by Richard Gambino

There is so much good music performed here on the East End in summers. (How I wish it were also so during our winters.) Funny how the most abstract of all the arts, music, goes deepest in our souls. Pop music can nourish our need for fun, our romantic sense, our whistling-down-the-street joy in the happy, pretty experiences in living and loving, and in other highs and lows of everyday life.  At the more profound modes, music takes the soul also to heights and depths that express our profoundest spiritual essence, and brings us to new experiences of being human, each of us uniquely, as we relate to it.  At our souls’ peaks, music expresses and moves our human sprit, and sometimes grows our souls, and so makes our lives more meaningful in ways only it can.  Music’s power cannot be duplicated or grasped in language, or in any other art form.

I remember a scene from an old movie, Children Of A Lesser God (1986). In it, William Hurt plays a dedicated but unconventional teacher of deaf kids. In the scene I’ve found unforgettable, he comes upon a way of engaging those born deaf, some bewildered by life, some bitter, remote or angry toward life.  He places their hands on something that is vibrating to very loud music. I will never forget the look on the kids’ faces as their souls begin to dance with the vibrations. It is the look of those who have been born to a higher life. A life those of us with hearing can sometimes take for granted, neglect to nourish and make grow. As an example of what expresses and expands our best spirit, I say to people, only half kiddingly, about the greatest music of all, “Beethoven didn’t write Beethoven’s music. He merely held the pen while God wrote it.”

I’m very thankful for all the people who make music for us  — the Sag Harbor Band, the Bridgehampton Chamber Music Festival, Music for Montauk, and others. But I want to talk about one group in particular. (I have no relation to it except as a long-time audience member.) I’ve written about it before, two years ago. So, I’ve asked myself why again — why do I think about it so much.  It is a music school for youngsters. The Perlman Music Program on Shelter Island, whose concerts — running this year to September 4 — are free to the public, sometimes with Itzhak Perlman himself playing.  (For descriptions of concerts and other events, and dates, Google “The Perlman Music Program,” or call: 631/749-0740.)

True, the students at the PMP are exceptionally gifted, in fact talented beyond belief, chosen from around the world, by video auditions. True, the young musicians are a delight to hear. In fact, hearing them provides the kind of deeper musical experience I tried to describe in the first paragraph of this article. But why I write of them is more than all this. It has to do with the reason that in forty years of college teaching I tried each semester to teach students of all stages from freshmen (whom many professors want to avoid) to PhD students.  True, graduate students might ask challenging  questions. But the freshmen also challenge, with much more basic questions, which compel a going back to the root importances of matters.

Well, I did not teach music. For good reason. I have a passion for music, but not one bit of talent for making it. I can’t even sing on key. But if anyone asked me, why learn music, I would answer, to touch the soul, the human spirit. Your own and that of others. And great music takes the soul to heights beyond the heavens. The third movement of Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony pierces our souls to their deepest cores, and the fourth rockets our souls with ever-accelerating power to spiritual ecstasy. Watch an audience as a performance of the Ninth Symphony ends. If the performance has been a good one, at first people seem overwhelmed, their eyes wide and lit up. Then, they begin to applaud, and in some seconds the applause rises to an increasing crescendo, the audience now on their feet. The expressions on people’s faces the opposite of everything that is dull, base and petty in us.

But people called musicians have to take us there.  Extraordinary musicians, who are far beyond just the ability to play an instrument well. They must have greatly talented souls and wed these souls to great music.  As is true of all marriages, it takes much time, love, personal growth and growth together to become one. So for years I’ve listened to the students at The Perlman Music Program in this spiritual odyssey of soul and talent. Their talent is astonishing, and their mastery of instruments amazing. They are in these senses advanced as can be.  But their souls are quite young.  (I love to hear them hoot and cheer each other after some have performed a piece, as they take turns playing and being in the audience. It’s only my square adult’s inhibitions that keep me from joining them, and not just applaud energetically, as do the rest of the people in the audience.) And these young talents are still forming as they work love’s labor to make their souls deeply kindred, as one, with the souls of the likes of Bach, Mozart and Beethoven. Just as one of the joys of my life was to see my students’ intellects, emotions and sometimes their spirits, develop, so it has been a great part of my joyful experience of being in the audience at the Perlman Program for many summers.

