Leader of her block

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It may be difficult to imagine a street where new neighbors are welcomed into their homes with the enticing smell of freshly baked goods, but such warm-hearted deliveries are standard practice on the 700 to 800 block of Hoffman Street. Owing mostly to the thoughtful ministrations of block captain Drema Ricco, residents both old and new can look forward to much more than the promise of pastries straight from her oven.

“I moved here a little over a year ago,” Julie Robinson, one of Ricco’s neighbors, said in her nomination letter. “I am positive she is a big part of why my block is so pleasant and liveable.”

Ricco has been a block captain for close to 22 years. During that time, she has been the driving force behind street cleanups and block parties, for which she has been known to cook enough food to feed every family from corner to corner.

“When I first became a block captain, there was an empty lot across the street from me,” Ricco said. “We made it into a pizza party, where we got both the adults and the children involved in cleaning the lot before somebody bought it.”

Together, they cleared the area of rubble and took photographs to commemorate the occasion. More recently, she spent nine hours cleaning out an alleyway with the help of a new neighbor in order to allow for easier access for the police and fire departments.

Ricco acts as an effective mediator whenever problems arise, while in her spare time she can be found offering friendly visits to residents who may be feeling under the weather.

“There’s already enough war overseas,” Ricco said on the need for others to get involved in community efforts. “We don’t need more here. We need to be more peaceful … I consider my block to be United Nations, because we have a little bit of everybody.”

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