Submission #28332 by Beth Shalom Men's Club - Pittsburgh, PA (1208)
2023
I have read the 2023 Torch Awards Program Guidelines.
The Beth Shalom Men’s Club Annual Sports Luncheon, Community Outreach
Community Outreach
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On Sunday, February 19, 2023, Beth Shalom Men’s Club hosted its Annual Sports Luncheon and welcomed more than 300 guests from the special needs community from 11 organizations in Greater Pittsburgh and 125 current and former professional and collegiate athletes and coaches. The sports celebrities interacted and entertained the special needs guests, served lunch, took pictures, signed autographs, and gave out promotional team pass outs. This outreach by the sports celebrities and Beth Shalom Men’s Club helped put bright smiles on the faces of the special needs individuals and those that accompanied them to the luncheon at Congregation Beth Shalom.
The Beth Shalom Men’s Club has hosted a Sports Luncheon or Dinner for more than 60 years, but this was the first sports luncheon since the pandemic started. Since 1997, the Beth Shalom Men’s Club Annual Sports Luncheon has evolved into having many special needs organizations in the Greater Pittsburgh Area. The last Sports Luncheon that took place before this year’s luncheon was in February 2020, which was a month before the pandemic started. Having our first sports luncheon since the start of the pandemic we didn’t know what to expect in terms of attendance, but the responses from the special needs organizations were very positive. They were so happy that we were having the event again. We were supposed to have 200 special needs individuals and their staffs and families, but we ended up having over 300. A total of more than 500 people packed Beth Shalom’s Samuel and Minnie Hyman Ballroom. In addition to our special needs guests and sports celebrities we also had congregants and members of the community, which included many families with children, as well as representation from local government.
The following sports celebrities attended the luncheon:
• Emily Giangreco, Sports Anchor/Reporter, WTAE-TV Pittsburgh’s Action News 4
• Pittsburgh Penguins Alumni and Stanley Cup Champions Jay Caufield and Tyler Kennedy
o Caufield was a member of the 1991 & 1992 Penguins Stanley Cup teams. He is currently an analyst for AT&T SportsNet, for which he is on the pre-game, intermission reports and post-game shows during Penguins TV broadcasts. He is also an analyst on for WTAE’s “Pens on 4” pregame and post-game shows this season.
o Kennedy was a member of the 2009 Stanley Cup Champions He now is a Hockey Trainer and Coach, which where he offers programs for children ages 5 and up to learn how to play hockey. He also is frequently interviewed about the Penguins on media outlets.
• Iceburgh, Pittsburgh Penguins mascot
• Pittsburgh Riverhounds Soccer Club players forward Robbie Mertz (a native local native Pitssburgher), defender Arturo Ordonez & Goalkeeper Jahmali Waite
• 4 players from the professional Pittsburgh Passion Women’s Football team
• Athletes from various teams from the University of Pittsburgh, including from their football team and a member of the women’s volleyball team which made the NCAA Final Four
• 100 athletes and coaches from Carlow University representing 7 different men’s and women’s sports teams
The event began with celebrities interacting and schmoozing with our special needs guests and signing autographs and taking pictures. Then, the program continued with remarks from our Men’s Club President, Ira Frank, and Sports Luncheon Co-Chair Robbie Zaremberg. A proclamation was presented by Pittsburgh City Council Member Barb Warwick. Emily Giangreco, from WTAE-TV, served as our Master of Ceremonies and introduced all the sports celebrities in attendance. A hotdog and hamburger lunch was served by volunteers and our sports celebrities.
The following items were passed out to guests during the luncheon:
-200 Pittsburgh Pirates Raise the Jolly Roger Flags were donated by Pirates Charities in advance of the luncheon
-200 team photos were donated by the Pittsburgh Steelers before the event.
-Team posters of various Pitt sports teams
-Carlow University Athletics towels and team pictures of various sports
-Pittsburgh Riverhounds autograph sheets and team schedules
-T-shirts and other items donated in advance by PNC Bank
After lunch, Emily, Jay Caufield and Tyler Kennedy engaged in questions and answers about their Stanley Cup experiences. The Community Advisor for City of Pittsburgh Mayor Ed Gainey presented a proclamation.