We are, of course, the products of biological evolution. But I’m partial to the idea that our individual and collective evolution continues, through culture. And the best of our culture, e.g., great music, gives each of us the means to evolve a great human spirit.  However, culture needs support — it is not, like biology, a force of itself. Running a music school with in-residence faculty and students is expensive. So, come to the free concerts and be awed, but I urge all also to contribute to the PMP, by sending a check to: The Perlman Music Program. Attention Maureen M. Nash. 19 West 69th Street.  Suite 304. New York, N.Y. 10023.

RICHARD GAMBINO thanks Toby Perlman, the faculty at The Perlman Music Program, and all the others who bring this gift to us every summer.

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Sag Harbor resident Susan Baran believes the Federal Aviation Administration’s draft plan aimed at regulating helicopter flight paths and curbing the chopper noise that has plagued East End residents for years does not go far enough.

In comments made to the FAA on the proposed “Schumer Rule,” Baran was among hundreds of Sag Harbor and Noyac residents who asked for the regulations to be expanded to include more than one mandatory route for helicopters, as well as higher altitude requirements for pilots.

“We have borne the brunt of the departing traffic for years,” said Baran of the Sag Harbor community. “Our house shakes, windows rattle and conversation is impossible.”

Residents were joined this week by the supervisors of four East End towns, state government leaders, and Congressman Tim Bishop in asking the “Schumer Rule” be expanded in order to aid residents on the East End as well as those further west on Long Island.

Under the proposed regulation, helicopter pilots would be required to follow a northern route one mile offshore over the Long Island Sound to Shoreham where they would split off either to Gabreski Airport in Westhampton, the Southampton Helipad, the Montauk Airport or the East Hampton Airport following voluntary routes established in 2007, some of which bring flights from East Hampton directly over Sag Harbor and Noyac.

Regulations also propose that pilots keep a minimum altitude of 2,500 feet.

Following the FAA’s announcement about the regulations in May, government and community leaders commended the agency for taking action to deal with helicopter noise on Long Island, but almost unanimously were outspoken that a single northern route would unfairly burden a few communities, demanding a southern route to the East Hampton Airport over the ocean and Georgica Pond.

This week, those recommendations became official with East Hampton Town Supervisor Bill Wilkinson, Southampton Town Supervisor Anna Throne-Holst, Southold Supervisor Scott Russell and Shelter Island Supervisor James Dougherty, all of who submitted a joint response to the FAA asking the agency to support nine recommendations created by the East End Helicopter Noise Stakeholders Group.

Recommendations made by the stakeholders group have received the support of Congressman Tim Bishop, with New York State Senator Ken P. LaValle, New York State Assemblyman Marc Alessi and Suffolk County Legislator Edward Romaine making similar recommendations to the FAA.

According to Southampton Town Councilwoman Nancy Graboski, Senator Charles Schumer’s office was instrumental in setting up the stakeholders group, which included Kathy Cunningham, the chair of the East Hampton Airport Noise Abatement Advisory Committee, East Hampton Town Councilman Dominick Stanzione, Graboski, airport noise abatement advisory committee members Peter Wadsworth and Charles Ehren, and Shelter Island resident Don Kornrumpf, among others.

The stakeholders group asks the FAA to create two mandatory designated routes, one along the North Shore and one along the South Shore, with pilots required to fly one mile from shore on both routes.

“This is essential in order to accommodate the important southerly transition routes from [the East Hampton Airport] and other East End Airports and to equitably distribute the volume of helicopter traffic using the North and South Shore routes,” reads their statement.

Stakeholders recommend that helicopters flying the North Shore route to East Hampton be required to transition east from Plum Gut, and proceed south to Barcelona Neck and over Route 114 to the East Hampton Airport.

Both the East Hampton Airport and Gabreski Airport should also be empowered directly or through the FAA to manage the number of flights coming into their airports at one time, according to the recommendations, and should be allowed to establish curfews for when flights can take-off and land.

They also ask the FAA to establish procedures in coordination with area airports to monitor and enforce compliance with the proposed routes and that any helicopters maintain an altitude of 3,000 feet when flying over land while departing or arriving at any of the local airports. Pilots should also be mandated to follow noise abatement policies established by each airport, states the group.

