A letter from Peg - executive director of the American Camping Association

History is a wonderful thing. Rodger Popkin once said to me, "Do we want to be history or tradition?" I say we want to be both - and MORE!

Certainly as an industry and as an association, we are considered "mature." That, however, does not mean we are less useful or unattractive! That does not mean we are old. Never! We continuously use our history and tradition to close the gap between what was yesterday, what is today, and what we want in the future. We stay young because our eyes are on tomorrow, and we work with those who will be leading tomorrow. We continue to find new and exciting ways to combine our history of educating children and youth in a unique environment, with our tradition of positive risk management - and then we use that knowledge to discover practical applications that advance positive youth development and leadership.

We recognize that we are one of the few communities that proactively promotes positive human development -- and even more strategically, youth development. In a world that spends ever decreasing dollars on youth, and those few dollars concentrating on prevention and intervention, we are unique in our ability to build communities that support positive youth development -- the promotion of positive assets. Our world needs strong leaders today and tomorrow. We appreciate the fact that strong leaders emerge from positive, healthy children and youth. We have much to share and give to the future leaders of our world.

We have demonstrated through time our ability to adapt to a world that continuously changes while maintaining our values for humanity, the environment, and education. It is our tradition to develop people with character who contribute, express compassion, and care for others. The camp experience nurtures the whole person: heart, mind, and spirit. We will carry those historical benchmarks into our future. We will continue to enrich lives and change the world.

We continue to be committed to this purpose -- to carrying our values and purpose forward. Tomorrow, however, we have an opportunity to expand our positive influence. We recognize that in the future we will have a greater number of strategic alliances, well beyond our membership boundaries -- relationships that will add value to the camp experience, youth, and the communities in which we live. We understand we will have demonstrable results and outcome accountability that will articulate the value of the camp experience to the public. We will increase our dedication to generational and multicultural integration, supporting and reflecting our diverse world. We will contribute to the world of positive youth development with practical applications driven by intentionality that can be used in any setting. ACA and the camp experience will become strong threads in the fabric of the communities in which we live, work, and play.

Old? I think not. We have the maturity to do the hard things and the youthfulness to take healthy risks. All for tomorrow... a great tomorrow!

Peg L. Smith

ACA Executive Director

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