MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. -- The summer season can be very draining on military personnel. Working in the hot sun all day wears many people out and can lower morale. The Single Marine Program intends to counteract the problem by hosting the 101 Days of Summer Challenge, lasting throughout the course of the summer months from June 4 to August 31.
The SMP is hosting the challenge for the third year aboard Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune. The challenge includes many different competitions between units. Winning a certain competition will earn a unit a number of points. Prize money is involved for whichever unit has the highest score at the end of summer.
“We have different challenges throughout the summer where units can win points,” said Sara Walsh, activities programmer for SMP. “It’s one point per participant, 10 points for winning and five points for getting second-place in an event. At the end of the summer the points are accumulated and units can win monetary funds.”
There are three different divisions for the challenge. The large division is for units with more than 1,000 personnel, medium division is for units with more than 500, and small is for units with less than 500. The units that finish in the top three for each division at the end of the challenge win prize money, which varies depending on the division. Large division winners will receive $1,000 dollars for first place, $750 for second and $500 for third. First place in the medium division will win $750, second place will win $500 and third will win $250. The small division first place winner will collect $500, second will get $250 and third will receive $150.
The different challenges include a chess tournament, dodge ball tournament, home run derby, bowling tournament, gold tournament, open mic, ping pong tournament, pool tournament, speed pool tournament, video game tournament, and volleyball tournament, in order to appeal to the broadest spectrum of hobbies and talents as possible.
“At each of our events we will have safety or health messages, such as the That Guy campaign, texting while driving, heat safety, and various other issues,” said Walsh. “That way we’re promoting safety and having fun at the same time.”
Walsh said different challenges each have their own maximum number of participants. If a group of Marines or sailors are interested in a specific event, they should contact their unit representative to sign up.
For more information on the 101 Days of Summer Challenge or to locate a unit representative, visit www.mccslejeune/101days, or call Sara Walsh at 451-0084.