Local Rotary organizations set to offer Youth Leadership Camp

The camp to be held from May 6 through 8

The Putnam County Rotary will be hosting a virtual open house at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 24 for anyone who lives or works in Putnam County. This open house will be complete with door prize drawings and opportunities to volunteer for one of the Rotary’s current service projects.

Local Rotaries and Interact Clubs will be offering high school freshmen, sophomores and future leaders the opportunity to participate in this year’s district-wide Rotary Youth Leadership Awards camp on May 6-8 at Lowden State Park in Oregon, IL.

This opportunity is presented through Putnam County, La Salle, Peru, Walnut, Illinois Valley, Mendota and Princeton Rotary clubs as well as the Princeton, St. Bede, Putnam County, Bureau Valley and Mendota High School Interact Clubs.

Applications are now being accepted through PCHS Interact and PC Rotary. Students or parents can contact PutnamCountyRotary@gmail.com for further information. Registration closes on April 15.  All registration fees are paid by the two clubs for all accepted applicants.

The weekend-long leadership camp is open to all high school students in northern or northwestern Illinois. The camp has been hosted annually for over 30 years but has not been held in person since 2019 due to the pandemic. This year will see the return of the in-person format.

The camp’s focus is on leadership development with team-building activities,problem-solving and dynamic keynote speakers.

“I am very excited about this year’s programming as we attempt to engage our students in lessons that will help them with teamwork, introspection, group communication, decision-making, and valuable social skills needed to serve as leaders and to live productive lives,” Rotarian Camp Director Dave Diamond said.

Rotary is a worldwide organization of business and professional leaders that provides humanitarian service, encourages high ethical standards in all vocations and looks to build goodwill and peace in the world.