Summer Day Camps

If interested in receiving information about this year's Summer Heritage Alive! Day Camps, please email Amy at:  v.ammons@mchsi.com.

Keeping Heritage Alive!

Summer Day Camps Catch the Spirit of Appalachia has been involved in Summer Day Camps for 16 years.  Each summer, the concept and planning has been unique and creative.  With each day camp we've included information about knowing and valuing the child's heritage and homelife, about the natural environment that surrounds our beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains, and about the heritage and culture of the mountains. Most of our day camps have also included some kind of drama.

Currently we are booking for the 2007 summer months (dates not decided upon as yet). The summer day camp will take place at the Appalachian Homestead Farm & Preserve on Tilley Creek in Cullowhee. In 2006 we had two separate week-long day camps that were very successful, and we look forward to this same setting and aspect. Each distinctly different from the other, each day camp will be planned so that young campers will build their knowledge and skills base progressively throughout the summer, and will develop their natural creativity skills in ways that build self -confidence and higher academic achievement.

Take a look at some of the activities the children enjoyed in 2006:

Some Scenes from previous Summer Day Camps sponsored by Catch the Spirit of Appalachia: 

In 2005:

Heritage Alive! A Step Back in Time, Camp one

Hiking with Vera Holland Guise, member of the CSA board and
founder of the Appalachian Homestead Farm & Preserve

Gardening with Vera.

Jackson County 4-H Club, Heather Gordon, Director

The Canhouse Band!

Making and eating ice cream!

Botanical Drawing within nature.

A Twist of A Tale, Camp Two
Day campers were introduced to the power of their own creativity through professionally led fun activities. They wrote stories and poetry, learned about and illustrated plants and wildflowers, hiked up a mountain and actually lived the drama as the story “A Twist of a Tale” was brought to life. The children crossed over a creek full of mystery, had a visit with “Aunt Bell” and ate her homemade biscuits. As the drama unfolded, the children learned the valuable lesson of why they should listen more closely to family stories.

Activities  included a presentation to the parents at the end of the week.  The storytelling book “Matchbox Mountain” and the workbook “Catch the Spirit of Creativity” were presented to each child. 

Learning how to quilt. 

A summer drama camp at the Appalachian Center in Dillard, Georgia

"The Cucumber Doll Story" 

"The Ghost Legends of Tsa-La-gi" -- A Summer Day Camp in Cherokee, NC at the Boys and Girls Club.  This artwork of the children and their costumes was created by Doreyl Ammons Cain.
 

"Aladdin Comes to Appalachia"
In this Drama Summer Camp, the children
did their final performance in the Coulter Auditorium
on the campus of WCU, Cullowhee, NC.

Here Andy LaTorre demonstrates Italian pastries with the children.
Andy was a member of our board from 1991-2000.

Irene Hooper has been a working member of our board for 15 years. She has assisted at summer camps for most of those years.

Long time board member Gail Stillwell Cooper teaches about everyday herbs her family has planted, harvested and used over the 7 generations of living in the mountains.