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June 12, 2019

Rapid City Police Activities League kicks off summer basketball series

Following a successful inaugural season of 3-vs-3 basketball games hosted in conjunction with the Summer Nights concert series in downtown Rapid City, the Rapid City Police Activities League is bringing the event back for a second year. The first set of games will take over Saint Joseph Street (between 6th Street and 7th Street) at 6:00 p.m. on Thursday, June 13th, with sign up starting at 5:00 p.m. The activities are open to boys and girls in 6th through 9th grade. Waivers signed by a parent or guardian are required, and can be found at PALRapidCity.org.

The event, affectionately dubbed ‘Night Court,’ was created to address an increasing number of juvenile issues being observed by police during the weekly downtown concert series.

“Since the creation of Night Court, we’ve seen our juvenile issues during the event dwindle to virtually zero,” says Lt. Brian Blenner who serves as Sector Lieutenant for Rapid City’s downtown area. “Summer Nights is a wonderful way to get out and enjoy our downtown, and now youth have a positive reason to come out and enjoy the event as well with this program.”

Night Court will take place Thursday evenings from June 13th through August 15th. Since the creation of the Rapid City Police Activities League, a number of community organizations have stepped up to support the cause. In an effort to foster this community support, RC PAL is introducing a new program called ‘Pals for PAL.’

“We’re really excited to welcome community businesses and organizations to partner with our efforts to engage our youth with fun and positive athletic activities in Rapid City,” says Lt. Blenner. “With ‘Pals for PAL,’ we’re inviting these organizations to help volunteer during these activities. It’s a great way for your team to join forces with us and positively engage with youth in our community.”

Businesses or organizations interested in becoming a ‘Pal for PAL’ can request to help volunteer during RC PAL events by visiting the website PALRapidCity.org and clicking on the ‘Volunteer’ button at the top of the page.

The Rapid City Police Activities League is dedicated to providing kids with fun sporting experiences that are always free of charge to participants. In order to make this happen, RC PAL relies heavily on the support of the community, as well as volunteers. The June 13th event will feature volunteer staff from the Rapid City Area Schools District, food generously donated by Pizza Ranch, and prizes provided by the Rapid City Rush. ‘Nugget,’ the Rush hockey mascot, will be in attendance. Mark Binetti, ‘The Voice of the Rush,’ will also be helping announce during the games.