The Winchester II group of Synergy Works! adventurers stop for a minute to rest on an interesting rock. Pictured (l to r): first row, Kari Smith, Joshua Cross, Hayden George, Dan Elsbury, Erika Gau, Donal Wilkinson and Derek Griffin; second row, Briar Bolon, Kelli Reece and Isaac Cross; back row, Drake Hernandez.
“Adventures in the Snow” at Winchester Park
By Louise Mathiesen
Two groups of Orofino Synergy Works! kids (fifth through eighth graders) enjoyed fun learning experiences in Winchester Park on January 18-21, and February 15-18. Synergy Works!, in partnership with Adventure Learning Camps of Moscow, created an “awesome” winter activity for the young people.
The students camped in yurts, sledded, hiked, learned emergency survival and safety techniques, including making snowshoes, first aid, how to treat broken bones, and what to do if someone falls through the ice.
The students also built snow caves and branch shelters. They shared stories and games in the yurts in the evening, learned to walk through the woods in the dark, how to build fires, and trust and help each other as a small community. They identified animal tracks, studied pinecones, and received impromptu lessons from ice fishermen.
For both trips, Donal Wilkinson was the guide and instructor, and Hans Mathiesen
was the mentor for the synergy focus of working together, service to others, and
reflection sessions on what they had learned, and their feelings about it,
utilizing the “Synergy-Jeopardy” game with great prizes from Honk’s!
Lisa Knowles, whose daughter was in the group, also mentored the first trip. Kari Smith, UI Intern, Dan Elsbury OHS student, and Erika Gau, U of I student, mentored the second trip. They truly were intergenerational groups, and from the enthusiastic stories I heard, the trips were an enjoyable reciprocal learning experience for all.
Adventurers in Section I were: Zachary Freeman, Harley Gudmunsun, Makala Kilpatrick, Benjamin Mackey, Stjarna Melton, Maya O’Hara, Jasmen O’Hara, Ashley Price and Katie Proffitt. Adventurers in Section II were: Briar Bolon, Isaac Cross, Joshua Cross, Hayden George, Derek Griffin, Drake Hernandez, and Kelli Reese.
Synergy Works! (SW!) is a Clearwater Youth Alliance (CYA) program, and is funded this school year by the Inland Northwest Community Foundation, based in Spokane, WA. Other partners for SW! are the many local people who donate, and those who volunteer as instructors and mentors, the great students who participate, Jt. School District 171, UI Extension 4-H in Clearwater County, and the ManiYac Teen Center. Sponsor for the Program Developer AmeriCorps VISTA is the Community Action Partnership, North Central Area Agency on Aging in Lewiston.
The next training for Natural Mentoring for SW! is Sunday, April 13 from noon – 4 p.m. at the ManiYac Teen Center; and we have several new spring activities (12/15 hours each) needing mentors, including: Gardening; Farm Adventures: Mo-o to Fo-od; Advanced Photography; and Volunteer Service Dogs. For more information call Louise at (208) 476-0751, or email: math@cpcinternet.com.
Pictured right: This group attended a Synergy Works! Adventures in the Snow event at Winchester State Park Jan. 18-21. Pictured (l to r): front row, Ben Mackey, Harley Gudmunson, Donal Wilkinson; middle row: Maya O'Hara, Katie Proffitt, Ashley Price; back row, Stjarna Melton, Lisa Knowles, Makala Kilpatrick, Jasmen O'Hara and Zachary Freeman.