AUTRYVILLE — With a football in her hand, Macy Nunnery received encouragement and cheers as she jumped over training hurdles.
“I loved kicking the ball too,” Macy said.
She was one of many students who participated in The Carolina Panthers’ Play 60 Camp at Clement Elementary School (CES). The purpose of the program with drill hurdles is to give children an NFL practice experience. It also encourages students to stay active for about one hour a day.
The Play 60 Camp visited about 30 schools and summer program in North Carolina and South Carolina. Joey Mangili, a community relations intern for the Carolina Panthers, said he always gets excited when the organization travels outside the Charlotte and Mecklenburg County region.
“Within the Carolinas, we care about everyone and it’s not just the City of Charlotte and who’s around the stadium and team all the time,” Mangili said.
Play 60 came to CES for the first time Wednesday and Mangili enjoyed working with everyone. Teacher Dixon Tuton got in on some of the fun too after going through one of the drills with the encouragement of his students. He enjoyed seeing the participants exercise.
“I think it’s great for the kids and for us,” Tuton said while catching his breath.
Principal James Mullins said Play 60 is a major motivational tool for the students when it comes to health and staying active. The program for second through fifth grade students was an award for participation in the CES Accelerated Reader (AR) Program. Kindergarten and first-grade students were also awarded with school-led activities in the gymnasium.
“A lot of our kids are interested in athletics and Carolina Panthers is our local team,” Mullins said. “Just being able to bring that to Clement Elementary is going to help motivate our kids when it comes to their reading goals.”
Nunnery enjoys participating in the AR program and spending time outside with other readers.
“It’s a fun way to learn because it encourages you to read a lot of books,” Nunnery said. “It’s like you’re in another place when you’re reading the book.”
Third-grader Alex Wilson felt the same way. Like Nunnery, he enjoyed participating in drills involving relay racing, catching , kicking and running drills. He was motivated to reach his reading goal and participate in Play 60.
“I really like football,” Wilson said.
Christy Bullard, the school’s library specialist and AR leader, contacted Play 60 in July 2017 and was notified about the visit in February. Bullard and school officials wanted the children to celebrate reaching a certain level of reading through a point system.
“These kids have been working really hard to reach their goal,” Bullard said. “I was really excited to find out that we were chosen to host this camp.”
Bullard added that she cheers for the Carolina Panthers on Sundays.
“Many of these kids are Panthers fans too,” she said. “To participate in something that’s part of the Carolina Panthers and the NFL is an awesome opportunity.”
