Carrier Park & Syracuse Challenger Baseball We’re building community… Nineteen year old Brittaney del Toro, pictured here singing the national anthem at Carrier Park this past June, has been a player with Syracuse Challenger Baseball for 8 years. She says that being part of a “team,” with friends just like her who struggle with different things, makes her happy and she knows she “can do anything.” Brittaney is also an actor with the Front Row Players theater group (Brittaney playing Dorothy from “The Wizard of Oz,” see pg. 00), enjoys horseback riding, swimming, and also skis with the ARISE & Ski program. Brittaney’s favorite activity however, is singing national Syracuse Challenger is headed up by Executive Director anthems…in 30 languages. A few years ago Brittaney Dom Cambareri (speaking at the June 28th event) and heard the Japanese national anthem on television Jennifer Savastino, (with volunteers at Carrier Park in and decided she wanted to learn how to sing national 2017) who serves as both Program Director and anthems in many languages…and so, that’s exactly Chief Fundraiser. what she did. Dom has been the Executive Director of Syracuse This past June 28th Bishop Robert J. Cunningham of the Challenger Baseball for more than 15 years. He and Roman Catholic Diocese of Syracuse visited our own Jennifer have grown the organization from its infancy Carrier Park to bestow a special blessing on the “Field to more than 280 players in three divisions. They have of Dreams,” and to honor the players and families of the also spearheaded more than a dozen Carrier Park and Syracuse Challenger Baseball program. And Brittaney did Challenger events from Syracuse Chiefs Hot Stove Nights what she loves to do…she sang our national anthem. and Family Fun Days, to Friends of DeWitt Parks “Field Brittaney inspires her family, friends, and fellow of Dreams” Fundraisers. Jennifer is the force behind the Challenger players with her determination to pursue Annual Baseball Bash, which she and Dom co-founded; her interests and dreams; she epitomizes the positive the Annual Baseball Bash has been the major fundraiser power of inclusion and opportunity. Syracuse Challenger for Carrier Park. Baseball, one of the single largest districts of the Dom and Jennifer were also instrumental, in partnership Challenger program in the U.S., provides children – with DeWitt Supervisor Ed Michalenko and the Friends, and young adults like Brittaney - the opportunity to in transforming the vision of Carrier Park from a dream… do something we all take for granted…play baseball. into a reality. Dom and Ed grew up together in East Syracuse, and when Dom came to Ed seeking a home for Challenger, a powerful partnership, and the initial concept for Carrier Park, was born. DeWitt’s Carrier Park and its “Field of Dreams” is now the permanent and proud home of the Syracuse Challenger Baseball program. (continued on page 22) Table of Contents Community Notes 4-24 Message from the Supervisor 4 Supervisor’s Notes 5-9 Assessor 9 Highway 10-12 Parks & Facilities 12 Planning, Zoning, Codes, and Sustainability 12-16 Town Board 17 Town Clerk 17 Resolution In Opposition to the Forcible Separation of Immigrant Families 18-19 Letter from the Supervisor, I-481 20-21 Carrier Park 22-24 Recreation 25-34 Food Sense 25 How to Register 26 Special Events 27 Youth Programs 27-29 Adult Programs 29-31 Senior Programs 31-34 Follow Us on Social Media 34 General Contact Information DeWitt Town Hall Phone: (315) 446-3910 5400 Butternut Drive Hours: Mon-Fri, 8:00am-4:30pm East Syracuse, NY 13057 Web: www.townofdewitt.com Contact Information by Department Town Clerk x 2 Tax x 7 Court [email protected] [email protected] Judge Gideon (315) 446-9180 Judge Jokl (315) 446-7136 Planning & Zoning x 3 Assessor x 8 [email protected] [email protected] Police Administrative (315) 449-3640 Water x 4 Recreation x 9 Non Emergency (315) 425-2333 [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] Supervisor x 5 Parks (315) 432-1925 Highway (315) 437-8331 [email protected] DeWitt Parks Department DeWitt Highway Department 5953 Butternut Drive 5953 Butternut Drive Comptroller x 6 East Syracuse, NY 13057 East Syracuse, NY 13057 [email protected] Hours: Mon-Fri, 7:00am-3:30pm Hours: Mon-Fri, 7:00am-3:30pm [email protected] 3 A message from Supervisor Edward M. Michalenko, Ph.D. On June 25th our DeWitt Town Board passed a Resolution “In Opposition to the Forcible Separation of Immigrant Families,” (see page 18 of this newsletter). As your local representatives we felt it was incumbent upon us to speak up and speak out about the separation of immigrant families at our nation’s borders; who are we if not a nation born of inclusion and the sanctity of family? Indeed, much work needs to be done, and constructive, intelligent discussions need to be had, in order to create