HomeNewsArticle Display

Youth Camps at Camp Dawson

By SSgt Christina Hammack, 130th Airlift Wing / Published December 02, 2008

PRINT | E-MAIL
14 June 2008 -- CHARLESTON, WV - The West Virginia National Guard hosted its annual Kids Kamp and Youth Leaders Camp at Camp Dawson June 14-20th. Several members of the 130th AW volunteered their time helping out as counselors, medics, staff and instructors.
This was Kids Kamp's 18th year and Youth Leaders Camp went in to its 42nd year. . Both camps were started to give National Guard youth some insight to what their parents and family members do during drill, trainings and deployments. This exposure of youth to military life-style has proved to be a beneficial recruiting tool for the guard.
Staff Sgt. Eddie Shinn, of the 130th Fire Department and National Guard Chemical Survey Team, brought his son Eddieray. It was Sgt. Shinn's first experience as a Kids Kamp counselor. Some of his duties included assisting the campers to assemble Star Base rockets, watching carefully as they towered through the inflatable obstacle course, building team spirit, and many other daily activities. Mountain State University returned this year and put on a forensics display. Members of Kids Kamp often grow up with the camp and return to attend Youth Leaders Camp when they are old enough.
Campers for both camps were subject to extremely long, action-filled days that started around 6:00 am and didn't wind down until 10:30 pm. Counselors and staff endured some early mornings getting the kids up and preparing them for the day. Once the day started, they were on duty full-time until lights-outs. There was night-time staff to supervise overnight in the barracks where the kids stayed.
Staff Sgt. Kris Rader of the Medical Squadron commented, "The days were long, but went by quick and we got to experience watching the kids grow." He was an instructor, or a "TAC", as they call it for Youth Leaders Camp, where campers are high-school age. The week for these older kids is a quasi-basic training experience with some fun thrown in there. A typical schedule for them was waking up early for physical fitness, drill and ceremony training, and classroom instruction. Campers have almost no free time, as they are kept busy all day to prepare for their graduation competition at the end of the week. However, the instructors did squeeze in some well-deserved time for swimming, water balloons and a dance at the end of the week. The strong bonds formed between the instructors and the campers keep the same kids coming back every year. The confidence level in these kids from the time they arrive at camp to the last day is phenomenal.
Camp starts off the same and ends the same for both camps every year. The kids arrive and wonder what they have gotten themselves into. By the end of the week, they can't remember what life was like back at home.
Neither camp could have been so successful had it not been for the service members who gave their time and dedication. At the end of the week it was all smiles, hugs and even some tears as the campers started their journey back home with their families.
USAF Comments Policy
If you wish to comment, use the text box below. AF reserves the right to modify this policy at any time.

This is a moderated forum. That means all comments will be reviewed before posting. In addition, we expect that participants will treat each other, as well as our agency and our employees, with respect. We will not post comments that contain abusive or vulgar language, spam, hate speech, personal attacks, violate EEO policy, are offensive to other or similar content. We will not post comments that are spam, are clearly "off topic", promote services or products, infringe copyright protected material, or contain any links that don't contribute to the discussion. Comments that make unsupported accusations will also not be posted. The AF and the AF alone will make a determination as to which comments will be posted. Any references to commercial entities, products, services, or other non-governmental organizations or individuals that remain on the site are provided solely for the information of individuals using this page. These references are not intended to reflect the opinion of the AF, DoD, the United States, or its officers or employees concerning the significance, priority, or importance to be given the referenced entity, product, service, or organization. Such references are not an official or personal endorsement of any product, person, or service, and may not be quoted or reproduced for the purpose of stating or implying AF endorsement or approval of any product, person, or service.

Any comments that report criminal activity including: suicidal behaviour or sexual assault will be reported to appropriate authorities including OSI. This forum is not:

  • This forum is not to be used to report criminal activity. If you have information for law enforcement, please contact OSI or your local police agency.
  • Do not submit unsolicited proposals, or other business ideas or inquiries to this forum. This site is not to be used for contracting or commercial business.
  • This forum may not be used for the submission of any claim, demand, informal or formal complaint, or any other form of legal and/or administrative notice or process, or for the exhaustion of any legal and/or administrative remedy.

AF does not guarantee or warrant that any information posted by individuals on this forum is correct, and disclaims any liability for any loss or damage resulting from reliance on any such information. AF may not be able to verify, does not warrant or guarantee, and assumes no liability for anything posted on this website by any other person. AF does not endorse, support or otherwise promote any private or commercial entity or the information, products or services contained on those websites that may be reached through links on our website.

Members of the media are asked to send questions to the public affairs through their normal channels and to refrain from submitting questions here as comments. Reporter questions will not be posted. We recognize that the Web is a 24/7 medium, and your comments are welcome at any time. However, given the need to manage federal resources, moderating and posting of comments will occur during regular business hours Monday through Friday. Comments submitted after hours or on weekends will be read and posted as early as possible; in most cases, this means the next business day.

For the benefit of robust discussion, we ask that comments remain "on-topic." This means that comments will be posted only as it relates to the topic that is being discussed within the blog post. The views expressed on the site by non-federal commentators do not necessarily reflect the official views of the AF or the Federal Government.

To protect your own privacy and the privacy of others, please do not include personally identifiable information, such as name, Social Security number, DoD ID number, OSI Case number, phone numbers or email addresses in the body of your comment. If you do voluntarily include personally identifiable information in your comment, such as your name, that comment may or may not be posted on the page. If your comment is posted, your name will not be redacted or removed. In no circumstances will comments be posted that contain Social Security numbers, DoD ID numbers, OSI case numbers, addresses, email address or phone numbers. The default for the posting of comments is "anonymous", but if you opt not to, any information, including your login name, may be displayed on our site.

Thank you for taking the time to read this comment policy. We encourage your participation in our discussion and look forward to an active exchange of ideas.