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Hundreds tossed the bocce ball, hit the golf ball and swung the tennis racket – Wilkinson Honored by SIUH

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Frank Wilkinson as he accepts his award. (Courtesy/SIUH) Staten Island Advance

By Carol Ann Benanti | benanti@siadvance.com
silive.com | Click Here for the Full Story

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — The sun shone brightly for a record-breaking number of community spirited locals, business leaders and friends of Staten Island University Hospital who came out for the health care center’s annual Golf, Tennis and Bocce Classic at the Richmond County Country Club.

The day kicked off with the first bocce ball rolled out at 10:30 a.m., before golfers took to the greens for a shot gun start at noon. Tennis players hit the courts at 1 p.m. for the fun day filled with fine food, drinks, and good company.

“We are very excited to welcome everyone back for our Bocce, Golf and Tennis outing, once again,” said Dr. Brahim Ardolic, executive director of Staten Island University Hospital.

Later in the day participants regrouped at the main clubhouse for the 6 p.m. reception that followed on the sprawling outdoor patio and indoor banquet room.

This year’s honorees were Dr. Christopher E. Graziano, past president of the SIUH Medical and Dental Staff, and Frank Wilkinson, chairman of the Rab Wilkinson Foundation — two dedicated individuals who’ve supported Staten Island through healthcare and philanthropy.

[Read more…]

Live from Rab’s Names Best Web Series in the 43rd Annual Telly Awards

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Rab’s Country Lanes announced today that its Live from Rab’s Web Series has been named a Bronze Winner in the Category of Best Series – Web Series: Non-Scripted in the 43rd Annual Telly Awards. The Telly Awards honors excellence in video and television across all screens and is judged by leaders from video platforms, television, streaming networks, production companies and including Adobe, Netflix, Dow Jones, Duplass Brothers Productions, Complex Networks, Jennifer Garner, A&E Networks, Hearst Media, Nickelodeon, ESPN Films, RYOT, Partizan and Vimeo.

Watch Live from Rab’s: https://www.facebook.com/watch/bowlatrabs/259412255094783/

Live from Rab’s, launched in March of 2020 as a daily live web series hosted by Nazareth Laursen and Frank Wilkinson of Rab’s Country Lanes where they talk bowling, community, sports, entertainment, and so much more with special guests from around the Globe. Through 150+ episodes, hundreds of guests, over a million views, and 2 years later, the series continues today through the airing of special events and the original format talk show. The web series airs live on Facebook and YouTube and may also be found on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.

“Now, more than ever, it is necessary to celebrate video work that reflects the top tier of our industry, such as Live from Rab’s,” says Telly Awards Executive Director Sabrina Dridje. “This year’s submissions reflect an industry that has returned to the important work of storytelling, one that has returned with a new perspective that values innovation, agility, equity, and tenacious creativity.”

“Live from Rab’s was created as a way for us to stay connected with our community during what would become one of the most challenging periods of time for all of us,” says Frank Wilkinson, Proprietor of Rab’s Country Lanes, and co-creator/host of Live from Rab’s. “What we [Nazareth and I] thought would only continue for a couple of weeks, turned into a permanent fixture for Rab’s and our online presence. To be recognized with a prestigious Telly Award for something we have fun doing is truly the icing on the cake.”

Today’s winners announcement caps a year-long celebration of creators producing work with a new POV and a refreshed creativity, reflecting an ever-changing landscape emerging from the difficulties and opportunities from the last few years.

In function of this, a series of new categories were introduced to reflect and celebrate ways in which video has continued to be used as a critical tool for communication, notably within and across a new culture of working. These new categories, including Workplace Culture, Recruitment and Education & Training, celebrate the companies using video at a time when the culture of a company has never been so critical to attract and retain talent.

“Whether it’s new ways of remote working, placing purpose at the center of a businesses key values or providing Employee Resource Groups for communities to gather and support each internally, says Dridje, “this year’s incredible group of winners perfectly exemplifies the many artful and unique ways video is being used to tackle these timely topics. By introducing our new categories, we’re continuing to deliver on our mission of constantly evolving with the changing industry and the world.”

Last year, The Telly Awards attracted more than 12,000 entries from top video content producers including Netflix, Jennifer Garner, HBO Latin America, Microsoft, RadicalMedia, Condé Nast, Adobe, Nickelodeon, and Partizan.

The full list of the 43rd Annual Telly Awards winners can be found at www.tellyawards.com/winners.