“Since the FAA has found that the Long Island helicopter noise problem is unique, the present rulemaking must deal expressly with that problem as it relates to the East End Airports,” said Southampton Town Supervisor Anna Throne Holst in a letter to the FAA. “Current and recent trends indicate that the burden of helicopter traffic centering on [the East Hampton Airport] will increase substantially in future years, further exacerbating the noise problem for the East End.”

The Noyac Civic Council, as well as a number of Sag Harbor and Noyac residents, would also like to see the northern route require pilots to use Orient Point as a waypoint before flying to East Hampton and Montauk airports.

At a Bridgehampton Citizens Advisory Committee meeting on Monday, Graboski praised the FAA for making “a significant move” by beginning the process of regulating helicopter routes to the East End, but noted the regulations as proposed aid residents in western Suffolk County and Nassau County, more than they do the Twin Forks.

The proposals supported by the four supervisors, she said, would round out the regulations to protect residents on the East End as well.

“It was probably one of the more challenging things we have been involved in,” she said.

The deadline for comments to the FAA was June 25. To view comments submitted to the FAA, visit www.regulations.gov and use the keyword FAA-2010-0302.

Popularity: 2% [?]

By Andrew Rudansky

A teenage girl walked out to center stage with a violin in her hand and took an awkward bow before placing her instrument up to her chin and began to play. The audience, classical music lovers numbering in the hundreds, sat in silent approval as she moved through the first movement and onto the second.

There were no beads of sweat, nor any sign of nervousness; just a passionate professionalism, seen in musical geniuses, as she swayed in time with the movement of her violin bow.

This young musician and others like her showcased their talents this past weekend, when The Perlman Music Program Summer Music School kicked off their summer concert series Works in Progress at their beachfront Shelter Island campus. The performers, all students between the ages of 12 and 18, played classical string arrangements on both days.

The Perlman Music Program was created in 1993 by Toby Perlman, with the help of her husband, famed violinist and composer Itzhak Perlman. They are entering their eleventh year at their current Shelter Island campus and the couple said the program and its summer music school provide exceptionally talented children with the opportunity to train with world class musicians.

“This is probably one of the most competitive music programs in the world to get into…We can have 100 violin applicants, and only two are issued spots,” said Toby in an interview last week.

When listening to the music played by these select few, you can forget they are children up there. They are not professional musicians but students at a summer school for musicians. That is something that the Perlmans know all to well.

“We try to create a nurturing environment that gives permission to each child to be their best and real self,” Toby said, “that sounds corny, but a lot of corny things sound corny because there is a lot of truth in them.” Both she and her husband stressed that, despite their musical abilities, students needed to treated like any other child and not subjected to the rigors of professional musicianship.

The concerts, which are all open to the public, provide an opportunity for the students to exhibit their musical skills in a relaxed environment, without the stress associated with a more formal concert.

“We call this ‘Works in Progress,’ which implies that not everything is going to be perfect. This is not a performance, this is just something for them to try out in front of people,” said Itzhak.

Despite this modesty, the performances are every bit as professional as one would expect coming from the Perlman Music Program.

During the Saturday, June 19, concert the six students performed classical arrangements by William Walton, Francis Poulenc, Sir Edward William Elgar, Cesar Franck and Hungarian composer Bela Bartok. Each was performed with such skill and passion that the audience was always brought to rapturous applause.

The performers all played with the authority, emotion and technique of musicians far advanced in age and study. During the performance, many members of the audience closed their eyes to more fully appreciate the quality of the music being performed.

All of the students of the Summer Music School who performed at the concert signed up to play. Itzhak said, “We see these kids and they are absolutely amazing… there is no pressure here at all, these students are playing because they wanted to.”

The concert also helps the students ease into the practice of performing live, “If you try things out in a room, you’re not going to get nervous,” said Itzhak, “but you try out something in front of three, four  hundred people and the adrenaline starts to go.”

“Preparation for a big stage is being familiar with getting nervous,” he added, expressing the need for the students to know their own nerves and how it feels to perform in front of a large audience. By the looks and sounds of the performances so far, the students have no problems with nerves.

“I think it’s a good idea to work with students on performing in front of a crowd,” said Toby.

