By Catherine Henderson Ruff, guest contributor
Our biggest event of the year, and the best way to get an immersive, interactive experience of what we do at Chicago Voyagers.
We’ve designed our 2022 Adventure Challenge to be a truly unique event, reflective of our innovative programs. We want to give you the opportunity to get a snapshot into the experiences of the youth that we serve, and how satisfying it is to overcome obstacles as a team.
The Adventure Challenge outdoor adventure obstacle race is a “light” version of our programs: providing opportunities to problem solve, build communication and leadership, all while participating in fun, outdoor activities
Grappling with challenges is a major driver of social-emotional learning. Necessity is the mother of invention, and presenting challenges that allow individuals to invent their own solutions to cope with the issue at hand greatly impacts positive self-esteem and self-affirmations. With most things in life, teamwork is an effective way to overcome major obstacles, which is why we design the Adventure Challenge to be completed in pairs.
Our program model at Chicago Voyagers utilizes the theories of psychologist Lev Vygostky, who believed that the environment in which children grow up and interact in greatly influences how they think, how they feel about themselves and what they think about. The successes seen from our work illustrate how true that is, and is especially pertinent when considering youth who have experienced trauma and adversity.
Ecotherapy-related techniques like the ones we use at Chicago Voyagers have been shown to be effective in treating medical disorders throughout the lifespan, like hypertension, obesity, post-surgical recovery and psychosocial conditions like depression, stress, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), attention deficit hyperkinetic disorder (ADHD) and adjustment disorders. The positive outcomes from our programs also illustrate how the combination of ecotherapy and supportive environment helps youth to grow and thrive.
The Chicago Voyagers team greatly values the opportunity to share our mission and vision with the broader community in such a tangible way through the Adventure Challenge. It truly is a chance to experience what we do all year round: together, we will celebrate overcoming obstacles, have some friendly competition on who will be the fastest racers and most creative team, relax with canoe rides as we take in the great outdoors, and share a delicious meal together before the day wraps up.
The 2022 Adventure Challenge is just a few short months away- and we can’t wait to see you there! Click here to learn more, buy tickets and check out our sponsorship opportunities.
