Hey Camp Fans!

We’ve been having a blast sharing all your great responses to our ‘Share Your Camp Story’ Contest right here on the Everything Summer Camp Blog. After our seven lucky winners, everyone else who submitted received a $15 gift certificate to our online store! Today’s post is from Angela D. (or should I say Wisp), who wrote in to tell us about her summer as a staff member at Camp Cahinnio. Here’s her submission:

“I recently worked as a staff member at a Girl Scout camp here in Arkansas. Located in Booneville, Camp Cahinnio is a snug little camp nestled into the woods. This was my first year working as a staff member there and it was an amazing experience. We had a week or so of pre-camp training where all the employees worked together to clean up the camp for campers and learn the essentials to caring for campers needs. Pre-camp also gave us a lot of time to bond before campers came. Each staff member whether a cook or a counselor had their own camp name. My camp name was Wisp. My favorite part of training week was getting to stay in the platform tents that we call Tipi. This area had wooden platforms with an open tent set on each platform. It was the first time I had really slept out in the open like that because I have only ever camped in tents before. The best part was getting to walk a few people that I worked with who had never used a latrine to the latrines. Every time they would make me giggle because of the funny things they would comment about.
         lI was a unit counselor for our BA unit, which stands for Broken Arrow. This unit housed the youngest of the girls that attended camp. The girls were usually aged six to eight years of age and they were cute to work with. Our BA girls stayed in air conditioned cabins, but they were not allowed to let the A/C go down past 70 because that would make them sick.
         lMy largest challenge came the first week we had girls at camp. Some of our girls came to us saying their was a giant spider in their cabin. Another counselor and I walked into their cabin to find this really enormous spider crawling up their wall. I was terrified because I do NOT like spiders. I took the little child sized broom and let the big spider crawl on it and then put it outside. I think it helps me to be brave when there is someone there who needs more comforting than me.
         lOverall, I had a lot of fun. I spent about five or so weeks there and it was a really great experience. Depending on what all is going on in my life next year I might sign up to be a unit counselor again. It was a growing experience and I hope that I helped to better the futures of the young girls I camped with.”

Glad to hear your camp experience as a staff member was such a great time for you—everything except the part about the spider. If any readers out there are interested in joining the Girl Scouts in Camp Cahinnio or becoming a staff member there, check it out sometime. As always, thanks for reading, Camp Folks!

- John

Hey, Camp Fans!

Today we’re moving the summer camp spotlight at Everything Summer Camp over to the east coast in the Poconos to the very eastern border of Pennsylvania where you’ll find the beautiful campgrounds of Pinemere Camp. We’re delighted to sing the praises of such a great camp—when you work with more than 270 camps that are all great, it’s kind of hard not to share it with everyone. So allow me to give you the virtual tour of this beautiful summer camp right now!

Settled in the foothills of the Pocono Mountains on 180 Pennsylvanian acres, Pinemere Camp has been Nature’s home away from home for kids for the past 75 years. The 100 staff members and 75 cabin leaders are dedicated year after year to giving their campers an awesome camp experience that teaches them growth and independence.

Pinemere campers are given the opportunities for Overnight Trips as well as traditional sports such as Archery, Baseball, Basketball, Climbing Walls, Football, Street Hockey, Tennis, Volleyball, Zip Line, and more! They make a splash on the Waterfront every summer! And they have studios where sessions are held for Creative and Performing Arts such as Music Lessons, Dance, Graffiti Art, Woodworking, Ceramics, and more.

Offering comfy and inviting accommodations, Pinemere Camp’s cabins provide cots and bunk beds, shelves, screened windows, bathrooms with showers, and full electricity to make the campers feel right at home when they finally retreat back to their beds at the end of a long day at camp.

If I’ve made Pinemere Camp sound tempting enough for you, give them a closer look on their website by clicking right here—I hope it can provide your family with the perfect summer camp experience and be a great guiding path for your campers’ entry into maturation. Have fun with your search for the right camp and, as always, thanks for reading!

- John

Hey, Summer Campers!

So many of the famous celebrities we post about who were former campers like yourself get their fame in pop music or movies. But other summer camp alumni develop their name by means of entrepreneurship, sports, and broadcasting. Combine sports, broadcasting, and a history at summer camp and you have WNBC’s lead sports anchor Bruce Beck.

As a young man, Bruce enjoyed his summer escapes to Tyler Hill Camp, squared away in  Wayne County, Pennsylvania. About three hours northwest of Bruce’s home in Livingtson, New Jersey, Tyler Hill Camp showed him a gorgeous campus of 220 acres that features two large lakes, excellent athletic facilities, a nine-hole golf course, and 12 tennis courts!

After graduating grade school and high school, Bruce went on to attend Ithaca College in Ithaca, New York. His studies mainly focused on science there and in just several years, he graduated with a Bachelor of Science.