We also received proclamations for the Sports luncheon from PA State Representative Dan Frankel and Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald. We displayed these proclamations at the check-in tables by the entrances to the Samuel and Minnie Hyman Ballroom. We then recognized Carlow University’s recently retired athletic director for bringing their athletes to our Sports Luncheon for more than 20 years.
Lastly, we had arm wrestling competitions with a Pitt football player, Riverhounds players, a Carlow athlete, Passion player, kids and some of our special needs guests.
Our Annual Sports Luncheon that took place this past February coincided with Jewish Disability Awareness & Inclusion Month in the United States. It represents an effort among Jewish organizations and communities worldwide to raise awareness and foster inclusion of people with disabilities.
The following sports celebrities attended the luncheon:
• Emily Giangreco, Sports Anchor/Reporter, WTAE-TV Pittsburgh’s Action News 4
• Pittsburgh Penguins Alumni and Stanley Cup Champions Jay Caufield and Tyler Kennedy
o Caufield was a member of the 1991 & 1992 Penguins Stanley Cup teams. He is currently an analyst for AT&T SportsNet, for which he is on the pre-game, intermission reports and post-game shows during Penguins TV broadcasts. He is also an analyst on for WTAE’s “Pens on 4” pregame and post-game shows this season.
o Kennedy was a member of the 2009 Stanley Cup Champions He now is a Hockey Trainer and Coach, which where he offers programs for children ages 5 and up to learn how to play hockey. He also is frequently interviewed about the Penguins on media outlets.
• Iceburgh, Pittsburgh Penguins mascot
• Pittsburgh Riverhounds Soccer Club players forward Robbie Mertz (a native local native Pitssburgher), defender Arturo Ordonez & Goalkeeper Jahmali Waite
• 4 players from the professional Pittsburgh Passion Women’s Football team
• Athletes from various teams from the University of Pittsburgh, including from their football team and a member of the women’s volleyball team which made the NCAA Final Four
• 100 athletes and coaches from Carlow University representing 7 different men’s and women’s sports teams
The event began with celebrities interacting and schmoozing with our special needs guests and signing autographs and taking pictures. Then, the program continued with remarks from our Men’s Club President, Ira Frank, and Sports Luncheon Co-Chair Robbie Zaremberg. A proclamation was presented by Pittsburgh City Council Member Barb Warwick. Emily Giangreco, from WTAE-TV, served as our Master of Ceremonies and introduced all the sports celebrities in attendance. A hotdog and hamburger lunch was served by volunteers and our sports celebrities.
The following items were passed out to guests during the luncheon:
-200 Pittsburgh Pirates Raise the Jolly Roger Flags were donated by Pirates Charities in advance of the luncheon
-200 team photos were donated by the Pittsburgh Steelers before the event.
-Team posters of various Pitt sports teams
-Carlow University Athletics towels and team pictures of various sports
-Pittsburgh Riverhounds autograph sheets and team schedules
-T-shirts and other items donated in advance by PNC Bank
After lunch, Emily, Jay Caufield and Tyler Kennedy engaged in questions and answers about their Stanley Cup experiences. The Community Advisor for City of Pittsburgh Mayor Ed Gainey presented a proclamation.
We also received proclamations for the Sports luncheon from PA State Representative Dan Frankel and Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald. We displayed these proclamations at the check-in tables by the entrances to the Samuel and Minnie Hyman Ballroom. We then recognized Carlow University’s recently retired athletic director for bringing their athletes to our Sports Luncheon for more than 20 years.
Lastly, we had arm wrestling competitions with a Pitt football player, Riverhounds players, a Carlow athlete, Passion player, kids and some of our special needs guests.
Our Annual Sports Luncheon that took place this past February coincided with Jewish Disability Awareness & Inclusion Month in the United States. It represents an effort among Jewish organizations and communities worldwide to raise awareness and foster inclusion of people with disabilities.
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Original Program
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