Itzhak called the 35 students currently enrolled in the school “the future of classical music.”

It’s easy to forget that the performers on stage are just kids, some as young as 12 years old. “I know it sounds as if they are all professionals, but they are not. And little kids need a safe place to make a mistake,” said Toby.

How young the students are becomes apparent after the show, when the dignified virtuosos that once occupied the stage change back into happy, laughing teenagers. Running around and chatting like any other middle or high school student.

The transformation from child to musician and then back to child is odd to see at first; but it really speaks volumes about the Perlman Music Program, both in its musical education and, as it says in the summer music school’s mission statement, its dedication to “the development of the whole person.”

“They work very hard but there is a lot of positive reinforcement,” said Toby, “I know [the students] have only been together for a few days, but you can already sense the friendliness the warmness, how supportive they are to one another.” This group of students will spend an intensive six and a half weeks together, practicing their craft, but also socializing as a member of a new family.

Toby believes that this socialization and sense of family can help the young musicians not only grow their musical ability but there ability as humans as well.

“Once you are here you are a member of the family and they get support from everyone.”  

The next Works in Progress concert, featuring another six performances by the students will be held on Friday, June 25, 7:30 p.m., at The Perlman Music Program Campus located on 73 Shore Road, Shelter Island. A concert, featuring The Perlman Music Program faculty, will be held on the following day, June 26, 7 p.m. at the same location.

A special concert will be held at Sag Harbor’s Old Whalers Church on Friday, August 13.

Popularity: 4% [?]

By Andrew Rudansky

U.S. Army 1st Lieutenant Joseph J. Theinert was killed by an improvised explosive device last Friday, June 4, 2010 while serving with the 10th mountain division in Afghanistan. He was 24 years old at the time. An East End native who divided his time between Shelter Island and Sag Harbor,  1st Lt. Theinert was mourned by both communities.

1^st Lt. Theinert had been in Kandahar province, Afghanistan, stationed just south of the city of Kandahar for only one month when his dismounted patrol came under enemy fire. According to his commanding officer,  1st Lt. Theinert and his men were forced into an area that was known to have IEDs. He disabled one of the IEDs and was working on disabling a second when the device was triggered. Before the device exploded Lt. Theinert was able to warn the men under his command to get back, saving their lives.

“We live in a very self-centered society and he is my example of a selfless person,” said  1st Lt. Theinert’s mother, Chrystyna Kestler. Kestler described her son as “steadfast…a patriotic child who worked very hard to get where he got in life.”

Christine M. Cava,  1st Lt. Theinert’s sister-in-law called him “a man who lived out his dreams of serving his country and gave his life to keep those closest to him safe.”

James Theinert,  1st Lt. Theinert’s father, a Sag Harbor resident, was the first family member to be notified of his son’s death at 9 p.m. on Friday, June 4. He did not wish to comment on his son’s death.

1st Lt. Theinert attended Shelter Island High School, where he ran for the Pierson-Shelter Island Cross country team and was co-captain and midfielder for the Ross Ravens Lacrosse team, which also included students from Pierson and Shelter Island. Lacrose coach Joe Silvey said, “He was a tremendous player. He was the heart and soul of a young club.” Silvey said that he saw leadership skills in  1st Lt. Theinert before he joined the military.

“He was a real leader, and he did it mostly through example: through hustle and effort,” said Silvey.

1st Lt. Theinert was remembered as much for his humor as his dedication. Kestler described her son as a master of the one liner.

“When Joey said something it was either going to be shape up or something that was so funny you would remember it for days,” she said.

Kestler said her son had wanted to be in the military from an early age, first bringing up the subject when he was as young as six years old. She remembers Joseph and her other sons playing army games in the back yard.

After graduating high school in 2006, Theinert enrolled in the Valley Forge Military College, and then SUNY Albany where he received his bachelor’s degree. That same year he was commissioned as a 2^nd Lieutenant through the Siena College Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) program.

“Joey was one of those quiet, steady people,” Kestler said.

While still in high school, he started a photo album which he entitled, "My Life by Joseph Theinert." The small green book included photos of  him with his friends and family. Kestler said that neither she nor anyone else in the family had ever seen the album before. 

