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During an expert guest JEDI (justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion) training by Shola Jones at OAAARs, Shola asked us to think of five things we hope our campers get out of their experience at Runoia. We turned to a neighbor and shared, and then bounced around the room sharing for the whole group. Shola urged us to not only share the ‘what’ but also the ‘why’ of our choices.

One that came to mind for me was the hope that our campers (and staff) get to experience the feeling of happiness for others and excitement for the accomplishments of their peers. My ‘why’ was that I felt this was an indicator of a healthy, loving, and supportive community – a major part of who we are as a camp at Runoia.

Did you know that there’s a word for exactly this feeling? It’s ‘confelicity’ – meaning ‘delight in someone else’s happiness.’

Part of my job here at Runoia is taking some of our photos and sorting through them for our Camp in Touch portal and for social media. As I’ve filtered through our photos recently, I noticed something pretty amazing: example after example of confelicity at camp strewn across faces of both campers and staff members.

The camp environment and community gives us all a unique opportunity to flex and build our empathy and connection to others and their feelings. We balance celebrating our own successes with the celebration of others’ as we also balance coping with our own disappointments and supporting others during moments of their own. It is a strength to be proud of.

Feeling happiness in the face of others’ achievements and moments ‘in the light’ is not easy – especially when it means that it’s not your own moment to shine. But Runoia campers and staff know that a win for one of us is really a shining moment for our entire community. You need only witness a single ‘Bobos’ sung, an American Archer announcement at assembly, a night of birthday tables, a horse show ribbon ceremony, the welcome committee at the end of the Oak Island Swim, or the moment a camper stands on their skis for the first time to know this is true in the Runoia community.

As we close out this session, we are lucky to have proof of the strength of our community and the happiness for others that is exemplified here on a daily basis. Our returning campers and staff have shown our first-timers the ‘Runoia way’ and we see it carried on from year to year.

Gratitude toward all members of our community as we reflect on our time together in first session and get ready to welcome so many forever friends to be on Monday.

Love,

Aionur

Would it even be a Runoia opening day without a little rain? Probably not – and what a perfect first opportunity of summer 2023 for our staff to practice our ‘we can deal’ skills learned all throughout camp staff training!

Today was the day we’ve been preparing for for nearly two weeks now – our campers are here! We’re waiting so eagerly for our last few friends to arrive via bus and plane, but camp is already buzzing with reunions and the beginnings of new friendships alike.

Our super staff once again made arrival day a breeze for campers, families, and each other by putting their skills to use. Over the past twelve days, we’ve built a community together and learned so much so quickly.

We kicked off staff training in classic Camp Runoia style – with tie-dyeing, a campfire, s’mores, and lots of singing!

Even after days of tricky weather, our transportation guru Jen Dresdow got all of our staff – from near and far – safely to camp in time. We’re lucky to be back fully with lots of international staff this year from a plethora of countries – our 2023 staff are representing Mexico, Ireland, Scotland, England, Germany, the United Arab Emirates, and Australia!

We balanced activity time and full group training sessions, and brought in some experts on important topics like JEDI (justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion) from training group OAAARs, camper and staff mental health, and camper safety in our community.

We even made enough time for a few fun surprises (can you imagine: root beer floats at the waterfront? Star’bunks’ the day before kids arrive? Taking the entire staff tubing the night before opening day?!)

Our staff learned how to teach from “Runoia experts” in their activity areas all week, and got to test out their skills with their peers and with a local school group this past Wednesday. We were lucky enough that amidst all of the rain, we got sunshine and calm waters that day!

Over the past few days, we tied up all loose ends, tidied up the cabins, made welcome signs and chore charts, and savored a few final moments in our community before growing times three today. We welcomed the end of staff training knowing that it was more-so the beginning of something even more wonderful to come. Our staff are so happy to have our campers here, and we can’t wait to share all about the growing we’ll be doing and fun we’ll be having all summer long.

See you then –

Love, Aionur

Lilly Grace, a long-time Runoia camper and staff member who is celebrating her 10th summer at Runoia in 2023, joins us as a guest blogger to share all about living in the moment at T-Swift’s The Eras Tour, and how she got that ability from all of her time at camp:

Since the middle of March, Swifties all around the country (including many people in our Runoia community) have been traveling from near and far to see Taylor Swift’s “The Eras Tour” in stadiums all around the United States. A few weekends ago, I myself had the privilege of being able to see Taylor in concert for her May 21 performance at Gillette Stadium, which was something I had been looking forward to since November when I was lucky enough to secure tickets. Something unique about this tour is that it is Swift’s first tour since the pandemic, a time in which our world became even more reliant on digital technology, particularly live streaming and social media platforms. In preparing for the concert, being able to communicate through social media with fans around the country about tips and tricks was very helpful. Had it not been for social media platforms, I would not have known about essential details regarding the concert such as ideal times to arrive at the stadium or what to wear. Additionally, I never would have learned about the Eras Tour Fan project, which involved making and trading Taylor Swift-themed friendship bracelets inside the stadium with other fans, which was one of my favorite parts about the whole experience. 

