Friends of the College of Staten Island (CSI) will host an evening
of dinner and jazz starring the Duke Ellington Orchestra on Saturday
in the CSI Center for the Arts.
The event, which is open to the public, is $75 per person, Proceeds
will benefit the CSI arts center on the Willowbrook campus.
Reservations may be made by calling (718) 982-2365.
Under the direction of Paul Mercer Ellington, (grandson of the Duke
and son of Mercer), the legendary orchestra will entertain with
Ellington classics like "Take the A Train," "Satin Doll" and "Mood
Indigo."
In addition to the 8 p.m. performance, guests will enjoy a
pre-performance dinner at 6 p.m. Also, as they arrive, they will be
treated to a demonstration of swing dance by Kelly Gilmore and
Marissa Calabrese, professional dancers from the Fred Astaire Dance
Studio in Grasmere. Dessert and coffee will be served after the
performance.
Curtis High School students will serve as good will ambassadors,
ushers and raffle stewards at the event.
Co-chairing the dinner theater again this year are Henry and Laura
Kennedy, along with Peter and Christine Cea, all CSI board members.
"Our mission is to bring the community to the college and the
college to the community," said Mrs. Kennedy. "The college offers a
state of the art facility for the benefit of all Staten Island."
FOUR CHAIRPERSONS
Henry and Laura Kennedy live in New Brighton. He is an attorney with
the law firm of Willkie, Farr and Gallagher in Manhattan. In
addition to serving on the Friends of CSI board of directors, he
also serves on the board of directors of the Epilepsy Foundation of
New York City.
Mrs. Kennedy is second vice president of the Friends of CSI. She is
the director of the Early Childhood Direction Center at Staten
Island University Hospital and serves on the board of director of
both the Association for the Help of Retarded Children of New York
City and the Staten Island Mental Health Society. She is also a
member of the executive board of the Staten Island Developmental
Disabilities Council. She was named a Staten Island Woman of
Achievement in 2000.
Dr. Christine Cea resides with her husband on Emerson Hill. A
developmental psychologist, she is the associate director of Fordham
University's Developmental Disabilities Project at the Center for
Ethics Education. A CSI alumna, she currently is a member of the CSI
Foundation. She serves on the board of directors of the Staten
Island Mental Health Society and the Staten Island Developmental
Disabilities Council.
Mr. Cea serves on the board of directors of the Friends of the CSI.
He is president of Remsen Transmission, Lee Miles Corp., Brooklyn.
The evening's program has been underwritten by Peter and Gail
Salvatore and Con Edison.