Among the quotes written by Theinert were the words, “The people in this book is why I choose to fight. It is for them that I am willing to lay down my life.” 

In honor of  1st Lt. Theinert’s sacrifice Congressman Tim Bishop entered a statement into the official record of 111th Congress: “I also join these closely-knit Peconic Bay communities in mourning the loss of a young citizen of enormous potential.”  

“I am so sad and shattered that my son is dead…but on the other hand I was so lucky to have such a gift like Joseph,” said Kestler.

On Wednesday, June 9, at 4:45 p.m. the procession for fallen hero 1^st Lieutenant Joseph Theinert slowly passed by rows of mourners on Main Street, Sag Harbor. The convoy had traveled to Sag Harbor from Gabreski Airport in Westhampton Beach. Once on Main Street the convoy passed over the Lance Corporal Jordan Haerter Veterans Memorial Bridge, named after the Sag Harbor Marine who was killed in Iraq two years ago. From there they traveled to the South Ferry and onto Shelter Island. Once on Shelter Island the procession made its way to its final stop, Our Lady of the Isle Catholic Church.

The wake will be at the church on Thursday, June 10 from 2 to 9 p.m. The funeral will take place the following day on Friday, June 11 at the Shelter Island School with a reception after the funeral on the grounds of the American Legion Hall. Finally  1st Lt. Theinert will be interred at Our Lady of the Isle Catholic Cemetery.

“I don’t want anyone to forget Joey and his sacrifice but also I don’t want people to forget about the soldiers still there,” said Kestler.

In honor of  1st Lt. Theinert the Southern Cross of the Shelter Island Ferry will be renamed the  1st Lt. Joseph Theinert.

On the honors and outpouring of support for her fallen son, Kestler said, “Joey is the one who is going to be missed, not the fallen hero 1^st Lieutenant Joseph Theinert.”

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Less than two weeks ago, on a brilliant and blue Monday morning, Sag Harbor was awash in red, white and blue as residents lined Main Street in this small village to honor veterans both living and deceased in the annual Memorial Day parade.

Yesterday, Sag Harbor again looked ready for a parade, decked out as it was in its patriotic finery. But this time around, the weather was threatening and the Community Band wasn’t playing. The streets were still lined though —fire and police personnel stood at attention in dress uniforms while school children and adults waited with small American flags and hands over hearts to pay tribute to the East End’s latest casualty in the 21^st century’s war on terror — 24-year old U.S. Army 1^st Lieutenant  Joseph J. Theinert.

Theinert, a graduate of Shelter Island High School, was killed last Friday near Kandahar, Afghanistan while attempting to disable an IED. He had strong ties to Sag Harbor — his father lives here and before going off to college, Theinert played on a number of local sports teams where he was much loved and admired by friends and coaches alike.

It feels unreal that this small community has had to bury its second war casualty in as many years. In April 2008, we gathered on Main Street to welcome home fallen Sag Harbor Marine Jordan Haerter, who at the age of 19, was killed in Ramadi, Iraq.

As we go to press, we are struck by the eerie similarities in these tragic losses — both Jordan and Joseph were in their respective war zones for an incredibly short period of time —  just a month or so — before being killed. And in the act of dying, both men saved the lives of others. Jordan did so by preventing a suicide truck bomber from reaching a larger group of men beyond his position (he was posthumously awarded the Navy Cross), and Joseph, by warning others to step back as he worked to disarm the IED that ultimately took his life.

No matter your position on this country’s involvement in the current conflicts, it was impossible to stand on Main Street yesterday afternoon and watch the black hearse with Theinert’s body go by without feeling a truly profound sense of loss. For this tight knit community, Jordan Haerter’s death made the notion of far off war a reality. Joseph Theinert’s death has made it incomprehensible.

God bless the Theinert family.

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By John Bayles

This year an expected 2,000 runners will descend on Shelter Island for the 31^st annual Shelter Island 10K. And according to race director Mary Ellen Adipietro, the experience for many of them begins as soon as they board the South Ferry in North Haven.

“What sets [the race] apart is getting on the ferry and coming over to the island,” said Adipietro. “People love that and it really sets the tone for the entire flavor of the race.”

