Something in return

LUTHER BURBANK MIDDLE SCHOOL — Since graduating from Burroughs High in 2001, Keith Jarbo has not lost touch with the community in which he grew up.

Whether he’s attending Burroughs football games, helping youth athletes or refereeing in leagues around the city, Jarbo has stayed in touch with the people and local sports institutions that helped nurture his athletic abilities.

That is a remarkable accomplishment taking into consideration Jarbo has been incredibly busy the past six years.

Along with playing football for one season at Brown University and men’s basketball for three years at Pepperdine, he has worked at maintaining academic excellence, graduating last year from Pepperdine with a bachelor of science degree in sports medicine after compiling a 3.74 grade-point average.

Since graduation, the former All-CIF Southern Section football and basketball standout has completed a year at UCLA Medical School and is currently working at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center in Torrance.

Despite his busy schedule, Jarbo was able to take some time this week to help aspiring basketball players. He was a guest Thursday at the eighth annual MVP Basketball Camp at Luther Burbank Middle School, which is run my longtime Coach Mike Graceffo

“I remember coming to camps run by Mike and other camps when I was young,” Jarbo said. “And they helped a lot.

“Anything that I can to go help out and give back I try to do. I look forward to doing things like this. Whenever Mike calls me I try and make it out when I can.”

Sixty campers listened intently as Jarbo addressed the aspiring players. He stressed the importance of academics and gave the athletes pointers on how to balance schoolwork with athletics.

Jarbo then led the players in speed and agility drills in the gym.

“I’ve always tried to stay connected with Burbank,” Jarbo said. “I still keep in touch with a lot of my old coaches and I try and get out to as many games as I can. But it’s hard now because of my schedule.”

Along with his tips on basketball, the fifth-eighth graders could also learn a lot from Jarbo about success.

A three-sport star at Burroughs, Jarbo was the most valuable player for the 2000 Indians football team and was the 2000 Foothill League Player of the Year — and an All-CIF Southern Section selection — in basketball as a starting forward, averaging 16 points and 13 rebounds for the league champions.

Academically, he graduated with a 4.3 grade-point average and scored a 1,340 on the Scholastic Assessment Test.

After playing a year of football at Brown, Jarbo transferred to Pepperdine to concentrate on academics and his goal of becoming a doctor. However, during his sophomore season, he decided to try out for the Waves basketball team.

He earned a spot on the team as a walk-on his first season and was awarded a scholarship for his junior and senior seasons.

As a senior, Jarbo was elected team captain for the 2005-06 season by his teammates. He played in 83 games, starting 13.

In 2006, Jarbo earned Pepperdine’s Athletic Director’s Award for Outstanding Academic Achievement and Community Service. Additionally, he was selected to his third consecutive West Coast Conference All-Academic team and was named to the dean’s list for the third straight year.

With three years of medical school and a long residency until he becomes a doctor, Jarbo expects to remain busy for years to come. However, he said he would still keep connected to the city.

“Keith is one of the greatest kids, as an athlete and as a person, that I have ever coached,” said Graceffo, who has almost 30 years coaching youth in Burbank.

“Just the fact that he is willing to come back and help out at a camp like this tells me a lot about him as a person. He is just a great all-around guy.”

Jarbo was just one individual with local ties who return to help Graceffo with his camp every year. Former and current area coaches, players and athletes were on hand to assist with the event that began Monday and concluded Friday.

“I have been really blessed throughout the years to have people like Keith helping me out,” Graceffo said. “It’s just nice to see these people return to help and really give back to the kids.”

At the camp, players learned basketball skills, took part in drills, listened to speakers and enjoyed various games and contests throughout the week. The players were also divided into teams for a series of contests.

Many of the attendees took away different things from the camp.

“I like the speakers who came to talk to us and the coaches who came to help us with our skills,” Arthur Lorentz, 12, said.

Eleven-year-old Austin Kaufman said he was able to improve his skills at the camp, along with spending some time with his friends.

“A lot of my friends are on my basketball team, so that’s fun,” he said. “What I liked was that I was able to have fun and learn new things.”

Said Carlos Mier, 13: “I come to the camp to get a good shot and learn the basics of basketball.”

Danny Lopez, 15, served as a volunteer at the camp. He said there is a tremendous amount of work that is put in by Graceffo and others to make the event a success.

“Mike always has it under control and he does a really good job making sure the camp runs smoothly,” he said. “The kids really enjoy learning and playing in games.”

And what does Graceffo get out of it?

“I enjoy watching how a player can improve and gain confidence from the first day of the camp to the last day,” he said. “I also like seeing how much fun the kids can have playing. That’s really great.”