For the fifth year in a row, the Clark County Titans Youth Foundation is organizing a food drive in conjunction with the Clark County Youth Football jamboree.
The jamboree takes place on Saturday at McKenzie Stadium, with 20-minute games scheduled between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. to kick off CCYF’s 31st season.
Each CCYF team is collecting food for the Clark County Food Bank. As incentive, teams that collect at least 1,500 pounds of food will earn a gift certificate to buy pizza for their end of season party. NFL memorabilia courtesy of Rams quarterback Kellen Clemens is among the prizes that will be raffled off to raise money for the food bank.
The event’s organizer is Nolan Henry, a Union High School junior and the Titans starting quarterback.
Henry said the food drive has a dual purpose: To assist needy families in the communities and to teach young athletes about community service.
“We believe that when athletes learn how rewarding is to help others, the community as a whole benefits,” Henry said. Last year’s food drive collected more than 43,000 pounds of food, a number Henry hopes to surpass this year.
To learn more, to volunteer, or to donate to the drive, contact Henry at by email at nhenry11@gmail.com or call 360-977-2298.
Gymnast 11th at junior nationals
Jordan Chiles of Vancouver shared 11th place in all-around scoring for junior women at the P&G USA Gymnastics Championships.
Chiles, 12, used a strong second day of the competition to finish with an all-around score of 108.05. The Naydenov Gymnastics gymnast was 19th after the first day of the competition in Hartford, Conn.
Chiles, who is entering seventh grade at Pleasant Valley Middle School, is eligible to compete in elite meets because she qualified in March as a USA Gymnastics Junior International Elite gymnast. Her best finish was sixth place on the vault. She also placed 14th on the uneven parallel bars, 18th on balance beam and 19th on floor exercise.
She was one of the younger gymnasts among the 32 competing in the junior division for girls ages 12-15.
Summer running series finishes on Wednesday
The Clark County Running Club’s summer series of 5-kilometer races ends on Wednesday with a 6:30 p.m. race along the Columbia River waterfront. The race will start and finish at Marine Park and be followed by the club’s annual end-of-summer picnic.
Jesse McChesney of Vancouver won last Wednesday’s race along the same course, which drew 114 runners. The 25-year-old finished in 15 minutes and 18 seconds. Shannon Porter of Washougal, the first woman to finish, was timed in 18:04.
Clark County Running Club events are free to members of the club, and cost $2 for non-members. Registration begins at 6 p.m.
Vancouver fighter tries to regain MMA title
Jake Smith of Vancouver will try to regain the Full Contact Fighting Federation 185-pound title on Saturday as part of Rumble at The Roseland 73. Smith will take on Rod Jaques, the current FCFF Superfight champion.
A year ago, Smith became the first FCFF middleweight champion when he beat John Garcia. He lost the belt to John Simon in March, but the middleweight belt is currently vacant.
The fight card and ticket information for the Portland event is available at www.thefcff.com.
COMMUNITY SPORTS news is published each Tuesday. Submit items by email to paul.danzer@columbian.com, or call 360-735-4521.