Flavor, and more specifically community, has been at the heart of the Shelter Island 10K ever since its inaugural running in 1981. Shelter Island is a runner’s island said Adipietro and the community is a running community. There are almost as many volunteers as there are runners, and many of them are local kids who host pre and post race parties, including a pasta party as soon as runners step off the ferry. They run the showers and provide music on the school’s soccer fields, where the race begins and ends. It is less your typical 10K race and more a day-long festival, with the race serving as the focal point.

There are, for any 10K, essentially two types of runners: those who run for time and those who run to finish. One unique aspect of the Shelter Island 10K, according to race co-founder Cliff Clark, is that world-class Olympic runners are running side by side with local runners who are not so much concerned with winning as they are with enjoying themselves.

“We have a nice mix, of being a race for the people — for folks who like to come out and support a charity and run for fun,” said Clark. “And also, we’re a race that brings in world class athletes.”

Case in point, last year for the race’s 30^th anniversary Bill Rogers, former American record holder in the marathon who is best known for his victories in the Boston Marathon and the New York City Marathon in the late 1970s, was a celebrity guest runner.

“It’s the rank and file, the regular runners, getting an opportunity to rub shoulders with runners they’ve only read about,” said Clark.

The course itself has been ranked among the top ten most beautiful courses in the country by Runner’s World Magazine, with areas of the course that allow runners to peer over Dering Harbor, look out at the Orient Point Lighthouse and run through one of the most exclusive private communities in the country.

And in terms of the race itself, it is consistently ranked in the top 75 races in America. Shelter Island local Janelle Kraus knows the course by heart, having run the race ten times since she was a cross-country runner at Shelter Island High School with Clark as her coach. Kraus went on to become the only local female runner to finish in the top three, when in 2002 she finished second with a time of 35:33.

The terrain / training

“There are hills that can make the course challenging,” said Kraus. “That’s only one part of the course. Someone shouldn’t say they shouldn’t do the race because of the hills – the hills are more of a challenge than a reason not to do it.”

In terms of training, she said traveling to the island is not going to give you much of an advantage, though it is nice to be familiar with the loop. Kraus said just being able complete the distance, 6.2 miles, is the key. She said an average runner might want to begin in late February or early March by getting out of the door four or five days a week and running a half mile, or whatever is comfortable.

“Listen to your body, but don’t be afraid to challenge yourself,” she said.

After a week or so, try and push it up a notch, maybe running a full mile and then slowly increasing your distance each week.

Jessica Bellofatto, from Sag Harbor, has run the race six times and has only recently become “a serious runner.” She agreed with Kraus and said there is plenty of time for a casual runner to train between now and June, when the race is held. She said it’s all about pacing yourself, and starting out small, maybe running for five minutes a day and then gradually pushing yourself to increase your time and distance.

“I was just a very casual runner,” said Bellofatto. “A 5K was no issue, but a 10K was a big deal for me. It was hard, really hard, but you can pace yourself, and know that you can always walk. When you do start getting a little more serious about it, your body adapts and then six miles is nothing.”

But for Bellofatto, the race will always be about more than just running.

“Early on [in the race] you pass by St. Mary’s Church and they’re ringing the church bells,” she said, “The first time I thought it was a coincidence, but then I realized they were doing it for the race.”

Then there’s the “great Gatsby” aspect of the race that Bellofatto loves as well.

“You’re passing all of these mansions on the water and people are out on their lawns, dressed in all white sipping their champagne. There’s a real party atmosphere.”

SIDE BAR

Janelle Kraus’ Make or Break Points for the Shelter Island 10K

1. The course begins on Highway 114 and even before the one-mile mark, runners are presented with the first significant hill, running past St. Mary’s Church.
2. Between the second and third mile mark, runners find themselves on a windy stretch of road surrounded by trees on both sides. Here, visibility is low and the real runners are separated from the fun runners.
3. Approaching the four-mile mark, runners see the shoreline homes on their left and Dering Harbor on their right. Here, your body is telling you to shut down, but you are only two miles from the finish line and you have to push yourself.
4. There’s a long, deceiving uphill stretch that takes runners past the old Dering Harbor Inn, before the final turn back on to Highway 114. Here is the five-mile mark and all moves are made and it is very difficult for positions to change.

