Friday, July 6, 2001 | 4:14 a.m.
Kids who were huddled on their sleeping bags, their blankets draped across logs, pulled on hooded sweatshirts as they tried to avoid the drizzling rain that accompanied their first campfire.
Amid eerie stories, playful skits and songs, cries of "the fire's going out" and "someone's throwing rocks at me" could be heard from the many first-time campers.
It was about this time that camp counselors knew which kids would make it through the week. The first day of camp is often the hardest for children as they struggle to meet new friends, get acclimated to the air and settled into their cabins, Maurice Rodgers, assistant director of the Starchasers camp, said.
The staff tries to get kids -- who might be frightened or homesick -- through the campfire experience on the first night before they decide to take any of them home.
The night ended with only one little boy screaming, "I want to go home, I want to go home."
By the end of the week the fires had become the favorite pastime, said many campers.
The Starchasers camp is nestled high in the woods of the Clark County Parks and Recreation Campgrounds in Lee Canyon, away from the scorching summer heat and blackouts in the Las Vegas Valley. The new camp, funded by the county and the Las Vegas Sun Camp Fund, allowed 95 disadvantaged youths to enjoy a week in the woods to build friendships and take part in a new way of learning.
"There are a variety of different things to learn about up here during the summer," said Airiona Dodd, 13, a junior leader at Starchasers. "We learn about friendships, about honesty, and it gets you away for a while. My favorite part is the campfires because of the plays and ghost stories."
Most of the kids who attended the camp were from foster homes and never had the opportunity to experience the wilderness, Rodgers said. Being away from everything and everyone they have ever known forced the kids to branch out and meet new friends in an unfamiliar environment.
"I've seen friendships already; they're out there meeting people," Rodgers said on the first day of camp. "It's great for any kid to experience the outdoors and staying in cabins. The air is thinner up here, but it is cleaner and we know the kids are safe here."
The campers were assigned to cabins based on age and gender -- three cabins for girls and four for boys. The age of the campers ranged from 6 to 14. At least one of the 23 staff members was in charge of the cabins and slept on metal bunk beds among the kids, said Christopher Baughman, camp director.
The girls' cabins were neatly arranged with each bed creatively labeled with the names of the campers on construction paper. Most of the beds were made up, and the rules of the cabin were posted on the door.
The boys proved to be a little less tidy, with shoes, clothes and sleeping bags intruding on bed and floor space. They had no rules posted in their cabins, but there was an iron that Baughman said was most likely used to impress girls in relation to how they can clean up for the dance.
Throughout the week the youths learned an array of songs and cheers used to define their individual cabins and unite the camp. The campers also took part in a cookout, nature walk, some stargazing, the "No Talent, Talent Show" and a dance.
"I've been coming to camps since I was 7," Miyone Enis, 12, said. "I think they are good for us because half the kids I know are always at home watching TV. I learn a lot of stuff here. It is like school except a lot more fun."
The kids learned about different aspects of life through specialists, Rodgers said. Prevention, recreation and arts and crafts specialists taught the children such things as how to avoid drugs and violence, how to play basketball and how to make a jewelry box.
Depending on what time it was, kids were scattered throughout the camp's playground, basketball courts, rec center and cabins, enjoying a week of activities they might not have the chance to experience in their everyday lives.
Rodgers also had someone from Planned Parenthood, who spoke about building relationships.
Enis and Jacoby Freeman, 12, met earlier this summer at another camp and said they have been "dating" since then. Freeman said he doesn't plan on asking anyone but Enis to dance, even though he came to the camp "for the girls."
Sasha Gray, 6, wants nothing to do with boys or a dance. She would rather spend her time making boxes for pretty rocks and playing with the other girls in her cabin.
Dealing with the different age groups' likes and dislikes is something the staff had to take into account as they were designing that week's activities.
Becoming 'round-the-clock parents during the week, the staff helped the young ones shower, made sure everyone ate three meals a day and was on top of the many medications that accompanied the campers.
It was up to the staff to keep kids off "broken arm hill" and award the camper of the day with games and prizes from Toys R Us.
Many staff members give up a week of vacation to be with the kids. Baughman, a Metro Police officer in the Northwest Area Command, used his vacation to put on this camp. The cook, Jimmy Hampson, a chef at Boulder Station, also used a vacation week for the camp.
"These kids really enjoyed themselves this week," Rodgers said. "They learned a lot and got to experience things they normally wouldn't get to in the valley."
The camps usually have one child each week who needs to go home early for various reasons -- from home sickness to health situations, Rodgers said. This week they only had one boy go home early for behavioral problems on the third day. Everyone made it through the first night.
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