The Turtle Island Summer Arts Camp, now in its fourth year, provides a safe place for First Nations, Metis and Inuit youth in the Windsor-Essex County area to develop their artistic skills and self-confidence while making lifelong friendships and having fun.

“The camp engages participants in creative expression through various forms of Aboriginal art,” says program co-ordinator Danielle Handsor.

Activities include pop art painting, mask sculpting, beading, and making dream catchers with elders. Following the camp, the youths host an exhibit where they showcase their artwork to their families, friends and the Windsor community. Last year’s exhibit at the Mackenzie Hall Cultural Centre during the Olde Sandwich Towne Festival was “a huge success,” Handsor says.

A program of the University of Windsor’s Aboriginal Education Centre in partnership with the Windsor Essex Catholic District School Board and the Can-Am Indian Friendship Centre, it is aimed at elementary students in grades 6, 7 and 8 and runs 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday to Friday, July 2 to 25, at Catholic Central High School.

The registration deadline is June 13. For more information or to register, e-mail Handsor at danielle@uwindsor.ca or phone 519-253-3000, ext. 3481.