The 31^st running of the Shelter Island 10 K will take place on Saturday, June 19th 2010 at 5:30 p.m.

For more information and to register for this year’s race, contact Mary Ellen Adipietro at director@shelterislandrun.com or 631-749-RUNS.

Popularity: 2% [?]

One in three teenagers has reported experiencing a form of physical, sexual, verbal or emotional abuse from their boyfriend or girlfriend with almost a third of girls involved in a relationship reporting they have been pressured to have sex or engage in uncomfortable sexual behavior, according to the New York State Office for the Prevention of Domestic Violence.

And according to Stacey Bellem, the director of agency programming at The Retreat in East Hampton, these statistics likely represent the reality of dating violence on the South Fork.

“Those numbers are pretty accurate and we are seeing, in general, a rise in domestic violence,” said Bellem.

Which is part of the reason why The Retreat has launched a formal Public Service Announcement competition between students in area schools as part of its dating violence and awareness prevention campaign. As of press time, high school students from Bridgehampton, East Hampton, Sag Harbor, Shelter Island, Southampton and likely the Ross School are slated to spend the next three months developing short videos centered on the theme of dating violence prevention.

Bellem said the hope is to provide students with an opportunity to teach each other about the perils of dating violence, a lesson that may have more of an impact coming from their peers rather than their high school health teacher.

Students are encouraged, said Bellem, to work in small groups of two to four students in creating the videos with their media arts and health teachers working cooperatively with students to flesh out the content. The videos will be judged on impact, creativity and on the understanding of the many facets of teen dating violence. Members of the Retreat administration and board of directors as well as celebrity “friends” will judge final submissions. The top three finalists will be invited to The Retreat’s Artists Against Abuse Gala in June where the first place winner will be announced.

“We wanted to create a program that can get youth involved, engage the community on this subject and make it a fun, creative event,” said Bellem. The Retreat launched the competition this week, noted Bellem, on the heels of the announcement that Congress and New York State have proclaimed February Teen Dating Violence Awareness and Prevention Month.

Working with local schools towards violence prevention is not new for The Retreat, which presents violence prevention education programs in all local schools, including programs geared towards elementary and middle school students like “Hands Are Not For Hitting” and “Respect You, Respect Me.”

With the rise of the Internet and use of mobile phones amongst children and teens, a cyber-bullying prevention program has also been developed for local schools.

“In the middle schools we work a lot on bullying and early prevention,” said Bellem. “We really want to reach the kids before they start dating.”

So far, once teens start dating, the state and national statistics are jarring. In addition to basic statistics on sexual pressure and physical violence in teen relationships, more than one-fourth of teens in relationships said they have been put down by their partners.

According to statistics out of New York City, almost 11 percent of teenage girls reported experiencing physical dating violence, up 50 percent from statistics reported in 1999. The Retreat is working with Suffolk Community College’s Riverhead campus and Stony Brook-Southampton to develop comprehensive statistics on the prevalence of dating violence on the East End, which Bellem predicted would model national and state statistics.

She added that in an effort to reach a new, technologically savvy generation of teens, The Retreat has also been creating multi-media lectures on issues like high school teen violence and the media’s effect on gender identities.

However, it is Bellem’s hope that the peer-to-peer communication the PSA competition will foster will lend to a deeper understanding amongst high school students about dating violence.

“They are in the same age group,” she said. “They are relatable, they speak the same language.”

Popularity: 2% [?]

By Benito Vila

“The side making the most goals in that time shall be declared the winner.” So states the thirteenth of basketball’s original thirteen rules.

Much has changed since December 1891 when Dr. James Naismith penned and posted those at a YMCA in Springfield, Mass. That rule, though, still holds, the ball going in the basket making the difference in who comes off the court with a win.

While it may seem elementary, how the ball gets in is a matter of teamwork, positioning, timing and perseverance. Winning teams tend to create openings for one another close to the basket and finish on those shots; losing teams often miss out on those very same chances.

The Pierson varsity boys’ basketball team re-discovered those rules and realities in dropping its League VIII opener Tuesday on Shelter Island, the Indians holding off the Whalers, 40-31.

According to Whaler coach Christian Johns, the difference in the game came down to “the last few possessions. We had opportunities in the paint but didn’t finish. We drove [at the basket] well all game and had our chances from the free throw line but we didn’t get those points.”

