Florida Elks Youth Camp

Florida Elks,

Our mission as a youth camp is to mold the next generation of children into adults who we’d be proud to have as American citizens and as Elks. Some laugh at this as being overly ambitious, but we go to work every single day unashamedly working for nothing less than this goal.

Here is why our mission is obtainable. There are three things that need to happen to change the direction of today’s youth. First, in a world of multitasking and short attention spans, you must grab their attention — you must Inspire them. With the support of the Florida Elks at our youth camp, this is easy. We inspire our campers with the quality of our facilities, staff and programming. The second step is to Connect. Just as we are disconnecting the kids from their phones, social media and the World Wide Web, we are connecting them to their peers, staff members and nature. These connections give them a reason to look beyond the self-serving habits created by their everyday influences. Finally, they are ready to Expand. This critical step is possible now that they are engaged and invested in their own growth. To this end, we expand campers’ self-confidence, compassion for others and — most importantly — their ability and desire to impact the world around them.

This final step is the crux of what it means to be an American. We are, for the most part, lucky enough to be born in this great nation with all its rights and privileges, having done absolutely nothing to earn or deserve it. Our mission, then, to be true American citizens, is to give back throughout our lives to ensure that others have this same opportunity. Whether by military service, civil service, or volunteer service in our communities or by donating proceeds of our success, a true citizen must give back. This is what we hope to impart to our campers — to be thankful, and, through how we live our lives, to give reason for others to be thankful.

So, thank you for all your work to get kids to Summer Camp 2024! At the time of this article, we are currently four weeks into Summer Camp 2024, with each day as engaging as the last. Our campers have filled the air with their laughter and enthusiasm, making it a lively environment as we help them grow, learn and make new friends.

Due to your efforts this summer, we are averaging 330 campers per week. We have only missed filling 24 of the 1,344 total beds available to date. What’s even better is that weeks 5 through 7 are currently at capacity and building waitlists. While we won’t beat 2019’s all-time record of only having 14 empty beds the entire season, this summer is on track to be our second best ever for attendance. Again, this is only possible with your help from the local level, getting the word out in your communities, organizing buses and providing scholarships for those campers who wouldn’t be able to afford camp on their own.

One of the highlights of our summer program is the seventh week, fondly referred to as Military Week. This session is dedicated to honoring our armed forces by inviting the dependents of active-duty and veteran military personnel to partake in camp activities free of charge. It is a time for them to come together, share their unique experiences and foster an understanding among each other that they might not find elsewhere.

This year, we are once again honored to partner with the Florida National Guard to make this week even more special. The National Guard has assigned soldiers active duty to be on-site during Military Week. Their presence will not only offer a sense of familiarity and comfort to our campers but will also inject our staff with a fresh wave of motivation, allowing us to finish the camp season on a high note. Special flag ceremonies, leadership training sessions and numerous other activities are in store for our campers during Military Week. We have also moved our traditional fireworks display from the Fourth of July to the Wednesday of this week, aiming to provide a spectacular conclusion to a week full of meaningful interactions and growth.

But that’s not all the Florida National Guard has done for summer camp. The guard’s Counterdrug Program also provides one to two soldiers to be at camp once a week every week to present the campers with a drug awareness program. These sessions teach our campers about the dangers of drugs and alcohol as well as how to stand up to peer pressure. It’s great to hear the soldiers talk about how much more involved our campers are than the typical student groups they deal with at schools. I tell them what we’ve known for a long time — Inspire, Connect, Expand. We’ve done the leg work to get the kids in a place where they’re open to listening and learning. So, it’s no surprise to us that our campers are more involved and receptive to the counterdrug message.

That’s it for now. I’ve got to get back to the kids, but I look forward to seeing all of you at the midyear convention. Until then, to all Elks reading this, thank you for everything you do. It is only due to you and your efforts that we can continue to make this impact on the kids of Florida. I am humbled every day to serve as your Youth Camp Director, and I thank you for the opportunity to mold these kids into true American citizens. Have a wonderful rest of the summer.