Variety Show Picture Gallery

Variety Show

The end of day camp each summer at Mary Rigg Neighborhood Center is marked by a tremendous Variety Show produced by the day campers. The campers spend weeks perfecting their acts and getting used to the idea of performing on stage in front of a large audience of parents, MRNC staff, and west Indianapolis community members. This year's Variety Show was bigger and better than ever before, thanks to a generous grant which provided drastically improved acoustics and a new sound system in the Mary Rigg gym.

Group acts included:

5 and 6 year olds: "Kung Fu Fighting"

LEADERS (campers ages 11-13): "I Wanna Rock"

7 and 8 year olds' Fashion Show

Individual acts included:

"All American Girl" duet
Solo: "Who Will I Be?"
Solo: "Hit Me with Your Best Shot"
"You Give Love a Bad Name" trio

Enjoy the pictures!

Culinary Camp

For the last two weeks of Summer Day Camp, the LEADERS are learning all about careers in the culinary field. They spent the first four days of Culinary Camp in the kitchen, learning all about what it takes to become a chef first-hand from Chef Keith Brooks who kept them very busy. This week, the LEADERS are headed out into the culinary field and will see culinary careers in action as they visit Second Helpings, Gleaners Food Bank, and Whole Foods Market.

Read below to learn all about their kitchen adventures:

"On the first day, Chef Keith taught us all about working in a kitchen. We learned the rules of the kitchen--like when you walk behind someone you have to say "Behind You" so that nobody gets hurt. You really have to be careful about where you're walking. We learned the right way to carry knives and then learned the proper way to cut all kinds of fruits and vegetables. We had to cut everything just right--we julienned and chopped and diced. It was really neat! Everything has to be just right in order and has to look perfect! It was harder than I thought it would be!"

"On the second day, we were in smaller groups and Chef Keith taught us how to make and present salads. We used spinach (which is actually really yummy!) and nuts and cucumbers and peppers. I can't wait to make the salad again! Everything was so bright and colorful and pretty--it was awesome! We had extra salad left over so we were able to prepare salad plates and served the seniors in the senior dining room--they really liked it and were grateful.

We put roasted almonds on the salads and Chef Keith taught us about economizing. It's really expensive to buy the already seasoned and flavored roasted almonds. He taught us that it's a lot smarter to season and roast them yourself--you can save a lot of money that way--and it's more fun too!"

"On the third day we made chicken. You have to be really, really careful with chicken because it can make you really sick if you don't prepare it right. We learned about the right way to thaw chicken--you leave it in the fridge--NOT out on the counter and then we learned the different ways to cook it. First we sauteed the chicken and then we baked it. It was delicious."

"On the fourth day we made our own pasta with vegetables. It looked awesome and tasted really, really good too! We sauteed the vegetables and now we're really good at sauteeing! We also made our own trail mix and granola with roasted almonds, cashews, and peanuts. We learned so much and it was super cool!"

Gallery of Summer Smiles

Field Day

On Friday, July 25th, Summer Day Camp youth ages 5-13 from all over southwest Indianapolis loaded up the school buses, covered themselves in sunscreen, and headed to Seerley Creek for their annual Field Day-a day of games, food, and fun in the sun. Check out below what they had to say:

"Field day was AWESOME! It was really hot out--we did games with water ballons and we played football and basketball. My team kept on winning--that was great!"
-8 year old day camp participant

"We got to do sack races--we hopped around like bunnies and had a race!!"
-6 year old day camp participant

"My favorite was tug of war with the big rope. I liked too when we played on the swings and had hot dogs outside for lunch."
-5 year old day camp participant

"I loved it at field day when we saw a real beehive! One time this summer we learned about bees and then at field day we saw a real beehive. It was real!"
-5 year old day camp participant

Firefighter for a Day

On July 10 and 11th, all of the kids in Mary Rigg Neighborhood Center's Summer Day Camp program became firefighters for day. They went to Warren Township Government Center where they learned all about what it takes to be firefighters...read their quotes below:

"This day was the coolest ever--it was SO hot outside but we got to wash a fire truck. We got soaking wet and those fire trucks are really, really big!"

"My favorite part of the day was when we learned all about fire safety and then we got to rescue a baby doll from a house that was filled with smoke-well, the house wasn't real though!"

"We got to learn all about how the firemen use hoses to put out fires. They are sooooooooooooo heavy!"

"It takes a while to become a firefighter. You really have to stay in school to be one."

"We got to play waterball which is this really cool game. It was so fun!"

It's a Zoo out there!

Quote from LEADERS participant, 12 years old:

"We went to the zoo and it was so much fun! Since we're the oldest, we got to have 7 and 8 year-old buddies. We were paired with our buddies during the day and we learned responsibility, taking care of them. It was harder than I thought to keep up with them!

It was really hot outside, but we got to touch a baby shark and see the birds and learn all about where animals live in the wild. We went to the dolphin show and got splashed by the dolphins and saw the koala bears sleeping. Ohh! And my favorite was when we went to the butterfly place. There were butterflies everywhere and we could touch them and they landed on us. It's such a cool place."

