Kids at the older 4-H camp participated in one of the evening activities during sunset. (Photo provided by Lindsey Boso)

MINERAL WELLS — The Wood County 4-H summer camp kick-started the younger camp with engaging activities and group collaboration on Monday.

Since 1915, the West Virginia 4-H Camping Program has supported youth from ages 9-21 to gather and learn in an outdoor environment.

The Wood County 4-H Camp celebrated 85 years in 2024 with the goal to continue bringing improvements to the campgrounds for the upcoming years.

After concluding last week’s older camp with kids ages 13-21, the younger kids set up at the camp for the week which is scheduled to go through Thursday.

Every day has a set of scheduled activities which range from educationally focused classes to arts and crafts. Wood County 4-H partnered with Camden Clark Medical Center this year and will include emergency personnel at the camp in case of any emergency situations.

Each night at 4-H camp, the kids gather at council circle to enjoy an activity and sit around the fire. Camp Director Lindsey Boso said they have a different activity for every night. (Photo provided by Lindsey Boso)

Each night there will be different activities and games for the kids to participate in before bedtime.

“I like meeting new people from my county and I enjoy helping out with the kids and seeing them come out of their shells as the week goes on,” said one of the teen leaders, Jenna Lewellyn.

Lewellyn is from Williamstown and has been a teen leader at the Wood County 4-H camp for three years and a camper for eight. Teen leaders are youth in grades 6-12 and have the opportunity to participate in additional peer group activities.

“I like the activities like the counselor hunt and council circle,” said Lewellyn.

Rose Casto is from Parkersburg and is a second-year camper at the Wood County 4-H camp. The Wood County 4-H camp welcomes all kids in the county who come from different backgrounds and experiences. Many of them said they enjoyed camp because of their friends.

The daily schedule for kids at 4-H focuses on various games and activities throughout the day. The afternoon usually consists of classes and peer group activities. (Photo provided by Lindsey Boso)

“I like making new friends and I like council circle,” said Casto. “I’m looking forward to the awards because it’s really fun.”

Casto was one of 50 kids participating at 4-H camp during the week of June 30. In between activities, the kids enjoyed lunch in one of the barns during the afternoon before attending their classes for the remainder of the day.

“I learn how to socialize better and how to be kind to other people and how to be a good person,” said Casto.

This week, the kids will be focusing on recycling as part of a partnership with the Wood County Solid Waste Authority. Each tribe will be participating in different exercises and learning modules about why and how to recycle.

Lilly Kelley is a tribe leader for Delaware which is one of four tribes along with Seneca, Cherokee, and Mingo.

The kids at the older camp worked in groups to cook and create a meal during camp last week. (Photo provided by Lindsey Boso)

“I like meeting people because you’re still friends with them even after camp,” said Kelley. “I like working with my friends and getting closer with them.”

Kelley has been attending Wood County 4-H camp for as long as she can remember since her mom works at the camp.

“I’m looking forward to all of the council circles and leading my tribe during the week,” said Kelley.

The Wood County 4-H campgrounds consist of 67 acres along the Little Kanawha River and offers lodging and food for the kids during their stay. The younger camp is scheduled to conclude on Thursday with an awards ceremony.

To register for next year, go to extension.wvu.edu/wood/4h.

The younger camp of kids gathered at the council circle to discuss the schedule and prepare for the week. (Photo provided by Lindsey Boso)

Amber Phipps can be reached at aphipps@newsandsentinel.com.

All of the kids at the younger camp are separated into four different tribes; Delaware, Seneca, Cherokee, and Mingo. At the end of the week, one tribe is selected as the Spirit Stick winner for 2025. (Photo provided by Lindsey Boso)

MoU inked between Bangladesh & WEU to promote traditional sports

Youth and Sports Adviser of Bangladesh, Asif Mahmud Shojib Bhuyain and World Ethnosports Union, Necmeddin Bilal Erdogan signed the agreemen at headquarters of the World Ethnosports Union in Istanbul,Türkiye . Photo : Collected

DHAKA, July 5, 2025 (BSS) – A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) has been signed between the Ministry of Youth and Sports of Bangladesh and the World Ethnosports Union (WEU) to promote traditional sports and cultural cooperation. 

The MoU signing ceremony was held on Friday at the headquarters of the World Ethnosports Union in Istanbul, Turkey, according to a message received here.

The agreement was signed by the Youth and Sports Adviser of Bangladesh, Asif Mahmud Shojib Bhuyain, and the President of the World Ethnosports Union, Necmeddin Bilal Erdogan.

