Stamp Camp USA | About Us
Where kids learn through stamps!
Take a look at what we do: What is Stamp Camp USA? (PDF)
Stamp Camp USA was first introduced in 1995 in
Tioga County, Pennsylvania
in the
Northern Tioga School District area. The program
encouraged campers to combine their artistic and creative talents with organized philately, stamp
exhibiting and open exhibit competition.
In 1992 a Westfield Area Elementary school teacher in Pennsylvania, Sylvia Wood, began a
letter writing campaign with her third
grade class promoting the idea of the U.S. Postal Service issuing a stamp for the endangered manatee.
Knoxville, PA Postmaster Cheryl B. Edgcomb, herself a life long stamp collector, joined the
project and began teaching the kids the basics of stamp collecting. Over the years additional third
grade classes of Ms. Woods continued the efforts and Cheryl built up a number of philatelic lesson plans for the kids.
The school project culminated with the issuance of a manatee stamp as part of the
1996 U.S. Endangered Species issue.
The original third grade class students, now seventh graders, were invited as special guests to the
first day of issue ceremony
at Sea World in Florida. However that gave birth to Stamp Camp USA.
Cheryl eventually designed the camp concept out of her lesson plans through a series of mini-classes where
participants earned "Stamp Cash" for successfully completing each one. The conclusion of the camp was an
auction, allowing the kids to spend their "cash" by bidding on philatelic items of their choice to build their own
collections.
These were first held for a few years with young students in the greater Knoxville area. As the
program grew and developed, it gained the recognion and support of the
United States Postal Service and the
American Philatelic Society.
She then was detailed from her postmaster position to postal headquarters in Washington, DC to pilot Stamp
Camp USA on a national level. Stamp Camp USA became
incorporated in Pennsylvania
in 2003 and by 2005 achieved
IRS 501(c)(3) non-profit status
as an educational organization.
Stamp Camp USA participated in the two week long Washington 2006 International Stamp Show, the philatelic equivelent of
the Olympics, hend in the U.S. every ten years. Over 250,000 visitors, collectors, dealers and postal administration
officials took part in the event and also learned about all that Stamp Camp offers for kids and leaders alike.
This international exposure opened the door for expansion abroad. An invitation from the Cayman Islands Postal Service
to run Stamp Camps for both youth and leader camps was
accepted in 2008
as a direct result of the show. Adult leader graduates there started to run their own camps in 2009 for the
Girl's Brigade,
elementary schools and others and continue
doing so to this day.
The Northern Tioga School District continues to provide valuable support. Stamp Camp USA's national headquarters was
relocated in 2007 to the district’s administrative building where a larger field office helps to more adequately serve
this growing educational outreach. Cooperative efforts between the two have included senior community projects, pictorial
and cachet designs, exhibit competitions, as well as web site development and affording district students with hands-on
learning opportunities that will help propel them into the business world.
Stamp Camp USA continues to expand do to support from individuals and organizations alike. A special note of thanks to
the Stamp Camp USA Board, multitude of community and regional volunteers, and everyone from around the world who continue
to mail us donations of every kind.
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