City Councilman Isaiah Thomas is hosting the 15th Annual Thomas and Woods Foundation Basketball Camp for young people, with last week’s session taking place at MaST Community Charter School II, 6501 New State Road.
This week’s second camp is taking place at the Sixth Man Center, 4250 Wissahickon Ave., and will conclude with a cookout and resource fair that will also include a bounce house.
In all, about 150 boys and girls ages 5-16 are taking part in the free camp.
Thomas, a 2002 Frankford High School graduate, explained that the first camp took place at Gambrel Playground.
“We try to spread it across the city,” he said.
Thomas is the boys basketball coach at Sankofa Freedom Academy Charter School, and has led the team to two PIAA state championships. Some Sankofa players are serving as youth counselors at the camp.
Also among those helping to run the camp is Jimmy Dillion, girls basketball coach at Archbishop Ryan. Dillon was a star player at Holy Ghost Prep and Notre Dame and a former state senator.
All campers receive a T-shirt, basketball, baseball supplies and bookbags filled with school supplies. They take part in conditioning, drills, weightlifting, pickup games and team building, along with receiving educational materials and having the opportunity to engage in arts and crafts, yoga and calisthenics, play chess, listen to the Philadelphia Orchestra, hear from guest speakers and learn coding, photography and archery.
“We try to teach them and expose them to a lot of different stuff,” Thomas said.
The camp is taking place when other camps have finished for the summer and will end right before public schools open on Aug. 24.
“That’s why we do this now,” Thomas said. ••
