Is it close to home? What do they offer? How much does it cost?

We invited local camp operators to tell us about their offerings this summer and put them in one place to help bring a little order to the chaos.

Rowing Dock Summer Camp, 2418 Stratford Drive, Austin. www.rowingdock.com. 512-459-0999.

There’s a reason loyal campers return every year: Rowing Dock Summer Camp is the best water adventure camp in Austin. Located near Zilker Park on Lady Bird Lake, the camp is a source for thrilling, action-packed fun! Camps fill quickly, and organizers advise registering now.

Visit rowingdock.com/summer-camps for more information.

Paddle & Play (third–fifth grades):

Your camper is sure to leave camp smiling and tuckered out. Certified counselors lead new adventures each day. Campers will swim, kayak, hike, play games (including Dragonball), and make great friends. Excursions include kayaking, the Austin Nature Center, Deep Eddy Pool, and much more. Camps run M-F, 9 a.m.-1:30 p.m.

Middle School Multisport (sixth–ninth grades):

Your camper will begin each day with rowing instruction from our certified rowing coaches, followed by swimming, kayaking, hiking, paddle-boarding, volleyball, kickball and much more. Campers will visit Zilker Park, Barton Springs Pool, nearby eateries, and Red Bud Island for Capture the Flag! Camps run M-F, 8 a.m.-5 p.m.

High School Multisport (ninth–12th grades):

This camp is for high school students who love the outdoors and want to enhance their rowing skills. Each day begins with rowing instruction for multiple skill levels and team boats, followed by swimming, hiking, paddle-boarding, playing sports and much more. Excursions include kayaking and visiting Barton Springs, Zilker Park, nearby eateries and Redbud Island for Capture the Flag! Camps run M-F, 8 a.m.-5 p.m.

Umbrella Summer Camp. The camp is offered at Forest Trail Elementary, 1203 Loop 360. To reserve your spot or for questions, contact Lynn Brooks at 327-3770 or creativityumbrella@austin.rr.com.

Cost is $215 which includes snack and supplies:

Invention Dimensions Dates: June 11- 15. Times: 9 a.m.-noon

Calling all inventors. Create your own battery operated motorized invention. Campers will begin by taking apart an electric fan and a motorized toy to see how they work. Using different materials, campers build a toy car, boat, rocket and a Grabber I. At the Toy Zoo, campers explore a wild toy menagerie. For the final project, you’ll reengineer random parts from our Parts Department into your own unique battery operated invention. Team based activities will reinforce creative building skills. If you like working with motors, batteries, switches, PVC, tools, and thinking outside of the box you’ll love this camp! (Previously offered as DI Inventors I) Ages: 8-12

Invention Expansions Dates: July 9-13. Times: 9 a.m.-noon

Inventors ready for new challenges will take apart a candy dispenser and an electric toothbrush to see how they work. You’ll build a catapult, spring-loaded Grabber II and a battery operated Jittery-Bug. At the Toy Zoo, campers explore a wild toy menagerie. For your final project, campers reengineer random parts from our Parts Department and choose motors, springs, PVC and recycled materials to create your unique invention. Team based activities will reinforce your creative building skills. If you like tinkering with tools, messing with motors or inventing with intention you’ll love this camp! (Previously offered as DI Inventors I) Ages: 8-12

Inventions in Play Dates: June 11-15 and July 9-13. Times: 1-4 p.m.

Create a world. Bring it to Life. Join in a fun-filled week of story building, set design, lighting and special effects on a miniature scale. Discover different ways to construct imaginative 3-dimensional model landscapes that pop-up and stand out. Utilize decoupage, paint and novel, messy materials to create your own unique characters and bring them to life. Leave with your newly created world and inhabitants. A different theme each week. Great skill development for anyone interested in creative problem solving and performance. Age 8-12

The following camp is offered at St. Stephen’s Episcopal School, 6500 St. Stephen’s Drive, Austin.Cost is $500 (includes lunch, snacks, feast and supplies)

