Mara Heller (left) sits at a face painting booth run by Tawney Crowley (right).
Both kids and adults got to take turns trying to shoot a basket into a "reverse dunk tank," which would spray whoever sat under the net with water.
Last Saturday afternoon the downtown pavilion was filled with people coming out to support Wrangell's boys AAU basketball team, the Wrangell Warriors. The block party offered hamburger and hot dog meals, along with treats like popcorn and cotton candy. There were numerous activities for people to participate in, as well, such as a face painting booth, dunk tank, and other games. According to Aaron Angerman the money raised from the block party will go towards new equipment and uniforms for the team and to help cover travel expenses.
The Amateur Athletic Union, according to the group's website, was founded in 1888 and is one of the largest nonprofit sporting organizations in the world. The AAU was created to "establish standards and uniformity in amateur sport," its website reads, and to promote amateur/youth involvement in sports.
Angerman, who helps coach the Warriors, said that kids from fourth to eighth grade are welcome to participate in their team. Registration begins in September and their season runs from January to March. The team had 17 members last year, according to Angerman.
"We don't want to interfere with Parks and Rec basketball which is going to start next month, and middle school basketball is going to start a few weeks after that," Angerman said. "So we sort of cut down and as soon as those programs are over we pick up so the kids can keep playing."
The Wrangell Warriors are a relatively new team, Angerman said. They have been around as an AAU team for about a year. Wrangell also has an AAU girls team, he said, which has been around for about seven or eight years. This year he is hoping to see the team grow and participate in more competitions. While planning to travel to tournaments, he said that the team wants to host a tournament of their own in Wrangell, too.
"We hope to make the community aware that our boys AAU program exists," Angerman said in an email after the fundraiser. "The girls' AAU program blazed a trail for us and has rejuvenated girls [basketball] at the high school level by preaching fundamentals and providing extended opportunities for play. The boys team was long overdue. It's a great group of kids and we're not just aiming to improve them on the court, but off the court as well. We want to put out a program that our community is proud of, that parents are excited to send their kids to."
The Wrangell Warriors can be found on Facebook under "Wrangell Boys Club Basketball." Angerman said that the Facebook page might see a name change soon, and that a standalone website is in the works. More about the Amateur Athletic Union can be found at http://www.aausports.org.
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