On April 17 at 6 p.m., plan to bring your family to the Falls High School gym for a unique brand of Harlem-style basketball, featuring high-flying slam dunks, dazzling ball-handling tricks, and hilarious comedy routines.
With advance tickets costing $8 for adults, $6 for students, and free for children aged four and under, the price is right for families.
Advance tickets are available at Betty’s, Northwoods Gallery & Gifts, and La Place Rendez-Vous.
As part of a fundraising effort for local sports activities for youth on both sides of the border, the Harlem Ambassadors will play against our own “International” Can-Am Hoopstars (made up of local basketball stars from both sides of the border).
The celebrity referee will be Gerry Parent.
The Harlem Ambassadors are one of the most well-travelled basketball shows in North America. With a schedule of 230 shows in 44 states and nine foreign countries, the Ambassadors have included Borderland as part of their 10th-anniversary tour.
They are led by seven-year veteran Ketrick “Juggling” Jazz Copeland, and feature the delightful “Lil’ T” Turner as the show player.
A major focus of the Ambassadors is to serve as positive role models for youth.
“Kids are heavily involved in all of our shows,” Copeland said. “We try to get every kid in the gym involved in the show in some way or another by playing games, dancing, or just sitting on our bench and meeting our players.”
It will be an evening of fun for the whole family.
Bob Salmon, from The Herald Chronicle in Winchester, Tenn., had this to say about the Ambassadors when they visited his community:
“The standing-room-only crowd not only saw some of the greatest basketball in North America, they also were witness to some of the funniest comedy routines around. . . .
“Their brief two-hour visit has made a lasting impression, and although the FCHS gym will once again return to normal, those of us who came and saw and played and danced and laughed ’til we cried, may never be the same again.
“And that’s a good thing.”
The Harlem Ambassadors’ basketball show is one of those events not to be missed. Sponsored by the Muskie Sports Association and the Bronco Basketball Boosters, all profits will stay in the community.
Proceeds will be used to support the basketball, volleyball, curling, golf, swimming, track and field, badminton, cheerleading, and soccer programs at Fort High and the basketball program at Falls High School.
Included on the roster from the Canadian side are Paul Noonan (Muskie senior boys’ basketball coach), Sarah Noonan, John Sivonen, Adrian Chapman, Rob McGinnis, and Mike Belluz (Muskie alumni players), Kayla Windigo, Garnet Cornell, Jeremy Strain, and Travis Stomness (current Muskie players), and Todd Richards (local men’s league participant).
International Falls also is well-represented on the team, with Falls Mayor Shawn Mason, recreation director Bill Mason, city administrator Rod Otterness, police officer Rich Mastin, and state house Rep. Tom Anzelic.
Tammy Sullivan and Mason Hanover (Bronco alumni players), and current Broncos Josh Mastin, Dylan ice, Cody Christianson, Kevin Gordon, and Matt MacKenzie, round out the Borderland squad.
Fort Frances Times
Local News from Across the Rainy River District
