Remembering Miguel Serrano

When National Arts Club doorman Miguel Serrano died in August 2014, neighbors remembered far more than a person at a doorway. The Gramercy Park Block Association’s letters recalled thirteen years of greetings, conversations and friendships around the Club.

The recollections described the ordinary encounters that make a place feel like a neighborhood: stopping with a dog, introducing a new child, and finding someone glad to see you. The accompanying photograph shows Serrano with Arlene Harrison at the Block Association’s June 2013 gathering at the Club.

Harrison’s tribute also credited Serrano with speaking publicly about concerns at the National Arts Club during a difficult period in its governance. She described helping connect his information with journalist Amy Zimmer and sharing the resulting coverage.

An August 8 follow-up invited neighbors to contribute reflections for a remembrance book to be sent to Serrano’s family. It also recorded a memorial outside the Club.