A Collingwood resident will again be leading a training program for young children, which aims to provide kids with basic survival skills and ways to avoid becoming lost in the woods.
Annette Sandberg is bringing back her annual Hug-a-Tree and Survive course to the Collingwood Public Library on June 10.
Sandberg was first introduced to the program in 2004 as she served as part of the Georgian Bay Volunteer Search and Rescue Team and is also an outdoor educator with Adventure Smart, who now delivers the program.
Hug-A-Tree and Survive was developed in the United States following the search for nine-year-old Jimmy Beveridge in 1981. Four days after he went missing, he was found in the woods, dead from hypothermia.
The program was first adapted for Canadian use by the RCMP and was updated by the National Search and Rescue Secretariat and the SAR Volunteer Association of Canada in 2015 with new videos and activities to support program delivery.
The course will run from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m. at the Collingwood Public Library for kids aged five to 11 years old. The program is free, but pre-registration is required as space is limited. You can register online here. A parent or guardian must accompany a child.
