5-Mile Camp in Miami Helps 'At-Risk' Kids For Free

Chris Howell NewsOn6.com

MIAMI, OK---Due to the quiet generosity of its benefactors, 5-Mile Camp in Miami, Oklahoma is able to provide a first-class experience to thousands of ‘at-risk' schoolchildren whose families might not be able to otherwise provide. Whether it's caring for and learning to ride a horse, running the obstacle course or helping to build a small house, the lessons learned at 5-Mile Camp are meant to last a lifetime.

‘This is a completely free facility and it's not treated as a free facility,' said Director Susan Gantt, ‘we make sure that it's every bit as quality as if they had been paying top-dollar for it.'

The children can swim in the indoor Olympic-sized pool, get a nutritious meal, stay in the modern bunkhouses or enjoy learning on the rows of new computers at the nearby ‘soda fountain', a renovated storefront in Baxter Springs, Kansas devoted to tutoring children and adults.

Baxter Springs Superintendent of Schools Dennis Burke is delighted to have the camp and soda fountain nearby to use to motivate his students.

‘Our kids, a lot of them middle-school kids, ages for 11 to 14, who have no place to go, maybe mom and dad's working after school, this is a place where we know they can come, not only be safe and accounted for, but get to work on their school work with tutors and things to help them be more successful in school,' said Burke.

Susan Gantt says the 5-Mile Camp is dedicated to helping the children from any school system and different busses arrive from up to 100 miles away. She says for being a free facility, it is still one of the best kept secrets in northeastern Oklahoma.

‘The kids come first,' said Susan, ‘whatever their needs are, that comes first.'

If you are interested in seeing how Five-Mile Camp can assist with at-risk in your school system, call Susan Gantt at 918-452-4836.