Unity Youth Camp Brings 300 Kids Together in First Year

Published 2:00 pm Wednesday, July 23, 2025

SPECIAL TO THE DAILY NEWS

Between Tuesday, July 15, and Thursday, July 17, over 300 children from across Washington Parish came together at Pine Jr./Sr. High School for the Washington Parish Sheriff’s 2025 Unity Youth Camp. In its first year, the camp was a raging success with over 300 attendees from every corner of the Parish.
The last Sheriff’s Summer Camp in Washington Parish took place in the mid-90s as a part of the DARE Program. Many people who attended that camp years ago now have camper-aged children of their own who attended Unity Youth Camp this week.
This version of the Sheriff’s camp was hosted to give children an opportunity to make new friends, learn leadership skills, and, most importantly, have fun. During the commencement ceremony on Tuesday morning, Sheriff Smith told the packed gymnasium that he wanted them to do two things while attending the camp. “The first thing I want you to do is meet someone who you didn’t already know, and the second thing is to make sure that somebody, other than you, is glad that they came out to the camp.”
From the gym, campers rushed off to one of a dozen stations that they would rotate through as they navigated the day. These included outdoor sports stations like flag football, golf, volleyball, and kickball, dancing and basketball in the gym, and a variety of indoor activities and classes. Students were moved in and out of the air-conditioned stations to give them an opportunity to cool down after being outside, and enjoyed breakfast and lunch together each day of the camp.

Indoor classes included team-building exercises that challenged campers to work together to solve problems, educational classes, drug awareness, arts and crafts stations, and a presentation by WPSO Deputies about the dangers of social media and online communication.

The Tangipahoa Sheriff’s Office paid a special visit with their mounted division on Tuesday, and on Wednesday, TPSO joined with the Baton Rouge Police Department to demonstrate their motorcycle division’s riding skills. Campers also signed cards and showed their support for BRPD’s Sgt. Caleb Eisworth, who remains in critical condition after being hit by a driver in a targeted attack while riding his patrol motorcycle last month.

A special thanks goes out to the volunteers, student counselors, coaches, teachers, and law enforcement professionals who worked hard to make the 2025 Unity Youth Camp an unforgettable experience for all who attended. Over the last few months, they coordinated with the Parish and Municipal school systems, parents, teachers, and the Sheriff’s Office to organize an event-packed, informative, and fun week. After saying goodbye on Thursday afternoon to over 300 smiling campers, we are sure that they built friendships that will last a lifetime and will be back next year.

If your children attended and had a good time, spread the word. The Washington Parish Sheriff plans to have even more stations, more campers, and another wonderful Unity Youth Camp in 2026.