Prior to the signing, the two leaders held a close bilateral meeting where they discussed the importance of traditional games in enriching civilisations and cultures and affirmed mutual cooperation in promoting indigenous sports.

During the meeting, Bilal Erdogan emphasised the vast potential of Bangladesh’s traditional games such as kabaddi, wrestling, “bolikhela”, and boat racing, expressing his keen interest in promoting these sports globally.

 He also expressed interest in incorporating Bangladeshi traditional sports federations as members of the World Ethnosports Union.

Highlighting his involvement in educational initiatives in T?rkiye, Erdogan proposed scholarships, exchange programmes, and subject-based competitions for Bangladeshi students. 

He also expressed interest in establishing a branch of his organisation’s school in Bangladesh.

 Recalling his visit to Cox’s Bazar with his mother, he voiced his willingness to support the organisation of traditional games in Rohingya refugee camps to help ease their hardship through engagement in sports.

Reaffirming T?rkiye’s enduring support for the people of Bangladesh, Erdogan commended the youth and public participants of Bangladesh’s July 2024 mass uprising, noting the significance of cultural and national identity.

He said that under President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s leadership, T?rkiye is working to reclaim its cultural dignity and global presence.

In his remarks, the Bangladesh Youth and Sports Adviser noted that since the 2024 mass uprising, Bangladesh has been prioritising strengthening ties with its true and trusted partners, with T?rkiye being a key ally. 

He recalled how T?rkiye has historically stood beside the people of the Bengal Delta during times of crisis. 

He further stated that the uprising has heightened political consciousness among Bangladeshi youth and triggered a revival of interest in civilisational transformation, akin to T?rkiye’s own resurgence of its glorious heritage.

The adviser praised the leadership of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, especially for his moral stance on the ongoing genocide in Gaza and support for oppressed Muslim populations across the world. 

He emphasised the need for a strong and effective international alliance to stand against such atrocities and assured Bangladesh’s support and active engagement in this cause.

Asif Mahmud also sought the support of the World Ethnosports Union in the internationalisation of Bangladesh’s traditional games-including kabaddi, dariabandha, bolikhela, wrestling, and boat racing.

Concluding the meeting, the Adviser formally invited Bilal Erdogan to visit Bangladesh for the upcoming Global Youth Summit 2025. 

He expressed hope that this visit would further strengthen and accelerate the strategic partnership between the two nations in the fields of youth, sports, and broader socio-political cooperation.

Your job, if you decide to accept it, is to figure out the third and final tragedy of this tale. And do it before you finish reading.

My fourth season in Dunkirk Little League baseball as an 11-year-old in 1962 was, I admit it, underwhelming.

I was the best player on the USW-CIO team in the National Division of Dunkirk Little League. That’s not saying much because we were among the worst teams in the city. We won two games that season.

The main reason we were so bad is because we were almost entirely first-year players.

Bill Hammond

Our previous season we started seven 12-year-olds, the absolute most allowed by Little League rules at the time. Five of those players hit over-the-fence home runs that season, a remarkable achievement.

I played an undistinguished second base that summer as a 10-year-old.

Our other returning starter should have been catcher Bobby Polvino, an outstanding generational athlete in the making who tragically died in the city Halloween parade of 1961.

I was picked to the division’s 1962 all-star team and dutifully attended all the practices on the Woodrow Avenue field.

My family pumped me for details after each practice. I had few.

My all-star coaches decided to keep everyone in the dark as to playing status — starting nine or five-player bench. Not knowing where we stood made us all practice harder, in theory.

Our first game was in Westfield where team standout Dan Alessi pitched a masterful 4-0 no-hit victory. It was his fourth no-hitter of a memorable summer. He was that good. Really.

Me? I was doubly surprised to hit cleanup as an 11-year-old behind my up-the-street neighbor Alessi and play right field for the first time ever, even in practice.

Fortunately, no balls were hit my way and I contributed to the offense with a single and double.

We advanced to a Friday night meeting with the host Jamestown Internationals. The county’s largest city had three all-star teams in the district single-elimination tourney.

I was driven to the game in a car with a backseat full of all-stars. My dad got home from work at five and they — my mother, brother and two sisters — would see me at the 6 p.m. start.

It rained HARD all the way to the game. It didn’t look good. But somehow the worst of the rain spared us and the game started on time.

The team and I expected another 4th Street Gang member, Jim McGraw, would be our starting pitcher. He threw hard and was a relentless competitor. He was clearly the second-best pitcher on our roster.

