Tag: oldest camps in maine

On Choosing a Camp: what is the right fit?

Posted on by Colleen O'Malley

As we round the corner into what feels like the back half of fall, many families are, possibly for the first time, searching for and choosing a brand new camp for their kid(s). Choosing a camp requires placing a lot of trust into camp professionals to care for your child and to provide a dream experience – but that trust doesn’t need to be blind. At Runoia, it is our goal to help campers find their best fit camp. We are always thrilled when that happens to be Runoia, but each camp is entirely unique from the next. It’s important to know what’s important to you (and your child,) ask the right questions, and pursue that experience. After countless parent phone calls and Zooms, here are the top things we suggest parents and guardians think about when choosing a camp, and some helpful questions to ask a camp director when looking:

Narrow-focused or well-rounded?

The label ‘camp’ can mean anything from a soccer day camp to a sleep-away camp with dozens of activities. Are you hoping that your child focuses on building one particular skill – sailing, riding, a team sport, etc. – or do you hope that they will broaden their horizons, try new things, and gain skills in multiple activities in one summer?

Runoia falls into the latter category – with 30+ activity choices and exceptional programs in multiple areas like our complete waterfront, on-campus riding program, trips, and more! Here are some questions you can ask a camp director:

  • How many activities do you offer at camp?
  • What would you say are your biggest programs?
  • How do you offer skill progression in different activities?

Structured or elective?

This is an important question to ask, especially after deciding on the prior! Once you know how many and what kind of activities a camp offers, it’s important to also know how much of a camper’s schedule is in their own control. If you are leaning towards a camp that specializes in just a handful of activities, you may also be looking for a structured camp that sets campers’ schedules for them. Runoia’s culture is one of choice and individual expression – our campers choose their own schedules in 2-day and 3-day blocks at camp. Our campers choose their schedules at camp for each block at a time, so they can pursue a new-found passion, change their minds, or be a completely different person from one block to the next! Here are some great questions to ask a camp director to get a sense of their structure:

  • Do campers have full, partial, or no control over their schedule and activity choices?
  • Do campers do activities with their cabin group or are classes mixed?
  • Do campers choose their schedules before arriving or at camp?
  • Do you offer any special-focus programs for campers to enroll in?

Small community or big population?

There are certainly benefits to each different camp population size, from a trip program with just a handful of staff and campers, to communities with hundreds of staff members and thousands of campers in one summer! When choosing a camp, ask yourself and your child whether they would prefer a tight-knit community – one where everyone knows one another and friendships span all ages – or a large community with the opportunity to meet hundreds of others? Runoia is a community like the former; our director team knows our campers’ names and each are involved in all aspects of the community on a day-to-day basis. Here are some questions to ask a director about their community:

  • What is your community size in each session?
  • How many campers and staff are in each cabin?
  • What is your overall staff to camper ratio?
  • Are your senior-level staff and directors involved in the daily community?

Tradition

As a camp entering its 117th consecutive season, we’re no stranger to tradition – when your camp has been standing since 1907, you pick up a few along the way! We try to strike our best balance between tradition and progression – honoring our foundations while moving forward. Here are some great questions to ask on tradition:

 

  • What traditions are important to your camp?
  • Does your camp partake in any intra or inter-camp competitions?
  • Do you have something like ‘color wars’?
  • Do you ever reevaluate traditions with a DEI lens?

 

An immersed experience, or connection to the ‘real world?’

We believe that camp poses a unique opportunity to ‘unplug’ to connect to nature, others, and ourselves. Therefore, Runoia offers a truly classic, immersed camp experience for its campers and staff. Technology is a no-go at Runoia, and we keep it old-school with letter-writing. Runoia also communicates with parents throughout the week through multiple modalities. We find that our system of communication really helps our campers make the most of their time at camp,

connect to others, and fight off feelings of homesickness. Each camp is different, however, and it’s important to know what level of communication you expect from your ideal camp. Ask these questions:

  • Are phone calls allowed at camp?
  • Can you describe how mail works at your camp?
  • Do you have a system of regular communication for updates from the leadership team?

Session length

Again, each camp is so different from the next, and the topic of session length is no exception! Camps range from offering just 1-week sessions throughout the summer, to only offering a summer-long experience. Runoia offers two 3-week sessions and limited opportunities for a full summer. We also offer a 2-week ‘try it’ program for our youngest campers called Harmony Land Camp. When thinking about session length, try asking these questions:

  • Do you offer a shorter ‘starter camp’ program to try? What ages are eligible if so?
  • What are your session dates and how long is each session?
  • Do most campers choose to go for one session or the full summer?

 

Location, location, location

We might be a touch biased to say that Maine really is the summer camp capitol of the world, and Maine does it well! Offering plenty of water, beautiful green land, and mountains to boot – you just can’t beat it. And since each year we welcome campers who have traveled from not just states away but countries away, we’d have to say it’s a worthwhile journey. Here are some important questions to ask about location and transportation:

 

  • What are the options for transportation to camp?
  • What does opening day look like for each mode of transportation?
  • Do parents and guardians tend to travel in the area for the duration of camp?

Diversity

When choosing a camp, it is important that your child finds a community in which they can see themselves represented by other campers, staff, and in camp policies. Runoia is happy to have seen its camper diversity grow organically in recent years, and has responded with the formation of its DAC, Diversity Advisory Committee, and intentional efforts to positively impact access to camp and the experience of camp for all families. Whether this directly impacts your camper or not, it is an important component in a camp’s culture and community. Here are some questions to ask a director on diversity at camp:

  • How would you describe the diversity of your camp? Has it grown recently?
  • Does your camp have any official advisory, DEI professional, or DEI policy in place?
  • Do you offer DEI training to your staff members?
  • How does your camp approach gender identity and pronoun expression?

