The White Deer Land Museum will be hosting two summer camps this summer. The first camp is set for June 12th through 14th, the second being July 10th through 12th. Both camps will be from 9 am to 12 pm, Monday through Wednesday. The camps are for age ranges six to 12, with sign-ups being $25.
“We wanted to do something that gives kids something to do in the summer,” Tiffany Qualls said. “Both camps are the same, but we offer them twice to give kids the chance to come to one if they are busy during the first.”
The camps will engage kids in art, history, and education about our local history. The White Deer Land Museum is constantly growing and adding new things, so the summer camps give them a chance to showcase all the new things they have to offer while also engaging kids.
The camps, both running the same program, will kick off on Mondays with local author Jefferson Marshall and local illustrator Shawn Taylor. Marshall and Taylor have published books about panhandle-based locations and history. The duo will bring a show to the summer camp, showing students how to draw local animals as well as reading over the books they’ve put out. The books are always for sale in the museum’s main office.
“The local author and illustrator are such a cool thing we have here,” Qualls said. “Jefferson writes books about adventures in Texas state parks and stuff here in our area. We sell their books here in the office, and the age range of his books was perfect for the camps. He will do a presentation on the Caprock Canyons and then a trunk show from the Rangers of Caprock Canyons and they’ll bring animals.”
The rangers will bring animals from Caprock Canyons, the same animals talked about in Marshall’s book. The rangers will teach the kids about the animals and allow them to see and be hands-on with the animals. Marshall will teach on Caprock Canyon and Taylor will demonstrate how to draw the animals. That will conclude Monday’s event but there’s much more to come.
“Tuesday we will have local artist Grant Johnson here,” Krissa Campos said. “He does his paintings and sculptures, and he does a lot for the museum as well.”
Johnson will give art lessons to the students, showing them how to make landscape collages, and then will have a tour of the museum with a scavenger hunt around the museum. Wednesday’s will have the Frontier Regiment of the High Plains dressed in period costumes.
“They’ll be dressed from the frontier time and will teach the kids about life back then,” Campos said. “There’s a lady that’ll teach the students what kind of games they played back then. She’ll also bake for the students, foods, and desserts they would have back then. Other members of the groups will show them how the women would clean and tidy the home back then, showing the students how to use a washboard. Chris Larson will teach them about the foot soldiers.”
Larson will teach the students what kind of weapons he would’ve had back then and what kind of things he would have with him in a battle. The group will also have a live cannon that they will showcase to the students by firing it off. In addition to Gatling guns and pop guns that will all happen in the park behind the museum.
The camps are each limited to 25 students. Sign-ups can be done in person at 112 S. Cuyler, but registration can be taken over the phone. Parents will just have to come in person to finish the sign-up process and paperwork, but spots can be reserved over the phone.
