Hey, Camp Folks!
We’re happy to hear from our participants for the July ‘Share Your Camp Story’ Contest submissions, though the subject matter of these submissions may not be too happy. The coronavirus has had a huge impact on everyone—camp included. We asked to hear from kids who weren’t able to attend camp this season to record this very unusual time in our world.
Our second place prize winner of this randomized contest will receive a $25 gift 
card to Everything Summer Camp. Congratulations to Claudia B.! She wrote in to tell us what she misses most about The Pines Catholic Camp where she would have stayed in the summer under different circumstances. Here’s her submission:
My Summer Essay
“Last year, I attended The Pines Catholic Camp. I was going to go this year, but it was canceled due to the pandemic. One thing I will miss are my friends. I will miss playing with them and talking to them. I will also miss going to the bonfire with them. The bonfire is where all the camp gathers around a huge fire and sings songs and tells stories. The second thing I will miss is hands free spaghetti night. It was the one night of the week where everyone ate with no hands and just ate spaghetti like a dog. Most of the girls got sauce in their hair. For dessert, we had chocolate cake. The girls also had chocolate icing in their hair. It was so funny. Another thing I will miss are camp games. They are officially called night games because they are played at night after dinner. We would play them three nights of the week. We would usually play team games like Capture-the-Flag. It taught me to cooperate with my team.
The last thing I will really miss about camp is the camp legends. The first legend is about the Pines Panda. It is said the panda lives in the bamboo forest surrounding our camp, which is weird because bamboo does not usually grow in Texas. He has a little hut which you can actually see down by the lake. It looks like a house. We got to go help rebuild it because it got destroyed a little bit. The counselors say that a long time ago one of the counselors brought it and it got loose in the wild.
The second legend, and probably the most well-known one, is about The Man. He is a sort of bogeyman that lives in the forest. Once, some of the counselors took us down by another hut. This time, it was a tent looking thing made out of sticks. They say it is The Man’s old sleeping place. The newer sleeping place is a gazebo across the lake covered with The Man’s initials (TM).
The last legend is about a giant fish monster who they say a camper let out in the lake.
Since camp is closed, I was going to go to Minnesota. In Minnesota, we had rented a cabin at Lake Kabetogama. There, we would pick wild blueberries and fish. After we caught the fish we would go down to a supposedly haunted hotel and they would cook the fish for us to eat. Last year, it was really good. We would also swim in the lake. In the lake, there was this really cool water trampoline. Sadly, the trip was canceled.
Since my trip and camp was canceled, I had to fill the void of summer with fun stuff. During the days my dad is off work, we go swimming at the YMCA pool because we have a membership. At the pool, I usually play with my friends who also have a membership. I also do art stuff including painting, drawing with colored pencils, marbling, and tie-dying. I also really enjoy baking and reading. I love reading Fairy Tales, Mystery, and Scary book genres. I also play online games with my friends from school and the YMCA. Also, I enjoy spending time with my family. We have family movie night, family walks, and family reading time in the evening. I also like writing stories. That is what I am doing this summer.”
I’m glad to hear that you’ve been making the most out of a summer that has denied you your camp stay and your cabin trip, Claudia. This year sure has tried its best to suck the fun out of summer, but it sounds like you’ve been able to fit in a number of good ideas and fun activities to fill the season. I’m sorry you had to miss out on the typical summer fun you had intended on having this year. Keep your spirits up and look onward to a trip to The Pines Catholic Camp next summer!
- John