Catch a fish.

Build a birdhouse.Shoot a shotgun and hit a target.Walk. Talk. Learn. Meet a friend. Bond with family.It was all of this and more for 211 youth and their respective family members as they enjoyed a near perfect day at the Monroe County Youth Field Day, held at the Boys Scouts of America's Camp Trexler, between Jonas and Effort.Seventy-five volunteers, including nine from Wesley Enhanced Living, made it happen.Tom Battista and his four-legged friends, 9-month-old Reilly, 10-year-old Rusty and 7-year-old Rudi, taught lessons on dog handling and obedience.Among the jobs of different dogs are bomb sniffing, finding contraband, helping disabled persons, retrieving on command, such as the three demonstrated. Their reward "is just to retrieve" explained Battista."Do not talk to a working dog," he reminded the youngsters. He also said to ask permission, explaining that when a dog is on leash, it considers that as its territory.His dogs were the best part, said 11-year-old Brooke Stone of Sierra View as she and her mother were making paper frog catchers later. She liked "how to teach a dog to fetch."Battista was but one half of the one of 10 activity stations the groups of children could visit. Next to him was Steve Wentzel from Center Valley, a licensed humane professional.Fascinated faces watched him demonstrate his equipment."You must go to school" to become a licensed trapper he said to the youth. "I do a lot of reading."He also shared his knowledge about trapping and some of his teaching tools, including various furs and a mounted coyote.At the Fish and Boat Commission, situated at Trexler's lake, there was a discussion of how to help a drowning person.The resultant instructions included: First thing, "reach out;" second, throw something to them, like a life preserver; third, row out to them, but don't take them in. Let them hold onto the boat as you bring them in; finally, call for help.Then the young visitors were given instructions in paddling and told how to find a right-fitting life jacket. After being so prepared, they were allowed, by twos and threes to paddle on the lake, under the watchful eye of many adults, including Fish and Boat Commission personnel.Alan Kresge of Saylorsburg told them about various plants that were foods for Native Americans, which he had on display. Among them: teaberry; walnuts; goldenrod seed, made into flour; wild rice; barberry berries, which are high in Vitamin C; and watercress. He explained that watercress is high in iron and will only grow in nonpolluted water.Kresge also told the attendees about roots for tea, making birch beer from roots of the birch tree, how to cook skunk cabbage and make use of acorns, as well as reminding them that the bow and arrow were generally used by Native Americans west of the Mississippi while in this area spears were used.Hal Touni's boys from Polk Township were very excited about doing the Cherokee run and explained the difficulty of the course to Angela Schwartz, public relations director for Monroe County Youth Field Day.Kim Carlen of Wilkes-Barre was the bug lady of the day. She had bugs, egg masses, pictures and more on display, many of which the children were allowed to touch.Jeff Parks of McMichaels taught the basics of archery as fellow volunteers helped each child individually. For 8-year-old Nathan Sekol of Effort, this was the best."It was fun," he said, having broken a balloon target with one of his arrow shots.Thirteen-year-old Chris Schwenk and his sister, 9-year-old Ashley, both liked the archery, according to their mother Paula. However, they also voted for the fishing station as both caught a fish.Nathan Sekol's sister, 12-year-old Nicole, said the best was canoeing and back paddling.Robby Rasely of Tannersville really enjoyed making a bird house.Safety instructions were paramount at the rifle range and at the shotgun range.Once again, each child had his or her own instructor after group instructions.First time attendees Samuel and Joshua Wilson from Mountain View Estates hit a clay target. Sam hit three and Josh hit one.Christopher and Tana Argot also saw success on those two ranges. Christopher, 12, hit four clays with the rifle and Tana, 10, hit two with the shotgun. That and the dogs were probably her favorite. For Christopher it was catching his first perch ever in the fishing area, then releasing it."I'm in charge of birds and mammals and their habitat," said PA Game Commission officer Cory Bentzoni. His territory includes over 300 square miles, including part of Monroe."We protect deer," he specified, sharing some of his experiences.Wildlife is owned "by the people," he reminded the youth. "When it is stolen, it is stolen from you."Also talking about wildlife was Vince, from Hap's Taxidermy, who started in that field when he was 12.Among the youth present was 9-year-old Danny Cavanaugh of East Stroudsburg. Not only was he planning on having fun with his dad Kurt as they followed his 10-stop itinerary, but as a first year Webelos Scout with Pack 89 in Barrett Township, he was "trying to earn badges for myself."According to his Dad Kurt, Danny liked the shotgun range (20 gauge) the best. Even though it hurt his shoulder he decided to do it the second time when asked.About two-thirds of the children who attended had never been there before, says Angela Schwartz. She lauds the volunteers and the donors who made the day of joy and learning possible for the youth. They include such persons as Matthew Eckhart, who told her just how excited he was to catch a 14-inch bass at the fishing station and to "smash" the first target out at the .22 range the very first time he ever held a gun.She adds that the donations that were received from various community businesses enabled the hosting group to give the children some great prizes for participating in the event.Each child received a baseball cap and a T-shirt at the day's start; a free lunch for themselves and their respective parent, grandparent, or guardian; and a whole packet of things at day's end.But most important were the memories and lessons gleaned by the particpants on a sun-drenched day among the trees of Trexler.