SHS Muslim Youth Club Hosts Iftar Dinner
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- Written by Wendy MacMillan
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Principal Bonamo with students from the Muslim Youth ClubWith a feast fit for a king, the Scarsdale High School Muslim Youth Club celebrated its second annual Iftar Dinner. After last year’s successful test run, the student officers of the club were delighted to open up the event to the whole Scarsdale community. People of all ages and faiths were welcomed to the Learning Commons at SHS to help their Muslim friends break their fasts and to celebrate Ramadan.
According to Ing.org, “Ramadan is considered one of the holiest months of the year for Muslims. In Ramadan, Muslims commemorate the revelation of the Qur’an, and fast from food and drink during the sunlit hours as a means of drawing closer to God and cultivating self-control, gratitude, and compassion for those less fortunate. Ramadan is a month of intense spiritual rejuvenation with a heightened focus on devotion, during which Muslims spend extra time reading the Qur’an and performing special prayers.”
Club officers Kamila El Moselhy, Dani Nameen, Rehma Qadir, and Azlan Khan.
Reflection and community are other important aspects of this holy time and Kamila El Moselhy, one of the student officers and founders of the club, said she helped start the Muslim Youth Club to make it easier for herself and other Muslim students to find that sense of community and connection to others. In addition, she says that the club gives her a sense of identity and a place that feels like home.
Nicole DeLuca, the faculty sponsor of the club, couldn’t have been more proud of all of the students and their hard work. DeLuca happily pointed out that the students took the lead on every aspect of the festive celebration; From ordering food, to arranging the pot luck and volunteers, to decorating and setting up, the students took full ownership of the amazing event.
Of course the student officers were also grateful for Ms. DeLuca and all of her support. Addressing the attendees of the evening Kamila El Moselhy said, “I want to thank you all for coming today, this is an outstanding crowd. None of this would be possible without the support we get from our school, so we want to thank our teachers and the administrators for allowing us this space, giving us the tools to be proud of our religion, and enabling us to belong in our community. Thank you to Ms. DeLuca for her unwavering support and Ms. Gorman too.”
Another student officer, Dani Naeem, added, “I would like to thank you all for joining the Scarsdale Muslim Club and the rest of the Muslim community at this iftar. I hope you guys are enjoying the food from different cultures that people have brought. This year has been a difficult time for everyone and to have this large community and showout to this event is very special and something we can all cherish.”
Student officer, Azlan Khan, added “The diversity of our community is very unique, and celebrating our differences is what makes us stronger. We should never be afraid of differences, we should embrace it. This is what makes our community thrive. Thank you for giving us the confidence to be ourselves.”
Club Officer Kamila El Moselhy with Club Advisor Nicole DeLuca.
Rehma Qadir was the last student officer to speak and she ended by saying, “We are so grateful that we have the opportunity to build on this community in Scarsdale and host this event with the help of the school.
We have a donation set up for the organization ANERA (American Near East Refugee Aid) which helps the civilians in need in Gaza. If you can, please donate to the box that we have set up. Thank you for coming and enjoy the rest of the iftar. Thank You.”
These officers, and all of the other students in the Muslim Youth Club, created a truly incredible celebration. It wasn’t only an evening for friends and neighbors to come together and break their fast, it was an evening filled with laughter, love, and an immense feeling of community and support. As one parent Rokaya Hassaballa said, “Events like this help you feel like you belong.”
BOE members Suzie Hahn and Amber Yusuf join friends Attiya Malik and Hoosna Haque.
SHS Student Wins St. Vincent's Youth Award
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- Written by Wendy MacMillan
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Rishi ShadaksharappaIf anyone needs a reminder that the Scarsdale School District is full of wonderfully caring, considerate, creative, and hard working students they need to look no further than Rishi Shadaksharappa.
Rishi, a junior at Scarsdale High School, was recently celebrated for his dedication to community service when he was honored, along with twenty two other Westchester students, with the St. Vincent Hospital Youth Award for Outstanding Volunteer Service.
According to their website, “Each year, the Auxiliary presents awards to high school students whose volunteer service exemplifies St. Vincent's core values of respect, integrity, compassion and excellence…and whose service best exemplifies the mission of St. Vincent's – respect and compassion for ourselves and others, excellence in service, the dignity of human life and commitment to the community.”
In addition to the Youth Award, during the award ceremony at St. Vincent Hospital in Harrison, Rishi was awarded a Certificate of Congressional Recognition from the office of Congressman Jamal Bowman.
