Jr. Deputy Camp still accepting applications

Jessica Luton
The Union-Recorder

June 18, 2009 08:00 am

— Parents with children ages 5 to 11 who are looking for fun, affordable activity to take part in next week are urged to sign up for the Baldwin County Sheriff's Office’s Jr. Deputy Camp.
The camp, which runs from 8 a.m. to noon June 22 to 26, is a great opportunity for kids to get out of the house and learn something new, said Jr. Deputy Camp organizer Deputy Stacy Lewis.
The camp will feature an array of presentations by several people that work within the community, she said.
Children can look forward to presentations by a local Department of Natural Resources representative on boating safety, an EMS worker on the emergency medical profession and a Department of Corrections employee on working with the K-9 unit.
In addition, a representative from the Georgia Bureau of Investigation will speak about crime scene investigating, Smokey the Bear will visit and talk about fire safety and the Bicycle Club of Milledgeville will visit and teach children about bike safety.
The whole thing will be wrapped up on Friday with a field day, said Lewis.
“We’re going to end the whole thing on Friday with a big, fun field day and cookout,” she said. “The Fire Department is going to come and set up the water canon for the kids to play in, too.”
A mere $6 registration fee covers the costs of breakfast and lunch every day, as well as a camp t-shirt.
The camp offers so much to local area children, said Lewis.
“It helps them to understand that there are people there to help them when they need it,” she said. “We bring in people from every department imaginable. At the same time, I think it’s an inexpensive way to give them something very productive to do during the summer and they’re getting good socialization during the summer that they wouldn’t get to do otherwise during the summer.”
Lewis said the camp is something that she looks forward to every year.
“We’ve been doing this for 10 years,” she said. “It’s the best part of our summer, and for a lot of these kids, it’s the best part of their summer.”
So far, there are only about 50 children signed up for the camp, but Lewis hopes other local children take part in this great opportunity, she said.
“We’ve probably only got about 50 kids registered, and we’ve got space for a lot more and we want them here,” she said.
If you’re interested in signing your child up for the camp, simply drop by the Baldwin County Sheriff’s Office on Old Monticello Road, fill out an application form and drop off your $6 registration fee.
In addition, anyone interested in signing up for the camp that is unable to come by the sheriff’s office and submit an application can call the sheriff’s office at 445-4893 and talk with Lewis about submitting the application on Monday or simply show up on Monday.
“We’ve asked that people have the registration turned in on Friday, but I’m not going to turn anybody away if they show up on Monday,” she said.

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