By Jane Havsy
Blonde curly ponytail sticking out the back of a pale blue Yankees cap, Olivia Waltsak didn’t really look much like a football player.
The 10-year-old from Montville “never really had an interest in football” when she rode to Boonton High School with her younger brother, Zack, on Saturday morning. Zack was scheduled to be part of a football camp hosted by new Jets wide receiver Eric Decker.
Their mother, Lisa Waltsak, had thought the camp was only for boys. But when Olivia saw some other girls on Boonton’s turf field, she thought “yes, then no, then yes, then no, and finally yes,” and signed up on the spot.
Decker was a very visible presence at the camp, participating in drills with each of the small groups. Usually, Decker played quarterback for the children — but at the end of camp, different participants were asked to demonstrate what they’d learned and one boy actually threw him a pass.
Decker caught it.
“It’s always important for me, now, to know where I came from,” said Decker, a 6-foot-3 wide receiver who joined the Jets as a free agent after spending his first four seasons in Denver.
“I always looked up to college athletes, high school and NFL players. To have a chance to get on the field and interact with them, talk to them a little bit, coach them up, is really what it’s about. It’s for the kids. For me, being here, being new, to involve myself in the community, dive in and make myself part of it, is important too.”
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