In order to be considered for this prestigious award, all SHS students needed to submit an essay explaining the ways in which they use their acts of service to make the world a better place. To learn more about Rishi’s dedication to our community and why he was selected from a multitude of SHS applicants, you can read his essay here:
“In July of 2022, coming out of the pandemic, I felt disconnected from my grandparents who live abroad. I realized that a lot of other senior citizens must feel the same way being isolated from their loved ones, especially during the holidays. I also noticed grocery stores were throwing away expiring flowers as new inventory came in weekly. For me, these flowers, being in very good condition, could (and should !) be used to brighten smiles around our local community. Creating a sustainable solution to this issue while also catering towards the senior community seemed possible.
For those reasons, I founded Bouquet Buddy, a non-profit, local community service that donates flowers to hospitals, nursing homes, shelters, and any place where people need a little bit of happiness, free of cost, around Westchester County. Partnering with grocery stores and local florists who provide me with expiring flowers that would otherwise go to waste, I repurpose them into arrangements and distribute them.
Rishi with Manuel Homem and SVP of St. Vincent’s Hospital Westchester, Bernadette Kingham -Bez
So far, Bouquet Buddy, has delivered about 3,000 bouquets to local facilities such as GiGi’s Playhouse, the Hospice of Westchester, Scarsdale Senior Center, Eastchester Senior Center, Bristal Assisted Living, Garth Road Senior Center, Burke Rehabilitation Center, the Kensington, and Atria of Rye Brook. Every week, on Thursday evenings, we collect in the range of 30-75 buckets of flowers from different locations. After school on Fridays and Saturdays, I hand-deliver individual bouquets to the facilities.
I often connect with seniors during these visits. They genuinely appreciate the donations and look forward to seeing “the flower boy” each week. It’s really a win-win situation because this project was created looking to connect with the senior community, and Bouquet Buddy has done just that. My mom helps drive me to every location and I have gotten closer to my family during this process. Overall, this organization has taught me valuable skills. It has taught me patience, respectful communication with elders, disciplined work ethic and time management. Having delivered thousands of bouquets over the past 20 months has taken countless hours, I hope to find a way to keep the Bouquet Buddy going in some form long after I graduate from SHS. If you are interested in learning more about my organization (with photos), please take a look at my instagram account @bouquet.buddy.
In addition, since my freshman year of high school, I have also volunteered at the local firehouse to train in fire and emergency services as part of the Scarsdale Fire Explorers Program. I work directly with the well-trained firefighters who mentor me throughout the process. During these sessions, we learn through physical training/drills and about the protocols pertaining to emergency situations. I have come to admire and appreciate the volunteer spirit among the Scarsdale community and have trained to do my part one day.”
Congratulations Rishi Shadaksharappa on your well-deserved recognition.
Vine Cutters Attack Invasive Vines
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- Written by Joanne Wallenstein
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Vine cutters had a very productive day at the Weinberg Nature Center on Sunday February 25 and plan to continue their work in Scarsdale public spaces each Sunday from 1-3pm until the end of April.
Vine cutting is best done in the winter and early spring (November - April) when the leaves are down. Once the leaves have sprung, they hide the vines making them difficult to cut. If you are worried about bad weather, we are too, so we do not cut vines while it is raining or snowing.
Adults (over 18) are welcome to join. Each week they will attack a different Scarsdale location. This activity is rewarding and may save many trees from being killed by vines. Anyone interested can email Elaine Weir (elaine.weir.sherman@gmail.com) and she will add you to the vine cutting email list. Training will be done to learn how to identify invasive vines and how to cut them. Cutting vines is not only useful in Scarsdale parks but this activity can also benefit your own backyard.
Come join the vine cutters for one or more of their 2 hour sessions each Sunday.
Oscar Nominations From Your Scarsdale Neighbors: What Are You Watching?
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- Written by Wendy MacMillan
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It’s that time of year again! Glamorous movie stars are dressing in their finest duds to walk the red carpet, while us regular folk are donning our comfiest sweatpants and fighting for the best seat on the sofa. That’s right, the 96th Academy Awards show is this Sunday March 10th, where stars like Bradly Cooper and Robert Downey Jr. will be vying for an Oscar.
While there are some obvious standouts such as Barbie and Oppenheimer, we wondered if your favorite movie from 2023 is a contender for a golden statue. We reached out to friends and neighbors (both old and young) and here are the movies that topped the lists of Scarsdale residents:
The Holdovers (Comedy/Drama) Rated R, now streaming on Peacock.
