The Oneida Daily Dispatch (Oneida, NY)
Archers take aim with Parks and Rec.
Elks Lodge donation allows youth program to begin at Recreation Center
ONEIDA, N.Y. » Knock. Pull. Fire.
More than a dozen local youths joined the Oneida Parks and Recreation Department on Wednesday evening to participate in an introductory archery course.
The course gave youngsters an opportunity to learn proper safety procedures and the various parts of the bow and arrow. After watching a demonstration, the kids in attendance tried out their bow skills under the watchful eye of Parks and Recreation’s Luke Griff and Justin Acker.
“Don’t get frustrated today if it doesn’t work right away,” Griff said.
Both Griff and Acker were appreciative of the Oneida Elk’s Lodge donation of several sets of bows and arrows as it allowed Parks and Recreation to offer a new program to Oneida youths.
Later in the fall, Parks and Recreation will host a six week archery course for beginners, thanks in large part to the recent donation from the department’s neighbors across Cedar
Street. Recent recipients of a $2,000 grant from the Elks National Foundation, the Elks secured several sets of bows and arrows for the City of Oneida Parks and Recreation Department to begin a new community archery program.
Courses in the fall will be divided into two different age groups.
Children between the ages of 8 and 13 will comprise one group, while older students ages 14 and up will make up the other.
No experience is necessary to join.
Courses will run Saturdays and Wednesdays from Saturday, Oct. 7 and conclude on Saturday, Nov. 18.
For the younger age group, classes run 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. on Saturdays and from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. on Wednesdays.
The older age group’s classes run 10 a.m. to 11 a.m. on Saturdays and from 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Wednesdays.
The price for the course, which begins in the Fall, is $50 per person.
For more information, contact: jacker@oneidacity.com.