• Article Photo. Nick and Corey position a fence post for the horse’s riding ring.
    Nick and Corey position a fence post for the horse’s riding ring.
  • Article Photo. Michael and Alyssa split wood using a gas-powered wood splitter.
    Michael and Alyssa split wood using a gas-powered wood splitter.

 

By: Novastarr Nelson

Just how much can one group of young adults do? The AmeriCorps NCCC team Oak 3 would answer with three words: “All of it”.

For their first project, the team is in St. Paul, Indiana working with the YMCA Flat Rock River Camp to improve the camp through renovations, program expansion and delivery, and facility preparation. They have already restored the interior of multiple cabins, the camp’s dining hall and the pool house. In order to make the camp safer, they removed unsafe concrete steps and invasive species from trails. Some of their construction projects include archery targets, a large sign and a riding ring fence. They have chopped, split, stacked and planed wood. A few members have even been able to belay children as they climbed a challenge course tower and painted two murals in the camp’s nature center building.

Just past their project’s half way mark, the team has many more tasks ahead of them before they leave St. Paul. Some things they have to look forward to include constructing a disc golf course, building a safety trail, building a horse trail, relocating a low ropes course and assisting in teaching outdoor education classes.

The variety of different tasks in Oak 3’s project has kept the team members lively as well as busy, and they are excited about what the next few weeks have in store for them.