The Sari Diaries- Sunday 7/16/23

Dear Chippies, Parents, Family and Friends,

Happy Second Session! For those of you who I had the privilege of visiting with this weekend- it was wonderful to see you! For those of you who I missed, I am sorry to have missed you but I hope you enjoyed your weekend! Visiting Weekend was a great success and we have now jumped right back into life at #TheRanch2023. It is crazy how quickly the first session flew by- I guess it goes quickly every year but this one definitely feels like the fastest yet. For second session, we are going to try to slow down time a bit…we hope to have an extra moment to stop and appreciate life on Dam Lake and all of the amazingness that is happening. We will see how it goes, but one thing is for sure, the last four weeks of this summer are going to rock! Okay, back to our day today…here are the details!

Campers arrived at camp between the hours of 5am and 5pm and there was plenty of excitement in the air! While waiting for the buses to arrive, campers tubed, made candy sushi and devoured a delicious lunch. By the time Soph-Aloaf and I returned from our journey to Chicago, campers were eager for the buses to pull into the circle drive. About five minutes before the buses arrived, a little bit of rain began falling from the sky. We were quite nervous we would have to announce cabins inside as opposed to the Center Fire Circle. Lucky for us though, as campers poured off the buses with smiles on their faces, the sun returned. We announced cabins and then campers & staff were off to their cabins. The energy was palpable and just sooooo happy!

Throughout the afternoon, there were tours, play try-outs and swim tests. One of my favorite parts of the start of second session is watching how the eight week campers take the second sessioners under their wings. They help them unpack, find their way and settle into camp life…it is pretty sweet! Dinner tonight was spaghetti & meatballs…obviously- it is the first night of camp, after all! As is tradition on the first night of camp, Lakeview traveled from table to table singing cabin songs with each cabin group. I was impressed with how many new campers already knew their cabin song!

Following dinner, we had our Opening Campfire and fun was had! A highlight was the rainbow that appeared over the lake about five minutes in. We took a nice nature break to admire the beauty. Once we got going, things got crazy…in a good way! The CR-Singers led us in “You’ve Got a Friend,” and Leah Berns accompanied by Noa B and Chloe A sang “Fearless.” Additionally, Leah Berns led us in “Making it Rain” in an effort to minimize the rain over CRC this session. We had our Chippy Trivia Raffle, which is always exciting. Olivia W pulled the winner out of the bag but only after sharing with us some Disney facts…yes she is a Disney enthusiast! Maddie B’s name was selected, and for the second session in a row, Trailriders has won a trip to Cathy’s for their participation in the Chippy Trivia Quiz during the off-season.

In other Opening Campfire news, the entire Center Fire Circle was highly entertained by the annual Talking, which included a handful of campers including Sadie G, Lucy O, Haley F, Grace M and Sunny W. Honestly, their talking lasted a long time and the competition was stiff. In the end, Lucy O pulled out the victory as is the official 2023 Talking Contest Champion! The campfire concluded with a Keylog Ceremony in which a camper or counselor from each and every city represented at #TheRanch2023 threw in a keylog bonding their city to Chippewa. It was amazing to see all of the different places around the world that are connected through CRC. Before heading to bed, we all enjoyed brownies to round out the amazing first day (yes, I know…just what we all needed, more sugar)!

Walking around to cabins after evening programs was heart-warming. Cabins were gathered in circles chit chatting and bonding- counselors were leading games and activities in every single cabin…it was the perfect end to today! Now things are quiet across camp- everybody is hoping for a good night of sleep before diving into the action tomorrow. I cannot wait to see what this session brings…I am confident there will be a lot of goodness, and naturally connection. More tomorrow- have a great night!

Happy Camping and Love,
Sari