North Star Camp for Boys







Sunday, July 19, 2015

2nd Session Kicks Off


We are off and running for the second session of the Summer of 2015! The buses pulled in to find a perfect 80 degree afternoon and the forecast says that nothing is going to change. The staff and 8-week campers were anxiously awaiting their arrival, and they went crazy upon their arrival. We gathered around the flagpole and announced the cabin assignments. The campers are now unpacking and all of the new campers are getting tours of camp. The staff are running games so that they can all of the campers can learn each other’s names.  At 6:00pm we will have a delicious dinner of hamburgers and fries, jello, salad and the ever present Sun Butter and jelly. There will be vegetarian burgers available for those that prefer, and Gluten free options for those that need it. And, of course, brownies for dessert. The food this summer has been fantastic, and we're looking forward to a great dinner and many more great meals.  After dinner, each camper will sign up for his first week of activities. He will get a list of about 100 activities, and, with the guidance of his counselors, he'll narrow it down to six.

At our parents weekend Friday Night Service, our theme was about being your best self, whoever that may be. As the boys sign up for their activities, that will be just the first step in that process in a summer where we will help them explore their interests and learn about themselves. We had a great sermonette by Oliver Rockman, who talked about his transformation from a homesick Junior Village camper to our Senior Village Director. He talked about the importance of the relationships he formed with lifelong friends at camp and with the staff that encouraged him and inspired him. We have all kinds of campers at camp, and tonight they have begun to come together as a part of the North Star community.

After each cabin plays in challenge games with another cabin, the boys will take part in our traditional opening Candlelight Ceremony. As is tradition, the counselors will lead a cabin meeting that includes further introductions, goal-setting and sharing everyone's expectations for the summer.  The candlelight ceremony is part of the team-building process at camp, which the counselors continue to develop all summer long.

Tomorrow we get right to it.  The kids will get checked out by our medical staff, take their swim test, and play several games of continuous dodgeball. The 8-weekers will he headed out on some great day trips. Evening program will be our first game of All-Camp Capture the Flag. And on Tuesday, we'll be right into regular activities. The boys will have their first three instructional periods that they chose tonight.
 
FOLLOW CAMP ONLINE
From here on out, you can follow along with the summer of 2015 on our website at www.NorthStarCamp.com/blog. We will also be posting updates on Facebook at www.facebook.com/northstarcampforboys and on Twitter at www.twitter.com/northstarcamp.

We post pictures online on a regular basis, and you can access those directly from your CampInTouch page. To access your CampInTouch page, go to www.northstarcamp.com and click "login" in the upper right hand corner. From there you can click on "Photos" to see those smiling faces. If you'd like to set up guest accounts for friends or family you can do that from your landing page by clicking on "Guest Accounts."

Thank you for trusting us with your boys. We are going to work tirelessly over the next four weeks to make sure that your boys not only have a fun summer, but that they continue to grow into wonderful young people. I know they are going to love our staff, who are excellent role models for your boys. We are so excited for a great second session of the Summer of 2015!