Hey, Camp Lovers!

Continuing our Camp Story Submissions, today I have an entry from Ms. Cheyenne R.! Cheyenne tells us all about her awesome summer stay at Prude Ranch where she met lots of friends, had great times, ate delicious food, and bonded with beautiful horses. Here’s what she had to say about it:

“Hi, there. My name is Cheyenne Rondeaux and I went to the fourth session of Prude Ranch summer camp 2015 as a city slicker (which are the older kids). I’ll go day-by-day explaining, in detail, what happened each day. First day was Sunday, getting settled into our new cabins. My cabinet was a Harmony one. I didn’t know anyone there except for my friend Macy and Becca and I couldn’t wait to meet lots of new friends. I got unpacked and settled in finally, got to know everyone in my cabin—it was very exciting! I was really looking forward to seeing what horse I had for the rodeo and going for the two weeks! The next day (Monday) we kinda got more organized. We got our schedules for the first week of our daily activities and our rest period. My activities were swimming, funny Farm, Soccer, and, finally, archery. Later Monday night, it was Branding night. This is where all the first years come for the first time at Prude Ranch to get their butts burned by the fire! It sure was exciting because, since I was older, I was a city slicker so we have more damages and we tried to catch the little kids so they can get their booties burned! (it doesn’t hurt as bad as it sounds)! Anyways, it was Tuesday early that morning we got up for activities at 7:15. We went hitching post and prayed. At 7:45 we went and ate breakfast. After breakfast, our daily routine was to go to cabin clean-up and get ready for the first activity—Hold on!—let me just pause my story—I’m going to skip ahead advance to the next Sunday because it’s partly the same routine every day plus we have riding at three and we are separated into three writing groups which we switch off what time should we ride. Sunday was pretty exciting. We got to go and horseback ride at the Deep pond. It was pretty dang fun! After a couple hours that we continue with a regular day after going to lunch we went and slept for a few hours. We practice barrels and another form of pole bending! I ride at home so I know the whole routine of rodeo! On Wednesday we went to Balmoray pool and that was pretty exciting and we spent the night there and swam all the day while the wranglers cooked this amazing dinner and lunch and breakfast! I was very grateful for the amazing cooking! On Thursday, it’s called Dr. Pepper day and that’s when we ride into town on horses (it’s 6 miles in town). Then right through the town grab a Dr. Pepper and head back. It sounds more fun than I’m saying it but it’s still great time the Dr. Peppers’ all nice and cold for your throat because it’s all dry from the summer hot sun. Then the final full day of camp Friday. This day is the rodeo and all of us were super excited but also sad because it meant the end of camp was near. My horse’s name is Streak and he was super-fast! He won me a Prude Ranch buckle. I’m so proud of him, I love him—not just because he won me the buckle, but because of his personality. He is 16 years old but has a little kid personality. I loved it! Then finally Saturday is when we checked out, go over stuff, and packed up. It’s very sad to have to say goodbye to all my good friends I met, but I can email them or text them! We have a skit prepared to entertain our parents. Our skit was about the horses of Prude Ranch. It was super funny! We won the Beske award then we won a little carved wood with our awards on it. It’s super creative and fun! It was a sad day to say goodbye to everyone but I was glad to be home with all my animals and family and I hope to see all my friends next year and counselors!”

Thanks again for your submission, Cheyenne! It’s great to hear that your summer camp stay was so much fun! To anyone else who may be interested in Prude Ranch, check it out for yourself some time. And, as always, thanks for reading!

- John

Hey, Camp Folks!

The Everything Summer Camp ‘Share Your Camp Story’ drawing saw an excellent response with nearly 30 entries! That’s why we’re publishing each and every one right here on the Blog! Today I’ve got two submissions from brother and sister Noah and Ella T.! Read about the great time they had at: I just wrote a Camp Spotlight post about Eagle Ridge on Monday. Here’s what Ella had to say:

“On my last two weeks of camp it was hard to get around because I was on crutches with a broken ankle. I couldn’t do anything athletic and I couldn’t do water sports. I still had a wonderful time at camp. I could do things like arts and crafts, archery (if I was sitting), improv, and cooking.

For theme night instead of being in a group I got to help the counselors and C.I.T’s for capture the flag, I got to ring the bell. On Wednesday, I went on the overnight. My cabin and I pranked Wisdom on Thursday. The dance was AWESOME even though I could not dance. Saturday and Sunday were trip days. The trips I went on were Cook’s Adventure and Bowling. In cook’s adventure we threw warm fuzzies all over Serenity.

