Category: Current News

Second Session Smiles

Posted on by Alex

Hello from another Fine Maine Day at Camp Runoia! The sun is shining, the boats are out on the blue waves, and the boisterous energy of our Second Session campers and their smiles is radiating throughout all of camp. 

We welcomed our Second Session Runoia Gals last Thursday, and hit they ground running with orientation and programming. Everyone has gotten into the groove of their block schedules, and echoes of “Hey! Are you going to Rec Swim?” can be heard everywhere. 

5th Shack Bringing The Inner Sunshine At Assembly

As we are almost an entire week into Second Session, the campers already gotten to tag up for two blocks of daily program activities. Our counselors have been working tremendously hard to make these programs magical, and all of the camper smiles and laughs tell us that it’s working. Even though yesterday was a rainy Maine day, our staff and campers rallied together in bright outfits and big smiles to bring out everyone’s inner sunshine. There was even a contest at Assembly for the shack with the brightest outfits, and people were in it to WIN it. Congrats to 5th shack who won the contest!

Runoia Gals At The Summit Of Katahdin

Today we are welcoming back our campers that went on trips this week. One group headed off to summit Katahdin, while another group went to hiking on Bigelow Mt. and canoeing on Flagstaff Lake. We’re so excited to welcome them back and hear everyone’s trip stories! Also today, several girls went to compete in a horse show at Camp Mataponi and represented Runoia fantastically winning show champions!

There is a feeling around Runoia right now that can only be described as “electric”— everyone zooming around to their activities, coming and going on trips and adventures, and making memories with new and old friends. Our hope is that while our campers enjoy the excitement of these fleeting days, that the memories made here will stay warm in their hearts long after summer leaves us. 

Until next week,

Aionur

And We’re Off!

Posted on by Pam Cobb

The Second Session of camp comes quickly and before we have time to lament the departure of our First Session #runoiagals, we are off and running again. This group always comes in with an eager pep in their step ready for camp. Some girls have been traveling or with family on summer vacationbut most have been counting down the days till camp. Before we share the news of this session, we’ll look back on the news from the end of First Session.

 We had lots of competition, final activities and personal bests. Blue White swim races, soccer, softball and kickball were all played. The Katahdin trip returned as did the Mooselookmeguntic canoeing trip. Ocho had lots of stories to share about the summit of Maine’s highest mountain (also the end of the Appalachian Trail) and canoeing in the wilderness of Maine. Sailors circumnavigated Oak Island a few times over the week and our endurance swimmers swam to Oak Island and back two mornings before the end of camp. A group of equestrians competed at Forest Acres and another was invited to Camp Vega for a Swim Meet.

Evenings were a time to reflect and celebrate this last week of camp. The classic “Ms. Tacky” Evening Program took place, our talent show showcasing many original acts and part two of “Mark Tank”, guitar, flute piano and ukes accompanied by songs, a few amazing dances and gymnastics routines and SV’s “It’s a Hard Knock Life” dance routine. Our Log night captured many events from the session and elected Log Staff read their shack-mates statistics. Our final camp fire was combined with our awards ceremony. Girls received their award packets and stood up in front of all of camp to share something they were proud of, an achievement or what they would tag up for the rest of their life. It was incredible to hear how much campers accomplished. We hope the stories are still coming your way! We enjoyed a full moon the last night of camp.

Although it’s just our second day of camp, we have a lot happening. This morning at Assembly, campers were able to “meet” all the staff through staff introductions. Campers are enjoying program on this Friday afternoon from riding lessons to tubing fun with archery and tennis in between.

Harmony Land Camp hiked in the Belgrade conservation area called “The Mountain”.

Coming up this Saturday is the Library 5K Fund Raiser for the town of Belgrade. We have about 20 girls competing. Good luck and here’s to reading and access to books! Speaking of which, we have a great lending library at camp. We read aloud at night and many girls make reading part of their night routine.

On Monday our JMGs are off to Testing Camp. More on their story next week!

Bring on the heat, summer fun and activities… and we’re off!

Love, Aionur

July 4th Celebration and Friendly Competition

Posted on by Alex

Good Morning Runoia Families and Friends! We are in the middle of a string of beautiful Fine Maine Days. The sun and birds wake us up early, and the breeze on our backs gives us a much needed cooling off, as if the Earth knows that we need it. 

