Sophia Whitmer of Butler shoots a bow and arrow during a day camp Thursday at Camp Agawam. The youngsters, about 100, also planted trees and took part in other outdoor activities.

SLIPPERY ROCK TWP, Lawrence County — Fully immersed in nature, nearly 100 boys and girls planted trees, shot bows and BB guns, and rode paddle boats at Camp Agawam during a free sustainability day camp Thursday.

Camp Agawam is normally a camp for Boy Scouts, but it was transformed into an opportunity for school-aged children to try out some fun camping activities that some may have never had the chance to do.

Jack Ogoreuc, 7, of Grove City, loved getting to use the BB guns. Wearing a pair of safety goggles, he methodically cocked the gun, aimed, and fired at a target 15 feet away. He hit almost dead center on the first try.

“He likes hitting the bullseye,” said his dad, Bob Ogoreuc. He called Jack a “silver bullet” kind of guy.

Ogoreuc found out about the camp through the Moraine Trails Council website, and decided to give it a try. Jack is with Cub Scouts Pack 76.

Meanwhile, Sophia Whitmer, 8, of Butler, enjoyed trying archery for the second time. She previously did it while at Girl Scout camp, but was glad to do it again.

Stressing the importance of sustainability was also a large facet of the camp: The participants planted 30 trees at the campsite, trees that may grow for decades to come.

Campers also built birdhouses to take home, hopefully attracting winged creatures to their backyards.

“Conservation has been part of the Boy Scouts mission for over 100 years,” said Joe Jensen, a conservation advocate representing Moraine Trails Council, and several other councils in Western Pennsylvania.

The free camp was funded by Columbia Pipeline Group, through an Educational Improvement Tax Credit.

A $10,000 donation was for the camp, and an additional $30,000 from Columbia Pipeline will fund Moraine Trails Council's Learning for Life program, which goes on during the school year.

Youths enrolled in summer programs at the Dunbar Center and South Butler YMCA went to the camp, as well as other individuals and groups.

It gives children “an opportunity to put the lessons they learn in school into real life,” said Irv Gable, district director of the Moraine Trails Council.

Gable said the council is looking forward to organizing similar events for children in the future.