Seventeen... and LOVING Camp!

It is rare to find a camp that has campers who are older than 16 years old. Most girls (and all boys) feel like they outgrow camp once they get their drivers license; it is no wonder that camps don’t try to appeal to this age group… I don’t blame them. But it IS unfortunate. I think camp works for this age in a profound way; it provides a very supportive, tangible, significant touch point in their transition to college. For these girls, this summer is a major resource as they face a series of big transition moments that over the next couple of years. We want them to express why they like camp… not easy to put in words, but worth the effort. Their thoughts will be put into short 1 to 3 minute speeches at the Five Year Celebration tonight.

This EP takes place in the Gym (the only EP to be held there). All the girls who have been to camp for 5 or more years (at least 3 at Main Camp) are honored by the entire community as their name is called out and they proceed into the gym wearing their white dress and holding their yellow rose.

The main event is the honoring of our 30 “Senior-Seniors”… our rising 12th graders who are so much respected in this community. They each are announced and their camp “achievements” and favorite activities are proclaimed as they take their seats one by one. Then each one gives a little speech… and they are wonderful. Some of these girls have been looking forward to (dreading) this day for 10 years. They knew from an early age that they wanted to one day be a senior camper and have carefully analyzed each moment of each summer to pick a favorite memory to share. Others find it very easy to jot off a favorite moment of hilarity and link it to a friendship that endures the test of time… they wrote it during rest hour just a couple of days ago (when we told them to turn in their speech). I love this night, it goes long and you might think it would be boring for the little girls; it is not. You can hear a pin drop. Laughter, Tears, Love abounding. This is a great night.

I think that some of you think I exaggerate when telling you about stuff that happens at camp. I can understand why… I am the owner of the camp and have a direct benefit if you think that this place is wonderful… but I really am not exaggerating. I have “Camp Goggles” on, everything is better than an outsider might think it to be… but that is not to say who is right.

Experiences are sometimes hard to explain. Here in the “bubble”, it just fits. Some of these girls will be hard pressed to find another experience of this depth and significance in their lives. I hear it from old campers and counselors all the time… camp is very special and hard to explain. At Greystone, we do it well… other camps do just as great I am sure.

If you have never read the little “letter” that one of our first year counselors wrote a friend when trying to explain why she loved camp so much you should read it. She was a UVA student and a wonderful writer… really captured the heart of camp. It is called Why We Come.

Amazing weather for the next 10 days, just expect the same thing every day. Sunny mornings that warm the mountain air from a low in the 60’s to a high in the 80’s just as the storm clouds gather as we eat lunch. Rain shower hits during rest hour, dropping the temperature 10 degrees and covering the mountains in a thick mist. This pattern is much loved by us all, the best of the North Carolina summer weather patterns… and it might be this way for the rest of Main Camp!

Breakfast warrants a special shout out… Eggs Benedict! Our fancy new ovens (I call them our “space ships”) can cook anything any way we want. This is how we are able to do Eggs Benedict for 700 people… with actual poached eggs! It is remarkable technology, uses high speed convection air, precision steam injection at precise points in the cooking process, and exact temperature control. These ovens can do anything from Fry (we don’t use “fryers” any longer) to poach to roast. They are quite literally remarkable. Oh, and the hollandaise sauce was to die for.

Lunch is parmesan chicken salad (one of my favorites… it is amazing).

Dinner is going to be a BLOWOUT: Pizza. Don’t think Domino’s… think Difara’s (the best pizza in America). It is nice to reach for perfection, and pizza has become the Holy Grail of the kitchen. The quest started with the purchase of an Italian 5 deck baking oven about 5 years ago. This oven cooks bread (and pizza) perfectly… it too is steam injected and the effect is profound. Crust that cooks perfectly… but it poofed up too much. Difara’s crust is almost paper thin, crunchy on the outside yet chewy. Humm. Research was fruitless… they wouldn’t talk, the blogs focused on protein counts and various tricks of the trade (sit over night, less yeast, more salt). Nothing was right. Then… the secret came out on You Tube! It was the Flour Brand! From Italy, it was available only through specialty distributors. We started the hunt and after several months found a supplier who would sell to us. It is very expensive flour (3 times the cost of regular flour) but the effect is amazing. Paper thin crust, cooks perfectly, still chewy… success. We match the perfect crust with home made marinara sauce, buffalo mozzarella, fresh cut pepperoni, and fresh Spanish parmesan cheese (also a secret ingredient of Difara’s). When they come out of the oven, we put some fresh basil on top and sprinkle some Spanish Olive Oil over it all… perfection. We will make 280 large pizza’s from scratch in about 90 minutes… that is a major pizza operation.

I might get some pictures of the process… it is quite amazing.

Oh, Highland Games was FANTASTIC. Better than last year, that was tough to do! A fantastic program that was perfect for this time of the summer (wild and crazy before a quiet EP tonight). I put the photo’s above… really great fun.

Thanks again for reading. Have a lovely weekend, thanks for the support.

Jimboy