Hero Training Camp: Mythology in Action Dates: June 18-22. Times: Monday-Thursday 9 a.m. -5 p.m.; Friday 2 p.m.-10 p.m. Journey with the heroes of Greek mythology on a five-day adventure to Mount Olympus. With the help and hindrance of the Greek Gods, solve a series of mythological tasks using your skills in archery, rock climbing, ship building, Trojan horse construction, catapult launching and more. Celebrate the journey’s conclusion with a night of feasting, star gazing and magic fit for the gods. This camp offers a special opportunity for kids to experience St. Stephen’s unique resources – pristine, natural environment, facilities including the Observatory and rock climbing wall and faculty who will adapt their specialties to the theme of Greek mythology. Like the ancient Greeks, campers engage with the arts and sciences through their natural world – and have a blast. Ages: Students entering fifth-eighth grade.

St. Stephen’s Episcopal School Summer Camps. 6500 St. Stephen’s Dr., Austin. sstx.org.

Summer Camp 2012 includes camps for baseball, basketball, classical guitar, field hockey, lacrosse, football, mythology, art, photography, pottery, soccer, strength conditioning, tennis, Texas art project, volleyball and wizardry. Dates and costs vary. Visit sstxcamps.org for complete listings and to register online.

Visit eanesisd.net/communityeducation/camps/teanestime for registration details or more information.
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This is the time of year when mothers and daughters celebrate their relationships. One group of local mothers and daughters doesn’t wait until Mother’s Day to do that, they celebrate that relationship all year long through charity work together.
For more than 50 years, the nonprofit National Charity League has thrived, giving mothers and daughters from coast to coast the opportunity to volunteer together. Today, there are more than 165 chapters of league, with 44,000 members that include girls in grades seven through 12. Each year, NCL members volunteer about a million hands-on hours in local communities.
Local emergency room physician Kim White is the president-elect of the Capital of Texas Chapter of NCL. The local chapter recently won the 2012 Outstanding Chartered Chapters from the national NCL.
“I love NCL because of the opportunity it gives Sarah and me to spend time together, while participating in worthwhile activities,” White said. “I am also surrounded by other moms who are each so inspiring and kind-hearted.”
White and daughter Sarah have learned firsthand how the organization can provide opportunities to bond and do something important for their local community. They joined in 2009 when Sarah finished sixth grade. The chapter supports 19 philanthropies. Sarah’s favorites are the Capital Area Food Bank where she and her mom help sort food, the Ronald McDonald house where they help with meal preparation and cleaning and Operation Homefront, where they show appreciation to the military and their families.
“I love getting to work hands on to do something to really help,” Sarah said. “Even if we are just helping in our local communities, it helps make the world a better place. The same day that we made baskets for Operation Homefront, the paper had a big headline about how military families need our help, and we were already doing something to help, which was cool.”
As a physician at the St. David’s Emergency Center in Bee Cave, White is a busy woman. She divides her time between being a wife to husband Joe, mom to Daniel, Ben and Sarah and being a comforting presence to her patients. But she carves out time to be a leader in NCL.
“I love being involved in an organization that my daughter can contribute to for the rest of her life, and I love that we get to form a deep bond doing this work together,” she said. “I can see so many ways that [she] has grown as a person. For example, when we started out, she was really afraid of homeless people. Now, I think she is much more empathetic to them.”
To learn more about NCL and the four local Austin chapters, visit nclcaptex.org.

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Photo by Dane Anderson

From left,  Jan Berend, Lou Ann Dick, Susan Heckmann and Ann Temple [hidden]  celebrate a birthday at Trento .

Tucked away on the northern border of the Westbank across from Davenport Ranch, Trento Restaurant offers a fresh, simple take on eclectic Italian food that stays true to regional roots.

A restaurant opened by friends and family, it feels filled with friends and family, and everyone who works there seems to be passionate about good Italian food.

“We take anything and everything Italian and make it fresh,” said Chef Andreas Exarhos. “Our namesake is in northern Italy, and we have some traditional northern dishes, but that’s not all that we do.

Exarhos carries with him experience gained in Chicago and Europe, as well as chef experience in Austin at the Driskill Hotel, Zoot and Congress.

The focus at Trento seems to be pure, authentic food.