reasonable, humane, and judicious immigration legislation; legislation that best represents who we are as a nation. But the separation of immigrant families, exclusion at its most egregious, is not acceptable, nor a reflection of who we are as a people…here in DeWitt or across the country. The Town of DeWitt itself is a community of inclusion. Our neighborhoods – from Jamesville, central DeWitt, and our western border with of the city of Syracuse, to East Syracuse, Collamer and our eastern border with Fayetteville – represent many different socio-economic backgrounds and working classes. From those “differences” we have built a strong, stable, inclusive community, a highly desirable place to live, worship, work and do business, learn and play. Further, our Carrier Park recreational facility, featured in this newsletter - one of the first fully integrated, fully handicap accessible, outdoor sports complexes in this part of the country - is a tangible symbol of our commitment to inclusion. It was designed as a multi-sport facility for both adults and children, including those with special needs, and it is the permanent home of Syracuse Challenger Baseball, one of the largest single districts of the Challenger program in the nation. It was born of a partnership between Carrier, the Town of DeWitt, and Syracuse Challenger Baseball; business, government, and citizens tangibly “building community.” I hope you will read about Carrier Park in this newsletter - about a very special young woman from Challenger named Brittaney del Toro - and about two of the founders of Syracuse Challenger, Dom Cambareri and Jennifer Savastino. Carrier Park is an exceptional – and inclusive – place where children and adults of all ages and abilities, especially those with special needs, can come to play and truly “build community” together. I have lived in DeWitt all my life. My wife and I raised our four children here. As long as I have been a member of this community, I have known us to be a community of inclusion and generosity, empathy and intelligence; I consider it a privilege to continue to represent you, your family, and our community. I hope you and your family and friends enjoy a healthy and happy fall and holiday season. As always, my door is open to your ideas and concerns. For more information about Carrier Park, go to: http://carrierpark.org/story/. Most sincerely, Ed Michalenko, DeWitt Supervisor P.S. Please join us this September 11th at 6:30pm at Town Hall to remember those who perished on 9/11/2001, and to honor the ideals for which our community and our country stands. (see page 5) 4 SUPERVISOR’S NOTES Carrier Park & Challenger Baseball On June 28th Challenger players and their families, Town Board members and I, gathered at the park DeWitt Town Board Immigration Resolution for a very special event; Bishop Robert J. On June 25th our DeWitt Town Board passed a Cunningham of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Resolution “In Opposition to the Forcible Syracuse bestowed a special blessing on our Carrier Separation of Immigrant Families,” Please see my Park “Field of Dreams,” and the children and “Message” on page 4 for more information about families of Syracuse Challenger Baseball. After a this resolution and the Town Board’s impetus for few words by Challenger Executive Director Dom the creation and passage of the resolution. Also, see Cambareri, the blessing, and of course a few photos, page 18 of this newsletter to read the resolution in Bishop Cunningham tried his hand on the pitcher’s its entirety. mound and threw out the first ball. September 11, 2001 Commemoration Ceremony On Tuesday, September 11th at 6:30pm we will gather at the Town Hall 9/11 Memorial Monument to honor those who perished on September 11th 2001, the families who were left behind, and the brave first responders who answered the call to service on that day and for the many days, weeks, and months that followed. As I indicated in my “Message,” on page 4, this special commemoration ceremony is a way not only for us to honor the enormous loss – and the profound courage – of that day, but also to come together as an inclusive, caring community committed to standing up for, and honoring, the ideals for which our community and our country While creating economic strength, stability, and stands. security for DeWitt residents has been the driving force for the development of Carrier Park, what lay For more information about the Town of DeWitt at the heart of the project is the Syracuse Challenger 9/11 Memorial, please go to: Baseball program. In 2008, through a relationship www.townofdewitt.com/DeWitt911MemorialMonu that dates back to our childhood growing up in East ment.aspx Syracuse, Dom Cambareri and I came together with Carrier Corporation, and the dream of a home for the Syracuse Challenger Baseball program was born.