Ours is a Family Community Club - something that can be a bit nebulous and thus, hard to define. This arises from it being something that the entire family is part of, all children within the family (once they are 4-5 years old) and at least one parent.
Our club's definition is still under refinement, and this is my perspective, one of two co-leaders of the club.
Co-leaders: Christina Abuelo and Alexandra Carter
This blog will offer as a resource to our planning future meetings and hopefully as a resource for other Camp Fire clubs in their meeting planning.
First, Christina and I came up with a core document for what we wanted out of the club and its future members. The document posted below is what we came up with, and is the purpose of our club.
WoHeLo!*
You are invited to join Alex & Christina’s Campfire Family Club, a multi-aged (4-10) co-ed group that explores arts, environment, camping, crafts, business, community service and more. We’ll be meeting monthly at Camp Cahito, Campfire SD’s Balboa Park location.
Background on Campfire USA
Campfire USA provides all-inclusive, coeducational programs in hundreds of communities across the United States. The organization’s mission statement is Camp Fire USA builds caring, confident youth and future leaders. The motto is “Give Service.” Founded in 1910, Camp Fire's programs include youth leadership, self-reliance, after school groups, camping and environmental education and child care. It has a comprehensive nondiscrimination policy: "We are inclusive, welcoming children, youth, and adults regardless of race, religion, socioeconomic status, disability, sexual orientation, or other aspects of diversity."
Camp Fire USA was established with a strong foundation and belief in providing positive outdoor experiences for youth. The Camp Fire USA mission, core values and the belief that children need a connection with the natural world is fundamental to all Camp Fire USA programs. You can read more about the organization’s program philosophy here: http://ww2.campfireusa.org/all_about_us/program_philosophy.asp
At the local level, clubs are led by adult volunteer teams who use/adapt Campfire’s progressive and flexible curriculum. Kids earn recognition awards, in the form of emblems and beads, for completing service projects and activities that are part of Campfire’s program “trails” – to Knowing Me, to Family and Community, to Creativity and to the Future.
How it works
The ToCo Campfire Club (Totally Cool) will convene once per month for our formal 2 hr. club meeting at Camp Cahito in Balboa Park. (See below for schedule.) There will be a more casual nature walk programmed once per month for families and any guests that members want to invite. We’ll also plan to do an overnight camping trip once or twice a year, possibly at Campfire’s WoLaHi facility in the Laguna Mountains.
At the club meetings, the kids will be grouped by age to undertake age-appropriate projects, which will be adapted from the national Campfire curriculum.
Families will stay connected and conduct club business and event planning on the club’s Yahoo group.
Expectations
- To participate in the club, all children must be active members of the local chapter of Campfire, at a cost of $60 per family per year.
- Because the club can only be successful with consistent participation by the children, attendance at regular monthly meetings will be mandatory. However, nature walks, field trips and other activities are optional.
- Volunteer adult leadership is a key component of the Club Program. Parent participation is necessary for our club to be awesome. Adult responsibilities could include serving as treasurer, developing a project in conjunction with the trail that we are working on, shopping for supplies, running an activity station at meetings, being the bead/emblem diva, etc.
- As part of Camp Fire National’s requirements, we are normally required to participate in the annual candy sale. As our group will not promote the selling of candy, they are making an exception for us and we may sell Growums (information located here: http://store.campfireusa.org/) instead (they are mini herb gardens for kids).
- As part of the local council service requirements, our group must volunteer for one council event (ex. Spooktacular, annual bday celebration, winter festival, Cahito clean up and work days, etc.) We will vote on which of these we would like to support.
Adult Participation and Behavior
Several parents will need to be present at each meeting to help out directing activities for all children. Together, we’ll develop a schedule for rotating parent participation that will enable the club to run smoothly.
Children’s Behavior
We want to maintain a positive and constructive environment. We will make every effort to help the children learn to work together and build a team. We want to foster a sense of inclusiveness, i.e. if a child isn’t being included, we, as adult participants, will work together to help include him/her. No bullying, name-calling, harassment and other forms of aggression will be tolerated. If your child is identified as having engaged in a hurtful behavior, we expect you to step in and work through this situation with your child to resolve it.
Food
At our monthly meeting we will be having a potluck meal using nondisposable plates, flatware and napkins. Club members are asked to bring healthy dishes, featuring all-natural ingredients, to share. We will have large vessel of water available to drink. Please don’t bring juices and sodas to the meetings.
Dues & other Fees
Membership to the local chapter, Camp Fire of San Diego & Imperial Counties, costs $60 per family annually and is separate, payable to Camp Fire SDI. Our Club dues of $20 first child/$15 siblings are payable once a quarter. This money belongs to the club and is used to pay for craft supplies, activities, and other club-related business. Club dues are payable in cash only. There will also be a fee of around $20 for uniforms.
Calendar
Monthly Meetings. Generally alternating monthly, Sundays at 10:30 a.m. & Mondays at 4 p.m.
| Sunday Meetings | Monday Meetings |
| May 6 | April 9 |
| July 15? | June 4 |
| September 9 | August 6 |
| November 4 | October 8 |
| December 3 |
Monthly Hikes. Third Sunday of each month at 10:30 a.m..
Locations to be announced at the monthly meeting.
Epic Camping Trip.
Weekend of Oct. 19-21
