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Grantee Spotlight: Refugee Education and Adventure Challenge
Refugee Education and Adventure Challenge (REACH) is an outdoor recreation organization based in Chicago that serves refugee youth and their families. REACH was founded in 2015 by Shana Wills, who had decades of experience working with refugee communities but saw a pattern of missed opportunities for youth engagement within mainstream refugee services and programs. Kids in newcomer families often serve as cultural brokers, learning English at school and quickly becoming adept at navigating the systems and norms of the U.S. on behalf of their whole families. This can create stress for both kids and adults, as families rely on pre-teens and teens to access critical services and resources. Add in community violence, a sense of isolation, and the usual mental health concerns that come along with adolescence, and refugee kids are under a lot of pressure. Shana hoped to address some of these issues by creating a safe environment for young people to unwind and explore their new home through outdoor recreation.
Ten years later and still going strong, REACH has proven that this model works. REACH offers summer adventure camps where kids can explore parks and waterways around Chicago through day-long adventures and overnight camping experiences. Kids who emerge as potential leaders in summer camp are invited to join REACH’s peer mentor leadership program during the school year. Peer leaders receive additional training on specific outdoor skills, get certified in wilderness first aid, learn about public speaking, and help design wilderness expeditions for the following summer. In addition to peer mentor training, REACH’s school year programming also includes weekend adventure camps that merge STEAM learning with outdoor adventure. For example, kids might paddle on a local waterway and conduct macroinvertebrate surveys to better understand water quality and biodiversity.
The cornerstone of REACH’s success is the trust program staff have with the families they serve. Each REACH family receives a home visit where staff explain how the camps work and what families can expect. Additionally, once a child joins REACH, everyone, from parents to siblings to grandparents, are invited to participate in family-friendly programs. This approach means that kids don’t have to do all the explaining, parents and other family members can meet REACH staff and experience the same activities as the kids. It also helps families that may be experiencing a lot of stress in their day-to-day lives have fun and learn something new together. Finally, a holistic approach that includes the whole family also helps participants carry outdoor recreation practices into their lives beyond REACH. Families often return to parks and other recreation sites on their own time, once they’ve learned how to access them and navigate reservation and rental systems through REACH.
While outdoor recreation is the hook that brings families and kids into REACH’s programs, the most important learning is often happening below the surface. Participants are able to travel to new areas, allowing them to see their new home from a fresh perspective and better understand the history and systems that define the U.S. Fostering a connection with the land and becoming more familiar with seasonal rhythms can help create a sense of place. This eases the adjustment to a new place and ultimately can allow kids to feel at home in a place that previously felt unfamiliar. College and career preparation are also embedded in all of REACH’s programs and camps, and trainings are intentionally designed to help youth see beyond the immediate, discover a world of possibility, and start thinking about what’s next for them. Perhaps Narges, an 18 year old peer mentor originally from Afghanistan, says it best when reflecting on the impact of her time with REACH, “REACH is where I learned to leave my comfort zone, uncover hidden parts of myself, and build the leadership I was missing. Without it, I would have lived an ordinary life.”
NRF is grateful for the opportunity to support the important work REACH is doing in Chicago and beyond.