spanned more than a third of this total period and I can honestly say in my opinion no person during these hundred years has done more that will leave a more lasting imprint upon the health of the people of our city Mr tricksters had the unique ability to start from the concrete from the emergency and to solve the emergency but to do it in a way that he never had to solve that existing emergency again he has always been able to learn from experience and from it develop the kind of program which would prove that the difficulty summarizing in the future he himself has mentioned the gas poisoning episodes began fifteen years ago and had its ramifications right on through he could've mansion many many more. Where he alone stood between the population of the city and a large back of contaminated I'm known contaminated. Which no one anywhere in the country had the temerity to condemn except missed a trick there and later on that at least ten cans of this material would have caused death in this city and undoubtedly many lives we say he worked with the early days in developing emergency service which developed into the poison center whereby more than twenty thousand calls I received a year about the hundreds of household chemicals in our own homes which can cause death and serious illness because of the poison center now being carried out by members of the staff and enormously successful program prevention of death and that has occurred. But despite the fact that Mr Specter is one of the most foremost public health statesmen of our era despite the fact that people the length and breadth of this entire nation call upon him for advice and guidance despite the fact that all of the manufacturers of restaurant equipment in the country have taken their leadership from him and members of his staff establishing the newer models of such equipment despite all these things we department think of him the most and I know the Board of Health. As a great humanitarian a person who while he's dealing with the experts while working in the country with the major programs while he is developing things in the future which are going to be better for public health nevertheless likes to wants to and does visit the individual homes that are slums sit on the chairs side by side with the tenants goes all the with them what their problems are give them as phone number ask them to call them if they don't get satisfaction this is a man who does this not for headlines because he wants to and I think all of us and health department when it came time to think of someone whose career was worthy of this great renown couldn't help but putting Jerry first on our list thank you. Mr Mayor and ladies and gentlemen I would be remiss if I did not call your attention to this doctor. Was a member of this jury and is here today I salute you this is a great privilege to have been with you it's a great privilege to participate and. A gentleman my. Best wishes for all contestants and to the men who want to thank you.