PRIOR LAKE, MN – Indigenous youth and families across Minnesota will have new opportunities to learn to skate this winter through a partnership between the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community (SMSC) and Minnesota Hockey.
The partnership will offer four free Indigenous Family Learn-to-Skate workshops supported by a grant from the SMSC’s IndigeFit Kids campaign. Each workshop will accommodate approximately 40 participants and include small-group skating instruction, free skates and helmets, a meal and cultural activities focused on Indigenous traditions and connections to hockey.
Registration is open for the first workshop, scheduled for Nov. 1 at Dakotah! Ice Center in Prior Lake. Check-in and equipment fitting will begin at 11:30 a.m., followed by skating instruction from noon to 1 p.m. and a meal and cultural activities from 1 to 3 p.m. Participation, including equipment and the meal, is free.
Three additional workshops are planned throughout the winter, with dates and locations to be announced.
Minnesota Hockey is an affiliate of USA Hockey and the governing body of youth and amateur hockey in Minnesota. The SMSC’s three-year, $6 million IndigeFit Kids campaign supports efforts to improve the physical fitness and mental wellness of Native youth in Minnesota.