LSHOF Junior Training Camp gives kids free fun, sports tips and more
Story & photos by KEVIN SHANNAHAN, Journal Staff
Over 250 young people from miles around enjoyed a morning filled with sports fun at the 2026 Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame Junior Training Camp led by the New Orleans Saints and Pelicans marketing staff on NSU’s campus Saturday.
The Hall of Fame’s Class of 2026 members, assisted by coaches and players from NSU’s football and basketball teams, put the young people through a series of drills in football and basketball skills. This is the 15th year the free Junior Training Camp has been held in Natchitoches. Over the years, the Junior Training Camp has become an eagerly awaited tradition for area families.
After being introduced to the Hall of Fame inductees, and hearing brief motivational remarks from Hall of Famers Warren Morris and Kathy Holloway, the kids were divided into two groups, one staying inside the gym at the Webb Wellness and Recreation Center and the rest heading outside to Turpin Stadium. They enjoyed a series of fast paced drills that kept the campers on their feet and moving as they learned and sharpened their skills.
Gumbo, the New Orleans Saints mascot, greeted the children. They got to play a sports trivia game with fun prizes from both the Saints and Pelicans.
Natchitoches Regional Medical Center is the presenting sponsor for this wonderful annual event. NRMC provides free T-shirts and healthy lifestyle material to the campers and helps to underwrite the cost of staging the camp. As always, NRMC is a tremendous community partner.
The Journal Services staff would like to commend the members of the NSU men’s and women’s basketball and football teams who helped at each of the stations. They were unfailingly helpful and gracious to the children. These young men and women embody everything that is right and good about the student-athlete concept. NSU’s WRAC staff turned their facility over to the campers and supplied water for breaks. They and the teams were superb ambassadors for Northwestern State University.
