By GRAHAM BROOKS / Staff Writer

HELENA–The bright sunny weather, coupled with school being out for the summer, made for a fun week for children entering first through seventh grade to participate in the Helena High School summer soccer camp June 6-10.

Each day, campers arrived at 8 a.m. and received age and skill specific training from HHS varsity coaches Zach Morgan and Clif Naron, along with assistants and players that helped improve each player’s game.

Campers also learned many fundamentals of soccer and will leave camp with a free T-shirt, swag bag and a higher understanding of the game.

Eight-year-old sisters Gabi and Avi Ferraez both participated in the camp and said they enjoyed the many drills they learned.

“We have been playing soccer since we were 5 and our favorite part was doing some of the drills we do and making new friends,” said Gabi and Avi.

Ten-year-old Joshua Bargman attended the camp for the second straight year and he enjoys the instruction he receives from the coaches and their personalities.

“I like the coaches because they’re encouraging, fun and just full of life and nice,” said Bargman.

Helena High School and Helena Huskie Soccer Club sponsored the camp, and the 2016 summer camp saw an increase in attendance compared to last year.

Naron helped organize the camp and said the real emphasis of the camp is to try and get kids interested in soccer, while also using it to build the programs at the high school level and beyond.

“Our biggest thing is we’re trying to build the program here in Helena and we feel like youth camps are part of that and getting that excitement about soccer at a young age,” said Naron. “We kind of grow up with them so when they get here they’re already learning our fundamentals. We had 76 campers compared to 53 last year so that was a really good growth.”

The Helena High School boys and girls soccer teams both made the Final Four in 2016 with the boys winning a state title, and campers got an opportunity to see what makes the program successful while also improving their skills.