SEATTLE – During the summer, Seattle Pacific offers youth soccer, basketball, gymnastics, and running camps for boys and for girls, along with volleyball camps for girls.
 
Camps for basketball are set for the final week of June (girls) and again in July (two for boys, one more for girls). Coed soccer camps are the final week of June again in late July, with a boys I.D. camp and a girls I.D. camp in the second week of August. The Falcon Running Camp is in late July. Three girls volleyball camps – an introductory camp for grades 4-8, an intermediate camp for grades 7-10, and an advanced camp for grades 9-12, all of them three days in length – are in early August. (The intro camp starts on July 31.)
 
Gymnastics camps, offered by the SPU gymnastics staff at the Falcon Gymnastics Center, are available throughout the summer.
 
Space is still available in all camps. More information is available by clicking on the SPU Camps link, or by calling (206) 281-2085.
 
For this summer's first edition of Falcons Forum, the SPU sports information team posed this camp question to several Falcon athletes:

What are some of your favorite camp memories, and how important is it to attend a summer camp?
 
 
Jaylee Albert / women's basketball
"Sports camps were honestly one of my favorite things to do in the summers as a kid. I loved the competition, meeting new people with similar interests, and just the overall camp environment. I think it's important that kids get to experience a camp atmosphere at least once in their life because it's something that will probably stick with them for a long time."


Shayne Carpenter / men's track & field
"My favorite sports camp memories sum up to the fun of being with your team, but also competing against other teams. I only went to football camps, so being able to play with people I know and compete against complete strangers was such a good time. It was an important part of me becoming a true competitor, like competing when you have no idea who you're up against, or even competing when you're outmatched. Honestly, not knowing your competition was always the most exciting thing to me."

 
Kaitin Dickinson / women's rowing
"I grew up playing all sorts of sports. From playing soccer to racing motocross, some of my favorite memories are from sports camps. There's nothing else like getting to focus solely on becoming a better athlete for the better part of the day, and there's no shortage of new skills to pick up or focus on.  Aside of the actual athletic component of sports camps, you also get to meet some really cool people and bond with your friends, which is always fun."

 
Alyssa Foote / women's cross country (and track)
"I did soccer summer camp as a kid, and I remember that it was a fun way to make new friends who had similar passions. I still remember doing silly dares with my camp friends such as making them eat grass for a quarter."

 
Simone Herzberg / women's soccer
"My favorite memories from sports camps are getting to see the college campus and getting to interact with the college players. I remember when I was younger, I looked up to the college players and was in awe of them. I loved seeing them interact with each other and with all the campers, and I aspired to be just like them."

 
Jesse Phan, men's cross country (and track)
"I never went to a sports camp until last summer when I was a counselor at Falcon Running Camp. My favorite memory is when we were supposed to come up with a skit with our campers that we would perform at the end of the week. Our group's skit was actually a bit of a flop, to be honest, but that didn't matter because we had so much fun joking and laughing with our campers while we tried to come up with ideas for it. I think sports camps are super important for young athletes because they help the campers to feel more involved and ready for the world of the sport that they're taking part in. They are also just a great way to build new relationships with people who love what you love."

  Nathan Streufert / men's basketball
"My favorite sports camp memories come from team camp at Gonzaga University.  One of my favorites in particular was getting asked to play late-night open gym with the current and former Gonzaga players.  Gonzaga has been my favorite college basketball team, so getting to play with and against people I grew up cheering for was very cool.  Summer camps are important because they help create a bond between athletes, especially if the camp is a team camp.  It was great getting to bond with my teammates and compete at a high level, and I think it helps build team chemistry."

 
Luke Postma / men's soccer
"Growing up, I never really went to formal camps, but my neighborhood was practically a pseudo sports camp, because all we would do all summer was play sports and other games outside – all day, every day. I would say this nurtured a love for sports and competition within me as well as providing me with countless fond memories. In high school, my team would go to Camp Casey for a week-long training camp every year. This was always a great way to build team unity as well as improve on our skills."

 
Itzia San Roman / gymnastics
"Some of my favorite memories of gymnastics camps include making new friends, whom I later got to compete with during season, and learning new skills in a more fun, relaxed environment. The multiple activities that are planned after practice are always fun, and a great way to get close with the new people you meet. In gymnastics, we train year-round and it can get to be a little repetitive at times. So attending a gymnastics camp is a great way to change things up."

 
Lani Taylor / women's track & field
"I didn't attend a lot of camps growing up because I jumped into club basketball so fast that all of my summers were taken up by tournaments and trips out of town. But, every summer, I coach and direct at a basketball camp. The memories and friendships the kids gain and the life lessons we teach them, are things they will hold with them forever. Walking throughout my hometown of West Seattle, I'm noticed daily by young campers whom I've coached at this camp and looked at as a role model in the community. That's a feeling I'll always cherish."

 
Symone Tran / volleyball
"My favorite memories from the camps are just spending time with my team.  It is always so fun to be with your team and getting to know each other better while getting to play your favorite sport.  I think it's important to attend the summer camps because it allows you to get back into the game after being away for some time. It also is just a super-fun atmosphere where you get to play your sport without the pressures and commitments of school, alleviating that extra stress so that you're able to just enjoy playing."