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Local Wiffle ball season concludes in Côte Saint-Luc

The 2018 Wiffle ball season concluded recently at Singerman Park in Côte Saint-Luc

Mark Rabinovitch

 

Wiffle ball is a variation of the sport of baseball designed for indoor or outdoor play in confined areas. The game is played using a perforated, light-weight, resilient plastic ball and a long, typically yellow, plastic bat.  Organizers of the local Wiffle ball league want to construct an actual stadium modeled around the old Jarry Park, the original home of the Expos. See photo below.

Mark Rabinovitch,   a cardiologist practicing at Clinique MedicElle, told me that  he started playing Wiffle ball with a group of friends from Côte Saint-Luc’s and the Montreal General Hospital around 1999.  “We played our games at Macdonald Park, and when we heard about a Wiffle ball tournament in the US, a group of us went to South Bend, Indiana to compete,” he says.  “We were outclassed,   but had a memorable time. Our love for Wiffle ball led us to hearing about another aficionado in Jericho, Vermont, who built a Wiffle ball field named Little Fenway. We made about three trips to Little Fenway  and that site has grown to include Little Wrigley and Little Field of Dreams.”

About  three years ago, Harold Cammy  from our Parks and Recreation Department invited the group to start playing at Kirwan Park. They now have a pool of about 25 players and compete with teams of five to eight on each side, every Sunday morning from May until the end of September.  Singerman Park serves as their base. Players range in age from nine to their late 70s.  There are three   father and sons players and daughters have played, too.  “The games are fun and not too competitive,” Rabinovitch says.

Our council has  allocated funds for a dedicated Wiffle ball field at Singerman Park. Rabinovitch and his group want to call it Expos Park at CSL Yards as a homage to the Expos and Camden Yards. City Council has yet to discuss the name and I am told this will be placed on an upcoming agenda.

“Wiffle ball is a game I used to play in the country with my cousins and neighbors, including kids of all ages and our parents,” noted Dr. Rabinovitch. “That is one of the attractions - it doesn't require any expensive equipment or special talent to go out and have fun together. 

I love baseball, but as we all know, a softball can hurt, if you're hit. The wiffle ball  is a plastic ball, with several holes, designed to throw curve balls, and other tricks. That's all Wiffle ball requires - a plastic bat and ball. A friend of mine even sent me an algorithm, showing how injuries from a wiffleb all are almost nonexistent.”  

I must admit I have not seen any games yet. But next season I will make it a point of doing so, perhaps even offering to step in as a pinch hitter.

Those interested can email wifflecsl@gmail.com  or shurob2007@hotmail.com. 

Up to $1 million in provincial funding announced for the Samuel Moskovitch Arena

David Birnbaum, MNA for D’Arcy-McGee and Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Education and to the Minister responsible for Higher Education, and Côte Saint-Luc Mayor Mitchell Brownstein today announced up to $1 million in funding from the provincial government for the upgrade of the Samuel Moskovitch Arena. The funds are designated for major modifications to the arena’s refrigeration system.

‘’This major investment by our government in a treasured and important Côte Saint-Luc facility is excellent news,” Mr. Birnbaum noted. “The numerous benefits associated with regular exercise, physical activity and leisure are obvious, and I’m pleased that our citizens will be assured of a first-class upgraded infrastructure that fully responds to their needs. This grant clearly demonstrates the importance our government places on healthy and safe physical activity.”

Mayor Brownstein and David Birnbaum.

Mayor Brownstein noted that he is pleased with this further example of effective collaboration between the provincial and municipal sectors. “This upgrade is important to our community, to our families who use the arena for a host of sports and recreation activities. We’re proud of our extensive parks and recreation programs, and pleased to have a valuable partnership with our provincial government in strengthening that offer.”

“Thanks to this grant, Quebec’s regions are benefitting from quality arenas and curling clubs. By prolonging the lifespan of our sporting infrastructures, we allow the population to access these modern and safe facilities to practice sports,” said Education, Recreation and Sports Minister Sébastien Proulx.

This project is among the 27 across Quebec that received funding, for a total investment of $17 million.

CSL hosts its most outstanding Golf Classic yet

Well before I became a city councillor in Côte Saint-Luc more than nine years ago I was involved with the annual golf tournament. I believe my association as  the emcee of their awards luncheon goes back at least 25 years. Originally, it was a Seniors Golf Outing and the event always attracted good numbers. When I was elected, I began co-chairing the program with Councillor Sam Goldbloom.