Last Thursday we celebrated the Fourth of July— and a true celebration it was. Decked out from head to toe in red white and blue gear, our Rock Star Staff awoke their campers with excited commotion. As the girls rubbed their eyes and made their way to their cabin porches, they were greeted by our equestrian staff on horses cantering by their cabins yelling “The British are Coming!”, per Runoia tradition. Later at Assembly, we honored each country represented with us here at Runoia this summer, including Argentina, Canada, Greece, Spain, Hungary, Australia, Nigeria, Mexico, England, and Poland. 

Runoia Gals celebrating the 4th of July in style.

The rest of the day was a whirlwind of activities between our “British” and “American” teams,  from Water Balloon Catch and Spaghetti-Marshmallow-Tower-Building, to an entire camp-wide relay race in the afternoon. The day ended with a reflective Campfire at the Waterfront, where we bonded with songs and skits surrounding the theme of “Unity”. The entirety of the day, planned and executed by our amazing CIT’s, was incredible. 

Harmony Land Campers enjoying some time at the Waterfront.

The rest of the week has been a solid stream of daytime and evening programming- with our campers growing and learning and being excited to try new things. We also welcomed our Harmony Land Campers this week, and they are all settling nicely into their cabin and daily routine.

Later on in the week we hosted a Horse Show here at Runoia, in which we had some visitors from Camp Matoaka and Camp Mataponi come for a friendly riding competition. Our girls were stellar in performance as well as in sportsmanship, making all of us staff members beam with pride. In addition to the horse show, some of our girls travelled to Camp Caribou, where they competed in a riflery competition and represented Camp Runoia fantastically. 

Runoia Horse Show competitors after a terrific day of riding.

As of today we only have seven days left of First Session, which seems unreal, but it’s definitely true that time flies when we’re having fun. This week we will be encouraging the girls to really soak in and enjoy this last week of camp before we must say goodbye. We as staff members get a front row seat to the joy, the learning, the growing, the silliness, and the abounding laughter from our Runoia Gals every day, and we, too, are becoming better people for it. 

The coming week holds in store our Talent Show, Log Night, Awards, and Graduation. We are incredibly excited to savor every happy moment with our campers this week— making memories that will surely last a lifetime. 

Until Next Week! 

 

By Nina Budeiri

Into The Swing of Programming at Camp Runoia

Posted on by Alex

Greetings from Camp Runoia!

Camp is in full swing now, with our second block schedule keeping us all busy this week. We have had two full block sessions now, three days each, giving the girls plenty of time to learn new skills, make new friends and become SUGs (Stand Up Gals).

At Camp Runoia we teach the girls how to be the best they can be, and part of that is looking out for each other, or being a Stand Up Gals, aka SUGs. From helping a friend find their way to a new class, or picking up trash when they pass by it, we hope all our gals will look out for one another and build lifelong skills doing it.

Runoia Gals enjoying a Fine Maine Day on Great Pond

On Sunday we had our first all camp Sunday Fun Day, where we don’t have regular lessons, we get to sleep in and even go to breakfast in our pajamas! We got into small teams in the morning and played sports all over camp but then the rain hit, and we moved indoors for more fun. The Junior and Senior Ends played two rousing game of Scatagories.

Every night our camp gets together to be involved in Evening Program (EP). One night we had Country Creation; shack groups came up with a country name, designed a flag, made up a dance or song, what their country was best known for and more. The creativity and out-of-the-box thinking were amazing! Another night was Counselor Hunt where we had all the counselors hide around camp and the campers had to find them–  The more creative the spot, the more points the counselors were worth.

This Thursday is the 4th of July, a big celebration here at camp. Our hard-working CIT’s (Counselors in Training) oversee planning and implementing all the amazing activities. We can’t wait! It’s a big part of the CIT’s summer and we are all very excited to see what the day will bring! Tune in next week to find out all about the 4th of July festivities and more in our next blog!

 

By: Tess May

First Days at Camp Runoia

Posted on by Alex

Every staff member here at Camp Runoia woke up buzzing with excitement for opening day. After finishing touches were put on cabins and everyone changed into their uniforms, you could feel the magic in the air as the first campers filtered down into their cabins. The little bit of rain we had in no way put a damper on the exhilaration of arriving at camp. 

After some time getting to know their cabin-mates and counselors, everyone gathered into the Dining Hall for our first meal of our 113th summer (spaghetti, of course). After everyone was nice and full, junior and senior ends split up for evening program, and let me tell you, the cheering and roaring laughter coming from the Lodge and the Den carried throughout all of camp. Then, after some bedtime milk and crackers, everyone got cozy in their cabins and rested up for the big day we all have ahead of us. 

