NORTHGLENN —Dozens of students from in and around Northglenn rallied into teams and took to the Northglenn Recreation Center gym to battle each other in a dodgeball tournament fundraiser where proceeds will be used to send care packages to U.S. soldiers overseas.
“This is the second year for this fundraiser, but the youth commissioners take a different cause to donate to each time,” said Amanda Peterson, Northglenn staff liaison for the youth commission. “This year, they choose to support our troops.
This is the second year that the Northglenn Youth Commission hosted the spring dodgeball tournament, called May Mayhem. The initial idea to send care packages wasn’t necessarily planned in conjunction with the upcoming Memorial Day, but Northglenn High School freshman and Northglenn youth commissioner Alexandra Donnici, 15, said it was a lucky matter of scheduling.
“It wasn’t part of our consideration when we started planning a few months ago, but later on we realized the timing of this was going be good to connect with Memorial Day,” she said.
“The entire idea around this event is to benefit youth in the community, and we’ve been looking at different problems to address,” Donnici said. “Many kids have parents who are soldiers or who serve overseas … and we agreed that that was a particular youth challenge that isn’t addressed enough, and it’s a different way to help.”
Cities and businesses in Adams County are honoring U.S. troops and marking Memorial Day this year with much more traditional events on or prior to May 25.
In Commerce City, what is billed as the state’s largest Memorial Day parade is entering its 51st year. On Memorial Day, the 1.5-mile route starts at 10 a.m. on 64th Avenue and Newport Street and ends at 6060 E. Parkway Drive.
The city who want to participate in the procession, and this year’s deadline is May 20. Last year, there were 130 parade entries from classic car owners to horse riders to float builders to regular marchers.
Brighton is hosting a Memorial Day Remembrance at noon May 25 at Elmwood Cemetery at 14800 Brighton Road. Activities that day include music, gravesite flag placement, a procession of Brighton Police Department Humvees and HawkQuest, a birds of prey company. There will be volunteers available all weekend to help people identify grave sites.
And in Federal Heights, Big Horn CrossFit at 8868 Federal Blvd. is hosting a at 10 a.m. May 23. A portion of every registration and T-shirt sale will go to the Wounded Warrior Project. A barbecue will follow, and the cost to register is $20.
Early estimates after the Northglenn May Mayhem matches on May 8 had the total donations at just under $1,000, Peterson said.
“The students are going to assemble the packages themselves,” Peterson said. “They’ve started to collect lists of items that are popular among some of our troops.”
Additionally, each of the five dodgeball teams brought clothing donations to be given to the Disabled Veterans of America. There were several large plastic bags full of clothes by the end of the evening.
Eleven firefighters from the North Metro Fire Rescue District played an exhibition match against the high school youth commissioners for the second time — they played the Northglenn Police Department last year.
“The dodgeball tournament … gives North Metro firefighters the opportunity to serve a great cause and build relationships with the youth in our community,” said North Metro Fire Rescue District spokeswoman Sara Farris. “It’s great to see our younger residents helping others in their community, and we’re happy to be a part of it.”
Megan Mitchell:303-954-2650, mmitchell@denverpost.com or twitter.com/Mmitchelldp
