Prioritizing Prichard

By: Jocelyn Olberding

Starting January 2, 2025, Prichard Auditorium began offering new indoor activities to the Falls City community. Briar Burr, Falls City Parks and Recreation director, decided that Prichard was an underutilized facility that has a lot of potential. Burr took on the role of making the building look better and serve a bigger purpose to the people of Falls City.

Falls City offers outdoor tennis and basketball courts, but during the cold weather, there is nowhere to get exercise or participate in activities indoors. Burr took it upon himself to make Prichard an open gym during the week with new activities. He hired three Sacred Heart students to supervise and manage the building during the evening hours: seniors Gavin Clow and Jocelyn Olberding, and sophomore Isabelle Nussbaum.

Burr added new accommodations at Prichard including lockers, benches, equipment, and new pickleball nets. There is an online schedule for people to view which night is offering which activity. Most Mondays and Fridays are basketball nights while Tuesdays and Thursdays are for pickleball. There are small participation fees: Children 4 and younger are free, children ages 5-15 and adults 55 and older pay $2, and adults ages 16-54 pay $3. If participants visit the facility regularly, they can also purchase a punch card that costs $30 and includes 20 visits. If anyone would like to walk laps, it is free of charge and if you need open gym hours you can visit the website for a schedule for the current month.

Burr hopes that people will spend more of their free time participating in indoor activities during the winter. Prichard Auditorium is a great facility to get in exercise and spend your weeknights with friends and family while staying active.