amazing summers Archives - Page 18 of 21

Making Songs into Summer Messages

Posted on July 26, 2015October 18, 2016 by Pam Cobb

I know a place where the sun is like gold, and every evening you play games like Know Your Counselor, Lip Synch Contest, Stop the Bus and Broomball.

Out on the blue waves, where summer breezes blow, our boats, kayaks, windsurfers, swimmers and stand up paddle boarders go sailing into sunset glow.

Make new friends but keep the old; this summer at Runoia we’re meeting people from California to Florida, from Minnesota to Texas and from England, Spain, Venezuela, Ireland, Hungary and Switzerland. We are a merry merry crew the Runoia girls are we!

Be it ever so humble there’s no place like camp and when you travel to Attean Pond and to the Bigelow range, returning to camp feels just like home. Our equestrian team traveled to Camp Vega and brought home the Championship ribbon. There’s no place like home!

And so I thank the earth for giving me, the sun and the rain the apple tree – we are ever grateful for our sun drenched days, and even a summer storm or two keeping camp green and perpetuating a #FineMaineDay.

Where does the wind come from? Does anybody know?

Besides turning thoughts into camp song, we’ve been busy with activities, meeting people, creating art, learning about tennis, archery, riding, skiing, sailing, basket making and more.

Until next week. Love, Aionur

Mid Summer

Posted on July 21, 2015October 18, 2016 by Alex

A Mid Summer Night’s Dream

After saying ‘goodnights’ during the summer, I walk up from Senior Village at around 10pm through the dark. The sky is filled with stars I don’t carry a flashlight as I know the paths well. Some nights are so dark there are moments when I think I may lose my way on others the moon is bright in the often clear, Maine sky. I am met on the kickball field by the odd firefly. They catch me by surprise and always seem so mysterious with their ability to produce light.

At the end of a busy day camp is quiet and still. The girls and many of the counselors are in their beds. They may still be reading or writing a letter home but most are already asleep. It is one of my favorite times of day at Camp Runoia.

As we embrace the middle of our camp season it is a great time to reflect on the gift of camp. To be able to live, work and play in such a beautiful place surrounded by nature and people who love being here is beyond compare. We have a deep appreciation for the gift that we have all been given.

As I fall asleep listening to the loons I imagine the magic that exists around me and dream of fairies dancing at Fairy Ring.

Trending at Camp Runoia

Posted on July 19, 2015October 18, 2016 by Pam Cobb

Trending at Camp Runoia – Just add a # and you’re trending:

Trying new things

Making friends

Lifelong skills

Memories

Braids

Being a stand up girl

Dry Capsize

Climbing mountains

Placing in the horseshow

Team work

Hydration

Working things out

Inner Sunshine

Fine Maine Day

Fabulous Rec Swim

Magic Happens

Passing levels

Feeling Great

We did it!

Camp Anticipation

Posted on June 10, 2015October 18, 2016 by Alex

I am nervous there are butterflies in my stomach, my nights are often sleepless and I start my days in great anticipation. It is almost time for camp! I have spent the whole year since the end of last August preparing for this. The stage is set and I eagerly anticipate the curtains opening.

The days become a blur with long hours both in the office and out on site. We are preparing, checking, double checking, chasing down information, finishing up the last projects and filling the waiting with work.

Even though I have done this many times it is always so new, so exciting and just a little nerve wracking. I will be met with a new audience while some faces are the same the mix is different. Will I recognize returning faces? Will the lake be warm? Will all run smoothly? Will the sun shine? Can we meet the promises that we have sold to families and to our new staff?

I am confident in Runoia’s ability to run smoothly like a well-oiled machine. We live for and store up our energy for this – the summer season when it truly is camp time. Maine is looking beautiful and ready for it’s summer campers and their families.

Bring it on it’s going to be awesome and we are going to totally make the Runoia dream team for 2015 a reality!

What is a #runoiagal?

Posted on May 28, 2015October 18, 2016 by Pam Cobb

By Kyleigh

A #Runoiagal – She is adventurous, but cautious. She is intelligent and she is full of inquisition. She loves to laugh. She likes to explore. She appreciates herself. She cares for the world and her family and friends.

