Harlem Wizards vs Mam'k Staff is a Win for the APPLE Program

by Andrea Byrne; photos by FAL photography

(March 13, 2008) On the evening of March 10th, the gym of the Hommocks Middle School was the place to be. Community members were gathering with one thing on their minds, basketball. The Harlem Wizards, hosted by the students and staff of the APPLE Program (A Place People Learn Excellence), were set to compete against a local team with a diversity of talent and experience.

The event was attended by families from all six district schools and local community members who turned out to see faculty and staff from the Mamaroneck schools compete against the pros. There were participating faculty members from Murray Avenue School, Mamaroneck Avenue School, Hommocks Middle School, and Mamaroneck High School.

The Mamaroneck team, led by Coach Nick Cucchiarella, the director of the APPLE Program, featured some talented athletes, including: Coach Mike Chiaparelli, whose dexterity and hustle energized the team, T.J. Hild, whose height alone qualified him to hit the court; and Vinnie Tamburro, who nailed a buzzer-beater at the end of the first half. Other members of the home team were Stephen Chinn, Jean-Paul Le Du, Robert Rainaldi, Harry Peterson, Justin Washington, Richard Becker, Diane Nelson, Amary Seck, Pedro Johnson, Stephen Pride, and Ethan Rivel.

And it wasn’t just basketball. Elementary school students munched chips and cheered for their favorite players as high school students danced to the background music supplied by the Wizards’ own DJ, “The Voice.” They put on a “hot” show, as one of the students shouted. At halftime, the young spectators got a chance to rub elbows with the pros as they played their own version of “hot potato.”

The APPLE Program is a small learning community within the high school that focuses on mutual respect, community, self-reflection, discipline, close student-teacher relationships and continual parent-teacher communication. The proceeds of the game will fund special events and scholarships for graduating seniors.

“In light of the recent tension at the high school, this event served to reunite the community and bring the focus back to the positive energy and spirit of our schools,” said Coach Cucchiarella.

Andrea Byrne teaches English in the APPLE Program.

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