Like I said before, I still had a WONDERFUL time at camp. I wish I could go to camp longer next year. This year a lot of my school friends got to share the experience with me. Maybe my school friends will go for two weeks next year.”

And here’s the entry from Noah T.:

“I went to Camp Eagle Ridge. It was fun. I like swimming because we swam out to the swim area in a group and it was fun swimming with my friends. I like going to the rocket in the lake. I didn’t take the swim test so I had to wear a life best but I will probably take the swim test next year. I got my Discovery Patch. I tried three activities I never did before. I did Ultimate Frisbee, kayaking, and Gaga. I also went on the overnight tent trip and it rained. Next year I want to go to camp for two weeks. If I go to camp for two weeks next year I get to go on a weekend trip. I want to go tubing and berry-picking for my trips. I made new friends when I was at camp. I am excited to see them again next year.”

Thanks for these submissions, guys! It’s really great to hear that you two had such great summer camp experiences at Eage Ridge (even despite a broken ankle!). To anyone else who may be interested in Camp Eagle Ridge, check it out sometime! And, as always, thanks for reading!

- John

Hey, Camp Fans!

The ‘Share Your Camp Story’ drawing here at Everything Summer Camp has been brought in nearly 30 entries. And so, we’re happy to publish each one right here on the Blog! After our seven lucky winners, everyone else who submitted received a $15 gift certificate to our online store—so really everyone who submitted was a winner! Today’s post features Logan T.’s camp story about an unfortunate turn of events during her summer camp stay at Camp Netimus:
“I woke up hearing the beep of my watch. I slowly opened my eyes and remembered where I was, camp. I sat up in the bottom bunk and looked out at the half-exposed window. The beautiful sunrise was at its peak with a golden shimmer. I smiled, I just couldn’t help myself. I was surprised to hear a small groan. I turned to see Taylor in the bunk behind me rubbing her eye. “Good morning!” I whispered excitedly. Taylor yawned and asked quietly, “What time is it?” I glanced down at my watch and slipped a grin. “It’s 6:47,” I whispered. Taylor let out one last groan and fell back asleep. I took the time I had left before everyone else had to wake up to look around. I turned my attention towards Laura’s bed. She had came back late last night from peeling potatoes for International night. Today is her birthday. She is turning 22 years old. All the balloons we had put on her bed were now on the floor. I had so much excitement within me. Soon, the wake up bell rang and everyone got up. I was the first one done getting dressed and brushing my teeth. As soon as the flag bell rang I rushed out the door with my other cabin-mates. We gathered around the flag pole for attendance. Afterwards, we all went to breakfast. The mealtime was over quickly and I had to return to my cabin clean-up. Many of my cabin-mates were excited for the
Crayola trip today. I didn’t want to go so I will stay here at camp. I heard the class bell ring. I knew what that meant as I ran to my camping and hiking class. It turned out I was the only one there. “So…what are we going to do today?” I asked the counselors. “I don’t know. Are there any classes you have that you want to join now to get a head start?” answered one of the counselors. I thought for a second and responded, “ I could join my Ropes class.” They said that it was alright so I ran over quickly to get my harness and helmet on. Once I joined the little class they had, we went over instructions. We were going on a new obstacle today. They said I was lucky because in my real Ropes class I could go first since I would already know what to do. I grinned at the thought. Everything was going my way today. I rushed through 2nd and 3rd period classes. Once it was time for flag again we all met down at the pavilion. Once flag was over it was time for lunch. After some munching on grilled cheese it was time for rest hour. I walked up the path to get to the cabin grove. Once I found cabin 7 I went in. We were celebrating Laura’s birthday. The song ‘22’ was playing. Lucy, Taylor, Ashley, and I were dancing. While my other counselor, Arthie, was plucking her armpit hairs. We don’t know why she does it. Anyways, Lucy kept on screaming, “WHEN YOU’RE 22!” Laura kept on laughing. I was sitting down making her a birthday card. When the walkie-talkie make a sound, Arthie told me I was needed at the office. I wasn’t expecting anything, so what could I be needed for? I left the cabin and walked towards the office when I saw my mom and the dogs. I ran to hug them. The fact something bad happened slipped my mind. I looked at her face as her expression changed. I immediately got worried. It was obvious now something bad had happened. We went over to the fire ring and sat on a log bench. My mom simply said, “Grandpa Ron is dead. He committed suicide. He shot himself with a shotgun.” The tears never stopped. I felt as if I had been shot. I must have cried forever trying to make out words, but crying instead. Eventually my mom was crying too. We were just hugging and crying together. I had to stop crying enough in order to go get my clothes from my cabin. Thankfully, I didn’t have to tell them what happened. The office told them. I was immediately embraced by a huge group hug. I felt a tiny bit of happiness from that hug. Once all my stuff was packed and I was in the car I cried again. The week I was gone attending my grandpa’s funeral flew in tears. I returned back at camp to find myself in another group hug. It was at that moment where I knew that Camp Netimus was my home. I felt safe, loved, and happy there. If that’s not a home, then I don’t know what is.”

