It’s called Hood Camp: Urban Survival for Today’s Youth.

“We call it Hood Camp because it is a camp that’s in the hood,” said Mama Shu, CEO and founder of Avalon Village — the sustainable eco-village on Avalon Street in Highland Park that hosts the camp. “And we do it because there are a lot of children who are not able to afford camp.”

The program, for only $50 per child, offers local youth a chance to have an outdoor camping experience in the comfort of their own neighborhood.

Shu says she started the camp because as a young girl she always wanted to camp in her backyard, but her mom wouldn’t let her. But now as an adult, she can share that dream with others.

“I was like ‘You know what? I’m doing this! Let me see if I can get some children and parents who would let their children come and start this Hood Camp.'”

The first camp, in 2011, was just one night with 17 kids — and later up to 40. That lasted for the first 10 years. Eventually, by popular demand from the kids, Shu extended the camp to an entire weekend.

“Because the kids used to always say, ‘Mama Shu we want to spend another night.’ Because they loved spending the night outside,” she said.

After the COVID-19 pandemic, the camp reduced its attendance down to 25 -30 children.

At the camp, children learn all about emergency preparedness and surviving outside. They learn how to cook outside, how to garden and purify water. They even learn about different plants that most typically would classify as weeds, and how they can be used for medicinal purposes.

Shu also recruits the Highland Park Fire and Police Departments to teach fire and gun safety and general community safety.

Each camper gets a survival kit with items like batteries, matches, candles, a first aid kit, and a solar backpack. And at the end of the weekend, they go home with a certificate that reads: “I survived in the hood.”

“We are showing them basically how you can fit in and how you can utilize these things first and how to survive in your own neighborhood,” Shu said.

Shu gave the example of a blackout in the neighborhood as an opportunity for the children to use their skills.

“We had out light go out for days in Highland Park,” Shu said “They still have to go to school. Well, they have the solar backpacks so they can charge their phones and their computers. And hopefully not miss a beat with their studies.”

Shu said she always receives positive feedback from the children and their parents about the Hood Camp program. Some former students return each year to participate again, while some who have grown up and graduated return as volunteers.

“It’s just wonderful seeing them still be interested in helping out in the community. And being able to volunteer and support something that when they were kids, they were involved in,” Shu said.

Hood Camp runs Aug. 30 through Sept. 1, 2024. For more information or to register a camper, visit www.theavalonvilllage.org.