ABILENE, TX – It’s hard to believe that just a few weeks ago Abilene Youth Sports Authority (AYSA) was celebrating the opening of its brand new facility.
If you walk in the building today, you’ll notice the sounds of kids on the court and footsteps in the lobby are gone, as basketballs get boxed up.
The clock is now stopping for a lot of young athletes in the area as the coronavirus pandemic grows.
“Kids want to play. They want to play, they want to interact with each other, and in lieu of this, we’re limited to the things we can and can’t do,” said AYSA Executive Director Brandon Osborne.
It’s not just the games and the camps that are being postponed, but in a sense, the dream of what this facility could be, and it’s one that was more than a decade in the making.
“You know, it’s frustrating, but there are things you can control and there are things you can’t,” said Osborne.
Osborne isn’t just coming up with that message now. In fact, that’s something he’s told his players for years.
“Control what you can control, and this is something that’s not in our control,” said Osborne.
So what’s the plan moving forward? Well besides the limitations on facility hours, the AYSA team is reminding our youngest players to keep doing what they’re doing.
“We’re trying to walk with faith and that this will pass over and that when it does that we will be in a better situation,” said Osborne.
