Town of Pittsford, Vermont

Recreation Director's Report

February 11, 2008

            On January 17, the Pittsford Day Committee started meeting to work on planning the annual town wide celebration. Members enjoyed reminiscing about the 2007 event before switching focus on the 2008 edition. The date for this year's celebration has not been finalized, however it does appear that it will take place a week or two BEFORE JULY 4. The event would be advertised as a "KICK-OFF SUMMER BLOWOUT" event. I again as the Recreation Director suggested that the committee strongly think about hosting the event on the actual fourth, (Friday, July 4), because I feel it would be a great way for residents to kickoff their holiday weekends. However, the other members of the Pittsford Day Committee felt like our event would be better attended if we held it a week or two before everyone else does like on Saturday, June 21 or the 28. My idea was voted down. (Note: Members all agreed that, for this year we should not hold the event on the first Sunday of July, as in the past three years, because the first Sunday will be July 6 and by then everyone is going to be tired from the other events happening throughout the holiday.) The next Pittsford Day meeting is Thursday, March 6. I would like to make known that for various reasons the committee is down three (3) members from past summers and we are in NEED of NEW MEMBERS to help support the cause. Anyone who is interested in joining us should contact the Recreation Director directly.

            I'd like to report that the Recreation Department sponsored two scrap booking programs during the month of January. Introduction to Scrap Booking that took place on Thursday, January 10, 6:00 -7:30 pm at the Maclure Library. This class was especially for the folks with little or no experience at all scrap booking who wanted to become familiar with this popular activity. Participants were exposed to the "tools of the trade" and were shown the most effective ways to use them. Each individual who attended was asked to bring three (3) pictures with them so they could make their scrapbook pages using the tools and paper that was provided. The second program, Scrap Booking 2 took place on Thursday, January 24, 6:00 -7:30 pm, again at the Maclure Library. In this class advertised as "Bring a Friend Night-Free of Charge." Anyone who brought a friend with them received a free gift from the instructor.  More ideas and new tools were available for participants to use. These first two programs were successful enough to create a third program. This third program will meet once a month to get people together to scrap. Beginners to old pros are welcome to join in on the fun as it's meant to be an opportunity for folks to get out of their daily routines and work with others with similar interests.

On Friday, February 1 the Maclure Library and the Recreation Department were scheduled to co-sponsor our second of three Family Fun Nights of the winter. However due to a storm that dumped 6"-10" on the region during the day of a wintry mix of snow, sleet, & freezing rain we were forced to postpone the event. The Family Fun Night is RESCHEDULED for Saturday, February 16, 6:30-8 pm at the Vermont Police Academy. In years past we have not rescheduled these events when they were affected by the weather, however now with the large number of families that look forward to attending these events we felt we owed it to them to reschedule. The theme for the night will remain "Winter Wonderland." The third and final Family Fun Night is scheduled for Friday, March 7, at the Vermont Police Academy; the theme will be "Medieval Knights."

                        On Friday, February 8, 2008 the Pittsford Recreation Department & the Brandon Recreation Department co-sponsored our annual Valentine Teen Dance at the VT Police Academy. 186 teens in grades 7-10 participated in this event. I'd like to thank the parent chaperones who volunteered to take time out of their busy schedules, to help us keep a watchful eye during the dance. Thanks to Megan Bradley, Gerry Cummings, Emily Drummond, David & Marie Fitzgerald, Kelly Giard, Laurie Hemple, Jon Kimball, Christine Maseroni, Kathy Roberts, Tom Shannon, Kathy and Raymond Shortsleeves, and Mark Winslow. I'd also like to thank John D'Esposito for coordinating the police officers we have present at each of our teen dances at no cost to the Recreation Departments. These officers are sponsored by the Rutland County START (Stop Teen Alcohol Risk Team) in an effort to help bring about healthy, drug and alcohol-free fun activities for the area kids. Thank you to Thomas Curran of the Dept. of Liquor Control, who was present to provide an extra layer of security.

On Saturday, March 1, 2008 the Pittsford Recreation Department in conjunction with the Pittsford Trails Committee has scheduled our sixth annual Winter Celebration at the Caldwell Trail. Participants of all ages are invited to get outdoors and enjoy an afternoon of exercise and fun with their family and friends. Participants will be able to take a guided or unguided tour on cross country skis or snowshoes through the meadows that meander along Otter Creek and Furnace Brook. There will be sledding available for the kids (and the kids at heart). Folks will be able to enjoy free hot dogs, brownies, and hot chocolate while standing next to the bonfire to keep warm.

Youth Basketball for 1^st & 2^nd grades finished their 6 week program last Saturday morning. I had the pleasure of coaching the very large (15 players) 1^st grade co-ed group. First off I'd like to thank the assistant coaches Ed Shannon & Tim Gallipo, and our helper Steven Kallen. Without the support of these three gentlemen it would have been difficult for me to teach a group this large much about basketball. These guys did everything thing I asked of them, arrived early for practices and followed through with the lesson plan I created. The 1^st grade group improved so much in the short time we had them. For just about everyone it was their very first time participating in any organized basketball program, they could bounce the ball, but wasn't dribbling and they could throw the ball towards the rim but it wasn't shooting. Now however they can dribble (a little bit) with both hands with their eyes up, and they a can demonstrate the "triple threat stance," plus shoot the ball towards the basket with some form and accuracy.

As the Recreation Director it has been rewarding to watch Dick Williams and the co-ed second grade team grow as well. This confident group of 7 year olds has come a long way over the past two seasons. This group has an understanding of offense & defense concepts, they have good hand/eye coordination, and have already played small sided games against themselves. These are some of the skills that they'll need id they choose to play at the next level.

Overall the basketball season has gone well (so far) for the Recreation Department teams. The Recreation Department made a great decision splitting the 3^rd & 4^th graders and putting them on their own teams. Our low players to teams ratio has allowed for the 2008 participants to get a lot of repetitions in during practices and accumulate a lot playing time during games.

A sure sign that spring is quickly approaching is that over the past two weeks I've had two separate meetings, one for Youth League Baseball, and the other for Girls Softball.

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