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Written by: Anna S. Decker

Published: 11 March 2015

Created: 11 March 2015

Last Updated: 11 March 2015

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What could be better than supporting a group of talented artisans and craftspeople while also discovering some wonderful gift items? You can do this and more at the Scarsdale Village Woman's Exchange Store located right on Harwood Court.

If you haven't been into this charming little store, give yourself a treat and you'll find a treasure of baby gifts as well as a variety of other household items. The beautiful smocked dresses are among my favorites (they can be made to order) and have been a hit with many a contemporary new Mom. You'll also find hand knitted sweaters and blankets, hand crafted toys as well as other baby items. In addition, The Exchange carries wonderful manufactured goods such as serving pieces, frames, pillows, quilts and more; all at very reasonable prices. It's a wonderful spot for house gifts; I've purchased many items including trays and pottery that sell for much more elsewhere.

Founded in 1931 (during the Depression) to help women supplement the family income by selling handiwork and baked items, our Scarsdale Exchange is one of the oldest of 23 similar establishments. The shop is staffed by volunteers and in addition to supporting the consignor artisans, any profits go to My Sisters' Place. Items come from all over the country. Wooden alphabet trains are made in Polk County, Illinois by a retired Air Force officer who supplements his social security income; Brenda of Greenwich makes music boxes and Rita of Fenton, Missouri has done embroidery and smocking for the Exchange since 2010.

Be sure to stop in, even just to admire the homemade items you won't see anywhere else.

The Scarsdale Women's Exchange is open Monday – Friday 10AM - 4:30PM and Saturday 10AM-4PM.

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Written by: Joanne Wallenstein

Published: 03 March 2015

Created: 03 March 2015

Last Updated: 03 March 2015

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The fact that Scarsdale High School has no pool has not hampered the success of the school's stellar boys swimming team. This year they won the conference, the section and placed second at the state meet in Ithaca on February 28-29.

It doesn't get much better than this. Coach Tim Callahan, who has been coaching the team for more than 20 years explained that it "all has to do with the kids." Callahan said that 15 of the swimmers and divers on the team train year-round and said, "the kids are getting faster."

The team trains at the pool at Westchester Community College five days per week during the season and they got off to a winning start at the annual Relay Carnival which was held at White Plains in December. Ten teams participated and Scarsdale broke some records and excelled.

For their dual meets, the team's record was an impressive 8-0 and they have been undefeated in dual meets for five years in a row.

At the Conference meet in December, Scarsdale won for the fifth year in a row.
The medley relay team of Ryan Lee, Charlie McFarland, his brother Tanner Mcfarland, and Thomas Cook took first place. Senior Josh Hendell came in second in the 200 freestyle, and David Bravo won the individual medley where one swimmer swims all four strokes. Evan Moretti won the conference diving championship for the second year in a row.

Until this year, Scarsdale has never won the Section 1 swimming and diving tournament, placing third last year and second two years ago. So Callahan was especially proud to share the results from this year's tournament where Scarsdale placed first for the first time. The meet was exciting as Scarsdale and rival Horace Greeley were vying for the top spot, and the pendulum swung with each race. Graham Novich helped clinch the title when he competed in the consolation finals in the 100 yard butterfly against three Horace Greely students who were all seeded ahead of him. He won the race bringing six points to Scarsdale.

Also at the sections, the 400 yard freestyle relay team of Josh Hendell, David Bravo, Haofeng Liu and Charlie McFarland broke a school record, placed third and helped to win the title.

Diver Evan Moretti took home first place in the diving championship for the second year in a row.

The team was then onto the states at Ithaca College on February 28 and 29, where they brought nine teammates, the most that Scarsdale has ever sent to the state championship.

The boys excelled:

• Diver Evan Moretti took the silver medal in the NYS diving championship
• Josh Hendell came in fourth in the 500 yard freestyle,
• Charle McFarland broke a school record in the 50 yard freestyle and placed 7th overall in the state and also came in 3rd in the 100 yard breast stroke, breaking his own school record.

Commenting on the season, brothers Charlie and Tanner McFarland said, "The season could not have been any better. The team accomplished all the goals we set at the beginning of the season. We were undefeated for the 5th year in a row, won our 5th consecutive divisional title, and capped off the season with Scarsdale's first Section 1 Swimming title. Evan Moretti set a new Section 1 record with his victory in diving and Charlie set a new Section 1 record when he won the 100 breast. Everyone contributed and swam personal bests. We sent a record number of swimmers to the state championships in Ithaca (9). It was an exciting and fast meet, and we were very competitive. We finished 6th overall. Some team highlights - Evan Moretti took 2nd in the diving, Charlie was 3rd in the 100 breast, setting a new school record. His time puts him up for All American consideration. He was 7th in the 50 freestyle, Josh Hendell was 4th in 500 free and 13th in the 200 free and the medley relay team of Ryan Lee, Charlie and Tanner McFarland and Tom Cooke placed 13th, setting a new school record and the 400 free relay team of Josh Hendell, David Bravo, Haofeng Liu and Charlie McFarland placed 12th.

