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'Be Ready' for anything
From staff reports
The Weekly Post
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Published October 1, 2009
"Be Ready Camp is an innovative and unique program that promotes citizen preparedness and participation to sixth graders in Alabama using multiple approaches to learning," according to the Be Ready Camp website. "Be Ready Camp uses instructional techniques that expand traditional classroom instruction with tool kts, hands-on learning, exercises, take-away materials, and the use of technology to a diverse audience of sixth-graders."
The camp lasts five days during the National Preparedness Month of September. It is located at the Space and Rocket Center.
Over Labor Day week, four area students had the privilege of attending the camp. Three of them — Hope Norwood of Geraldine, and Crossville's McKenzie Wilks and Madison Hunt — are lifelong friends who attend Macedonia No. 2 Baptist in Crossville.
Levi Sweatman, a home-school student from Fort Payne, was the fourth.
"One of the teachers here (at Crossville) found out there were three openings left for our county," said Tina Holcomb, McKenzie's mother. "She thought of McKenzie, that she would be a responsible student to represent us. After she submitted her name, she asked McKenzie for the names of two friends who would work well in the camp."
In a normal year, each county only gets to send two representatives. However, this year another county chose not to participate and to the glee of the three friends, DeKalb got to absorb those two slots.
At last week's county commission meeting, all four of the campers, plus last year's attendees, Rachel Lester and Cameron Thompson of Fort Payne, were recognized by the commission.
"That made me feel important," Hope said. "But I thought we would get to talk more."
Added McKenzie, "We got to get out of school and go out to eat that day."
Hope was actually the only one who got to speak, as she won the camp's Golden Arrow Award for leadership.
"I was really surprised to win it," she said. "I don't know why I won it."
Upon further prompting, she admitted that no one in her team wanted to take charge, so she stepped in and became the team leader.
The students were divided into teams of 10-12 with no one earmarked as leader. There was no vote taken for leaders — it was up to the children to respond to their abilities, with the leaders stepping up.
In the mock disaster drill, Hope and McKenzie were both captains and Madison was McKenzie's deputy.
The mock disaster was Hope's favorite portion of the camp.
"We got to work with a lot of different people to help clear an airplane or helicopter crash," she said. "You really didn't see the crash but you heard three big booms then had to help with triage and treatment of the injured."
"It seemed really real," Madison said. "Some of the people had metal sticking out of their necks, some had their heads blown off, there were leeches on some people.
"We had to take them to triage and mark them with bands. White meant they were dead, red meant serious, green meant they could walk, and yellow meant they couldn't walk but would wait."
The students also rode in a helicopter simulator that was programmed to crash.
"We crashed in water and had to swim out of it and escape," McKenzie said. "We had to swim in the ocean to a basket and climb in."
The basket she referred to was one of those attached with a cable to another helicopter.
The campers also learned how to build a fire and shelter if stranded. They had to endure a meal of military MREs.
"It wasn't the worst thing I've ever eaten," McKenzie. "Well, yes it was."
Madison said that her MRE was actually good.
Another portion of the camp dealt with fire safety.
"We learned how to use a fire extinguisher," Hope said. "We learned to point the foam at the base of the fire, not at the top. Also, to sweep it back and forth."
They learned how to use a two-way radio, using alpha codes. All campers had a radio callname. Hope was Peanut, McKenzie was Twix, and Madison was Reese's.
All three said that they learned a lot from the camp and wouldn't hesitate to return, if they could.
"We learned to keep ourselves safe in an emergency, not to rush in if it is going to hurt us too," Hope said. "Also, to do the most good for the most people in the least amount of time."
As a closing note, Hope said that "I didn't know there were so many ways for people to get hurt."
Besides the learning opportunities, all campers had a half day to explore the Space and Rocket Center.
The camp is free to sixth-graders. It is paid for by the Governor's Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives, the Alabama Department of Homeland Security, and the Alabama Emergency Management Agency.
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