Jimboy's Update
My favorite moment from opening day was the moment when the girls ran into the Pavilion for our first “Assembly”. The bugle blew at 3:00, letting everyone know that Rest Hour was over and it was time to report to the Pavilion. The girls busted out of their cabins and ran toward the newly renovated Pavilion (it is bigger this year, a big request from the campers last summer). As they approached the entrance they were greeted by two lines of counselors clapping and cheering as they entered the building. We call this the “Royal Reception” and it is AMAZING! Gives me chills for it makes me think of heaven.
Hebrews 12 speaks of the “Crowd of witnesses” that surround us at all times. My parents are now members of that cloud of witnesses who are cheering us on, a thought that makes me happy. Everyone at camp is also a part of the group… each counselor focused on encouraging the campers in love… this is the primary job of our staff and it becomes a priority for the campers as well. Even young campers get into this routine of encouragement and it makes for a very sweet community.
Not that such a community forms perfectly, nor does it form immediately. Girls can be hurtful (often unintentionally) and it is important to learn from such mistakes. So we learn to regularly say we are sorry, we learn to quickly give forgiveness, and we learn move on in a loving way.
Love is marked by patience, gentleness, kindness, self control, and unselfishness… and such love leads to Joy. This is our theme of the summer and we hope that you will see joy in the faces of your precious girls in the next three weeks. Camp is a good place to be… thank you for making it possible.
We encourage you to write hand written letters (solid gold in the eyes of the campers) and emails (good for referencing recent camp activities/events to show you are engaged). Many of you wrote cards and letters to be delivered on special days, as time goes on you will depend on the mail service (so anticipate a 3-4 day delivery time). Use the blog to know all the stuff that the campers are experiencing as a group. Even making note of the food is OK (food is a big deal at camp).
SO HERE IS THE RUNDOWN:
- The weather is perfect (high 80 degrees, no chance of rain, same forecast all week long)
- Dinner last night was Spaghetti, big salad bar, roasted green beans, and rainbow sprinkle cookies.
- Breakfast: fried ham and apples, fresh biscuits, big fruit and yogurt bar, cereal, oatmeal… best breakfast ever!
- Lunch: BLT’s!!!!!!! (I love BLT’s…)
- Dinner: Roasted Chicken, carrots and peas, rice pilaf, salad, cookie
- EP: Tentalow Lip Syncs
A quick word about Lip Syncs… they are AWESOME!!! The bonding effect of preparing an act to present to the entire camp for EP is profound. The girls work very hard to choose a song and work out the way they will present it in a fun way. They are nervous and excited about getting on stage and when they take their positions under the bright lights their excitement is palpable. The acts are always fairly short and “punchy”, always followed by a ROAR of applause as the girls run off stage to get their picture taken as a group. They hug, jump up and down, squeal with delight, and chatter without ceasing as they review how the act was performed… then run back to the “pit” to watch the next act. It is my favorite EP of the session for the effect it has with the girls!
I will write a second update just on the subject of photos… I know that this is an area of deep interest (numbers, quality, facial recognition) and I will give you our perspective on this service. Keep an eye out if you are interested!
Thank you for making camp a part of your summer. Thank you for reading the blog. Thank you for appreciating the unique way camp facilitates growth in your girls. We hope to surpass all expectations in the weeks to come.
