Youth Leadership Camp Program
Bob Haines, the 1959-1960 president, was an activist. Many accomplishments during his administration could be reeled off, but in the historical sense, the activity for which Haines' year will surely be remembered had to be the Leaders Rotary Camp. Not only was this project conceived and initiated by Haines, but he also personally participated in it and guided it, aided by other Lancaster Rotarians such as Bill Nitrauer and Ken Friend. Haines had a dream, then proceeded to make it come true.
The very first Leaders Rotary Camp opened on June 19, 1960, at Camp Carson in Lebanon County. Mention of this project has already been made, but the total dedication of President Haines in guiding this activity to its very successful outcome cannot be overemphasized.
Late in September there was a program involving the six young men our Club had sponsored at the Leaders Rotary Camp that summer. If any of our members had had any reservations about the validity of this project, those concerns were certainly removed by this program.
A report was delivered to the Club on November 1, 1961, by the boys who had been sponsored by the Club the previous summer at the Leaders Rotary Camp. It again became self-evident that this District project was an overwhelming success.
In 1963, another Leaders Rotary Camp was held in June. It should be mentioned that this project had grown so much that 100 young men attended. By comparison, there were only sixty participants in the Camp's first year.
On October 20, 1965, the six young men who had attended the Leaders Rotary Camp that summer presented the day's program. Haines and Friend introduced the young men who expressed their appreciation for the opportunity to attend the camp. These youths captivated the audience and gave much validity to this project.
At the 1966 District Conference in York, Haines was honored for his splendid work with the Leaders Rotary Camp.
Charlie Snyder, Jr. had been selected to be District Chairman for the Leaders Rotary Camp project for the next year's camp.
In June of 1970, Rotary Leaders Camp was held at the Circle "T" Ranch, north of Brickerville, Pennsylvania.
The 13th annual Rotary Leaders Camp was held at Camp Shikellamy from June 11 to 16, 1973.
In 1982, Joe Dennison chaired the W. E. Nitrauer Camp program. The Leaders Rotary Camp, which had been the creation of Bob Haines in 1960, had a new name.
In 2003, the Club sent three students from J. P. McCaskey High School to W .E. Nitrauer Camp at Messiah College.
In 2011, the Club's Rotary Youth Leadership Camp Scholarships Committee, led by Craig Russell, awarded seven rising senior students from Lancaster Catholic, Lancaster Country Day School, and McCaskey the tuition to attend a week-long Rotary Youth Leadership Camp at Messiah College.
In 2014, the Club's Rotary Youth Leadership Awards (RLYA) program sponsored six high school juniors to attend the District 7390 Youth Leadership Camp at Messiah College - two each from McCaskey, Lancaster Catholic and Lancaster Country Day School.
Today, the RLYA Conference is an intensive leadership experience organized by Rotary District 7390. The Conference is held in from June at Messiah College in Grantham, PA for seniors who are interviewed and selected by the 43 Rotary Clubs in the District. Rotary District 7390 encompasses seven counties: Adams, Cumberland, Dauphin, Lancaster, Lebanon, Perry and York.
The five-day Conference is filled with interesting speakers, team-building activities and fun. At the end of the conference, the students vote on the top eight conferees. Seven of the students receive the Lloyd Bollinger Award of $350.
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