The weeks leading up to the summer camp season are always a little frantic. May is a month full of preparation and anticipation. A whole years’ worth of work is rapidly coming to fruition. The result will be the June arrival of staff and campers to the shores of Great Pond for their amazing summer camp season. What was once just a concept is rapidly becoming a reality. Preparations for the 2017 summer sleep away camp season are definitely in full swing here at Camp Runoia.
There is the sudden leap into spring here in Maine which generates plenty of outdoor work. There are sticks that need picking up, grass that needs mowing, flowers that need planting, docks to put in, a beach that requires raking and a myriad of other tasks that need doing right now! Cleaning up the winter detritus and getting our campus looking beautiful is a high priority. The longer days allow for more outdoor work and are a great distraction from the office!
The UPS truck is a regular visitor to the Camp Runoia office with daily drops of packages filled with the needed supplies to make the camp program run smoothly. Soon the food service trucks will be rolling in as we get our kitchen opened up and fully stocked and let’s not forget the oil truck and maybe even the septic guy getting their jobs done before camp opens.
At this time of year the names on the shack and staff lists take on more personality as we learn more about our girls and counselors and their hopes and dreams for their summer. Parents are sharing medical information, travel plans, concerns and excitement for the sleep-away experience. Staff are making travel plans, getting certifications completed and wrapping up their home lives to free up their summer so that they can be completely present at camp. Penpal letters will be going out soon so that new campers will feel a stronger connection to their new summer family.
The phone never seems to stop ringing, it’s either the leadership team calling to run something by each other, a parent calling to check on the status of their forms or share a concern or maybe a local young person calling about a kitchen job. We love talking to people and sharing our excitement for the opening of camp. New parents read here – the ACA has lot of great articles to help you mentally and physically prepare for your daughters first sleep away camp experience.
We love that our days are filled to the brim and each brings us one step closer to the moment we are looking forward to the most. When we pass through the Runoia gate and get to be ‘home’ for the summer in the place that we all adore surrounded by a community that supports and sustains each and every member.
Bring it on summer of 2017 we will be ready!
