A letter from Peg

Camping Magazine, Nov-Dec, 2002

A staff person passed by my office the other day and observed me reading a book called, Surfing the Edge of Chaos. She stepped in my office, laughed, and said, "We need to get you to read a book about stability!"

It is true that the rate of change in our world today is remarkable. Yet, she has a good point. We do need to find things that can serve as an anchor in times of chaos. One of my anchors is children. For instance, children continue to learn through play. Children learn by doing, moving, and participating. An important and critical characteristic of play is fun.

Learning and fun are possible to experience in the same wonderful moment. Children and youth also continue to learn and grow, illustrated by a developmental progression of ages and stages. Their progression may be individualized but it is predictable all the same. Childhood continues to be a rite of passage. Some things don't change.

Regrettably, I do fear there is a diminished appreciation of and commitment to the preservation of that "rite of passage." Many children, who are denied that right, I believe, suffer a form of deprivation that negatively affects the spirit, mind, and soul. The deprivation is a form of suffocation that stunts positive human development.

So what does this mean for us? How does this influence the intrinsic value of the camp experience? I feel it charges both ACA and the camp community with a moral responsibility. I think we have a responsibility to ensure children and youth have an opportunity to have a positive camp experience. I believe we need to improve our efforts to ensure that parents understand the value of such an opportunity. We have a responsibility to work with our communities to increase the recognition that we are partners with both families and communities in human development and year-round education systems. Finally, I believe we have a responsibility to advance and promote best practice to all who work at a camp and influence the lives of others within the camp community.

A camp experience is fun. It should be fun. That fact, however, does not negate the importance of that experience! To the contrary, if children learn through play, can there be a more wonderful setting than camp? Fun combined with caring adults, boundaries, trained risk managers, hands-on activities, community-contribution, and group activities make a perfect formula for advancing the development of young productive adults.

Last week, Dayton was sitting at the kitchen counter holding his head in his hands. He gave a heavy sigh and looked up at me, "Mom, I sure miss being a kid!" Now remember, he is only twelve. "What do you mean?" I asked. "I used to be able to just play and not have to worry about serious things. That time is over," he said. All I could do was make a silent groan. I must preserve his right to feel like a child.

So, if we are going to meet these challenges straight on, we must increase the credibility and visibility of the camp experience. That is not an easy task. If it were easy, we would have accomplished it in our first one hundred years. We can't just wait for people to recognize what we think is the obvious. We can no longer participate in wishful thinking. We must be intentional, purposeful, and proactive. To that end, ACA is launching a major initiative, Honor Our Past, Assure Our Future. It is an initiative designed to gather research, build knowledge, advance best practice, improve image and communication, and increase the credibility and awareness of the camp community. It is not for ACA. It is not for the camp experience. It is for our children, our families, and our communities. Maybe even for Dayton.

Peg L. Smith