Kids who dream of playing in the pros – or, kids who just love to play – can get registered now for the free Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame Junior Training Camp next Saturday morning, June 26 in Natchitoches on the Northwestern State campus.
Parents can visit the LaSportsHall.com website, or call 318-238-4255, to complete a registration and waiver form for the JTC, which provides two hours of full throttle fun alongside Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame members and NSU coaches.
The camp runs from 9-11 a.m., starting with registration between 8-9 a.m. at the Webb Wellness and Recreation Center (WRAC) gymnasium. At 9 a.m., campers get introduced to the sports stars who will be coaching them for the next two hours, inside focusing on basketball skills, and outside at Turpin Stadium, with football instruction.
Kids ages 8-17 are welcomed. The registration and waiver form should be filled out before next Saturday. The camp is open until filled to 300 capacity and anyone who registers after capacity is reached will be on a waiting list.
The event is presented by the Natchitoches Parish Sheriff’s Office and Natchitoches Regional Medical Center. Every camper gets a free T-shirt and a coupon for a meal at Raisin’ Canes. Photos from the camp will be posted on the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame Facebook page, including a group photo with campers and all the sports celebrities.
The goals of the JTC are simple – a fun, and thrilling, experience for the kids, free of charge; skills instruction from some of the best to ever play, or coach, the games; and promotion of health lifestyles and positive life choices.
The campers are separated into two groups. One stays inside for the first hour for basketball instruction, while the other is next door at Turpin Stadium, having football fun. The groups switch locations in the second half of the camp.
The kids will enjoy a star-studded lineup of celebrity coaches, including:
Sweet Lou Dunbar, the longtime “clown prince” of the Harlem Globetrotters;
Eight-year NBA standout Kerry Kittles, who helped the Nets reach the 2001 NBA Finals and had a 14-point career scoring average;
Two-time Pro Bowl cornerback Charles “Peanut” Tillman, who helped the Bears and the Panthers reach the Super Bowl in a 13-year NFL career, and is a graduate of the FBI Academy;
Angela Turner Johnson, one of the greatest Lady Techster basketball stars, and the 1981 Final Four MVP for the first of two national championship teams.
And they’ll meet Mr. Duck Dynasty, Phil Robertson, who started at quarterback ahead of Terry Bradshaw in college until duck hunting got in the way.
Two Grambling legends will be there: eight-time Mr. Olympia Ronnie Coleman, and 94-year-old legendary high school coach Mackie Freeze, al former Brooklyn Dodger spring training teammate of Jackie Robinson.
Several past Hall of Fame inductees are also expected to be there.
Parents are welcome to watch, and take photos and video.
