Why Some Pro Athletes are in a League of their Own

I don’t consider myself skeptical when it comes to pro-athlete camps, I like to call it being a realist.

I watch ESPN and keep up with the news of the NFL, and let’s be honest, I’m not really sure I would want my kids getting tips on character from some of those guys. So imagine my surprise when I realized I had nothing negative to say about the Pro Football Camp in Colorado Springs.

There are so many reasons I felt privileged to attend a camp that actually cared about the community, the character of the athletes and of course the skills required to be successful.

First of all, the players weren’t big headed and too cool to play with the kids. I expected the pros to do their time, tell the kids what they wanted to hear, and leave. Not the case. They horsed around with the young athletes, they signed autographs and took pictures outside of scheduled sessions and they scrimmaged with the campers. Not once did I get the vibe that the NFL players just wanted to get it over with and go home. They all even came to the events after the camp – and there were plenty.

A meet and greet at a local sports grill on Tuesday, a Toy Drive (where the pro’s bowled, raced go-karts, and took pictures with the kids) on Wednesday, a service project painting a children’s center on Thursday, and a golf tournament over the weekend, all kept the players and the campers busy on and off the field. The pros went to every event too. No rotating who had to give up their evenings, they were ALL there.

The kids weren’t told something and shown something else. The athletes didn’t say “work as a team,” and then run off to be by themselves. In fact, some of the things they found important to stress were a surprise to me as well.

 “If someone doesn’t make a good play don’t get mad, help ‘em up, tell ‘em they’ll get it next time cause guess what? You’re gonna fall sometime, you’re gonna get beat too, you don’t want ‘em yelling at you…fall down, see how fast you can get yourself back up,” Eric Ghiaciuc of the Bengals explained to the campers.

And of course, behind the scenes the staff walked the walk as well.

One of the interns and I were getting slightly annoyed with a young boy and his brother. They were playing with the footballs, eating the food, talking to the players when it was obvious that they weren’t enrolled in the camp. Not only did the staff not tell them to go away, they invited the boys to sit with the group and ask questions with the kids.

“Get in there, its okay,” one of the directors told the boys when they seemed unsure if they could really participate.

It sounds like I’m just making some of this stuff up – my own little United Way commercial where NFL players encourage you to give back to the community – and then the next day see the same one arrested for domestic abuse.

Well I’m proud to say I’m not making any of it up. The money raised was real, the attitudes of the players and staff were real, and the smiles on the kids’ faces were definitely real. My suggestion? Get your kids registered for next year.

For more information on the Pro Football Camp go to http://www.profootballcamp.com/