News: Summer Camp for Children of Terrorist Victims

(Long Island, N.Y.) Project Common Bond is a summer camp that unites relatives of victims who have been affected by terrorist attacks. Tuesday’s Children is a nonprofit agency which is run by Executive Director Terry Sears who organized the camp.

According to their website, Tuesday’s Children offers a broad range of programs designed for those who have lost loved ones on September 11th. It also offers programs for rescue and recovery workers, responders, and anyone around the world impacted by terrorism.

Sources stated that a majority of the campers were fifteen to twenty years old. The campers continue to return each year and stay in touch with their friends. Many of them feel more at ease around others who have had the same experiences.

One camper stated that the camp was beneficial to the healing process due to the shared empathy among those who attend. The Director of Counseling stated that the type of loss the campers experience takes on a different meaning for the victims because it has been widely publicized in news coverage.

The campers are unique because they did not choose to stand out among their peers and it is difficult for them to connect with other teens. Some sources stated that the camp offers the chance for them to bond instantly.

The camp caters to many victims from the September 11th attacks, but some campers are victims of international terrorism. One camper from North Ireland came from a family that was killed by the Irish Republican Army. After enrolling in the camp, the victim was able to meet a fellow camper whose mother was also killed by the IRA because of her nationalist ties to Ireland.

Reports stated that the focus for the 2011 camp wasn’t directly preoccupied with the ten-year anniversary of the September 11th terrorist attacks. Nonetheless, campers were instructed to create mailboxes that will be placed at ground zero. The mailboxes will be open to anyone with the desire to place messages of global peace.

Last year’s camp was held in Belfast, Northern Ireland. The campers typically enjoyed activities in sports, drama, art, music, and dance. The camp’s objective has been to turn tragedies into strength and resilience. Campers believe that it is easier to remain positive in the supportive community of the camp’s environment.

Many campers go on to choose majors in college that related to what they went through in wake of the tragedies. Some have focused on studying conflict resolution as a form of therapy. In addition to recreational classes, the camp also holds studies on peacemaking and conflict resolution.

News: Summer Camp for Children of Terrorist Victims

(Long Island, N.Y.) Project Common Bond is a summer camp that unites relatives of victims who have been affected by terrorist attacks. Tuesday’s Children is a nonprofit agency which is run by Executive Director Terry Sears who organized the camp.

According to their website, Tuesday’s Children offers a broad range of programs designed for those who have lost loved ones on September 11th. It also offers programs for rescue and recovery workers, responders, and anyone around the world impacted by terrorism.

Sources stated that a majority of the campers were fifteen to twenty years old. The campers continue to return each year and stay in touch with their friends. Many of them feel more at ease around others who have had the same experiences.

One camper stated that the camp was beneficial to the healing process due to the shared empathy among those who attend. The Director of Counseling stated that the type of loss the campers experience takes on a different meaning for the victims because it has been widely publicized in news coverage.

The campers are unique because they did not choose to stand out among their peers and it is difficult for them to connect with other teens. Some sources stated that the camp offers the chance for them to bond instantly.

The camp caters to many victims from the September 11th attacks, but some campers are victims of international terrorism. One camper from North Ireland came from a family that was killed by the Irish Republican Army. After enrolling in the camp, the victim was able to meet a fellow camper whose mother was also killed by the IRA because of her nationalist ties to Ireland.

Reports stated that the focus for the 2011 camp wasn’t directly preoccupied with the ten-year anniversary of the September 11th terrorist attacks. Nonetheless, campers were instructed to create mailboxes that will be placed at ground zero. The mailboxes will be open to anyone with the desire to place messages of global peace.

Last year’s camp was held in Belfast, Northern Ireland. The campers typically enjoyed activities in sports, drama, art, music, and dance. The camp’s objective has been to turn tragedies into strength and resilience. Campers believe that it is easier to remain positive in the supportive community of the camp’s environment.

Many campers go on to choose majors in college that related to what they went through in wake of the tragedies. Some have focused on studying conflict resolution as a form of therapy. In addition to recreational classes, the camp also holds studies on peacemaking and conflict resolution.

News: Long Island Wrong Way Driver Arrested

(Long Island, N.Y.) A twenty-year-old man from Riverhead was arrested Sunday morning for drunk driving. He had been traveling in a blue Nissan Pathfinder along the Long Island Expressway. Police and authorities on the case found him driving the wrong way near Exit 68 in Yaphank.