The coaches had other ideas, starting their regular season team’s ace. He was a lefty who found success pitching around the opposition’s best players.

This worked well for him in Dunkirk, but not in all-star competition. He surrendered a single, home run, double and another home run to the first four batters. Depressing.

In all, he gave up eight runs in the first inning. McGraw came on in relief and gave up little the rest of the way, but we were eliminated from further play in the tourney.

I led off the second inning after that eights-run disaster. I hit the first pitch far beyond the left-field fence. I clearly remember some fan in the back of a truck leaping up to try and catch it, but it was beyond his reach. It was my first career home run.

Teammate Bill Wojcinski added his first career home run later in the game. We later celebrated with burgers, fries and shakes on our way home.

The loss was Tragedy No. 1. Why I was still traveling with my fellow all-stars was Tragedy No. 2.

My parents decided there was no way we could play in that rainstorm, so they turned around and went back to Dunkirk and their weekly American Legion Post 62 fish fry I was fond of inhaling.

I hit my first home run and my entire family missed it. Major disappointment.

So, have you figured out Tragedy No. 3 yet? Need a clue?

I was a practicing Catholic those days. Dad graduated from a seminary. I was a freakin’ altar boy.

Eating that burger by mistake on a Friday was a major religious Bozo no-no. Or, in this case Tragedy No. 3.

I don’t know if breaking the meat abstinence law/rule/beatitude/commandment on a Friday was a venial (minor) or mortal (big-time) sin, but trust me, I paid dearly for that darn tasty indiscretion.

It started with lectures that night from both parents and continued early Saturday with confession, and of course, my prayer-heavy penance.

My Grandma Rose Schrantz even offered her two cents on the topic. I think she used the word “heathen.” Or maybe it was “pagan babies,” I’m really not sure. Tragic.

***

LAST WEEK’S mystery Little Leaguer was correctly identified as Charles “Chuck” Dudek, unsurprisingly by his younger brother, Mike Dudek. There were several other good guesses.

— — —

DO YOU have a favorite memory of your time in Little League? Drop me a line or send a photo to mandpp@hotmail.com.

Bill Hammond is a former EVENING OBSERVER Sports Editor.

Parents across America are facing a familiar challenge this time of year: how to keep children active, engaged and away from the hypnotic glow of screens. Among the many summer activities available, there’s a meaningful solution right in your neighborhood — one that offers lifelong benefits for both you and your child.

Become your child’s tennis coach.

Parent coaching is common in sports like soccer and basketball, yet tennis is often overlooked. That’s a missed opportunity. Tennis is one of the few sports where parents and children can genuinely learn and play side by side, not just for a season, but for decades.

Kids today are spending more time sitting behind screens than ever before, especially during the summer months when the structure of the school day disappears.

Studies show the average American teen spends around seven hours a day behind a screen. Meanwhile, only around 1 in 4 adolescents meet the recommended 60 minutes of daily physical activity.

That combination — more screens, less movement — sets the stage for long-term health risks.

Tennis offers a better path. Physically, it’s one of the most beneficial sports a child or adult can play. It builds endurance, coordination, agility and strength. A long-term study of more than 8,000 adults found that tennis players lived nearly 10 years longer than sedentary individuals — more than any other sport evaluated.

For young players, tennis supports cardiovascular health, healthy weight, and even increased bone density in critical areas like the hips and spine during key growth years.

Just as important are the mental and emotional benefits. Tennis has been linked to lower levels of stress and anxiety, better focus and executive function, and improved sleep. Kids who play tennis consistently report higher self-esteem and stronger social connections than their non-playing peers. And unlike screen time, which can erode teens’ self-worth, tennis builds self-confidence through challenge, feedback and progress.

For parents, coaching your child in tennis is more than just a way to keep them active. It’s about being present. You’re not watching from the bleachers or waiting in the car. You’re on the court with them, sharing both setbacks and victories. Conversations unfold that might never happen at home. You laugh over mishits, celebrate clean shots, and learn how to navigate frustration together. These moments aren’t just recreational; they are relationship-building.

This connection can leave a lasting impression. Research shows that parental involvement in youth sports boosts kids’ confidence, motivation and enjoyment of the game. And unlike many team sports, where attention gets divided among a dozen kids, tennis is just the two of you, with every serve, rally and word of encouragement strengthening your bond.

Tennis also creates a rhythm that continues long after summer ends. Families who start playing together often keep it up for years afterward. It’s one of the rare multigenerational sports where a 12-year-old and a 70-year-old can truly compete, collaborate and connect at all walks of life. 

