Reimagining the Scarsdale Bowl

Although the Scarsdale Bowl Dinner, honoring an exemplary community volunteer, has been held since 1944, this year’s Bowl dinner will be anything but traditional.

Most in the community do not realize that the Scarsdale Foundation, the group that hosts the dinner, offers much-needed scholarship funds to college sophomore, juniors and seniors from Scarsdale. These grants are often given to students who received assistance for their freshman year from the Scarsdale PTA Scholarship Fund – which only awards grants to SHS seniors entering college. The Foundation traditionally fills the gap in subsequent years, giving out around $130,000 per year – and has to dip into their endowment for the shortfall between what they raise and what they give. They currently depend on a few generous donors to fund all the scholarships.

College tuition has jumped more than 40% in the last ten years. To meet this need, the Foundation hopes to increase the amount of scholarship money per student and increase the total amount of scholarship awards.

That’s where the Scarsdale Bowl Dinner comes in. Unlike most organizations, who use their annual gala to raise funds, the Bowl Dinner has never been a fundraiser. The dinner ticket price simply covered the cost of the meal– and that was that.

Now the Scarsdale Foundation has moved the dinner to another venue and will increase the price slightly. The Foundation is hoping to raise additional funds for scholarships at the dinner through table hosts, a new Volunteer Honor Roll, a raffle and donations. According to Nancy Michaels, who chairs this year’s Bowl, “The former model was not sustainable.” She said that the Foundation will use this year’s Bowl to “engage community members by increasing awareness and outreach.”

This year’s dinner will be held at Braeburn Country Club on Wednesday April 22 at 6:30 pm. The theme is “Shine on Scarsdale,” as the Foundation has helped the community shine for nearly 100 years. The dinner hosts are reaching out to all segments of the community and hope that the event draws a wide swath of Scarsdale, including those new to town and those who have lived here for decades – along with volunteers, people who work here and anyone with a connection to Scarsdale.

One key element of the dinner will remain the same. The purpose of the evening is to celebrate volunteerism and the two honorees that have been selected to receive the 2020 Scarsdale Bowl.

In the spotlight this year are a star volunteer couple: Jon Mark and BK Munguia. BK has been a staunch defender of Scarsdale’s non-partisan system, serves on the Board of the Scarsdale Foundation and was the President of the Scarsdale Teen Center.

Jon Mark is a former Mayor of Scarsdale, two-term Village Trustee and can be found volunteering everywhere and anywhere he is needed.

Come out and celebrate Jon, BK and everyone who volunteers to make Scarsdale such a special place – and help some very worthy students at the same time.

Watch for your invitation in the mail and mark your calendar for Wednesday April 22 at 6:30 pm at Braeburn Country Club. Learn more about the Scarsdale Foundation and the Scarsdale Bowl here.