The Sari Diaries- Tuesday 7/18/23

Dear Chippies, Parents, Family and Friends,

July 18th, 2023 at #TheRanch2023 was pretty awesome! There were cute moments, there were sweet moments, there were heroic moments, there were funny moments and there were moments of greatness. In terms of “regular” days at CRC, this one ranks among the best. At breakfast, Colt Village campers received letters from their big sisters and the lodge was buzzing with excitement. For many new campers, getting a camp big sister is a huge moment in their camp careers. When I met with Rafter^X, Blackfoot & Silverspurs after breakfast to discuss activity schedules, they were all soooooo excited to tell me who their big sisters were.

Throughout the day, we had our first B-Day activities for the session. Campers jumped right in, and were thrilled to be in the swing of things. At skiing, Regina L, Sydney B & Madelyn G got up on two skis for ten seconds, Annabelle Ko lifted a ski for ten seconds and Jada C dropped a ski and stayed up on one for ten seconds. Over at archery, Cate F and Lexi S hit multiple golds in the same round and Sophie B has officially hit her 350th gold of 2023! In cooking, campers enjoyed making and eating Jen’s famous Oreo balls, while in the South Field, the softball class was crushing it in skill and intensity.

During rest hour, big and little sisters met to take care of some very important business. Costumes for tonight were set and each pair learned A LOT about each other. In preparation for the “how well do you know your big/little sister” portion of the night, big and little sisters get to know the smallest details about each other. From bedding color to favorite activities at camp, and from sibling names to favorite subject in school, these girls really got to know each other! We had a couple of groups who stopped by the office for costume reasons…Lily R and Olivia R were looking to borrow a Hawaiian shirt from Cliff because they were dressing up as Cliff and me. And then Willow K, Anabelle L and Remy S were in search of a referee shirt because they were going to be basketball players and a ref. It was sweet to see how into the preparation they were…campers who may not otherwise have too many interactions were running around camp together…it was lovely!

As the afternoon progressed, I had the great privilege of hanging with some awesome campers. First Maddie J and I took a loop around camp. We discussed Big and Little Sister Night, Visiting Weekend and how much we love camp…we even got our photo taken by the photographer . Then Marlee A and I walked across the waterfront checking out the scene. We got to see an adorable black squirrel and watched other Rafter^X campers showing off their gymnastics skills on the beach. And finally, I got a good little office hang-out with Ava Z and Olivia S…just some nice chitter chatter about life and camp…it wasn’t anything so out of the ordinary but it was nice!

This evening was the main event…Big & Little Sister Night! The CITs planned an awesome evening for our campers and it went off without a hitch. Costumed campers gathered around the Center Fire Circle to learn the plan for tonight. They played partner Four Square against other big and little sisters, they decorated cupcakes, had a handshake contest, played knockout on the basketball courts, made posters for each other and played “Finish That Lyric.” Campers were clearly happy as they traveled around camp in groups of big and little sisters. I witnessed Stella G & Peyton H running around laughing with capes on their backs and Millie F & Hayden W hobbling around camp dressed as old ladies. The vibes were good! Sophie B & Reese L along with Jillian W & Scarlett C are the official Second Session Big & Little Sister Co-Champions of 2023 but I think it’s safe to say that it was a successful evening for everyone across Chippyland. In addition to the great fun that was had, tonight was all about connection, and members of our camp community expanding their Chippewa network. New friendships were formed, new campers definitely became more comfortable letting loose and being Chippies and older campers led the way beautifully.

If I had to give today a grade, I would give it an A+…no doubt! Alright, see y’all later- more to come tomorrow!

Happy Camping and Love,
Sari