In New York state, more than 3 million people are living beneath the federal poverty line. From 2007 to the present, that number has increased by 11 percent, according to federal census data. Comments (9).

Chester, a 9-year-old purebred West Highland Terrier owned by Sloane of Douglaston, is the winner of this edition of the TimesLedger Newspapers’ Queens Critter contest. Chester is mischieveous, the entry said. Comment.

The PS 98 PTA’s annual spring fund-raiser will include all the things one would expect from an evening themed “Casino Royale”: craps, Black Jack, Texas Hold ’em, booze — everything, that is, except for the “G” word. Comment.