The City of Santa Clarita is preparing to show its competitive side as City Hall employees go head-to-head with Santa Clarita Sheriff’s Deputies, officers from Newhall CHP, and Santa Clarita Firemen in a fierce broomball showdown.

The organizations will compete Thursday July 21, 2005 at “The Ice Station” in Valencia. The games will begin at 6:00 p.m. and will run until 10:00 p.m. The cost of attendance is only $2 for spectators! All proceeds raised that evening will go to the City of Santa Clarita’s Blue Ribbon Task Force to help the building of a Youth Memorial. Everyone is invited to watch the competition and cheer on their favorite players while helping to raise funds for a good cause! “The Ice Station” is located at 27745 Smyth Drive in Valencia.

Broomball is a version of hockey, where players wear tennis shoes instead of skates and use brooms instead of hockey sticks as they slide on the ice.

Twenty-five member teams are being assembled for this round-robin competition. Players will don helmets and wield their best broom skills in this event, which will be broadcast live on KHTS AM 1220, Santa Clarita’s hometown station.

The Blue Ribbon Task Force was formed in January 2000 to educate the community about tobacco, alcohol, and substance abuse among local youth. Since that time, the Task Force has been addressing a variety of other issues facing teens, including peer pressure, gangs, and stress, among others. The Task Force is composed of community-based organizations, parents, youth, educators, law enforcement, businesses and City Staff. The Youth Memorial, which will be placed in Central Park, will be dedicated to teens who have been killed in reckless driving, drug or alcohol-related traffic collisions in the Santa Clarita Valley.

“The City is excited to participate in the broomball tournament and we look forward to some friendly competition from the other agencies,” says Chris Gray, broomball team captain and IT Specialist for the City. He adds, “Of course, we want to win, but more so we want to encourage folks to come out and help us raise money for the Youth Memorial.”

For more information about the Blue Ribbon Task Force or the Youth Memorial project, please contact the City’s Community Services Division at 661/255-4965. For more information about the broomball tournament, please contact Sheriff’s Deputy Michael Lorenzi at 661/799-5804.