Excerpt from Newsletter
* This is an excerpt from Camp Mont Shenandoah’s weekly Newsletter
Camp Mont Shenandoah’s 97th camping season is off to an exciting start. After a week of pre-camp, campers' arrivals provided an appreciated pace change. Don’t get me wrong, I have a special place in my heart for orientation week, but there can only be so many hypotheticals before you start to get antsy for the real thing.
Opening Day brought a much-needed break from the rain – or so we thought. It seems the weather was playing jokes on us, as a raincloud conveniently eclipsed the sun just in time to transport trunks. However, despite the less-than-ideal conditions, campers were no less excited. As counselors, their enthusiasm provided us with newfound energy of our own.
After a classic round of Buds and Blooms – complete with games like Sister Sister and (unusually competitive) Crows and Cranes – the day ended with our Opening Campfire. The JCs debuted their newest single, the CITs produced their version of Scooby Doo, and the counselors introduced their activities through painstakingly created skits and songs. Some examples include: a reenactment of the Hunger Games reaping ceremony, a new and improved version of Radioactive by Imagine Dragons, and a skit to introduce this year’s musical: Toy Story. During counselor introductions, Alexandra Casey was swept up in the Richmond to CMS pipeline and accidentally revealed her hometown to be Richmond, Virginia. She is, in fact, from Norfolk. We will keep you updated on where she decides to live during Parent’s Weekend.
Gradually, a new routine became comfortable. Counselors began Sunday with Church, offering advice to their new cabins. Campers created new connections, began the friendship bracelet-making process, and started to plan their cabin skits. Said skits provided a night of laughter and inevitable confusion, bringing cabins closer together. On Monday, classes began! Campers and counselors alike eagerly followed their schedules, checking and double-checking that it was, in fact, a Day One. That night brought Initiation, where new campers and counselors were welcomed into the “sisterhood of Camp Mont Shenandoah.”
With Tuesday came Team Night, where campers donned their favorite colors and cheered their hearts out. Their energy and love were palpable, welcoming first-year campers to their new teams with open arms. After the election of team leaders, the night ended with the teams singing to each other across West Lodge, punctuated by the soft sounds of counselors arguing over the size of Final Banquet (FB) murals. Each year, Team Night seems to set the tone for the coming days, and sometimes even the whole summer. These first few days have brought excitement for the weeks to come.