With that being said, there are always negative parts of social media presence as well. One of my biggest concerns leading up to the concert was that I would be stuck behind one of the hundreds of fans who were livestreaming the entire concert to their social media followers, and obstructing the view of those around them. This may sound like a silly concern to anyone who does not go to concerts often, but as a frequent concertgoer, I can verify that it has become a genuine problem and has impacted my experience at way too many concerts in the past year. While I am the first to admit that I can barely go anywhere without my smartphone, one of my biggest pet peeves is being around people who are not even willing to take a step away from their technology to live in the moment, and I fully expected and prepared myself to experience this at Taylor Swift’s concert. However, I was so pleasantly surprised by how Swifities in my section and throughout the stadium were actually able to put down their phones and enjoy watching the show live. While many people, including me, were still recording their favorite parts of the show so they could rewatch them later, fans seemed less focused on getting the perfect video and were constantly looking up from their devices to actually take in the experience around them. In addition to the show itself, I noticed fans were fully embracing every moment of the experience from the minute we got to the stadium, which is so rare at concerts nowadays. Between supporting the opening acts, trading friendship bracelets, and bonding over their equally difficult experiences getting tickets, most fans were clearly making an active effort to stay off of their phones, live in the moment, and make genuine connections with those around them. As I looked around my section of the stadium during the show, my heart filled as I realized that the number of fans cheering, singing their hearts out, dancing along to the music and fully embracing each moment of the 3 ½ hour show clearly outnumbered the fans who were focused on recording every song. In this sense, this experience in Gillette Stadium reminded me a lot of Camp Runoia, a place where nearly every memory I have made for the past 10 years has been, and will continue to be, without the assistance of video footage.

 Throughout the summer at camp, there are always so many fun moments that we want to capture and remember forever, from the annual relay race through all of camp on the Fourth of July, to the anticipation of watching as a random staff member reveals the final scores for the B’s and E’s competition on the last night of camp. If we had our phones available, we would probably want to capture as many of these unforgettable moments as possible. However, being able to form memories through experience is not only a life long skill that campers build on at camp, but something that I value about the camp experience every year. There are very few places now, aside from summer camps, where kids and adults alike can break free from the burden of technology and just embrace living in the moment with those around you. So, experiencing that unique sense of community outside of camp at a concert, where the unifying factor was not trying to get the perfect video for social media but rather radiating a collective sense of love and appreciation for an incredibly talented artist, was so special and an experience I will never forget. 

As we get closer to opening day at camp, I am already getting so excited and counting down the days until I get to hear from all of the Runoia Swifties about their eras tour adventures, not through videos and pictures but rather through their own recollection of unforgettable memories!

-Lilly

This week, we are sharing a blog from Dr. Tracy Brenner, “The Camp Counselor,” psychologist and Maine Camp alumna camper/counselor as posted by Maine Camp Experience.

The summer is creeping closer and nerves may be on the rise. Camp prep has begun! Your inboxes are full of forms to fill out, including medical and vaccination history. But, just as important as those tetanus and measles shots are for the health of our children, so is the emotional vaccination you can give your child now so they will be better prepared to handle whatever emotions roll their way during the summer.

In my previous post I provided a four-step process for managing your own emotional reactions to those big feelings that emerge before, during and after the summer. (Remember: name your feelings, provide compassion, take a deep breath and give yourself a pep talk (click for a refresher). I also stressed the importance of regulating your own emotions in order to most effectively help your children with their own feelings. In today’s blog, I will provide tips and scripts so that you can help your child be ready to handle any emotions that come their way.

What is emotional vaccination?

Just as we use medicine to vaccinate our children to build physical antibodies, we use emotional vaccination to arm our children with emotional antibodies to prepare their minds and bodies to handle big feelings. The goal is not to prevent challenging feelings but to prepare our children to experience and tolerate a full range of emotions.

My kid doesn’t seem nervous; why “vaccinate?”

Sometimes parents are hesitant to initiate conversations about potential challenges if their child is not actually expressing them spontaneously. For example, a parent might say, “he’s not talking about being homesick, I don’t want to make him worried if he’s not.” Well, that’s not how feelings work. It’s possible that your child might become emotional during this conversation in a way you haven’t seen yet, but this is actually a good thing. Once they share their feelings, you have the chance to help your child cope. While it may have taken your prompt to spark emotion, it doesn’t mean the feelings weren’t always there or that they wouldn’t come at camp. In other words, you are not responsible for creating those feelings, just because you introduced the topic. If homesickness isn’t a problem for your child, then it’s not a problem for your child. Avoiding exploring a feeling doesn’t prevent the feeling from happening or cover up its existence.

