By Ed Carlson

During the last full week of June, the Mercer County Federation of Sportsmen's Clubs sponsored their 26th annual Youth Conservation Camp at Vacationland Campgrounds across from Goddard State Park.

The sportsmen hosted 45 campers, consisting of 17 girls and 28 boys. They spent the week under the direction of 23 staff members. The following young people helped to staff the camp: Shelby Klapec, Andy Klapec - Sandy Lake; Carly McConnell, Marci Yeager - Hadley; Daelyn Davidson - Cochranton; Ben Rzicznek, Chelsea McConnell - Mercer; Brad Wascher, Mike Statton - Hermitage; Tyler Terwilliger - Grove City; Shawnees Zappia - Fredonia; Jesse Wilson, Karen Seige - Greenville; Jeff Hardy - New Castle; and Brandon Ray - New Wilmington.

The co-directors were: Matthew Eddy of Greenville and Brenden Frisk of Grove City. The camp administrator was Trichelle Hoovler of Fredonia. Seven adult advisors aided the youth staff throughout the week. They were: Paul McConnell, Kathy McConnell, Sue Rzicznek and Jan Keller, all of Mercer; Jim Houston of Hermitage, Justin Stafford of Greenville, and Carly Seacrist of Pittsburgh. Registered nurse Kathy Slattery served as the camp’s on-site first aid administrator.

Parents also visited and aided the camp throughout the week. Camp cooks Justin Stafford and Paul McConnell taught the students the skills of preparing their own camp food, as well as doing the actual cooking for most of the camp meals. Although the youth enjoyed making stew in their individual tin cans and cooking in aluminum foil over the open fire, I personally enjoyed their Federation evening meal which featured roast chicken over the barrel grill, cheesy scalloped potatoes, baby carrots, apple/cherry cobbler and punch.

The drenching rain came as the campers finished their meals and added its own touch to its flavor. Consistent rains throughout the week did not dampen the campers spirits. Just, like the rain at mealtime, they seemed to take it all in stride.

The youth were housed in three large army tents each of which housed approximately 18 campers. Two of the tents were purchased last year and a third one was purchased this year. The young directors thought that the camp might have to come to an end a few years ago when funds were dwindling and the cost of renting church camps and/or The McKeever Environmental Center became too costly for their limited budget.

Rather than let the camp go under, they started their own bank account (which had approximately $10,000 balance at the start of camp), began organizing projects to earn money and changed the camp from a dormitory style luxurious week to a week of primitive camping. Most of its funding has come from the Federation, the NRA, the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation and other sporting groups. During this period a substantial loss of funding from the MCFSC dwindled due to the loss of clubs and memberships. These were just a sign of the times. This year the Federation offered the Camp $1,500 but the Directors declined that gift because they had sufficient funds in the treasury to fund this year's camp.

The staff also made changes in the curriculum over the past few years noting that the youth who attended the camp, not only wanted to obtain knowledge about wildlife, conservation, shooting sports and the environment, but in essence, wanted a vacation with some mentored leisure time to relax and socialize.

The directors and staff heard the campers desires and arranged their curriculum accordingly (Who says that young people cannot teach we old folks a thing or two?) The curriculum is now centered on environmental conservation activities with relaxed recreational programs that emphasize their yearly chosen environmental themes.

This year's theme was “Clean Air” and the camp slogan was “Walking on Air.” Their T-shirts and slogans/designs change yearly. This year's T-shirts were brightly tie-dyed by the students featuring birds and balloons.

On Monday they spent time at Greenville Airport learning the importance of air travel. Each camper was able to sit in the cockpit and was shown how the various instruments were used to fly the craft. All but three of the campers were allowed to take a short flight around the area (the three campers who did not fly did not have a permission slip to do so). This flight was a thrill for each camper.

Tuesday the campers spent at Goddard State Park with presentations on the West Nile Virus, Switch Grass, Energy, Edible Plants, and Energy Use on the Farm. Tuesday evening Denny Harpst presented his turtle program which has been a camp favorite since its inception.

Wednesday was spent at Western Reserve for a day of shooting and shooting-sport safety. This is a day that the campers look forward to each year. Although this is not a competition day but a day of learning, you can't help but notice the youngsters know exactly what their scores were with: bow, shotgun, rifles and black powder. In the evening they returned to Goddard for a program on bats, and participated in a bat count.