It was a historic day in the City of Yonkers this week as Mayor Mike Spano, the Yonkers City Council, along with local State and County leaders, joined with friends and family of Bernice Spreckman to rename the Coyne Park Senior Center after the legendary former Yonkers City Councilwoman and County Legislator.
The Bernice Spreckman Community Center will now greet seniors as they enter the McLean Avenue senior , a fitting tribue to Spreckman who became the major protector and representative on the County Board for seniors not only from Yonkers, but across Westchester County.
Spreckman served as a Westchester County Legislator for more than 20 years representing the County’s 14th District, which includes parts of Yonkers and Mount Vernon, and also served on the Yonkers City Council in the 2nd Ward for three terms. Spreckman was the Chairwoman of the County Board’s Seniors and Constituents Committee and served as Yonkers’ Senior Affairs Liaison during Mayor Spano’s administration.
Bernice Spreckman was a great public servant and an unyielding advocate for senior citizens in not only Yonkers, but in all of Westchester County. This historic building with so many memories will forever be dedicated to a woman who committed her life to the betterment of our community.
“Bernice was not only a former county legislator, but she was a spark plug in our community,” said Mayor Mike Spano. “She was a tremendous public servant and unyielding advocate for seniors. It’s only right we rename the Coyne Park Senior Center to the Bernice Spreckman Community Center, for a woman who dedicated her life to not only our seniors, but for the betterment of the community.”
Spreckman was a one-of-a-kind politician who was also a true Yonkersite. At her funeral, former City Council President Liam Mclaughlin told a story about his mother calling Bernice on a snowy day, complaining that her street had not been plowed. Shortly thereafter, the plow came to do its job, with Bernice sitting next to the driver in the snow plow!
During Bernice’s memorial service, Spano reminded attendees of the time he was in the State Assembly and Bernice brought busloads of seniors to Albany to fight for prescription drug coverage. She is in large part responsible for the passage of bills making it easier and cheaper for seniors to obtain the prescription drugs they so desperately need, he said.
That is what she is remembered for, and will be remembered for now as her name adorns a senior center in her city. But she should also be remembered as one of the last non-partisan politicians. Eric Schoen wrote: “We talked about Democrats, Republicans and everyone else. If she didn’t like you, it didn’t matter. But if she liked you, she would take you under her wing and that was a true blessing.”
On the County Board of Legislators, Bernice was her own caucus. Even though she was a Republican, she voted her conscience and what she thought was right for the people she represented in Yonkers and a part of Mt. Vernon, regardless of party.
“Bernice taught us a lesson politicians from Yonkers to Westchester to Albany to Washington need to learn,” wrote Schoen. “It’s people, not politics. Our elected officials need to work together to solve the problems of our county and stop the partisan bickering.”
Because of the respect she got from her constituents, she was the most popular politician in Yonkers for decades. The voters loved her because she was honest and she was real. Her granddaughter Jaclyn Paler gave her a fitting tribute at the senior center renaming.
Congratulations to the Spreckman family on a well-deserved honor.
