April Simpson-Taylor (1962-2024) was a passionate and dedicated leader in her community and served as President of the Resident Association of the NYCHA Queensbridge Houses, the largest public housing complex in the nation, for almost a decade. This block on 12th Street between 40th Avenue and 41st Avenue was named in her memory in December 2024 and is located between the Queensbridge Houses and the Center of Hope and Urban Upbound where April Simpson-Taylor worked. As Resident Association President, she worked tirelessly to advocate for improvements and safer conditions throughout Queensbridge Houses. She actively pushed local elected officials and organization leaders to bring attention to the many capital and infrastructure needs and helped foster closer ties between Queensbridge residents and the surrounding neighborhood. In addition to her work with the Resident Association, she volunteered her time advocating for better services and resources for the unhoused and undocumented migrants and immigrants that increasingly called Long Island City their new home. She worked closely with Center of Hope and Urban Upbound to provide much-needed programming in financial literacy, free tax preparation, and business entrepreneurship training. She also worked as a substance abuse counselor at Samaritan Village. She received a number of city and state citations, awards, tributes and honorary recognitions by such organizations as the NAACP, Healthfirst, and Public Housing Associations nationwide.