Over the years we saw attendance begin to drop. Last year, we had only 42 golfers register. We knew it was time to either cancel the event or recharge the batteries. Sam and  I opted for the latter and thanks to the spectacular assistance of Harold Cammy and Alvin Fishman at our Parks and Recreation Department the revival began. We renamed the event the Côte Saint-Luc Golf Classic and made it available to people of all ages. Work on the 2014 event began during a cold winter day when we sat down with Harold and Alvin and drew up a plan to attract foursomes. Together we obtained a title sponsors in Gravel Auto Group, which has a successful dealership on Decarie.  Harold and Alvin signed up a few other sponsors, including Casey Cameron from Techsport Inc. "Why not have a celebrity honourary chairman?" I asked, thinking out loud that legendary jazz pianist and CSL resident Oliver Jones would be a good choice. Thanks  to our Chief Librarian Janine West and her husband Jim, Jones agreed. He was part of a foursome with the West's and one of their close friends.

With Oliver Jones, Jim West and Sam Goldbloom,

When all was said and done, a total of 83 golfers registered. It rained the day before, but as I awoke on Tuesday, July 8 the weather was gorgeous and precipitation was only called for later in the day. This was also a day, once again, to showcase Meadowbrook Golf Course and how beautiful this large greenspace is. For the first time a foursome from Les Amis de Meadowbrook took part and that was wonderful. They lobby and hold meetings throughout the year, but what better thing to do than spend time on the very land they wish to preserve. We all golfed on the back nine.  I was part of a foursome with Goldbloom, Police Station 9 Commander Marc Cournoyer and Officer  Martin Bourgeois. Louis-Philippe Gravel,  director of sales at Gravel Auto Decarie, was on hand as well.

Officer Martin Bourgeois, Sam Goldbloom, Commander Marc Cournoyer and myself.

This represents my only golf game of the year, so only when I near the final hole do I find my swing comes around.  But this is a great day out and for only $27 a person where else can you find a better bargain.

This little groundhog was right next to the 17th hole.

The golf game is only half the fun. Afterwards everyone convened at our Aquatic and Community Centre for a very enjoyable luncheon coordinated by the team of Cammy and Fishman and their devoted committee: Toby Goldner-Shulman, Faygie Block, Dina Ancel, Naomi Jacobson, Fran Rosen-Miller, Kathy Nasr, Elaine Libman and Maurice Giobbi, Everyone was greeted with some wine and cheese, a few hor d'oeuvres and then a nice buffet of party sandwiches and salads.

Mayor Anthony Housefather provided opening remarks and then helped hand out the trophies.

Sidney Margles, my loyal constituent from District 2 and man about town.

Closest to the pin on the 16th hole went to Patti Heller for the women and Ivan Kolti for the men. Longest drive at the 17th hole also went to Heller for the women while Steven Wise captured the men's side.

There was a wide array of doorprizes handed out.  This included a set of golf irons and  a golf bag (valued at $400) from Play It Again Sports on Decarie and a one week scholarship at the TSPA Tennis Academy  (valued at $270).  Gravel Auto donated a slew of prizes, as did Bench, Bugatti, Pharmaprix Cavendish, CSL Bagel, J & R Kosher, CSL Kosher, Massa Greek Grill, Rockaberry Monkland, The Snowdon Deli, the Range Golf Academy and many more. This was a testament to the tireless efforts of Fishman. Thanks to five year old Jeremy Nashen, who came on stage with his dad - City Councillor Glenn J. Nashen - to help choose the winners. We know Jeremy is honest because his grandfather George lamented later that he did not win anything.

Three generations of Nashens: Glenn, my pal Jeremy and George.

Harold Cammy the Caterer then had one more suprise up his sleeve. On the eve of Oliver Jones' 80th birthday, out came  a huge cake designed like a piano. Oliver, who earlier addressed the crowd, was clearly touched. Everyone got a chance to taste this delicious dessert, as well as yogurt cups donated by Yeh! Yogurt at Quartier Cavendish.

We also wish to thank Michael Johnson, club manager at Meadowbrook and his staff. It was a great day to be sure.

Thanks to all. It was a great day. I can't wait until our 36th (Double Chai) event next summer!

Gathering around Oliver Jones' birthday cake with members of council and staff.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Strong interest for CSL Golf Classic 2014 on July 8

The 35th annual Côte Saint-Luc Golf Classic, set for Tuesday, July 8 at Meadowbrook, promises to be a good one. I am co-chairing the event once again  with Councillor Sam Goldbloom. After less than 50 golfers participated last year, Sam and I set out to pump up the volume. Thanks to phenomenal staff support from Harold Cammy and Alvin Fishman, we will now have the highest number of players and prizes collected  and registered over the past five years.

