We live in complex and challenging times. But something happened in the last month that has given me hope for a saner, safer world: the Never Again movement that was born out of the Parkland, FL school shooting. What makes me hopeful is young people are leading this effort. They took it upon themselves to work together and take action on their convictions.
These teens took their grief, fear, and disillusionment and channeled it into action. They brought their courage, commitment, and resiliency to bear in speaking out with passion and conviction about the changes they want to see in the world. They are using their remarkable organizational skills to plan meetings with officials and media, holding rallies, and mobilizing walkouts. Most recently they spearheaded the “March For Our Lives” in more than 800 cities across the country. They have used their expertise with social media to communicate with peers around the world, inviting them to join this call to action. They have demonstrated their training in debate and public speaking, and the importance of having a clear and compelling message articulated with confidence and passion. They have shown gratitude to their teachers in their lives who have helped prepare them for this work. They are acting today and planning for tomorrow as they partner with adults, learn about the process of making change, and advocate for young people to register to vote and be a part of the democratic process. As Rebecca Schneid, a sixteen-year-old Parkland survivor said, “We understand that this is a marathon and that we’ll be fighting for years. We’re just getting started. Now we have to use our rights as voters to make things change.” It is amazing that these young people have done all of this in six weeks time and in a non-violent way.
There have been several articles comparing the Never Again movement to the Civil Rights movement in the ‘60s. Among the many similarities, this is a movement that has a groundswell of young people, committed to making the world a better place. I have not heard the words of Martin Luther King used, but I have to believe that the sentiment; “I have a dream…” rings true for this cause.
John F. Kennedy said, “We are not here to curse the darkness, but to light the candle that can guide us through the darkness to a safe and sane future.” The young people of Parkland have lit the candle. I respect and admire them and I am hopeful that they will help us not only to have safer schools today, but to create a safer world for all of us and future generations. I wonder where this experience will lead them in their adult life.
We have the amazing opportunity to share Runoia with others after the camp season. Although the nights get chilly, the days of late August, early September are bold and filled with strong sunshine. Sunsets come a bit earlier and darkness follows dusk rapidly.
Their campers are performing art students who brought loads of guitars and keyboards, saxophones and microphones and filled Runoia nooks and crannies with practice bands and choral music all week. They also had acting classes and creative writing “Flow” classes, dance classes and acapella singing practice. Our Runoia counselor staff helped run archery, tennis, swimming, ropes, canoe and kayaking activities and the campers loved every minute of camp. Their cabin counselors were graduates from the YAA program plus the youth coordinator from Christ Church (their sponsoring organization) in Bronxville, NY and parent chaperones. The founder and director, Sharyn Pirtle also managed to hire amazing musicians and concert organizers to run the program. The church minister was also at camp, as were his two children. At the end of their week, guess what? They created an incredible performance as their grand finale which was also a testament to their hard work at camp. The confidence and pride you could see in each camper was palpable.
To experience a different group than the Runoia camper group at Runoia felt unique and natural. To witness the growth and warmth from the YAA campers was indeed energizing and similar to our Runoia experience. An August moon and headlamps helped people navigate the unfamiliar camp paths and trails after dark and you could see the smiles lit up in the moonlight. New experiences for many of these campers will make them stronger and more worldly from being in a safe place in nature and learning to love even the random spider that crawled by or the thunderstorm that arrived one evening. Opportunities to share Camp Runoia with others was a great feeling!
An unusual Runoia tradition is the ‘Name Story.’ It has been included in the Log for as many years as we can remember. Although we are not sure of it’s origins and it perhaps comes from a time when campers stayed all summer long it is a fun and sometimes entertaining wrap up of the season. Written to include all of the last names (italics and underlined) of everyone; staff and campers who stayed all season it is a reflection on the summer often with a touch of humor. You have to read it creatively as it makes much more sense when read aloud tonight at Log Night.
