New 4-H camp offered for Iron County 6 and 7 graders

HURLEY - Neil Klemme, the youth development agent with the University of Wisconsin's Iron County Extension Office, is excited for the arrival of summer - not just because of the warm weather but also because it's time for another 4-H Iron County Summer Youth Camp. This year is going to be a first for Klemme as he has decided to add a special camp for sixth and seventh graders that will run alongside the traditional third- through fifth-grade camp.

"It's really my favorite week of the year," said Klemme, who used to want to be a camp director, "I enjoy planning it ... I think it's the number one youth development thing we do in my job. You see the counselors developing, you see the kids developing, you see the adults volunteers and their growth and their learning about positive youth development. It's my favorite time of the year."

The camp provides an excellent setting for the young kids to develop a sense of independence.

"Some of these kids, it's their first night away from home. So it's important for them to get that sense of independence. You know, parents don't like to hear it but kids need to learn to be away from their parents for a little while, that's important for development," Klemme explained.

By naming each cabin, the camp also provides a sense of community and belonging to campers.

Klemme hopes that, if the camp for younger kids is designed to help create a sense of independence, the camp for older campers will build campers' confidence and make them realize that they can achieve more than they thought.

"They are going to be doing some things that are probably pretty challenging to them, like biking and hiking and canoeing ... I want them to leave there going 'I never thought I could bike 20 miles and I did it. I never thought I could hike 10 miles but I did it.' I really want to try and build their confidence," Klemme said.

The campers will begin camp with a 20-mile bike ride from North Lakeland to the campground. In order to ensure that campers are prepared for the initial rides, Klemme is strongly encouraging campers to take part in his 4-H Trailblazer program that will involve four training sessions throughout June.

"I want those kids that are going to that camp to go to trailblazers so that they can get their legs ready for a 20-mile ride," said Klemme. "I don't want that ride to the first ride that they've done all summer."

In addition to benefitting campers, Klemme focuses on making the camp a learning experience for the high school counselors. Beginning with the selection process - which Klemme has structured to mimic a job interview - and continuing to the responsibility of taking care of kids, the process is designed to help prepare counselors for entering the workplace.

"I'm trying to teach job skills ... youth development is about preparing kids for the future," Klemme said.

Counselors generally have 20 hours of training before campers arrive.

"I tell them, 'you have to give me 20 hours of training and then I think you'll be ready,'" said Klemme.

The third- through fifth-grade camp will run from Tuesday, July 7 to Friday, July 10, with the sixth- and seventh-grade camp July 8 through 10.

The camp for younger kids, which has been offered for 15 years, will take place at the North Lakeland Discovery Center in Manitowish Waters. The new camp for sixth and seventh graders will see campers tent-camp at the Lake of the Falls campground.

"(The older campers) are going to sleep in tents and they are going to cook their meals. It's not going be 'roughing it' I don't think, it's going to be more 'roughing it' than North Lakeland, they're not going to have cabins and carpets ... it's going to be a little more challenging but I still wouldn't call it 'roughing it'," said Klemme.

The younger kids camp traditionally takes around 75 campers with 25 counselors, however, the older camp will be limited to 20 kids, at least for the first year.

The camp is funded through a combination of camp registration fees and community donations, with Klemme saying roughly two-thirds of the costs are covered by community support.

"That's how we kind of pay for everything and keep the cost low. If we didn't it would be about $170, $165 per camper. We're able to charge $80 because of the donations," said Klemme.

"I think this community loves the camp and the opportunity to send their kids to camp," continued Klemme.

Without that community support, the camp wouldn't be possible Klemme said.

The camp for older kids will cost $125 per camper, Klemme said, with the initial startup costs raising the price of the camp.

Registrations for both camps will be available starting in the first week of April, according to Klemme, and both camps are filled on a first-come, first-serve basis.

For more information on either camp, contact the UW-Extension office at 715-561-2695.