There have not been many times if my life that I have wished I was 13 again, but this is one of those times.  After hearing about the empowerment camp that is being held in the Santa Cruz mountains, I felt a growing envy towards the lucky kids that were going to participate. This camp itself is in a beautiful setting; five days in the gorgeous Santa Cruz mountains is enough to make me feel a bit of longing. Add to that the resumes of the staff, the goals of the program, the creativity of YEA and you might understand my sudden yearning for adolescence again.

During August 17-21, the Ben Lomond Quaker Center of the Santa Cruz mountains will be home to youth from age 11 to 15 for a week of leadership skills training.  While most of the young people will be from the San Francisco Bay Area of northern California, kids from all parts of the country are welcome to participate.  Each young person will learn how to become active in leadership, learning how to pursue social justice issues in a positive way, and to help prepare them to be the leaders of tomorrow.

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