RIVERSIDE

Early Monday morning, a handful of boys and their two counselors set out on a 12-hour drive – 800 miles – from Mill Hall, Pennsylvania to Riverside, Iowa. When they set up camp that evening of July 29, they were only part way to their destination: the Missouri River, where they will be embarking on a rafting trip that is just part of an 18-month wilderness experience designed to transform their lives.

The Bald Eagle Boys Camp, the brainchild of a small group of Mennonite businessmen and operational since 1995, is a Pennsylvania-based therapeutic camp for troubled boys aged 9-15. By living for a time in small groups in the wilderness, the boys explore, learn, and express their curiosity; while working together toward common goals, they develop personal and social skills.

The goal of the program is for each boy to take steps toward behavioral, emotional, and spiritual wholeness.

“Effectively meeting a boy’s needs must involve every part of his life,” the camp’s website says. “For this reason, spiritual values are intrinsically woven into the fabric of daily Wilderness Camp living and are reinforced by our staff as they model the teachings of Jesus Christ. They are displayed in the simplest ways – the love and understanding of a counselor, the forgiveness of one boy to another, and the helpfulness of a friend.”

The program, which is licensed by the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services and a part of the Wilderness Road Therapeutic Camping Association, boasts a high rate of success; 85% of the boys who complete the program stay in school and stay out of the justice system.

Because home visits are a part of the program – campers return home for four days every six weeks – boys who enroll must live in a 4-hour radius from the camp in Mill Hall. To serve more boys, more camps have been established, including Ohio Wilderness Boys Camp in Summerfield, Ohio (2009) and Allegany Boys Camp in Oldtown, Maryland (2011).

Currently in development is Ozark Wilderness Boys Camp near Fredericktown, Missouri, which will provide another location to serve boys and families in the Midwest. A 330-acre tract of land was purchased in late 2022; now funds are being raised for tools, machinery, and a central building.

To this end, a Benefit Auction and BBQ Meal will be held on Friday, Aug. 2 at Pathway Christian School in Kalona at 5 p.m. A live auction begins at 6 p.m.; a full meal of BBQ chicken, smoked ribs, sides, drinks, pies, and ice cream is available by free will donation. Camp representatives will be on hand to discuss plans and objectives.

For more information about Bald Eagle Boys Camp, visit baldeagleboyscamp.org. For more information about Ozark Wilderness Boys Camp, visit ozarkwildernessboyscamp.com. To donate items to the Benefit Auction, contact Delmar Yoder at 319-430-2711.