The Daily Illini Members of the National Youth Sports Program Soccer Camp watch fellow participants juggle a soccer ball Monday morning at the IMPE multiplex fields. The Daily Illini Ten year old Michael Belmont, Urbana, kicks a soccer ball toward a soccer goal, in hopes of getting it past a goalie and scoring a point Monday morning. IMPE regulars have had to compete for gym space lately with kids in elementary school. Area children have been a presence in and around campus for the last six weeks as part of the National Youth Sports Program.
Children have the chance to play basketball, soccer, swim, ice skate and play flag football.
The day includes a grant-provided hot lunch and a lesson. The program also provides physicals for participants. Patty Pyrz, the program's project administrator, said the NCAA relies on the University to select counselors for the program. She said she hires them from both Champaign-Urbana and the University, but the children prefer some more than others. Chad Harper, who has worked for six years with the program, knows many of the children through teaching in the Urbana School District.