Teams took to the court for a cause during the first-ever Bonnyville Food Bank Dodgeball Tournament.
The fundraiser had a successful inaugral year at the Bonnyville and District Centennial Centre on Saturday, March 23, raising over $1,300 for the cause.
Students from Cold Lake’s Portage College organized the event as part of community development class, which required them to give back to an organization in the area.
“We have this community that comes together when they need it, and it’s amazing,” expressed Kyla Popyk, group member.
Overall, three youth and five adult teams registered to participate. In the adult category, it was Safety Buzz who took home the top spot, while Hot Diggity Dodge came in first for the youth category.
Popyk said they were blown away with the support they received.
“I couldn’t be more grateful for the people that stepped up in this town and helped us with prizes and things like that. Even the teams that entered, we struggled until about the last week, and we weren’t sure if we were going to be able to pull this off. We really had some teams step up, and I’m really impressed with the people that have come together to help us, and the food bank.”
Dawn McMillan, who registered an adult and youth team, said she was challenged to register through social media.
“It’s for a good cause, it’s a good team building (activity) for work, and my son loves dodgeball. So when we put in an adult team, he got to put in a kids team. He was more pumped about it than anything, so it was more about the kids and the cause that they were putting in for,” she detailed.
While he was a little disappointed that his team didn’t claim the top spot, Logan McMillan had fun taking part.
“My favourite part was being able to play with my friends, and talk to them. It was good times,” he said.
McMillan believes the event was a success.
“I think it’s great to see the community get out, and have something for the kids to do. There’s not always a lot for them to do, so it’s nice to have events put on for people to participate in,” she noted.
Popyk hoped those in attendance understood the importance of the fundraiser.
“Some of the kids got frustrated because they didn’t win... but, at the end of the day, we’re doing this for a reason, and it’s not for ourselves, it’s for other people that need the help. I hope that they remember that they got to come out for a day to have some fun, and families got to eat at the same time.”
