Kids Enjoy the Great Outdoors Thanks to YMCA/Camp Orkila’s “Partners With Youth”

The Partners With Youth Campaign Team for Camp Orkila

Kids need nature. Heavily-scheduled kids travel from school to organized sports or activities and then indoors. Along the way, the outdoors has become a place many kids merely visit.

In 1969,  50 percent of schoolkids walked or rode their bikes to school, nationwide; in 2004, that figure was less than 13 percent. (From  The National Forum on Children and Nature).

The YMCA Camp Orkila, in league with the YMCA of Greatet Seattle, meets this situation head-on with its annual “Partners With Youth” campaign. Orkila staff Beth Wangen, Laura Bruhns, Linda Sanders and Dimitri Stankevich head up the 2012 “Partner With Youth” team from Camp Orkila.

This year’s chair is Rita  Bailey, who follows the work of Dean and Audrey Stupke. “We are so grateful to Dean and Audrey,” said Sanders. “They took the campaign to another level.”

The effort involves about 50 volunteers working under team captains Ann Lister, Adrienne Vierthaler, Kate Dumhart, Debbie Liblik and Denise Wilk. The volunteers contact past contributors through in-person meetings and phone calls.

Before the kick-off party at Camp Orkila’s Larry NOoman Lodge on Jan. 1o, one donor pledged $100 towards every team that had 100 percent pledges from its members by the Kickoff date. Every team met that match.

The drive closes with a Victory Party on Feb. 7. Sanders points out that donors can pledge over the course of a year, and are not required to pay the full amount right away. Contributions can also be made online by going to CampOrkila/OnlineGiving/Donation. Donors can also call the camp directly at 376-2678 to make pledges.

The funds raised will go towards scholarships to the 8-week summer daycamp, this year called, “Oh the Places You’ll Go!,” for island children. All financial scholarships are confidential; among the 80 kids served each week at day camp, about one-third are on scholarships, Sanders estimates.

The “true cost” for a week at camp per child is $215, says Sanders. Of the $60,000 Partners With Youth campaign target, $25,000 is slated to go for full scholarships. The remainder will be disbursed towards the costs of tiered scholarships, overnight camps and the outdoor education programs offered at no cost to island schools. The tiered payment-scholarship amounts — $215, $185 and $155 weekly per child — are chosen by the families, with no documentation required.

“For many of the families, it makes it possible to have a really good summer, instead of a really boring one,” said Sanders.

(To read more from The National Forum on Children and Nature , go to facebook.com/The-National-Forum-on-Children-and-Nature)

Doe Bay Café Supports Partners With Youth

Doe Bay Café has announced its support for Camp Orkila through the Café’s Thursday night Open Mic Pizza donations of $1 from each pizza sold during February. All the money raised will go into a scholarship fund to benefit local youth and families. Laura Bruhns of the Partners With Youth campaign says, “Orkila is dedicated to building healthy, confident and connected youth through outstanding outdoor experiences. Come join us on Thursdays in February to support Orkila with good fun and fun times. The Café is open from 5-10pm and Open Mic begins at 7:30 p.m.