Hudson/Marlborough – Teams will good-naturedly compete for Most Spirit, Best Uniform and First Place trophies at the second annual Dodgeball Tournament to benefit the Hudson Youth Substance Abuse Prevention Coalition. Taking place Friday, April 3, from 6 to 9 p.m., at Assabet Valley Regional Technical High School in Marlborough, the fundraiser’s attendees can also become winners.
A $5 admission fee includes five chances to win choices of 10 door-prize packages valued from $100 to $600. Hudson and Marlborough businesses donated gift cards and other items totaling over $3,000. Attendees can also win by spinning Apex Entertainment’s prize wheel and playing Hudson YSAP’s trivia quiz.
In addition to dodgeball players ranging from middle schoolers to adults, the evening will feature music performed by Hudson High School’s a cappella group Camerata and a photo booth provided by Hudson Interact Club. Pizza, pastries and beverages will be available. Bids can be made on five silent auction items, collectively worth over $1,000, with various themes spanning from “rest and relaxation” to “party and adventure.”
Proceeds will fund substance-abuse prevention and addiction recovery efforts offered free of charge for middle and high school students.
Last year, Hudson YSAP in conjunction with Marlborough Alliance for Prevention published a resource guide chronicling pertinent contact information throughout the region. Hudson YSAP recently purchased books about addiction and recovery for a new section at Hudson Public Library, and co-presented “The Complex World of Teen Vaping” with Hudson Public Schools.
For the second year, Hudson YSAP will host the interactive exhibit “Opioid Project: Changing Perceptions through Art and Storytelling” during the third annual ArtsFest Hudson to be held Saturday, May 2, from noon to 5 p.m., at Dance On Dance Center. In observance of National Recovery Month in September, plans are underway to bring the Opioid Project’s workshop to Hudson for local participants to process their personal experiences by creating collages and sharing stories. Also in September, Hudson YSAP will once again display rows of purple flags on the Town Hall lawn, each representing an overdose in Hudson.
Helping to present the fundraiser are youth team sponsor RF Wood Foundation; gold sponsors Assabet Valley Regional Technical High School, Avidia Bank, Community Advocate, Main Street Bank, St. Mary’s Credit Union; silver sponsors Downing Electric, Hudson Rotary Club, Marshall Insurance Agency, Tighe Hamilton Regional Funeral Home; and bronze sponsors Artisan at Hudson, Casaceli Trucking, Dave’s Landscape, State Rep. Kate Hogan, Murphy Insurance Agency, Reflections Memory Lamps, RTN Federal Credit Union, Sereni Salon & Spa and Wegmans.
Snow date is Saturday, April 4. For information, visit hudsonhealthdept.org/ysap-dodgeball-tournament.
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