Can't get a ride to the Philly Regional at King of Prussia? No worries - our hardworking tournament chairs have scheduled a weekend online gold points event on BBO July 1&2 at 2:30 pm. This two-session event includes Open, Mid-Flight and Gold Rush pairs, with the first session on Saturday and the second on Sunday. It's a little cheaper than the in-person events, so grab a partner (D4 members only!) and sign up anytime starting the afternoon of June 30 right up till one hour before the event begins on July 1.
Find the tournament schedule here. Find step-by-step instructions on how to register for the online game here. |
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Questions? Comments? Concerns?
Contact your District 4 board members.
PRESIDENT
Jeanne Gehret
jeannegehret@comcast.net
VICE PRESIDENT
Betsy Cutler
betsy2955@gmail.com
SECRETARY
Bill Bauer
william.baueriii@verizon.net
TREASURER
Pat Civale
pat@csa-accounting.com
DISTRICT DIRECTOR
Joann Glasson
joannglasson@msn.com
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ANNOUNCING DISTRICT 4 2022 PLAYERS OF THE YEAR!
District 4 has four “player of the year” races that annually recognize top masterpoint winners. I’m happy to announce that after a 2-year hiatus, the awards are back for 2022. Read about the awards on the District 4 website (www.4acbl.org).
Congratulations to our 2022 Winners:
- Dave Treadwell Player of the Year: David Hoffner (U141)
- Jeanne Fisher Award Player of the Year: Gilbert Deleeuw (U121)
- Jane Segal Player of the Year Award: Bobette Thorsen (U168)
- Franni Stutman Distinguished Youth Award: Ilan Wolff (U141)
A ceremony to recognize the winners, give them certificates to memorialize their achievement, as well as hand off their real prize of $100, was held at the Philadelphia Regional on Wednesday, June 28. Congratulations to one and all!
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Tik-Tok - just a few more days remain before the 2023 Philadelphia Regional is in the history books!
DON’T MISS THIS BIG NEWS!!
If you’re unable to join in person, you can still participate in the first-ever Saturday/Sunday afternoon Philadelphia Regional ONLINE GAME (7/1 & 7/2 @ 2:30pm), EXCLUSIVELY for District 4 members. $30 for two sessions, paid on BBO, and it pays in GOLD! The game schedule and BBO registration instructions can be found on the tournament website HERE
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Next in the 2023 District 4 Regional lineup is the Finger Lakes Regional. CLICK HERE for the schedule and hotel information, as well as dining options and tourism ideas for the area. Note that this Regional will not require proof of Covid vaccination to participate.
And, if you are not able to attend in person, you can still participate in the Finger Lakes Regional online game. That will be 2-sessions of play on Saturday, August 12 (10 & 2). Look for details on how to register for the game (on BBO) on the tournament website HERE.
DON’T DELAY: NORTH AMERICAN PAIRS (NAP) QUALIFICATION
But first, a commercial break: Bharat Rao, our NAP/GNT coordinator, is in dire need of assistance with planning and execution for these events. If you have decent computer skills, and are willing to contribute to the success of these regional events, I know Bharat would welcome you with open arms. More importantly, I would be grateful and YOU would be contributing to the District in a critical way. If you’re interested, please (don’t make me beg) contact me at Jeannegehret@comcast.net
Now… about those 2023 NAP games.
During the summer months June through August, face-to-face and online clubs are offering NAP Qualifying games. Ask your local/online club for NAP games dates. By playing in those club games, you can earn the “Q” (qualification) and the opportunity to participate in the District Finals which are loads of fun, and scheduled in late September through early October.
For more information about NAPs - USE THIS LINK – for details, locations and timing of District Finals Flights.
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BIG GAMES IN DISTRICT 4
If you haven’t been on the District 4 website recently, you may not have seen our new feature that highlights 70%+ games at face to face clubs. Take a peek at who posted great games so you can help them celebrate. Updates are made monthly around the 10th.
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Until next month,
I welcome your comments or suggestions (jeannegehret@comcast.net)
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From the District Director |
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As part of the reduction process in the size of the ACBL board, I have been elected the Regional Director for both District 3 and District 4 beginning in January of 2024. The roles of District 3 Director and District 4 Director will no longer exist after the end of this year.
That means that I will be representing the entire state of New York (except New York City) and all of New Jersey, in addition to Eastern Pennsylvania, Delaware and a small portion of West Virginia beginning on January 1, 2024.
My colleague, Carlos Munoz, longtime District Director from District 3 has chosen not to run again for his seat on the ACBL Board of Directors. Carlos will be greatly missed. He has been a steady voice of reason during his years of service, always thoughtful, insightful and a great supporter of the game of bridge.
