DULUTH, Minn. (Northern News Now) - Minnesota Vikings fullback and Duluth native C.J. Ham returned to the Twin Ports Saturday to host his youth football camp for the sixth straight summer.
The event took place at Ham’s alma mater, Duluth Denfeld, and on the same field where Ham made his mark as a high school football player.
The campers, ranging in age from first to ninth grade, participated in a variety of drills that helped teach the fundamentals of football.
“I think football does a really good job of showing us how to deal with adversity. Sometimes things go your way, sometimes they don’t, but the one thing you can control is your effort and attitude,” said Ham.
Over 350 kids were at the camp, whose proceeds go towards the Ham Family Scholarship Fund, a charity started by Ham to raise money for students of color in the Duluth area who are in pursuit of higher education.
“I’ve been blessed to have a bigger platform, so I am going to do what I can to use that platform, to shine that light and to bring positivity,” said Ham.
The youth football camp is an annual event during the summer, and Ham says he wants to create the same opportunity for a young athlete that he had growing up in Duluth.
“This community has done so much for me, so the least I can do to come back and just pour into the same community because somebody once did it for me,” said Ham.
The Minnesota Vikings kick off the 2025 season on Monday, Sept. 8, against the Chicago Bears.
To learn more about the Ham Family Scholarship Fund, [**click here.**](https://www.borealwaters.org/grants-scholarships/our-scholarships?fund=ham-family-scholarship-fund-presented-by-essentia-health)
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