Thank you so much for your powerful submission, Logan! Our deepest regards to you and your family! An entry like this one just goes to show how outside events carry on regardless of summer camp. There’s no planning for the loss of loved ones.

But it was awesome to hear what an amazing community there is at Camp Netimus to have made Logan feel so supported and so at home. Check out Camp Netimus for yourself and, as always, thanks for reading.

- John

Hey, Camp Fans!

The ‘Share Your Camp Story’ drawing here at Everything Summer Camp was a success! With an awesome response of nearly 30 entries, we’re happy to publish each one right here on the Blog! After our seven lucky winners, everyone else who submitted received a $15 gift certificate to our online store—so really everyone who submitted was a winner! Today’s post includes Rico L.’s camp story about his summer days at an n2 Overnight Camp:

“I am an only child so going away to camp was hard for me, especially not knowing anyone. My mom didn’t want me to worry about camp. She just told me it would go by quick and that I would make lots of friends. Well, originally, my mom told me 2 weeks which was fine at first. BUT when I got to camp and they told me “Well, this is going to be the best 3 fun-filled weeks,” I started to tear up!..my mom had signed me up for 3 weeks and didn’t know it. I was sad the first week, because I didn’t think I belonged or fit in. But it was my counselor and my camp mates that made me feel better. The first week was my birthday, I thought then I could have escaped and get to go home, to celebrate my birthday. Nope!! But I was happy that I got to talk with my parents on the phone. The best part was when the counselors woke me up at 1:00 am to celebrate my birthday, which made me feel even better. After this I knew I wanted to stay! We had cake and CANDY!! YES SUGAR! My counselor and friends made me feel special. The best part about camp is the FREEDOM. We got to choose what we wanted to do each day. I like playing basketball, which I played a lot with my friends. I actually had fun at camp, I am looking forward to next year and told my mom to sign me up for 4 weeks this time!”

Thanks again for your submission, Rico! Glad to hear that you stuck it out despite the surprise extra week you had. Though I was unable to find which specific camp Rico attended, it sounds like n2 overnight was great for him! And, as always, thanks for reading!

- John

Hey, Camp Folks!

The Everything Summer Camp ‘Share Your Camp Story’ drawing saw an excellent response with nearly 30 entries! That’s why we’re publishing each and every one right here on the Blog! Today I’ve got two campers’ submissions comin’ atcha. Read about the great time Grace K. had at Camp Lurecrest:
“Hi! I’m Grace and I am 10 years old. I went to summer camp for the first time this summer. It was called Camp Lurecrest and I had so much fun. They picked us up on a big bus to drive us to camp. I had 4 friends in my cabin and met lots of new friends too. My favorite activities were tubing in the lake and zip lining and worship time. It was like a big sleepover for a week. The food was yummy too. I was worried I would not like it. They have a dessert called cookie mush- it was my favorite!! The counselors were so nice and funny. We did devotional every day together! I can’t wait to go again next summer.”

And here’s the entry from Samantha G. who had a wonderful time at Camp Eisner:“This was my first summer away at sleep away camp. I loved it. One of my counselors was named Ofek and was from Israel. She was doing a tick check on me one day and she told me to lift one arm, then the other, then she said, ‘let me see your poopick’. I laughed and said ‘what’. She said bellybutton, turns out poopick is Hebrew for bellybutton. At camp I tried lots of new things such as self-defense and lots of new foods like Israeli couscous. We went on trips to amusement parks and I loved making lots of new friends. My Olim buddy, Maddie, was awesome. She was so nice and took such good care of me. Now I have a new ‘big sister’ I cannot wait until next summer when I can go back the ‘bubble’ for more fun!”

Thanks for these submissions, ladies! It’s really great to hear that you two had such great summer camp experiences. To anyone else who may be interested in Camp Lurecrest or Camp Eisner, check them out for yourself. And, as always, thanks for reading!

- John