Today  will be our orientation so that our new campers can get to know everything available to them at Camp Runoia, and returners can have a refresher about procedures and schedules. 

It is a Fine Maine Day, and everyone is ready to start getting into a routine. 

Tomorrow will mark the beginning of our first block of programming, where campers will have a schedule of their activities and get to go about their day participating in programs that they get to choose themselves. From waterskiing to basketweaving to swimming lessons, every last kiddo will fall into a groove and camp will begin to feel like their second home. 

 

We are so pleased and ecstatic to have full shacks again, and thankful that girls love coming back to Runoia summer after summer. Here’s to making this the best one yet! 

Love,

Aionur

By Nina Budeiri

 

 

Posted on by Pam Cobb

Hi Runoia Families!

My name is Nina and I am one of the new Assistant Director/ Head of Cabins at Camp Runoia this year. I’ve been on the edge of my seat, gearing up for the 2019 camp season for a while now, and I am extremely excited to get things going in full swing.

I firmly believe that the value of the camp experience for children goes far beyond the summer. When a kiddo gets their first bullseye in archery or tackles their fear of heights on a ropes course, they get this new found confidence in themselves that is just infectious— it spreads to their friends and peers, creating an incredible energy and sense of camaraderie. This is what kids will remember forever.

Down the road they may forget how to shoot an arrow or navigate a climbing wall, but I know from experience that campers remember less about what exactly was done or said at camp, and much more about how camp made them feel. I believe in cultivating an environment and culture that supports kids’ inherent need to grow and explore and try new things and speak up for themselves.

When training counselors, I like to tell them that as a camp staff member, “You are a TV, and you’re always on,” meaning that kids will watch and often model the behavior and actions of their counselor or CIT. This is a beautiful thing because it cultivates campers who are become strong, loud, passionate individuals, which is important and amazing.

I am excited for Summer 2019, and honored to be a part of the 113th summer at Camp Runoia. See everyone soon!

 

You’ve got ‘real’ mail!

Posted on by Alex

Over the past couple of weeks our new Camp Runoia campers should have found a letter or two in their mailbox from a camp ‘penpal’.  The tradition of welcoming new girls to camp and being available to answer any questions has been going on for many, many years.  It  encourages campers to make connections even before their arrivals to camp in June or July.  Returning campers may be writing to a new girl in their cabin group or older girls may be reaching out to a younger ‘little sister.’  Girls look forward to writing notes and often seek out their new camp friend once they arrive at camp.  For new campers we hope that it helps them to feel like a part of the community and to get excited about the new adventure that they are taking.

Handwritten notes from a new camp friend are a long standing Runoia tradition.

In our techno world of texting and social media interactions it seems rare to actually receive a paper letter or card in the actual mail.  Often the mailbox is just full of solicitations and advertising along with some online shopping packages!  What a treat to find a handwritten envelope addressed to you personally.  This short video is a great introduction to letter writing to help kids for whom it may be a new skill.

At camp a campers only option of communicating with the outside world is through regular mail.  While parents can send one way emails, ‘real’ letters are still the most valued and appreciated.  Campers often show up with stationary boxes, a supply of stamps and some cool pens for their letter writing times. Rest hour and before bed are common times that girls will be found writing to family and friends. Campers and staff look forward to rest hour when mail is given out and often share news from home with their bunk mates or pin the notes that they receive to the wall by their beds.

Handwritten letters carry a charm and thoughtfulness that seems so radically different than an email or text message.  The fact that someone took the time to write to you and that it is an unedited conscious stream of thought makes it super special.  Parents often tell of the stacks of camp letters tucked away in memory boxes as treasures from their daughter’s time away at camp.

Send us some ‘real’ mail this summer it will be so greatly appreciated, we love when the PO Box is bursting at the seams.

Developing leadership skills at camp

Posted on by Alex

Residential camp provides a unique opportunity to allow young people to develop their leadership skills.  When girls attend Camp Runoia they have an opportunity to not only develop hard skills in activity areas and interpersonal skills but also to begin developing strong leadership skills.  Leadership starts at an early age at camp as adults often allow girls room to try out their skills and begin to develop their own sense of autonomy.  As their time at camp extends into their teen years older girls become mentors to younger campers, leaders of teams, assistant coaches in activity areas and communicators in their shack groups.  Some of this leadership development is organic while some is intentional youth development through our Camp Runoia programming.

