As the Teens Life Camp comes to an end in Kaduna, participants have expressed satisfaction at the life experience benefits and useful things they have learnt at the camp, just as they called for another edition of the event soon.
According to the participants, while they relish the new things they learnt at the three-day camp, which ran between Sunday and Wednesday, they tasked the organisers to make it an annual or biannual event, even as they called for new life activities at the camp such as learning musical instruments to further enrich their experiences.
For 14-year-old Suleiman Sajo, a student of Federal Government Boys College Apo, Abuja, the Teens Life Camp was the best experience of his life.
“I’ve learnt much skills, I’ve learnt how to make shoes, the disadvantages of sex and drugs as a teenager, I also learnt the importance of gifts. I understand the instructors better, my expectations for the Camp were met positively, I don’t want the camp to end. I want the camp to be continued every year and I want to come back again. But I would like them to give us the opportunity to learn how to use musical instruments next time, I also want them to extend the days of the camp to one week,” he said.
Also speaking, another participant, Angela Luka Avong (18 years-old), said the camp gave her the opportunity of interacting with other participants.
“I’ve been here since Monday, the camp met my expectations from the first day. I met people and interacted with other teenagers at the kitchen and hostel. I learnt singing, dancing.l and drama. I have learnt that anything we are facing we should always speak up to those close to us instead of dying in silence. That if we are alone, we should look for someone to talk to,” she said.
For 17-year-old Stephanie Elijah, a student of GGSS Day Barnawa the camp was all fun, “I met new people. I’m the quiet type, I don’t usually talk but they taught us how to talk to people and that if we have any problem we should share it with people around us. I now realized that I have talent in singing and acting. They taught us about sex education. We should have more of camps lol kk e this because I feel at home”.
The camp organiser, Blessed Martins, said it has been a refreshing experience for the organisers and resource persons as they have equally learnt one thing or the other.
Martins said, “I also learnt a lot, this camp, of 10 boys abd 10 girls, has opened my mind and let me realized how much potential we have. The teenagers don’t want to leave because they enjoyed it. Teens are not rebellious, they react to what the society push at them the change they are experiencing and the challenge of adolescence. We believe that next year is going to be better than this.
“My takeaway is the fact that these teenagers need avenue like this to show the desire in them. To have opportunity like this is not something you start and stop but something to continue. We will continue to groom the teenagers up to when the society will benefit from them.”