Soon after his graduation, Bruce found himself employed as a staff broadcaster for the Madison Square Garden Network, hosting the coverage for the Knicks, Rangers, and Yankees and performing as the play-by-play announcer for college football as well as basketball. A few years down the road, he’d start calling professional boxing matches too—particularly the Evander Holyfield vs. Mike Tyson II matchup from June 28, 1997.

By the time he turned 38, he started hosting ‘Sportstalk’ and ‘Sports Images’, while calling college basketball games for CBS Sports as well as play-by-play announcing for select sporting events including the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC).

Highlights of Bruce’s career include five Superbowls, three NBA Finals, six Stanley Cup Finals, six World Series, The U.S. Open Tennis Championship, The U.S. Open Golf Championship, and The NCAA Final Four. He’s also covered seven Olympics—most recently the Rio games from last year.

Bruce shot high and never looked back. Look at the heights he hit. What heights will you reach? You can check out Tyler Hill Camp for yourself if it sounds like a good fit for your family. And, as always, thanks for reading.

- John

Hey, Camp Fans!

We were delighted to see such a great response to our ‘Share Your Camp Story’ Contest here at Everything Summer Camp and now we’re eager 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! Today’s post is from Aidan G., whose mother wrote in to tell us about her son’s time away at Camp Laney and her experience with her first-time camper…

“I have been waiting for this summer since I found out I was pregnant for a boy in early 2008. This year, Aidan, was finally ready to attend his first summer at Camp Laney. And boy was I excited and ready for his summer adventure!
        lTwo weeks without being able to talk to or see my boy was tough. I stalked the mailbox for mail, checked the website hourly for news and pictures… anything for a glimpse of how my son’s summer adventure was going. Nothing. Thank God for the camp website loaded with News and Photos because that’s all I knew about how he was doing. He was smiling in every picture and I knew that smile meant he was good and happy and having a great time. I am very thankful for modern technology because the mail never came. He was too busy making memories and having a great time to write to anyone, including his friends.
        lWhen I picked him up from camp after a long two weeks, he ran to me and gave me the biggest hug. Then told me how much fun he had, that he wanted to be a ‘W’ (WCIT), and then a counselor and wanted to go to Camp Laney for the rest of his life. It made my heart so happy to know that he had all of the wonderful adventures and fun that I always dreamt he would have.
        lWhat an awesome first camp experience! I’m so happy that camp lived up to everything that I thought it would. After doing eight loads of laundry, I noticed he didn’t come home with several items of clothing – two pairs of underwear, two pairs of socks, two pairs of shorts, a pair of jeans, a striped bathing suit, and a white LSU #7 jersey. The jersey is the only item that I hope is found. He either left it at camp or put in another camper’s dirty laundry bag or trunk. My only consolation is that maybe it went home with an Alabama fan and it turned them into an LSU fan.
        lUntil next year… let’s just hope he becomes a bit more responsible with keeping his clothes together.”

Sounds like Aidan really enjoyed Camp Laney! As they say, no news is good news. It’s hard enough to be away for so long, but to be away without any contact or news is certainly a taxing trial. But it always means that your camper is simply off having an amazing time. Check out Camp Laney for yourself by clicking here if you’re interested in this camping experience and, as always, thanks for reading!

- John

Hey, Halloween Lovers!

There’s an autumnal chill in the air with little spirits running around laughing as they haunt the streets for tricks or treats. And everyone’s porches are decorated with bright orange pumpkins and ghoulish gourds, carved with faces. Filling today with absurd activities, dreadful decorations, and creepy costumes, no other holiday embraces the morbid and macabre like celebration of Halloween…or does there?

Over the years, I’ve written a number of posts to discuss the many means of celebration for one of the world’s most popular holidays: Halloween. Always coinciding in the harvest season, another holiday is celebrated in Mexico called Día de los Muertos or, the Day of the Dead—landing very close to Halloween on the calendar. The Day of the Dead begins at midnight tonight.

Often considered something of a Mexican Halloween by those who don’t observe it, the Day of the Dead may appear as a similar celebration on the surface, but Día de los Muertos is much more meaningful to the people of Mexico than Halloween is to the folks who observe it. You may love Halloween—I do too!—but Día de los Muertos is about loved ones gathering to remember friends and family who have passed on. Traditions of this holiday are to construct private altars and decorations to honor the dead.

Día de los Muertos wasn’t always so widespread in Mexico as it is nowadays. As of a few years ago, it’s gained popularity and celebrations have expanded to include live music, dancing, and parades from residential neighborhoods to cemeteries where family members can visit the gravesites of their loved ones.

With its increasing popularity, we wanted to join in the celebration of life that once was with our Seasonal Day of the Dead Storage Trunk. Featuring the festive artwork of Mexican culture, this trunk is a surprisingly colorful explosion amidst the dark abyss of death that easily inserts itself into part of your family’s altar. Keep your altar decorations inside this beautifully constructed storage trunk and make the most of your Día de los Muertos celebration! And, as always, thanks for reading!

- John