Hey, Camp Fans!

You may have noticed that we haven’t posted much in the last couple weeks. It’s good to be back in my office and tapping away at the keyboard. Where have I been, you ask? Off on vacation? Taking sabbatical? Traveling the world? Not quite. Actually, I’ve been hard at work in our Shipping Department to get orders out of our warehouse and sent to your doorstep.

Normally we would be ramping up and hiring a bunch of seasonal workers for our Shipping, Graphics, and Call Center departments, however—due to the unknown situation of the summer camp season this year—we were hesitant to bring on seasonal help and, instead, made good use of our year-round employees to fill roles that aren’t typically a part of their normal job.

We’ve had all hands on deck to get our orders out:

Sticking to certain guidelines our Production crew has been practicing social distancing yet by having half the crew coming in on alternating days and the other half on the other days. To help fill in any gaps, we had our Sales Director, Matt, and Graphics Manager, Nate pitch in to help build our camp trunks.

Vice President of the company, Mark, as well as our guy in Sales and Marketing, Drew, and myself all rolled up our sleeves to help package orders in the Shipping Department.

Our Operations Manager, Brian took on work that Mark and Drew would have otherwise been doing.

And Deb, in our Clothing and Graphics Department started shipping full bags of mail straight from her department as opposed to sending it through Shipping.   

We’ve all enjoyed getting back to work after the nationwide lockdown and are taking the safest means of returning to the workplace as possible. Instead of the office, Mark and I met outside in the sunny parking lot of Everything Summer Camp just to go over the details of this post for social distancing purposes…and because it feels nicer out in the sun.

And talk about feeling nicer, we’re celebrating our return to the workplace with a sale on our camp trunks—we’re taking $20 off of our solid color trunks including Create-Your-Own Footlockers as well as our Black Trim Happy Campers. Take advantage of the trunk discounts while they last; this sale goes through the 24th. Have fun shopping and, as always, thanks for reading, Camp Fans!

- John

Hey, Foley Fans!

Not the first time I’ve posted about Mr. Scott Foley, we looked into Scott a handful of years ago on this Blog and learned about the time he spent at Red Arrow Camp when he was a kid as well as his acting career in which he’s portrayed television roles such as Bob Brown from ‘The Unit’, Henry Burton from ‘Grey’s Anatomy’, and Sean Kelly from ‘Scrubs’.

But we only scratched the surface in that last Blog post. Let’s dig a little deeper and talk some more about former summer camper Scott Foley! What makes this man tick?!

If Scott had a Hammer
Like only a few other famous celebrities such as Harrison Ford and Nick Offerman, Scott Foley has an affinity for woodworking. “I love working with my hands,” he’s said. “If it's broken, I can usually fix it.” Sounds like another natural talent he has along with acting!

Home Depot Away from Home
Where do you go when you need to get away? The park maybe? The beach? Scott Foley enjoys escaping to the home improvement retail giant, Home Depot. “Sometimes,” he’s mentioned, “I go to Home Depot just to walk around.” We all have our sanctuaries…

Habitat for Who?
Putting those carpentry skills to good use, Scott traveled to Thailand after the tsunami in 2004 and stayed for a month, building houses with Habitat for Humanity, the nonprofit organization that helps put up affordable housing for families and communities.

These tidbits about Scott maybe aren’t quite what you expected of a famous actor, but I think they make him a pretty interesting guy. I wonder if he took the Woodworking activity offered at Red Arrow Camp back in the day! Check out Red Arrow Camp for yourself by clicking here and, as always, thanks for reading, Camp Folks!

- 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

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 Bee B. who wrote in to tell us about her summer visits at Camp Mohawk! Here’s her submission:

“Camp Mohawk is the best camp, because not only do they teach you how to fish, how to swim, and how to horseback ride, but they also teach you how to have fun, how to make friends, and how to be yourself, and be silly. Camp Mohawk supports you in who you are, what you want to be, and what you do. While we have been quarantined, they have been creating activities that we can do instead of sitting at home. They want us to stretch our abilities, and be all we can be. When I arrive at camp, I have a counselor or two asking us how our trip was, and if we need anything, and they always make sure that we know which cabin we are in. When I walk into my cabin I see two counselors giving me a name tag, and letting me choose which bunk I would like to sleep in. When all of the campers arrive, we take a tour of the camp to make sure no one gets lost. After that we play silly get-to-know-you games in the long green meadow of grass. Once I was really bummed, because I got the lowest level of swimmer when I knew I could do better. The counselors practiced with me every day, and helped me become a better swimmer. When the next swim test came, the counselors cheered me on, and when I got the next level of swimmer, they celebrated, and gave me hugs. They made me feel like a million bucks. In conclusion Camp Mohawk is the best camp because, not only do they care about you, but they want to help you become a better person, and become more creative. They want to be your friends. Also they always support you. Camp Mohawk is the best camp..”

What a wonderfully welcoming place Camp Mohawk sounds like, Bee! Thanks so much for sharing the Mohawk experience with us! It’s great to hear about your advancements in swimming. Sometimes you just need a second chance and a little support! Sounds like Camp Mohawk is your home away from home! To everybody else, if you’re interested in your own camp stay at Camp Mohawk, check out their website to learn more. And, as always, thanks for reading, Camp Folks!

- John

Hey, Camp Cooks!

Cooking is an invaluable life skill to develop and many summer camps offer excellent programs providing campers the opportunity to put on the chef hat and practice this art. On this Blog, we like to zero in on some of the record setters and pioneers of sports, crafts, and other summer camp activities. Who to choose as a pioneer in the field of Cooking?

The answer seems obvious that a foremost figure in the fine art of Cooking is the pioneering food writer and chef herself, Julia Child.

A sensible chef, Julia kept her Cooking simple and accessible for people to learn. “You don't have to cook fancy or complicated masterpieces—just good food from fresh ingredients.” Her skills in the kitchen turned her into a famous chef and, with her success in Cooking, she became an author as well as one of the first women to host their own televised Cooking show.

American herself, Julia’s main focus was on the French cuisine which she more-or-less introduced to her audience in America and contributed tips and lessons on the simplicity and easiness of preparing her wide variety of French foods.

Her TV show was called ‘The French Chef’, a Cooking show that she created and hosted herself. The show was broadcast by the public TV station in Boston, Massachusetts WGBH for ten straight years from 1963 to 1973. ‘The French Chef’ goes down in history as one of the first cooking shows on American television!

As we appreciate our summer camps for teaching and sharing Cooking tips and advice, let’s give the same appreciation toward Ms. Child and her ability to reach thousands of viewers and help introduce them to new foods and methods. Julia shared all she could with her show and her cookbooks. Enjoy sharpening your Cooking skills at summer camp—the foods you make might have French origins!

As always, thanks for reading, Camp Fans!

- John