Nature program teaches health, leadership

Guilford student Melanie Diaz wasn’t interested in spending her summer vacation shopping at the mall or in front of a television set. She opted to start her vacation by doing something in the great outdoors.

Diaz, 15, is one of 21 teens who participated Thursday through Saturday in the Rockford Park District’s new environmental leadership program, Eco-factor, which engages teens 14 to 17 in team-building projects and activities that can help them develop skills they can carry into camp leadership roles and beyond.

“Nature is a place where kids can experiment, while learning by trial and error,” said Katie Townsend, program director at the Atwood Environmental Center where the program was hosted. “There are things to do with their cognitive development, hiking and moving around.”

The youth were introduced to four ecosystems on the environmental center’s 334 acres of woodland, prairie, river and marsh habitat. The program allowed them to explore healthy living and the importance of environmental education.

“Kids don’t want to just be entertained, they want to be engaged,” Townsend said. “It’s not rocket science. In a world that is stressed out, here’s a chance to have kids diffuse energy in a very peaceful way through nature.”

Diaz said she enjoyed the intensity of the program and the friendships made through hard work and group projects. The 15-year-old has been a Rockford Park District camper for 10 years, after first enrolling the year her family moved from Puerto Rico.

“I want to be one of those people kids want to be,” Diaz said. “Leadership is about having a positive attitude about things and knowing you can lead people into good things. Ever since I started going to Camp Lone Oak, I have wanted to be a camp leader.”

Diaz’s mother, Maria Negron, 39, involved her three teen daughters in camp programs not only for the social benefits they’d gain, but to stay healthy and active.

“All children should have the opportunity to do this, to spend time exercising in nature,” she said. “They form bonds, friendships and families out here.”

Townsend hopes others will discover the benefits of involvement in environmental education programs and outdoor projects. She says nature is the real “one-stop shop” for life.

“If you’re looking anywhere from health issues to mental health issues to preventing childhood obesity, it’s all out here in nature,” she said.

Staff writer Betsy Lopez Fritscher can be reached at bfritsch@rrstar.com or by phone at 815-961-5842.