How ‘Adventure Club’ aims to bridge income gaps, strengthen student mental health
Growing up, Kai Estep didn’t get much opportunity to travel.
His family often worked long hours and didn’t have the money, said the Franklin Pierce High School junior.
“I want to go a lot but just can’t because funds and no rides,” he said.
In 2018, he learned of Adventure Club — a new group at Franklin Pierce High School started by English teacher Colin Horak.
The club, now in its second year, aims to connect students with financial or transportation restraints to the outdoors. From hiking to kayaking to snowshoeing, the goal of Adventure Club is to travel somewhere new every month if funding allows. Students do not have to pay any fees to join.
“Adventure Club is an opportunity for kids to explore the majestic beauty of our state, to be able to go out and get some exercise, to be able to explore the region, to try different types of outdoor activities,” Horak said.
Poverty and mental health
The club is one of two public high school Adventure Clubs in the area, according to Horak. The other is at Lincoln High School in Tacoma and run by school counselor Prema Higgins.
Franklin Pierce and Lincoln high schools are high on the list of low-income schools in Pierce County.
Of the 1,173 students attending Franklin Pierce, 54 percent qualify for free or reduced lunches, according to OSPI data. Lincoln High School sees even higher numbers, with 76 percent of its 1,527 students eligible for free or reduced lunches.
Having an Adventure Club is important at Franklin Pierce, which has an “economically depressed and racially diverse population,” Horak said.
“Additionally, our students often deal with an abundance of trying and tragic personal circumstances such as poverty, drug abuse, bullying, homelessness, child neglect, etc,” Horak said. “I wanted to offer kids a safe, encouraging and exciting outlet for their personal issues and stress.”
Horak started the club after retiring from coaching baseball, golf and football at the school but wanting to continue physical activity.
At the same time, he wanted to provide an opportunity to improve the mental health of his students.
“I’ve seen the evolution in the last 10 years — (students) just over-relying on technology and being closed off and being indoors a lot more often than they used to be,” Horak said.
The club revolves around the idea that spending time outdoors can do a lot for both the physical and mental health of youth.
That’s not just an idea but also, according to many studies, a medically-proven fact. A study published in June specified that spending 120 minutes a week in nature is “associated with good health and well-being.”
“I want kids who might be stressed or depressed to be able to go out and experience that type of therapy,” Horak said about the trips. “Outdoors can do a lot of good for your mind.”
Expanding the club
About 20 students attend each Adventure Club trip. Bowen Embrey, a junior at Franklin Pierce, was with the club from the beginning.
Embrey already liked hiking but joined Adventure Club when he realized he’d stopped going.
“Whenever I’m at home, I usually just sit on my butt and do nothing, and when I saw this opportunity I said, ‘This is perfect. Let me get out and see what the world is like,’” he said.
Freshman Zyia Aponte wanted both exercise and inspiration. Aponte, who loves to draw, said it’s important to surround herself in nature. Joining the club gave her the motivation that she wouldn’t have had otherwise.
Aponte said the club’s latest trip to Snow Lake this month — a 7-mile hike that required snowshoes — was her favorite trip so far.
“That was some deep snow — I’ve never seen snow that deep, especially around my area,” Aponte said.
The club has more trips scheduled later this school year, including snowshoeing at Mount Rainier and hiking through Ape Caves at Mount St. Helens.
The club doesn’t receive any district funding and relies on partnerships or donations. Finding transportation funding is the biggest hurdle, Horak said. The club raises money by working the concession stand during basketball games.
The Liz Rocks Foundation, inspired by Tacoma local Liz Daley who died in a snowboarding accident in Argentina in 2014, is dedicated to providing opportunities for people to get outdoors and has sponsored some of the Adventure Club trips. The Tacoma Mountaineers also has sponsored Adventure Club trips and reimbursed transportation costs through a federal grant.
Horak hopes more schools in the region start Adventure Clubs.
“I think more students need the opportunity that don’t have the opportunity, especially in this area, the Tacoma metro area,” Horak said.