Suffolk County Police Officers responded to the scene, and sources claimed that the man had been driving for three miles before being stopped by authorities. He had been driving the wrong way, traveling eastbound in the westbound lanes of the Long Island Expressway. Reports stated that he had been driving at estimated speeds of fifty miles-per-hour.

Sources claimed that responding police officers received three calls from other drivers along the Long Island Expressway. The calls began at roughly two-thirty in the morning, reporting a wrong way driver in a blue SUV. Reports stated that the young driver wouldn’t stop for authorities at the scene and was unable to stay in a single lane.

It took three patrol cars to box the driver in, forcing him to stop between exits 70 and 71 on the Long Island Expressway. He was halted near Manorville roughly fifteen minutes after calls were received reporting the incident. Sources claimed that a breathalyzer test revealed that the man had a blood alcohol level of more than two times the legal limit.

The man was arrested on the charges of aggravated driving while intoxicated, reckless driving, and unsafe lane changes. Reports stated that the driver didn’t know when he got on the Long Island Expressway. He gave no explanation and was not aware as to how he had been driving the wrong way.

Police and authorities were able to respond quickly to the calls reporting the intoxicated driver, thus preventing any possible collisions from taking place. There were no fatalities or serious injuries reported. The prevalence of wrong way drunken driving incidents has gotten many Long Islanders conscious about what can be done to ensure road safety.

The driver was arranged on Sunday afternoon at the First District Court in Central Islip. He received a bail of five thousand dollars cash and fifteen thousand dollars bond. It is uncertain as to whether he had been provided with legal aid attorneys or had employed private representation.

Statistics determined that there have been more than twenty wrong way driving cases on Long Island since last November. These figures have inspired Long Island lawmakers to propose a bill that will make wrong way drunken driving offenses a felony. The bill, which will increase the penalty of such charges passed in the Senate in March.

News: Fatality on the Long Island Expressway

(Long Island, N.Y.) An accident occurred involving a SUV last Sunday along the Long Island Expressway. A forty-two-year-old man from the Bronx was killed in the collision. Reports stated that the man had been driving the vehicle when it crashed at roughly three-thirty in the afternoon.

Sources claimed that four other people, who had been passengers in the SUV, were injured. All of the passengers were hospitalized and treated for various injuries. Some reports stated that the vehicle involved with the crash was a 2007 Ford Explorer.

According to sources, the vehicle’s tire blew and caused the Ford Explorer to roll over along the Long Island Expressway. The defect was likely the rear driver’s side tire, and Nassau County Police Officers responded to the scene. It is uncertain whether the incident was reported by other drivers on the roadway.

The forty-two-year-old driver lost control of the vehicle while traveling westbound on the Long Island Expressway. His speed has not yet been determined, but reports stated that the accident occurred near the exits for Old Westbury. The damaged vehicle was found between Exit 39 and Exit 40.

Sources claimed that the Ford Explorer rolled over five or six times from impact before finally reaching a stop. Four out of the vehicle’s five passengers were ejected, and it is uncertain whether the driver had remained inside the vehicle. He suffered from severe head trauma and was pronounced dead from the crash.

A fifty-year-old female passenger suffered from a fractured skull and brain hemorrhages. Reports stated that she had to be airlifted by helicopter to a nearby hospital. A fifty-eight-year-old man, who was also a passenger, suffered from chest pains.

Another passenger, a fifteen-year-old female, suffered from fractured vertebrae and ankle bones. An eighteen-year-old female suffered from fractures to the femur and pelvic bones. It is uncertain as to whether the passengers were related, or what their relations were to the deceased driver.

Sources have not determined whether any of the passengers had been wearing seatbelts. Reports stated that no other vehicles were involved in the collision. It was reported that westbound lanes along the Long Island Expressway were closed in the area of the crash for several hours after the incident.

Police and authorities on the case have determined that the cause of the accident was the blown-out tire. This incident is one of many recent accidents to occur on Long Island roadways. Such events have caused sources to highlight dangerous traffic spots on local roadways in which fatalities have occurred.

News: Long Island Teen Survives Grizzly Bear Attack

(Long Island, N.Y.) A teen from Huntington became an overnight hero after surviving an attack from an eight-hundred-pound grizzly bear. The teen and his friends were camping in the Alaskan wilderness when the incident occurred. Reports stated that it was unusual for a bear of that size to be found at this time of year.

