Why Do We Have Age Limits At Camp
Occasionally it is helpful to take a deep dive into a question we get a lot, and today I wanted to talk about our session age limits. Parents frequently ask why we do not allow older girls at shorter sessions. It is a question that might be on MANY of your minds as you contemplate a possible return to camp next summer.
This year we allowed rising 8th graders at August Camp in an attempt to allow any girls from our canceled 2020 season to attend the session of their choice in 2021. You might be surprised to see that for 2022 we once again have the original rising 7th grader limit. It seems unfair that June or Main Camp is the only option for your daughter - it might not be a convenient time of the summer; it might not even be possible due to your other obligations. Why can’t we accept older girls in August Camp?
We understand your perspective and want you to know that like everything at camp, this is not an arbitrary policy. The different session age limits arose from previous year’s experience. Every summer we assess what worked and what didn’t work that year and different ages need different things. Our priority is to run the best camp possible; for girls to flourish when they are here. If we find that girls have a better experience with a particular mix of grades, we adjust accordingly.
For our first 50 years, Greystone offered only one session. Seven weeks for grades 1-11. In 1973 we added a three-week session which we considered a “starter camp”. About 10 years later we added a two-week camp for grades 1-7. While August Camp was popular with parents (most new families chose this session), it seldom filled until March or April. Campers did not re-enroll in large numbers, something we had grown to expect at Greystone. We were running a very good camp but did not resonate as well as it should. Something was off.
So we looked to the lessons learned from our “best” session. Main Camp was the session that provided the highest satisfaction levels with the campers. The session that the alumnae and parents most raved about. NOBODY seemed to ever outgrow that session and their very presence made Greystone stand apart from other camps. At Main Camp, the oldest campers are rising 12th graders - SUPER COOL HIGH SCHOOL SENIORS who ABSOLUTELY LOVE CAMP in EVERY DETAIL! They enter into the silly fun of camp life, savor their nightly devotions, cheer for Breakfast Club, take notes during Morning Assembly, and are mentors to younger campers…they are stunningly good girls who have literally spent most of their life at camp. Their leadership (that can only come with age) trickles down and sets the tone for the rest of our community. Their presence had a major impact on the younger campers, particularly the 12 to 15-year-olds.
Older campers (12 years and up) are a sophisticated group who need a sophisticated camp experience. Such an experience does not come quickly. We present a mix of social, mental, physical, and spiritual growth experiences over five weeks, the magic happens slowly and the roots go deep. It is hard to replicate this process in shorter sessions. June and August Camp are great fun, but the growth experience with older girls is not the same. So we reduced the grade limit by 1 grade in our shorter sessions in an attempt to make camp better… and it worked. Re-enrollment rates rose, surveys improved, the Wait List grew.
Having older girls at camp this year has been incredible (they have been some of my favorite campers!), but even this year it was clear that the oldest girls at each session were ready for a bigger challenge. They were ready for a longer session and would benefit from the leadership of some older peers. Our goal is always to give each girl the best camp experience possible, and many years of experience have led us to believe that a longer session is better for older girls.
I might not be able to convince you that this policy is a good one. Some of you are passionate about the subject and really want to come back next year but our age limits make it impossible. It is frustrating because you know that your girls still want to come to camp. If we had several camps, we might be able to provide short sessions that “work” for older girls. There are wonderful camps that provide sessions for older girls that only last a couple of weeks. Interestingly, most of these camps limit campers to 16 years old and provide CIT programs for the older girls.
Eventually, the next generation will come in with new ideas and new ways of best accomplishing our core mission to glorify God. One thing that we know is that things change. We welcome change when it is needed, but for this time and with this question, we believe the current age ranges are still the right fit for our camp.
Sorry for the long Blog. I know we often use too many words, but it is because it’s hard to explain the nuance of complicated messages. Hopefully, this will answer some of your concerns… but as always, we welcome your questions and comments. Thank you for the support, it is appreciated.
- Breakfast Syrup infused Belgium Waffles & sausage
- Lunch Smoked Turkey Sandwiches
- Dinner Spaghetti Casserole
- EP is Olympic Counselor Hunt (a huge camp-wide hide and seek game with points for each counselor… cabins search together for the glory of first prize!).
- The weather is absolutely perfect. High of 80, slight chance of rain.
Thank you for checking in and for your interest in long blogs!
