Groveland Twp.- Sunlight filters through the trees on a recent Saturday afternoon as Janice Whitman takes a walk– a cakewalk, to be exact.
However, the cakewalk seems to be anything but what it’s name implies. Whitman, wearing a red helmet and a harness, is walking on a three-quarter-inch cable 25-feet above the ground. She clutches two ropes overhead.
‘Oh, my heart is pumpin?,? she says. ‘Yeah, baby.?
A man standing on the ground asks, ‘Where else can you be scared to death and like it??
Whitman and about 13 others are volunteers from the Kairos Institute, a non-profit organization which raises scholarship money, and the Center for Creative Living, a psychology clinic, both in Royal Oak. They are participating in the Adventure Challenge Group at Tamarack Camps, 4361 Perryville Road. The program takes groups of people ranging from fifth-graders to corporate and professional adults through team building exercises in a course that includes group initiatives, high ropes, low ropes, and rock climbing. The Tamarack challenge course is the largest capacity course in the country and was created in 1991.
Dave Magerman, program director, says the program was designed for the increasing need for greater performance from both individuals and groups in the workplace.
‘Programs are tailored to focus around several points such as increased communication, trust, effective problem solving and planning, bonding and simply getting to know each other better,? he said.
Whitman has reached a platform before her next challenge and encourages another participant on the cakewalk, Jennifer McCuiston, who says she is, ‘totally freaked out,? but reaches the platform before breathing a sigh of relief and receiving applause and cheers from teammates below.
Diann Braun, director of the Center for Creative Living says this is the third year that volunteers from CCL and Kairos have been in the program.
‘We hope to push people beyond their perceived limits, challenge their fears,? she says. ‘We find it to be character building– good for self-esteem and confidence. You’re doing things you didn’t think you could. It’s exhilarating and you feel pumped after doing it.?
Braun said the course is a challenge of the ability to trust, even though there is no real risk, only a perceived risk. From the voluntary program, she believes the participants will learn how to work as a team, problem-solve, think creatively, work together and respect each other.
Braun gazes upward and gasps as volunteer Jeff Clement jumps from trapeze swing to trapeze swing.
‘We’ve noticed changes and a sense of accomplishment,? says Braun. ‘We love this and we love each other. It lets us know each other outside the workplace and we get to know each other really well.?
Back on the ground, Whitman, 49, says this was her first time on the course, but it won’t be her last.
‘I’m getting in touch with my inner child,? says Whitman, who besides being a Kairos board member is a real estate agent. ‘I have a tendency to want to be perfect and with this you don’t have to be.?
Clement, 43, agrees.
‘It was like being a big kid and playing,? says the carpenter and Kairos board member, who is not afraid of heights. ‘I got to support others and have fun and play. This will probably help people to take things lighter in the workplace.?
Although Clement was not afraid, McCuiston was, saying the instinctual fear kicked in when she got up there, but she carried on and worked through the challenges.
‘I’m happy to touch the ground,? she says, smiling as she reaches down and pats the dirt. ‘I think I proved to myself that I can rise above challenges. In our everyday life we don’t get challenged. Here we are challenged physically and mentally and we can rise to the challenge.?
For more information on the Tamarack Adventure Challenge Group, call (248) 627-2821 or visit www.tamarackcamps.com