Announcing Teen Camp Finland 2019!
Finland Community Youth Program is pleased to announce our first-ever TEEN Camp Finland! This camp will be a 5 day, 4 night overnight summer camp geared just for teens, ages 12 to 18 (Twelve year olds can chose if they’d like to go to “kids” or “Teen” Camp), running the same week as our regular Kids Day Camp. This year’s dates are Monday through Friday, June 17th to 21st. Your teen(s) will need to be dropped off at 9am on Monday and picked up at 4pm on Friday, and will need to be able to attend all 5 days of Camp in order to secure a spot. In order to promote the continuity and cohesiveness of our “Camp Family,” we can not accommodate partial week attendance at this time. All meals, snacks, and tents will be provided.
The format of TEEN Camp Finland will be to share breakfast and the first “interest groups” of the day with the children at Kids Camp, and then spend the remainder of each day in Teen Camp activities. These will include outdoor skills and exploration, camp games, music, arts and crafts, hiking and swimming, cooking, and of course hanging out with friends around the fire at night. Along with all the fun stuff, teens will be expected to participate in base camp management, helping with meals, and other responsibilities of life at Camp. A number of exciting field trips are also planned for each day, including a trip to The Boreal Forest Zip Line at Gunflint Lodge, a long day of hiking and swimming in Tettegouche state park with Naturalist Kurt Mead, and a day of hiking and canoeing in the Superior National Forest. TEEN Camp will also be joining Kids Camp for a day at Flathorn Lake in Isabella for more hiking, swimming and picnicking. Our base camp will be located “out back” behind the Clair Nelson Center in Finland and will include a large Circus tent for our main gathering place and 4 other large canvas wall tents for lodging. Bus transportation will be provided by Arrowhead Transit for all field trips. We’re really looking forward to this new summer camp for the teens of the greater Finland area and hope your kid(s) can join us to help make “future Finland” a better place!
The deadline is May 1st to mail in your teen’s Application form, Zip line waiver and fee of $100. Hardship Waivers are available for free or reduced fees. Just ask! Registration is on a first-come, first-serve basis, so please do it soon! Staff this year (some old, some new) will be as follows:
Administrator/Directors: Amy Gardner (Kids), Cindy Hanson (Kids) and Andrew Norcross (Teens)
Lead Counselors: Andrew Norcross, Kelsie Carlson, Honor Schauland and Margaret Sager
Guest Day Counselors: Steven George, Kurt Mead and others TBA
Lead Cook and Kitchen Staff: Nancy Olson, Gretchen Gilbertson, Sandy Gunnink and Mary Kingston.
Camper slots will be filled on a first-come-first-serve basis. Your teen will be assured a spot once we have received both their completed registration form and $100 fee. Hardship fee waivers are available – just ask, seriously. The past couple of years we’ve had waiting lists, so please return your form and fee ASAP!
Andrew Norcross, TEEN Camp Director
Amy Gardner, Finland Youth Program Director
For more info, call the Clair Nelson Center at 353-0300.
Many thanks to the Northland Foundation, DSACF Silver Bay Charitable Fund, Cliffs Foundation, and North Shore Collaborative for their ongoing support, as well as to the many community members who share their time and talents!