The best part? Tennis welcomes beginners — players and coaches alike. Few sports offer the same “choose your own adventure” experience, where parents and kids can learn, play and grow together.

For parents who want to begin their coaching journey, there’s no shortage of support. For instance, USTA Coaching — which launches in August — will offer free, easy-to-use resources for new coaches, including a new modular learning curriculum launching this summer. It’s designed with parents in mind and includes everything from day-to-day training plans to simple drills — like aiming a ball into a laundry basket — that make it easier to spend quality time on court while building your child’s skills and confidence.

All you really need to get started is a racquet, a few balls, and a little bit of time. With over 270,000 public courts across the country, most of them free, there’s a good chance one is already nearby. And if not, a back wall or driveway will do just fine.

So this summer, skip the screens. Grab a racquet and meet your child at the baseline. It doesn’t matter if you’re a beginner. What matters is that you’re there.

Your child might not remember their tablet games a year from now. But they’ll never forget the summer you coached them through their first serve — and the bond that came with it.

Megan Rose is managing director of USTA Coaching and a mom of two.

MEMPHIS, Tenn. -A Binghampton community sensation is going viral for the crazy trick shots he makes on the basketball court.

What Mardricus West will tell you is that there is a testimony behind these trick shots and important life lessons he’s teaching the youth.

It’s basketball shots you would never imagine going in.

Madricus West, who also goes by “The Goat in Human Form,” said he spends hours practicing these wild, difficult shots.

“I’m a big inspiration with the kids. The kids love what I’m doing. It’s positivity,” West said.

It’s social media videos of shots just like this one that have made him go viral.

He said the practice comes with a lot of attention from young fans from around the Binghampton neighborhood, like young Elijah Baileyel.

Elijah is one of the many kids who watch West practice every day.

“It’s pretty cool. It’s really exciting seeing kids get hype when he make it,” Baileyel said.

West says he uses the trick shots to draw the youth in to teach them about what he’s been through.

West said in November of 2023 he became a victim of gun violence, getting shot 12 times.

The shooting caused him to not walk for months and left him with noticeable scars.

“Sometimes they ask me what happened to your legs; that’s when I tell them the story, and they’re like, ‘I’m blessed. I break it down to them, but they have to hear it for what it is,” West said.

West said the most important lesson he hopes the youth he’s inspiring grab hold of is the importance of patience and making the right decisions in life.

“If you want to do something and you don’t have patience, you can’t do it. You got have patience for everything,” Baileyel said.

BILLINGS — The summer is all about athletes giving back.

In late June, former Montana State Billings standout basketball player Carrington Wiggins, who is playing professionally overseas, was back in the Magic City putting on a shooting camp for the local youth.

“We just thought it was something different. Instead of doing a regular camp we wanted to specialize in something,” Wiggins said. “We specialized in shooting and trying to teach these kids the regular fundamentals of shooting.”

Wiggins linked up with Shannon Blake of Signature Hoops while he was in Billings. Wiggins has developed a deep connection throughout the years with the Blake family. This is the duo’s second year of putting on the Signature X Wiggs Shooting Camp.

“Every year, our relationship got bigger and bigger when I was attending MSUB. Now I can call him like family,” Wiggins said. “Because of what we’re doing now with the camps outside of college, we just have a great friendship and I can call him like my brother, my big brother.”

“All the way around, family, father figure. He’s away from home in Montana, he has someone and has that support system that’s going to keep him grounded and motivated, so that’s been one of the funnest things about it, for sure,” Blake said.

It was a bit of a full-circle moment for Wiggins. Blake’s kids Kobe and Zicciah used to rebound for Wiggins during his workouts, but now they’ve matured into some of the best basketball players in area.

“It’s crazy to see. I feel like I’m getting older just seeing them. They’re both taller than me. It’s amazing to see their growth throughout the years,” Wiggins said. “When I met them they were like little babies and now they’re in high school doing their thing. It’s good to see they love basketball just like I love it.”

“(Wiggins) was huge for them,” Blake said. “They go from idolizing him, rebounding, to all of the sudden they’re 6-2, 6-3 and juniors and seniors, so he gets to be like the big brother where he’s literally just chasing them around to now he’s mentoring them,” Blake said.

“From a father/trainer aspect, I’ll be like, ‘Hey Wiggs, call the boys.’ Wiggs will be that mentor, and that’s been really sweet to see that relationship, as well.”

It’s all about moving it forward for the next generation.