Church Youth Groups Invited to Participate
Participants in the 2016 ‘Student Heritage Sojourn,’ including Bradford County Commissioner Ed Bustin (above), wait patiently for their fellow paddlers to launch onto the Susquehanna River North Branch for the start of their journey last spring. The Endless Mountains Heritage Region has announced that there is still room for more than 50 students to register for the May 12 to 14 adventure. Church youth groups are urged to take notice.
One of the greatest assets of the Endless Mountains Heritage Region (EMHR) is the Susquehanna River North Branch. From Friday to Sunday, May 12 to 14, Towanda High School health and phys ed teacher, Keith Brown, and EMHR greenway coordinator, David Buck, will guide students from Bradford, Sullivan, Susquehanna, Wyoming, and Luzerne counties on a three day educational sojourn of the river between Sugar Run and Tunkhannock.
Along the way, they will be joined by various speakers, including Hickory Edwards of the Onondaga Nation and Rebecca Lesko of the Endless Mountains Nature Center. Camp Lackawanna at Vosburg Neck in Wyoming County will serve as home base for this year’s sojourn. Participants will be shuttled to launch and destination points as needed.
On Sunday, May 14, the students will disembark at Tunkhannock and gather to share what they have experienced via photos, video clips and stories. Afterwards, the chaperons and youths are encouraged to share their experiences with their school boards and church elders, so the administrators better understand the value of the annual sojourn.
Funding from POWR (Pennsylvania Organization of Watersheds and Rivers), Community Bank, and BradCo Supply has helped to keep the cost per student to $75, which covers kayak rental, meals, insurance, transportation between paddles, and costs associated with camping and guest speakers.
The challenge faced by organizers this year is getting information about this unique recreational opportunity directly to the youths who would benefit most from the program. The usual conduits, teachers and guidance counselors, seem to be more occupied each spring with academic and athletic requirements, and the invitations are not being shared with the students as expected.
Organizers hope that reaching out to churches with active youth groups, as well as recreational facilities with limited outdoor programs, will bring more attention to the sojourn. Previous participants, which included school students last year and Boy Scouts in 2015, are encouraged to share videos and photos from their respective sojourns with potential paddlers. Registration is open through Monday, May 1.
At present, approximately 60 students representing the Towanda, Tunkhannock, Northeast Bradford, Sayre, Wyalusing, and Canton school districts, as well as North Rome Christian School, Meyers High School, and several home-schooled youths were registered for the weekend adventure.
Organizers of the Student Heritage Sojourn are equipped to handle as many as 125 youths, plus chaperones, which can include school teachers and youth group leaders. Youths who do not attend public schools must note their local school district or home-school association on their application.
Youth leaders who would like to know more about the sojourn can contact Brown at 570-746-7102. Readers who would like to support the sojourn or sponsor a local student’s participation in the trip should contact EMHR programs coordinator Hillary Robinson at 570-265-1528 or hrobinson@emheritage.org.
