It’s a Brawl: Wrestling Camp in Converted Barn Promotes Health and Fun

Photos submitted by Kevin Slezewski and Amy Jeanquart.

A Southern Door wrestling tradition returned Saturday, Aug. 14 when 24 youth and middle school wrestlers joined in the Barn Brawl Wrestling Fun Camp.

The eighth edition of the event was filled with healthy and fun activities that concluded with the obstacle course and the wrestling dual in the barn. The camp promotes healthy habits, physical fitness and team camaraderie, said Kevin Slezewski, one of the event organizers. 

“It has been a great team-building event for our youth wrestling program,” Slewzewski said. “Since we launched this, our program has grown from about 20 kids to almost 70. I think the Barn Brawl has a lot to do with that. It’s something the kids look forward to every year.”

This year’s award winners were Trevin Veeser, named Barn Brawl MVP, and Gavin Geisel who won the Ox Award.

The event was hosted by Joey and Kayla Wilke, who converted their old barn into a wrestling venue for the event, complete with a scoreboard salvaged from parts from two old Southern Door gymnasium scoreboards. The day included a visit by a fire truck from the B.U.G. Fire Department (Brussels-Union-Gardner), which allowed wrestling dads who serve to share their firefighting knowledge and experience with young wrestlers.