This year’s session of Camp McE is finishing up and once again it was a positive experience for both students and coaches.
“I think for a lot of kids it’s a chance to get some exercise,” said coach Kaitlin Poapst. “This is more structured play for them, and that’s good. It’s building friendships, definitely.”
The camp, which was founded 17 years ago by Kim Poapst, offers students from grades one to five basketball fundamentals. But it’s not just the students that benefit from the program: the coaches do as well.
The coaches are middle and high school students, and coaching lets them grow as leaders.
“My biggest thrill is having the kids that were mini ball players come back and coach,” Kim said. “It is a very positive experience for me to be the facilitator and to watch the coaches’ self-confidence improve each year that they coach.”
For Kaitlin, who started coaching in Grade six and is now in university, coaching helped her grow as a person and she likes the connection she gets with the kids.
“As a coach, I’ve definitely seen myself grow to where I am now from starting as just a Grade six kid coaching Grade three kids, to an actual coach with real teams. It really helped me gain confidence as a coach and as a leader,” Kaitlin said. “The kids are in grade five now. I started with them in grade one and it’s rewarding to see them grow.”
But there are downsides to not being much older than the kids you’re coaching,
“The hardest thing definitely was to be able to feel like the kids respected you,” Kaitlin said. “It’s hard when you’re in middle school. I think a lot of these middle school coaches we have now, they’re finding their own voice and their own place.”
Kim started the camp because she loved basketball and came from southern Alberta, where basketball is strong. She likes that it can be played recreationally or competitively, one-on-one or in groups, and anyone can play.
“It is great to see passive kids get aggressive (in a positive way) for the ball and work hard physically. For some kids, this is their first involvement in organized sports, and it is great because it is a short season so they can do other sports as well,” Kim said.
Above all, the kids get to have fun, be fit, and make new friends.
Another basketball camp, Camp Teckla, starts up on June 30, and the head coach is Leighann Doan Reimer.