CommUNITY Fun Day for Teens set for July 13

Dubois County CARES in partnership with Tri-County YMCA is sponsoring a free CommUNITY Fun Day for Dubois County youth ages 14 to 19.

Activities will take place from 4 to 8 p.m. Saturday, July 13, at the Clem and Mary Lange YMCA at 131 E. 16th St., Ferdinand.

CARES stands for Coalition for Adolescent Resilience and Empowerment Strategies. The coalition’s youth and adult members work to keep young people from alcohol and drug misuse.

This is the second CommUNITY event, following an afternoon retreat last December. 

CARES has a youth leadership team with representation from all high schools in the county. Youth members want to carry that idea over to their fellow students by having youth from the entire county get together to have fun in a substance-free environment.

“Two primary reasons teenagers turn to addictive substances are to avoid feeling excluded and to cope with mental health challenges,” commented youth leader Ava Bower, a senior at Jasper High School. “Our CommUNITY youth day will combat both of those issues.

“We chose to plan it with the entire county so teens can meet people they otherwise wouldn’t have. I’ve already met so many amazing people because of Dubois County CARES and I hope to share that experience with more people.”

Activities will include a pickleball tournament on four courts, free basketball play, air hockey and ping pong, board games and cards, and crafts. The only activity for which registration is required is the pickleball tournament; teams of two must sign up by 5 p.m.

The names of the first 75 youth to show up at CommUNITY Fun Day will be entered in a drawing for two tickets to Holiday World. Those attendees and all others will be entered into drawings for donated door prizes, which will be given out throughout the evening; winners must be present to collect their prizes. The pickleball tournament will have a grand prize for the winning team.

“The amount of support we are getting from our local businesses and donors has been indescribable,” said youth team member Maleah Dearing, a sophomore at Southridge High School. “They see our vision and believe in us.”

Food and prize pledges are still coming in, but so far donors include Ferdinand businesses Fleig’s Café, Homestead Pizza and Tin Lizzie’s; Huntingburg businesses Casey’s, Fry’D & Chop’D, Huck’s, The Huntingburg Grind, McDonald’s and Subway; and Hibbett Sports in Jasper.