Indigenous Camp Courage

In 2006, a firefighter named Andréa Speranza founded a charity called Camp Courage, The First Responder’s Society – a one-of-a-kind, free, award-winning, life-changing camp that informs, educates, and inspires young women to become police officers, firefighters, and paramedics. The ultimate goal is that the young women leave with a sense of empowerment and increased confidence to believe that they can achieve any goal, career, or dream they desire.

Camp Courage partners with Emergency Health Service, Emergency Medical Care, Halifax Regional Police, Royal Canadian Mounted Police, and Halifax Regional Fire Service to put on an eight-day camp for twenty-four young women.  Some of the knowledge and skills learned are self-defence, crime scene investigation, the role of police service dogs and horses, cardiopulmonary resuscitation, inserting airways and intravenous lines, delivering mechanical babies, making cars into convertibles, climbing a 100′ ladder, and putting fires out.  We have guest speakers, fitness professionals who empower and inspire the participants to reach their potential.

The graduates are eligible to apply for high school credit, first-aid and CPR courses, several educational bursaries and our post-camp mentorship program.  This program focuses on preparing and supporting graduates for the intensive application processes required for employment in the emergency services, specifically preparing for aptitude tests, fitness tests and interviews.

The camp is 100% free. Instead of paying tuition, the applicants must write an essay on improving someone else’s life or improving your community. Then must implement their plan.  Past graduates have helped people – young, old, physically challenged, homeless – and positively impacted the environment.  They have organized blood drives, sports nights, fundraised or lobbied to get automated external defibrillators in schools, and started a new Kids Help Phone chapter.

36% of our graduates have moved on to post-secondary education in the emergency services field or are currently working in the emergency services.  Visit our website https://campcourage.ca to see many remarkable success stories, moving testimonials, and awesome promotional videos.  My favourite video is Episode 10 of our mini-reality series.

The Camp Courage Indigenous application deadline is April 13, please go to campcourage.ca for more information.