FULLERTON : At Camp, Kids Learn Conflict Resolution

More than 35 children took part this week in a special “Peace Camp” at the Cal State Fullerton Children’s Center where they learned such skills as conflict resolution.

“I’m learning about gentleness . . . and sharing,” 4-year-old Cameron Hostetter said Friday as he made a colorful banner that said “Peace.”

The weeklong camp was co-sponsored by the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom. The full price for the camp was $175, but many children were on scholarships, in some cases a full one, said center director Betsy Gibbs.

The center provides day care to the children of students at Cal State Fullerton. But the summer camp was not limited to just those children.

The children played games and talked about peace in small groups led by educators and volunteers. Paul Viviani, a 7-year-old from Anaheim, said peace to him means “helping the world and all that. And picking up after me.”

Anita Varela, a Fullerton resident, had three of her children in the camp: Alex Varela-Kennedy, 5, Nico, 6 and Ariana, 7.

The lessons on peace should be familiar to her children, Varela said. “We try hard already in our home,” she said. “Now the kids have heard it in a different setting, and that has given validity to what we’ve been telling them.”

Gibbs said she hopes the center will be able to offer the camp again next summer.