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Community Corner

Scarpati Memorial Soccer Tournament Honors HS East Grad

Second charity soccer tournament to honor Matthew Scarpati, who was killed by an alleged drunk motorcyclist, will be held on June 11.

When Matthew Scarpati, a 2008 graduate, was killed in 2009 at age 19 by an drunk motorcyclist who veered off the Wantagh State Parkway as Scarpati was changing a bicycle tire, his friends and family decided to honor his life by creating the Matthew Logan Scarpati Memorial Soccer Tournament.

They established the Miles for Matt Foundation, a 501c(3) non-profit organization that donates money to Mothers Against Drunk Driving, a scholarship fund at SUNY-Buffalo, where Scarpati was a student, and has pledged $25,000 to Sunrise Day Camp, which is dedicated to helping the social and physical needs of children with cancer.

Dan Silver, a friend and soccer teammate of Scarpati, is the tournament’s director and said that the tournament brought in $12,000 in contributions in its first year in 2010. He said he expects about $15,000 this year but hopes to bring in as much as $20,000.

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The first tournament had 16 teams with a total of 150 players, but Silver said he is shooting to have 24 teams for this year’s tournament, which will take place on June 11 at High School East.

“Last year I was really concerned that it was going to take a lot of work just to get people interested in playing,” Silver said. “I was originally shooting for between eight and 10 teams, and by the end of it we were turning away teams at 16 just because we wanted to make sure we could handle it.

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“Volunteers came in, donations came in, and it kind of really sold itself… it really kind of affected everyone in the Half Hollow Hills community," he said.

Silver said that the wants the tournament to live up to who Scarpati was as a person.

“Honestly, I’ve described him as the finest person I’ve ever met," Silver said. "My mom has called him the politest person she’s ever met. He didn’t have any enemies. Everyone liked him. He was just a very funny, good natured, good hearted kid who never found himself in trouble.”

Scarpati’s brother, Chris, said that a positive result of the accident that killed his brother was effective petitioning of local government to install guard rails on the Wantagh State Parkway to protect future cyclers and runners from out of control vehicles.

“That, I think, has done the greatest good,” he said.

Chris Scarpati said that last year, the tournament drew approximately 250-300, teams included, and that the group hopes to draw even more this year.

“[The turnout] was great, especially when you’re doing a first year event,” he told Patch last month.  “Last year at this time we only had one soccer team signed up. Right now, we have six or seven teams signed up, which is great.

“We’re very excited about this year.”

The cost to enter a team in the tournament is $250. The deadline to register is May 22.

The man who struck Scarpati on July 20, 2009, James Ryan, of New Hyde Park, faces manslaughter as well as reckless driving and DWI charges. He was competent to stand trial earlier this year.

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