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

Hey, Camp Folks!

We’re happy to bring back what you guys wrote in for our July ‘Share Your Camp Story’ Contest submissions, though the subject matter of these submissions may not be very happy themselves. Coronavirus has had a huge impact on us all—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 first place prize winner of this randomized contest will receive a hundred dollar gift card to Everything Summer Camp. Congratulations to Sadie C. who wrote in to tell us about what should have been her fifth year at Camp Nokomis. Here’s her submission:

“Camp has always been the highlight of my year. The second I come back home, I start my countdown all over again. This would’ve been my fifth year going to Camp Nokomis on Bear Island. There is so much I will miss about camp. Whether it be sailing in the perfect clear water or singing songs around the campfire, there are so many memories that I will miss this year. It’s hard to name just one thing I will miss most. It could be my activities throughout the day where I do things like archery or ceramics, olympics when we split into teams and complete challenges fighting for our country, or the overnight where we sleep outside under the bright stars. I will miss all of these things so much, but I think the things I will miss most are the small things. Sitting in my cabin playing cards, or braiding a friend's hair at the waterfront. Eating in the dining hall and talking about crazy memories we have from previous years, or teaching someone how to make a new friendship bracelet. Those are the moments I’m going to miss. There are so many life lessons I’ve learned at camp and they happen in those moments. It’s the things you can’t learn in your daily activities. I learn things about friendships and community that I wouldn't learn at home. There is something so strange about the friendships you make at camp because you go in not knowing anyone, and you come out with some of the best friends of your life. And it’s the small moments that make that possible. Even though I’ve known for a while that camp has been cancelled, I don’t know if it’s fully hit me yet. Imagining a summer without camp is so crazy to me. I’m so sad I won’t see my camp friends and that I won’t get to make any more memories this year, but it will only make it more special when I get to go back.”

I’m so sorry to hear that you couldn’t return to Camp Nokomis this year, Sadie. The fifth year that wasn’t. This is a very touching entry that really points out how much there is to miss about camp because—you’re right—it’s not just the big stuff you didn’t get to do, it’s ALL the little things that kind of make up a major part of the camp feeling.

You do a good job pointing out what you missed out on this year. Nice work, Sadie. Hope you’ve been able to get out and still have some summer fun! Keep your head up and look onward to a trip to Nokomis next summer!

- John

Hey, Writers!

Time is just about up to get your submissions entered for the July ‘Share Your Camp Story’ Contest here at Everything Summer Camp. For now, our mailbox is still open, but the deadline is in a couple days—through the end of the month. If you haven’t done it yet, we suggest you hop to it! In these unusual times, we asked to hear from kids who weren’t able to attend summer camp this summer: how it made you feel, what you did instead, and how much you missed the camp experience.

Submit your written entry of your time at camp by clicking here. There is no entry fee. If you're under the age of 18, you'll need permission from your parent or guardian to participate in this Contest.

For the month of August ‘Share Your Camp Story’ Contest, we want to hear from all you camp families out there who found themselves fortunate enough to do camp this year. In general, things have changed quite a bit and summer camp isn’t exempt from the changes. Tell us about how summer camp was different from previous years. Or maybe it didn’t feel so different—we want to hear about that too. Entries from parents and grandparents are welcome as well.   

The Contest Everyone Wins!
For this contest we’ll be picking six random winners. Our first randomized winner will receive our top prize of a $200 gift card to use on our website! Second place prize is a $100 Everything Summer Camp gift card. Third place will receive a $50 gift card. And three more random winners will receive $25 gift cards. All other participants will get 1000 S’more Bucks.   

Tell us how camp went and submit your stories to be shared right here on the Blog! Check out the entry form for further details and, as always, thanks for reading!

- John

Hey, Camp Folks!

Things certainly are different in our nation and our world now that we’ve made it through the pandemic lockdown. And yet, things still seem just as unsure as they were when our shutdown was first put into place. Certain places have been affected more than others which caused some places to stay closed longer than others. And, unfortunately, some places are still unsure whether they can open or not. Some businesses remain closed and some aren’t financially able to reopen. It’s impacted all of us and may still be impacting you. Maybe your summer camp isn’t reopening and you won’t be attending camp this season. Usually our ‘Share Your Camp Story’ Contest gets stories about kids’ summer camp visits, but this month, we want to hear from folks who aren’t going to camp.

Your stories right now are recording history. This is a truly crazy time in our lives and our past. Let’s cement it with our stories and publish them here on our Blog. Tell us what you’ll miss most about camp and if you have any other summer plans to try and fill the void. Of course, if you are able to attend camp this summer, we'd love to hear about that as well.

For this contest, we’ll pick a $100 winner and a $25 winner of Everything Summer Camp Gift Cards. Everyone else who submits will get 1000 S’more Bucks (the campy equivalent to reward points). You have until Friday, July 31 to submit. Submissions must be 150 words to qualify, but we’d prefer that they be closer to 250. Submit your written entry by clicking here.

There is no entry fee. If you're under the age of 18, you'll need permission from your parent or guardian to participate in this Contest. And speaking of parents—we certainly love hearing from you as well; so don’t hesitate to enter your own submission if you’d like to share your own thoughts! Get writing, folks! And, as always, thanks for reading!

- John

Hey, Camp Fans!

This weekend, we continue publishing the great submissions we received for our new monthly ‘Share Your Camp Story’ Contest. After our two prize winners, all entrants in our May contest received S’more Bucks (our campy term for loyalty points) for their participation—at Everything Summer Camp, everyone’s a winner! 

The following camp story submission is from Jessica M. who wrote in to tell us about her summer visits to Camp Seven Hills! Here’s her submission:

“I have gone to Camp Seven Hills for 5 going on 6 years. I love every year of it. My first year I wanted to go home and I was young but I found it wasn’t camp I didn’t love it was the program I was in, my mom also was sent to the hospital and they didn’t tell me because I was so young. But the year later I went back and did a 2 week horse session and it was awesome. I loved being with the horse and people, you come home smelling like horses and campfire but nothing is wrong with that. My third year got cut a little short after I had a little accident in the outdoor riding arena. I fell and broke my leg, but the camp staff were awesome and took such good care of me. I went back my forth year and had such a good time, I didn’t get homesick like I did the previous years and I just loved it. My Fifth year was the best year yet. We had 2 new riding directors and they were amazing, Flicka and Spirit. They were so much fun and I didn’t want to leave. I went for 3 weeks that summer and I was so happy I wish I went all 5. At the end of my 3rd week I got my 5 year pin and shirt. I’m signed up for another 3 weeks this summer and in hope to see all the amazing barn staff and camp staff again. Thank you to all the amazing camp staff and to everyone who buys Girl Scout cookies to help all the amazing girls be able to go to camp.”

Awesome, Jessica! Thanks for the submission. I’m glad you’ve discovered how much you love Camp Seven Hills through harder times as well as all the fun! Camp often times can be that way where it doesn’t always start out so smooth. It’s a big transition! But, like you, most kids end up realizing what a blast summer camp is! To everybody else, if you’re interested in your own camp stay at Camp Seven Hills, check out their website to learn more. And, as always, thanks for reading, Camp Folks!

- John