Camp gives kids hope
By Titus Ledbetter III
Courtesy The Gazette, Montgomery County
Ten-year-old Alize Hughes has had to help watch her two little brothers ever since her mother was incarcerated in the Montgomery County Correctional Facility in Boyds some five months ago.
She lives with her grandmother and brothers, Marquis Jones, 8, and Malik Jones, 7, in Upper Marlboro.
??I take care of them to make sure they eat their dinner, breakfast and lunch,' Alize said.
Home life has not been quite as much fun since her mother was incarcerated, she said. The children have to stay in the house most of time, so they take naps and watch television.
But last week, Alize and her brothers got to be children again and enjoy the outdoors.
They were among the 19 children at Camp Hope, a free, weeklong sleep-away camp for the children of inmates sponsored by St. Mark?s UMC in Boyds and the county jail. The campers were children in fourth through sixth grades and their younger siblings.
Department of Correction officials would not be specific about why the parents of the youngsters featured in this story were in jail, but said the crimes ranged from theft to robbery.
At camp, the children learned about making peace, but also about swimming, rope climbing and canoeing at West River United Methodist Center in Anne Arundel County. The 45-acre waterfront campsite featured an outdoor volleyball court, basketball court and a pavilion. Campers also enjoyed swimming in the pool.
Malik Jones enjoyed archery and going on the giant swing, he said.
The Rev. Timothy Warner of St. Mark?s spent the week living with the children at Camp Hope in an effort to give them some positive reinforcement.
??What we hope to do is to try and deal with the statistic I heard that some 70 percent of the children of those in prison wind up in prison themselves or are at least somehow in contact with the law in a negative way,' Warner said. ??That is just such an overwhelming statistic in my mind that I thought there must be something we can do to begin breaking that cycle now.'
The campers received four Christian-based lessons each day.
??In a place like this, with the beauty of it and the nature, they do get a chance to decompress some,' Warner said. ??We are spending an awful lot of time talking about some of the negative family issues that are going on.'
Some of the children wake up angry and they do not know why, he said. One child asked Warner to be his father every night before bed.
??I thought I had an understanding of the problems these kids have,' Warner said. ??The depth and complexity of what these 9-, 10- and 11-year-olds face is beyond what I can imagine. I?m disappointed I don?t have more than a week to spend with them.'
Niasia Thomas, 11, of Gaithersburg was concerned about the other children at Camp Hope, who she said were smart and very brave.
Niasia could not remember exactly when her mother was incarcerated.
??Sometimes I miss her,' she said. ??It is not really different because I?ve been with my grandma since I was a baby.'
Niasia wrote a song at the camp about praying for help when she feels sad. She sang her song at a camp talent show.
Donika Smith, 9, of Boyds was also enjoying her week at Camp Hope.
She smiled brightly while she talked about her mother, who was incarcerated in the county jail four months ago. Donika said she is entering the fifth grade and enjoys going to Clarksburg Elementary School.
??My grandmother takes good care of me like I?m her own daughter,' Donika said. ??My mom likes to see that happening.'
Donika has visited her mother periodically since her incarceration.
??Everybody has somebody in jail,' she said. ??All of us try to get along and be peaceful to each other. We treat each other fairly, like brothers and sisters.'
Warner knows the children listened to the camp lessons about making peace because he heard the children talking among themselves about peace.
Marquis Jones said he made a lot of new friends at camp and liked archery and reading the Bible.
??I learned that Jesus is the rock and to follow directions,' he said. ??You should always say grace before eating.'
Reprinted with the permission of The Gazette, Montgomery County.
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