The good news is that this election will complete the transition of the ACBL Board of Directors from 25 members to 13 members. The sad news is that we have lost several knowledgeable board members in this process.
The two districts will still operate independently, maintaining their own officers and treasuries. The District Presidents from both District 3 and District 4 will assume some of the responsibilities that previously belonged to the District Directors. There will be no changes in the district rules for Grand National Team or North American Pair events, which will continue in the same way.
Joann
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Regionals
June 26-July 2
August 7-11
October 30-November 5
December 14-16
Sectionals
July 8-9
September 8-10
September 22-23
October 6-8
October 20-22
November 11-12
December 14-16
STaCs
July 31-August 6
November 13-19
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The 4Spot features fantastic contributors, on a regular rotation: |
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Larry's Learning Center by Larry Cohen:
January, April, July, October
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For Novices Only by Marti Ronemus:
February, May, August, November
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Guess Who's Coming:
March, June, September, December
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Larry's Learning Center
We can never spend enough time reviewing defensive signals. Here's Larry's quick, succinct introduction to the basics.
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Moderator: Nick Straguzzi
Any bridge article expressing the point that Stray jacks are overvalued. Jacks who are in the company of a parent or guardian, however, typically pull their one-point weight and then some is worth our attention. Read all about it here.
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Then visit the MSC website to read next month's problem and submit your answers online here. |
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News from Around the Units |
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Unit 112: Central New York
Betty Youmans
readsausten@yahoo.com
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The Rochester Summer Sectional will be held on July 8-9. Tournament Chair, Denise Slattery, and Partnership Chair, Lori VanDerlinde, look forward to a robust attendance. Pairs events will be on Saturday and team events on Sunday. All are invited and most welcome to attend!
The Finger Lakes Regional in Rochester will be held August 7-11. Please plan to come and we will have a great time! As an added feature, an on-line pairs game, open only to District 4 members, will be held on Saturday, August 12. So, if you are not available to travel to Rochester, please register for the Saturday on-line event.
Unit 112 Congratulates Its Advancing Players!
Junior Masters
Eric Geoca, Fairport
Jan Gullace, Canandaigua
Jeffrey Meade, Webster
Club Master
Ann Mauro, Elmira
Ruby Life Master
James Patton, Pittsford
Diamond Life Master
Jerome Weiss, Penfield
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Unit 120: Northeastern Pennsylvania
Doreese Torrey
doreeset@gmail.com
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Hello Unit 120!! We have a new Advanced NABC Master! Please join me in congratulating Lawrence D Hudson of Matamoras, PA who reached that rank in June 2023. Well Done!!
We had a great turnout for the annual meeting and membership appreciation dinner/game held at Glenmaura National Golf Club in Moosic, PA on June 11, 2023. The new board members are Jane Bovard, Joe Distini, Fran Hofherr, Ken Lloyd, George Mansour, Steve Mansour, JoAnn Mauger, Dave Meyer, Marlene Meyer, Walter Mitchell, Peggy O'Keeffe, Jim Post, Ellen Preece, Paul Ricker, Chris Stevens, Doreese Torrey, Mary Zabresky and Beth Rosenthal, as past President, will serve on the board in an advisory capacity.
Once the board was approved by a unanimous vote of the members attending, the board elected the following:
Joe Distini, President
Ellen Preece, Vice President
Jane Bovard, Secretary
Steve Mansour, Treasurer
Winners of the game were awarded a free game pass to any club in the Unit 120.
An honor award plaque was given to Fay Paccioli to recognize her tireless efforts and diligence to keep bridge players active by setting up online bridge during covid and her many years of active and appreciated service to Unit 120 overall. An honor award plaque was also presented to Walter Mitchell for his many years of continued service to Unit 120, during which time he served in many capacities on the board.
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Unit 121: Berks Montgomery
Carl Ziegler
crzig@hometownu.com
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Check back next month for Unit 121 news. |
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Unit 133: Lehigh Valley
Lois Fuini
lafuini@yahoo.com
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Happy Independence Day!
Whether you attend a parade, a picnic, or a fireworks display, enjoy whatever you do with family and friends, and be sure to take a moment to join the people in our country who express and give thanks for the freedom and liberties fought for by our many dedicated service men and women. Fly your flags in celebration of our great country and the good people who work so hard to keep us free and safe.
In Memoriam
It is with a heavy heart that we report the passing of Don Swan. According to his daughter, Amy, he passed away peacefully at home. As she shared:
“The game of bridge, as well as the camaraderie of his partners, and the club were an important part of his life.
Don was President of Unit 133 in 1967-68 and has served on the Unit and District boards for many years since then. He was our historian and always related great stories about what our beloved game was like back in the day. He will be sorely missed."
