The Clamshell Foundation has announced the victorious entries in its 21st annual Sandcastle Contest at Atlantic Avenue Beach in Amagansett on Saturday.                             

    The overall winner of the contest was “Violet the Garden Dragon” by Heather Lanza, Beth Beavan, Ron Galady, Jess and Adele Muller, and Mary Hendrickson.          

    Jay Schneiderman won first place among Sand Pros for “Hatchling,” and second place among pros went to “C.S.I.” by Robert Moore, John and Natalio Panico, G.T. Hollet, and John Jakimowitz.

    The adult Sand Shaper’s first place victory went to “Olympic Swimmers” by Sheryl, Jeff, and Hayley Flug, Max Pescherine, Mark Singer, and Sarah Mendelsohn. “Lobster Tales” by Steven and Jacob Judelson, Jon Cheeseman, Lenore Hanson, and Jordan and Wendy Kogan took second, and third place was awarded to Debbie, Nip, and Kick Farm for “Bonac Beach Farm.”

    The winners of the Sand Tribes family competition were Henry and Julia Moreton and Claire and Ann Sydeman for “Pride of the Hamptons.” In keeping with the Olympic spirit, “Team USA” by Scout, Dage, Dani, Micala, and Devon Lynch clinched second place, while Don, Jen, Emma, and Claire Roane took third for “Extinct By High Tide.”

    For the Sand Fleas, children up to 8, first place went to “Manuela the Whale” by Manuela Williams. Noah Sanabria took second place for “Ancient Seaworld,” and Jack, Sara and Sue Matty won third for “Jack’s Magic Castle.”

    First place for the 9 to 15-year-old Sand Hoppers went to Aidan and Matthew Sheinberg for “Clamshell Olympics,” second place was given to “Marine Monopoly” by Jenny, Michelle, and Nicole Sciarrino and Matthew and Emily O’Gorman. Ava, Lyla, and Sadie Forman, Chloe Ford, and Chloe Haines were awarded third place for “Octo Love.”

    Money raised goes to support a variety of the Clamshell Foundation’s charitable causes.

Amanda Clark of Shelter Island and her crew, Sarah Lihan, are among the 10 qualifiers for tomorrow’s 470 dinghy Olympic sailing race and may have a shot at a medal.

    At its meeting to end the fiscal year on Tuesday, the East Hampton Village Board came alive during the final scheduled task — a discussion related to naming a private road off Montauk Highway.

    Kenneth Sheinberg, a resident on the street in question, said that his first choice was the name Little Plains Lane, but because there is already a Little Plains Road in Southampton, the board requested that he offer a different moniker.

    He presented the name Avocet Lane.

    “It’s a bird native to the area,” he said, after which his attorney, Carl Irace, whispered, “Anything that sounds nice.” Mr. Sheinberg reiterated his lawyer’s counsel aloud to the board, stating that he would be amenable to anything that sounds nice.

    Barbara Borsack, the deputy mayor, expressed concern that emergency services might be confused by the name, because of its short, homophonic syllables. She suggested naming the road Judson or Banister, paying homage to a former East Hampton Village mayor. The board bantered further about other possible options.

    Mayor Paul F. Rickenbach Jr., eager to close the conversation, again asked Mr. Sheinberg, the only person present who lives on the four-property road, if Avocet is what he prefers. He said it was.

    Because there is often befuddlement surrounding instances of similar addresses on the East End, Anthony Long, a village police lieutenant, stood and requested that the board “make absolutely sure” that there are no streets named Avocet in East Hampton.

    Larry Cantwell, the village administrator, reminded the board that the resolution would be adopted on Aug. 15, and interested parties have until then to determine if Avocet is a viable choice.

    According to “Birds of North America: A Guide to Field Identification,” the American avocet primarily resides in the western United States, Florida, and occasionally makes a cameo as far north as Delaware.

Osborne Reborn

    The board approved a bond resolution Tuesday allowing the village to borrow up to $800,000 for the reconstruction of the Isaac Osborne House on Newtown Lane. Work on the 19th-century house is expected to begin early this month. According to Mr. Cantwell the space will be used for village offices.

    Before the start of the meeting, Mayor Rickenbach presented a plaque containing a vintage photograph of Hook Mill to Jim Fields & Sons for their donated time painting the windows on the restored early 19th-century landmark.

    The next session of Animal Rescue Fund classes for dogs and their masters is coming up. ARF will offer a recreational dog agility class, aimed at building trust between dogs and their handlers while giving both some exercise.

    Classes start on Saturday and go through Sept. 1, 4 to 5 p.m. for beginners and 5 to 6 p.m. for the intermediate course. The cost is $150 for five classes; class size is limited.

ARF’s Thursday afternoon puppy kindergarten starts next Thursday and continues through Aug. 30, from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. The cost is $100 for four sessions.

