CAMDEN — By PATRIC FLANNIGAN
Sports editor
A yearly event has a new location with the same mission: To show that a small town can bring in NFL stars for a camp geared toward motivating and teaching young student athletes.
The Fourth Annual Camden All Star Skills and Development Camp will be held on June 29 at Ivra Clark Park this year.
Registration will be at 9 a.m. with the camp lasting until 1 p.m.
The camp is held in honor of the late Jasiah K. Thrower.
This year, former Green Bay Packer Melvin Delanie “MD” Jennings will serve as the host the camp that will be for students grades 2nd-8th. Admission is free and food will be available.
This is the first time for the event to be held at Ivra Clark Park. It has been held at Coleman Stadium and Cardinals Stadium in the past. The event is also returning to June after being held in May in 2018.
Camp organizer, business owner, former Tampa Bay Buccaneer and father of Jasiah, Vincent Thrower explained he started the camp back in 2016 because he noticed that student athletes and their families always had to travel to bigger cities to attend NFL camps and he didn’t see a reason why there couldn’t be any NFL camps held in Camden.
Since then, the event has continued to grow.
Thrower emphasized the importance of camps and getting visibility, citing his own story. He said he was recognized by recruiters when he attended a football camp at Ouachita Baptist University - which led to him playing football at Arkansas State.
“We just wanted to bring something down here that we didn’t have,” Thrower said prior to the first All-Star Camp in 2016. “We want people to realize that these types of things aren’t just available in bigger places like Little Rock or in Louisiana. Camps can happen here at home, too.”
Thrower said that there will be an award given out in honor of his son, Jasiah.
Jennings is a former Arkansas State safety. He played four years in the NFL after going undrafted in 2011 for the Green Bay Packers Chicago Bears and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Also joining the camp will be former Arkansas Razorback and San Fransisco 49er Vickiel Vaughn and former Arkansas State Indian and Carolina Panther Darren Toney.
There will also be more NFL players and local sports legends in attendance to provide mentorship as well as training tips. Thrower said that it is important for young students to know that adults care about them and want them to succeed in the classroom and in life.
“We are trying to just make it bigger,” Thrower said. “This year, it is free. It’s about doing something for our kids and guiding them in the right direction.”
To register, visit camdenarllstarfootball.ticketleap.com or contact Thrower at [email protected] or call 390-9593.