New Rank Advancements
Congratulations!
New Club Master
Howard Hudson
New Sectional Master
William Licht Hillary Mahon
Royal STaC Winners
The week of June 12-18 was a Royal STaC (District 4 Sectional Tournament at Club) with 1⁄4 each black, silver, red and gold points. The Monday and Friday games at LVAL were included in this event.
Monday Winners
· Nancy Trawin & Patty Fosselman
· Mary Ann Sharpless & Pat Sabatino
Friday Winners
· Lois Fuini & Beth Stelts
· Larry Kemmerer & Chuck Campbell
The Longest Day
The Longest Day fundraiser was held June 24th to benefit Alzheimer’s research, the people it serves and their caregivers. Everyone who attended had an enjoyable afternoon while raising funds for those suffering from this debilitating disease.
Winners:
1st- Peg and Paul Irvine
2nd- Bagisa and Arup Mukherjee
3rd- Patty Fosselman and Nancy Trawin
Thanks to Betty Abrams, Bryan Snapp, Carol Turoczi and everyone who helped with the marketing and set-up of the event, those who played in the game, and those who generously contributed to the cause.
New Education Committee Initiatives
Unit 133 has been working to attract new players and to provide learning opportunities for existing players. This spring, members of the Education Committee taught an 8-week class for new players at Cedar Crest College for the Lehigh Valley Institute for Learning in Retirement. An average of 10 retirees attended each class. This summer the same committee is contacting local colleges and universities in an attempt to start a bridge club for college students.
Classes are underway at the Lehigh Valley Active Life every first and third Monday for new players and for beginners with less than 200 master points. Similar discussions for beginners are being offered at the Brookside Country Club every Wednesday morning.
The annual mentoring program started May 1, with 17 mentor pairs created. Special thanks to Mike Kohler, Paul Barilla, Jim Kenny, Mimi Lengel, Nelson Rabenold, Gwen Ritter, Lynda Schoenberger, Lee Stanley, and Mary Jo Stofflet, for their diligent efforts starting all these new initiatives. Information contributed by Mike Kohler.
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Unit 141: Philadelphia
John Dickenson
dickenjb@gmail.com
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Well, our first full month of North American Pairs qualifying games at the clubs has concluded. I am delighted to report that as of June 21, 404 PCBA members have qualified for play in the District finals, to be held in September. If you want to check your status, click here – and remember to scroll down to Unit 141! If you have not yet “Q’d”, you still have July and August – visit our U141 website for an up-to-date list of clubs running special qualifying games here.
A warm welcome to our newest PCBA members!
Brenda Carcaci
Joseph Carcaci
Larry Cohen
Patricia Collins
Susie Farrell
Ellen Garber
Kristin Lawton
Bakulesh Patel
Christopher Piros
Jenn Snively
Paul Suckow
Jeff Wilson
Mary Jo Woodward
Congratulations to our members who achieved a new rank!
Junior Masters
Mimi Z Bergen
Rohit Desai
Deborah Farkas
Toby Feld
Julia Gabis
Virginia Hargrave
Mary Lingerfeldt
Devin Murphy
Jean S Rachoin
Club Masters
Christie D Meehan
Alice Pakman
Thomas J Snively
Joellen Stockmal
Sheila Zamkoff
Sectional Masters
Maryann Degnan
Richard Levine
Rena Milligan
Jodee Scannapieco
Marc D Stein
Regional Masters
Nancy D Anders
Ken Beckelman
Art Ford
Nancy G Goldstein
Sandy Harrison
Nurit Maor
John E Schussler
William Tannery
NABC Masters
Annabelle L Curran
Barbara M Daly
Sastry Dasika
Helen E McCormich
John Nothdurft
Jayant Prasad
Joan E Watters
Advanced NABC Master
Christina Carter
Life Master
Nancy L Parke
Ruby Life Master
Carol F Hopson
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Unit 168: Central Pennsylvania
Russell Poppleton
rpoppleton@comcast.net
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Due to many requests for more marriage advice:
- Plato once said, "I am the wisest man for I know one thing and that is that I know nothing." How did he figure that out? His wife told him.
- I told my wife she should embrace her mistakes; she hugged me.
