Funk Heritage Center Summer Day Camp 2009

 Native American Culture

This summer enrichment camp was held June 16 - 19,2009, for children ages 9 through 12.  Twenty children participated in Native American crafts, music, and dance. Robin Jumper and his family demonstrated Cherokee dancing and music and Creek Indian Richard Thornton showed the campers how to work with clay and make pendants.  The highlight of the week was a program for the parents on the final afternoon of the camp.  The children presented a flute program and demonstrated Native American sign language.  The Jumper family also presented festival dancing.

 During the week, volunteers Joy and Mike Cook taught the campers how to play flute music and volunteer Dave Phillips demonstrated Native American weapons and flint knapping. Karen Garland, environmental educator from the Georgia Conservancy, took the children on a nature walk and they also made plaster animal tracks. Patrick Ireland presented a program on Georgia's snakes. It was a very busy week for all of the children. In addition to learning some American Indian sign language, they learned how Georgia's early people depended on the environment for food, clothing, housing and their everyday necessities. The camp was partially funded by a Grassroots Arts Program* grant.

  Creek Indian Richard Thornton helped children make clay pendants.

*This Grassroots Arts Program (GAP) is supported in part by the Georgia Council for the Arts through the appropriations of the Georgia General Assembly and administered by The Arts Council, Inc., Gainesville - Region * Grassroots Agency.