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The Story of Astro
...in whose honor Astro's Community Dog Run was renamed in 2003
In 1986 Astro was born, one of a litter of thirteen pups, in the barrio of east L.A. His mother was a small shepherd mix and his father was "some big black dog from down the neighborhood." He spent his formative years in Pasadena, California, where he led a wild life, having run-ins with the law and sowing his wild oats. By 1988 he decided it was time to grow up and move east to the Big Apple. He loved New York and living near Central Park; he enjoyed the urban social scene of the dog run there. He soon moved to Hell's Kitchen where he loved the new smells, but missed the casual socializing of the park.
In 1994 the Hell's Kitchen Neighborhood Association was working on turning some vacant lots into public spaces. Astro saw an opportunity and lobbied hard to get one space turned into a dog run. At first many of the humans in the HKNA didn't even know what a dog run was. After years of meetings, planning, waiting and working with a great deal of help from Astro's friend Kostas Skrudies and his posse at the Port Authority, on May 2, 1998, the dog run at 39th and 10th finally opened.
Astro took great pleasure in the run and friendships he made there as he watched a community grow and the run improve. In 2001, just before Christmas, Astro passed away and is sorely missed by his family and friends. He would take great pride in the honor bestowed posthumously upon him by the community he helped to build.
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