Former Nuggets Head Coach George Karl helps out Rise Above Colorado

DENVER (KDVR) — It’s funny how giving back and getting back are often the same thing.

This past weekend, over 100 children attended the first basketball camp for Rise Above Colorado, an organization that has hosted sports clinics for Native American kids in the state of Washington for nearly a decade.

“This motivates me,” said Lakota Beatty, a former professional basketball player (Caddo and Dakota Tribe member), as she trained kids Sunday at the University of Denver. “I see these kids going hard and they’re so sweaty and they’re sprinting to get their drinks and they’re absorbing all of this.”

Working on their game, their ambitions and their dreams, the clinic provided a hands-on opportunity for mentorship from celebrity guests and Native Tribe members.

“Some of the kids have self-doubt,” said MarJon Beauchamp (Mission and Luiseno Tribe member) who currently plays on the Milwaukee Bucks. “I just try to give them a smile and be like ‘Keep going and dream big because you just never know what can happen.’ I never thought I’d be in this position I am today.“

A former first-round pick in the NBA, Beauchamp mentored kids during the clinic Sunday before playing the Denver Nuggets at Ball Arena the next night. At the age of 23, Beauchamp averages 4.9 points per game with the Bucks.

“This is a good example of the importance of being reached,” said Beauchamp. “I love doing this, just giving back and inspiring the next and I feel like that’s my purpose in life.”

Former Nuggets head coach George Karl was first exposed to Native culture as a young coach in Montana during the early 1980’s. Today, Karl is a driving force bringing Rise Above to Colorado.

“That is also where I found out how racist this country is and it’s made me very sad,” Karl explained looking back on his time. “The Native Americans deserve a lot more attention and they have been ignored for a long time. They love basketball and we’re trying to teach them a little bit about life.”

The clinic was organized by Ben Jacobs, Co-Founder of Tocabe, a member of both the Osage Nation and President’s Council on Sport, Fitness & Nutrition. The PCFSN partnered with Rise Above over the weekend and the hope is to make this an annual event.