Day Five- The Final Chapter For Camp 2018

The last day of camp is here. It seems just like yesterday that the campers were getting off of the bus and now the bus is here again to take them home.  But we've fast forwarded a bit in the day's events so let's rewind to the start of the day. Most days at camp start with a quick 30 minutes of exercise with Coach David and Coach Carmenn, followed by breakfast, Breakfast Club and then J-Zone.  In J-Zone we've had daily installments of the play Pirates Of The Payette. The plot centers around a hapless band of pirates that really don't have a clue about what it takes to be a successful pirate.  In fact they and their ship had never left the dock until the lure of treasure described on a sketchy map drives them to make the decision to set sail.  It is not a surprise when the inexperienced crew is shipwrecked. Through it all the pirates learn that it's lessons provided in the scriptures that enable the pirates and us,to deal with life's trials, not money.

The Pirates of the Payette: Cracker,Ma,Rifraff,Scum,Bilge, Cpt Smiley, Cpt Hookinbak

After the play, comes lunch and then it's on the bus for the ride home. Once the campers are reunited with their care givers, counselors and staff do a debrief on the week's happenings. It's also a time to celebrate service awards.

We have staff and counselors that have participated in over thirty  camps.  The one thing that was stated time and time again is the phrase "I remember my first camper." Another phrase is "The year my camper did this...." At the end of the day, it's always about  the camper.  Time to starting getting ready for the 2019 campers.

Day Four- Polar Bears and Graduates

It’s a camp tradition to have an early morning swim in the icy, snow melt waters of the lake. We fondly call this paddle in the water the Polar Bear Swim and this year’s swim was held this morning.

Brave campers and counselors took the plunge and earned their Polar Bear award. Other campers did the Penguin, which constitutes wading into the lake up to their knees. This too earns an award. We added a new award this year, the cheerleader, for those campers that just don’t think hopping into the icy water at 7:30 in the morning is their thing but were willing to come out and cheer on their fellow campers.

The first line of one of our camp songs from years past is “Whether it rains, whether it pours, wherever I go, I will trust you Lord”. This song was put into practice this afternoon.  Just as the boy campers were setup for an afternoon swim, a large storm swept over camp leaving it cold and wet. Since swimming was out, we shift the campers to the Activity Center and games in our large meeting rooms.   Tonight, one of our girl campers was overheard praying, “Thank you Lord, even though it rained and we couldn’t go swimming, we still had fun activities.”  Although sometimes things don’t go as planned, we can still take heart that we are making an impact in our campers’ lives. 

Face Painting

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Face Painting 

Woodworking 

Graduation was held this evening. This year’s campers who will be over twelve years of age when the next camp is held are given the status of graduate.  During our graduation ceremony, graduate campers were given a medal,a tee-shirt with graphics noting they are a graduate, and a new Bible.  Their counselors offered prayers of encouragement and blessing as they start their next adventure.  It has been an honor having these campers with us this year.

Day Three- Sailing, Celebrating and Singing

One of the highlights each year for our campers is the opportunity to sail around the lake in the camp sailboat.  The wind in the sails and the water lapping at the side of the boat provides a peaceful ride.  For some campers sailing was both a new and somewhat daunting experience. Those campers who were ill at ease at setting sail were encouraged by their counselors and staff to step in out of their comfort zone, and in turn were reward with the new fun experience of sailing. 

Rows of Birthday Package ready for our campers

Camper with Birthday package

Another camp tradition is celebrating our campers' birthdays with them. This is done by grouping the campers together by their birthday month, singing the Happy Birthday song for them, and once all of the campers have received their gifts, they quickly tear them open it see what's been given to them. 

Immediately following the opening of presents is the Birthday dinner. The camp was treated to pizza and cupcakes, all of which was delicious.

Our final event for today was the Give It a Go Show.  This show is another opportunity for campers to step our their comfort zone. Camp is designed to provide a safe space for campers to try new things. During the show performers sang songs, provided puppet shows, ran football plays and demonstrated other talents.  Each performer was cheered and encouraged as they performed. By the end of the show performers and their audience were all smiles.  So ended another good day at camp.

Day Two- Pirate Invasion

The camp was invaded by pirates today. They came in all shapes, sizes, and various ages. But one thing was for sure, they were here to have fun. 

Pirates work with the woodworking team to piece together ships 

The woodworking station was filled with pirates who had the  clear objective to build ships and make ready for their next voyage. Each of the ships was given a main sail with the encouraging words "God gives us hope like an anchor sure and safe."  

Ships (& cars) drying in the sun after
 receiving a fresh coat of paint

Many a seaworthy vessel was put on the drying rack after receiving a fresh coat of paint. Other ship related activities included the Plaster of Paris ships painted in bright colors as well as ships built during J-zone, made of corks  and paper sails, which were easily power by a drinking straw and air. 

Artistic pirates' Plaster of Paris ships 

Pirates fishing the pond

Once the pirates had their ships and artwork in place, they turned their attention to the fishing pond.  Pirates need plenty of food while on their long voyages and these fishing pirates took their work very seriously. The number of fish caught to-date is 62, with a lot more fishing time in front of us. 

A bounty of fish were caught to feed a hungry crew

Our fearless Captains Bill and Wendy

the evening was wrapped up with pirates games. The games ranged from walking the plank to digging for buried treasure.  At our camp, everyone is a winner. Each pirate (camper) received a "Royal Cape" letting them know they are royalty to us. 

A cannonball makes a direct hit, toppling the box wall

Pirate digging for buried treasure

Walk the Plank relay race

The night ended with a lot of pirate smiles and an eager anticipation of what tomorrow will bring.

Day One -They Are Here

Welcoming cheers as the campers' bus arrives at camp

Counselors and staff eagerly awaiting the campers to exit they bus

 There is a lot of  energy when the campers arrive.  Counselors and staff are eager to start camp and of course we can't do it without our honored guests, the campers. Campers are connected to their counselors and the fun begins. Suitcases are quickly unpacked and then there's a race to the activity center, the fishing pond, and archery range.  Skies were gray, bu we didn't let a few clouds and the threat of rain dampen our spirits.






There were some early wins for the campers today. A large number of Rainbow trout were pulled out of the fishing pond and many of the campers passed their swimming test.

The many choices available at the beading activity 

At the Activity Center campers quickly became involved with face painting, volleyball, and bubbles.  Beading is always a favorite with the campers and riding  the zip line too. In fact a ninja was seen today making good use of the zip line, which I believe is  part of the ninja job description.  A music station was added the activity center this year and it too has become a camper favorite. The rhythmic pounding the the drum circle could be heard throughout camp. We had a great first day. Be sure to check back tomorrow. It's rumored we have a new obstacle course that is sure to be fun.

Ninja Zip Line Rider

Newly added music station

2018 RFK Boise Camp - Day Of Training

RFK Boise 2018 Day of Training

It won't be long until Camp will be here. On June 2 Counselors and Staff had a day of training to make sure we are set to welcome our 2018 campers and make sure they have a fun, safe time.  It was a great time of learning, re-connecting with the team, and having a lot of fun.

We'll be providing updates during our week of camp on all the activities and fun we're having. Be sure to check back regularly to get the latest.