“Many places overcomplicate things,” said Alex Kahn, Trento’s other chef. “They put too many things on a plate. It’s simple food – fresh, rustic cuisine.”

Kahn, a Westlake High School graduate, developed a passion for food early. While in high school, he spent his summers working with Charlie Trotter in Chicago and Daniel Boulud in New York. He went on to study at the Culinary Institute of America, focusing on French and Italian food. He and Exarhos worked together at the Driskill and then side by side at Congress before deciding to open their own place.

Kahn’s mother, Nina Seely, and stepfather, Frank Seely, are co-owners of the new restaurant. Frank has been involved in the business his whole adult life, involved in the building of the County Line, Sullivan’s, Chuy’s, the Hula Hut and Shady Grove and the site selection for Z Tejas, Eddie V’s and Cover 3. He met Trento general manager Donnie Damuth when Damuth was working at the Roaring Fork, and the two remained friends after Damuth left the Roaring Fork to run NoRTH at the Domain.

“Everything just came together at one point for Trento,” Frank said. “Donnie was looking for a site, and Alex was ready. Friends had been telling me that Austin needed a good Italian restaurant.”

Damuth ran the modern-Italian NoRTH for four years, before striking out on his own. He knew Italian food, and he knew what he wanted.

“I wanted to create a place with fresh, casual Italian,” he said. “I wanted to make our own ravioli and gnocchi. We wanted passionate chefs and a great wine list. We wanted high-quality and low prices.”

The most important thing to a successful restaurant is maintaining consistent food quality, Damuth said. “If you like the veal piccata, it should be great every time. Word of mouth is our best ally.”

Open five months now, Trento seems to have found its feet.

“It’s very much a neighborhood location,” Frank said. “People come here two or three times a week. They know they can find their favorites, they know they can try something new, and they know it will be good.”

The staff at Trento listens to customers, in fact, they crave feedback. Already they have adapted menu changes several times and added live music and a private dining room. They have also begun a series of wine dinners, with five-course meals paired to wines. The restaurant will soon be offering cooking classes.

“It’s about driving hospitality from the front door,” Damuth said. “It’s not just a restaurant and food, it’s an experience. It becomes a part of life.”

Chefs Alex Kahn, left, and Andreas Exarhos bring a new take on Italian food to Trento with an eclectic menu of  fresh, simple items that celebrate regional tastes. Courtesy of Trento.

From left,  Jan Berend, Lou Ann Dick, Susan Heckmann and Ann Temple [hidden]  celebrate a birthday at Trento . By Dane Anderson.

A neighborhood favorite, Trento attracted, from left, Matt Merritt, Bill Lee, Krishna Velagapudi and Sai Ganesh for some fresh Italian fare. By Dane Anderson.

Dane Anderson

Friends, family and good food converge at Trento

Tucked away on the northern border of the Westbank across from Davenport Ranch, Trento Restaurant offers a fresh, simple take on eclectic Italian food that stays true to regional roots.

A restaurant opened by friends and family, it feels filled with friends and family, and everyone who works there seems to be passionate about good Italian food.

“We take anything and everything Italian and make it fresh,” said Chef Andreas Exarhos. “Our namesake is in northern Italy, and we have some traditional northern dishes, but that’s not all that we do.

Exarhos carries with him experience gained in Chicago and Europe, as well as chef experience in Austin at the Driskill Hotel, Zoot and Congress.

The focus at Trento seems to be pure, authentic food.

“Many places overcomplicate things,” said Alex Kahn, Trento’s other chef. “They put too many things on a plate. It’s simple food – fresh, rustic cuisine.”

Kahn, a Westlake High School graduate, developed a passion for food early. While in high school, he spent his summers working with Charlie Trotter in Chicago and Daniel Boulud in New York. He went on to study at the Culinary Institute of America, focusing on French and Italian food. He and Exarhos worked together at the Driskill and then side by side at Congress before deciding to open their own place.

