Bronson Koenig taught a Basketball Skills Camp on April 6
and 7 at the District 1 Community Center near Black River Falls, Wisconsin. Students in grades 3-7 participated on
Saturday, and students in grades 8-12 practiced on Sunday.
Bronson is a former Wisconsin Badger and was a point guard
from 2013-2017.
The Good Life Program in the Ho-Chunk Nation Education
Department sponsored the basketball camp.
Mandy Youngthunder, Student Services Specialist, heard that Bronson was
interested in hosting a camp with Ho-Chunk youth, and she reached out to him
right away to plan the event. Bronson had
hosted other basketball camps before and was really excited to provide that
opportunity to his tribal community.
The Education Department staffed the event, and Bronson
brought a team of assistant coaches to work with the youth. The assistant coaches for the weekend were
Cody Greendeer Sr., Dustin Funmaker, Greg Bird, and Ryan Crain Sr. Each day started with drills, and nearing the
end of camp, students played mini-games.
At the end of camp, Bronson shared his experience growing
up, playing high school and college basketball, playing in the NBA, and living
after basketball. He touched on complex
subjects such as struggling with finding his identity, intergenerational
trauma, substance abuse, mental health, and healthy coping mechanisms. It was important for Bronson to share his
story to help others overcome barriers and lead fulfilling lives.