Cop Camp aims to connect youth and police for fun, learning and mentorship
OPP Const. Steven Duguay is part of the Cop Camp team that facilitates the camp each summer, pictured in Essex, Ont. on Tuesday, Aug. 22, 2023. (Gary Archibald/CTV News Windsor)
Some Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) officers have exchanged their uniforms for shorts, t-shirts and fun with youth.
This week, the OPP is hosting their annual Cop Camp at Cedar-Win in Essex. It’s an example of how police services are engaging the community and youth in a fun, positive, learning and mentoring fashion.
Cop Camp in Essex, Ont. on Tuesday, Aug. 22, 2023. (Gary Archibald/CTV News Windsor)
The campers consist of 76 youngsters, ages of 11 and 12. They are graduates of the grade 6 ‘Values, Influence and Peers’ program. They are participating in a three-day camp with police officers learning about teamwork, communication, all the while being mentored by police service members.
The children will be fishing, sailing, playing games and of course, camping.
Steven Duguay, OPP constable, and the media relations officer in Essex County, is happy to continue the Cop Camp tradition that started in 1994, and has been an annual event until the three year hiatus due to the Covid-19 pandemic (2020-2022).
Cop Camp in Essex, Ont. on Tuesday, Aug. 22, 2023. (Gary Archibald/CTV News Windsor)
"A big focus we put on this camp is 'pay it forward,'” said Duguay
“We want these students to take any skills, any leadership qualities that they gained at this camp and bring it back to their communities and do good and positive things in their community."
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