What does it mean to be accredited? 

To help reduce risk, Camp Runoia is voluntarily accredited by the American Camp Association (ACA). We follow standards pertaining to: program, site, facilities, transportation, vehicles, administration, personnel, and health care. If a camp holds a current ACA accreditation, it means that it has also been evaluated to meet the same rigorous set of standards as Runoia. Here are a few questions to ask about accreditation:

  • Is your camp currently accredited by the ACA?
  • Has there ever been a time recently when your camp was not accredited?

There are many factors to consider when choosing a camp, and each individual family and camper will have a unique set of ideas of what ‘camp’ should look and feel like to them. We hope you utilize these helpful questions in your next conversation with a camp director and wish you luck on your camp search!

Interested in Runoia? Reach out to request more information!

“Home at Last” – a written piece on ‘why Maine?’ by M.J. Mott-Auns

Posted on by Colleen O'Malley

On the last night of our celebration at this summer’s reunion, as we were hugged on the waterfront by trees and warmed by the campfire, alumna M.J. Mott-Auns (1954-1964, 1984-1995) shared a written piece in response to the ever-asked question: “why did you move to Maine?”

This piece sparked many collective dreamy sighs, laughs, and a few tears amongst the crowd – while you won’t experience the joy of hearing M.J. read it aloud, she has shared it with us to read to ourselves:

 

When we first moved to Maine, the most often asked question was “Why did you move here?” If directed to my husband Vilis, he would simply point to me. I then had to find an answer that made sense and didn’t involve too much explanation. But answering that question never seemed easy to me. My journey to living in Maine began many years ago.

I was an only child raised by a single parent and I was lonely.  My father died when I was four and my mother had to step in and run the family insurance business.  As you might imagine this created some parenting dilemmas as I was way too young to be left to my own devices.  It happened that when I was 7 my mother heard about a wonderful camp in Maine where I would be with children my own age and older and be well cared for. So it was that I found myself, along with my friend Romney driving with our parents into New York city on a June afternoon so that the two of us could be put on the camp train and sent to Maine for two months. I remember feeling scared and nervous, but not wanting to let Romney see that side of me.  She was both more confident and sophisticated than I was.

We arrived in the city and found our way into the Statler Hilton Hotel where we would have dinner before boarding the camp train.  We were dressed in nice dresses and our brand-new camp blazers.  As we were sitting down, my mother said

 “See those girls sitting at that table over there?  I’ll bet they are headed to camp too. Wouldn’t it be fun if they are going to Runoia?”

All during dinner I wondered about those two girls and whether they would be on the same train with Romney and me. I also noticed that one was crying all through the meal. I was happy that although I was sad to be leaving my mom, at least I wasn’t crying like a baby. I ate as slowly as possible to prolong the trip into the station, but eventually it was time.

When we got into Grand Central Station, I looked around and all I could see were signs with different camp names. I couldn’t imagine how we would find the right one, but we did. There were lots of girls waiting already and most of them seemed very excited, a good sign I thought.  Then I saw those two girls from dinner approaching.  Sure enough they were going to my camp too and it was their first year as well.  One was still crying. Little did I know that she would be one of my bridesmaids many years later.

Goodbyes were said and some tears shed, but we got on the train and soon enough were pulling out of the station. The whole train, it turned out, was devoted to transporting children to camp in Maine. Runoia filled up one car. We slept in bunks and spent much of the night peering out of the curtains to see the older girls talking and singing camp songs at the end of our car. Meanwhile I was making friends of my own and comforting the crying girl who would become one of my best friends.

The next morning, we arrived at a little station in Belgrade, Maine and were met by the camp director who was named Johnny, the Arts and Crafts counselor Shelley, and a few other counselors.  We were shown which cars to get in and were driven to camp in Belgrade Lakes. I was in the car driven by Johnny. She was a little scary to me, but I did notice that most of the other girls were laughing and joking with her and I began to relax. When we turned onto Point Road Johnny told us that there were a few steep hills to climb and that the car we were in needed some help to climb them. She told us that we should all raise our feet off the floor of the car when she gave the signal and that would help the car make it up the hill. We did as we were told, and eventually all the new girls realized this was a joke that Johnny always played on new campers. When we arrived, we were told how to find our cabins and off we went.  I remember smelling the pine and the old wood of some of the buildings and thinking it smelled like perfume. There was a lake down a hill, tennis courts, a tree house, and way too much to take in all at once.  I knew I would love this place from that moment on.  I felt as though I had found a second home. Romney and I were both in 4th Shack which made me happy.

I attended Camp Runoia for ten summers as both a camper and a counselor, and those years were formative for me.  I learned about being a child among children which was sometimes difficult for me as an only child.  On the flip side, I learned the joys of sisterhood and embraced those fully. Sports became central to my life and have brought me great joy. Being a counselor gave me skills I used all my working life as a teacher. All of this helped me to become the person I am today. My camp friends and I marvel to this day that we were able to have this incredible experience.  I see several of my camp friends to this day, people I have known and loved for over 60 years. 

I returned to camp when I had children of my own to be an Assistant to Betty Cobb.  My daughter attended and my son went to another camp on the lake. Vilis enjoyed being part of it all, happily grilling at camp cookouts and attending campfires. Even our Yellow Lab Jamie was a part of Runoia although he usually stayed on his own property except when it was cookout night and there were all sorts of treats for him to clean up after the campers left for evening program.

I am still involved with Runoia as a member of the Alumnae Board that exists to raise scholarship money for girls who could otherwise not afford to come to this wonderful place. As I return each summer for our board meeting, I still get butterflies when I drive through the camp gates.

And so, when I am asked “Why Maine?”

I almost always answer,

“Because of camp.”