The Sari Diaries- Monday 6/29/26

Dear Chippies, Parents, Family & Friends,

At this point you may be wondering when another podcast is coming and the plan is tomorrow. I am so sorry for the delay but we will make it worth the wait! As for today, it rocked…it was hot, like summer, for the first time at #TheRanch2026! So here’s how the day played out…

Our Day at CRC
-Breakfast- Sunday Morning Breakfast on a Monday!
-Fudd’s Challenge!
-Lunch- Monday Picnic Lunch!
-Marimeta Intercamp- Colt Villagers hosted Marimeta while Wrangler Villagers headed out to compete against Marimeta in basketball, tennis and soccer!
-3rd, 4th & 5th Period Activities- The start of our second activity sign-ups!
-Dinner- Tacos!
-Cabin Night and All Camp Fudds- Counselors planned fun bonding games for their cabins…there was baking, cabin spas, fort making and more…quite a creative evening around CRC. Additionally, because the Fudds Challenge went so well, in addition to the two winning cabins (Bowed Legs & Silverspurs) heading to Fudds, the entire camp paid the ice cream shop a visit!

Activity Achievements
-Leila J (Timber Walk) crossed the wakes on two skis!
-Brooke S (Circle C) lifted a ski for ten seconds!
-All six Chippy teams defeated Marimeta in a fun spirited yet competitive afternoon. Congrats to the Colt & Wrangler Village Basketball, Tennis and Soccer teams!

Everything Matters Moments
-Each and every Sunday morning before heading into the kitchen to make scrambles, I stop by the front of the lodge to say hello to our loyal younger campers who wake up very early to be at the front of the line. While it is Monday today, we treated this morning like a Sunday. And today, like most every Sunday morning, I was so happy to see the camaraderie that was occurring outside the front doors of the Adler Lodge. Campers form a line, make their own fun and create memories in those minutes (or hours) before Sunday morning breakfast officially begins. It is such a cute scene and they don’t even know that these moments will end up being some of their most cherished.

-Tonight before dinner things got a little windy on Dam Lake. So much so that the inflatable water slide, yes that ginormous one sitting in our swim area, tipped over and dragged the anchors all the way to the sailing area. Immediately campers told us directors and a crowd formed at the waterfront. It was another cute scene with lots of ideas both from campers and staff being presented for how to handle the situation. After the shock and awe subsided most everybody went to dinner aside from a small group of staff who got the slide upright and attached it to the dock for the evening. Again, this was a tiny moment that was funny and uniting…while small, I am confident we have lots of campers who keep this in their Chippewa memory bank for years to come!
-While waiting patiently…ish…for Fudds, the cabin of A-Frame was at the Top of the Hill being nothing short of adorable. The entire cabin including counselors were circled up doing a dance that included a chant about their cabin. They were going on repeat for a good five minutes with no clue that I was watching…they were engaged with one another and happy as could be as they waited to be shuttled for ice cream…it was a sweet moment!
-Each week at staff meetings, we have a segment called “Roses.” This is a time for staff members to share feel-good stories that occurred throughout the week. Sometimes they are shouting one another out for doing something awesome and sometimes they are sharing stories of camper’s doing something awesome. Pretty much all of the Roses each week are EMMs but I want to share two that I heard tonight:

1. At swimming yesterday Emmy L (Timber Walk) asked a camper who was a part of The CRC Experience to be her buddy. They swam together and Emmy helped this camper get a full picture of Chippewa. They chatted, Emmy answered questions and they just got to know one another. This definitely came naturally to Emmy- she likely didn’t even realize what an impact she was having. But to this camper who was learning about Chippewa, this was huge…this moment mattered!
2. Recently in skiing, two members of Lakeview, Anabelle L and Jessie H were on a boat with two Rafter^X campers. According to Julia Nathanson who was driving the boat, Anabelle and Jessie went way out of their way to ensure these two new campers find a love for waterskiing. They got in the water with the girls to help them feel comfortable and they made it fun…a little less intimidating than it may have otherwise been and so cool for these littles to have this experience with our oldest campers!

As you have read, Chippewa Ranch Camp is truly a special place. We are having so much fun and time is really flying by. We will keep taking in these little moments and the big moments…knowing that each one matters…and hopefully appreciating that we get to live them at 8258 County O all summer long. That’s it but thanks for reading!

Happy Camping and Love,
Sari