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Written by: Joanne Wallenstein

Published: 24 February 2015

Created: 24 February 2015

Last Updated: 24 February 2015

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Scarsdale High School students David Love and Matthew Gates hosted a 3 on 3 charity basketball tournament at Hooperstown last Sunday. Proceeds from the tournament will be donated to the Double H Ranch, which provides specialized camps and year round support for children and their families dealing with life-threatening illnesses, free of charge. David, a 7 year veteran of Camp Greylock and Matthew, a 7 year veteran of Camp Indian Head, organized this tournament so that kids with life-threatening illnesses could enjoy the summer sleepaway camp experience the way they have, without having to worry about their health.

Due to the tournament's inaugural status, participation was limited to 4th grade boys. Players came from across Westchester, Manhattan and New Jersey to participate. Quaker Ridge 4th graders (pictured above) Jody Alter, Asher Krohn, Nicky Rapaport and Nate Seslowe took home the 1st place trophies. Also pictured is Freddy Kushnick, the team manager. Edgemont boys Milan Gialleonardo, Will Shah, Ethan Sommers and Liyam Yaghoobzadeh were the runners up.

SHS students Max Bunzel, Nash Goldman, Leo Katz, Evan Maroney and Jack Solodar volunteered as referees for the games. To date, the tournament has raised over two thousand dollars.

Click here to see more photos from the tournament.

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Written by: Melissa Hellman

Published: 18 February 2015

Created: 18 February 2015

Last Updated: 18 February 2015

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Scarsdale residents might be surprised to learn that one of the most popular teachers in the community is someone whose name is unknown to the Village's school age children. Alfred Hunt has been teaching for the Scarsdale Adult School on and off for the last 15 years. His extremely popular classes always fill-up and often have waiting lists. I observed two of Professor Hunt's classes and can attest that his rapport with the students and his delivery of information (in a charming, slight southern drawl left over from his origins in Memphis, Tennessee) is as impressive as his credentials.

Hunt is a Professor Emeritus of History at SUNY Purchase where he was the Dean of the College of Letters and Sciences from 1989-2000. His specialty there was the American South and his academic degrees are in American Studies from University of Texas at Austin. He was the creator and on-camera host of "Critical Issues," an award-winning SUNY-sponsored cable talk show, and was also the recipient of the Chancellor's Award for Excellence in Teaching. He is the author of Haiti's Influence on Antebellum America, and numerous scholarly articles. Hunt has been a Fulbright Scholar in Venice, Italy and Barbados, West Indies, as well as founder, director, and instructor in study abroad programs in Spain and Italy. He started lecturing and teaching adult communities while he was still at SUNY and enjoyed it so much that he decided to stick with it after his retirement in 2007. He humorously commented that his continuing education students are "less sleepy" than his undergraduates and there are "no papers to grade". However, he is often assigned homework as I witnessed many class members stroll in early to ask him if he has read a certain book or article and he noted it all for future reading and discussion.

Hunt has also been a faculty member for several years with the Semester at Sea program that has taken him around the world three times. This program is essentially a different type of abroad experience where students and faculty live on a ship and visit many countries. For example, in Spring 2016 this program is offering "A Voyage Around The World, 101 Days, 15 Cities, 11 Countries" with travel to Africa, Asia and Europe. Not only for college students, adults can travel on these voyages too through the organization's Lifelong Learning Program. Check out their website at www.semesteratsea.org.

One of Hunt's Scarsdale Adult School classes is a series of lectures on world politics and culture. On February 3, 2015 he lectured on China for 90 minutes covering its history, culture, economics, and current challenges such as environmental problems and human rights issues. He was able to supplement his vast knowledge with anecdotes from his personal visits over the years.

Hunt also leads a very much in demand class on current events. I observed a class on which the topic was the Israeli/Palestinian conflict. The discussion might have gotten overly heated and aggressive given the topic, but in fact is it was collegial, serious, and punctuated with humor. Hunt sets the stage so that differences of opinion are encouraged and treated respectfully. Everyone in the class is on a first name basis, Hunt included. He knows every participant's name and does a wonderful job of including all in the discussion without putting anyone on the spot. He provides reading material prior to class, but it is not mandatory. The group is very well informed and often referenced books, articles and lectures recently attended. Class members tend to enroll for multiple terms creating a group of "regulars" however new members and new points of view are most welcome. The class as a whole leans a bit to the left politically, but several students told me how much they missed a former very right leaning member of the group and how much value he added to the discussion. Hunt said he sometimes tries to provoke debate if he sees that everyone is in too much agreement.

After class, I spoke with participants Simon and Nita Jacobson who informed me that they never miss class and get up at midnight when on-line registration opens to make sure they get a spot. This is their fourth time participating in this program and they also audited Hunt's classes when he taught at Purchase.

Hunt has been living in this area for more than 30 years. He currently resides with his family in Carmel, NY and happily makes the trip to Scarsdale several times a week.

In addition to lively discussion, this class provides an opportunity to socialize in a manner similar to a book group. If you want to meet a bunch of smart, friendly people and/or if you are missing that favorite professor from your college days, you should definitely try to experience one of Alfred Hunt's classes. Visit www.scarsdaleadultschool.org for enrollment information.