NORFOLK, Va. — Since this star player's retirement from the NFL, the Don Carey REECH Foundation has used sports as a catalyst to connect with and educate students about careers. Carey, a Norfolk native who attended Booker T. Washington and then Norfolk State, holds the camp annually in order to provide Norfolk's youth, aged 6 to 17, with an extraordinary opportunity to engage in a unique blend of educational and sports experiences.
"When I was in the NFL I had a football camp like most NFL players do but I read an article that said by 2020 there's going to be a million jobs in the STEAM sector with no Americans to fill them so from there I decided I wanted to connect inner-city youth to viable, meaningful career paths that they may not know exist," explained Carey.
"I want them to come out and have good ole fashioned fun on the football field with some college and NFL players but also I want them to learn about those meaningful jobs that exist right here in Hampton Roads. There's so many opportunities for employment and career paths here and a lot of our students think they have to leave the area to go to a Charlotte or an Atlanta to find success. But there's a lot of success right here and we want to make sure they know about it."
So while there was plenty of football played at this year's camp Saturday afternoon at Dick Price Stadium, there was also a career fair. Local organizations that support those areas of STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics) such as the Norfolk Botanical Garden and Gospelology, which combines teachings of the Gospel with science, set up various booths for children to gain insight on potential career paths.
"If one is blessed enough to make it to the NFL, the stats say you're going to play 2.5 years," said Carey. "You're going to have a lot of living left, so how do we help those skills that you learn as a football player transition to civilian life? It starts with hard work, perseverance, and goal setting and that's what we're teaching them here today."