As each summer ends, we tell ourselves not to be sad the current summer ended, but rather to be excited because the countdown to next summer has officially begun. And while it may seem like yesterday we bade farewell to our summer home, it’s with incredible excitement we say: “Welcome to Laurel South Summer 2019!”
From the back-to-school days of the fall, through Thanksgiving and the Winter holidays…from the turning of the calendar to the flowers blooming in Spring…from arriving at Pre-Camp to Staff Orientation…the excitement and enthusiasm builds to a crescendo that culminates today with the arrival of 400 of the greatest campers in the world!
Our staff had an amazingly fun and productive Orientation week, and they’re thrilled to welcome our campers from 27 states and 17 countries! For the next 3 ½ weeks, we’ll have a ball. From the ballfields to the waterfront, equestrian center to the theater, adventure to arts, out camp family will have the opportunity to form friendships and create memories that will last a lifetime. We’ll unplug in one of the most beautiful settings.
We’ll blog all summer to keep you current on all the fun in Maine. As Roger frequently says: “It’s a beautiful day in the state of Maine today!”
It seems like just yesterday our campers arrived and we kicked off the 2018 Laurel South summer. In the blink of an eye, though, here we are gearing up for our final “A” and “B” Days of the season. Wednesday’s performance of Peter Pan was truly spectacular! The campers and staff involved worked so hard, and we’re so proud of their efforts! Yesterday the entire camp ventured to Funtown USA, where we rode all the rides, played all the games, ate all the food, had fun with all of our friends and had an absolute blast!
Tonight is Final Banquet. Campers and staff will feast on steak, lobster or vegetarian lasagna, while sharing memories with their cabin mates and friends. Also tonight, our older campers have a chance to shine in the Theater, as they’re ready for their production of High School Musical. We can’t wait to see them perform! Moose Bowl has been pushed back until Saturday night, and the Rattle Snakes and Black Bears are so excited to show the entire camp the level of competition and sportsmanship that makes the evening one of our best traditions! Of course, Sunday night is our Final Ceremony. While we’re sad to see such an incredible season come to an end, we always choose to look at the positive, focusing on each moment we’re together. And, as you can see, we’re going to get every drop of fun out of these last few days!!
Tuesday seemed like any other “A” Day. We left the Dining Hall after breakfast, ready to head back to the cabins before clean up, Morning Cove and first period. But our CITs let us know this would be no ordinary “A” Day. At that moment, they decided to kick off Spirit Days 2018! For the next two days and evenings, the Blue Sharks and Green Gators took to the fields to compete in the friendliest of competitions. From their very first summer, campers look forward to the day their CIT group has the opportunity to break and run Spirit Days, compete in KAOS (BTW, one of the closest ever), pass on the passion and set the standard for future CIT groups. It was truly a Spirit Days for the ages, and in the end the winning team was…Laurel South! We all had a marvelous time testing our skills in competition, and we were so excited to finally reunite as one camp family.
While we loved the competition, we truly left it all out on the fields. The next day, we fell right into our program schedule, well-rested and ready to tackle the day. Our 5-Year Club had an amazing time on their morning excursion! Our 7th Graders are spending the day at Ogunquit Beach where they’ll see some of Maine’s most beautiful coastline. Our campers in Adventure spent the morning at the Maine Wildlife Park. Inter-camp games and tournaments are cranking, and we have a lot left to look forward to: Moose Bowl…Theater Shows…Rocket Launches…Funtown…Carnival…the list is endless! Until next time, we hope your day is as beautiful as it always is in the state of Maine!
Can it really be that we are officially half way through the session? It seems like just yesterday we arrived, but the sounds of cheering and laughter from the ballfields to the Theater, Crescent Lake to the Equestrian Center, Adventure to Culinary lets us know that we are having another truly spectacular Laurel South summer!