After being interviewed by the press, the teen revealed chilling details about the attack. He claimed that the screams he heard were nothing like the movies or what would result from punches in a fight. Instead, he stated that they sounded like a person being killed, and that the sounds will never be removed from memory.

He described the nature of the trip, claiming that the group of teens had a long day before the attack. They had taken an eleven-mile hike across the Alaskan backdrop. On the day of the incident, they settled near a creek.

Sources stated that the teen recalled the cheers he received at the airport when returning home. He also remembered seeing trout in the creek where the attack occurred. He said that the group used nets to catch the trout, and that one of them ventured uphill to see what was beyond the scrubs.

The rest of the teens remained in the valley when the grizzly bear came into sight. Reports claimed that a group of four or more would have been enough to scare the bear. It’s suggested that potential victims of a grizzly attack should make noise and act by making their presence known.

Complicating matters, adrenaline began to kick in for the Huntington teen. While the boys scattered, he was faced with the flight or fight dilemma and admitted the difficulty in playing dead. He claimed that the bear, which was extremely close and on the move, made it impossible for him to do anything but flee.

After taking off on foot, the teen began to hear a low growl. He then saw the animal charge at one of his friends. He later proceeded to unzip his pack and run in the absence of the excess weight.

The teen estimated that he ran up a thirty-foot hill in a matter of seconds as a response to the threat of the attack. He feared that the bear would catch up to him, bite his leg, and drag him down to the valley. Sources claimed that bears normally leave after attacking one person, making the teens suspect that the robust animal had been protecting a cub.

The Huntington hero believed he saw what could have been a cub scatter in the bushes. At the top of the hill, he had the optimum view of the attack. Once he saw that his friend was in trouble, he left the safety of the hill to protect the fellow teen.

After working at Good Samaritan hospital since the ninth grade, the teen gathered enough experience to make a successful emergency response. He had volunteered at the Intensive Care Unit and believed that he’d save his friend. His immediate reaction was to tear off his own shirt and use it to tie around the bleeding neck of his wounded companion.

He then proceeded to remove his socks to tie around the teen’s side. Realizing that the injured teen was suffering from hypothermia, which resulted from blood loss, he used rain pants to keep in the warmth. After checking vitals and knowing that his friend was safe, the teen waited with the others for the helicopter to make a rescue.

No sounds were sweeter than that of the chopper as it descended to aid the group of boys. The teen later questioned his status as a hero, claiming that he had only been doing what he was taught.

News: Nassau Coliseum Tax Raise

(Long Island, N.Y.) Nassau County Executive Edward Mangano has a plan that is poised to generate thousands of jobs and millions in revenue. Sources stated that Mangano’s plan will cost taxpayers an estimated $13.80 per household to finance the new Coliseum each year. Additional reports stated that the plan includes borrowing nearly $400 million to fund the Coliseum and a minor league baseball park.

Sources stated that Mangano highlighted the benefits of the plan by speaking about new jobs, revenue, and an increased quality of life. To reach the low $13.80 figure per household the county will have to apply the money it receives to a revenue sharing deal with the New York Islanders franchise. This would likely reduce Nassau County’s general property tax fund levy.

Sources stated that the revenue projections will create $19 million a year in revenue for Nassau County. An estimated $14 million comes from promised funds taken from the Islanders franchise as well as $5 million in sales and tax revenue. The amount due for the debt portion of the project is estimated at $25.6 million for thirty years, and the $13.80 per home would cover the additional amounts due.

The previous figure calculated by the Office of Legislative Budget Review was $58 annually per household in addition to property taxes used to complete the project and minor league park. Nassau County officials stated that there was no guarantee that the revenue sharing would be used to offset homeowner taxes.

The final figure, if revenue is not used to offset the property tax, is estimated at $51.50 per year. The owner of the Islanders has stated that he may move the franchise if a new arena is not constructed. A consultant stated that Nassau County’s economy could lose $243.4 million annually if the team moves.

Reports also stated that labor unions are supporting the plan for the new Nassau Coliseum because of the jobs it may create. The Civil Service Employees Association is in support of the Coliseum. Sources claimed that the union did not urge anyone to vote for the $400 million loan.

