Fall 2018
The End of Another Great Summer Social Season at the Club!
Labor Day Week End Another summer is nearly over at the historic Racquet Club on Park Hill (PHRC) in Yonkers. The pool closed just after the Labor Day week end festivities, when members and guests enjoyed their annual holiday tennis tournament (see results below) and club Director Robert Moment, helped by Kate Waters and Steve Spiegler, organized a big barbecue of hamburgers, hot dogs, brats and side dishes for the 75 adults and children who signed up to attend. The pool, as usual, proved a very welcome diversion, especially for the kids, right up until Labor Day, especially with the hot and sultry 90+-degree weather the region endured for many weeks in August and into early September. A Busy Summer of Barbecues and Tennis These holiday activities were the culmination of a very active summer of week-end barbecues, numerous parties and morning-till-night tennis on the club’s beautiful red-clay courts, which are the envy of teams from other clubs. Directors Renee O’Hanlon and Patty Gamba worked hard recruiting families to host the Friday-evening barbecues.
Meanwhile, the Tennis Committee organized the annual fun and serious tennis tournaments and the well-attended Sunday afternoon round-robins. Thanks to Patty Gamba for her daily bulletins informing Monday-to-Friday morning players of court conditions after rains the day before. And thanks again to Steve Spiegler for coordinating that morning play for members and their guests. The many members who play on the WCTL and MITL teams are grateful to Tom “Westy” Westmoreland and Cheryl Silvera, respectively, for all the work involved in recruiting players and coordinating on matches with other social clubs in the county tennis leagues. Appreciation to the Most Recent BBQ Hosts in August Besides Renee, Patty and Robert, plaudits go to the many members who helped to organize and run those many week-end BBQs, generally held on Friday evenings. Our last newsletter at the end of July highlighted all those who hosted Friday barbecues between mid-June and the end of July. After that, members enjoyed many more BBQs throughout August.
On August 3rd, Melanie and Amir Kamarzin and the Barbera family brought a Mediterranean flair to their Friday night BBQ. They grilled delicious ground beef and chicken kabobs, which were served up in Israeli pita bread with tahini sauce, to go with the many savory and salad dishes and desserts that other members contributed.
That was followed on August 10th by Karin White and Matt Krawiec, who, as ever, displayed their vaunted culinary skills for members and guests. Their featured selection this time was delectable grilled chicken and steak fajitas, together with hot dogs and hamburgers for the younger set. Members brought a wide variety of excellent side dishes and desserts to fill out the table.
On August 17th, the Henry/Nolen and Jenkins/Moniz families grilled tasty flank steak with chimichurri sauce, along with hamburgers, hot dogs and garden burgers for PHRC members and their guests. Other members contributed a wide assortment of salads and savory dishes, as well as memorable desserts.
On August 24th, Diana and Steve Spiegler did the honors, treating the membership to their annual brat-fest. Steve loves to grill bratwursts of different flavors, along with the hamburgers and hot dogs beloved especially by the kids. Members brought a wide range of salads and savory dishes and desserts to complement the Spieglers’ excellent table. Results of Recent Tennis Tournaments Mixed Doubles Tournament. On August 21st, a large number of members came out to watch the exciting finale of the 2018 mixed-doubles tournament, when Patty Gamba and Tom Westmoreland pulled out a hard-fought victory over Wendy Bodner and Mike Smith in the best-of-three-set match.
The Labor Day Fun Tournament.
On Sunday, September 2nd, the club held its annual Labor Day Weekend Fun Tournament, with 24 players on 12 teams taking part in two divisions. The two division-winning teams – Susie Moscou and Kevin Klein versus Steve Ross and Robert Klein, Jr. – then met in the one-set final, with Kevin and Susie coming out the champs. Thanks to Patty Cecere for organizing and running the tourney.
Men’s Singles Tournament.
Todd Geremia and Artie Liberatore were the respective straight-set winners over Tom Westmoreland and Pat O’Hanlon in the exciting semi-final matches of the men’s singles tournament. Members look forward to the final between Artie and Todd. Current and Upcoming Social Events PHRC Fantasy Football League. Ardi Gashi and Asaria Vemuri are again running this year’s Fantasy Football League. Those interested in taking part can contact them for information at ardgashi@gmail.com.
