What began as a desire to motivate and inspire local youth athletes culminated in a two-day youth basketball camp designed to sharpen skills and promote teamwork.

The inaugural Youth Basketball Skills Academy, hosted by T.A.R.G.E.T. (Train Aggressively, Reach Goals, Elevate Together) Athletics, was held July 14-15 at the Opp High School gymnasium. T.A.R.G.E.T Athletics was co-founded by Latonya Washington and Terrell Womack. Sixteen young athletes attended the camp and, according to Terrell Womack, T.A.R.G.E.T. Athletics co-founder and Opp native, the community should expect more camps in the future.

“I believe these camps can help these kids improve their basketball skills,” she said. “Taking part in team sports also builds a child’s confidence and self esteem. The interactions that a child has playing sports can really help shape their character. They have to learn to deal with winning and sometimes losing. You have to learn how to motivate yourself and others and to remain humble through it all.

“I’m hoping that the next camp we have will grow,” she added. “I hope the word gets out and we have even more boys and girls interested in participating. We’re giving the kids a good foundation to build on their basketball skills. This camp is giving them a glimpse of what it’s really like to be on a basketball team and compete on a higher level.”

The first day of the two-day camp assessed and sharpened skills with one-on-one fundamentals and group drills. The second day split the athletes into two teams to compete in a friendly tournament and ended with an awards ceremony.

“I enjoyed the whole camp, but I think my favorite parts were when the kids mastered a new skill and were able to perform it correctly,” Womack said. “That look of confidence and the smile they would give you just makes it worthwhile.”

The “light bulb” moment of mastering a new skill is something Womack admits is a driving force in all her efforts.

“I founded T.A.R.G.E.T Athletics with Tonya Washington so that we could bring a focus to basketball in this area,” she said. “I returned to Opp in 2013 and have a 11-year-old son that plays in our local youth league. I began to notice that many of the kids have a passion for the game, but lack the knowledge and fundamental skills. I had proposed a camp to Coach Willie Edwards a couple of years ago, but we never sat down to work it out. Once I was introduced to Tonya, we just kind of set it in motion.”

And, according to Washington, it was a natural fit.

“I always had a passion for giving back and teaching kids the fundamentals of basketball,” she said. “I met Terri Womack through my sisters who went to school with her. She had always wanted to do something with teaching kids the fundamentals of basketball. We sat down and talked, brainstormed, and came up with the idea for this camp.”

Washington, like Womack, brings a wealth of experience to the table.

Originally from Paxton, Fla., Washington helped lead the Paxton High School Lady Bobcats to three state basketball championships. She was named Florida’s Miss Basketball twice and currently holds the high school national scoring record with 4,469 pts for both boys and girls.

“I graduated in 1996 and received an athletic scholarship to the University of Florida,” she said. “I played as a Lady Gator from 1997-2000, where I received my bachelor’s degree in Sports Management. I was selected 18th overall in the WNBA draft for the Washington Mystics [2000-2003] and the Seattle Storm in 2003. I also played in Europe for five years. I retired from basketball in 2009.”

Womack’s basketball roots began in Opp as a Lady Bobcat, where she was recognized as best offensive player, best defensive player, best rebounder, and most valuable player.

She attended Lurleen B. Wallace Community College for two years on a basketball scholarship and was named Southtrust All Tournament Team.

According to Womack, a chance encounter then led her to Huntingdon College in Montgomery, Ala., where she played the last two years of her basketball career. While at Huntingdon, she was co-captain of the team, received the Coach’s Award, made the Rhodes College/Marriott All tournament team, and was recognized as MVP. She then was the student assistant coach her last year there. She received her bachelor’s degree in Human Performance and Kinesiology.

Despite their experience, both Womack and Washington admit the camp would not have been as success without the help other talented individuals.

LeQuinn Lane, an Opp native, brought youthful energy to the camp.

“I see it as a privilege to coach young kids, that’s why I love it,” he said. “It means a lot to coach in this camp. It doesn’t mean a lot to just me, it means a lot the youth most of all.

“It’s very important that kids stay active in team sports because, once they get older, they can work together as one,” he added.

Felicia Gosha, another Opp native and volunteer coach, echoed Lane’s sentiment.

“It means a lot because I love to play basketball,” she said. “Coaching at this camp gave me a chance to help and teach the skill that I know to their children that need help and improvement in their skills.

“It’s very important for youth to be active for their overall health,” she added. “It keeps them engaged and focused and they have fun at the same time.”

Marcstavian Crittenden, another Opp native and eager volunteer, said coaching is his way of passing something along to the community.

“I enjoy teaching fundamentals, staying busy and remaining active with the young people,” he said. “Camps like this will keep them out of trouble and keep them active and busy. They will also learn resourceful skills.

“If your children are involved in sports, it will help them add to the abilities they already have,” he added. “.Just being able to be here and assist in teaching the youth is a blessing.  I love to see the youth being active.”

Jacob Nawlin, former Opp Junior Varsity Boys Basketball head coach and Varsity Boys assistant coach, didn’t think twice when approached with the opportunity to volunteer for the camp.

“Since I taught physical education at Opp Middle School, I not only wanted to be invested in the students while they were at school, but also in whatever they are doing in the community,” he said. “I was asked by Coach Washington to help with this camp.

“Being a part of a child’s development and watching them reach their goals is a great blessing to me,” he added. “It is the reason God called me into the teaching profession.”

Willie Edwards, Opp Parks and Recreation managing director and head coach of Opp’s varsity boys and girls basketball teams, gladly devoted time to the camp.

“I wanted to see kids grow in the game of basketball and learn fundamentals,” he said. “I feel camps like this are important because they teach youth how to get along with others and depend on their team mates.

“It is all worthwhile when I see kids smiling after they learn a drill,” he added. “I always strive to increase their knowledge of basketball.”

Washington talked about what’s next for T.A.R.G.E.T.

“If it’s the Lord’s will, we plan to continue to hold camps each year for the youth in the area,” Washington said. “We want our program to grow into something the kids can look forward to participating in every summer.”

According to Womack, T.A.R.G.E.T. Athletics is also currently seeking sponsors to help them offer more to the community and become a non-profit organization.

“We want to expand our camp so that we can provide training to more children in the Covington County area,” she said.  “We want to help train boys and girls ages  9-13. We’re targeting those athletes that will soon be able to participate in junior high athletics.

“We also need the community to be involved in order to make this successful,” she added. “We’re actively seeking sponsorships and donations and even volunteers. We would also like to thank the sponsors we had for this inaugural camp.”