Staten Island Singles Classic: Mickey Endress takes early qualifying lead

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By Staten Island Advance Sports Desk
silive.com | Click here for the full story

Mickey Endress, bowling scratch, rolled games of 267, 241 and 243 en route to a 751 pinfall and the early qualifying lead in the 44th Staten Island Singles Classic — A Donnie Walters Tradition — Saturday at Rab’s Country Lanes.

“I think the shot was very fair and it gave an emphasis on shot making and leaving makable spares,” said Endress. “I bowled on tough stuff before so I’m confident on those types of shots especially when I leave makable spares on my misses… I had only three opens today so that was key for me.”

Melissa Kammerer currently sits in second place with a 734 set and is followed by Steve Chiarella (724) and CJ Cariffe (724), who are tied for third, and Sal Fabozzi (717), who is currently fifth.

Chiarella (1991) was one of seven past champions who competed on the opening day of the event. The others are three-time winner Jeff Scire (’95, ‘18′, 19), Sean McAuliffe (’07), Alan Liu (’10), Bill Salvatore (’12), Michele Dash (’15) and Todd David (’17)

The current cut is only 607, but that will change for sure

Qualifying continues next weekend for six more squads slated for Saturday and Sunday at 1, 3 and 5 p.m. each day.

For the full standings click here.

Standings after first weekend

Name Scratch W/Hcp

1 Mickey Endress* 751 751

2 Melissa Kammerer** 710 734

3 Steve Chiarella** 721 724

3 CJ Cariffe* 679 724

5 Sal Fabozzi 687 717

6 Tim McAuliffe 714 714

7 Steve Miglino 686 686

8 Joe Lampariello 665 665

9 Josh Warner 599 635

10 Joe Scianna 634 634

11 Rob Butler 630 630

11 Joseph Vann 606 630

13 Tom Hollywood Jr. 629 629

14 Sean McAuliffe 626 626

14 Steve Miglino 626 626

16 Michelle Dash 552 624

17 Anthony Everts 615 618

17 Jeff Scire 618 618

19 Robert Devito 584 617

20 Russell Moran 547 616

21 Alan Liu 614 614

22 Jeff Martin 611 611

23 John Schnellbacher 574 610

24 Adam Abdelaziz 595 607

Unofficial: Pending 4/3/2022 Average Verification

* Denotes Squad Leader

** Denotes High Female / Senior

Long Island kegler Pierce Field cruises to victory at Jim Elliott’s 46th New Year Singles Classic

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Long Islander Pierce Field accepts the trophy from tourney director Jim Elliott at the 46th New Year Singles Classic.

By Nick Regina | nregina@siadvance.com
silive.com | Click Here for the Full Story

If they didn’t know him before, they certainly do now.

Relatively unknown Long Islander Pierce Field emerged victorious among a litany of impressive names and past champions at Jim Elliott’s 46th New Year Singles Classic held at Rab’s Country Lanes on Saturday afternoon. The 24-year-old Shirley, N.Y., native knocked off defending 2020 champion Steve Soss, outscoring him 247-193 in the final. The event did not take place in 2021 due to the pandemic.

In the finale, Field struck on four of the first seven frames — sparing the other three. Soss, meanwhile, left pins standing on two of the first seven frames, and despite a strong finish he couldn’t overcome the sluggish start. Field fired strikes on his final three frames, and struck out on the 10th to cement the triumph and take the trophy.

Field had never previously bowled on Staten Island, but earned an opening-round bye after tossing a 760 series in qualifying. He faced his stiffest challenge in round two, when he narrowly defeated Rob Butler, 266 to 244, and followed with a win over Scott Walsh, 269 to 213, before toppling Sean McAuliffe, 255 to 173, in the semifinals.

On the other side of the bracket, Soss, who also earned a bye, kicked off his day with an impressive win over John Drabczk, 290 to 210. He proceeded to upend a pair of former champions — defeating Jeff Scire, 255 to 224, before taking down Tim McAuliffe in a semifinal rolloff, which was a rematch of the 2020 final. The pair mirrored one another with matching games of 224, but after McAuliffe spared and then struck out on the final frame, Soss answered the bell and delivered four consecutive strikes to gain the final.

Don Dunleavy and Mickey Endress were among the other final eight finishers in the 24-man field.

CROSSING THE BRIDGE

Field noted that he only competed because fellow Long Islander and former champion Dan Brezo mentioned the event to him.