Kahn’s mother, Nina Seely, and stepfather, Frank Seely, are co-owners of the new restaurant. Frank has been involved in the business his whole adult life, involved in the building of the County Line, Sullivan’s, Chuy’s, the Hula Hut and Shady Grove and the site selection for Z Tejas, Eddie V’s and Cover 3. He met Trento general manager Donnie Damuth when Damuth was working at the Roaring Fork, and the two remained friends after Damuth left the Roaring Fork to run NoRTH at the Domain.

“Everything just came together at one point for Trento,” Frank said. “Donnie was looking for a site, and Alex was ready. Friends had been telling me that Austin needed a good Italian restaurant.”

Damuth ran the modern-Italian NoRTH for four years, before striking out on his own. He knew Italian food, and he knew what he wanted.

“I wanted to create a place with fresh, casual Italian,” he said. “I wanted to make our own ravioli and gnocchi. We wanted passionate chefs and a great wine list. We wanted high-quality and low prices.”

The most important thing to a successful restaurant is maintaining consistent food quality, Damuth said. “If you like the veal piccata, it should be great every time. Word of mouth is our best ally.”

Open five months now, Trento seems to have found its feet.

“It’s very much a neighborhood location,” Frank said. “People come here two or three times a week. They know they can find their favorites, they know they can try something new, and they know it will be good.”

The staff at Trento listens to customers, in fact, they crave feedback. Already they have adapted menu changes several times and added live music and a private dining room. They have also begun a series of wine dinners, with five-course meals paired to wines. The restaurant will soon be offering cooking classes.

“It’s about driving hospitality from the front door,” Damuth said. “It’s not just a restaurant and food, it’s an experience. It becomes a part of life.”

BELOW: Chefs Alex Kahn, left, and Andreas Exarhos bring a new take on Italian food to Trento with an eclectic menu of  fresh, simple items that celebrate regional tastes.

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Photo by Nimai Malle

The Westlake Hyline performs “Entertainment District” during Zenith.

By Jessica Stenglein

Special to the Picayune

On April 19-21 spectators filled the Westlake Performing Arts Center for the annual production of Zenith, which featured Hyline, Star Steppers and the dance department along with many guest performances.

“This was our 42^nd production of Zenith,” assistant dance department director Lindsay Young said. “Zenith was titled by Diana Zuniga, the first Hyline director, because she loved the letter “z” and Zenith means the highest point or peak [which is a] perfect definition since it’s the peak of our year.”

Unlike Spotlight, the dance department’s other annual performance; Zenith is a much bigger production.

“While Spotlight is only one night, Zenith is three nights,” Young said. “Zenith has a theme and is a two act production with guest performances from the cheerleaders, Madrigals, Color Guard, Jazz Ensemble and many more musicians and singers.”

Production for this year’s Zenith began after the end of Hyline’s competition season in late February. The choreography in Zenith is put together by Young and dance department director Chelsee Capezzuti, the Hyline officers and various choreographers who are brought in to work with Hyline and Star Steppers.

“The best part of Zenith is watching the entire production come to life,” Young said. “The show starts out as just ideas on paper, but before you know it, it becomes a beautiful production. Both Hyline and the Technical Entertainment Crew pour so much energy into the show and it is always so fun to see the hard work pay off.”

The theme of this year’s show was “Keep Austin Dancing” and numbers related to a unique aspect of Austin such as the live music scene and diversity of the city.

“What I liked most about ‘Keep Austin Dancing’ is how upbeat and fun the show was and how we were able to share what we love about our home with others,” junior Maddie Settle said.

One of the most popular parts of the show is the Senior Gyline. This year the Hyline officers chose 18 senior guys to be a part of the group and choreographed a dance for them to perform in the show.

“Gyline was a ton of fun,” senior Steven Wilbanks said. “Performing on stage in Zenith was the perfect ending to an awesome senior year.”

Besides the various school groups who are involved in the show through guest performance, students are invited to audition to perform in the show.

“Singing at Zenith was amazing,” said senior Sara Pledger, who sang ‘Wavin’ Flag’ by K’naan. “I was so nervous right before going on stage, but [seniors] Lily [Judge] and Deepika [Mannem] just gave me a huge hug and told me we were going to kill it. Then, as soon as the lights came up, I just took a deep breath and started singing. I don’t think I’ll ever get to have such an amazing experience like that again.”