The Counselor In Training(CIT)  and subsequent Junior Counselor (JC) programs at Camp Runoia help High School aged campers focus on their own leadership development within the safe and supportive community in which they have often spent many summers.  Feeling comfortable and confident in a place that you know well is a perfect environment for challenging yourself.

Intentional leadership training provides opportunities for girls to build on their current skill set and also challenge themselves to go out of their comfort zone and try new skills too.  It includes formal training certification programs like archery instructor, lifeguard, first aid, CPR courses and the Junior Maine Guide programs.   Event planning and implementation for large groups is a big component for the CIT group- they manage the entire 4th of July festivities for the whole camp.  Helping out in shacks with younger campers, assisting in lessons and learning to manage a group, teach skills and keep track of performance are all just examples of putting leadership into action.  More informal opportunities exist when hanging out with younger girls and being a positive role model.

Within the CIT group leadership often comes in the form of collaborative decision making and group process.  It may be about finding your voice or learning when to be quiet to let someone else speak up.

Both the CIT and JC programs are designed to be a full summer experience so that young women can practice their new skills over time and grow into great camp leaders.  They take back home with them not only a stack of certificates and accomplishments but a greater sense of self, more confidence and skills that will be transferable into other aspects of their lives.

 

 

Living in the moment – enjoying the time, place and people without FOMO

Posted on by Alex

Smart phones and social media keep us connected in our fast paced world.  We know that younger and younger kids have access to constant media use and switching it off for a few weeks of camp can be a challenge for all of us. Fear of missing out (FOMO) is a very real affliction for many who are used to a constant stream of updates and notifications telling them what everyone they are connected to is up to at any given moment.  Added into the Oxford Dictionary in 2013,  FOMO is defined as “anxiety that an exciting or interesting event may currently be happening elsewhere, often aroused by posts seen on a social media website.”

There is a great deal of scientific and social research about how FOMO has become a rel phenomenon in our current society.  For an interesting read check out this article from Psychology Today.

Appreciation and mindfulness for the moment that we are in can generate great satisfaction.  It may be hard initially to turn off our brains to wondering what our friends and family are up to while we are at Camp Runoia but once we get into the busy days of camp life, the outside world becomes more of a blur. At camp we learn to be present in the moment, to engage with the people around is, to not worry what others are up to or even what is going on in the outside world.  Fortunately camp is generally exciting and interesting! There is always something going on and a wide variety of people to connect with.  We learn to enjoy and relish living in our Runoia bubble

Not having access to electronics at camp really helps reduce the FOMO

Parents, family and friends can really help their campers adjust to camp life by sending letters and emails that are encouraging and ask questions about camp life.   Making life at home sound really boring and not listing a bunch of fun things that have been going on while their camper has been gone really helps too.

Camp is where all the action is in the summer and when we are living in the thick of it we definitely don’t feel like we are missing out on anything and are so sad to see it come to an end.

The benefits and joys of reading aloud

Posted on by Alex

The end of our long Camp Runoia day finishes snuggled up in our cabins with a good book.  While some campers choose to read their own literature that they either bring with them or borrow from our extensive library, group reading is still the cabin norm.  Every night after circle time the on duty counselor sits in the hall on her crazy creek camp chair and reads a chapter or two from the shack book.  We truly believe that there are great benefits and joys of reading aloud to children of all ages and celebrate this camp tradition as an important part of the Runoia experience.

The shared bedtime reading experience provides cabin groups with a reliable bedtime routine, discussion points for the next day and a chance to collaborate and decision make as a group when choosing a new book.

The shack is quiet and the main lights are turned off so only flashlights light up the pages.  For some campers the excitement of a story that is new to them is engaging, for others they are literally lulled to sleep by the sound of the reading.

On rare occasion some staff have been known to scoot back early from a night off to catch a much anticipated chapter that ended on a cliff hanger the night before.

Reading is an important part of the Camp Runoia culture, we have a book club that meets a couple of times a week to discuss a chosen story, girls can borrow books from the library and reading is a great activity to do during rest hour or free time.  In the shacks girls keep track on a paper plate of how many books they have read collectively in their cabin group and we celebrate those high numbers at the end of the session.

In the technological age camp provides campers with the opportunity to engage with reading without distraction and to enjoy the feel of a real book in their hands.

If you want a good book to read before you get to camp the first session 2019 book club book is Shannon Messenger’s Keeper of the Lost Cities.