As COVID-19 restrictions ease, kids have returned to the field for summer sports camps.

"Kids need to get out and be active and compete and learn from guys who are higher up that have had that experience, that have been through it,” says Athletes Making Progress Together (AMPT) founder Nick Shafnisky. “It's a push and pull but we're just trying to do the right thing here.”

Shafnisky says that AMPT was born out of the pandemic. It is the fourth and largest camp he has held so far this summer.

“We just want kids to come out and have fun, work together. Sportsmanship is huge, but we want kids to get better and put the right foot forward,” he says.

More than 120 kids participated in the two-day camp at Smith Field in Parsippany. College coaches and former NFL players served as counselors.

“The biggest downfall of COVID was the social aspect. Kids, parents, everybody in the community couldn’t see each other, couldn’t be around each other,” says former NFL player Carlif Taylor.

Counselors taught kids the fundamentals of football and sportsmanship. It is something former St. Joe’s Montval and Louisville wide receiver Kai De La Cruz says is crucial in a post-pandemic world.

“It’s something that they were missing. It’s something that’s important in growing up. They need this camaraderie, they need people together, kids together and I’m just happy to see everybody out there competing,” he says.

More information about the camp can be found on the AMPT website.