Yesterday was our first In-Camp “S” Day, and Brad once again hit it out of the park with our now annual Resort Day! After a delicious continental breakfast and elective morning (including those awesome Bumper Tube rides on the lake) our campers had the opportunity to compete in the Tough Moose Obstacle Race (similar to a Tough Mudder competition), and everyone who participated had a blast! The afternoon was filled with Saco/Kineo berry picking, a Baxter/Allagash Waterfront Party and special events for Rangeley and Katahdin, followed by boat tours of Crescent Lake. Our CIT’s spent the day on their Magical Mystery Bus tour, and visited sites all around Portland. They had such an amazing day, and they were thrilled to be back home.
At Laurel South, we always accentuate the positives, so we choose to not look at the session as being half over; we look at it as being half full of amazing experiences: Spirit Days…Theater Shows…Funtown…Carnival…Moose Bowl…Final Banquet, etc. We’ve got so many things left to look forward to, especially making new friends and building memories that will warm our hearts all year long.
Can it really be that we’re still in the first week? From all the action going on, you’d never guess it! We’ve already had our first “A” and “B” Day rotation. Form the Fields to the Stables…the Theater to the Waterfront…Adventure to Culinary, the sounds of children laughing, singing and cheering fill the air!
Just this morning, our incredible CIT group departed for their White Water Rafting trip on the Kennebec River! Not to be outdone, our 8th Graders have taken off for Acadia National Park and Bar Harbor! Tomorrow is our first “S” Day of the summer, and after our amazing S-Day breakfast, each group will depart on their own excursions! Each day is packed with fun and excitement at Laurel South, and we can’t wait to keep you updated in future blogs. Until then, rest assured that it’s always a beautiful day in the state of Maine!
For the past 11 months we’ve been waiting and counting down the days, hours, minutes and seconds. And yesterday, it was here! What a fantastic Arrival Day we had! With each car, bus and van that pulled into camp, our summer family was reunited. We were giddy with excitement as we met at Evening Cove and Roger officially kicked off the summer with his trademark, “What a beautiful day in the state of Maine today!!” After a wonderful cookout dinner, each campus spent the evening playing games and bonding before heading back to cabins for some quality time before getting a well-deserved good night’s sleep.
Today is our Moose Stomp Day, a mixture of photos combined with super fun activities like making s’mores at the outpost and bumper tubing on Crescent Lake. Tonight, schedules will be set, and we can’t wait to jump right into first period program tomorrow! This evening is our Opening Ceremony Council Fire, celebrating fun and friendship. We may have just arrived, but we are jumping in right from the start. We’ll make every day count as we look forward to: Moose Bowl…”S” Days…Rocket Launches…Theater Shows…Saco/Kineo IC periods…Intercamp games and Tournaments…Spirit Days…the list goes on and on! We’ll keep you updated in future blogs. Until then, rest assured it’s always a beautiful day in the state of Maine!!
Where did the time go?It seems like just yesterday we were welcoming everyone to their summer home, and yet here we are preparing for our Final “A” and “B” Days of the session.
We’ve had quite a few days. Moose Bowl was another instant classic with the Black Bears taking an early lead and holding of the Rattle Snakes’ late push. Wednesday night was our Laurel South production of “Peter Pan”.Everyone involved in the show had an awesome time, and the audience showed their appreciation for the efforts. Yesterday, the entire camp ventured to Funtown USA for a day filled with rides, games, food and laughter. Tonight is the production of “High School Musical.” Our activity areas are all preparing for culminating activities.Tomorrow night is Final Banquet, with Closing Ceremonies on Sunday night.
To all of the parents who will be joining us on Departure Day, we can’t wait to see you as you reunite with your campers! To all of our parents, thank you so much for the faith you’ve placed in us. We understand how much trust you put in us each summer to take care of your children for a month, and we don’t take that lightly! We may only have three days left, but we plan on making it the best three days yet!!!
Wow, the summer moves quickly! We may have just finished our first week, but you’d never know it by the amount of fun we’ve already had! We were so glad to welcome back our 8th Graders and CITs last night. The 8th Graders had a great time camping at Acadia National Park and visiting Bar Harbor, while the CITs had a blast white water rafting on the Kennebec River! We love that our campers have a chance to see some of the most beautiful spots in Maine. Our first “S Day” was amazing, as each campus had a unique trip throughout Maine. Saco and Kineo conquered Spashtown, USA…Baxter and Allagash spent the day at Aquaboggan…and our 7th Graders toured Old Orchard Beach. Everyone had an amazing time!