An estimated $350 million would be spent on the new arena, $26 million on a minor league ballpark, and $24 million on improvements to the area around the Coliseum. The vote to borrow the necessary $400 million to fund the plan will be completed on August 1st. The president of the Civil Service Employees Association emphasized the importance of the Islanders and the new Coliseum, but refused to encourage union members to vote for the plan.

News: California Diver Killed Off Long Island

(Long Island, N.Y.) A twenty-seven-year-old man was killed while diving last Sunday around eight in the morning. The man was from Gardena, California, located in the Los Angeles area. Reports stated that he was one of three others to take the waters for an experienced dive.

The man had been descending toward a shipwreck called the Andrea Doria, which can be found roughly forty miles south of Nantucket. The shipwreck is a popular attraction for experienced divers, some of whom have completed between a hundred and thousands of dives. Exploration of the Andrea Doria requires specialized training and equipment.

The twenty-seven-year-old allegedly let go of the rope of the decent line and disappeared into the depths. His diving partner lost sight of him during the dive, and it took three hours before his body was located. Searchers discovered the young man lying in waters that were 225ft below surface.

Police and authorities on the case are conducting an ongoing investigation. Sources claimed that his death has not been ruled suspicious. The ship’s captain allegedly brought his body to the Coast Guard Station around five that evening.

The diver’s father, a sixty-year-old neurologist from Phoenix, stated that his son had been planning the dive for six months. He was a student at Bentley University, located in Waltham, Massachusetts, and played on the football team. According to reports, his father warned him about the dangers of the dive.

The Director of Operations at Dive N’ Surf, located in Redondo Beach, California, echoed the dangers of the dive and the challenge it poses among experienced divers. The twenty-seven-year-old had undertaken the suit with the Jack Seagoing Adventures vessel, based in Montauk. The water’s strong currents, icy depths, and unpredictable conditions make the dive especially perilous.

The location of the dive is located outside phone reception. Sources claimed that the young diver descended with six hours worth of oxygen in his tank and was underwater for less than an hour. His Facebook picture shows him with his scuba gear, expressing his extreme passion for diving.

Reports stated that the diver worked for a toy import company based in Los Angeles and that he began diving as a teen. Among his favorite books was “Deep Decent- Adventure and Death Diving The Andrea Doria” By Kevin McMurray. He had embarked on deep shipwreck dives in Belize, Mexico, and along the west coast. He is survived by his three younger brothers, father, and a large extended family.

Sources claimed that the Long Island Sound Sector of the United States Coast Guard aided in the search, and that the investigation could take between two and six months. An initial search team was sent along with a helicopter, plane, and boat. Divers descended to look for him before a missing diver report was made to southeast New England officials around noon that Sunday. His body was discovered by four that afternoon.

News: Another Diver Killed Off Long Island

(Long Island, N.Y.) East Hampton Town Police investigated the case of a sixty-four-year-old man who died after diving sixty nautical miles southeast of Montauk. The incident occurred on Thursday, and the man was a scuba diver from Reading, Pennsylvania. The man entered a state of cardiac arrest after ascending from the dive.

Like the twenty-seven-year-old diver from California, the Pennsylvania native had been set to explore a shipwreck. He had been surfacing from the USS Norness, which is a Norwegian oil tanker. The vessel sank on January 14th, 1942, and was the first ship to flounder off the east coast since the start of World War II.

The sixty-four-year-old had also been traveling along the same dive boat as the young diver. Both had boarded the John Jack Dive Boat, based out of Montauk. Both perished in high depth seas within the last five days.

The Pennsylvania native had been in waters roughly three-hundred feet below surface. Sources claimed that the crew from the dive boat helped to administer CPR in response to his distress. He had been with another diver, and embarked on the underwater journey around eleven that morning.

According to reports, the diver was submerged while exploring between fifteen and twenty minutes, and had stopped to decompress on his way to the surface. Sources claimed that the incident did not seem suspicious, and that a medical reason was likely the culprit behind his sudden death. Fellow passengers noticed his distress as he surfaced.

The Suffolk County Medical Examiner was set to perform an autopsy and his equipment had been tested by investigators. Reports stated that the California diver, who had been found dead four days earlier, was missing before other divers and ship personnel realized he had not returned to surface. Fifteen other divers had been killed while exploring the same shipwreck.