In just a few short weeks, we are going to welcome “home” many experienced Runoia Gals and many new.

Together we will make magic happen!

Here is a poem written from one of the youngest campers this year at Runoia. She is beyond excited to come to camp and meet new friends, try new activities, gain autonomy in her physical and emotional abilities. And she is beyond excited to smell the moss and kiss the horses!

I thought I saw nothing…

But it might have been something.

I saw something blue,

But it could also be black

With big white clouds

All the blue connects

Big Beautiful sky!

Where birds fly everyday

I thought I saw nothing…

but it might have been something.

Trees swaying in the wind

The wind smells like the moss and flowers

I am the forest!

Big beautiful forest!

Where birds rest in nests every day.

Here is to all the Runoia Gals that ever have been and ever will be!

Fairies are for Real

Posted on May 20, 2015October 18, 2016 by Pam Cobb

Imagine yourself eight years old; you are at sleepaway camp, far far far from your family. You are taking in the fun and action that happens day-in day-out at camp.

One day, as you merrily cruise along in your eight year old world, you are invited to go camping to “Fairy Ring”. Wait, it gets better. Not only do you get to camp at Fairy Ring, you get to have magical s’mores (AKA dessert before dinner) and you spend part of your afternoon building fairy houses for the fairies of Fairy Ring.

S'mores for Supper?! — S’mores for Supper?!

Consider your eight year old mind fathoming a camp out where the fairies actually live? When said fairies come to visit before bedtime, you can hardly believe your eyes. Flitting between tall pines and the evening dusk, a movement, a glow, a fairy appears!

The very next morning, when you wake up, the fairies have left you with your very own fairy rock painted in bright colors and glittery-gold.

This tradition at Camp Runoia has been going on since the beginning of time!

Singing

Posted on May 13, 2015October 18, 2016 by Alex

Perfect Harmony

This week is concert week for the chorus that I am a member of. It means two nights of rehearsal and two performances which equals a lot of singing. I love being part of a group of women that spends time together making music. We are not professional musicians but spend time and effort learning notes, exploring musical nuances and perfecting our performance. For 2 ½ hours a week I become lost in the complexity of music mastery and the production of choral sound.

At camp singing is a large part of our everyday lives. We sing silly songs, rowdy songs, quiet, contemplative melodies and most importantly we sing our Runoia songs. We spend time at Assembly learning songs; some have been sung for generations and others are new to Runoia. Old songs carry our history. Hearing them reminds us of our special place on Great Pond. We find ourselves humming Runoia tunes when we are far from camp and know that many of our alumnae sing them to their own children as lullabies.

Our camp songs have actions, guitar accompaniments, nonsense words, no words, harmonies, different parts or barely a tune. We make songs up to popular tunes, we lip sync, we cry while we sing: sometimes from laughing and sometimes because it is our last time of the season singing together.

At camp it is not the quality or musicality that matters so much although we do channel our inner Diane Smith and try to hit those odd high notes in Tumbledown and It’s Blue and White! It is more that we do something together. We can be heard singing in the Lodge, Dining Hall, around the campfire, in a sail boat or canoe, down the path to the waterfront, out on the hiking trails, for the camp Talent Show and in the vans. Songs are a unique part of our camp culture that we pass along orally and through our song book.

Songs and singing make us happy! Music has the ability to unite us. We may not always sing in perfect harmony but we sing together to celebrate our community, traditions and just because we can! It is part of who we are at Runoia it is our ‘Harmony’.

Listen to a few favorite Runoia songs here!

Courage to Grow Up by Kyleigh Mercier

Posted on May 11, 2015October 18, 2016 by Pam Cobb

As I sit and listen to the wind bring in the sound of the peepers through the open window, I am reminded of how special this time of year is. It is mother’s day. And the world around me is bustling with life and new energy. Today I saw the red robins moving with intent and determination to build nests, I watched a hawk fly with such grace and glory from tree to tree. I see the red and the gray squirrels moving and collecting bounty. The world has awakened from the quiet hibernation of winter and the white stark horizon is now 30 shades of green. It is spring and it is a celebration of life.

Being a mother is my greatest accomplishment. I reflect on this day that it is not actually a celebration of my work, but that of my children.

