Boys and girls from around the areacongregated at Mt. Moriah Baptist Church Family Life Center Mondayto learn about basketball in an open Christian environment.

    Children entering first through sixth grades met for the first dayof the Crossover Basketball Camp Monday and will meet again Tuesdayfor the final day.

    “Several years ago, we felt the need to reach out to kids throughsports and share scripture, basically,” said Korey White, coach anddirector of the camp. “Basketball is a good way to get themhere.”

    White said offering a free camp is a good way to give back to thecommunity and help parents find an easy way to keep their childrenoccupied and engaged during the free time that summer brings.

    This is the fifth year of the camp, and about 35 boys and girlsshowed up for Monday’s session. White and the volunteer staff wereexpecting more Tuesday.

    The girls participate in their own camp during the morning whilethe boys come in for the afternoon. Each group meets for three anda half hours, and they participate in drills, compete in games andwatch movies and listen to scripture during breaks.

    One of the volunteers, Trey Waldrop, who played basketball atBrookhaven Academy when in high school, is in his third yearvolunteering for the camp.

    “I love any atmosphere where I can teach kids about Christ and justhang out,” Waldrop said.

    The campers learn basic offensive and defensive aspects of the gameas they participate in drills such as shooting, passing, defendingand dribbling.

    Besides making the children into better basketball players, Whitesaid, more importantly, the goal of the camp is to help make theminto better people.

    “They [the campers] love it,” White said. “A lot of them usuallycome back each year.”

    For White, personally, the return on seeing the campers have fun,learn and grow as people means the most to him.

    “I absolutely love it,” he said. “If I could get paid to do this, Iwould do it all the time.”