Angels Basketball Club Holds a Kids Training Camp as they Celebrate Ten Years of Existence
While Celebrating Ten years of existence since inception in 2023, the Angels Basketball Club, a side featuring in the FUBA National Basketball League, they have decided to have a kids residential training camp to add value to the talents in the game.
The residential training camp is taking place at Africa Bible University in Lubowa and it was scheduled for four days and it has started on Thursday 6th April 2023 and it will be climaxing on Easter Sunday which is 8th this month with a schools competition at YMCA Wandegeya.
The camp has four teams, one for club’s grassroots program from Kibuli Children Centre, a team from Kamengo, a team from Nyarabu and the development team from Angels, they picked a few girls from each of those teams to add them more skills.
Grace Kwarisiima, one of the founding members of Angels Basketball Club revealed why they have hosted such a training camp.
“We are here at Africa Bible University at Lubowa, this is day two of our residential training camp, this camp started on Thursday in commemoration of our 10th Anniversary of the club, we are happy to be making ten year and we are excited and that’s why we are celebrating it in a big way.” Says Grace Kwarisiima, one of the founding members of the Club.
“It has been exciting looking at the kids we have identified from different communities, schools, seeing how thy transform starters to intermediate skills where they are now.”
According to Grace, the camp has only girls because Angels Basketball Club is a ladies team but when they go in outreaches, they work with boys and they are planning to have boys camp too in the near future.
Though they want a lot to take the game of basketball to all the parts of the country through their outreach programs, they meet w number of challenges an mainly finances since all the ten years, they have never got any sponsorship.
“In the course of our activities and goals and mission of taking this basketball game to the all of the parts of the country, the major challenge is actually money, we are very limited by finances, for the All ten years we have been in existence, we are not a sponsored team but we have been managing to do this program through thick and thin” she says.
This is not the first time the side is holding such camps, they have been doing outreaches in different communities to identify talents in the game of basketball.
The club is aiming at having three teams of 20 players each. That is U12, U16 and Under 18 that can feed the senior team and the national team as well.
The kids who are taking part in the training camp, revealed how they are benefiting from Angels Basketball Club.
“I really like Angels, they have helped me to improve on my skills to play better, I thank them for helping many kids to learn basketball.” Amoit Patricia, a primary five pupil at Police Children Centre in Kibuli.
Namugwe Esther who is in form six vacation also expressed her appreciation to Angels Basketball Club for holding a camp for them.
“I am happy to have joined Angels Basketball Club training come, they have helped me to spend my time well, basketball is taking my attention instead of being in peer groups that can run me into bad acts, I am here getting skills that can help me become a good player, so I am happy for them and I really appreciate them for this initiative.” She said.