Camp Woodland Blog

Camp is overflowing with emotion today. Wake-up, breakfast, cabin clean-up, morning assembly, activities… every moment is infused with poignancy. Mundane details usually ignored are now special, and we are prone to a few tears. The bell rings, and we pause to listen (it is a beautiful sound… unlike anything we hear elsewhere… there are not many 100+ pound brass train locomotive bells rung these days!). Riding class gathers at the barn and there is a pause as the counselors take their positions to lead one last time… everyone knows that the next 60 minutes will not be replicated for a very long time. All over camp, in every setting, in every hour, these moments are appreciated. Deeply appreciated.

Our Smiles…have you ever seen a place filled with genuinely smiling girls? Not fake, forced smiles but wide, face-to-face, shoulder grabbing, hugging, bright-eyed smiles… well, it is awesome (and hard to explain how wonderful it is). And, yes, it is possible to laugh and cry at the same time!

Everything is exciting. The last cream-of-wheat day, the last activity, the last picnic, last mail call, last rest hour, and, of course, the much anticipated banquet, awards and candlelight ceremony. We are especially excited about Parents Weekend tomorrow. The girls have been working so hard to put routines, performances and projects together for the final shows. Our hearts leap in anticipation of every detail… yet it is bittersweet. We are sad to see the summer of 2022 come to an end.

It is always hard to say goodbye to a good friend, but these partings are especially poignant after 6 weeks of camp. We ate every meal, enjoyed every surprise, and endured every hardship with this amazing group of girls for a month and a half. Such familiarity might breed contempt (or at least get very old) but for some reason, it rarely does. The girls love each other… STILL! We see them walking arm in arm, heads held closely in conversation, and truly happy to be together.

Words are not enough to describe the day nor enough to express our gratitude. We are thankful for every single moment we have had together (and for the precious memories yet to be made over the next 24-48 hours).

We look forward to welcoming you to camp. Forgive the “mess”… the last week is always a messy one… we have prioritized having fun!

It has been such an honor to serve, host, and love your girls this summer. They are a-mazing.

Thank you for trusting and appreciating camp… for making it a priority in your family.

It is an honor to be a part of your summer.