KOLOA — About 100 campers participated in this year’s annual NBC Kauai Basketball Camp at the Southside Sports Center in Koloa.
The five-day camp was hosted by local nonprofit The “W” of Kauai.
“I think that there’s some really talented kids here,” said Shawn Stetson, NBC Camps vice president. “We had kids as young as 4 years old that came in our morning session. And, Josh (The “W” of Kauai founder and camp director Josh Burton) just couldn’t say no to some of his friends and family that said, ‘Hey, can we come?’
“We had all abilities and ages of kids. All the kids were super friendly and kind. Just in general, the kids were fun to work with, really listened well and worked hard.”
Among the camp’s participants is Lukas Myers, 13, and upcoming freshman at Kauai High School and a player for local youth club Papalina.
“I like how they teach and how the coaches care about how the campers learn,” Myers said. “They teach about God, and they care that the campers learn about that as well.”
Myers participated in every NBC basketball camp.
“I’m older now, so I’ve been playing better basketball and learning a lot more advanced skills,” he said.
Also participating was Deyshia Kenney, 15, who will be a sophomore at Waimea High School this upcoming year. Kenney played for the Menehune junior varsity girls basketball team last season.
“At first, it was hard to be out there, but I knew I had to be the one to step up and be the leader for my group and for the younger kids that were there,” Kenney said. “It was high-intensity. I had to show everybody that in order to get to where you want to be, you have to work hard.”
Kenney was one of the few campers that was recognized by one of the camp coaches on the last day Wednesday.
“It was kind of shocking. I didn’t expect for me to get an award,” she said. “I was trying to get the other kids to try and step up. But I guess being a leadership type of person, it as a good feeling. It boosted my confidence a bit more.”
Stetson said while the campers worked hard to hone their basketball skills, he hopes that’s not the only thing they took away from their five days with them.
“NBC really tries to affect the whole person. We work really hard on something we call spotlighting — giving a sincere complement to somebody, looking them in the eye, respecting their parents and their teams and their community. So, all the life lessons that you learn through playing basketball.”
The “W” of Kauai will host its annual NBC Kauai Volleyball Camp at the Southside Sports Center starting Saturday.
Info: thewofkauai.org
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Nick Celario, sports writer, can be reached at 245-0437 or ncelario@thegardenisland.com.
