By Steve Lee

Gordie Zimmerman, owner of AdventHealth Center Ice in Wesley Chapel, played ball hockey with boys and girls. Melvin Williams, a former pro football player, tossed footballs to kids. Wesley Chapel Soccer Club volunteers led youngsters through skill sessions and scrimmages.

They and others were at Skydive City adjacent to the Zephyrhills Municipal Airport on Feb. 16 for the Pasco Sports Fair. The inaugural event introduced kids to various sports, a lost that included basketball, boxing, football, hockey, soccer, tennis, mini-golf, skating, skydiving and others.

“I like to shake things up,” said fair organizer Pascal Collard, owner of the Sarah Vande Berg Tennis Center being built in Zephyrhills.

The sports fair could become an annual event with Collard saying the local ice and sports complex might be a possible venue. That would set just fine for Zimmerman, a former junior hockey player from Ontario who grew up playing a variety of sports.

“To be a good hockey player you’ve got to try other sports,” said Zimmerman, who also coached his three sons when they played for Wiregrass Ranch High School.

Added James Mitchell, AdventHealth Center Ice’s marketing director, “It’s all about giving them the best experience and having fun.”

Love of a sport is something that volunteer coaches and instructors did their best to impart to youngsters. Williams’ boyish enthusiasm for tossing passes to kids drew smiles from parents and others.

Williams, who played on the defensive lines for the New Orleans Saints and Washington Redskins, welcomed the opportunity to help out with the sports fair when approached by Collard, his neighbor in Wesley Chapel. His advice to kids was simple: “Have fun.”