EL PASO, Texas (KTSM)- Basketball in the Barrio will be hosting its 31st camp season emphasizing pride in the border culture from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., June 9 through June 11, at the Armijo Center located at 700 East Seventh Avenue.
The camp, which hosts 6–10-year-old girls and boys who live in El Paso’s Segundo Barrio and Chamizal neighborhoods, will include musicians, storytellers, dancers and artists presenting their work between sessions of basketball skill training.
The camp was founded and directed by Steve Yellen and Rus Bradburd, and they have worked together every summer since.
“This unique camp was inspired by El Paso legend Rocky Galarza, the late boxing trainer who dedicated his life to training El Paso kids for free,” said Yellen.
The special guest for this year’s camp will be Chicago’s own Shawn Harrington. Shawn is a former New Mexico State University point guard (1995-1996), and his astonishing heroism is the subject of author and camp Director Rus Bradburd’s book “All the Dreams, We’ve Dreamed.”
Past guests to the camp have included longtime NBA star Greg Foster, boxing champ Juan Lazcano, Coach Nolan Richardson, NFLPA’s director David Meggyesy, Olympian John Carlos, U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan and poet Benjamin Saenz.
The movie “Basketball in the Barrio” premiered at the 2008 U.S. Sports Film Festival in Philadelphia. Director Doug Harris received the award for the “Most Inspirational” movie.
The camp has also been featured nationally on NPR’s Weekend Edition and featured in SLAM Magazine.
Additionally, for just one dollar, each camper gets a t-shirt, basketball, bilingual children’s book, musical instrument and free lunch.