The shipwreck, called the Andrea Doria, was once a seven-hundred-foot Italian luxury vessel. It sank after a collision with the Stockholm, a Swedish passenger ship. At least fifty-one people were killed in the wreck, which occurred in 1956. It now rests on its right side along the edge of the continental shelf under roughly two-hundred-and-fifty feet of water.

Despite the casualties, 97% of the ship’s 1,660 passengers and crew survived. The small amount of deaths attracts experienced divers to the shipwreck because they don’t feel as if they are exploring a ghost ship amidst the Andrea Doria’s labyrinth of debris. They claim that, despite the fatalities of sixteen divers, there is less of a negative presence at the wreck site.

Decompression time after the dive takes as long as three hours, and the last death to occur was that of a thirty-eight-year-old man from Houston on August 1st, 2008. Experienced divers train for years to take on the Andrea Doria, for dives that last between two and three hours. A specialized blend of oxygen, nitrogen, and helium is necessary to counteract the water pressure’s effects on the body and brain.

In addition to icy waters and strong currents, the lack of sunlight makes visibility unpredictable. Divers can see between five and seventy feet. Reports stated that more than a third of the fatalities occurred when divers suffocated after tangling their air hoses/tanks in nets, pipes, cargo lines, and other debris in the area.

For all of the above reasons, fellow divers esteem the Andrea Doria as the “Mount Everest of dive sites” and “Holy Grail of shipwrecks.” It is more than two times the depth of the average recreational dive and attracts hundreds of divers each year.

News: Update: Tragedy on the Taconic

(Long Island, N.Y.) An HBO television special aired Monday night at 9pm Eastern Standard Time entitled “There’s Something Wrong with Aunt Diane.” The documentary was designed to revisit the tragic accident that occurred in July of 2009 near Route 117 along the Taconic State Parkway. The program revealed many new details and perspectives about the mind-blowing incident.

Much of the special was devoted to examining the life of thirty-six-year-old Diane Schuler who perished in the accident along with seven others. Four children were lost, one of whom was Diane’s two-year-old daughter, Erin. While Schuler’s toxicity report determined her blood alcohol level to be around two times the legal limit, her family maintained that a medical emergency was what caused her to drive two miles southbound in the Taconic’s northbound fast lane.

The family spoke with an expert who maintained, against their hopes, that he believed the initial toxicity report was accurate. An investigator, who was hired by Schuler’s family, claimed that the DNA from the report matched that of Schuler’s, and that the test results were the same after they had been retaken. Medical records and witness statements did indicate, however, that Schuler suffered from ongoing dental problems that were heightened towards the end of her life.

Other drivers along the parkway claimed that Schuler stared straight ahead with a serene and oblivious expression and didn’t brake before slamming head-on into the oncoming vehicle. They claimed that she had kept her hands on the steering wheel in the ten and two position, and that she caused a third vehicle to be impacted by the crash. Contrary to information discovered after initial research, which stated there was a delay in police involvement, the documentary aired 911 calls that were placed after Schuler’s niece alerted her father of her aunt’s behavior.

Schuler had been driving her brother’s minivan at estimated speeds of seventy miles per hour. She remained traveling in the left lane and was allegedly going straight as an arrow down the wrong end of the roadway. Her vehicle continued to travel after impact, and many other drivers responded by attempting to help at the scene.

For that reason, dozens of 911 calls were made, some of which were hysterical and disturbing. Some described the scene as chaotic; witnesses screamed at the sight of multiple fatalities. One off-duty police officer responded to the incident, and along with other bystanders, attempted to aid those involved in the crash.

Earlier footage of Schuler and interviews with her family members revealed that she had been looking for pain killers at the gas station she visited prior to the crash. This, the family believes, is evidence that Schuler suffered from a medical emergency. Other drivers along the roadways witnessed the children swaying in the vehicle during the ride, and it has not been determined how Schuler embarked on the wrong side of the entrance ramp.

News: Long Beach Surfer Goes Missing

(Long Island, N.Y.) A thirty-two-year-old surfer from Long Beach went missing amidst a six-week summer surf trip along Southeast Asia. He embarked on the trip with his wife and friend, and had been traveling since June 30th when he arrived in Sri Lanka. He went missing this Sunday off a beach in Indonesia.

The last beach he surfed was along a remote stretch near southern Sumatra’s coastline in the Indian Ocean. The search began in the area and included round-the-clock dive teams, helicopters, and fishing boats. A mile or two of reef was searched, and reports stated that helicopters were employed for a two-hour time frame.

