Free Football Camp Gives Back to Molokai

Léo Azambuja

By Léo Azambuja
Former NFL quarterback Peyton Manning — one of the greatest football players ever — once said “the most valuable player is the one who makes the most players valuable.” The Akana family does just that: they have been hosting a free kids football clinic on Molokai for the last five years to give back to their community.
“We were raised here on Molokai. There are 10 siblings, eight boys, two girls. We have all since moved,” Ry Akana said of him and his siblings, who now live on the Mainland and in Honolulu. “But Molokai has done so much for us on the athletic front that we felt like we needed to give back.”
The Molokai Football Skills Camp taught comprehensive football skills to dozens of Molokai and Lanai children, ages 8 to 17, on June 27 and 28.
Akana ran the camp offered by Akana Athletics, which brought about 15 coaches to Molokai, among them former NFL and college players. Together with local coaches, they taught football skills and fundamentals, how to safe-tackle and safe-block, speed and agility and other skills. The kids also played football games.
“To attend this kind of camp costs a lot of money, and it’s a hardship. Some families here are not able to do that,” he said. “Our mission is to bring a quality camp to Molokai so that the kids can get better.”
On Friday, the first day, the camp started at Kaunakakai Park at 2 p.m. It was focused on flag football for boys and girls.
“Flag football is more non-contact, and you’re playing with flags, you pull flags. Contact football is tackle,” Akana said. “We want to encourage them to play flag, learn the basic fundamentals of football: catching, throwing, running, all of those types of things. And then when they go to high school, they’ll be ready to play organized tackle football.”
Flag football, he said, will become an Olympic sport in the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles. Because of that, there has been an influx of girls in flag football programs in high schools and colleges lately.
“I’m really proud of our girls, the Molokai girls,” Akana said. “Flag football is really on the rise right now. It’s a high school sport now. It’s also going to be a collegiate sport offering scholarships to girls. And with the Olympics introducing flag football into the Olympic Games, there’s a window of opportunity for these girls to advance in a sport that they like to play.”
Close to 100 kids attended the flag football camp. After learning skills, the children played three flag football games. One was for the younger children, followed by the girls. The last game, at 7 p.m. was for Molokai High School against Lanai High School children.
The second day of the camp, Saturday, was focused on tackle football. It was held on the field in front of Molokai High School in Ho‘olehua from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
About 100 kids attended the tackle football camp, again with participation from Lanai schoolkids. The kids practiced several drills before playing football games.
“Competition comes in the fall, that’s when everything starts. But in the off season, we just want to make everybody better,” Akana said. “The kids are just having fun, competing. It’s just a good vibe. Look at all the people coming out to watch. It’s just beautiful to have the island behind it.”
Friendly Market and Misaki’s donated food and drinks for the children.
Akana Athletics LLC is “a comprehensive sports development cooperative aimed at providing individuals the vehicle to attain peak and athletic and academic performance,” according to their website.
Akana, founder and president of Akana Athletics, is currently based in Seattle, where he coaches at high-school level. Many of his brothers serve as board members of Akana Athletics.
Visit www.akanaathletics.com for additional information.