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The Daily Plant : Monday, November 26, 2001
RECREATION HOSTS THE YOUTH GAMES COMMITTEE IN NYC
Photo by Emily (Little Rhody) Brennan
From November 14 to 16, Parks hosted the fall planning meeting for the United States Youth Games, a 45-year-old program whose mission is to foster spirited competition between inner-city athletes, ages 15 and under, from across the country.
The Youth Games Executive Committee, made up of representatives from cities from Columbia, South Carolina to San Francisco, California, reviewed the 2001 Games in Birmingham, Alabama and looked ahead to 2002. They amended rules, discussed plans for the next Games in Newark, New Jersey and San Francisco, California. They adopted a Youth Games motto and added two sports to the competition: flag football for boys and volleyball for girls.
Throughout, Central Recreation assisted and entertained committee members. On Thursday, Emily (Little Rhody) Brennan, who serves as Executive Committee Member for Team NYC and Scotty Colson, Youth Games Executive Committee Chair, traveled to Staten Island to present Rescue 5 with a donation of over $4,000 dollars. This contribution from Maebashi, Japan, Birmingham’s sister city, came with a bundle of letters and a chain of 1,000 handmade paper cranes. The gift was entrusted to Colson to pass along to a deserving group in New York. The firefighters of Rescue 5, a division that suffered intense losses on September 11, have served for many years as volunteers in Parks’ afterschool and competitive sports programs. Lisa (Kita) Cooney, Director of Staten Island Recreation helped present Rescue 5 with this token of international friendship and support.
Special thanks to the Central Park Conservancy’s Dana Discovery Center and Thomas Jefferson Recreation Center for hosting the meetings; to Ed (Bullets) Feldman for taking time out of his day to discuss the intricacies of chess, which may be an exhibition sport in 2002; to the entire Central Recreation and Marketing Offices for helping with entertainment and transportation; and to Katie (Catalan) Langhammer, Darah (Chance) Ross, Bernard Robinson, Roberto Barreto, and James (Buddy) Keaton who were helpful participants in discussion sessions.
By Emily (Little Rhody) Brennan
THE FINAL SCORE: FLAG FOOTBALL 2001
On Saturday, November 17, Brooklyn’s Red Hook Park echoed with the cheers and chants of participants in the 2001 Citywide Flag Football Championships. Top teams from every borough met in Brooklyn to duke it out for the season title. During the regular season, 81 teams competed in 3 age brackets. On Saturday morning, the best 8 teams from the 8 to 11 coed teams and 12 to 14 boys bracket, and the top 2 teams from the 15 to 17 boys bracket played.
The day moved quickly; by noon, the first round had ended. Those teams that were eliminated received certificates of achievement and moved inside to the gymnasium of the Red Hook Recreation Center, which had been transformed into a cafeteria. Kids enjoyed hot dogs, hamburgers, corn on the cob, popcorn, and hot chocolate.
At halftime, Commissioner Henry J. (StarQuest) Stern proclaimed the event a success, and the St. John’s Cheerleading team performed for participants and guests. Below are the close and exciting scores of the championship games, which boiled down to bone-chilling endings.
In the 8 to 11 coed division, St. Mary’s beat J. Hood Wright 40 to 37. In the 12 to 14 boys division, Red Hook won out over Jackie Robinson 39 to 33. The 15 to17-year-old boys team from Von King claimed victory over Liberty Park, beating them 46 to 14.
Special thanks to Brooklyn Recreation Staff for hosting the event, to all the boroughs for coaching their teams and organizing the tournament, and to Central Recreation for their coordination and support. Teens at Parks, the Police Athletic League, the City Parks Foundation, and the NFL also helped ensure the event’s success.
Watch a webcast video from last years flag football event
By Aaron (Ghinda) Greenberg THIRTEEN YEARS AGO IN THE PLANT (Monday, November 28, 1988) HISTORIC HOUSES STAFF WELCOMES NEW PARKIE
Donald DeFillo has been appointed Chief of Parks’ new Historic House Restoration and Maintenance Crew, Commissioner Stern announced today. DeFillo will report to Art and Antiquities Director Adrian Benepe.
QUOTATION FOR THE DAY
"A school without football is in danger of deteriorating
into a medieval study hall."
Frank Leahy
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