The JCC Maccabi Games in San Francisco are for amateur athletes, but organizers are going straight to the big leagues for the Games’ opening ceremonies and closing party.
Organizers have secured two impressive sports venues to book end the four-day competition, with the Aug. 2 opening ceremonies set for the Cow Palace in Daly City and the Aug. 6 closing ceremonies and party set for AT&T Park in San Francisco.
While the venerable Cow Palace is a storied arena with many tales to tell from its rich 68-year history, the real coups was scoring the San Francisco Giants picturesque bayside ballpark at China Basin for the games’ climax.
“Everyone here is very excited, and what’s also fun is that all the other delegations from all over the country are excited, as well,” says Pam Baer, the chairperson for the closing party. “It sets us apart a little bit. The kids get to see San Francisco in a great light.”
To land AT&T Park, a couple of factors had to fall into place during the early planning stages. First, the Giants couldn’t have an Aug. 6 home game when their 2009 schedule came out; fortunately, that date ended up being an off day between an Aug. 5 road game in Houston and an Aug. 7 home game against Cincinnati.
Secondly, Baer had to make sure her husband, San Francisco Giants President Larry Baer, was willing to help make it happen. As a former JCC of San Francisco board member, a fourth-generation San Franciscan, a Congregation Emanu-El member and a solid citizen of the Jewish community, he didn’t require much, if any, arm twisting.
“I convinced Larry that this was a gift to the JCC Maccabi Games,” said Pam. “Everyone in our community has done such an amazing job bringing the Games to San Francisco; this was the least we could do.”
What other big athletic competitions usually refer to as the “closing ceremonies” in this case essentially amounts to a huge party for some 1,500 teen athletes. Beginning at 5:30 p.m. in the 9-year-old ballpark, the kids will have about three hours to partake in a variety of activities. They include: dancing on a dance floor in the outfield to the booming sounds of a DJ, taking a few swings in the ballpark’s batting cages, getting photos taken in the dugout, making teddy bears (wearing JCC Maccabi T-shirts, of course) at a Build-A-Bear stand, munching on ballpark food and sliding down the giant Coke bottle atop the left-field stands.
“I feel like it’s a fantasy bar mitzvah party, and that’s what we are trying to create for these kids, to celebrate them working so hard all week,” said Pam Baer, who also played a big role in planning the June 2008 grand opening of San Francisco’s Contemporary Jewish Museum, for which she is a board member.
As the on-field party winds down, some 500 local host families and the games’ 900 or so volunteers are invited to sit in the stands for an 8:30 p.m. ceremony that will include a video tribute on the huge video board in center field and the passing of the torch to representatives from next year’s host cities (Omaha, Neb.; Denver, Richmond, Va.; and Baltimore). The video will include highlights of sports action and other activities during the week, and is expected to include cameo appearances by some San Francisco Giants players.
While the closing party (sponsored by the San Francisco Giants) is not open to the public, members of the Jewish community and other Bay Area residents are invited to the opening ceremonies, which are sponsored by the Lisa and Douglas Goldman Fund.
Parking and admission are free, but guests must register for a spectator pass. Although walk-up registration will be available at the Cow Palace, JCC officials are encouraging people to register in advance by calling (415) 292-1270.
The opening ceremonies will begin at 7 p.m. Aug. 2, with entertainment starting at 6 p.m. The one-time home of the San Francisco Warriors (before they moved to Oakland) and the San Jose Sharks (before their arena was built in San Jose), the Cow Palace has played host to more than 50 million people passing through its doors since 1941. It was the site of the 1956 and 1964 Republican National Conventions, the Beatles performed there in 1964 and 1965, motorcycle daredevil Evel Knievel did a jump there in 1970, and the list could go on and on.
The opening ceremonies will include a parade of about 1,500 Maccabi Games athletes marching in delegations from 43 cities; the largest group will be from the Bay Area, followed by sizeable contingents from Houston, Atlanta and Boca Raton, Fla. Delegations from Israel, England, Guatemala and Mexico will also participate, lending an international feel to the type of entry parade normally seen in the Olympics.
There will also be a tribute to the Munich 11 (Israeli team members taken hostage and murdered at the 1972 Olympics in Germany), the lighting of the torch, performances by teen artists and a concert by Israeli hip-hop band Coolooloosh.
Local sports play-by-play announcer Roxy Bernstein will serve as the master of ceremonies.
The torch will be lit Lisa and Douglas Goldman, their daughter, Jennifer Goldman (a former Maccabi Games gold-medal winner) and Jennifer’s grandfather, Richard N. Goldman, the honorary games chairman.
Teen performers will include Rozzi Crane and Reed Campbell, both former students at ACT’s Young Conservatory, as well as violinist Etelle Shur, a student at Kehillah High in Palo Alto.
“The Cow Palace is a wonderful, historic building that holds a lot of great memories for San Franciscans, so we’re happy to be introducing it to delegations from around the country,” said Jackie Lewis, games director for the San Francisco Maccabi Games.
“As for AT&T Park, to be able to send the visiting athletes home with the memory of our beautiful city, wonderful hospitality and then the most beautiful ballpark in the country — this will truly be an event to remember.”
JCC Maccabi Games Opening Ceremonies, 7 p.m. Aug. 2 at the Cow Palace. Entertainment at 6 p.m. Free parking and admission. Spectator pass required. Register in advance by calling (415) 292-1270. Walk-up
registration also available.