Hidden Valley preps for 2019 4-H Summer Camp season

The following is the ninth in a series of Odessa File columns from Cornell Cooperative Extension of Schuyler County relating to ongoing CCE educational activities and offerings

By Melissa Schroeder,
CCE Youth and Family Program Director

Cornell Cooperative Extension of Schuyler County has been a leader in positive youth development for over 100 years. One of our hallmark programs over the past 73 years has been Hidden Valley 4-H camp.

Hidden Valley 4-H camp provides residential and day camp experiences for youths who are 5 to 16 years of age. Our camp is located in Watkins Glen State Park, and our goals focus on having campers gain independence, learn new skills and create new friendships with campers and staff. We also employ seasonal staff who assist in the programming and overall experience for campers throughout the summer. Many of our returning campers who decide to become counselors often returned to camp due to the positive relationship that they formed with one of our counselors. We are still hiring staff for our upcoming season and are actively recruiting an Aquatics Director, Kitchen Manager, and counselor staff. If you are looking for seasonal employment, please consider Hidden Valley 4-H camp. You can visit our website link at http://cceschuyler.org/hidden-valley-4-h-camp/staff for employment listings along with additional details and information.

As we get ready to open the gates on our 74th summer at Hidden Valley 4-H camp we are excited to introduce our Camp Manager for our 2019 season. Her name is Lara Rodwell and she has been part of our camp community for the past three years. Lara began her work as a camp counselor through the international camp placement program referred to as Camp America. Lara has served in many capacities at Hidden Valley 4-H camp over the last three years. She has operated the beloved camp store, and most recently was the Media Specialist and the creator of our first Hidden Valley 4-H Yearbook. Lara currently resides in the United Kingdom, and we are looking forward to her arrival in the United States in mid-May.

This year Hidden Valley 4-H camp will continue to offer our traditional camp activities like Archery, Canoeing, Outdoor Adventures, Arts and Crafts, Drama, Cooking, Sports and Swim lessons. We also are focused on providing a few new opportunities for campers to experience: jewelry making, photography for the Hidden Valley 4-H camp yearbook, science explorations and expanded indoor activities for rainy days. In 2018 we collaborated with the Watkins Glen Power Squadron and provided a boater safety certificate course, and based on our positive feedback we will also offer this during Week 2 (July 14-19) as an option for day and residential campers. We also have added a Leadership in Training (LIT) opportunity to campers who are 15 years of age and want to learn the first level of skills associated with being a counselor. The LIT program will also connect to our Counselor in Training (CIT) program that is open to campers who are 16 years of age. Our goal at Hidden Valley 4-H camp is to provide a two-year training program for campers who want to become future counselors at Hidden Valley 4-H camp or elsewhere.

If you are looking to register a camper to attend, we have a new registration system, referred to as Bunk1 and easily accessible at https://www.bunk1.com/en/i/1118/login. It requires the Bunk1Code of HV4HC2019. If you have trouble registering online, please call 607-535-7161 and our Camp Registrar, Maddie Ulrich, will help you. We know parents are a very important part of camp, and one of the reasons we chose Bunk1 as our new registration portal. Bunk1 will offer choices for parents to view photos, send bunk notes and view the kitchen menu, and will also link to our Facebook social media site through a Bunk1 app as an optional feature for families.

Follow us on Social Media:
Facebook: @HV4HC
Instagram: @hiddenvalley4hcamp
www.hiddenvalley4hcamp

Photo in text: Melissa Schroeder (Photo provided)

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For the first column in this series, click here.
For the second column in this series, click here.
For the third column in this series, click here.
For the fourth column in this series, click here.
For the fifth column in this series, click here.
For the sixth column in this series, click here.
For the seventh column in this series, click here.
For the eighth column in this series, click here.

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