🌱 Bayside Church Fire + Queens Teen Escapes From Sex Trafficking Ring

Hey, Queens! It's Monday, so let's get you started with everything you need to know going on in Queens today.

First, today's weather:

A passing afternoon shower. High: 52 Low: 43.

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Here are the top 3 stories in Queens today:

1. St. George Russian Orthodox Church in Bayside, Queens, caught fire Sunday morning due to an electrical problem. The Fire Department responded quickly and there were no injuries or damage reported. The service was able to continue using candles to light the mass. (WABC-TV)
2. The body of a mother of two was found stuffed inside of a duffel bag Saturday morning. Orsolya Gaal, 51, was found on a walking path in Forest Hills after police reported following a trail of blood leading from her house to the path. Gaal's 13-year-old son was brought into questioning and then released. Neighbors in this normally quiet, upscale Queens neighborhood are left shaken as police continue to search for evidence. This is a developing story. (New York Post)
3. A teenage girl from Queens who has been missing for six months found her way back home after reportedly escaping from a sex trafficking ring. The girl was 14 at the time she was reported missing and this weekend she turned up at a police precinct on Staten Island to report her kidnapping. The girl told officials she was drugged and sexually assaulted while being held captive with two other girls. (MyTwinTiers.com)

Today in Queens:

• Compost Build Community Volunteer Days 2022 At Queens Botanical Garden (9:30 AM)

From my notebook:

• Movie Nights are back at Queens Botanical Garden! This summer's series kicks off with Moana on Friday, Jun. 3. Each ticket comes with after-hours admission to the Garden, a $5 snack voucher, and a craft or performance (varies based on the featured film). This feature film will be paired with lei-making. (Facebook)
• Artist Stephanie Dinkins developed the app “Binary Calculations Are Inadequate to Assess Us” to examine and counter the biased nature of artificial intelligence and algorithms, specifically those that control our relationships, governments, and institutions. As part of her installation at the Queens Museum, users are asked to donate pictures and texts that honor their own lives, cultures, and values. (Facebook)
• Join Bobbi & the Strays on Apr. 21 at the Javitz Center during the New York Car Show where they will be partnering up with the Subaru Loves Pets exhibit. Come meet your new best friend as there will be many adoptable furry friends there! (Facebook)

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Events:

• FREE WEBINAR | Renaissancing Renoir (April 19)
• First NYS Licensed Esthetic School to open in Westhchester in almost two decades (April 21)
• God's Way, a play by Dahlia Harris April 14 - April 24 (April 24)
• The Learning Experience- Summer Camp Ages 2-10 years old (April 29)
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Alrighty, you're all caught up for today. I'll see you around!

— Miranda Fraraccio

About me: Miranda Fraraccio is a born and raised Rhode Islander, now living in New York. She works as a staff writer for content creation agency Lightning Media Partners and is a graduate of The University of Rhode Island, where she earned a degree in Writing & Rhetoric and Communication Studies. In her free time, you can find her traveling, drinking tea, or photographing her neighborhood as a street photographer.