Good News: Coltrane Sax Donated; First Marian McPartland Scholarship Awarded

A tenor saxaphone owned by John Coltrane, who once lived in Dix Hills, is now part of the Smithsonian jazz collection. The saxaphone – a Mark VI tenor by Henri Selmer Paris – was donated on Wednesday by Coltrane’s son, Ravi, also a jazz musician, Smithsonian.com reported.

The legendary jazz musician lived in a brick house at 247 Candlewood Path in Dix Hills with his wife Alice, and son Ravi. It was in this home, now a Huntington landmark, where he composed "A Love Supreme." John Coltrane called Dix Hills home until his death in 1967.

At Tribute, First Long Island-wide Scholarship Given in Marian McPartland’s Name

Marian McPartland, the late jazz legend whose career spanned World War II-ravaged Europe to the American jazz scene of the 1950s and later her own show on NPR, has been honored with a Long Island Music Hall of Fame scholarship in her name. A host of dignitaries – including Marian McPartland’s family and those from NPR, Port Washington Public Library and Landmark on Main Street – gathered recently in Port Washington, to celebrate her life and her music and to give the first scholarship.

Jeff James, who chairs the Port Jefferson-based Long Island Music Hall of Fame, said the organization recently announced that it has $10,000 in scholarships – $5,000 for graduating Brooklyn, Queens, Nassau and Suffolk county students pursuing a musical career; and $5,000 for non-profit music organizations and institutions. Ethan Usoskin, a clarinetist at Schreiber High School in Port Washington, is the recipient of the first Long Island Music Hall of Fame “Marian McPartland Memorial Scholarship.”

Kevin Courtney, a senior on the Stony Brook baseball team, has been named one of 30 candidates for the 2014 Senior CLASS Award in collegiate baseball. An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School®, the Senior CLASS Award focuses on the total student-athlete and encourages students to use their platform in athletics to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities.

To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence – community, classroom, character and competition. Courtney is among 30 candidates, and the pool will be narrowed to 10 finalists midway through the regular season, and those 10 names will be placed on the official ballot.

Hauppauge High School Student Jack Weinstein created and ran a “Battle of the Buildings” event for his International Baccalaureate (IB) project on March 14, 2014. “Students and parents filled the High School bleachers to cheer on their teachers in the building vs. building competition,” stated Weinstein. “Importantly, we were able to raise $2,600 for the District’s Care and Share program due to the generosity of our students and families.”

The Care and Share program is run individually by each school in the Hauppauge School District. It provides assistance to families who need help in meeting primary needs, holiday needs, paying for school trips and supplies, etc.