5th Annual Challenger Game

It was a back and forth swish fest on the hard top.  The South East Consortium Hawks met at the Westchester County Center for a full court inter-team friendly match last Tuesday evening.

Friends and family were in attendance as the divided Hawks played the fifth annual Challenger Game. The full court game had all the fixings of a pro- event; score board lit, two zebra striped officials, booming announcers commentating on plays and blaring pop music between periods. All that was missing was Spike Lee in the front row.

It was a nail biter from the tip off. The score was tied after the 1^st, 2^nd and 3^rd periods. With 20 seconds to go in the fourth Alex Pflaum got the personal foul but it was too little too late. The Hawks team under the coaching expertise of John Farrell pulled off a down to the second victory 44-40.

Both Hawks team have so much to be proud of. The high scoring game was a result of sound game mechanics, some incredible 3-pointers and hustle and determination from every player on the court.

It wasn't just the usual Hawks crew soaring up and down the court. Both teams saw some new, but hopefully returning, faces donning the blue and white strip. Meg Lewis, Gabriel Mineard and James Beveridge laced up their sneakers to take part in this exciting event.

The Hawks look forward to their next event taking place in May against their rivals North East who they narrowly lost to last year. 

Special Olympics Swim Meet 3/22/14

The Sharks were in the water and were on the hunt for gold.

This past Saturday members of the South East Consortium Sharks Swim team competed in the 2014 Stephen Sturgis Memorial Aquatics Competitions.

The competition, held at White Plains High School, hosted several swim clubs from around the area including North East, YWCA, White Plains Park and Recreation and the Mamaroneck Star Fish.

The Sharks had been focusing on their freestyle, backstroke and team relays at practice and it definitely showed this weekend. The team took home 7 gold, 4 silver, 4 bronze and placed in every other event they were entered in.

Additionally the two relay teams entered both came out of the pool wearing gold for their efforts.  There was definitely some sore necks from all that hanging metal the next day!

Every athlete improved their personal best times recorded at practice. Some new comers to the event made a real splash. John MacAulay showed up big time on Saturday motoring through the 50 free style with a time of 40:41. Zoe Smith’s debut was met with much success in the 25 Free and 25 backstroke.

Both South East Consortium’s relay teams flexed their muscle cruising easily to first place in the 100 meter relay event. The relay teams were comprised of Matthew Teator, Andrew Myers, Danny Maloney, Ryan Urquhart. The second team was made up of Carly Horowitz, Nikita Afanasiev, JD Stiner and John MacAulay.

The Sharks will be heading up to compete at West Point Military Academy on April 26^th.

St. Patrick's Day Dance

Our dances continue to be a big success! Everyone has a great time and leaves with a smile on their face. This St. Patrick's Day dance was no different!

You could see a sea of green shirts on the dance floor while all that attended danced the night away to the great music the DJ was playing. The only break many participants took was to enjoy a slice or two of pizza. It was a great night socializing with friends, something we always love to see here at South East!

Tee-Up For South East 2014 Letter

Dear Friends,

Tee-Up for South East A Big Success Because of You!

Four years ago a small group of families and friends founded Tee-Up for South East, a golf outing for the purpose of raising money to help defray the cost of programs and services offered by South East. The event had its fits and starts at first - we made some mistakes and stumbled into some good luck, but overall the event has continued to grow in success and has netted nearly $150,000 so far. Thanks to the generosity of our event sponsors, golfers and banquet guest, last year’s event raised enough money for South East to procure a new 14 passenger bus which should be in service this June.

This event has now become very important to South East. It not only generates substantial revenue that is essential to sustaining the quality of our programs, but it also allows for the creation of new and expanded programs to accommodate an ever-increasing number of families seeking services. The 4th Annual Tee-Up for South East will be held on May 19th and, once again, we need your help and participation.

If you are a golfer please plan to put together a foursome for an enjoyable day of golf. If you are not a golfer please plan to attend the reception/banquet at the end of the day and enjoy the festivities.

