June 10, 2026
Region 8 Sponsors A Day At the
2026 Kentucky Sheriff’s Boys and Girls Ranch
"Children are the living messages we send to a time we will not see."
— John F. Kennedy
On June 10, 2026 UAW Region 8 sponsored a day at the 2026 Kentucky Sheriffs Boys and Girls Ranch. This was the sixth year Region 8 has been a sponsor of this very worthwhile project.
The Kentucky Sheriffs Boys and Girl’s Ranch Camp was founded in 1975, with the mission of teaching the importance of learning to live and work together. The camp sets on 30 acres of  land outside of Gilbertsville, Kentucky. Since the introduction of the camp in 1975, over 40,000 Kentucky 8-11 year olds have built fond memories from their week at the camp. This summer the camp runs weekly from June 9 with the final week ending up July 17. There will be six weeks, with boys one week and girls the next week.
“The Boys & Girls Ranch is dedicated to redirecting the lives of children in Kentucky; to build their self esteem, moral character, and teach them to have respect for themselves as well as law enforcement professionals,” states Assistant Camp Director Tracey Powell. “We greatly appreciate the UAW Region 8 Director Tim Smith continuing the Region’s support of our camp, and we appreciate Tom Savage for coming to work with the children.” Lisa Amato assist Tracey Powell on managing the day to day operations of the Ranch.
For the second year in a row, retired UAW Region 8 Staff member Tom Savaged was joined by UAW Local 2195 members John and Jamie Davis. John is a GM retiree and taught elementary school art for 14 years after he retired from GM. John has handled communication for Region 8 since 2002. “It was good to have John and Jamie back this year,” Tom states. “Last year we had girls so John did a lesson on drawing flowers. This year we had boys, so we came up with the idea of them drawing cars. While John taught them how to draw a car, we talked about how our members build cars across the region. They were excited to learn our members build Corvettes, Ford Pickups, Chevy Tahoes and Cadillacs. The kids really enjoyed the art project and the talk about the vehicles our members produce. These kids come from all over the state of Kentucky. These kids cant afford the usual summer camps, so this camp is sponsored by the Sheriffs Association with help from groups like the UAW.
Proverbs 22:6 says "Train up a child in the way he should go, And when he is old he will not depart from it." It is our charge and responsibility to do our part in training up these children,” Tom adds.
Region 8 provided all the campers with art supplies, and backpacks with items they will need. “I want to thank all the clerical at the region for assembling the backpacks for these kids,” Tom added. This was truly an all around effort by the region and I want to thank everyone involved,” Tom Savage adds. |
