Et cetera : AmeriCorps NCCC lends a caring hand at Badger Camp

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By Zackary Hall

Cedar 1 is lending a hand to the Wisconsin Badger Camp in Platteville, Wis. from August 9 to September 27.  The team is assisting with campers who have behavioral and physical disabilities, while giving them a fun and safe camping experience.

Cedar 1 is working with the camp to complete many tasks. For the first week, the team helped camp counselors and working alongside them to plan a respite weekend. A Respite weekend is an opportunity for campers to fun for a weekend and for caretakers or parents to have some time to rest.  After the camp closed on August 16 and campers were sent home, the project shifted for the team. There is a bunk house that needs to be removed and another bunk house that needs to be constructed, along with bunks for summer volunteers. If time allows, one of Cedar 1's final projects is trail building. 

Cedar 1's new project is unlike any they have had in the past. Most of the team’s projects have included interacting with different types of people, but never with people who have behavior disabilities or need twenty-four hour care. Cedar 1 has geared up to take on any challenge that this new project brings.

               The Wisconsin Badger Camp was founded in 1966 by a group of parents and only served about forty-eight campers in a state park. Now the park serves over 900 individuals with a ten week summer camp and respite weekends.