Zenith provides an opportunity for the dancers to gain experience putting on a production and performing for a live audience.

“It is so fun to see all of our students grow and gain confidence as they perform in Zenith,” Young said. “For a lot of students, it is their first time to get out on a stage and perform for hundreds of people.”

Zenith also provides a chance for the dancers to look back on the past year.

“My favorite thing about Zenith is dancing alongside my team for the last time and reflecting on all the amazing memories we’ve made together,” Settle said.
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The Westlake Jazz Ensembles are preparring for their performance on May 11.

Westlake High School’s jazz musicians will break out the big band sound at 7 p.m. May 11 and will welcome special guest, local jazz saxophonist John Mills.

The Westlake Jazz Ensembles are hard at work on pieces by composers such as Thad Jones, Duke Ellington, Bob Brookmeyer, and many others, including John Mills himself.

Mills is a member of John Mills Times Ten, a 10-piece jazz orchestra, whose recent album, “Caffeine Dreams,” is receiving critical acclaim. Mills is also a music professor at the University of Texas and has performed with artists such as Stevie Ray Vaughan, Lyle Lovett, Kenny Wheeler, Carla Bley and Willie Nelson.

Doors open at 6:30 p.m. for the performance at the Westlake Performing Arts Center, 4100 Westbank Dr., and there will be a silent auction. The show starts at 7 p.m. and will feature a 15-minute intermission. Tickets are $15 for adults and $10 for students. Tickets can be purchased online at chapsjazz2012.eventbrite.com.
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At a recent fundraiser for The Nobelity Project, from left, DJ Spooky, Christy and Turk Pipkin, Heather Lang, and Feed the Peace Award winner Blake Mycoskie supported schools and water wells in Africa.

Don’t forget your chance to meet Auma Obama at a book signing Friday from 6:30 – 8:30 p.m. at the McGarrah Jessee Building at 121 W. Sixth Street.

The event is sponsored by local The Nobelity Project and Citizen Generation and is billed as a Kenya-Texas celebration with music by Eddy Hobizal and Jeff Lofton. Obama will be selling her book, “And Then Life Happens.” Tickets are $25 and covers food and drink by Tito’s, Shiner Beer, Becker Wine and Word of Mouth Catering. All proceeds will go to finance Obama’s Sauti Kuu Youth Center in Kogelo, Kenya.

The Nobelity Project, founded by local filmmakers and authors Christi and Turk Pipkin, has developed the   Kenya Schools Fund, which builds classrooms, libraries, computer labs and clean water systems across rural Kenya, including Mahiga Hope High School-the only secondary school in that region. To reserve tickets to the book signing or to learn more about Nobelity, visit nobility.org.

AfterMath Band Aid Band Voted Best Teen Band in the USA @ School Jam USA 2010

The Kids Are Alright Festival will hit Riverbend Church this Saturday from noon to 10 p.m. Now in its fifth year, the show features talented young musicians in their teens and early 20s.

This year, proceeds from the event will benefit Conscious Rider, a nonprofit organization that helps teach kids with autism how to ride and care for horses and helps them better connect with the outside world. Conscious Rider has a long waiting list because there are just not enough teachers and horses to go around, said KAAFest supporter and Westlake resident Rose Vincent.

The one-day music marathon festival was started by James Mays, founder of the Band Aid School of Music.

“Today it’s not strange to see bands of teenagers playing in clubs or at your local restaurant, but six years ago that wasn’t the case,” Mays said.

With the help of a handful of parents, and Westlake High School graduate keyboardist AJ Vincent from the  SXSW multi-award-winning band The Bright Light Social Hour, and some sponsorship from businesses such as Emo’s and Vincent Landscapes, Mays launched his festival intent upon creating more venues for young artists with serious musical talent.

“Having a festival to celebrate these young players was a no-brainer,” Mays said. “We all worked very hard to make it a success and even Michael Dell came down to lend support and watch his daughter’s boyfriend rock the stage.”