Hockey Time!

“On Monday, Indiana Ice came to play hockey with us at Mary Rigg. During the winter Mary Rigg took us on a trip to see them play ice hockey and then they came here this week to play with us! We all got to play and we had helmets and sticks and they even made a hockey ring around the gym. I got to be the goalie. I never played hockey before. It was really cool. My team made a goal, but we didn’t keep score. I learned to keep my stick on the ground so nobody gets hurt.”

Up, Up, and Away!

Yesterday, the LEADERS group spent the day learning all about airplanes and careers in the airline industry. The group visited the Aviation Technology Center at Vincennes University where they saw first-hand what it takes to become an airplane mechanic. The group then toured two hangers and later visited AAR's site for fixing airplanes. Read below for a first-hand perspective written by one of the LEADERS:



"So when we got there we looked at the welding room. The electrical room we didn't get to go into because there was a special class going on. We saw all different kids of airplanes. We saw in 3 different ones. We seen a helicopter but didn't get to sit in that one. We sat on a 737 plane; we sat in the normal seats then 1rst class and...Then we say in the cock pit. We were making noises, it was really fun!! After that we ate lunch and went to a different building. We saw planes getting taken apart and put back together. It was a fun and great day there."



Another perspective:



"I had fun there and we looked at air plains. We got to look at a 737 it's big like a house. We got to see a helicopter. We saw a welding room and hangers. We got to see a plain take off it was exciting. We sat in 2 cockpits."

LEADERS take to the Stage

This year, Mary Rigg Neighborhood Center is piloting the LEADERS (Leadership, Expression, Appreciation, Development, Exploration, Respect, Service) Program which is designed to empower a group of up youth ages 11-13 to become leaders in their community by exploring career fields, by learning positive methods of self-expression, and by giving back to the community through weekly community service projects.

For the weeks of June 16-27, the LEADERS theme is "Theatre and Art." Read the posting below from one of our LEADERS to see what all the LEADERS have been up to:


"We've been really busy with the Theatre and Art theme weeks. On Friday we went to Indy Improv on Mass Ave. It's a really cool part of the city. We got to get up on stage and perform. We learned how to act out different emotions and then we walked across the stage acting out all different emotions. Also we learned the names of the different parts of the stage--upstage and downstage, ya know.

On Monday we went to the Civic Theatre to see Alice in Wonderland. It was cool to get to see a performance on a huge stage. The play was really funny.

Then today we went to Butler University to see Clowes Hall and the campus. Clowes Hall is where the symphony sometimes performs and they have a lot of musicals and plays. They took us all behind the scenes on the stage and we really got to see what a big stage is like. We learned all about the cameras and the lighting and the history of the hall. We got to see the dressing rooms and the Green Room--that's where the actors hang out before the show starts. We also got to see how the stage elevator works and we got to go down 30 feet. It was pretty cool."

Bzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz!

*As told by 5 year old summer day camp participant

"Today we made bee costumes out of paper bags and paint and pipe cleaner things. We put on our costumes and our headbands and we went all around the building buzzing like bees and we even had stingers. We learned that bees sting and they fly and they make honey and they say 'buzz.' Then we went to the library and learned more about bees and we got to watch Bee Movie. It was so much fun."

Swimming, Capture the Flag, and Channel Six

*Excerpt from 11 year old Day Camp Participant participating in the LEADERS program, a program designed for 11-13 year olds that emphasizes career exploration, positive self-expression, and leadership and service opportunities.

"Earlier this week we went to Channel 6 to watch them record the news--it was really cool. They were talking about the weather and all of the flooding that's going on. There's not actually a map on the screen--it's really cool--the weather lady was pointing at a blank screen. The screen can be all sorts of different colors--there's really just not a map! We had to be really quiet while they taped the news. While we were there we learned about the different jobs that you can have in the news."

"We also went swimming---it's really hot outside, and we've been playing Capture the Flag. Today our team tied the other team. Maybe we'll win tomorrow."

Summer is Coming!

It's only a few more weeks until summer arrives and that means the start of Summer Day Camp at Mary Rigg Neighborhood Center!

This summer, over 130 campers will participate in summer day camp activities--they'll learn theatre/drama techniques (and then produce their very own Variety Show), visit local colleges and universities, learn culinary skills from real chefs, go swimming, build their own flying machines, participate in the library's summer reading program, and build strong friendships with other campers and counselors who truly care about their lives. Many of the youth who attend Summer Day Camp face difficult challenges--they come from a neighborhood where unemployment, under-education, and poverty are very real. Summer Day Camp is an opportunity for youth expand their horizons and become true LEADERS in their community.

It's going to be an exciting adventure--and you can be part of the fun too! Each week, this blog will be updated with excepts from the journals of our campers. Be sure to check back often!


Also be sure to visit our website at www.maryrigg.org


Want more information about volunteering at Day Camp, sponsoring a camper, or getting to know Mary Rigg Neighborhood Center and our mission? Send an e-mail to info@maryrigg.org