With the sixth annual Just Play Day set for Monday at Winston Wells ballfield, now’s the time to start your stretching exercises and dust off your sneakers. The event is expected to bring out close to 300 youths ages 5 to 17 for a day of sports and fun.
“It’s better to sign up prior to the event because you’ll have a better chance of a getting your size of T-shirt,” organizer Dean Doeling said.
To register, visit the Using Sport for Social Change website.
You can also sign up starting at 11 a.m. Sunday at High Tide Restaurant in Wharfside Village shopping center. A parent or guardian must accompany minors to sign up.
Youths who already registered online can pick up their T-shirts and numbered bibs at that time.
While you can still sign up before the event starts Monday, advance registration reduces the number of entries that have to be processed at the last minute.
Just Play Day begins at 9 a.m. with the opening ceremony. It runs through 4 p.m.
Volunteers are asked to arrive at 8 a.m. Teens who are too old to participate or would rather volunteer are welcome to help out.
The youths will participate in a variety of games that include a football throw, shooting basketballs, 50-yard dash, soccer relay and a soccer kick.
A first-place trophy and second- and third-place medals will be awarded.
All participants go home with a water bottle and bag filled with Nike goodies and other items.
Lunch will be provided by St. John Catering.
St. Thomas power lifter William Schouten will be the featured speaker. Schouten is currently training for the International Powerlifting Federation World Championships later this year and the North American Regional, Caribbean and Pan-American championship games of 2015.
The Just Play Day event runs entirely on volunteers starting with the Oregon-based Doeling, who is a production artist at Nike. A frequent visitor to St. John, Doeling said he started the event to fill in the gaps in the island’s sports programs and give youths something to do on the Columbus Day/Puerto Rico-Virgin Islands Friendship Day holiday from school.
While Doeling said the event has lots of sponsors, using Sport for Social Change will fund raise for the event starting at 7 p.m. Saturday at the Beach Bar in Wharfside Village shopping center. He said Inner Visions will play. Additionally there are 30 raffle prizes to be won.
“There will be quite a few happy people,” he said.
