Brigades teach more than animal knowledge
When meeting a young person, it may catch you off-guard when the boy or girl looks you in the eye, shakes your hand with authority and speaks to you in an understandable fashion.
When it happens, there’s a good chance the youngster attended one of the Texas Brigades summer leadership camps.
The camps, open to youths ages 13-17, teach the students much about the subject of the camp, whether it be bobwhite quail (Bobwhite Brigade), largemouth bass (Bass Brigade), white-tailed deer (Buckskin Brigade), ducks and geese (Waterfowl Brigade), cattle (Ranch Brigade) or coastal fishing and marine life (Coastal Brigade).
But what these camps really teach are leadership skills, teaching the youngsters to become ambassadors for conservation in the future.
The camps began in 1993 when Dr. Dale Rollins came up with the idea to develop wildlife ambassadors with the Bobwhite Brigade. Each camp is 4 ½ days of intense and interactive learning with top wildlife and natural resource professionals, with subjects including everything from biology, habitat management and botany to photography, public speaking, firearms safety, team building and critical thinking.
The Texas Brigades is accepting applications for the summer leadership camps (and adult leaders) until March 15 at texasbrigades.org.
