West Virginia University player Latisha Parris last Friday afternoon conducted an introductory basketball clinic with some 20 school girls attached to the Regma Primary School, at the Retrieve Hard Court in Mackenzie, Linden.

The United States-born player is the daughter of overseas-based Linden residents, Lennox and Sadina Parris.
Latisha who is 21 years old, has been visiting Guyana since she was five years old and always wanted to give back to the sport she loves in the homeland of her parents.

After two years at the junior college level, she is in her first year at West Virginia University, according to her mom Sadie.
The Regma Primary lasses were given a two-hour session starting with basic training and warmups, before they were shown basic drills of basketball as demonstrated by Latisha Parris assisted by veteran basketball coach Abdulla Hamid.

According to Latisha, “I started playing basketball when I was 12 years old and I know that these girls are between 10 to 12 years old. It was somebody just like me, who started to train, me to teach me the basics. So, I wanted to give back to this community where my parents were from.”

President of the Linden Amateur Basketball Association (LABA) Ms. Dawn McCammon-Barker, who is also an Education Officer with the Department of Education in Region 10, Upper Demerara/ Upper Berbice; visited the camp and, when asked for a comment noted, “it’s a wonderful initiative, usually persons come and only do sessions for boys, and this was one for females. It is something that is needed to develop the skills of young girls.”

Former National player and coach Mr. Abdulla Hamid said: “I think the session went great. It’s a great initiative by Latisha. I know she plays basketball in the United States at West Virginia and her dad who is my friend was eager to let her come home and help out with the girls.”

It is expected that this will be an annual clinic to be conducted by Ms. Latisha Parris, and tokens were given to the participants of the clinic.