NATCHITOCHES – More than 100 children spent part of their summer staying active, learning new games and building friendships during Northwestern State University’s Fun & Fitness Camp at the Dr. Randall J. Webb Wellness, Recreation, and Activity Center.
The weeklong day camp, offered in three sessions during July and August, served 174 registrations representing approximately 109 individual campers this summer, according to Dr. Jason Stelly, associate director of competitive sports and director of Fun & Fitness Camp.
The camp, open to children ages 5-12, combines sports, games, arts and crafts and other recreational activities designed to keep campers engaged throughout the day. Stelly said the program has been a summer tradition since the 1980s, with many families returning year after year.
“A lot of the things that they do at the camp are unique to the camp,” Stelly said. “We have parachute, they are outside for some of the time, there’s arts and crafts time, there’s movie time that becomes nap time, but the main purpose of the camp is just keeping them active and making sure that they’re engaged.”
Stelly said the camp’s longevity is reflected in the families who continue to return.
“It’s been around since the ’80s,” Stelly said. “One of the cool things about it is it has its original logo from back in the day. People who actually have grandkids that have come have actually been campers when they were students years ago, so obviously it was an impressionable experience.”
Camp counselors organize activities based on age groups, helping younger children develop confidence while introducing older campers to more structured games and competition.
Brianna Le, a nursing student at NSU who works at the WRAC and serves as a head counselor for some camp sessions, said each age group develops different skills throughout the week.
“The 5-6-year-olds are learning how to get up when they fall down. The 7-8-year-olds are learning organized games. By the time they’re 9-12, they’ve gotten good at it, so now it’s really fun. They’re competitive,” Le said.
Le said the camp provides children with opportunities to spend time outdoors, stay active and interact with their peers.
“Having them come to the camp, interacting with other kids, playing outside, sweating, getting dirty, that’s all kid stuff that they need to do, so we’re just giving them a space to be kids,” Le said.
Stelly said the camp has developed a strong reputation over the years, with many campers returning each summer.
“It takes care of itself just with its reputation, longevity of how long it’s been here,” Stelly said. “We do a good job, we make sure we protect the kids and ultimately the kids have a good time.”