Teens can learn about public safety careers at camp

FAYETTEVILLE — Teenagers will have the opportunity this month to become CPR certified, learn basic first aid and get hands-on knowledge of how ambulances and helicopters work.

All these activities and more are part of the Camp Rescue experience, which is a combined effort by the Washington County Sheriff’s Office and Central EMS.

It really runs the full gamut, said Tina Fuller, an emergency medical technician who has helped run the camp for four years.

The camp is set for June 18-23 and is geared toward 15to 18-year-olds who want to learn about careers in public

safety, said Justin Cox, assistant fire marshal.

Usually, they take about 25 students, but this year Cox said there is no cut-off and people can apply up to the start date.

“We aren’t turning anyone away,” Cox said.

“It’s great for the kids that are interested in this kind of field, giving them an opportunity to learn about it. We go in-depth with mock crime scenes with fingerprinting and camera work. This year, we’re doing a card game gone wrong,” he said.

CEMS Chief Becky Stewart launched Camp Rescue 16 years ago. She modeled it on a Boy Scouts program in Florida she attended as a teenager, she said.

“The program was started to give teenagers an opportunity to peek inside the world of emergency services and let them know that it’s something within their reach,” she said. “A lot of kids grow up wanting to be a police officer, firefighter, or a paramedic, but don’t know just how to access that. This gives them the opportunity to say, ‘Hey, I can do this.’”

Many campers have gone on to work for public safety departments in Northwest Arkansas, Cox and Fuller said.

Josh Kuykendall, the CEMS battalion chief of training, attended Camp Rescue in 2005, the same year he graduated from high school. He grew up around volunteer firefighters, but said he really didn’t know what he wanted to do. He knew he was interested in some form of public service.

“It was phenomenal. I got an opportunity to spend a week with EMTs and paramedics, some of whom still work at CEMS and maintain a role of mentor and friend in my life. I saw their passion for playing a larger role in the community and that is infectious. It made me want to have a part in that.”

Kuykendall has worked at CEMS for 11 years and said he still uses knowledge he learned at camp.

“We were taught how to do basic assessment of a patient. It was the first time I saw that, as health care providers, we play many different roles: we give compassion and support to patients, but also there’s an investigative role we play to figure out how we can best help them. It’s always something new. Every situation you encounter is different. That was really exciting,” Kuykendall said.

Activities include police dog demonstrations, drunken-simulation goggles and basic weapon safety. Students will not use real guns but ones with lasers designed for training.

“Above all, we want these kids to be safe,” Cox said.

Each potential student is required to fill out an application that asks, “Why would you like to come to Camp Rescue?”

“For some, it’s the fire science, some it’s EMS, some it’s police. We get a broad range,” Fuller said. “We try to take those kids who, say, are interested in EMS and we may go over a little more, go in-depth into what we do. That just gives them even more insight.”

Some of the information covered can be graphic, and students should possess a high level of maturity and responsibility, Cox said.

The camp costs $50, which includes lunch every day. Students will attend from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday-Friday.

Saturday is an expo day at the Sheriff’s Office where family members and the community are invited. It’s usually the students favorite day and is filled with games that demonstrate what they learned, Cox said.

Stewart said Kuykendall and others have taken that interest they gained through the camp and have risen to important leadership positions at various agencies and in the community.

“The people that are excited and motivated that get into this program are the leaders of tomorrow, and that is exiting for us,” she said.

“A lot of kids grow up wanting to be a police officer, firefighter, or a paramedic, but don’t know just how to access that.” — Becky Stewart, Central EMS chief