Jeff Robinson Football Camp!

By: Larry Fitzgerald
Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder
Originally posted 6/30/2004

  Jeff Robinson is a graduate of North High School and he has not forgotten where he came from. He played major college football in the Big Ten at Northwestern University, where he played for Dennis Green, the current Arizona Cardinals Head Coach and formerly the Vikings Coach.

 He graduated from Northwestern and today is the pro personnel coordinator for the Minnesota Vikings. Robinson, for the fourth straight year, hosted the Jeff Robinson Football Camp designed to work specifically with inner city youth to develop positive life skills.

 From 10 am to 3 pm last week, Monday through Thursday, these young people had the time of their lives. It’s so important for our children to dream. That is where it starts.

 Most football camps are conducted on a college campus and hosted by head football coaches and star players. Most of the local area TV stations send camera crews out to videotape the high profile coach or star player working with the young athletes. No TV cameras were seen in North Minneapolis for this, the fourth year of Robinson’s camp.

 115 campers participated in this year’s camp, designed to help the youngsters aged eight to 13 with important tools to help them better understand this great game of football. I have been asked many times in the last six months, “What did you do to help your boys become successful student athletes?” My wife and I did the same thing that these parents did — we got our young guys started early.

 For some reason, our children don’t get a fair shot at succeeding. Sometimes it’s because of the area that our children are in. That’s sad because those young children had no choice in the matter. They were born and raised in the inner city and should not be penalized because it. “Many of the kids all wanted to know first thing what are we eating today and when,” said Robinson. Thanks to Subway and others camp supporters, the children had good, solid, healthy lunches everyday.

 Giving your child chances is what it’s all about, and that’s why the Jeff Robinson Football camp is an important step in the process of building that self-esteem that only happens when children get to compete in athletic competition.

 “Our first objection was that we wanted all the kids to have a good time,” said Robinson. Watching their eyes when they see star athletes like Michael Bennett; Larry Fitzgerald, Jr.; Kevin Williams; Lance Johnstone; Eddie McDaniel and Marcus Fitzgerald is a treat.”

 When children recognize the athlete and have seen him on TV, they really get excited about what they are doing. And that’s what it’s all about, getting our young people excited about what they are doing so they learn from total experience.

 “Many of these children are video kids,” said Robinson. They spend far too much time today playing video games and it shows. “Trying to eliminate the social economic variables, that’s what it’s all about.”

 Robinson puts this camp on every year because he cares about his community first and he knows that many of the parents, who paid $30 so that their child could participate, want their children to succeed, but many times don’t understand some of the built up obstacles that the children can’t see.

 It’s important for us as parents to understand the so-called lay of the land so that you can best make your child aware of what they are dealing with. When you do that, they really have a chance to succeed at what ever they try to do.

 "The bottom line is to make sure that everybody has a chance to go to camp, hopefully this fall for an organized team,” said Robinson. That’s important, and because of people like Robinson, these young people will have a better chance to succeed.