Edmund Rice Action Camp

Edmund Rice Action Camp

The Edmund Rice Action Camp (ERAC) has two aims:

1. To provide an annual summer camp for children in Cork city who might otherwise not get a holiday.
2. To provide leadership training for the young adults who run the camp each year. The leaders are students drawn from the senior years of local post-primary schools and from third-level colleges.

During the camp the children get an opportunity to take part in activities such as art & craft, music, drama, and sports. A celebration is held on the last day of the camp during which each child receives a special certificate. The leaders also name each child's special contribution to the camp.

Photo: The colourful mural designed by participants on ERAC 2013.

The young adults who lead the camp are provided with special training. The Leadership Training Programme helps the young adults to recognise and develop their leadership qualities. It also equips them to take responsibility for the successful and safe running of the camp. Experienced leaders from previous years' camps assist in the training of new leaders each year. This is an essential part of the programme. These experienced leaders are great role models for the incoming young people. Reflection and team building also are key elements in the process.

The camps are coordinated by Ms Anne Cleary, a teacher at Coláiste an Spioraid Naoimh in Bishopstown in Cork city. Coláiste an Spioraid Naoimh is a school of the Presentation Brothers Schools Trust (PBST).

Contact: Ms Anne Cleary, c/o Youth Ministry Office, Presentation Brothers, Mardyke House, Mardyke, Cork.