SELINSGROVE – For the first time in Susquehanna Valley Law Enforcement Camp Cadet history, there are more than 85 campers taking part in the week-long camp at Susquehanna University. The campers arrived on Sunday night and are spending the week at SU learning about careers in law enforcement, discipline and other subjects.
Trooper Rick Blair organizes the camp each year, “Friday evening we will have graduation. One of the hardest things for them is no TV’s, no cell phones and no computers, so they are unplugged for the week.”
Blair says the kids really transition throughout the week of camp, “Sunday and Monday, specifically, they have the deer in the headlights look. They are scared. Some of them are crying and want to go home. But, you know, we hit Tuesday and then especially Wednesday, and it all turns. We hear kids saying it was hard in the beginning and now it’s better. We get it. And, they fight through the things they have to fight through. They get used to the routine, the structure and the discipline and they kind of become attached to it.”
And Blair said he sees how the camp impacts the kids who participate, “It’s really the days after camp and the weeks and months after camp, when I run into kids, who stop me at Knoebels or Hershey Park, or in the mall, who stop and say what a great time they had at camp. They say they really feel good and more self-confident and feel that they now know they can get through things that are difficult.”
Speaking to the campers about discipline and character was Snyder County District Attorney Mike Piecuch. He spoke with us after his talk and said, “I just love Camp Cadet. I love the kids who take a week out of their summer vacation to go to boot camp. I love the counselors, the law enforcement and the other folks who take time out of their summer, unpaid, to be here giving leadership lessons for life to these kids. It’s really amazing.”
Piecuch said he hopes meeting with the kids will make an impact on them, “Everyday as parents we are challenged to show our kids how are we reflecting and presenting our values. Are we just making decisions in the moment, or do we have some strategic approach to it and that’s hard. I said to them, even as grownups, we don’t know what we want to be when we grow up either. So, I don’t expect them to know what they want to do with their lives. It’s just, take one day at a time and say, what do I want to accomplish today.”
Camp Cadet is for boys and girls ages 12 to 15 in school districts in Snyder, Union, Northumberland and Montour Counties. To find out more or to make a donation to Camp Cadet, you can visit their website at www.svlecc.com. (Ali Stevens)
