Green Valleys to offer summer camps for youths

BY FRANCINE FULTON

WhileSummer Nature Day Camp at Green Valleys

Watershed Association

(GVWA) will feature traditional camping activities such as nature walks and campfires, some unique events will be offered as well, such as creek snorkeling.

“(Campers will) put on a mask and snorkel and look at various fish in the French Creek such as smallmouth bass, trout and crayfish,” said Alex Runde, GVWA’s watershed educator, who relocated to the area in the summer of 2022 to take the position. “(The activity) is something I brought with me from Florida.”

Camps, open to youths ages 6 to 14, will be held on weekdays from Monday, June 19, through Friday, Aug. 11, with the exception of Tuesday, July 4. Campers are divided into age groups: Bullfrogs, ages 6 and 7; Turtles, ages 8 and 9; Herons, ages 10 and 11; and Otters, ages 12 through 14.

Camps for Bullfrogs and Turtles will run from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., while camps for Herons and Otters will meet from 8:45 a.m. to 2:45 p.m.

Parents can also register their children for before-camp care or aftercamp care for additional fees.

Campers can attend one, several or all of the weeks of camps.

Camp activities will take place at GVWA’s 224-acre Welkinweir

Action-Impact plans Easter egg hunts for people of all ages

BY FRANCINE FULTON

preserve, which includes forests, meadows, ponds and streams that are linked by trails. In the event of inclement weather or excessive heat, camp activities will be moved into the educational barn.

The snorkeling activity will take place during “Specialty Science Week.” Other themed weeks for the summer camps will include “Outdoor Skills,” “Art and the Environment” and “Geographical Oddities.”

The “Specialty Science Week,” set for Wednesday, July 5, through Friday, July 7, is new this year. “Both the 10- and 11- and 12- to 14-yearold age groups will get twice the trips packed into the short week, including the creek snorkeling,” Runde noted. “The 12- to 14-year-olds will get an overnight camp on July 6 and 7.”

Also new this year is “Indigenous Peoples” camp, which will be offered the following week from Monday, July 10, through Friday, July 14. “We are bringing in a basketweaver from Pinelands Basketry in New Jersey who has a Lenape background, so the kids will learn to weave a basket Lenape-style,” Runde said. “We are also bringing in the director of Native American Heritage Programs.”

In addition to Runde and adult camp counselors, camps are led by volunteer counselors in training (CITs). “They are usually alumni of the program who have aged out,” said Runde. “That ups our counselor-to-camper ratio to 15 campers to 2 and 1/2 counselors with a CIT counted as a half.”

GVWA is located in East Nantmeal Township at 1368 Prizer Road, Pottstown. For complete details about the camp and to register, visit www.greenvalleys.org/summernature-day-camp. Camp scholarships are available for those in need of financial assistance.

For more information or to inquire about completing a CIT application, contact Runde at 610-469-7543 or alexr@greenvalleys.org.

Youngsters, teenagers and even adults are invited to take part in Easter egg hunts being offered by Action-Impact, a nonprofit Christian youth organization located at 80 Vickery Lane in Elverson.

Events will begin with a flashlight Easter egg hunt on Friday, April 7, from 7 to 10 p.m. for students in third through 12th grades. Also featured will be candy, snacks and music.

“It’s in a dark, wooded area, so they do really use their flashlights. Fifty or 60 kids will be out there that night; that’s a real egg hunt,” said

Action-Impact director Dave Pershall, noting that one of the hidden eggs will contain a $20 prize. “That will be a fun thing to look for.”

On Saturday, April 8, beginning at 10 a.m., an egg hunt will be held for children in kindergarten through fifth grade and their parents. Attendees should bring their own baskets or containers for the eggs.

“We put out 3,000 to 5,000 eggs,” said Pershall, noting that the plastic eggs will be filled with candy. “We put pieces of paper in some of the eggs, which you can (redeem) for a toy or large candy prizes, which don’t fit into the eggs.”

See Easter egg hunts pg 2

Hopewell Furnace welcomes submissions for writing contest

BY FRANCINE FULTON

Local students in grades six through 12 are invited to participate in an Independence Day writing challenge that is being sponsored by Hopewell Furnace National Historic Site in collaboration with the Friends of Hopewell Furnace. Winning essays will be read during the park’s Independence Day programming on Tuesday, July 4.

The contest is open to students who attend schools in the counties surrounding the historic site -

Chester, Montgomery and Berks counties. Locally eligible students include those who reside in the Coatesville, Daniel Boone, Owen J. Roberts and Twin Valley school districts. Homeschool students in those districts are also welcome to participate.

“Last year was our first try. We opened the contest to three closest school districts - Daniel Boone, Owen J. and Twin Valley. By opening up to other districts, we are hoping to get a larger amount of submissions,” said Jeff Jones, Hopewell site manager.

See Essay contest pg 5

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