According to sources, a lot of people have gone missing along the same stretch of beach, and it’s possible that the surfer may wash up within forty-eight hours. The area, which is extremely remote, is a six hour drive from the nearest airport. It took rescuers a day to reach the spot where he was last seen taking on a twelve-foot wave.

Because of the lack of resources in the area, friends and family members of the surfer have sought help to aid search efforts. Requests are being made to the American Embassy in Jakarta, and New York politicians and assemblymen have taken part in ensuring that the surfer is found. Reports stated that the search is largely dependent on the tide, whether the swells die down, and that it cannot be conducted at night.

The surfer is a math teacher at Long Beach High School, drummer in a punk band, and co-founder of the Long Beach Surfer’s Association. He is a surf instructor and head coach of the Long Beach High School Surf team, the first ever organized in New York State. Friends describe him as extremely passionate about surfing, stating that he’s known to remain in the water for eight hours at a time.

With two decades of surfing experience, the Long Beach teacher decided on one last big trip before settling down with his wife of three years and starting a family. Ever conscientious of the water, he is an environmentalist who helped stop a sewage plant from dumping in waterways. He disappeared around nine in the morning from the Krui Damai Bungalow Surf Camp, located in Indonesia’s West Lampung province.

Reports stated that his surfboard washed up immediately after he went under, revealing that his leash had snapped. He surfed left-“goofy”-footed and sources claimed that another surf board struck him as he was coming out of the wave’s barrel. His wife, a twenty-nine-year-old social worker at Long Beach Middle School, believed he’d show up further down the beach and return to the camp.

His students were among the two-hundred people who attended a beach candlelit vigil in his honor and raised money through fundraisers to aid the search. A separate event will be organized where his wife originated in Orlando, Florida. Funds are being collected through PayPal to aid his father and stepmother, who had been visiting Costa Rica, make their trip to help with the search.

A Facebook page, set in his honor, has already attracted over three thousand followers. He was set to return to the states this August. He had previously traveled to places like Hawaii, South America, and Bali on surfing trips with his wife. Many wonder why he was overtaken by the wave, stating that it wasn’t especially rough and that there was nothing abnormal about its size.

News: Benefit for Long Island Counselors

(Long Island, N.Y.) Players from the Spurs, Notre Dame University, and St. John’s University teamed up to play basketball for a Long Island benefit. The event was designed to raise funds in the memory of three camp counselors who were killed in a car accident on July 15th of last year in Floral Park. The event will be held Thursday July 28th as part of the Malone/Mulhall Benefit Basketball Game.

Tyrone Nash of Notre Dame, Danny Green from the San Antonio Spurs, and Justin Burrell of St. John’s University will participate in the benefit game this week. The game will raise funds for sisters Paige Malone and Jaime Malone, as well as Michael Mulhall of Floral Park. The three were killed while traveling to work at a summer camp as counselors for the developmentally disabled.

Twenty-two-year-old Nash is a native from Long Island and played at Lawrence Woodmere Academy and Northfield Mt. Hermon. He is six-feet-eight-inches tall and plays forward. Green, also a Long Island native from North Babylon, stands six-feet-six-inches tall and plays guard-forward. He also played college basketball for North Carolina. Burrell plays forward and is from the Bronx, but played for Our Savior Lutheran/Bridgton Academy. He stands six-feet-eight inches tall.

The parents of the deceased camp counselors founded The Jaime and Paige Malone Foundation in the beginning of this year. It has a dual purpose, functioning to aid those with special needs as well as families who have experienced tragedies. The foundation offers monetary assistance as well as scholarships to the University of Richmond. The Malone sisters both attended the University of Richmond during their years of working as camp counselors at the Camp Anchor Park, located in Lido Beach.

The game was organized by a former boyfriend of the youngest Malone sister. Sources stated that basketball has been therapeutic to the friends and families of the victims. The boyfriend claimed that the family would often convene at their home or meet at a nearby park to play.

The benefit will continue annually in memory of the counselors. Sources stated that the boyfriend was happy to know elite players agreed to participate in the benefit. He had hoped to see the arena as full as possible during the night of the event.

The money raised at this year’s benefit game will be donated to Camp Anchor. This was the destination of the victims when their vehicle crashed unexpectedly. A central portion of Camp Anchor’s therapy involves recreational sports like basketball.