PAL Day at the Palestra – A President’s Day Tradition!
More Than 100 PAL Kids Celebrated Presidents’ Day on the Hardwoods of Penn’s Cathedral of College Basketball During PAL Day at the Palestra
Through a partnership with Penn, PAL kids spent their out-of-school time on a college campus and under the guidance of their mentors from the Penn and Philadelphia Police Departments.
The University of Pennsylvania Division of Public Safety and Penn Athletics hosted kids and teens from the Police Athletic League of Philadelphia during the annual PAL Day at the Palestra – a one day event held at Penn’s historic Palestra. The event involved 160 children in a fun, safe, and free fitness-based activity under the guidance of their coaches and mentors from the PAL Police Unit.
As an extension of PAL’s Fitz Dixon Basketball Program, PAL Day at the Palestra helps PAL in broadening its reach beyond the program to serve a larger number of children, for more time, and have a larger impact on Philadelphia’s at-risk youth. Through the PAL Day at the Palestra event, PAL, The University of Pennsylvania Division of Public Safety, Penn Athletics led by Dr. Grace Calhoun, and Macquarie Investment Management provide PAL kids with a day of basketball fun, fitness and enjoyable time spent with friends and peers.
PAL is “Cops Helping Kids.” We aspire to be the premier youth-serving organization in the city, by reducing crime, promoting character development, and improving educational outcomes. We accomplish this by having Philadelphia Police Officers, supported by civilians, offer educational, athletic, and recreational programs to youth in some of the city’s highest crime and lowest income neighborhoods. PAL Centers are safe havens, offering a variety of free programs and other events to attract engage and develop more than 18,000 of Philadelphia’s youth.