How do we emotionally vaccinate our kids?

Great news: there’s no shot – just a boost of resilience. Emotional vaccination happens when parents (who remain calm) engage with their children to talk through, anticipate and plan for any feelings that might arise. My preference is to start the process of vaccination in a calm moment, not at bedtime and not in the heat of a meltdown. Just as you are advised not to receive a Covid vaccine when you have an active case of Covid, you cannot strengthen your emotional immune system when it is already flooded with feelings. The car can be a great place to spark discussion: You have a captive audience; a contained space; and sometimes it’s easier to explore feelings without the intensity of eye contact.

Lines for starting the conversation:

If your child has never mentioned any concerns about camp say:

“I know that you are super excited about camp, I’m so excited for you too! We haven’t yet talked about any fears or worries you might have about the summer. What are some things on your mind?”

Or 

If your child (like mine) has been very vocal about his concerns, start like this:

“I know you’ve mentioned being nervous about missing home this summer, let’s talk more about it.”

Or (for a returning camper)

“I know there were some parts of camp last summer that were challenging. Let’s talk more about what that felt like”

Whatever your child identifies as their worry, respond with the favorite three little words of a psychologist: “tell me more.” Remain open and help your child expand and explore all of his or her thoughts and feelings. Resist the urge to fix!

Dos and Don’ts 

Do: Provide empathy, support and validation. Say things like: “I hear what you’re saying.” “I get it.” “I remember feeling that way too when I was your age.” “Doing something new is hard.” “Transitions are hard.”  “Leaving home for the first time feels scary.”

Don’t: Ignore the emotion by going straight to problem solving. Avoid lines like: “oh you’re nervous about having friends in your bunk, I’ll just call the director and make sure you’re with your best friend.”

Do: Let your child know that you believe in him or her:  “It’s okay to miss me. You can do hard things. I believe in you.”

Don’t: Offer rescue, like: “if it’s miserable you can come home.” The decision for a child to leave camp early is a rare occurrence and should be made with a team approach, including the camp director’s involvement.

Don’t: get entangled in a discussion of whether or not your child is going to camp.

Instead: Say something like:

“I totally get that this is sparking really big feelings. This conversation isn’t about whether or not you’re going to camp, it’s about learning to anticipate and handle uncomfortable, big feelings. So for this conversation, can we take the decision off the table?”

Go deeper

Wonder with your child what, when, and where these feelings might occur, what it might feel like in their body, and how they might express their emotion. This is really the work of vaccination: You prepare your child in advance for the feelings, so that when they are in the situation, their minds and bodies are better prepared to handle it.

Say: “I hear you’re worried about missing us. Tell me more.” “When do you think that feeling might hit you most?” (If your child doesn’t offer ideas, suggest that night time, early morning or other “downtimes” are usually more common times when we miss home rather than when we are busy in a soccer game.) Ask: “When you’re sad, what might your body feel like and what might your body do?’

Create a coping tool kit

Introduce some coping skills that your child can practice now and use at camp. In my consultations with kids and parents, we make an actual “emotional toolbox” filled with strategies or quotes. Teach the “Notice/Name, Compassion, Deep Breath, Pep Talk” strategy I suggested parents use in my last blog. Here are a few more examples of what can be in a tool kit:

1. Slips of paper with lines like: “this feels hard because it is hard” / “it’s okay to feel sad and miss my parents, I’m away from home, of course I miss them.” / “take a deep breath.”
2. Reminders of context cues: “downtime is harder than active time.”
3. A support system flow chart: list all of the supportive people at camp they can go to for help, a hug, etc.
4. Distraction techniques (because sometimes we just need to get out of our heads). List things like: reading a book, listening to music, playing with friends, throw yourself into an activity.

Parents, try using emotional vaccination in the months ahead.  Feel free to reach out for further consultation or questions.

drtracybrenner@gmail.com and www.drtracybrenner.com and @drtracybrenner on instagram

Dr. Tracy Brenner continues to partner with Maine Camp Experience and share her expertise through their website.

Runoia is one of America’s oldest tech-free camps still holding strongly to unplugging during the summer – even in the face of technological advances and encouragement to stay constantly ‘plugged in.’ We believe that it’s vital for our community to unplug each year. Read on about the phone addictions our kids are facing, the benefits of unplugging regularly and at camp, and some tips on how to prepare (whether you’re a parent, camper, or staff member) to be unplugged this summer.