    Both classes are at the ARF Adoption Center, 90 Daniel’s Hole Road, Wainscott. Matthew Posnick is the instructor. Registration online is at arfhamptons.org, or at the center.

    The directors of the Montauk Playhouse Community Center Foundation announced this week that they have decided to change Phase 2 of the plan and separate the aquatic center from the rest of the project, which will eventually include a performing arts center.

    “The Playhouse has been revised and rebooted to turn the dream of a year-round indoor pool for the whole community into a reality,” a release said.

    After much research, the organizers, who have been trying to raise more than $10 million for the two endeavors, decided to move forward and fulfill what they said is a pressing community need for the aquatic center, which is to have a 25-yard-long, 5-lane lap pool, a 16-foot-by-32-foot training pool, an administrative office, and locker rooms. The pools can be used for swimming classes, sports and fitness, aquatic therapy, lifeguard training, and rainy day events.

    The arts center will remain part of the overall project, but the plan has been refocused into two manageable stages after careful analysis and study, the directors said. The closest public indoor pool is many miles from the hamlet, they added. “The need for and benefits of an aquatic center for instruction and recreation are self-evident,” according to the release.

    Already in the bank is $1.5 million for the aquatic center, Maureen Rutkowski, the project director, said. She said donations that have previously been given to the performing arts center would remain in a separate account for that purpose.

    The goal is to reach $5 million to begin construction on the aquatic center. If that is obtained, groundbreaking could happen by 2014, with an opening celebration sometime in 2016. As with other projects at the Playhouse, naming opportunities are available for portions of the aquatic center.

    The news is expected to be announced on Aug. 4 at the Diamond in the Rough Gala, the foundation’s annual summer fund-raising event, which will be held under a lighted tent on the west side of the grounds from 7 to 11 p.m.

    The celebrity-studded event draws hundreds of revelers to dine, dance, and mingle with locals and those who come from all over for the party. Leading it this year are Aida Turturro of “The Sopranos” fame and Jerry O’Connell, a television actor whose parents live in the hamlet and who is married to Rebecca Romjin, the model and actress.

    The cost is $250 per person and that includes an open bar, hors d’oeuvres, dinner, and an auction that last year included prizes such as a trip to China and free and always-available parking at the popular Ditch Plain Beach. There will be two bands, the Bastards of Boom and Celtic Cross, to rock the dance floor.

    Each year, the foundation honors people who have donated time and money to the Playhouse project. This year’s honorees are Dave and Cindi Ceva, Marlena and Sam Gershowitz, and Joan and Ron Hildreth. Tickets can be purchased at the door, at Willow on the south Plaza in Montauk, or online at montaukplayhouse.org.

    On Tuesday evening outside at the Gin Beach Market in Montauk, a film titled “Salt of the Sea — How Politics, Economics, and Danger Push Fishermen to Their Limits, and Beyond” will be presented by Third Wave Films and hosted by the Long Island Commercial Fishing Association.

    Tom Garber, who wrote and produced “Salt of the Sea,” described it as the story of what happens when traditions of self-reliance and independence clash with federal bureaucracy and corruption.

    Bonnie Brady, executive director of the association, said the film was a good primer for the public on what commercial fishermen in this country have been facing in the last several years, including the science behind the regulations and the scandal revealed by the Commerce Department’s inspector general’s report on excesses within the National Marine Fisheries Service enforcement wing.

    The film will be shown in the field behind the Gin Beach Market. Ms. Brady advised viewers to take a blanket or lawn chair. Nancy Atlas, who provided music for the film’s soundtrack, will play a 30-minute set before sunset, then there will be a few words from the producer before the film begins at 8:30. It runs a little over an hour.

    In other commercial fishing news, Emerson Hasbrouck of the County Cooperative Extension has announced a new initiative of the Commercial Fisheries Research Foundation. The Gear Trials Program will give financial assistance to fishermen in the southern New England area who are willing to install one or both of two new gear types to test their performance.

    The intent is to provide industry members with an opportunity to try new gear in a wide range of small-mesh fisheries such as squid, whiting, and scup, and then report on their findings. The program is part of a challenge grant initiative aimed at reducing the bycatch of winter flounder in small-mesh fisheries.

    Mr. Hasbrouck also announced that work was under way to test a “topless” trawl to be used in the fluke fishery. The trawl is designed to release sea turtles from the net unharmed. Mr. Hasbrouck can be reached at 727-7850.

    Evelyn and Daniel Shields II of Amagansett have announced the engagement of their daughter, Allison Renee, to Michael Andrew Sauter, the son of Laura and Michael Sauter of Flanders.

    Ms. Shields graduated from Quinnipiac University in Connecticut in 2010 with a degree in accounting. She works as an accountant for Amagansett Square.                             

