Donate

JOIN OUR NEWSLETTER

Big Creek People in Action to Again Offer Super Why and Odd Squad Educational Camps

Posted on: June 12, 2019

Category Featured | News | Programs | Youth Programs | Youth Programs

This summer, as it has every year since 2010, Big Creek People in Action will once again be offering its Super Why Reading Camps and Odd Squad Math Camp in collaboration with West Virginia Public Broadcasting expected to serve about 60 children with educational fun for six weeks.

The Super Why camps are designed for children ages 3-7 providing five days of interactive learning adventures that show children the power of reading and motivate them to play with letters, sounds and words through a comprehensive curriculum.

We had heard from Big Creek People in Action co-executive directors Dyanne Spriggs and Marsha Timpson that there are been preschool children coming to camp on the first day not knowing their ABCs who by the end of the week know the entire alphabet and the sounds the letters make, and even spell their very own name before entering their first day of first grade.

The Odd Squad “Be the Agent” math camps are for slightly older children ages 5 – 10 where they use math, science and critical thinking in their quest to become agents following the format of the Emmy-winning PBS show.

The camps are made possible through a partnership with West Virginia Public Broadcasting which provides and program materials, resources and training, while Big Creek People in Action provides the staff to organize, advertise, recruit and run the camps, as well as ensuring the children receive a healthy lunch every day at each of the camps.

Thanks to the supporters of Americans Helping Americans® we are able to provide funding which pays for the food, drinks and snacks served to the children, books and literacy packets for them to take home, transportation costs, for the additional staffing required to run the program.

Without the funding from Americans Helping Americans®, Dyanne told us that they would not be able to serve as many children as they do each summer.

“If we didn’t have the funding to support this program, we wouldn’t be able to watch the young campers laugh and learn as they build literacy skills through classic fairytales with empowering superhero characters and their math skills through solving cases as ‘special agents,’” she said.

To be continued ….

Stay up to date with the latest news.

Join

Kentucky continues to face one of the highest poverty rates in the country, and the numbers tell a sobering story. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the Kentucky poverty rate was 16.4% in 2023, well above the national average of 12.5%. Median household income in the state was $61,118 (± $653), compared to $77,719 (± […]

Since 1776, Americans have relied on their relatives, neighbors, and friends, charitable organizations (such as Americans Helping Americans®), and their communities at large to help them through the challenges our nation has faced throughout its history. From the hardships of the Revolutionary War and the early years of building a new nation to economic crises, […]

Georgia is one of the most economically diverse states in the nation, with booming metropolitan areas alongside deeply struggling rural communities. So many people wonder, is Georgia a poor state? The answer lies in the sharp contrasts between prosperity in its cities and the hardship faced in its rural regions. Yet behind the progress of […]

Appalachia is a widely used name for a multi-state region in the eastern United States, shaped by shared geography, history, and economic conditions. For official federal regional planning and data collection, the Appalachian Region is defined using a county-based system established by the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC). Under the ARC definition, 52 counties in Tennessee […]

Families across Tennessee continue to face the difficult realities of poverty. Rising costs of housing, food, and healthcare, combined with job losses and long-standing systemic issues, leave thousands struggling to cover even their most basic needs. These challenges are especially pronounced in rural communities, where limited access to services and economic opportunities deepens hardship. This […]

Benjamin Franklin is quoted as saying, “The best investment is in the tools of one’s own trade.” For Big Creek People in Action (BCPIA) in McDowell County, West Virginia, having reliable tools is essential to carrying out its home rehabilitation program for low-income elderly and disabled homeowners in need of repairs. Supported by Americans Helping […]

This summer, thanks to the supporters of Americans Helping Americans®, we are once again able to support summer day camp programs in rural Kentucky and West Virginia, benefiting a projected 225 children ranging in age from 5-13. Last year, executive director Cameron Krizek reported that Americans Helping Americans® “made a significant impact on the youth […]

In February 2025, McDowell County, West Virginia, was hit once again with historic flooding following “the worst floods” of 1977, 2001, and again in 2002, reports The Appalachian Voice. “But now,” it reported in July 2025, “the new benchmark for horrible flooding will be Feb. 15, 2025, explains resident Rev. Brad Davis. “This flood was […]

Americans Helping Americans® is preparing now for the summer months, when thousands of children in Tennessee, Virginia, and Georgia will lose access to the school meals they rely on during the academic year. Last year, Americans Helping Americans® partnered with Appalachian Ministries of the Smokies (AMOS) in Jefferson City, Tennessee, the Labor of Love Mission […]

In 2023, the official poverty rate in the U.S. was 11.1%, meaning more than 36 million Americans were living in poverty, according to data from the U.S. Census Bureau. That’s nearly one in every nine people facing daily challenges to meet basic needs like food, housing, and healthcare. Poverty alleviation refers to the range of […]