Stories from Camp Colton
Experiences at Camp Colton help students make discoveries, learn new things, and grow as individuals.
Every year between May and October, more than 1,000 kids come to Camp Colton to learn, play, and live together. With the generous support of our community, this tradition has continued for more than 50 years. Kids benefit from this program in many ways, some that are immediate and some that they may not realize for many years. Here are a few of the stories some recent middle school campers shared with us.
Bella
Bella writing in her journal at Camp Colton.
At first, middle schooler Bella wasn’t excited to come to the STEM Environmental Enrichment and Discovery (SEED) summer program. She didn’t see herself as an outdoorsy person, and was nervous about spending 6 days and 5 nights learning and living with new people. Fortunately, like many campers before her, Bella was surprised by what she found as she bravely stepped out of her comfort zone, embracing the unknown in the outdoors.
By the second day of SEED camp, Bella often had a twinkle in her eyes as her contagious laughter and swelling excitement spread among her new roommates, peers, and friends.
Excerpts from Bella’s journal.
Stacy Flanagan, Bella’s science teacher, later helped Bella email us to share how SEED camp “…sparked something in [her].” Bella wanted to let Camp staff know she had continued to add to her SEED journal since she got home, and shared with us scanned images of her very own incredible wildlife drawings of different insects and plants. Mrs. Flanagan laughed as she explained, “Some of my favorite pages with her most detailed notes were the ones she didn’t want to share because she said they were ‘too messy’.”
Bella continues adding to her journal, although she might need a new one soon. She recently started borrowing field identification keys from Mrs. Flanagan to help her learn more about interesting organisms. Bella shows that her spark, just like her laughter, excitement, and new friends, have carried on beyond Camp and now affect the way she sees herself and the world around her.
Learn more about Camp programs.
Tanner
Tanner identifying a mushroom at Camp Colton.
With so much to discover on Hart Prairie–and with staff from so many different scientific backgrounds planting ideas like seeds—it’s hard to guess what special interests might bloom up at Camp Colton. For 6th grader Tanner, a special interest took hold as soon as he met Environmental Educator Erica and asked a simple question about a mushroom just beginning to break soil.
Before the first day at Camp was over, Erica and Tanner could be seen and heard, along with a growing following of other campers, roaming Camp’s slopes in search of mushrooms and using field guides and citizen science websites to identify different species.
Camp Colton educator Erica teaching students about mycology.
From an outsider’s perspective, it was impossible to guess if Erica or the kids had started the activity, as they all seemed equally passionate and overjoyed with each new discovery. At Camp, Tanner didn’t just learn about mycology (the study of fungi), but also that he could someday be a mycologist himself. Tanner said roaming around Camp gave him a “greater understanding that school is fun and exciting, not boring.” He added, “School is what you make of it.”
Creating safe spaces for adults and youth to meet and model positive mentor-mentee relationships is just one benefit of a strong outdoor education program. It may not be what Tanner was focused on when he was mushroom hunting, but looking back he says, “The counselors made me feel like I was in a safe environment…and interacted with us campers like they had known us for years.” With a special nod to all he learned about mycology and the potential to “use these skills for my job and everyday life,” Tanner said that he “began to think of [the counselors] as friends.”
What are the benefits of outdoor education?
Karina and Morgan
Karina (on the left) at Hart Prairie.
Science teachers nominated middle school twins Karina and Morgan not once but twice to participate in the STEM Environmental Enrichment and Discovery (SEED) summer program. At SEED camp, the twins were on a mission. Though they opted to take on different research topic groups so they could meet different people and learn different things, they worked together to navigate challenges as Morgan struggled to get quality sleep the first night and Karina worked with the cook to address her special dietary needs. Those challenges didn’t seem minor to them when they first arrived, but they overcame them together along with help from Camp staff. Ultimately, they both thrived in this new environment.
Morgan (on the left) presenting her research at Camp Colton.
Months later, Morgan and Karina volunteered to speak in front of a grant panel—an opportunity to help future generations of campers get funding to attend the special SEED summer experience. It was during this time the rest of the family began weaving themselves into the community element of Camp as well. Karina, in particular, was nervous about talking about her love for Camp Colton in front of the panel, but by the time Krista, their mom, helped them organize their thoughts, and their younger sister Cora helped them organize (and decorate) their workspace, both girls nailed it and said they felt really good about taking the opportunity to grow and help others. Even their dog Olaf was there to offer emotional support.
Since then, Karina and Morgan have attended and enjoyed SEED one more time. Krista has stayed in touch with Camp leadership about helping out further. And Cora finally got to attend her much-anticipated sixth-grade Camp experience, totally rocking it.
Morgan and Karina have continued to be great, supportive sisters to one another, and the constructive impact of their time at Camp Colton will continue to buzz not only in their mouths and minds, but for the next generations of northern Arizona youth to come.