    Mr. Sauter graduated in 2009 from Franklin Pierce University in New Hampshire with a degree in management. He is a foreman for his family’s business, Peconic Gate Systems, and a volunteer firefighter for the Flanders Fire Department.

    A wedding date has not been set.

    Danielle Marie Jack of East Hampton and Ryan Joseph Sutphin of Newport News, Va., were married on June 23 at Gurney’s Inn in Montauk. The ceremony took place on the Lido Deck overlooking the ocean. The Rev. Anthony Larson of Springs Community Presbyterian Church officiated.

    The bride carried a bouquet of seasonal white flowers including mini callas, vandela roses, football mums, and veronica with an accent of blue belladonna delphinium wrapped in a French maid tie. She wore an ivory taffeta floor-length gown with a semi-cathedral train. Her matron of honor was a friend, Kristen Cox of Virginia, and the best man was Adam Sutphin, the groom’s brother.

    Mr. Sutphin’s groomsmen were the bride’s brother, Christopher Jack of East Hampton and Aubrey Cox, Tyler LeGrand, Eric Hubble, Richard Green, Jason Slater, Christopher Wahrman, and Michael Conlon, all of Virginia, and Maxx Kinert of North Carolina. The groomsmen wore gray suits with silver-and-blue matisse striped ties and white fingerling sea star pin boutonnieres.

    The bridesmaids were Noelle Jack of East Hampton, the bride’s sister-in-law, Diana Balnis and Bethanie Theriault, also of East Hampton, Melissa Elrod of Tennessee, Megan Greene of Chicago, and Heather Forestiere, Courtney Laughlin, and Heather Jenkins, all of Virginia. They wore knee-length blue matisse chiffon dresses and carried white football mums. A reception at Gurney’s immediately followed the ceremony.

    The bride is the daughter of Tim and Patti Jack of East Hampton. She is a 2002 graduate of East Hampton High School and graduated from Christopher Newport University in Newport News with a degree in psychology and a master’s in teaching. She is an elementary school teacher in Henrico County, Va. Mr. Sutphin is the son of Joey and Cindy Sutphin of Newport News. He graduated from Christopher Newport University with a degree in business administration and is an account manager at Royall and Company in Henrico County. 

    The couple took a five-day trip to St. Martin after the wedding. They live in Glen Allen, Va.

    It was the generous support of eastern Long Island residents, as well as private donations, that made it possible to have a school, medical clinic, community garden, livestock program, job development program, and the beginning of a productive, integrated community development program in Croix des Bouquet, Haiti, Jonathan Glynn of Sag Harbor said on Tuesday.

    Initiated by Wings Over Haiti, the umbrella organization that Mr. Glynn founded after flying supplies into the region following the devastating earthquake in January of 2010, the school will now be its own corporation. “I’m very proud of all the people who gave with their hearts, their hands, and their minds, as well as all the volunteers involved,” Mr. Glynn said.

    “The Wings over Haiti organization is accomplishing what it set out to do,” he said. The school is run by Haitians. Two acres of land have been purchased. There is a clean water filtration plant, and the school has the means to feed 75 to 100 people a day, including students and their parents. “It became obvious when one of our students died,” Mr. Glynn said, “that it’s ridiculous to try to educate the children there if we can’t keep them alive.”

    The nonprofit corporation will now be a foundation dedicated to specific projects that will include the school, but will not be exclusive to it. “Our goal right from the start was to give children from the most desperate communities in our hemisphere an opportunity to learn, grow, and have healthy lives,” he said. “We will continue this work.”

    Tax-deductible contributions are welcomed, and can be sent to Wings Over Haiti at P.O. Box 192, Sag Harbor 11963.

    A crew from the Montauk Coast Guard station saved a large leatherback sea turtle that had become entangled in line from a lobster pot trawl off Montauk on July 11.

    “They did a great job. It was a pleasure to work with them,” said Kim Durham, a biologist with the Riverhead Foundation for Ocean Research and Preservation.

    Ms. Durham said foundation personnel were able to talk directly to those aboard the Coast Guard vessel. One of the station’s 47-foot patrol boats happened to be only 10 minutes away from the stricken turtle when another boater reported its dilemma.

    “We were able to give them one-on-one training by phone in the freeing technique. The main thing is, you don’t want to cut the one line that would free them and have all the gear go with them. You want to study it, like a puzzle.”

    Ms. Durham said the big turtle was secured alongside the vessel. It had two wraps of line around its neck, four around its front flippers. “It was an adult, big, so you take your time. They carefully unwrapped it. We try to save the fishing gear, but we couldn’t in this case.”

    The turtle swam away “with a few scars and abrasions, but nothing of concern,” Ms. Durham reported.

    She said the female leatherback was not the same one found, headless, washed up on the beach east of Beach Lane in Wainscott on Friday. Ms. Durham said that animal was too decomposed to allow a foundation team to determine the cause of death.