Read all about the 1999 activities.
CAMP BE AWARE ended on Friday, 21 July, 2000 with a bang. Treasure Hunt, Beach Barbeque, and awards ceremony were enjoyed by all at Barnes Bay, Anguilla, and at the Camp Headquarters. As everyone discusses the activities that the Campers and Counselors participated in, they were amazed that the Camp was only for two weeks. Theme for the camp is "Environment is FUNdamental".The first day was set aside for the opening ceremony and to place the 42 primary school children into swimming groups. The groups" names represented Anguilla's wildlife, Killy Killy, Iguana, Turtle Dove, Hawksbill Turtle, Black Racer Snake and Doctor Fish. The children were grouped by ability, not by the schools they attend.
Swimming lessons
Each day, Teacher Linda, on loan from the Teacher Gloria Omolulu Institute, taught the children in groups of seven. She was so good that the two non-swimming groups and I mean children who were afraid to go in the pool, were swimming in and jumping off the deep end. The swimmers who were not afraid of the water learned how to swim properly. They were also taught a little CPR and how to put on life jackets in the water to simulate a boat going down in the sea. Thank you Teacher Linda.
Three groups remained at Camp Headquarters while three groups went on their daily environmental endeavors. In the afternoon, the groups were switched.
While one group was swimming, another were doing art projects with Teachers Donna, Tricia and Kendra and a third group were writing journals about daily experiences and thank you notes to all who contributed to making our Camp a success.
Two murals have been artistically designed to represent our outdoor activities. All materials have been picked up at various environmental sites around the island.
Anglec and The Landfill Site at Corito were the first days' stops. Under the tutelage of Jimmy Richarson, Elvin Richardson, Franklyn Gumbs and Tommie Hodge the Campers donned earplugs and hardhats and really felt what it was like to work at the power plant.
"The Dump" can no longer be called that because it is cleaner than many of our beaches. Leroy Richardson of the Environmental Health Unit runs a tight ship. He showed all of us their recycling process, the cells for the waste and how important these trenches are because they extend the longevity of the Landfill.
On Wednesday, we went to the Pumphouse and Laurie Gums outdid his job of last year. He gave the Campers boots and shovels and had them go out in the salt pond and dig, so they had a hands on feeling of what a difficult job the workers had. Sir Emile Gumbs provided an excellent history of the pond.
A typical clean up at Junk's Hole was the next environmental stop. We cleaned up half the beach and still need to go back. Please help Anguilla by not throwing trash on our beautiful beaches. Don't wait for a group to come clean up your mess. KEEP ANGUILLA CLEAN AT ALL TIMES!!!!!! Thanks to the Palm Grove Restaurant for quenching our thirst.
Friday was the best day of the first week. The Campers became cowboys and cowgirls. Many of them were scared to get on the horse but everyone did for a 30 minute ride through the bush. Everyone was proud that they were able to conquer their fears. Thanks to Julio at El Rancho del Blues.
Scrub Island was the appetizer for the second week. And Boy, what a treat. JR's Glass Bottom Boat and a boat from Shoal Bay Scuba donated their boats, time and energy and brought us to Scrub. JR gave us a first hand tour of the whole island. Life jackets were donated by members of the West End Community. What a day.
Tuesday was a stay at headquarters' day. The CAMP donated oleanders to the Wallblake House and with the help of Marjorie McClain we planted them and they are rooting in pots under the supervision of Theo Lashley.
The thought of the following day made some of the Campers a little hesitant. We were going to visit the Rocky Hill Pig and Poultry Farms. Kenneth Vanterpool was going to cut open a pig and give an anatomy lesson. Othlyn Vanterpool showed the children around the chicken ranch and did a fine job of explaining what the ranch is like. On the walk to the pig farm, the kids were very nervous. However, after Ken demonstrated how the pigs' anatomy is like a humans and after actually seeing the various organs, the children were no longer "squealing" but were totally mesmorized. A pork lunch helped that feeling, too.
The next visitation was put off until noon because JR gave the Campers another free ride on the glass bottom boat because he said that they did not get the opportunity to reall see the marine life, "larger than life", so he made sure they did.
Maybe you are wondering how we got place to place. Well, thanks to Teacher Glen Samuel from the Tranquility Bus and Tour Co., we had door to door service. Better than that, he became a member of the CAMP. He got involved! I hope others can follow his example and get involved in any type of community effort.
CAMP BE AWARE'S final thanks go to all those who assisted in sponsoring our CAMP. Two Year Sponsors are Social Security Board, Barclays Bank PLC, All Island Cable Television, The Education Department, The Chief Minister's Office and Nipissing University. New sponsors were Cable and Wireless, CuisinArt Resort and Spa and American Eagle. American Eagle sponsored the raffle for two tickets to San Juan. The winner was Dexter Riley of Trinidad. He used the tickets for his honeymoon the following week.
CAMP BE AWARE enjoyed its second summer season. Campers,
Counselors, parents, community helpers all got involved to make our motto,
"Environment is FUNdamental" ring true. We hope that all Anguillians and
others who love to visit Anguilla follow our motto and will KEEP ANGUIILA
CLEAN and keep our beautiful environmental sites healthy and intact.
Counselor Art,
Camp Coordinator
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