Sign up to play dodgeball to help the homeless

Have you ever participated in an event to help a worthy cause? Well Aurora Service Learning, one of the classes at Aurora High School, is organizing an event to help the homeless.

Zach Flynn, senior in the Aurora Service Learning class, stated,“The tournament is on December 1st, 2018 at 6:30pm, and we are unaware of the time the tournament will end because it depends on how many brackets are in the game. It will be hosted in the J.V and Varsity gym at Aurora High School. There will be a two dollar entrance fee for spectators.”

The students in the class are encouraging everyone in sixth grade and above to participate. In addition to Harmon students and high school students, the tournament is also open to the community.

Emily Byard, senior in the Aurora Service Learning class, said, “There are only five players per team. Each team member has to pay $5, and each team has to hand in $25.”

You may be wondering, how does everyone inform the school that are participating?

Flynn said, “A flyer will be passed out! Or ask Mrs. Foster for a copy of the team registration. At Harmon Middle School, there is a teacher assigned to get the money and sign up sheet from students. Then hand them into Emily Byard to give to Mrs. Foster. If you are an outside team, you can hand them into the front office at Aurora High School.”

The tournament is being sponsored by small businesses in the community. The small business who are sponsoring the tournament are Teresa’s, Cinemark, Gionino's, Delciello’s, and others. In addition to being sponsored, the tournament is also receiving donations from the small businesses.

Everyone who want to sign up to play has to have their names written on the sign up sheet and one member of the team has to be the team captain. If your team will have a substitution, you would have to notify Zach Flynn or Kyle Peterson or someone else in the class, a day before the game. Each member of the team has to have a ball during a game. However during over time, there are only allowed to be two balls in a game.

The game will start when the team is at the back white line on their side. After the refs signal, they will run up to the half court line to receive the balls. After they receive a ball the players must run back to the white line at the back of their side. However at the start of a game, the ball MUST be taken back to the starting line before the play begins.

Ball has to bounce and hit the target to count; if you miss, you are out. A head shot counts as an out for the person who throws the ball. Balls can be used to block shots; but if the ball is dropped, you are out. If ball is caught in the air from an opposing player, the player who threw the ball is out of the game. If the ball is caught, the player who was recently out, can come back in.

There is an 8 minute limit on the game, the team with the most players left will win. However if there is a tie, then the whole team comes back in, the first team to hit an opponent will win.

Overall, the class just wants everyone who is participating to have fun!

Aurora Service Learning class decided to involve Quiz Bowl into the event to help them raise money for their nationals trip coming up.

“The Quiz Bowl team at Aurora High School is doing a bake sale at the tournament. However, we will also have concessions and other foods. We will have prizes for the winning team, and a raffle for the best dressed team,” Flynn said.

Aurora Service Learning class is organizing this event to help the homeless. They will do this by using all the proceeds from the tournament to buy socks, blankets, canned food, and other things that would benefit anyone who is homeless.