American Fiction (Comedy/Drama) Rated R, for purchase on Amazon.
Zone of Interest (War/Crime) PG-13, available for purchase on Apple TV, Amazon.
Guy Ritchie’s The Covenant (Action/War) Rated R, streaming on Amazon.
Anyone But You (Comedy/Romance) Rated R, for purchase on Amazon.
Past Lives (Romance/Drama) PG-13 available on Hulu, Showtime.
Society of the Snow (Thriller/Adventure) R available on Netflix.
Maestro (Romance/Musical) R available on Netflix.
Air (Sport/Drama) R available on Amazon.
Mission Impossible (Action/Thriller) R available on Paramount+
Pain Hustlers (Crime) R available on Netflix.
Fair Play (Thriller/Mystery) R available on Netflix.
Salt Burn (Comedy/Mystery…is Cringe a category??!!) R available on Netflix.
May December (Romance/Thriller) R available on Netflix.
Leave the World Behind (Thriller/Drama) R available on Netflix.
Killers of the Flower Moon (Crime/Western) R available on Apple TV.
Boys in the Boat (Sport/Drama) PG-13 available for purchase on Apple TV.
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (Action/Comedy) PG available on Netflix.
Creed lll (Sport/Action) PG-13 available on MGM+.
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (Action/Adventure) PG-13 streaming on Disney+.
Theater Camp (Comedy/Drama) PG-13 available on Hulu.
Asteroid City (Romance/Comedy) PG-13 available on Amazon.
Next Goal Wins (Sport/Comedy) PG-13 available on Hulu, Disney+.
Nyad (Sport/Thriller) PG-13 available on Netflix.
Dumb Money (Comedy/Drama) R available on Netflix.
Are You There God? It’s Me Margaret PG-13 available on Hulu.
And yes, Barbie and Oppenheimer aren’t just Academy favorites, they also top the lists of many of the folks who chimed in here in the ‘Dale. And though a lot of these movies might not be Academy Award Nominees, they rank right up there with the many well-loved films that came out in 2023. Did one of your favorite flicks from last year not make our list? Leave your “must-watch” suggestions in the comments!
Scarsdale Ice Hockey Team Wins Division 1 Quarterfinal in Brewster
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- Written by Dave Taber
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Lev Mizukovski (15) of Scarsdale fights with Ryan Dean (27) of BYSNS for control of the puck in Scarsdale's quarterfinal playoff win against BYSNS on 2/20/21On Tuesday Feb. 20, Scarsdale beat BYSNS (a combined team from Brewster, Yorktown, Somers, and North Salem) 5-3 in the Division 1 quarterfinals of the 2023-24 Section 1 Ice Hockey playoffs at the Brewster Ice Arena in Brewster NY. Scarsdales's next game will be on Thursday Feb. 22 against top-seeded Suffern who beat Mamaroneck in the their quarterfinal game.
Photos by Dave Taber of Shots of the Game. To see more game photos, please visit https://www.shotsofthegame.com
Harry Wolf (23) of Scarsdale fires in the puck toward the net against BYSNS in Scarsdale's quarterfinal playoff win against BYSNS on 2/20/21
Scarsdale's Harry Wolf (23) takes a penalty shot against BYSNS in Scarsdale's quarterfinal playoff win against BYSNS on 2/20/21
Ryan Camhi of Scarsdale faces off against Matteo Guastadisegni (23) of BYSNS in Scarsdale's quarterfinal playoff win against BYSNS on 2/20/21
Scarsdale's Ryan Camhi battles for the puck with BYSNS goalie Dylan Weber (45) in Scarsdale's quarterfinal playoff win against BYSNS on 2/20/21
Ryan Camhi (15) of Scarsdale celebrates a goal by Lev Mizukovski (15) in Scarsdale's quarterfinal playoff win against BYSNS on 2/20/21
Daniel Zhu (5) of Scarsdale skates toward the net in Scarsdale's quarterfinal playoff win against BYSNS on 2/20/21
Lev Mizukovski (15) of Scarsdale scores on Dylan Weber (45) of BYSNS in Scarsdale's quarterfinal playoff win against BYSNS on 2/20/21
Scarsdale goalie Max Siegel (23) nabs a shot in the 3rd period in Scarsdale's quarterfinal playoff win against BYSNS on 2/20/21
Scarsdale goalie Max Siegel (23) makes a great save against Lucas Salvatore (6) of BYSNS in Scarsdale's quarterfinal playoff win against BYSNS on 2/20/21
