Former Vaulter Dina Goldstone Killed in Car Crash

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Lower Merion mourns loss of Ace athlete, actress Dina Goldstone
By: Bruce Adams, Main Line Times
07/13/2005

More than 1,500 people paid their respects to former Lower Merion High School star athlete Dina Goldstone at the memorial service at Temple Beth Hillel in Wynnewood last Thursday. Goldstone, a 19-year-old Wynnewood resident who died in an automobile accident last week, touched many lives on the Main Line - and beyond.


By BRUCE ADAMS

wynnewood - More than 1,500 people paid their respects to former Lower Merion High School star athlete Dina Goldstone at the memorial service at Temple Beth Hillel in Wynnewood last Thursday.
Goldstone, a 19-year-old Wynnewood resident who died in an automobile accident last week, touched many lives on the Main Line - and beyond.
A standout diver and pole vaulter at Lower Merion as well as a talented actress, Goldstone had just finished her freshman year at New York University, where she made the honor roll at Tisch School of the Arts.
Lower Merion girls' track coach Sandy Hoopes said, "I was absolutely crushed when I heard [she died]. She's really going to be missed. She was a great girl with all kinds of talent - swimming, pole vaulting, acting. I just knew that someday I was going to go to Broadway to watch her star."
Goldstone's mother Jill said, "Dina had a heart of gold. I've had three separate teen-agers come up to me [this week] to tell me that Dina was the first friend they ever made when they moved here.
"We've received hundreds of letters from people who knew her. Phone calls have come in from friends of hers, as far away as London and Israel - thanking me for sharing my daughter with them."
Dina's father Jeff said, "It [her death] is just beyond belief. Dina touched so many lives."
Hoopes said, "She was always positive, always happy. She had all kinds of talent, and she set a good example of hard work and determination for the rest of her teammates. You couldn't ask for a nicer kid - she was so fun to be with.
"I had her dad in my phys ed class, and he was the same way - positive, a hard worker. The whole family was very close."
Jill said, "Dina was not only my daughter, but my buddy."
Former Lower Merion boys' lacrosse coach John Linehan said, "I had her in my U.S. History class - she was multi-talented, and had a good sense of humor."
Jeff added, "We've heard from so many people. Ted Goldsboro [his former teacher at Bala Cynwyd Middle School] sent a wonderful note."
Last week, Dina and two other counselors at the French Woods Festival for Performing Arts in Hancock, N.Y. were traveling on Route 97 near the Pennsylvania border when their car went down an embankment.
Dina, who had attended the camp for 12 years and was to teach trapeze and circus stunts, died at the scene of the accident, which took place at 2:30 a.m. According to police reports, the driver's blood alcohol level was .149.
According to Dina's friends, there is no way that she would have gotten in that car, if she'd known the driver was drunk.
Dylan Blau, a friend of Dina's who graduated from Harriton last year, said, "She would never let anyone, including me, drive her unless their seat belt was fastened. She had a love of life and was very easy to be around. She made the most of every moment."
Dina's friend Hannah Kremer, a former LM classmate, said, "She was the type of person who touched everyone the first time she met them. She had a great sense of humor. She was nice to everyone, and I didn't know of anyone who didn't like her."
At Lower Merion High School, Dina starred on the track and diving teams, and swam the butterfly.
A two-year captain of the Lower Merion diving team, she set the school diving record, qualified several times for Districts, and was named Main Line Times Athlete of the Week (Feb. 5, 2004).
Lower Merion diving coach Carol Gibbone said at the time, "She's very enthusiastic and a strong competitor - she doesn't get down on herself easily. If she has a sub-par dive, she'll come right back with a good one.
"She's supportive of the younger divers, pushing them to harder dives and does a good job teaching the new kids."
Later that year, Dina tied the Lower Merion High School girls' pole vault record, and graduated from LM with more than 10 varsity letters.
A fine gymnast, she competed for the JCC Kaiserman team and the Mannettes of Conshohocken, and was the state champion on the balance beam for two years.
At NYU, Dina competed in the pole vault, and qualified for the NCAA Division I championships in St. Louis last spring.
But acting was her first love. Dina had been in show business since fourth grade, when she and sister Frankie toured nationally for four months with the former National Touring Musicians production of "Annie."
Two years later, she performed in "The Goodbye Girl" at the Walnut Street Theatre. (All main stage Walnut St. "leads" have their pictures permanently on the wall.)
At Lower Merion, she shaved her head for a "The Truth" antismoking TV ad - the actual shaving was done on a Manhattan street live for the national commercial, and she gave her hair to Locks of Love to be made into a wig for a child with cancer.
As a result of the commercial, she was invited onto Angelo Cataldi's show on WIP, which in turn led to two appearances singing the National Anthem at a Sixers' game (January 2004 and Feb. 6 of this year - Super Bowl Sunday).
She also sang the Canadian National Anthem at Wing Bowl in front of 25,000 people.
Dina said last year, "I love performing - it's something different every day. It's not like you're sitting behind a desk."
She also was featured in numerous commercials including New Jersey State Aquarium (she was on their billboard, buses and flyers), Comcast and Suburban Cable, among others.
Dina is survived by siblings Frankie and Jamie, as well as her mother and father.
Memorial donations may be made to the Dina Goldstone Scholarship for Performing Arts in care of the Yentis Foundation, a family-run charitable organization at 7300 City Ave., Philadelphia, PA 19151.
White Manor Country Club has already hosted a two-day golf tournament to raise funds for the scholarship, and Dina's sorority, Zeta Sigma Phi, will be performing all of their fundraising for her charity this year.