Well we were certainly sad to say goodbye to our first session girls but the second session came in with a fanfare! With a couple of days to catch our breath and get camp clean and ready to go we excitedly welcomed our new crew. These campers hit the camp ground running, laughing and ready to roll. They are excited and ambitious, playful and engaged. We have spent the first week getting to know each other and participating in activities by shack group. We hope that when all camp covid testing comes back we will be able to tag up and meet more friends around camp.
It’s been a busy week with ‘Fine Maine Days’, some of which were a little of the liquid sunshine variety. We tried new activities, started arts projects, went out hiking, sailed, skied and rode. The days are full, from breakfast to milk and crackers. Campers get the most out of every minute. The tennis, badminton, gaga and tether ball courts are full at free time and the tree house is often occupied with gaggles of girls playing cards, reading or just hanging out. Having time to just be with other kids in nature feels like such a gift this year and our girls are truly so appreciative.
We have crammed a lot into the week from campfire and cookout to picking our blue/white teams. We had a lot of girls following their mothers or sisters onto the White team this session including the daughter of former White team captain Heather Duckworth! It is great to keep our camp traditions and we also spend time learning songs and cheers and repeating our camp history so that the next generation of Runoia girls knows how we all get to be here celebrating 115 summers.
We instigated cabin inspection this session as ‘living in harmony with nature’ in your shack is perhaps not quite what we had in mind! Campers are doing a better job with cabin clean up and there are treats on the horizon for those that get high scores all week. Sometimes it is really hard to convince a 12 year old that being a good sweeper really is a great life skill.
EP’s have been fun, some active like capture the flag and some high on performance with an intense lip synch battle complete with celebrity judges.
We can’t wait to see what the next week brings and hope campers are writing some good letters home filled with stories about all that they are getting up to.
It’s the best days of summer on Great Pond! Camp Runoia is our home away from home, the best camp ever, making memories and friends that will last a lifetime.
