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Patriot Camp 2010 - Paxtang, PA
Patriot Camp... In The Beginning
The members of As A Mom have answered many calls to action since this amazing group began. AAM has also been a place for many of us, who felt very alone in our ideas and mindset, to come together and unite on common values and principles – specifically those of the 9/12 Project. After connecting outside the AAM site during the health care debates, three members, Heather Sellars, Deb Seneca and Michelle Tonkin worked together for the common goal of teaching our community’s children about the greatness of America and the truth about its miraculous founding. Disgusted with the indoctrination and revisionist history being peddled in our schools, we and three other friends took it upon ourselves to teach at least a few children the truth about America. As a response to the Organizing for America summer camps that were being pushed in our nation’s high schools, we decided to hold our own summer camp, Patriot Camp, in the summer of 2010.
Having many years of collective Vacation Bible School experience under our belts, we decided to model our program after a traditional VBS format. We ran a one week camp, with each session lasting 2 ½ hours. Each of the five mornings had a theme, including Revolutionary War, Declaration of Independence, Constitution/Bill of Rights, Our Great Republic and Founders Friday. We broke the children into six age groups, and the campers rotated through six stations daily, including three Learning Stations, Snacks, Crafts and Games. Each station’s lessons and fun activities tied into the theme of the day. Our camp activities are geared toward elementary-aged children, however, the curriculum lessons are pertinent and easily adaptable for children and adults of all ages!
When possible, we looked to original sources to teach the basic tenets of our founding documents and our history. It is our feeling that the best way to protect the freedom we enjoy, is to understand the history and documents that provide for that freedom. Patriot Camp uses a camp setting to teach these lessons, so that children will have fun while they learn about and develop an interest in America’s rich history. Patriot Camp involves everyone - kids, parents, and the community – coming together for the common goal of educating ourselves and our children about our great nation.
The first Patriot Camp was held in Paxtang, PA, in the summer of 2010. We thought that we would possibly attract 20-25 children. The interest was tremendous, and we actually had to cap our enrollment at 70 children! We started with a core committee of six moms – Denise Phillips, Heather Sellars, Deb Seneca, Michelle Tonkin, Judy Torres and Kelly Willuski. We had more than 20 additional volunteers and several businesses and community organizations that also believed in our vision and helped to make Patriot Camp a huge success! Visit www.patriotcamp.org to see pictures of this memorable week and a clip of us on Glenn Beck in May!
You can check out Patriot Camp on Facebook too...
Constitutional Champions Foundation…Patriot Camp Goes National!
After running an unforgettable camp, Deb, Michelle and I decided to take everything we did and everything we learned, organize it, and – as Benjamin Franklin would have done – make it available, so that others could run Patriot Camps in their own communities with a tested curriculum. Originally, we looked for an existing curriculum, but could not find one. So, we developed our own program from scratch. It was time consuming and an unknown, but we were committed to our cause.
Our group took an amazing turn when, thanks to another AAM member, Tabatha Ridley, our camp program was recommended to Yvonne Donnelly, National Chair of the 9/12 Project, and Founder of Constitutional Champions Foundation, a newly formed non-profit organization set up to meet the needs of our children through American history education, particularly as it pertains to the Constitution and the Founding generation. The mission of Constitutional Champions is to involve the youth of our country through educational programs, school groups, and community service projects. Further, CCF’s goal is to promote true patriotism through its education materials.
We were thrilled and honored when Yvonne invited us to partner with her and create a Patriot Camp Kit to be marketed nationwide. After struggling for almost a year, trying to encourage others to hold Patriot Camps in their own communities, we now had a respected national platform from which to spread our message of freedom. The opportunity with Constitutional Champions was truly an answer to many, many prayers. As a result of our partnership with Constitutional Champions, Patriot Camps (so far 60 and counting!) will be held nationwide in the summer of 2011! Thank you Yvonne Donnelly, Lori Parker and Tabatha Ridley for your support of and help with this labor of love.
How can you help?
We encourage you to hold a Patriot Camp in your own community. It will not only help fill a desperate need in our nation, to educate our children in truth about America…but, it will also be an unforgettably rewarding experience for you and all those involved. With a Patriot Camp Kit, available through www.constitutionalchampions.org, you will have all the information needed to organize and carry out a successful Patriot Camp, including a detailed outline of what to expect each day. Also included is a rich history-centered curriculum to present to your eager students. As an added bonus...it's fun!
America is so much more than a country - it is an idea. We are endowed by our Creator, not by elected officials, with certain unalienable rights. We are a nation of laws. And, we are perhaps the only nation on Earth that puts the individual above the collective. Without that premise, America no longer offers the freedom and liberty for which she has been long revered. We hope our work has cleared a path to make it easier for you and your friends to spread a love for our country and its history to the kids in your community. Making such a commitment to your children and your community, you too will be working to protect and defend America’s freedom!
We’ll be working to protect and defend America’s freedom!
Posted by Heather in Hershey on June 6, 2011 at 8:55pm - Send Message -View Heather in Hershey's blog - Cross-Posted at Knowledge Creates Power
h/t to Sue Hooper
Related:
No Country That Does Not Know It’s History or Value It’s Sovereignty Can Long Survive
Not so up on History yourself? A few good books to start with: The 5000 Year Leap, The Road to Serfdom, Giants, and A Patriot’s History of the United States…
