Summer Camp Plans? How About an Opportunity To Send A Kid For Free?

March 5, 2009

The snow the beginning of the week and 70’s and sun to end the week has gotten me thinking about summer. As a kid I loved to spend a week or two at camp shooting guns, archery, swimming and hanging out with my friends. Well now I go to hunt camp but for the kids I’m sure that summer camp is something many look forward to.
The 27 annual Fur Fish n Game Rendezvous, a weeklong camp, will take place this summer.

What is the Rendezvous?
Entering it’s 27th year, the Rendezvous is an opportunity for youth to earn their hunter safety certification, study natural resources, create an ourdoor ethic, and learn outdoor recreation skills.
The week-long residential camp is for boys and girls ages 12-15, and held at Millstone 4-H Center, in the beautiful sandhills gamelands. Campers learn firearm safety and shooting skills from hunter education officers. Other activities include: falconry, bird dogs, trapping, wildlife identification, taxidermy, first aid, canoeing, fishing, a low-ropes course, swimming, and much more! Those that have already attended the beginning Rendezvous, or already have their hunter safety certification, can apply for the the Adavanced Rendezvous. During the Adavanced track, campers will learn more about being a wildlife and fisheries biologist. Advanced activites include trapping, wildlife surveys, wildgame cooking, and fish surveys. For more information, please call Renee Strnad, NC Cooperative Extension, at 919-515-5518. Questions regarding registration and fees may be directed to the State 4-H Camping Office, at 919-515-8471.

Ok I’ll admit if I was a few years younger I’d want to go to this camp. It sounds like a great week filled with a lot of opportunities to learn more about the natural world around us. Now a program like this is not cheap and the cost of the camp is $325. With the economy the way it is right now I’m sure for many families that this is something they can’t afford. Well hang on I’ve discovered an organization that is giving out 36 full scholarships to this year’s camp.
The Wake County Wildlife Club will be using some of the money they raise at the Dixie Deer Classic to offer these scholarships.

The Wake County Wildlife Club uses the money it raises from the Dixie Deer Classic to support the resources and for education. One of our projects is to send 36 campers to the annual Fur, Fish, and Game Rendezvous in Ellerbe. Kids 12-15 years old are eligible. They will take the NC Hunter Safety Course and be exposed to a number of hunting and outdoor related activities. If you have or know of a boy or girl who would like to attend this camp please go by the Wake Co. Wildlife Club Hunter Safety Booth at the Dixie Deer Classic and get them registered. This camp would cost you $325.00 if you sending them yourself. It’s a great experience for the kids.

Now when I heard about this I had to do a little bit of checking because it seemed to be too good to be true but it is on the up and up. I was totally unaware that parts of the money raised during the Dixie Deer Classic went to such a worthwhile cause. Additionally I asked about how the scholarships were awarded;

we pay for all 36 slots , whether we fill them or not. We fill them first come first serve. Some years we only have a few names submitted by members or registered at the DDC in which case the FF&G folks ( 4H extension, etc.) fill those spaces.

Well the Dixie Deer Classic is this weekend so stop by their booth to get your youngster signed up. I’m sure if these slots get filled and there is still space at the camp and someone wants to go there are other civic organizations and sportsmen groups that will step up to help. For the rest of us who wondered what our entrance fee to the classic got used for now we know. A tip of the hat to the Wake County Wildlife Club.