The Sari Diaries- Wednesday 08/07/19

Dear Chippies, Parents, Family and Friends,

Our final full day at #TheRanch2019 has come and gone. I am devastated and also filled with complete happiness. While this was a long day, it was one that was filled with so much good…and here’s what happened…

After a morning full of packing and organizing, the rain began to come down this afternoon. The downpour wasn’t ideal but who are we to complain after a summer of nearly perfect weather?! So we shifted our plans a little bit and had an indoor Final Campfire. As is tradition, each Lakeview camper shared her thoughts with our camp community. The LV campers advised younger campers to take advantage of every moment they have at camp, they thanked their counselors for the endless love and guidance they have given them throughout their camp careers, they reflected on their journeys as campers, and most importantly, in their own ways, they each articulated just how special Chippewa is to them. We concluded the campfire with the final keylog ceremony in which many campers took the opportunity to thank others for their incredible summers. It was very sweet and I loved hearing what each camper had to say.

From the campfire, we headed to the South Field for Final Banquet 2019. We did things a little bit differently this time around and had a food truck themed banquet. Campers enjoyed food from six different food trucks and they loved eating many different types of food and milling about in the New Building. A special shout-out to Uncle Ed, Ruth, James, Kayleigh, Lizzy and Melissa for their tireless work in making this uniquely styled banquet so amazing!

Following the food portion of banquet, we congregated in the South Field tent for a wonderful awards ceremony. Each activity gave out three different awards to very deserving campers. Similar to Chippy Awards, I absolutely loved watching the genuine happiness shown by the friends of those receiving awards. I truly believe that this is one of the very special parts of Chippewa- our campers have a wonderful ability to celebrate each other with their whole hearts. At the end of the activity awards, cabin counselors shared their cabin plaques with their cabins…the cheers and excitement coming from campers as these plaques were revealed was awesome…pure joy!

Before the final awards of the night, we had one last coin ceremony in which twelve very deserving campers and staff members were honored for their demonstration of responsibility, humor, humility, strength, leadership, cooperation, generosity, compassion, knowledge and resilience. A big congratulations to Emma H, Reese S, Sophia F, Olivia G, Olivea C, Annie B, Sophie Z, Zoe S, Nicole L, Talia S, Leah B and Chloe C.

And then it was time for the two highest honors of the night. Zoey J was named Miss Chippewa Rodeo 2019…the biggest deal for those out at the stables. Zoey has worked hard at horseback riding for a very long time, and was very deserving of this recognition! And our 2019 CRC Honor Camper is (drum roll please) Shira K! Throughout her camp career, Shira has been an outstanding camper. She has demonstrated an immense amount growth, and is a true representation of just what we hope our campers will strive to be…she is kind, confident and loves Chippewa :). We are so proud of the person Shira is, and are thrilled that she was honored in this way!

As Final Banquet ended, we all headed to the North Field to watch the burning of the CRC effigy and to sing one final Chippewa Creed. Every single summer, I am overcome with emotion as the entire camp shares this special time together. It is always a good reminder that we are all connected as a camp community, and that the power of Chippewa reaches far beyond the trees that surround us- we will always have this summer we spent together. I don’t know why it tends to hit me at this moment but it does…and I think it hits others at exactly the same time.

Finally, different cabins had different plans for the last night of camp. Some had quiet bonding time before going to sleep, while others enjoyed being silly with each other all night long. I had some excellent office guests throughout the night…something I always look forward to on the last night each summer. The office tends to be a hangout for different campers and counselors all summer long and the last night is no exception.

So that’s it…our final full day at #TheRanch2019 has come to an end. But don’t worry- there’s still plenty of camping left. Thanks for reading…goodnight!

Happy Camping and Love,
Sari