Euless Trinity grad’s summer sports camp expands, draws 350

More than 350 kids turned out in Euless recently to take advantage of the annual summer Ikuna Sports Camp. It was the seventh year for the event, which provides free instruction to kids from all around the Metroplex.

The camp, which this year moved beyond football to include rugby, baseball and soccer, was the brainchild of Moses Vakalahi, currently an assistant football coach at Euless Trinity. Vakalahi graduated from Trinity in 1997 before playing at Texas A&M, where he later was a graduate assistant in the athletic department.

“I always wanted to come back home at some point, especially for the opportunity to coach at my alma mater, and do something to give back to the community and give back to the kids,” he explained. “It was always in my mind to have the foundation as a platform to do the camps.”

In 2010, he was given that opportunity to join Steve Lineweaver’s staff. That first year, he set out to establish the foundation that would run and support the camps.

“The first two years were tough,” he said, noting that there was a lot of fundraising and out-of-pocket expenses while the foundation’s nonprofit status was getting finalized.

Some 100 kids showed up for the first football camp in 2011.

“It was well worth it for us,” Vakalahi said. “It showed us we could do this.”

The Trinity community is a special one, and that shows in one aspect that makes these camps unique. Vakalahi’s focus was for kids who go through the camps to someday be the instructors teaching the new kids.

“Having the kids go through the program, graduate, go on to college and once they graduate or even during their career, come back in the summer and give back their time to the kids. Kind of that full circle,” he explained.

Examples this year include Lamaefe “Junior” Galea’i from Oklahoma State, Patrick Vahe from Texas, and Sam Tevi, who was recently drafted by the Los Angeles Chargers. Tevi was a camp participant for seven years in junior high and high school.

Another important aspect of the camp is the cost, which is nothing. It was a vital part of the vision, inspired by a lack of affordable options when Vakalahi was growing up.

“I wanted to give the kids the same opportunity [as other camps] for free, to help them realize they can achieve their goals and dreams.”

Ikuna plans to expand the camp to include basketball next summer, with other sports to follow in the future.

And, of course, let’s not forget how it benefits the Trojan football program.

“I think it’s helped them tremendously,” Vakalahi said. “We teach them a lot of detailed skills. They spend time with their skill position. There are a lot of volunteers. To get that type of experience for free, that’s a benefit to a lot of these junior high kids as they’re developing.”

This story was originally published June 13, 2017 at 2:26 PM with the headline "Euless Trinity grad’s summer sports camp expands, draws 350."