A SPECIAL TRIBUTE TO GARY J. SINGER

Gary was born in Manchester, New Hampshire to Irving (z”l) and Bernice (z”l). After attending elementary and junior high school in Manchester, he followed his four older brothers to New York City where he spent high school at Manhattan Talmudical Academy and then went on to graduate New York University.

Growing up, sports were always a huge component of Gary’s life. From little league baseball at Manchester North Little League to varsity basketball at MTA, Gary’s athletic success, and the stories that evolved from those sports, were both equally legendary. Those who knew Gary, whether it originated in his youth, high school, college, or post-college years, were often regaled with stories of his championship victories and big game prowess. Over the years, the embellishment of those stories almost equaled the stories themselves.

On the baseball diamond, Gary’s pitching ability willed his team to victories, even when he was one or two years younger than most of the players. His basketball skills, predominantly as an outside shooter, were what made him a feared player amongst MTA’s most heated rivals.

Besides his athletic talents, it was Gary’s friendship, heart, and innate belief in always doing what’s right that made him the type of player and person that teammates and coaches gravitate towards. In addition to being tall in stature and large in frame, he was equally that way in how he comported himself. He was often, both literally and figuratively, the largest person in the room.

 “Shalom Bayit” was what he preached and how he lived. Using those words as his life’s mantra, one could easily see how he also excelled in all matters of sport as well.

It is with all of this that Rebecca and Jeffrey Singer dedicate the Maimonides School Invitational Basketball Tournament in Gary’s memory. They are forever grateful to the Maimonides administration for allowing them to continue to perpetuate Gary’s name and memory. Through sending his own children, Michael (Class of 1994) and Bayla (Class of 1998) to the school, Gary showed his love and commitment to Jewish education.

Rebecca and Jeffrey hope that this tournament will serve as a testament to the values and ideals that Gary represented and that all of the schools and their representatives can show everyone that the best of what Gary was, on and off the court, wasn’t exclusive to him, and carries on in all of us.