The Sari Diaries- Thursday 7/30/26

Dearest Chippies,

I write to you on this fine July evening following one of the greatest Kahuna Days of all time. All day long and all across camp, Bat Girl, Black Widow, She Hulk and Wonder Woman competed in a series of games, sports and challenges. Each team brought a competitive spirit, teamwork, sportsmanship and lots of fun, making it a fantastic day here at CRC. Here are some highlights…

Wait… I think I may be getting ahead of myself. Let’s take a step back. For those of you who may not know already, Kahuna Day is a day-long competition where the entire camp is split up into four teams. Throughout the day, the teams compete in all sorts of sports and games like knockout, banner making, soccer, lanyard making and more. It’s a top tier day of the summer and is always chock full of excitement, spirit and friendly competition. Each team is led by a pair of Colt and Wrangler Village captains who are nominated by their counselors for demonstrating leadership potential, camp spirit and characteristics of the Chippewa Compass. It is a big honor to be chosen for this role, and this year’s Colt Village captains—Ava F (Copper Stripes), Joyelle H (Boots), Sienna K (Cactus) and Shay S (Boots)—working together with the Wrangler Village captains—Zoe C, Maya G, Brooke R and Sadie S (all of Lakeview)—showed us that they were more than deserving of this honor. Clara K (Rafter) told me earlier today that a good Kahuna Day captain is someone who “cheers their team on all day.” Each of these captains did that and then some… they led by example, demonstrated fantastic leadership and sportsmanship, and helped us all make the most of our day. And I can’t forget to thank Maddyn Cohen and Jill Moyer who planned and led the day. It was enthusiastic and lively and overall incredible. Everyone had a blast, and that is in large part due to your hard work, time, effort and planning. Thank you for all that you did to make it a day to remember!

A couple of important notes about the day…

• During our delicious BBQ luau dinner, Isla H (Silverspurs) and Parker Z (Circle C) were collecting leis to see how many they could fit around their neck. Parker Z believes she broke the world record for number of leis worn at a luau… 160!

• Before the Evening Program portion of Kahuna Day commenced, Poppy D and Kenzie C of Silverspurs came into the office looking for blank paper. They proudly announced that they were beginning to write another play for their cabin to perform. If you were an avid reader of The Sari Diaries in 2025, you may remember that Poppy and Kenzie co-wrote a play that Rafter^X performed for the camp and it was INCREDIBLE. I have no doubt that their second act will follow suit and I can’t wait to see their cabin come together to perform “A Day in the Life of Silverspurs” (where each camper will play both themselves and a deer).

• The winning team of Kahuna Day won by ONE POINT! Congratulations to She Hulk, whose score of 250 beat out Black Widow (249) in the final event!

And now, as I write this, campers are settling in their cabins and readying for a well-earned good night sleep. As I reflect on the day, I am left thinking about the notion that Everything Matters. I’ve highlighted tonight the big picture obvious good parts of today—the wins, the achievements, the teamwork and team spirit… and yet what makes today a day worth remembering is all the stuff I can’t capture in a short blog post. The cheering and encouragement after the game winning flag football play, the lunch conversations shared amongst teammates, the laughter that followed scavenger hunt competitors as they searched for an object that started with the letter k. That is where connections were built and memories were made. And I am certain that more of those happened today than I could write about even if I had all the time in the world. That is the cherry on top of an already amazing day!

Long story short: today was a good one. Dare I say, a REALLY good one. Maybe even the best one yet. Days like today always remind me of the magic of camp, and as the summer comes to an end, it is definitely bittersweet. I both mean it and feel a twinge of sadness as I say that I look forward to joining you all back on this screen next week… for my final Sari Diaries entry of #TheRanch2026. In the meantime, I will focus on the continued excitement here at camp—starting tomorrow with Camper Counselor Day. It is sure to be another one for the books!

Sincerely,
Soph Aloaf