Camp HERO Kicks Off With CPR, Self-Defense Lessons, More

Text, Photos and Video
By Leah Sander
InkFreeNews

WARSAW — Kosciusko County kids practiced CPR, learned self-defense and more on Tuesday, July 29, thanks to Camp HERO.

The Kosciusko County Sheriff’s Office’s annual camp for those ages 8-13 returned to the Kosciusko County Fairgrounds.

KCSO Public Information Officer and Administrative Sgt. Doug Light said more than 200 kids were taking part in camp. They were divided up into eight squads, wearing T-shirts that corresponded to their group’s color.

The kids attended for free, thanks to community donations.

Light said due to increased sponsors, “we were able to up the number of campers.”

The Kosciusko County Sheriff’s Office’s Camp HERO 2025 kicked off on Tuesday, July 29, at the Kosciusko County Fairgrounds. Through it, kids ages 8-13 are learning about the roles of first responders. Here Bentley McCrum, second from the right, practices stopping the bleeding on Camp HERO Counselor and Syracuse Police Department Officer R.J. Plummer, left. Lutheran EMS Paramedic Brooklyn Cox is in the background.

Activities the kids did on Tuesday also included firearm safety, Ironman and Ironwoman workouts and how to stop bleeding. Campers also drove golf carts through an obstacle course and learned about when to call 911 from dispatchers and what life is like in the Kosciusko County Jail from jail staff.

Light said overall new elements for camp include the self-defense and anti-bullying portions. There will be a crime scene scenario and information on criminal trials provided by the Kosciusko County Prosecutor’s Office, both later in the week.

Unlike in the past, the three days of camp don’t have the single themes of EMS, police and firefighters for each day, but rather a mix of the three.

“We’ve added more squads, which means we had to add more content, so now (the three main topics) kind of mesh together,” said Light.

Around 80 adults were assisting with the camp, said Light.

“This is so community-based,” said Light of what it takes to put the camp on. “There’s not one individual or one department that can make this happen. It takes really a lot of people, and it really comes back to the community we live in.”

: James Crosby does chest compressions on a dummy.

: Kosciusko County Dispatcher Jessica Scheil, left, checks to see if Oliver Williams, in the glasses, brought a cup that lists a reason not to call 911 during a race.

: Lucas Rhoades prepares to aim at a target.

: Josiah Alcala lifts a weight during an Ironman and Ironwoman training.

: Gavin Brown practices packing a wound.

: Kosciusko County Sheriff’s Deputy Elizabeth Johnson, left, models a female jail uniform. Kosciusko County Jail Sgt. Mariah Rumple is in the background.