The Waldron Upward basketball season is on a roll. Sitting in their fifth week of practices and games, community support has been a great encouragement. Upward in Waldron is celebrating its 11th season with plans of continuing to keep that number rising.
The games are free of charge and played on Saturdays starting at 1 p.m at the Waldron Nazarene Church. A concession stand is opened and offers burgers, fries, candy, drinks, and more so come hungry. There are eight teams that are participating in this years Upward season.
In grades Pre K-K there are two teams, the Cougars and the Panthers. Playing for grades 1-2 are the Cheetahs and the Polar Bears. Representing grades 3-4 are the Falcons and the Owls. And the top dog teams from the 5-6 grades are the Gators and the Buffaloes.
Upward is a nationwide faith-based program that was started in 1995. Their mission is to promote the discovery of Jesus through sports. Coaching the third and fourth graders from Team Owls is Doyle Dickens. Doyle had this to say about his team. “My focus is to encourage not only my Owls team but also the rest of the teams to not give up and to keep playing hard. Focus on one shot at a time. Keep up the great effort and work. I’m very proud of every one of you. Thank you to my assistant, coach Joe Richmond, on all the hard work that you put into teaching the kids. It is greatly appreciated.”
Picture provided by Amy Defoor
