FROM OUTDOOR ACTIVITIES TO GAMING AND VOLUNTEERING, THERE ARE OPTIONS WITHIN THE TOWN’S BOUNDARIES FOR EVERY INTEREST AND WALLET
January 28, 2010 12:00 am • Shelley Shelton – Arizona Daily Star
“I’m bored! There’s nothing to do around here.”
It’s a common refrain for young people, whether they live in a metropolitan area, the country or somewhere in between.
Maranans, with their unique blend of rural and suburban lifestyles, aren’t immune to the potential for teenage tyranny that’s borne of boredom.
But it turns out there is lots for kids in Marana to do, without ever leaving the town’s boundaries.
Marana Councilman Jon Post – who helped begin the town’s Junior Rodeo about five years ago – knows the drill. He has two teenage girls who don’t much care for riding horses, he said.
The girls spend a lot of time hanging out with friends. ” ‘Hanging out’ is not my idea of something I’d like them to do,” Post said.
Whether kids have a bit of money burning holes in their pockets or not much to spend at all, there’s sure to be something on this list that appeals to them.
activities for the service-minded
If the young people in your home like to help other people – or could learn a thing or two about those less fortunate – volunteer opportunities abound at the Marana Community Food Bank, 11734 W. Grier Road, and MHC Healthcare’s Cotton Blossom Thrift Store, 11851 W. Marana Road.
The food bank already takes in high-school students who need to earn community-service credits to graduate, said Cecilia Muñoz, director of the Marana Community Food Bank.
But she’s also glad to work with kids who don’t just need the experience for class.
At the beginning of the year, the food bank began offering Saturday hours from 9 a.m. to noon with the hopes that more teenagers would be available to help during that time.
The Marana Community Food Bank is also open from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tuesday through Friday – which is when most kids are in school and unable to help.
To get involved, kids just need to fill out an application, have their parents sign it and then attend a one-hour orientation.
Much of the activity at the Marana branch of the food bank revolves around sorting food for monthly food boxes.
The Cotton Blossom Thrift Store is working on a program that caters directly to teens, but it’s not quite in place yet, said Miley Clark, associate director of development for MHC Healthcare, which runs the store.
But teens 16 and older are still welcome to volunteer, she said, and in the process they learn a bit about stocking merchandise, advertising and customer service.
Like the food bank, the thrift store collaborates with Marana High School, but at the thrift store it’s through an internship program for seniors interested in marketing, merchandising and retail.
Helping at the thrift store, whether through an organized internship or just volunteering independently, looks good on résumés and college applications, Clark said.
“Paying jobs are hard to come by right now, especially for teenagers,” she said.
And sometimes a teen can learn more from volunteer work than at a fast-food job, she added.
Gaming and movies at the library
The Pima County Public Library system – which has two branches in Marana – has been gearing more activities toward teenagers in recent years, said library community relations manager Steffannie Koeneman.
“Video games involve reading, believe it or not. I hate to use the word ‘lure’ because it sounds kind of tricky, but you lure them in with activities that are interesting to them.”
And best of all – library programs are free.
At the Geasa-Marana Library, 13370 N. Lon Adams Road, that means TGIFF (Thank Goodness It’s First Friday) Teen Time beginning at 4 p.m. the first Friday of the month.
It’s a time for teens to gather to play games, listen to music and watch movies – and still be home in time to stay out of trouble.
The Wheeler Taft Abbett Sr. Library, 7800 N. Schisler Drive, offers a teen movie night from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. the second Thursday of every month for kids 12 and older. They can bring their own snacks and beverages.
Teen gaming night, from 5:30 to 7 p.m. the fourth Thursday of the month, features Wii video games and Dance Dance Revolution.
For the more creative types, the Abbett library offers “combine a story with a fine art project” from 6 to 7 p.m. the second Tuesday of the month. It’s for families, teens and children, Koeneman said.
Ongoing Rock Band competitions have proven popular, too, she said.
The Abbett library just hosted a round on Saturday. Winners will advance to a countywide final tournament March 27 at the Joel D. Valdez Main Library downtown.
“It’s just like anything else,” Koeneman said of the library’s offerings. “There are some teens that really like libraries and some that you can’t force them there.”
Dances, a skate park and monthly movie nights
For about eight years, the town has sponsored monthly teen dances, said Marana Parks and Recreation Director Tom Ellis.
“It’s real popular with the middle-school and younger high-school crowd,” he said.
The dances are typically held the last Friday of each month at Marana Middle School, 11279 W. Grier Road. The entry cost is $3, and giveaways are held throughout the evening.
At the Continental Ranch community park, 8900 N. Coachline Blvd., the town has a skate park that’s usually open as long as the sun is shining, Ellis said.
The town hosts “ring of fire” skate clinics there a couple times a year as well.
The new Crossroads at Silverbell Park at North Silverbell and North Cortaro roads is opening Feb. 27, and the town plans to add the park to its monthly “movie in the park” rotation and also is planning for concerts in the park there, Ellis said.
The parks are available for general activities from informal family football games to a turn on the swings. There’s also a whole range of special-interest classes and youth sports offered by the town, Ellis said. Information on them is in the parks department’s seasonal guide.
Paper copies are available at the Parks and Recreation office, 13251 N. Lon Adams Road, in the Continental Ranch annex at 9190 N. Coachline Blvd. and at the Wheeler Taft Abbett Sr. Library, 7800 N. Schisler Drive. Or go online to www.marana.com to download the guide from the Parks and Recreation page.
“Everything we offer, with a map of all the parks and all the trails and all that stuff, is in the guide,” Ellis said.
Junior Rodeo, Batters Box, Bedroxx
About five years ago, Junior Rodeo began in Marana for kids ages 3 to 18, broken into four different age divisions.
The 3- to 6-year-olds begin with basic barrel racing, pole bending and a goat-tail pull, while the older children move on to roping events, said Councilman Jon Post, who helped begin the Junior Rodeo.
“It gets a little bit more technical as they get older,” he said.
Participants do need to have their own horses, and rodeo fees are $5 to $10 per event for little kids and $15 to $25 per event for those older than 6.
But they win money and prizes if they do well, Post said.
The Junior Rodeo was started because other statewide rodeo organizations had gotten so big, it was hard for children with limited experience to compete in them.
The Marana Junior Rodeo “is a lot more laid-back atmosphere,” Post said. “It’s competitive, but it’s not so competitive that kids don’t feel like they can go try.”
Kids who want to swing the bat a few times can head over to Batters Box, 6800 N. Camino Martin.
There, bats, helmets and gloves are provided along with training in proper techniques.
The place is set up for individuals, groups, people who have memberships and those who walk in off the street and just want to play for a little while. A half-hour of hitting is $22.50. A full hour is $40.
Bedroxx Bowling, 4385 W. Ina Road, features more than 20 giant TV screens over the bowling lanes in addition to a large video arcade and weekend laser shows. Call 744-7655 for pricing.
Last but not least, Marana is home to one of Arizona’s few independently owned, first-run movie theaters, Tower Theatres at 5755 W. Arizona Pavilions Drive. The cinema offers souvenir beverage cups that you can take back to the theater all year long for $1 refills. It runs a “Thrifty Thursdays” special of $5 movies before 5 p.m. and $6 for movies that begin after that. Other admission prices vary by time, age and whether it’s a weekend or weekday. Call 579-0500 and press 2 for pricing information.
Source: Arizona Daily Star