Crown Heights Street Named After Late 'Carnival Queen'

CROWN HEIGHTS, NY — After four decades of work preserving and promoting Caribbean culture in Brooklyn, Joyce Quamina's legacy will be forever memorialized on President Street and Nostrand Avenue.

After a ceremony Saturday afternoon, the intersection is now known as "Joyce Quamina's Way," recognizing the late local's dedication to the West Indian American Day Carnival Association and the Crown Heights community.

"She'd be smiling and she'd say 'oh god!'... in her Trinidad voice," Quamina's daughter told News 12.

The renaming process, meant to honor people who have made "extraordinary" contributions to a community for 10 years, was hugely expedited, Council Member Crystal Hudson told to News 12. The process that normally takes two to three years took only 6 months.

Quamina, who died in 2022 at 85-years-old, is credited with spearheading beloved local traditions, like Children's Carnival, and a steelband fundraiser and Brooklyn's Boys and Girls High School.

Quamina worked with the association for over 40 years, educating youth and adult neighbors on Caribbean culture, Caribbean Life reported in 2022.

“Her eyes saw many transitions, her wisdom guided us through many successes, she taught us the importance of listening to, respecting and honoring those who came before us,” said the West Indian American Day Carnival Association at the time of Quamina's death.