By shooting 10-for-29 from the line, the Whalers allowed the Indians to recover, regroup and get away with what Coach Johns called, “a hard-played, physical game.” Pierson was down one at the half and three after the third period, but Shelter Island pulled away at the end of the fourth, their shots finding the hole and dropping through the net.

Leading the Indians was Mike Mundy, who finished with fourteen points. Luke Kirrane topped the Whaler scoring, also tossing in 14. Skyler Loesch added nine and T.J. Arreguin four. Sean Hartnett and Dylan Hmielenski each posted a pair.

Despite the outcome, Coach Johns remains enthusiastic about his team. “I’m proud of the way we played and I love how we battled under the boards. I’m also proud of the way we got into the paint. We just gotta make those fouls shot.”

“Overall, defensively, we didn’t do a bad job. We kept them to 40. What we have to work on is our transition defense and our efficiency and shot selection on offense.”

Looking to tomorrow’s home opener, Coach Johns expects to match up against “an extremely tough” team from Southold. Tip-off is set for 6:15 p.m. Friday in the Pierson gym; the Whaler faithful are expected to fill the bleachers to near capacity.

The Settlers come in 1-0 in league and 3-0 overall, wins over Bridgehampton (41-34, Tuesday), Rocky Point and Mattituck making for a good start.

Whalers Ahead

The year-end school break interrupts the Whaler’s game schedule, but it gives the team (0-1 in league, 0-4 overall) more time to practice as a unit; league play resumes at Ross January 5.

In the meantime, there is a non-league contest scheduled at Pierson, December 30, against Mercy, keeping the Whalers competitive; the game tips-off at 6:15 p.m. that Wednesday.

Stops & Shots

The Pierson JV had a better time of it Tuesday, besting Shelter Island, 44 to 35. Coach Tortorella was pleased how the team finished, getting “defensive stops and hitting key free throws to close out the game.”

But Coach Tortorella cautioned, “We need to play much, much better than this. Our defense was average, at best, and we need to really focus on basic things like positioning, communication and close-outs.”

“Three or four players were in foul trouble all game and we need to be more disciplined and not put ourselves in that situation. Offensively, we need to get out in transition a lot quicker and be more effective with our decisions in the half-court.”

Coach Tortorella also liked how the team “fought through” its more discouraging moments, working hard as a unit until their game came together at the end.

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The 10th annual Shelter Island Fall 5K Run and 5K Walk last Saturday raised money for the North and South Fork Breast Health Coalitions and Lucia’s Angels, an organization assisting those on the east end suffering from late-stage women’s cancers.

It also proved to be a perfect send-off for Janelle Kraus on her wedding day, the former Lady Indian standout, NCAA track and field All-American and Olympic hopeful asking her friends and family to pick up their pace.

Joining Kraus, now a teacher in Croton-on-Hudson, were world-class competitors Roisin McGettigan, Marie Davenport and Amy Mortimer.

McGettigan, a member of Ireland’s 2008 Olympic team and a internationally-known steeplechase athlete, was the first female finisher, coming in 18 minutes, 11 seconds, a pace just under six minutes a mile. Davenport was the second woman finisher at 18:16, while Mortimer was the fifth, at 21:12, and the bride seventh, at 21:32.

Lauren Laviola of Southampton was the highest placing local female runner, coming in after McGettigan and Davenport at 20:36.

The overall winner was Bryan Knipfing, of Sound Beach, at 16:44, a 5:24 pace. Ken Rideout, of Manhattan, was second overall, at 17:39.

Other notable local finishers were Jorge Flores, of East Hampton, who was seventh overall, at 18:24. Pierson’s Kyle Fletcher came in eighth, at 19:11, taking the medal for his 16-to-19 age bracket.

Shelter Island Height’s Benjamin Segal, was ninth, at 19:21, just ahead of fellow islander, Kevin Barry, who was tenth, at 19:28.

The Whalers’ cross-country team was also well represented by Peter Skerys, who took the under-15 age bracket, at 20:45, placing seventeenth overall. His teammates, Brendan Sheil and Jeremy Pepper, came in at 21:59 and 22:16 respectively.

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