The third and final day for the first through sixth-grade boys basketball camp started strong with 40 players, ranging from six to 11, all excited to start playing.
The third and final day for the first through sixth-grade boys basketball camp started strong with 40 players, ranging from six to 11, all excited to start playing. The boys worked through drills on footwork and speed before moving into a dunk competition and awards ceremony at the camp which ran from 10 a.m. to noon each day.
Head basketball Coach Rodney Parrett said he'll never forget when one of the players lost his tooth while playing and didn't even cry. They simply bagged it up and sent it home with him. Later that night the tooth fairy paid him a visit.
"But other than that, the most memorable thing is seeing a kid as small as [first-grader] Henry being involved and just not just walking around, lost," Parrett said. "He's just literally involved."
Throughout the two hour camp, a handful of parents stayed in the bleachers to watch their kids play. The coaches separated the players into grades, with the first-graders often practicing different drills than the rest of the boys.
Halfway through the camp, basketball coach Jason Reynolds sat the players down on the court and talked to them about perseverance, basketball tactics and why it was important the high schoolers were helping out.
Reynolds taught the kids his motto: "Good people, doing things right, success is only a matter of time," and had them recite it back to him.
Siles Ruihley, a 10-year-old going to be in sixth grade, said his favorite parts were playing three-on-threes games near the end and getting to play with so many different people, including the older boys who were there to help.
"It's cool [that they're here]," Siles said. "Some of these guys are going to go into college soon and they might even go into pros and you get to see what their stories are and how they're developing."
Parrett said it wasn't just the kids that benefitted from the camp, but the 16 high schoolers who were helping out as well.
This is Parrett's first year as head coach for Talawanda, but he previously coached here for seven years, including four as varsity girls coach, before taking over the Ross girls team from 2011 to 2019. Parrett added that he's Talawanda's 13th coach in 16 years.
"I think this camp is super exciting for the little kids, but it's also a great team building for our [high school players]," Parrett said. "I mean, the things that they're doing are just as impressive as the little kids to me, because this is a huge bonding thing for them."
Talawanda High School Junior Brayden Douglas said he's enjoyed the experience because working with the kids has allowed him to build teamwork skills, but he's also liked getting the players composed and directing them during drills.
"They have so much talent that I wish I had when I was that age," Brayden said, "but they are awesome."
Parrett said he's been with some of the high school boys since they were young, and he's watched them grow and build their potential year by year.
The final game before the end of the camp was a dunking competition where Jerry won first place based on judging from the high schoolers. Photos by Taylor Stumbaugh
"They're coming out of their shell because every one of 'em is shy," Parrett said. "They don't want to talk. They don't want to yell. They don't want to be involved but just in the last two months all that's changed."
