Who we are
Harrisburg Inspiring Connections Outdoors (formerly Harrisburg Inner City Outings) is a 100% volunteer organization, dedicated to getting urban youth into the outdoors. Our leaders organize a variety of outings, including hiking, camping, backpacking, bicycling, canoeing, kayaking, orienteering, and other activities that allow the participants to explore the out of doors and learn to appreciate nature. Since 1996, we have been an active partner in the movement to provide urban youth with active, outdoor experiences. Our volunteers give their time because they know from experience that spending time in the natural world can be transformative.
What We Do
Harrisburg ICO promotes interpersonal skills and positive self-esteem by involving participants in teamwork, teaching them self-reliance, and introducing them to the beauty of the outdoors. Our leaders create opportunities for personal development, encourage respect for self and others, build outdoor skills, teach healthy meal preparation and provide leadership opportunities for personal growth and development.
The HICO program organizes and leads outdoor trips at no cost to the youth participants. We provide background checked, trained leaders and volunteers, transportation and the equipment needed for safe outings. We measure our performance in youth-days (one youth, one day, outdoors) and average between 200 and 300 youth-days per year. Our outings are carefully planned to meet our goals of:
Introducing Nature: Most of our participants have never seen the ocean, climbed a mountain or explored the woods before they were introduced to Harrisburg ICO. We are able to provide them with first time experiences that will become lifetime memories.
Enabling Imagination and Creativity: The students walk along grassy trails in unfamiliar environments, seeing and listening to the world in new ways. New sounds, new stars, new views of the land from high on a wooded hill. Many heartfelt journal entries, drawings and stories have blossomed from these trips.
Promoting Health: Participants are physically challenged by new activities. Hiking, biking and paddling increase their appreciation for a healthy life style. Helping leaders to prepare healthful outing meals and snacks teaches them meal planning skills to use at home.
Building Self-Esteem: Crossing streams while balancing on a tree trunk, hopping from rock to rock, completing a twenty mile Greenbelt bike ride, climbing a strenuous and steep uphill to Hawk Rock lookout on the Appalachian Trail - our participants accomplish so many things they never dreamed they could.
Having Fun: Having fun outdoors is also an important skill. Our participants are given some unstructured time on every outing. Whether skipping rocks across a lake, rock hopping or looking for frogs and turtles - they benefit from just being outside.