We also have a superb sponsor in Gravel Auto, which will make a brand new car available, and legendary jazz pianist Oliver Jones as our honourary chair. He will also be part of a foursome.

This is also an excellent opportunity to remind people what precious greenspace we have at Meadowbrook. Some members of Les Amis de Meadowbrook will even golf with us this year.

Foursome tee off early and we will all gather at the Aquatic and Community Centre for an awards banquet at 1 p.m.

Here are the details about the golf classic from  a previous blog.

 

 

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Rembrandt Park tennis courts update

I have received a number of inquiries re the status of  the Rembrandt Park tennis courts, for which I worked long and hard over the years to obtain a much needed facelift to the tune of $167,000. Preliminary work began last fall, but we needed to wait for nice weather to arrive this spring (and it was late) to  finish the job.

 

As Eric Ibey, the city's coordinator of Urban Development and our point man on the project explains,  there are reasons for the delays.  Notably,  the late spring caused all contractors to be backed up this year which means everyone is running behind. 

 

Here is Eric's update:

 

Surfacing:  This requires one more coat  and two days to cure after the final coat.

 

Fencing:  This is  lined up for next Wednesday.  The company hired will be repairing the holes as well as fixing the bottom of the fence along the perimeter of both courts.  That should represent two days of work.

 

New Lighting: The final wiring has been installed.

 

If all goes well people should be playing tennis by May 30 or 31. Let's just hope the weather is cooperative and the stars align.

 

CSL holds Minor Hockey banquet

There is nothing like a bunch of trophies, towels with the logo of Canada and pizza to celebrate the end of another successful house league campaign for the Côte Saint-Luc Minor Hockey Association. Victor Waisgrus and his team set up shop at the Aquatic and Community Centre. There was a power point presentation, featuring photos of the young players in their team uniforms.

I joined Mayor Anthony Housefather and Councillors Mitchell Brownstein, Allan J. Levine (whose dossiers include hockey), Ruth Kovac and  Dida Berku at the short and sweet banquet. See the picture below of us with some of the kids. On this night the Canadiens were beginninh their playoff series against the Boston Bruins so everyone wanted to get home to catch the game.

 

 

 

District 2's Matt Cudzinowski has dream job for Montreal Canadiens

A couple of years ago I was delighted to learn that former NHL defenceman  Igor Kravchuk was a constituent of mine in Côte Saint-Luc District 2.  A few days ago I had a chance to meet another one of my constituents, Matt Cudzinowski, who has a pretty exciting job with the Montreal Canadiens.

Matt Cudzinowski

Matt, now 31,  attended both the Jewish People's and Peretz Schools (JPPS) and Bialik High School before  moving on to  Marianopolis College (DEC – Commerce), Concordia University (BA – Journalism) and the University of the Pacific – (BA - Sports Management) in Stockton, California.

When I was introduced, I knew his distinct name sounded familiar. Sure enough, he had done some on  air work for TSN 690 Radio.   Matt enjoyed  two major internships  with the Stockton Thunder of the East Coast Hockey League and the NHL's Detroit Red Wings.  He signed  on as the coordinator of  media and public relations for Golf Canada in Oakville, Ontario. before returning to Montreal and joining the Canadiens on January 30 2013.

Presently, Matt is the coordinator for HabsTV and Editorial.  He serves as a writer for the impressive  canadiens.com  website and CANADIENS Magazine.  "I cover the team both at home and on the road as part of a team of writers for our website," he says. "I also write feature stories for every issue of CANADIENS Magazine and I am also responsible for translation work, as well."

A dream job indeed for any hockey fan! No doubt some interesting stories to share if we bring back to speak at Bialik High School in the heart of District 2.

 

 

Shaare Zion edges CSL's TBDJays to capture MSSL title

The Shaare Zion Lions are the 2013 Champions of the MSSL (Montreal Synagogue Softball League) for the fifth year in a row. In a thrilling and exciting two out of three final series against the TBDJays, the Lions lost the first game 5-4 to a younger and hungrier Jays team. With their backs to the wall, the Lions came from behind and took Game Two 13-10. And in the sudden death Game Three final at Trudeau Park in Côte Saint-Luc, the Lions battled the Jays and emerged victorious in a 11-9 win.

