The Sari Diaries- Friday 7/1/22

Dear Chippies, Parents, Family and Friends,

Empowered. Hopeful. Proud.

These three words describe so well how I am feeling tonight. After an incredible Friday of activities and a truly special Friday Night Campfire, it is impossible to be a part of this community and not feel empowered, hopeful and proud. Read on to learn all about our day, and to read some of the highlights that made this day so magical at #TheRanch2022…

Today started out kind of ordinary for a day at CRC. We had regular activities, excellent weather and happy campers all across camp. At skiing, Scarlett L and Erica S got up on the boom for ten seconds, Ruby G and Scarlett C got up on two skis for ten seconds, Maya P and Jillian C got up and around the lake on two skis, Chloe C crossed the wakes on two skis, Ellie C, Willow K and Julia M lifted for ten seconds, Riley G, Jenna W and Lucy B dropped a ski and Julia H got up and around the lake on one ski! In addition to all of those incredible waterski achievements, I had the good fortune of seeing Annie F and Emmy B both hit golds at archery. While strolling across the south field, I witnessed Ava L flying down the zipline, and loving the thrill as she glided by! And then, over at basketball, Sloane and Chloe M battled it out in the championship round of dribble knock-out…it was an impressive sight to see! At lunch, Talia Solomon announced the current fish catching leaders of the summer- Skye N is currently in the lead having caught five fish, Sophie B is on her tail having caught four fish, and there is a five-way tie for third place! Basically, all around camp, amazing things are happening!

All of the daytime stuff was awesome but the real highlight of this Friday at Chippewa was our campfire. Tonight’s campfire theme was Empowerment, and I believe it may have been my favorite Friday Night Campfire of my entire camp career. And that’s saying a lot because campfires have been my favorite evening program for at least the last twenty years. Sadie S wrote the campfire, and included a number of pertinent and important quotes, as well as an opening and closing that truly spoke to our camp community. Ro-buisha (Sammy K) led the campfire, and spoke with incredible confidence and poise. The CR-Singers sang “Fight Song” and “Lean On Me,” and Leah Berns & Smoss sang “The Man.” All three of these songs were perfect for tonight’s theme, and they were all very impressive performances!

We had a camper sermonette by Julia E whose words beautifully articulated the significance of empowered women in our camp society and in the real world. She talked about how we so naturally build each other up at camp, and how it gives her great hope to be a part of a community like CRC that brings together so many strong and empowered girls and women. We also had two staff sermonettes- one by Grace Friedman and the other by Riley Ablin. The admiration I have for these two counselors officially knows no bounds. I have always known that we have a special, intelligent and compassionate staff team, but these two further proved that the role models our campers are privileged enough to look up to are simply the very best. Grace focused on how we as individuals can empower ourselves and other women by taking what we do at Chippewa on a daily basis- demonstrate confidence, strength and support- and bringing that into our lives outside of 8258 County O. She explained how it is important not only to make sure that we are acting with strength and confidence, but also to be sure that we stand up for others, listen to their strong voices and celebrate their successes. And Riley got up to that Center Fire Circle podium, and described to our campers how they can make a difference through advocacy and volunteering. She explained that it is important for each individual to find their passion, and to work towards making a difference for that cause.

The campfire ended with an exceptional Keylog Ceremony and the singing of the Chippewa Creed. I was in serious awe of every moment of this campfire tonight and I am so grateful to have experienced it with the 230 campers and 115 staff who are together living on the shore of Dam Lake this summer.

I have complete confidence that campers and staff went back to their cabins tonight feeling EMPOWERED, HOPEFUL and PROUD.

Happy Camping and Love,
Sari