A vital part of the golf outing is attracting various levels of events sponsorships and individual hole sponsors which are listed on the registration form. And, of great importance, is finding donated items for our silent auction - unique items with high appeal that will excite our auction bidders! If you can help with items such as goods and services, tickets to sports or cultural events, vacation packages, golf experiences or restaurant packages - it will greatly benefit South East.

So there are plenty of ways you can help South East with this golf outing. Please let me know if you have any ideas or questions on how to become involved. Great to have you with us!

Jerry Peters

Click Here To See How You Can Get Involved

Clay Workshop added to Spring Registration

We were able to add a Clay Workshop to our Spring schedule this year. If interested please print our the flyer/registration form for this event, fill it out and send it to us as soon as you can. Space is limited, this will be a first come first serve basis.

Totally Teens

Our Totally Teen group met this past Friday for a night filled of fun, games and hanging out with friends. There were two movies to watch ("Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2" and "Despicable Me 2") along with games to play such as ping pong, pool and various gaming systems. For dinner we had Pizza and then we celebrated Diane's birthday and had cake for dessert. Everyone that came had a great night and a lot of fun, it was the perfect way to kick off the weekend.

Junior Games: A Day of Play and Celebration

Just having fun and enjoying each other was the essence of Junior Games when over 50 kids , age 4 to 10,  teamed up with “buddy” student volunteers from The Master School in Dobbs Ferry to play, laugh and come together for a series of different activities that were engaging, stimulating and just good old FUN!

This year South East rekindled its relationship with the prestigious school and on March 8th dozens of our families from across lower Westchester County were treated to a day of different events including face painting, lunch, music, different games and activities and a ribbon ceremony at the end of the day.

One mother of a young participant, Catherine Hunt of Larchmont, summoned up the day this way. “Thanks once again for a most fabulous day.  We loved it and yes, William slept very well.  William loved Elmo and Sam (“buddy” volunteer) was amazing, kind, thoughtful and really made a big effort to engage with William so a huge, huge thank you is in order.  I can’t say how impressed we were with the care and love that went into the event and with everything you all do.  We love South East!”  

Monster Jam!!!

The Magical Mystery group started the days adventure at the Mamaroneck train station. We took two trains to our final destination in Bridgeport, CT. After arriving we took the short walk to Webster Bank Arena and with our Pit Passes in hand we walked right into the mud covered grounds where everyone had a chance to meet the Monster Truck drivers, get pictures and autographs. 

Later we ate lunch and got ready for the main event. Some even choose to get souvenirs of their favorite Monster Jam Trucks to help cheer on drivers while preforming all their cool tricks. We were anxiously waiting in our seats when the clock started to count down the official start of Monster Jam on the screen in front of us. Soon all the trucks came out and gave all of us an amazing show.

Everyone seemed to leave the arena with smiles on their faces. We walked back to the Bridgeport train station and settled down with some hot chocolate and a snack as we waited for our train to take us back home. It was another fun and exciting day on the Magical Mystery Tour.

Leprechaun Leap Declared a Success Despite “Icy” Problem

Two weeks before the 2^nd Annual Leprechaun Leap was to be held at Harbor Island Park in Mamaroneck it was learned that massive formations of ice, some sections being 9” thick, had frozen into place on the beach and waterfront, essentially making the “leap” area inaccessible.  The entire event was threatened with cancelation if a solution couldn’t be reached and that’s not anything South East likes to do!

So organizers (mainly Mark Ballantyne and Jack Reisman) concocted an alternative plan that would call for participants to “slip, slide, and splash” rather than “leaping” into the chilly Long Island Sound.

With only two weeks to develop the alternative plan (and always keeping an eye on the pending weather forecasts), the Village of Mamaroneck Fire Department graciously volunteered its services to provide a pumper truck to fill inflatable pools and a ladder truck to water down the huge slippery tarp area.

Over 67 participants signed up for the event and, from all accounts, everyone had a totally great time.  In fact, most of the younger participants, especially those representing Mamaroneck High School, felt this was a great “alternative” and we should stick with it next year.  Who knows? 

South East wants to thank all the participants and volunteers who made this event such a success.  The event raised over $15,000 which will go directly to providing programs and services to our participants and their families.