Big smiles and hungry tummies await our crew of The Patachou Foundation volunteers at Camp Boneroo, held at the Brookside Community Center, each day. This summer, 65 kids attend Camp Boneroo, named after The Boner Center in Indianapolis. Both Camp Boneroo, and its school-year counterpart the EDGE program, offer a safe and fun environment for kids from IPS schools to hang out while providing them with a delicious, scratch-made meal from The Patachou Foundation.
Camp Boneroo Quick Facts:
- First through fifth graders
- 65 kids
- Brookside Community Center in Brookside Park
- Summer camp activities like swimming, crafts, and field trips
One of our six (and the Foundation’s very first) community partners this summer, Camp Boneroo’s mission is to “balance academic and physical activities while also having fun” according to the camp’s director Sarah Daniel. A day at Camp Boneroo may include classic camp activities, such as dance parties, crafts, and swimming as well as fields trips to places like the Public Greens urban microfarm.
To fuel those fun activities, The Patachou Foundation serves nutritious lunches like turkey chili and garden salad with whole grain cheddar biscuits and oranges for both kids and their counselors. TPF’s mission is to make sure they are fed the same high-quality meals they get during the school year. “We are honored to continue our relationship with those same students all year long,” says The Patachou Foundation Executive Director Matthew Feltrop.
One camper, Jameliah, asks a TPF volunteer if she can have another serving of chili. “If there is any more soup, I want some,” she exclaims, as she offers her little finger for a binding pinkie promise. Our volunteers are, of course, happy to oblige.
After lunch, the kids rush to the cafeteria window to thank our wonderful volunteers for the meal. The kids continue to discuss their favorite parts of lunch and offer each volunteer a high five to say thanks. “To see our kids get to try healthy foods every day not only impacts our students but our counselors as well,” says Daniels. “They love new foods because of The Patachou Foundation.”
We’ll be getting to know our all of our community partners throughout the summer. Want to fight childhood hunger and food insecurity in your community? Get involved today!
