#mateencleaves

Last week I traveled to Lansing for the opportunity to volunteer with the non-profit 1 Goal 1 Passion for the Mateen Cleaves Summer Basketball Camps presented by Meijer. The camp occurred from July 29th-31st and each of the three days consisted of two, three-hour long sessions. The first session was reserved for kids ages 8-12, while the second session was for teens ages 13-17.

  For those of you who don’t know, Mateen Cleaves is a former American professional basketball player who is best remembered for his career with the Michigan State Spartans (MSU). Having grown up in Flint, Michigan, Cleaves feels strongly about bettering Michigan’s youths and communities, which is why these camps are offered to kids who wouldn’t normally have the opportunity to improve their ball skills at a summer camp ($1 registration fee per child).

While volunteering, I had the opportunity to get a behind-the-scenes look into the camp’s day-to-day activities. I was as equally pleased as I was surprised to find out that this particular camp wasn’t strictly focused on basketball skills. More appropriately, it came off as more of a life skills camp that sprinkled in some basketball training from a former NBA player. During the camps, Mateen Cleaves would personally give a motivational speech at the beginning and end of each session. In addition to basketball, these enlightened lectures focused on topics such as nutrition, health, the importance of education, hard work, respect, and dreaming big!

To enhance on some of these particular topics, guest speakers were arranged. For instance, one day a yoga instructor came to improve the youngsters’ balance and flexibility, while the next day, a local smoothie shop owner discussed the importance of nutrition. On the final day of camp, I was even given the chance to speak to the teenagers about the helpful and harmful effects of Social Media.

The final day also included the camp’s championship game between the two top teams of the week. The big game followed the routine basketball training stations that the kids had become familiar with throughout the week. The exciting championship game had the 200+ campers on their feet chanting and cheering from the bleachers.

After the kids rushed the court following the final buzzer, the top team and their runner up were awarded medals for their accomplishment. At the award ceremony, other prizes were given out for specialty awards such as MVP, Best Team Player, and Hardest Worker.

Moreover, as the camp’s title sponsor, Meijer was given the honor of presenting the ‘Meijer Sportsmanship’ specialty certificate and signed mini-basketball by Mateen Cleaves to Onika M. and Dequan M.

With all that excitement, it isn’t hard to understand why I had such an amazing time volunteering for such a worthwhile cause. The 1 Goal 1 Passion Mateen Cleaves Basketball Camp was such an incredible experience for everyone involved, including myself. If making a difference in at least one camper’s life while promoting the game of basketball was the camp’s goal then I would say, from first-hand experience, it was a success! 

#Kylie

This month, I will be volunteering with the non-profit, 1 Goal 1 Passion, for the Mateen Cleaves Summer Basketball Camps presented by Meijer. These camps will be taking place in several Michigan cities starting July 22nd.