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Camp cadets: Children learn teamwork, discipline

Children learn teamwork, discipline

IOANNIS PASHAKIS/Sun-Gazette From left to right, Kamryn Pryer, Abbigail Davis and Kerryn Best shoot BB guns at a bundle of hay bailes as part of Camp Cadet's firearm safety portion of the week.

IOANNIS PASHAKIS/Sun-Gazette A group of cadets find a piece of evidence during the crime scene portion of the day. IOANNIS PASHAKIS/Sun-Gazette From left to right, Kamryn Pryer, Abbigail Davis and Kerryn Best shoot BB guns at a bundle of hay bailes as part of Camp Cadet's firearm safety portion of the week.

Over 100 boys and girls arrived at the Little League World Series Complex grounds on Sunday to participate in the 41st annual Camp Cadet.

Designed to teach discipline, teamwork and to familiarize participants with police and emergency personnel, Camp Cadet enables children to stay at the complex for six days of intensive activities.

“The kids get a better understanding of what law enforcement is all about,” camp director Tim Nelson said. “A lot of times all you see are the arrests and officers taking in bad guys, but those officers have families and raise kids just like their parents.”

The camp is open to children ages 12 and 13, and organizers start giving presentations at Lycoming County schools as early as February.

The cadets stay onsite at “The Grove.” Parents drop off their children Sunday afternoon and pick them up Friday night. During those six days, wake-up is at 6 a.m. sharp, with activities all day long until 10 p.m.

“After a few days, they start to work together and make friends,” Nelson said. “When there’s that structure there, they really see what this is all about.”

The children are split into eight groups, with each group doing two activities every day. Activities range from self defense to investigating a crime scene to firearm safety.

While the participants meet with emergency personnel and participate in group activities, they also are expected to adhere to a strict code of discipline that includes bedroom checks, referring to organizers and volunteers as sir or ma’am, and more.

The kids will graduate from Camp Cadet this Friday night and Nelson hopes they will get something out of the experience.

“Discipline and teamwork is what the bottom line is and what we want the kids to work on,” Nelson said.

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