Roger and Dagni truly enjoyed dinner last night with our 7-Year Club. Dinner was great, but sharing memories, laughing and telling stories was the best part of the night! There is so much more coming…4th of July, 7th Grade’s Camden State Park excursion, Spirit Days, Moose Bowl, Theater Shows, Rocket Launches…the list goes on and on! As you can see, each day at camp is jam packed with fun, and we’ll keep you updated in future blogs. Until then, it’s always a beautiful day in the state of Maine!
Can it really be that we are still in the first week? You would never guess that by walking around camp and seeing all the action!
With schedules set, we’ve completed our first “A” Day and “B” Day rotation. How wonderful it is to witness all the action at the Waterfront, in the Theater, on the Ballfields and Courts, at the EquestrianCenter, in the Arts Studio…and did we mention the delicious aroma coming from the Culinary Center?
Intercamp Games and Tournaments have begun. And our 6th grade boys set the tone for our overnight trips, venturing to Mt. Blue. Today our CITs and 8th graders departed on their exciting trips: CITs on their way to conquer the rapids as they raft the Kennebec River. The 8th graders headed to Acadia National Park and Bar Harbor! Wednesday is our first “S” Day! After our special S Day breakfast, each group will set off on their own amazing trips!
Each day is packed with fun and excitement at Laurel South, and we can’t wait to keep you updated in future blogs. Until then, rest assured that it will always be a beautiful day in the state of Maine!!
For most campers, when the summer of 2014 draws to a close, there is always next summer to which they can look forward. For the oldest campers, however, farewell this summer means farewell forever to their years as campers. Even though a significant number of former campers choose to return to summer camp as staff members later, the experiences they gained as campers are unique to those years. Although it is difficult to say goodbye at the conclusion of their final summer, it is also a time when older campers reflect upon their camp years and truly take inventory of what camp has meant to them and will continue to mean as they proceed in life.
Older campers come away from camp having attained life skills that give them a distinct advantageas they move through their high school years and college becomes a focus. There is, for instance, respect for tradition. College campuses, like resident camps, are built on traditions that help define them. Former campers understand the importance of their role in these traditions by creating experiences that are both memorable and worthwhile.
Former campers know how to show spirit and to live in the moment as well. At camp, campers are sensitive to the fact that their time at camp each summer is limited and they embrace each minute. Having already learned to comprehend that their camp years are limited to a specific timeline in their lives, former campers arrive on college campuses already understanding that their college years are much the same.
There is also an emphasis on total involvement at camp. Summer camp is about creating an environment in which campers feel encouraged to try new things and to push their level of comfort each summer. In the safety of a setting that emphasizes inclusion, campers learn to understand that diversity is key to success. It takes many types of people and talents coming together to make camp the beloved place that it is in the hearts of the campers. With such an understanding, campers tend to get to know and befriend individuals who they might not otherwise have taken the time to get to know in a setting that does not facilitate similar ideals. Having been submerged in such a culture for several summers, campers are well equipped for the transition from home to college life after several summers at camp. They also tend to be somewhat open- minded when it comes to new things and experiences.
Older campers also come away from camp as leaders. Whether they have led fellow campers in an activity or helped mentor and lead younger campers in their later camp years, leadership is another quality that is rigorously promoted and embraced at sleepaway camp.
Campers also learn everyday life skills at sleepaway camp as they spend several weeks away fromhome each summer and make decisions for themselves. Making healthy eating decisions, for instance, is an important skill that children learn at camp. Campers also learn how to juggle multiple commitments at once, such as having a role in a camp show while simultaneously playing on a sports team. They co-habitate daily with several other campers and learn how to maximize their living space.
Clearly, those campers who will say goodbye to camp at the conclusion of the summer are bringing away far more than fun memories of a place where they spent their childhood summers. They’re bringing away experiences that translate into life far beyond camp.