It is their momentum and their exploration that feed my soul. Spring is also a time of change, and as with all growth there is change.

Chris and I are embarking with our family on great adventure. Our commitment to join the Runoia family is beyond exciting! We are determined and dedicated to bring our enthusiasm to camp and offer our love, our life, our experience, our connection, our intent, our passion, and our good will to Great Pond. We could not be more thrilled to travel to Maine with our beautiful children and share some of the greatest experiences that we could dream of with your daughters!

We promise to be kind, gentle, honest, and to encourage them to find the best of themselves. We support growth and experience. There is so much that the land and the programs at Runoia will teach us all this summer! And as spring blooms with life and spiritual awakening, I resonate with E.E. Cumming’s words “It takes courage to grow up and become who you really are.”

At Runoia we encourage and support what spring begins in growth all summer

long. My wish is that as you send your daughters from your nest to our woods, that we provide them with the safety and comfort, courage and the wisdom, the strength and the bravery, to expand their physical and emotional skills to their full potential, becoming exceptional young women.

Happy Mother’s Day. Happy Spring.

Find out more about Kyleigh and Chris Mercier here.

Meet the staff

Posted on May 1, 2015October 18, 2016 by Alex

A guest blog by Morgan Price

My name is Morgan and I will be the girl who runs around camp taking pictures, updating our social media sites, blogging about all of your exciting adventures and activities and helping with event planning! You will almost always see me in my bright colored, monogrammed hats.

A little about me: I am from Marietta, Georgia- right outside of Atlanta. I am finishing up my sophomore year at Georgia College and State University with a major in Marketing. I am highly involved on campus and have served a few different positions for my sorority Zeta Tau Alpha. At school I live in a house with thirteen girls and love it! I have two sisters, a twin sister and a twelve year old sister. I love shopping, exploring, traveling, cooking and dancing. I can teach you how to make an awesome friendship bracelet and love making crazy costumes!

Even though this is my very first summer spent at a sleep away camp, I am so excited for camp to start and I hope y’all are as ready for it as I am. I purchased my bright pink duffle bag and I am already shopping and packing for everything I need for camp. While Georgia isn’t exactly across the world, I am still excited to travel 1300 miles to see the beautiful state of Maine that I have heard so much about.

A “Little Life Lesson” from me:

Sing Loud, Sing Proud; dance like nobody is watching; and try everything!

I will openly tell you I am one of the worst singers to ever walk the planet, but that doesn’t stop me from singing. I love to sing even though I am not as talented as Taylor Swift I give it my best shot. Remember this when you are getting ready to sign up for activities each week. Camp Runoia offers many activities from Archery to Windsurfing and everything you can imagine in between. Just because you may not be the best at something does not mean you shouldn’t sign up for that as an activity!

Always remember “the best thing to hold onto in life is each other”- Audrey Hepburn

Love Morgan

Camp and 21st Century skills

Posted on April 15, 2015October 18, 2016 by Alex

21^st century skills

There is a lot of buzz particular in schools but also in the wider community about kids reaching adulthood prepared for their future. There is a need for youth to be skilled enough to navigate the world into which they will be employed and living. These so called ‘21^st century skills’ will hopefully enable a young person to gain the greatest potential success in their life and will be sought by both higher education institutions and employers.

Summer camps have been watching this trendy terminology with a happy glint in their eye as the intentional learning that we provide every day in a safe and fun environment fits right into this model. Camps can easily argue that they can complement the developmental components of 21^st century skills in an environment that varies so greatly from school that it allows for more and varied success. Camps are not just a somewhat expensive commodity that either provides child care or a ‘fun’ way to spend the summer, they are learning environments where children don’t even realize they are engaging with skill development.

Camps often work hard to convince parents that first and foremost their children will be safe and secondly that they are providing good value for money in the skills that campers leave with.

Often parents may focus on hard skills – did their child get better at tennis or swimming? It is the camp benefits that are perhaps less tangible which meet the 21^st century skill set, a deeper appreciation for nature, the ability to build relationships and make connections, greater independence, more resilience (it does rain at camp sometimes!).

We are proud to be actively promoting 21^st century skills and look forward to sharing more moments of learning with our girls this summer. Camp Runoia building lifelong skills.