“We were an average team all year as many of our regulars were out with injuries” said manager/player Asher Tannenbaum. “But we stuck together, played smart and are thrilled with this fifth championship. We can claim to be The Montreal Canadiens of Softball and will return next year to win the sixth.”

The MSSL was created about seven years ago and there are eight synagogue teams in the league. Games are played on Sunday mornings from June through September.

For more information, please contact the Commissioner Asher Tannenbaum at reverend@shaarezion.org or514-481-7727#237

Daniel Alon does it again! This time he meets Vincent Lecavalier

Côte Saint-Luc District 2 resident and mega sports  fan Daniel Alon has a knack for meeting pro hockey players. Last September he snapped a shot of himself and Pittsburgh Penguins star defenceman Kris Letang in Côte Saint-Luc.   

On the day of this writing, Daniel was at Golf Town on Sources Boulevard in Dollard des Ormeaux where he had a chance to meet Vincent Lecavalier, the newest member of the Philadelphia Flyers. Lecavalier, of course, is from West Island Ile Bizard. He played his entire NHL career with the Tampa Bay Lightning until they bought his contract out in June. Soon after he signed on with the Flyers, much to the dismay of so many Habs fans who always dreamed of him  suiting up for the Red, White and Blue.

 

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CSL Mayor Housefather wins seven medals at Maccabiah Games

Côte Saint-Luc Mayor Anthony Housefather (pictured poolside below) has been proudly representing Canada at the Maccabiah Games (a.k.a. the Jewish Olympics) in Israel. As a member of the Canadian master's swim team, he has won seven medals : five silvers in the 100 and 400  metre butterfly, the 50 metre backstroke, open water and  the medley relay .  He also captured a bronze in the 200 metre freestyle while being part of relay team which also captured a bronze.

“My times have been generally very good and very pleased,” said the mayor, who missed a gold by four tenths of a second in the 400 metre freestyle.

The final  tally from the pool is eight medals (five individual silvers, one individual bronze and two relay bronze. Clearly the mayor is Canada’s answer to Michael Phelps.  “Our team manager believes this was the most medals won by a Canadian in the games so far so very pleased,” the mayor added.

Here is some more Maccabiah Games news:

Gold in Metula: It was a golden day for Canadian Men's Hockey. The Men's Junior team won their gold medal match over USA 3-2, while the Canadian Men's Open Team won their gold medal game 7-1 over Team USA. Canadians Men's Open Captain Adam Henrich was named player of the tournament on the Mens Open side, while Canadian Junior goaltender Mark Michaels was named player of the tournament on the junior side.

Men's Volleyball: In the gold medal game in Modi'in, Canada fell to Israel in straight sets (3-0). The guys fought hard, but in the end the U-21 team (for the most part) from Israel was just too strong. The pro-Canadian crowd - our rugby, Jr. girls volleyball, Jr. boys baseball teams and hundreds of other Canadians were in attendance — definitely showed their support with chants of CA-NA-DA filling the gym throughout the match. The team's showing was the best finish by a Canadian men's volleyball team in Maccabiah Games history.

Master's Tennis: The wins kept coming for Canada on the tennis courts yesterday. In Masters Singles, Sherry Buller finished off her Russian opponent to set herself up with a Gold medal match on Sunday. Bram Faber dominated his match and will go for Gold on Sunday as well. In Mixed Doubles, Sherry Buller was at it again and did not disappoint. She and her partner Adam Fisher won 2 consecutive matches to bring home another Gold medal for Canada.

Silver on the Diamond. After an epic win against Israel in the semi-finals the day before, Canada's Junior Boys Baseball team came up short against USA in the gold medal game losing 9-0. The boys had a great tournament and the crowd at yesterday's game was definitely proud of their silver medal accomplishment.

Soccer Update: The Open Women's team rebounded from its tough loss on Thursday against Israel with a resounding 7-0 win over Germany. For complete soccer results, check out www.maccabiah.com.
 
Cricket: Canada matched up against Great Britain yesterday in their second last round robin game. They came out hitting well, but in the end, lost the contest 102-101 and Great Britain had 10 wickets in hand. Canada's last round robin game is on Sunday against India and the outcome will determine whether or not they will be playing for a medal on Monday.

Basketball Update: On Friday, many of our hoops team hit the court. Here are there results: U16 Boys beat Brazil 44-42; Master's Men's team fell to USA 80-75; and Open Men's team lost to Israel 110-75. Our Open Women's team will play for Bronze eitherSunday or Monday (yet to be determined).