A basketball camp was held in honor of the first-ever Reed Sheppard Day on Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024. The blue shirts pictured were given to participants for free. | PHOTO BY MADISON NANTZ
North Laurel celebrates first Reed Sheppard Day with basketball camp
18 Laurel County School Directory
BY MADISON NANTZ Staff Writer
London marked a historical milestone as local kids flooded the North Laurel High School( NLHS) gymnasium for a basketball camp honoring the inaugural celebration of Reed Sheppard Day last Wednesday.
The date, November 20, was proclaimed Reed Sheppard Day in London during the June 3, 2024 London City Council meeting, largely attributable to City Council Member – and longtime basketball enthusiast – Kip Jervis. The council chose the date due to the significant milestone November 20, 2021 marks for Sheppard, as it was the day he officially became a Wildcat by announcing his commitment to the University of Kentucky( UK).
NLHS Boys Basketball Coach Nate Valentine kicked the evening off by quizzing kids on the significance of the day.“ It will forever be a special day for us,” he stated.
The full event spanned from 5:30 p. m. to around 7 p. m. The first hour was spent on the camp, for which children were split into groups by grade. Once a whistle was blown, the kids would then rotate the station they were at in order for every group to have a chance at each station.
Among the stations was an upstairs display of Sheppard’ s memorabilia, including his jerseys, awards, photographs, and more. Additionally, kids