The Park Ridge Wilderness Scouts and Princesses are happy to announce this year’s scholarship winners. These young adults have finished our program, oh so long ago, and are now embarking upon their next huge new adventure: college life. We are so proud of the role our program has had in their lives as they’ve grown over the years. We wish them nothing but the best as they go off to conquer the future.
Congratulations to Addison Kopf and Nick Hachigian! You both are incredible role models for the entire organization.
Wilderness Journal
Food Drive 2026
Thank you for all those in the community that volunteered their time and made donations to the annual PRWSP Food Drive on April, 18th and 19th. Special thank you to our volunteers who agreed to serve as drop off points for donations.
Reflecting on the generous nature of the surrounding community, the Food Drive this year was a resounding success, even with another simultaneous drive occurring the same week! With everyone’s helpful contributions, the Park Ridge Wilderness Scouts and Princesses were able to make significant food and other donations this year to the St. Paul of the Cross Food Pantry.
Thank you again for helping the PRWSP work towards a hunger-free community!
Reflecting on the generous nature of the surrounding community, the Food Drive this year was a resounding success, even with another simultaneous drive occurring the same week! With everyone’s helpful contributions, the Park Ridge Wilderness Scouts and Princesses were able to make significant food and other donations this year to the St. Paul of the Cross Food Pantry.
Thank you again for helping the PRWSP work towards a hunger-free community!
Making Memories Together, as Father and Daughter: The Daddy Daughter Dance!
What an incredible night! Both the Iroquois and Algonquin Nations in the Park Ridge Wilderness Princesses recently gathered together at South Park for our annual Daddy Daughter Dance, and the turnout was spectacular! With over 100 dads and daughters participating, the room was filled with the kind of energy and spirit that makes this program so special.
From the moment the music started, the dancing was on full display. It wasn’t just about the dancing, though—the hula hoop and limbo contests brought out the competitive sides to our princesses, and all the girls went home with fantastic raffle prizes!
But the best part of the night wasn’t the contests, the music or the prizes; it was seeing the smiles and the bond between the dads and their daughters. The Photo booth was busy all night and captured some of the magic moments between princesses and their dads.
A massive thank you to all the volunteers who helped organize the night and to the 100+ dads and daughters who made it such a success. These are the moments that define the Wilderness Princess experience!
Iroquois Winter Campout 2026
Winter had the Midwest firmly in its grip when the Tribes of the Mighty Iroquois Nation of the Park Ridge Wilderness Princesses descended upon YMCA Camp Duncan in Ingleside, IL for the season’s campout.
Friday night set the tone — huddled around the campfire under a cold, clear sky…
…come Saturday, the snow-covered hills were calling. Sleds hit the slopes and the girls wasted no time finding the fastest lines down…
…then it was time for the games, which always includes the ever-entertaining Buckets — with girls slinging and dads diving…
…this year also brought a new addition to the games lineup — Kan Jam — where frisbees sailed through the crisp cold air as the Tribes got their dunking on.
When the dust (er, snow) settled from the games, the Tribes turned to the art of snow sculpture — scavenging, building, balancing, shaping, and collaborating on creations that ranged from the architectural to the ambitious…
As evening fell, the Tribes gathered for the Fire Council ceremony — torches lit, voices raised, words of wisdom dropped — the whole nine…
…and what a night it was — a brilliant winter moon hung over Camp Duncan, painting the snow and the pines in silver…
Sunday morning meant one thing: breakfast in the lodge, where the warmth inside matched the camaraderie…
…but there can be only one. Congratulations to the Powerful Powhatan for taking home the campout belt!! A big thank you to Camp Duncan and the staff for yet another memorable winter weekend!!
Pool Party 2025
The Wilderness Scouts and Princesses gathered to kickoff the new season at Centennial for the annual pool party
Jumping skills were very impressive….
Water slide shenanigans
Climbing and waterworks…
Group fun with reunited friends around the school year…
Iroquois Spring Campout 2025
Spring is a wonderful time of year; all of nature colorfully wakes up from it’s cold hibernation and kids dream of the end of the long school year. This merging of endings and beginnings are unified in the Park Ridge Wilderness Scouts and Princesses Spring campouts, the last of the three each year, which allow for a re-charge for the next year for those continuing, but also a chance to bid a heartfelt good-bye to those who will be launching into new adventures.
For this event, the Iroquois journeyed up to the Dairy State and landed at beloved Camp Minikani for the last big hurrah of the 2024-2025 season. There, they enjoyed the great outdoors…
…competed in the Tribal Games…
…took advantage of Camp Minikani’s activities: Climbing Wall, Archery, High Ropes (yup, that’s our Fed Chief up there)…
…ran all over the camp for our Plate Hunt (watching out for those sneaky double-ups) and tapped their creative energies in the Sculpture Design…
…whilst Dads sought culinary glory in the big Campout Cookoff (where everybody who eats ultimately wins)…
As with all campouts, we had our Fire Council where the Nation’s Leaders shared their wise words; also, with it being the end of the year, there were some transitions – a new Fire Starter and new Tribal Chiefs…
The weight of the night was felt with some tearful moments, where our graduates were recognized for their many years of involvement, one Princess received the SPARC Award (Special Princess Acting Responsibly in the Community) for service, and a couple of graduating Dads were designated as Navigators, an award reserved for those who have gone above and beyond in contributing to the PRWSP organization.
As an exciting finally of the weekend, the Campout Belt was captured by the Powerful Powhatan whilst the 2024-2025 Honor Tribe trophy went to the Mighty Crow.
Thank you to Camp Minikani for a fantastic weekend and to all in the Park Ridge Wilderness Scouts and Princesses for making this time-honored tradition an event to remember.