No, it’s not just you – the science shows that post-pandemic, adolescent phone addictions are at an all-time high. That means that both camper and staff populations are struggling to let go of their technology. Forgetting about the harmful impacts of social media itself, the list of negative effects of phone addictions is a long one. Excessive screen time for youth can lead to:

• heightened anxiety and depression
• insomnia and poor sleep quality
• diminished attention spans and short-term memory
• reduced conversation quality
• fatigue
• lower grades
• reading fewer books
• reduced time outside and being physically active

Scientists say that the ideal screen-time limit for adolescents is about two hours per day, but the average actual use is up to nine. We clearly have some work to do!

Runoia is dedicated to a tech-free experience for both campers and staff – no phones, tablets, computers, even e-readers in Runoia cabins. Campers swiftly learn to communicate the old-school way, and in just a day or two, can be seen excitedly opening and writing letters at all hours of the day. We are dedicated to this tech-free policy because we’re dedicated to the development of our campers and staff, and simply can’t ignore the science. Tech-free camp is safer, more beneficial, and allows our community to spend all of that time connecting to each-other rather than the internet.

But you don’t have to take our word for it. We’ve done our research, and compiled a helpful list of benefits and guidance for unplugging this summer – or whenever!

The Benefits of ‘Unplugging’

• Reduced anxiety, stress, and depression
• Stronger personal relationships
• Time to develop hobbies and passions
• Increased focus
• Increased physical activity
• Increased mindfulness
• Increased self-worth

How to Prepare to be ‘Unplugged’

• Prepare and practice coping skills – have you ever noticed yourself reaching for your phone when you feel uncomfortable or have an unoccupied moment of time? Knowing that this crutch won’t be available during the summer, think about what else helps you in those moments. Luckily, we’ve already compiled a list to help you get started.
• Practice at home – you don’t have to wait until camp to unplug. Practice by challenging yourself to:
  • Leave your phone at home for a day, or even just a part of the day. Can your phone stay home during your coffee run?
  • Set app limits for yourself or use an app to reduce screen-time in apps
  • Set phone-free times for your day – can you put your phone away for the first hour after you’ve woken up, and for two hours before bed?
  • Turn off screens during meals and other family or friend time
• Commit to it regularly – outside of camp, can you schedule a handful of ‘digital detox’ days for yourself, your friends, or your family each year?

We’re certainly grateful for the positive impacts that technology and social media offers us – we get to share our lives and accomplishments and stay connected as a community all-year round. So many of our campers and staff discover us online and through social media, and we can’t deny how fun it is to see yourself on the Runoia Instagram or TikTok. That’s why Runoia thinks it’s so important to learn to live in harmony with technology – to be able to use it for all its benefits, but also know when and how to take a break.

If you’ve ever experienced a Runoia evening program – let’s say Miss Tacky, for example – where everyone is connected and plugged in to our community, then you know just how worthwhile it is to leave our phones behind. We know we could never miss our phones more than we miss our Runoia besties when we have to say goodbye.

Love,

Aionur

Amongst our leadership team, the jokes that camp is creeping up on us here in April are abundant. This is always the time of year where the season starts to feel ‘real’ and we can finally see the efforts of each season’s preparation come to fruition.

At this time of year, we’re still busy with some final enrollments while also putting everything in place for the summer – Tim is prepping our physical spaces, we’re mapping out program and hiring our last few staff members, putting together cabin lists – amongst so many other things.

And, at the same time, the Venn-diagram of 2023 and 2024 is starting to form and overlap as we meet new faces looking at Runoia for future summers and inviting them to visit us to see camp ‘in action’ this summer.

There is no ‘wrong’ timeline for choosing and getting ready for camp, but it’s always great to see families planning ahead and being able to tour with us in the summer prior. Tours are so valuable to new families to be able to see a day in action during the summer, visualize the camp their child will spend 3+ weeks at, watch our programs run, and for campers to build excitement, feel more comfortable and confident about camp, ask their own questions, and meet other campers in the process. Our campers and staff always love to welcome new faces as they pass by on their summer tours!

But the benefits of touring don’t stop there. Touring also helps our new families create a lasting connection with our director team and start a relationship that will continue for years. After a tour, we stay in contact with families and are able to guide them through enrollment earlier on and the likelihood of saving one of our limited spaces for the next summer is even greater. Spaces are typically even more limited in our older age groups, so touring for a rising 6th grader and beyond is an amazing way to get penciled in for any available spaces for next summer.

We also welcome return visitors and love seeing friendly, familiar faces whenever possible – alumni and current campers have a tendency to stop by all throughout the year to say hi, show their families around, and see their favorite place again. Amaya stopped by recently and had an amazing time with her mom seeing camp in the snow – we can’t wait to have her back for summer #2 this year!

So stop on by for a visiting or reach out to schedule a tour for 2024 – we can’t wait to see you on Great Pond either way!