Congratulations to the following for progressing up the ACBL ladder:
JUNIOR MASTERS
Cathy Dileonardo
John Dileonardo
William Even
Robert Fields
Hal Shartle
Gerald Hoffman
Julie Shedlosky
Joseph Wyatte
Debra Zezeski
CLUB MASTERS
Emily Krebs
Virginia Lowe
Jeffrey McCombie
Tamara Stine
SECTIONAL MASTER
John Maynard
REGIONAL MASTER
Virginia Stayman
NABC MASTER
Jerry Flury
ADVANCED NABC MASTER
Judy Parsons
LIFE MASTER
James Riccio
BRONZE LIFE MASTER
Cathy Brown
GOLD LIFE MASTER
Edward Magee
Central PA continues to host virtual games. See the website bridgeboardroom.com for a complete virtual schedule. Games are held on a daily basis. Look for some special NAP games in July.
HBC will be hosting its monthly Swiss Team game on Wednesday, July 26. Both a 0-750 and an open game are scheduled. Game time is at 6:30 P.M. with food available at 5:45. Advance registration is requested to plan for sufficient food. See the HBC website, www.bridgewebs.com/harrisburg/ for full details and COVID protocols.
Point to ponder: You open a preemptive 2S, LHO doubles and partner redoubles. What's the redouble? Make sure you and your partner are in agreement.
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Unit 190: Delaware
Tammy Holm and Paula Varrassi
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Delaware Clubs
The Bridge Studio of Delaware, Wilmington
Harold Jordan
302-479-5431
MOT, Middletown
Cheryl Shields
302-602-1638
Monday Morning Bridge Club
Friday Nooners
Dover
Clare O’Brien
410-310-0549
Shore Bridge
Lewes
Monday @ 12:30
Wednesday @ 9:30
Anna DeLapo
302-236-0346
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BRIDGE AT THE BEACH RIDES ANOTHER WAVE OF SUCCESS
This year’s “Bridge at the Beach” Regional was another huge success. The tournament continues to grow with table counts 29% over 2022. Rehoboth Beach hosted over 600 unique visitors in town and most everyone enjoyed their visit. From the games to the restaurants or just walking the streets and boardwalk, everything was appreciated.
Many thanks to all the hardworking volunteers who helped at this event. From Jeanne Gehret working the registration desk to John Strange and Mike Vogel setting up and tearing down the room. It takes a village to host an event of this type and we are fortunate to have so many who step-up to help.
Mark your calendars for next year’s event April 29 thru May 3, 2024. Hope to see you there.
Kim Holm, Co-Chairperson
NEW CLUB OPENING 7/13
Donna Heckscher is new to Delaware, but not to bridge. She is the secretary of the Women’s Bridge League of Philadelphia and has recently moved to Dagsboro. She is bravely stepping into the role of bridge club owner and hopes her efforts will be worthy of the wonderful tradition of bridge in southern Delaware started by our beloved Dini Romito. The club will be called Shuffles 2 and will be held on Thursdays at 12:30 at the Ocean View Presbyterian Church. Donna can be reached by email: shuffles2@gmail.com or cell phone: 215-817-2465.
Junior Master
Lynne Coan
Club Master
Gary Fisher
Jeanmarie Leonard
Olivia Pritzlaff
Regional Master
Elizabeth Bacon
Darlene Bolig
Grace Messner
NABC Master
Michael Vogel
Advanced NABC Master
Cindy Hoadley
Life Master
Edna Bosworth
Marilyn Haskins
Bronze Life Master
Edna Bosworth
THE WELCOME MAT
(New to our Unit: T=transfer, N=new member)
Shauneen Hutchinson-T
Selina McNeil-T
Suzy Moyer-T
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Unit 217: Susquehanna
Jim McKeown
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Congratulations to our new Regional Masters, Judy Barrile and Marian Garcia.
We held our sectional from June 2 – 4 in Boalsburg, PA. We were very pleased to have a 70% increase in attendance June 2022. I give tournament chair Jan Lindsay and partnership chair Carol Reitz a lot of credit for this success. They did a great job along with a number of others who made strong contributions – read arm-twisting. We appreciated support from players from outside our Unit.
Jim Van Etten and Jim Mckeown won the Friday morning pairs with Shirley Miller and Elaine Fuller first in B and Joyce Wilson and Joy Proctor first in C.
Having warmed up in the morning, Joyce and Joy won the Friday afternoon pairs for A, B, and C. Jackie Humilovich and Mary Lisko were first in A and B on Saturday morning with Loring and Martha Hannah first in C. Jess Goodman and Jim McKeown won the Saturday afternoon pairs with Diana Beaver and Roger Reese first in B and Paula Kruszewski and Jim Bloom first in C.
Carol Rietz, Ed Bissell, Tudor Trifan and Jim McKeown won the Sunday Swiss with Diana Beaver, Roger Reese, Bruce Baldwin and Joan Blinn first in B, and Shirley Miller, Jan Lindsay, Michelle Ezray and Jay Ezray first in C.
Jim McKeown won the master point race.
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