Opening bands playing during the early hours of the Saturday festival are made up of middle school students who study at the Band Aid School. The next tier of artists is hand selected by Mays and colleagues as representing some of the best local talent. The selection group gives extra points to bands that are working hard to promote themselves.

“We team them up with some of the best established bands; Sleep Talk and Fresh Millions are great up-and-comers, and Quiet Company, our headliners, just won more Austin Music Awards than any other artist in history,” Mays said. “When you are a middle schooler opening up for an artist like that, it’s a good day.”

Some of the bands that find initial limelight at KAAFest go on to great things. Last year’s KAAFest featured group Schmillion went on to open for Arcade Fire.

Choosing Conscious Rider as the first recipient of KAAFest support was also a no-brainer, Mays said.

“I personally have seen the profound change that happens when children living with autism work with horses and with the people at The Conscious Rider,” he said. “The looks on parents’ faces when their children communicate in ways they have never heard are very moving to witness, and it moved me to want to lend our support to the process.  Every dollar we donate will help upgrade the facility and train more teachers so that more children and families will benefit from the beautiful work they are doing.  Every ticket sold, adds to that contribution.”

During its five-year life, The KAAFest has added skateboarding and video gaming to the festival agenda, awarding $ 2,000 in prizes for competition winners. Saturday’s festival takes place in the Riverbend Student Center at 4214 North Capital of Texas Highway. Advance tickets are $10 and available online. Tickets at the door are $15, and VIP tickets are available for $30. Visit http://thekidsarealrightfest.com.

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Ginny and Buddy Jones

The National Dating Abuse Helpline will honor Westlake lobbyist Buddy Jones and his wife Ginny with its annual LifeStyle Award for outstanding service to the community on April 21 during A Day to Shine, a day-long food and fashion show that features Westlake-area students.

The show, hosted by Westlake founder Julie Stevenson, will mark the second time NDAH has honored a local couple that exemplify healthy and positive relationships through strength of character and leadership.

The Jones have a special passion for helping children, Buddy said. The couple has six children. Their first-born son, Trey, died in an accident when he was two.

“Children are the center of our lives, and we are honored to receive this award because we believe the National Dating Abuse Helpline is helping save the lives of our children and is helping guide them on issues of dating abuse and healthy relationships.

The Westlake couple have volunteered time and raised money for a variety of organizations during the span of their 27-year marriage, including NDAH, Dell Children’s Hospital, Helping Hand Home for Children, the Ronald McDonald House, the Center for Child Protection and Safe Place.

The Jones marriage and family has been built upon the understanding that ‘To whom much is given, much is expected,”’ Ginny said.

The fashion show has grown in popularity since its beginnings four years ago.

“Three friends and I started the event to create a fashion show of healthy fashions for young women and men showing tasteful, fashionable clothes that are appropriate for their age,” Stevenson said.  “To do this as a fundraiser for the National Teen Dating Helpline seemed like a perfect match.”

This year A Day to Shine expands into two events, an afternoon dessert and fashion show at 2 p.m. at the Four Seasons emceed by KEYE TV news anchor Judy Maggio and the dinner, fashion show and awards presentation at 7 p.m. emceed by KXAN news anchor Robert Hadlock. Both fashion shows will feature students from Westlake High School, Texas A & M University, Baylor University and the University of Texas.  The evening event will also feature a live auction and showcase the modeling talents of some Austin celebrities, including Edith Royal, Dr. Michael Vik, Miss Texas High School America and WHS student Jessi Amerie, Travis County Sheriff Greg Hamilton, Rachel McCoy, Linda Mays McCaul, Heather Rivera, Ellen Balthazar, Alan Williams, Dyanne Purcell and Julia Spann. The Dating Doctor David Coleman will speak at both events.

Tables and individual tickets for both events are still available. Tickets for the evening event are $175. Tickets for the afternoon, which is geared toward students, are $35. Proceeds from both events will benefit NDAH. For more information contact Kristen Delong at 794-1133 or visit the event website at http://www.adaytoshine.org/.

