Innovation Lab Supports Camp Hope Initiative
The Ralph H. Johnson 3D Innovation Lab hosted participants of the Charleston Police Department’s Camp HOPE program. Camp HOPE is part of the LENS Foundation, an initiative that provides law enforcement with support to strengthen community relations and improve public safety in Charleston, SC.
Camp HOPE is a five-week summer program headed by the Charleston Police Department. Camp Hope supports at-risk youth in poverty areas while engaging them in personal and social responsibility activities. Most importantly, the camp also provides an opportunity to foster healthy relationships with police officers in Charleston.
The 3D Innovation Lab focused the camper’s creative energy towards understanding 3D-printing technology and informed them on potential careers in additive manufacturing, federal service, and supporting medical health care systems.
The Innovation Lab primarily supports projects such as the Spark-Seed Spread Innovation Investment Program, Charleston Innovates, and digital dentistry. Programs like Camp HOPE and the Innovation Lab combine their knowledge and expertise to enhance community learning and teach the next generation ways to better themselves and the community.
The VA driven Spark-Seed-Spread Innovation Investment Program seeks to identify and accelerate employee-inspired innovations that improve health experiences for Veterans, families, caregivers, and employees. At a more local level, Charleston Innovates is a Ralph H. Johnson ground-up program that leverages the firsthand knowledge of frontline employees to develop new solutions for improving care delivery. Finally, digital dentistry involves providing Veterans with much needed dentures, through 3D printing in house instead of normal production processes.
The Ralph H. Johnson 3D Innovation Lab hosts Camp HOPE yearly with the goal of helping campers understand the positive impact of creativity and problem solving concepts have on the community, Veteran care, innovative initiatives, and federal programs.