If the United States Women's Olympic basketball team were re-selected today, Caitlin Clark would be in Paris preparing for the next matchup. Instead, she has had about 2 weeks off and spent some of that time in Iowa!

While the Indiana Fever front office and coaching staff would never admit this out loud, I'd be willing to bet they are ecstatic that Caitlin is getting a long extended break from basketball. She can take her mind off the game for a bit, rest, recover, and return 100% for the second half of her WNBA rookie season. Hopefully, that time away from the game will help Caitlin lead the Indiana Fever to a playoff birth, after finishing dead last in the 2023 season.

I was curious if we would see something about Caitlin coming back to Iowa while she was on her break and not only did Caitlin surprise 350 Des Moines area students, she also helped prepare them for the 2024-2025 school year!

Caitlin Clark Surprise Visit

According to the Des Moines Register, 350 Des Moines area students were able to get everything they needed up for the upcoming school year and they got to spend an afternoon with the Iowa basketball hero. 300 students were selected from Des Moines area schools and 50 parochial school students were all selected by caseworkers to be a part of the surprise visit.

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They gathered in the North High School gym this past Friday (August 2) and received backpacks full of free school supplies from the Caitlin Clark Foundation. Nike supplied the backpacks, which were filled with notebooks, pens, and pencils from Hyvee. Gatorade also supplied the students with free water bottles.

The Des Moines Public Schools Superintendent is Ian Roberts and he said Caitlin is not only a talented athlete but a generous soul.

"Caitlin Clark is not only own of the world’s most talented and best-known athletes, she is also a generous soul. She knows that when you succeed, you should give a little something back to help others succeed, and that’s exactly what she did today."

Best Kept Secret in Iowa?

I'm not necessarily saying that Caitlin walks around with a bell around her waist but...she's famous and one of Iowa's most beloved athletes. I find it pretty impressive that this surprise visit didn't leak to the public. Supposedly, it wasn't 100% clear she would be able to make it to the event until the last minute.

Mary Coffin is the President of the Caitlin Clark Foundation and she explained to the Des Moines Register why no one mentioned Caitlin coming to visit.

"It was kept very, very secret because we weren't sure until the last minute whether she could come... We didn't want to disappoint anybody. Caitlin was there. She interacted with the kids and she shot some basketballs with them. She loves it, she loves to be a part of it. It's really her passion."

Caitlin Clark also spoke about how essential school supplies are to be successful in school.

"I know how fortunate I was to have a strong education and access to tools that allowed me to be successful in the classroom. School supplies are essential for every student’s learning and development, and the Caitlin Clark Foundation is grateful to our sponsors for their support in making this event possible."

Caitlin helped give these 350 students a day they will never forget. Not only is she a hero on the basketball court, she's also a hero off of it.