Following a 42-year tradition, the Colonie Elks Lodge is inviting kids of all ages to the annual Hoop Shoot Competition on Saturday, Nov. 8, at the Cicotti Family Recreation Center, 30 Aviation Road in Colonie.
Kids ages 8 to 12 are welcome and should bring a copy of their birth certificate to verify their age.
The categories are broken down for boys and girls, beginning with a category for kids ages 8-9 years old, then 10-11 and 12-13. Registration begins at 8:45 a.m. and ends at 9:15 a.m.
To accommodate parents’ schedules on the weekend, the competition is not all day, said Elks member Ron Galinski, and it should wrap up around noon, with basketball shooting beginning at 9:30 a.m. sharp.
Each child will get 25 shots and will keep shooting if they need to break a tie. Kids in first, second and third places will each get a trophy, with the first-place winners in the boy/girl categories going to the district competition.
“If they win there,” said Galinski, “they go to the regionals, then to the state competition, then all the way up to California for the national competition. The winners get their names inscribed on the Basketball Hall of Fame on the Elks Hoop Shoot plaque in Springfield.”
For the kids who make it to the national competition, Galinski said, the winners and their families get a free trip to California for the competition, so that costs are not an issue for parents.
So far, two boys in the 12-13 category from Colonie have won the state competition. One of them continued on to Nationals and placed 13th in 2009.
The Elks Lodge is a staple in most any community, with dinner events and youth programs throughout the year to help locals in any way possible. The Hoop Shoot Competition began in the same spirit.
“We’re against drugs, and the foundation of the Elks is helping our youth and our veterans,” Galinski said. “We believe strongly in that. We’ve got handouts where veterans get clothes. We have youth baseball and girls softball. Anything where we can reach kids and give them activities, especially in the summer, where we can get them off the streets between school.”
Galinski stressed that the main goal of the event is for the kids to have fun. The Hoop Shoot is not for experts only.
“For the lodges, this is a very ritual type of competition. It’s done the same in each division, but it’s more relaxed here. We want the kids to have fun,” said Galinski. “Although it gets quieter as the competition goes on and the kids begin to concentrate, but it’s a real bonding experience.”
For any questions about the Hoop Shoot Competition, or the Colonie Elks Lodge and events, contact the lodge at 785-3557.