“Well, can I come?” Field remembers asking his friend — and the rest is history.

“I respect everyone here,” added Field. “I had a couple of bowling balls that were working well, it was a little tighter in qualifying and match play was a little more forgiving. I was able to play where I’m comfortable in my zone and pretty much used one ball the entire time.”

As emphatic as his violent delivery and powerful fastball are, Field’s demeanor is as relaxed as can be. Despite being one of the youngest competitors in the field, he rarely showed emotion or allowed himself to get too high or too low. The results were evidenced by his dominant performance in the finale.

“Just don’t let up,” Field told himself. “I know what [Soss] is capable of and he could put a string together at any point. I just stayed focused and keep on driving no matter what happens.

“The tournament is nicely ran and well-organized. ” he added, nothing that a return next year is probable.

On the other side, Soss had to wait two years to defend his crown, but was pleased with his performance in reaching the final.

“It felt good, it really did, especially to make it all the way to the last match and try to go back-to-back,” said the native of Bayonne, who struggled with the left lane in the finale on Saturday. “[Field] is good, he was just striking. I could’ve struck with him, just one bad lane.”

Tournament director Jim Elliott noted the return to action after the two-year layoff was a rousing success.

“We had a lot of bowlers and they bowled very well,” said Elliott. “People were very happy about the finals, there was a lot of good bowling and people enjoyed it. I’m looking forward to next year.”

Prize money: Field ($900), Soss ($550), T. McAuliffe ($350), S. McAuliffe ($240), Scire ($185), Endress ($165), Walsh ($155), Dunleavy ($145), Butler ($125), Anthony Arias ($110), Mike McNichol ($105), Drabczk ($100), Najee Mayers ($95), Pete Labella ($95), Chris McNichol ($90), Mike Vlasenko ($90), Alby Pezzella ($80), Mike Gordon ($80), Frank Maloney ($75), George Cretella ($75), Jeff Martin ($70), Mike Vignola ($70), Russ Moran ($65).

*Butler, Walsh, and Sean McAuliffe received additional $25 bonuses for having been defeated by the eventual champion prior to the final.

Rab’s Frank Wilkinson goes pink for Breast Cancer Awareness Month

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By Dr. Gracelyn Santos | gsantos@siadvance.com
Click Here for the Full Article on SILIVE.com

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — Staten Islander Frank Wilkinson likes to ‘pink’ outside the box. The owner of Rab’s Country Lanes has gone pink for Breast Cancer Awareness Month. And even though Saturday is the last day of October, he is still raising funds for a cure through the Rab Wilkinson Foundation.

“As you know, October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and if you know anything about my family, our team here at Rab’s, and me, this means so much to us,” said Wilkinson. Things are a little different around here this year.”

Wilkinson’s popular ‘Our Flockers and Flamingos’ campaign, where friends displayed pink flamingoes on their lawns and ‘tagged’ their friends to do the same — along with donations to cancer research — is on pause this year because of the pandemic.

“We are staying safe and sadly we did not host our annual Bowl-a-Thon, which would have been held this past Sunday, October 25. The Bowl-a-Thon is the pinnacle event of our month long campaign,” he added.

“In the past 18 years, through the Rab Wilkinson Foundation and our Staten Island Bowling Community we have raised over $670,000 to fund local breast health projects including the Breast Health Navigation Program at SIUH. Last year, our staff challenged me.”

Wilkinson’s staff dared him to dye his hair pink last October for the good cause, but the dare came too late.

“They said they would raise money for me to dye my hair pink for the Bowl-a-Thon,” he said. “So, I said of course and committed to it. However, last year was a bit too close to the event for them to raise enough money to get me to do it.

“So, here we are, 2020, and no plans to host our annual event, and the challenge came back up. After a little hesitance, I recommitted to the challenge.”

Two weeks later, Wilkinson and his team have surpassed the $5,000 goal and is on the way to the $10,000 stretch goal, with his hair dyed pink. “I’ve now been joking that in order to see me in the bowling center, you’ll have to make a donation” he added. “A donation bucket will be outside our office.”

Donations are still being accepted, and could be made by visiting Frank at Rab’s or online: https://rabsway.eventgroovefundraising.com/pinkhairfrank

Said Wilkinson, “We live streamed the whole process as Nazareth and I hosted our Weekly Show “Live from Rab’s.” The show can be seen here: https://youtu.be/7p7rE7n964w.

And here’s a time lapse video of the whole hair production, which took almost two hours: