Cedric Howard

Campfire songs and smores were not part of Cedric Howard’s childhood.

“The great outdoors was something new to me. I was a stereotypical African American male from the South,” said Cedric, who moved to Washington four years ago from Tampa, Fla. “I’ve never been camping before.” So when his wife Thais suggested they take the kids and venture out on a camping trip, Cedric was skeptical. “I came up with all kind of excuses – we don’t know where to go, we don’t have equipment,” he said. But Thais had the answer.

Through Tacoma Metro Parks, she heard of the Camping Adventures with My Parents (CAMP) at Mount Rainier National Park. CAMP introduces families with little or no camping experience to the skills and pleasures of camping in one of America’s most beautiful places. The program received grants from Washington's National Park Fund through the McKibben-Merner Family Foundation. Over the course of three weekends in 2011, families came to the park to learn how to pitch a tent, cook on a camp stove, and enjoy time with their families in the outdoors. Mount Rainier and other organizations provided transportation to the park, camping instruction, interpretive programs in the park, and all of the gear and food needed for the weekend.

Cedric, who was joined on the trip by his wife, his 9-year-old son, Cedric II, and his son’s friend, Jarod, said his fondest memory was talking around the campfire. “I have a couple of fireplaces in my house, but I never considered a campfire as a time to share,” said Cedric, who is vice chancellor of student affairs at the University of Washington, Tacoma. “Despite coming from different backgrounds, it was very genuine and refreshing to hear the other campers’ and the rangers’ comments.”

Now Cedric is a camping convert. Though his family usually takes a cruise each summer, next year they plan to rent an RV and take a 10-day tour to see some of the country’s national parks, including Yellowstone and the Grand Canyon.

Since its inception in 2009, more than 70 families have participated in CAMP. Kevin Bacher, volunteer and outreach program manager at Mount Rainier, said several families have built on the program’s success and continue with their camp outings. “I still hear from families from the first year of the program who have returned to the great outdoors, camped again and loved it,” said Bacher.