The Centennial Cultural Center’s (CCC) annual Rocket Camp was held last week with 12 youth gaining valuable experience in engineering and had a fun time blasting their homemade rockets into the sky.
CCC Director Donna Lindsey noted the annual camp has become a favorite for students in the northwest LaSalle area and credits retired LaSalle High School science teacher Prentiss Powell for the success of each camp.
The camp was held for five days, June 2327, at the center in Olla. Participants, ages 8-12 years of age, built two rockets during the week, a one-stage rocket and a two-stage rocket.
On Friday, the final day, the camp moved to the Olla Sports Complex beside LaSalle High School where the students were able to see their creations in action.
Each child was allowed to press the ignition to fire their rockets into the sky and they watched in amazement as it shot high into the air, deployed a parachute and then had fun trying to catch the rocket as it slowly descended back to earth.
Lindsey said the camp is so successful every year due to the uniqueness of the rocket launches but also due to the dedicated volunteers who donate their time in the summer.
“Along with Mr. Powell, we would like to thank all of our volunteers who helped make this camp successful,” she said. “They are: Joel Simoneau, Kolman Cummings, CCC Board Member Trish Taylor and CCC Board President R.V. Couch.
There are two more CCC camps being offered this summer, including “The Experimentation Station Science Camp” and the “Literacy Camp.”
For more information or to assist with future camps, contact Lindsey at the Centennial Cultural Center at (318) 495-7988.
