The best endorsement any event can get is when people want to return time after time.
That was certainly the case for Henry County REMC’s 2024 Summer Cooperative Camp. In just its third year of existence, there were five returning campers among the 19 attendees with more past participants represented on staff at Henry County or one of the camp sponsors.
“It’s growing every year, even if just by a few,” said Heather Flynn, camp co-director with Adam Warwas. “The first year it was just 10 or 11, the second year 15 or 16, now it’s 19 even after a few last-minute cancellations, so it’s trending positively.”
Part of what makes the camp unique is the week-long format, allowing the teenage participants to dig a little deeper into the utility industry.
“I came here last year because my parents are electricians, but I wanted to explore outside of wiring houses,” said returning camper and New Castle rising senior Breanna Boykin. “This is one way to do that. You get to learn about climbing, bucket trucks, digging, underground wires – all different kinds of choices.
“And they keep it different each year. The same topics are covered but in different ways, and you get to know a lot of people here.”
Not all campers were local either. One came from three hours away in Findlay, Ohio.
“I just always found electricity fascinating, so I figured I’d give this camp a shot,” said Cooper Cordray, a Greenwood resident staying with his grandparents in nearby Spiceland for the week. “This is my second year coming. I like the fact that the camp’s free, they feed us good and I like the hands-on work, as well as learning different stuff about how electricity works.”
The week began with a mostly indoor day on Monday, filled with introductions and guest speakers, highlighted by Heath Hudnut’s fire extinguisher training and a generation mix project headed up by Hoosier Energy’s Justin Thompson.
Tuesday started in the classroom but finished with a trip to Westwood Park to learn about tree work.
“They went in-depth on tree trimming, and I found that fascinating,” said Cordray, who aspires to be a lineman.
On Wednesday, the focus turned to flagger training in the morning while the afternoon consisted of rotating between trailer activities, induction coils, circuitry labs and a rubber duck presentation featuring a hair dryer.
Thursday was hands-on as the day was spent at Memorial Park setting poles to replace the lights at the north shelter.
The week concluded on Friday with a festival of activities following a Pole Top Rescue Demonstration from Hoosier Energy’s Dave Helton. Those included sampling a virtual reality headset, pole climbing, bucket truck operation, trenching and boring, pole framing, a vac trailer, knot tying, locating services, splicing trailer, tabletop safety demo, lighting demonstration, IEC careers booth and a Milwaukee tools demo/display table.
“My favorite was Thursday working on the lines,” said Boykin, who is interested in a career operating a bucket truck or diggers and trenchers. “They killed the power, then we went up and helped clamp the wires on the poles at Memorial Park by the golf course.”
It’s that interactive aspect that takes campers beyond the surface level and draws them in to the possibilities of a career.
“This is not just five days of entertainment,” Flynn said. “The skilled trades industry is growing, and our heart is in helping kids who are undecided on a direction. We want to reach them at high school age to say, ‘There is a way other than college. We’re here to show you the different things you can do.’ It’s a good start for them.”
