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Go-First Camp gives Club members real-life opportunities as first responders.
Club members participate in Global Online First Responder Student Training Foundation project in New Hampshire.
Maneuvering your way through a dark, smoky trailer, simulating a run with the ski patrol, rushing to the scene of a Coast Guard rescue helicopter landing, helping with a water rescue, locating items by GPS, and talking to police cars - these are not your average weekend adventures of middle school students. Over President's Day weekend, 13 members of the Boys & Girls Club of Greater Nashua's Grand Avenue and Mastricola Upper Elementary sites participated in the Go-First NH Camp, alongside 5 middle school students from Portsmouth.
Club members participating in this program were Michael Langelier, Jill Pfeifer, Jason Vossbrink, Ethan Randall, Ashley Gallant, Evan Lange, Corey Ashcraft, Brittany Barton, Kelsey Rodrigues, Sarah Bouthilette, Lizmar Espinal, Ben Bailey and Sam Bailey.
Starting on Friday, Club members met to meet their counterparts in Portsmouth. After a briefing session at the Portsmouth Fire Department courtesy of Chief Steven Achilles, Members got to know one another in a hurry as they were thrust into a number of team-building exercises. Saturday morning included physical training before campers headed back to the Portsmouth Fire Department, working with professional firefighters in order to learn the process of responding to fire and medical related emergencies. In order to simulate an emergency scenario, campers, equipped with protective fire suits, masks and oxygen tanks, were asked to navigate their way through a dark, smoke-filled maze, working their way to the other side.
Members were also given the chance to inspect the firehouse, engines, ambulance and equipment, as well as spend some time questioning the firefighters. Campers were also treated to a ride aboard the department's new half-a-million fireboat.
With but a moment to catch their breath, Club members were rushed to United States Coast Guard base at Newcastle to see the landing on one of the Coast Guard's rescue Jayhawk helicopters. Members were able to spend time in and around the large copter and see all of the resources available to these first responders. Campers shared lunch with the Coast Guard professionals before spending the rest of the day in a variety of workshops and simulations involving almost every facet of a Coast Guard base. The day concluded with a race between members to see who could follow "SAR Alarm" Coast Guard response procedures quickest.
Sunday was spent focusing on the harsh realities of winter rescue in New England. Members were able to visit the New England Ski Museum to see the history and evolution of US ski patrol and the equipment used by skiers and patrolmen alike. Members then patrolled the steep and icy slopes of Cannon Mountain by ski and snowboard. After successfully completing a simulation rescue, Cannon Patrol rescuers praised the group, saying they were better than most adults asked to complete the same task. Before leaving Franconia Notch, members took a ride up the Cannon tramway in order to learn more about the ecology of the mountain and region. Lizmar notes that "the ski patrol was fun to work with because you never know when you need to help someone when you're skiing."
The program finished up on Monday with trips to both the Seacoast Science Center and the University of New Hampshire at Durham. Club members learned about the science of geocaching and importance of GPS to rescuers. Also, members learned about the relationship of science, technology and the environmental impact. The trip to UNH proved to be interesting, as members got up close and personal with the work of the Consolidated Advanced Technologies Laboratory at UNH-Durham. Campers got to experiment with the technology of "Project 54" -a comprehensive program that allows police officers to streamline their radios, lights, sirens, video cameras, and radar into a single voice activated system. Faculty of UNH's Department of Earth, Ocean and Space walked members through the technologies and practices they utilized to better study climate change, oceans process, and geospatial interrelationships.
Members were also given the chance to inspect the firehouse, engines, ambulance and equipment, as well as spend some time questioning the firefighters. Campers were also treated to a ride aboard the department's new half-a-million fireboat. With but a moment to catch their breath, Club members were rushed to United States Coast Guard base at Newcastle to see the landing on one of the Coast Guard's rescue Jayhawk helicopters. Members were able to spend time in and around the large copter and see all of the resources available to these first responders. Campers shared lunch with the Coast Guard professionals before spending the rest of the day in a variety of workshops and simulations involving almost every facet of a Coast Guard base. The day concluded with a race between members to see who could follow "SAR Alarm" Coast Guard response procedures quickest. Sunday was spent focusing on the harsh realities of winter rescue in . Members were able to visit the to see the history and evolution of US ski patrol and the equipment used by skiers and patrolmen alike. Members then patrolled the steep and icy slopes of by ski and snowboard. After successfully completing a simulation rescue, Cannon Patrol rescuers praised the group, saying they were better than most adults asked to complete the same task. Before leaving Franconia Notch, members took a ride up the Cannon tramway in order to learn more about the ecology of the mountain and region.
The program finished up on Monday with trips to both the and the of at . Club members learned about the science of geocaching and importance of GPS to rescuers. Also, members learned about the relationship of science, technology and the environmental impact. The trip to UNH proved to be interesting, as members got up close and personal with the work of the Consolidated Advanced Technologies Laboratory at UNH-Durham. Campers got to experiment with the technology of "Project 54" -a comprehensive program that allows police officers to streamline their radios, lights, sirens, video cameras, and radar into a single voice activated system. Faculty of UNH's Department of Earth, Ocean and Space walked members through the technologies and practices they utilized to better study climate change, oceans process, and geospatial interrelationships.
The weekend ended where it started with a graduation ceremony back at the Portsmouth Fire Department. Members, mentors and rescue leaders reflected on the experiences of the weekend. GO-First campers were asked to look ahead to the future, to think about the many professional avenues that fall under the broad umbrella of emergency response. Corey said about the experience "Go-First was fun. There was a bundle of cool stuff to see and do all weekend long."
"It's not that we expect all campers to becomes Coast Guard cadets or Firefighters; that's not the point. The broader purpose of the GO-First camp is to expose youth to the many ways they can play a role in first response and to challenge them to be active participants in maintaining the health and safety of their community. We've identified youth leaders in our Club, provided them with the unique opportunities this camp provides, and asked them to seriously consider what they can contribute to life."
This program was also a great experience for the Club staff. Justin Newton, Education Director, recalls that he "was amazed how much was packed into the weekend." It was surprising for him that they maanged to do it all. "Members are really lucky that they are able to experience Go-First."
For information about the Boys & Girls Club of Greater Nashua, please contact Bridget Cooley, Area Director, at 883-0523 x228 or bcooley@bgcn.com.
Posted February 28, 2008.
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