The Sari Diaries- Saturday 6/18/16

Dear Chippies, Parents, Family and Friends,

What a day it has been at #TheRanch2016! We were incredibly productive but, of course, managed to squeeze some fun in there, too. Here are today’s highlights…

This morning’s wake-up was in honor of Maya H’s birthday. She celebrated her sixteenth birthday at camp…there’s nothing better than that! Throughout the day, we focused on getting cabins ready for camper arrival on Monday. Counselors made job charts, assigned beds and cleaned cabins. In addition to prepping the physical cabins, counseling teams went through a series of meetings to learn about their campers, set goals, plan for cabin days and organize lots of bonding games for the beginning of camp. It is safe to say that this staff is eager to meet their campers and get this summer going.

This afternoon, we watched a video that Cliff created which highlighted the parent perspective of sending a child to camp…specifically Chippewa. The staff really enjoyed hearing from parents and it was a great way for all of us to further connect each camper at Chippewa to her family and those putting an incredible amount of trust in us this summer. From there, we broke up into small groups to talked about soft skills and how to truly form meaningful relationships with campers at Chippewa. I loved being a part of the discussion and having the opportunity to hear from our staff about how truly dedicated they are to ensuring that the Chippewa experience goes above and beyond learning how to waterski, climb the wall or horseback ride. It is obvious that this group has a genuine interest in being a part of the growth process for our campers this summer.

Tonight was Staff Lip Sync, which is always entertaining! The staff split up into eight groups and created hysterical lip syncs…some actually had some talent…others were just up there to be silly. Either way, it was fun to watch. The spirit and energy levels were high…definitely a good sign for the next eight weeks! After the Lip Sync, the entire staff took a trip to Cathy’s for the best ice cream on the planet! We enjoyed each other’s company while hanging on the Cathy’s porch eating various delicious flavors!

And there you have it, folks- that was our day on Dam Lake. It is crazy to think that we are only two sleeps away from having an entire camp full of Chippies…we can’t wait! Thanks for reading!

Happy Camping and Love,
Sari