Engage Sport North plans pick-up games for all ages this summer

FORT ST. JOHN, B.C.–Engage Sport North is holding a series of free drop-in sports and recreation opportunities in Fort St. John and Dawson Creek over the course of the summer.

Leaders with Engage Sport North are hosting a wide variety of pick-up games on Thursday nights at 6:00 pm. The activities range from badminton and tennis to basketball, disc golf, and even a water fight. 

There is no specific age range or skill required for the games— they are open for whoever wants to attend and play. 

“I’m really excited about this because we aren’t choosing an age range. So if it’s kids, that’s great, teenagers, or even adults or seniors,” physical literacy coordinator Chantiel Drschiwiski with Engage Sport North said.

“If something’s catching your eye and you want to come play, or just do an activity or meet some new friends, you can come on by.”

The games are also an opportunity for residents to try their hands at sports they might not have come across before—like cricket. 

The baseball-like sport is gaining popularity in the Peace region, Drschiwiski said. 

“Engage Sport North does a lot of work with the college and the college has quite a few international students who are always looking for an opportunity to play cricket,” she explained further. 

While the fun of pick-up, drop-in style games is a big motivator for these events promoting healthy people and communities is also a goal. Games like these help serve a broader need: they develop physical literacy.

“Physical literacy is very, very important for our health and wellbeing,” Drschiwiski explained. Like reading and writing, the more comfortable people are with running and jumping, or catching and throwing, the more active they will be. 

“We want to teach people fundamental movement skills,” Drschiwiski said. “The more fundamental movement skills that you acquire, the more likely you’re going to be physically active for the rest of your life.”

But it’s not a middle-school gym class energy that the events are seeking to emulate, necessarily. “It’s like a pickup game that you would typically see the kids on your block doing,” she said. “We’re trying to create that atmosphere.”