With 5 days left before the first session starts, it is truly all coming together now. The camp staff has arrived and is getting the place ready for kids. The Camp Director, Kat Fitzpatrick, is busy as the beavers on our pond, constantly in motion, moving from one task to another with a close eye on everything, making sure all is just right when the first session begins! But Kat is not alone. Frank Carivan, the Program Director (and camp alumni) is getting the camp prepared for all the activities to take place during the summer. With guitar in hand, he can't wait till the first Campfire of the season to play and sing all the great camp songs. Annie and Derek, the girls and boys unit directors, are coming to Camp Segowea for their first summer, and are bringing their great summer camp experiences with them to pass on to the new and returning campers of Wa Wa. They're already right in the mix of things pitching in with all those fun "beginning of camp" tasks. The summer staff is there as well, spending this week getting to know their co-workers, undergoing training and tidying the place up. They even manage to have a little fun too! One thing in common that they all have is they're anxiously waiting for the arrival of kids on Sunday! But until then, they'll be busy, just like this past weekend.
It was the last work weekend before the kids do arrive and we had a wonderful showing and participation of Camp alumni, current summer staff and Friends of Segowea alike. And we got quite a bit accomplished! The swim docks were put together and are in position. A new screen system was installed in the dining hall. Camper cabin roofs were worked on. The Nature Lodge/Arts & Crafts building was stained as well as having the windows repaired in it. The Camp kitchen was also worked on, making sure everything was clean and in proper order. And a fence was installed around the foundation structure at the top of the hill that will eventually be the new McComb Lodge/Dining Hall/Welcome Center (which we're still raising money for). The Saturday workday was a huge success and continued on to the Open House on Sunday. More families came on the Open House then were expected, and all were delighted in what they saw even though we were still cleaning up the place! From one parent, "This is just like the camp I went to when I was a kid and I'm really happy this type of camp is still around!"
A special thanks to all the alumni, staff and Friends of Segowea that participated on this past weekend. From helping to clean, to assisting with meals and bringing clothes for the underprivileged, books for the reading program, and seeds to plant, it is a total group effort to keeping that Segowea magic alive for future generations of Wa Wa's to come. We couldn't do it without you! From one of the current staff- "From my camp experience, I've never seen alumni come out and participate in the work and really dig in and get the job done, especially all the dirty work!"
Here's some pictures from the past weekend. Thanks to all that took them!
Norm taking a ride.
Improved drainage ditch.
Chris and Frank on screen duty.
John measuring carefully.
Jeff and Darlene making sure they're put together correctly.
Richard doing the Two-Step?
Cabin sitting!
On top of Mohican, all covered with nails, we find Derek & Sarah...
...and Lisa on her knees (removing the roofing nails).
Laura on staining duty.
Liz pausing to chat with Louise & Wren.
Guard dock in the water.
with Max doing the guard duty.
Tom on Dock Duty (again).
Future camper Wren supervising from the porch.
Moving the docks in.
and moving the mud pile.
It's a team effort!
And naturally Norm is on top of things...
Taking a break for lunch...