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Mega outsourcing site Freelancer.com’s chief executive Matt Barrie gets the concept. He used his appearance as a SXSW speaker and trade show participant to launch the world’s largest interactive scavenger hunt last month. Hoping for a share of the $50,000 prize money, 2,019 teams of contestants from every pocket of the planet checked in to solve problems, network, and search for items and vie for the top prizes. One of those teams was headed by Westlake High School sophomore Hana Pearlson. Despite the team’s small size and a late start to the competition, it placed fourth in the international competition.

“It was a 24/7 rollercoaster ride of fun,” Hana said.

The 15-year-old was hoping to nab a portion of the prize money to help her finance a five-week summer trip to Israel through the Czech Republic and Poland with the National Federation of Temple Youth.  While the team didn’t win one of the top three money-earning spots, no one on the team would pass up the chance to do the whole thing all over again. In the short 12 days they participated, they accomplished some amazing things. They got a photo of their team logo at the North Pole, secured funding from a venture capitalist in Silicon Valley, got their hands on a $100 Trillion bill from Zimbabwe, secured television coverage on YNN, convinced SXSW musician Ruby Jane to record their theme song and created a flash mob at Six Flags Fiesta Texas in San Antonio. All of those accomplishments were part of a list of 142 cryptic tasks they were asked to complete to earn points.

To help her take on the task list, Hana put together a Cinderella team made up of three moms, a dad and an eight year old. Together they managed to beat out thousands of corporate teams from around the world. Team members included Keri and Yale Pearlson, Andrea Cornelison, her daughter, Téa, and Stacie Tryon – a Boston mom with a baby.

Hana chose the scavenger hunt as a means to raise money for her trip because it seemed easy at the time.

“Plus it didn’t require me to go around asking people for money; I feel bad doing that,” she said.

Teams in the hunt had March 9 until March 25 to complete as many tasks as possible. Hana didn’t start to pull her team together until March 18, and members missed several more days on out-of-town trips.

“We weren’t as much into is as we should have been, and we missed a few things,” said Keri, a former business professor at the University of Texas, now a consultant who helps corporations with information strategies. “But you know how that goes, your teenager wants to do something and you help out.  That’s how we got started.”

Téa and mom Andrea, a software engineer at Dell, didn’t join the effort until March 23, after the team won a giant television. That put some spark into the game.

“I like a good mind puzzle,” Andrea said. “I looked at the lists of tasks and started thinking, ‘We could do that.’ And, it was for a great cause – Hana. I wanted to help.”

As part of the competition, Andrea broke the Guinness World Record for shooting rubber bands.

“My inner competitive girl – she’s still got game,” she said proudly.

Team Pearlson was the only U.S.-based team to score in the top 10 at the end of the contest. The first -place team was from the U.K., the second-place team from the Philippines and the third-place team from Pakistan.

How did the small, late-starting team do so well?

“We were willing to put ourselves out there and just ask strangers to do things,” Hana said.

Andrea agreed.

“We just don’t take no for an answer,” she said.

The team won a few minor prizes, but without a top win, Hana didn’t make much progress in funding her trip to Israel.

“I’ve been going to Jewish summer camp for seven years,” she said. “This is the next step to do. I’m very strong in my Jewish identity, and I want to continue that life.”

The trip will cost Hana $9,500. Her parents have offered to match every dollar she raises, but she wants to pay for the trip herself. She’s come up with a new funding plan – helping to gather donations for trees in Israel through the Jewish National Fund. Half of every $36 donation she raises will go to purchase a tree and half will go to help fund her trip.

Not one of the Team Pearlson members regrets the 24/7 time they put into the scavenger hunt. Andrea and Stacie are already thinking about next year’s contest.

“To think that three family members led by a teenager made it to the top four out of thousands of teams is inspiring,” Stacie said. “Imagine what Hana can do by the time she graduates college.”

Westlake High School sophomore Hana Pearlson, center, earns points for a SXSW-based international scavenger hunt in March by getting a photo with her team logo in a photo with, from left, radio station 96.7 KISS FM intern Ray Slater and personality “Lunchbox” Daniel Chappell. Along to help was contest team member Téa Cornelison, a Barton Creek Elementary School student.

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