Men’s and Women’s Doubles Tournaments.
On Saturday, September 15th, the club is holding its annual men’s and women’s doubles tennis tournament. Those wishing to take part should let Anne-Marie O’Keeffe (at amokeeffe@mac.com) know by September 13th. A continental breakfast will be served.
The Annual PHRC Family Luau Party.
The club expects soon to announce the date of the Family Luau party to be hosted by the Henry/Nolen and Oates/Goodman families. This was rescheduled from its original date of Saturday, September 8th. Thanks to the Bar and Pool Committees Life at the club in the summer revolves as much around the lounge bar and around the pool as on the tennis courts and at the barbecue dinners. Two hard-working groups of member-volunteers deserve thanks for their efforts in these two important activity areas. One group is this year’s Bar Committee: Patty Gamba (co-chair), Patty Schumann (co-chair), Pat O’Hanlon and Greg Nolen. The other is the Pool Committee: Robert Moment (chair), Karin White, Diana Cassidy, Justine Henry, Renee O’Hanlon, Kirsten Barbera and Paul Cassidy. Thanks to all for their voluntary efforts on behalf of their fellow members. Ola Roberts’ Tennis Lessons and Clinics The club’s tennis professional, Ola Roberts, says that her summer program of clinics and lessons for individuals and groups of all ages and ability levels went very well this year. Ola’s assistant, Marcel, a Venezuelan university student, who was equally well-regarded by club members for his demeanor and his teaching skills. Ola says she will continue to give lessons at Park Hill this fall, in daytime, evening and week-end clinics. Ola is also available for private and semi-private lessons. During the fall and winter, she will be based at the Hastings-on-Hudson club, where the owner has agreed to rent courts to her. Anyone wishing to contact Ola for lessons can text her at 9176379476. Other Recent Enjoyable Club Activities This Summer Quite a few club members took advantage of special health-related activities organized by the PHRC Wellness Committee. Yoga classes continued from last year into summer, while Andrea’s Aquastrength exercises were held early on summer Sundays.
On Thursday, August 16th, the club organized an entertaining evening centered around watching the filmed version of the Park Hill Players’ production last February of the delightful comic play, “Four Weddings and an Elvis.”
On August 29th, Paul Meissner organized a group outing from the club – for 30 members – to the United States Open in Flushing Meadows for the second year running. Thanks, Paul. The Park Hill Players The Park Hill Players are hard at work rehearsing their next comic production, entitled “Play On,” which they plan to have ready to perform at the club in early November. The Players promise that the play, set in early 1950s high-society England, will be “outrageously funny.” Condolences.
Several members and former members of the club recently announced the passing of family members. First, Patricia and Paul Koors announced the passing of their son, Dr. Paul Daniel Koors, 38, an ear, nose and throat specialist, who leaves a wife and two young children. As a young man, Paul was a member of the club and often played tennis here. Then Phyllis and Richard Cavaliere informed the club that Phyllis’s mother, Josephine Novara, had passed away. That news was closely followed by the announcement from former members Jill, Larry, April and Fred Feldman that the mother of Larry and Fred, Suzanne Feldman, had passed away after a lengthy illness. The club expresses its deep condolences to the Koors, Cavaliere and Feldman families.
Exhibition of the Works of Richard Haas.
Since June 23rd, the Bruce Museum in Greenwich, Connecticut, has been holding an exhibit of works by PHRC member Richard Haas. The exhibit is entitled: “Expressionism in Print: The Early Works of Richard Haas, 1957-64,” and it will conclude on October 21st. On Sunday, September 23rd, Richard will give a talk about the exhibition, followed by a wine-and-cheese reception, which will be free for museum members ($15 for non-members).
The 2018 Yonkers Film Festival (YoFiFest 2018) Congratulations to Patty Schumann and Dave Steck for the upcoming sixth annual YoFiFest Film Festival. This year’s festival will run from November 2nd-11th. Independent filmmakers worldwide submit their high-quality film projects – features, shorts, documentaries, animation, music videos, student work, and more – for inclusion in each year’s events. More information, schedule and tickets at yofifest.com
