Halecrest campers dig for fossils fabricated by Costa Mesa retiree

Costa Mesa’s Halecrest Park transformed into an archeological dig site Tuesday, as kids sifted through a massive sand pit with brushes and shovels, searching for replica saber-tooth cat and megalodon teeth and excavating the jawbone of a Tyrannosaurus rex.

The summertime diversion was presented by 96-year-old Bob Schureman, a member of the private neighborhood tennis and swim club and a materials fabrication and manufacturing teacher who only recently retired from Pasadena’s ArtCenter College of Design.

A former industrial arts teacher at Costa Mesa’s Estancia High School, from 1965 to 1985, Schureman has taught generations of students in his 63-year career. So, the nonagenarian was only too happy to lead an impromptu lesson for attendees of Halecrest’s Fun Day Camp, ages 4 to 12.

96-year-old Costa Mesa resident Bob Schureman greets kids at the Halecrest Fun Day Camp in Costa Mesa Tuesday.

(Don Leach / Staff Photographer)

Applying his expertise in fabrication, Schureman crafted molds from fossils kept at Los Angeles’ La Brea Tar Pits, creating exact replicas of every fiber, crack and crevice in the original pieces.

Halecrest counselors buried the treasures in the site’s beach volleyball pit, arranging shovels and sifters as the retired teacher laid out a table with books, molds and plastic castings, including a life-sized wooly mammoth tusk. Campers arrived in groups of 20 or more kids.

“Hello everybody, I’m Old Bob,” Schureman said, flashing an ear-to-ear grin. “How many of you ever thought that there were once elephants in California? Has anybody been to the La Brea Tar Pits? Isn’t it neat? They all roamed here 25,000 years ago.”

Saber-tooth cat and megalodon teeth replicas are seen on an archeological dig at Costa Mesa’s Halecrest Fun Day Camp Tuesday.

(Don Leach / Staff Photographer)

The retired teacher’s talk touched on everything from fabrication and archaeology to the importance of having enthusiasm for one’s life and work to the need for more young people to enter the teaching profession.

“The beauty is, there are so many wonderful opportunities for you,” Schureman told campers.

Combining lessons with play is par for the course at Halecrest Fun Day Camp, which focuses on keeping kids unplugged from electronic devices and encourages campers to run, jump, climb and play with friends they’ve forged bonds with over the years, as well as newcomers to the site.

In addition to the usual playground antics, camp founder and Halecrest activities director Sharon Comer creates a summer schedule of themed weeks that help liven up the offerings with specific activities, lessons and games, including a science week.

Although Schureman’s visit came during Olympic Week, it was a perfect fit for the camp’s curriculum of keeping kids intellectually curious.

David Mazur digs for fossils at Halecrest Park during an archeological dig Tuesday led by retired Costa Mesa teacher Bob Schureman.

(Don Leach / Staff Photographer)

And the sand play areas on the site are the perfect arena to do just that, according to Comer.

“With the sand, they build these little cities and they find all these different shells,” she said. “Sometimes, they find horseshoes and we turn it into, ‘Can you imagine, there must have been a horse farm here.’”

After Schureman’s pep talk, campers were unloosed on the pit. They shoveled heaps of sand into sifters until fabricated fossils emerged. With trophies in hand, they returned to the teacher’s table, where the retiree affixed their finds to wooden plaques bearing facts about the smilodon (saber-toothed cat) and megalodon.

Mason Madden, 6, was the first archaeologist to unearth an object — a massive shark’s tooth, along with a relatively puny counterpart taken from a great white shark.

“The megalodon’s tooth is much bigger than a regular shark,” Mason said. “Can we do it again? I want a saber tooth.”

Kids uncover an exact replica of T-Rex jawbone Tuesday at Halecrest Park’s Fun Day Camp.

(Don Leach / Staff Photographer)

Nearby, 11-year-old camper Abby Alessandrini huddled together with friends Carson Princi, 9, and Sedona Kelly, 8, talking about who found what and making plans for where they would hang their plaques at home.

“I wanted to get all of them,” Carson said. “What’s crazy is how they make it so real. It almost freaks me out.”

Abby has been coming to Halecrest’s camp since before kindergarten and said, despite the lack of technology and screen time, she looks forward to seeing the friends she’s made over many summers.

Costa Mesa’s Bob Schureman, 96, prepares an educational display on extinct animals at Halecrest Fun Day Camp in Costa Mesa.

(Don Leach / Staff Photographer)

“I like that I can see my friends, and that it has a lot of activities,” she said, calling out for nearby campers Lucy Cruz and Emma Watson, both 10, to join the huddle where some serious girl talk ensued.

As the morning’s lesson wound down and campers returned to their respective play areas, Schureman fastidiously fastened the last few denticles to their wooden mounts. He handed a saber-toothed tiger plaque to a tiny, tow-headed camper.

“Do you believe in the tooth fairy?” he asked, receiving a nod in reply. “Tell your mom and dad, ‘Look at this tooth!’ You can get a lot of money for that.”

Nearby, Schureman’s wife of nearly 75 years, Mary, looked on with a smile.

“Bob’s in his glory,” she said.

Costa Mesa resident Bob Schureman, 96, crafts a take-home megalodon shark tooth panel for a Halecrest Fun Day camper.

(Don Leach / Staff Photographer)