Where Joy Abounds- Camp IVEY Day 4

Our most exciting day yet. Our greatest adventures. At Camp IVEY Day 4, there was not a moment that was any less than joy-filled. This week has already been one for the books, and it so difficult to share in words on a page what happens here each day. This morning our circle song time turned into an impromptu dance session, replaying some of our favorites from Tuesday and busting out our top-notch moves. More than that, we soon found ourselves in a sort-of dance off, each person showing their best moves in turn, expressing themselves in a way all their own. Our joy was not found in the spotlight, our joy was in the cheers, chanting our friends’ names as they jumped into the midst of the circle and took the stage by storm.

Our morning had barely begun and already we were overflowing with energy and anticipation about the journey ahead. Our first activities included a very special scavenger hunt around camp, ending with each of us finding a rock painted especially for us, unique and precious, strong and firm. We also got to adventure in kayaks today! Working together with our buddies to explore the lake in a different way, leading the charge on our self-proclaimed paths and returning to shore filled with the satisfaction of a journey completed. Finally, we tie-dyed shirts and made some crazy homemade slime! Each of us choosing how to express ourselves, finding joy in the process, and never stopping to worried about finished products or outward appearances. The joy of these activities overflowed in the form of messy hands, tie-dyed grass, and sparkling eyes.

 

The day was only half over! With lunch and a break to recharge, we headed out, marching towards something entirely new! We had a rock climbing wall, water slide, and bungee trampoline out at camp today as a special treat. We climbed, flipped, splashed, jumped. We laughed so hard our sides hurt. We invited friends to join us in each activity, and we conquered obstacles new. Jumping high into the air, we flew! Calling out to our friends, so that the joy was not just our own. Each smile and laugh for one of us belonged to all. We did not bundle up all our little moments and hold them close to our chest, no way! Our hearts absolutely burst with the feelings of mountains climbed and new heights reached. A joy shared for all.

As our day ended, and we trudged back to the Med Shed, feet heavy and hearts full, mumbles of camp victories were still being shared. Songs continuing to be sung as we fought off the tiredness from a day full of adventures. It has been said before this week, but we simply could not be stopped. Bursting at the seams, filled to the brim, and even more, absolutely overflowing. Moments far above and beyond words, an indescribable place, where joy abounds.

With the Confidence to Conquer- Camp IVEY Day 3

“A true hero isn’t measured by the size of his strength, but by the strength of his heart.” -Hercules

We just can’t believe that we are already at Wednesday! Today, marks that halfway point of our week, and already the amount of change in our campers is remarkable! From cautiously walking in the door on Monday morning, today, we looked like we owned the place! Stepping off the bus already in song, rocking and rolling our way down to morning activities. Today, we got the awesome surprise of therapy dogs visiting us at camp during morning activities. We enjoyed a sweet time with friends and new fluffy friends chatting and laughing together with more enthusiasm than before. There is just an entire change in atmosphere as the week goes on that is evident in our campers. The more we get to know our friends, and the more we start to realize about ourselves, it’s clear to see that we are truly exceptional. Even in the simplest conversations about therapy dogs, there is an air of newly found confidence, some of our campers have found their voices today, talking to our friends and sharing our own interests for the first time this week.

Also, this morning, we got to conquer to camper-favorite, Capture the Counselor game. We joined up with our teams, and ran full speed ahead, armed with our super secret water lasers and ninja stars to take on our counselors in an ultimate challenge until we captured each and every one. Our powder-covered, and sopping wet clothes worn as badges of honor representing our battles fought and won! Conquering the obstacles placed before us, and facing them without hesitation, knowing that our friends always had our backs and would be alongside us in each adventure. We also ventured down to the lake to cool off from our insane adventures. We ended up playing some more games and continually engaging with our friends, reaching out in conversation in new ways. Knowing that our questions would be met with nothing but acceptance and understanding gave us the confidence to be our truest selves in every aspect.

This afternoon we were empowered with the options of Camper’s Choice time once again, and many of us had the boldness to try all new activities! Brave adventurers tackled fishing and kayaking today, some of us for the very first time! Many of us returning to our favorite activities and finding new friends to teach the ropes if they were new. This confidence from our previous day’s experience provided us with a new zeal to reach out to our friends around us that might could use an extra hand. And even with our confident selves, our campers were never ones to pat themselves on the back. Instead, this assurance within emboldened us to reach out, offering compliments and many high fives to our fellow campers throughout our activities.

Towards the end of our long and adventure-filled day, we were met with a new challenge in the form of a thunderstorm, but no worries! Nothing that our conquerors couldn’t face. We enjoyed some afternoon snacks with companions, laughing and joking louder than any thunder. With our friends by our sides and songs in our hearts, we sang above the pounding rain, cheering and playing hand in hand until the bus rolled up. Today was absolutely filled to the brim, and we cannot wait to see how the other half of our week will turn out!!

Inspiring Independence- Camp IVEY Day 2

“A ship in harbor is safe, but it’s not what ships are built for.” -John A. Shedd

Day 2 at Camp IVEY, and sure, yesterday everything was a little new, but today, we really hit our stride. From the moments our feet hit the pavement this morning at camp, there was no stopping us today! Armed with our experiences from yesterday and with our friends by our sides, we were ready for anything that the day might hold. We remembered the words to our favorite camp songs from yesterday, so we sang them with pride. We didn’t need our buddies to guide us along the paths because we already knew the way. Here at Camp IVEY Day 2, we became independent in all new ways.  We eagerly jumped into games with our friends right after circle time, we chimed in, suggesting new games and declaring winners. We invited our other friends to join us, and we taught each other how to play along.

This morning, our activities included creative movement and outdoor games. We ventured into some yoga, which was definitely new to some of us, but luckily, we had yoga masters in our midst, and they worked with us to until we succeeded. Stretching and reaching towards our fullest potential, then tumbling and laughing as we attempted these new activities. And oh man, did we dance. We danced like no one was watching, with complete abandon, and even more than that, we danced like we were up on stage! We are not backup dancer material, no way, we are centerstage rockstars! With such zeal and enthusiasm, we stepped out to take on a world all our own.

We also learned that being independent doesn’t mean being alone. Even equipped with our independent spirits, we joined together to build crazy balloon chains and work with our teams in competitions of all kinds. We ventured into new territories and conquered huge mountains. From there, we painted rocks representing us, each unique, but solid in our own nature. Incredible and strong in ways that we don’t always realize. These stepping stones, leading our paths to camp, from home, to here, and back, we are learning to stand tall and firm reaching our goals and celebrating in all accomplishments.

This afternoon was Camper’s Choice, brand new to Camp IVEY this year, we got to build our very own afternoon schedules. Off we went, each on our own adventures, some of us creating new art projects with every artistic medium you could imagine. Others of us returning to archery to work on perfecting our aim. And some of us headed down to the lake to swim with our friends. Wherever we went and whatever we chose, it was our very own! Empowered with options is not a place we always are, and what an opportunity to explore ourselves and take the reigns of our day at camp! When we returned together to eat our afternoon snack and enjoy our final camp minutes, we were entirely worn out. Adventures will do that to you, and we sure had plenty of those today. Here at camp, we can’t wait for what’s in store this week, and we hope you get some sleep, so we can do it all again tomorrow!!

Turning New Faces into Friends: Camp IVEY Day 1

The long awaited and highly anticipated day was finally here, and over in blink before we even knew it!! The bus rolled up this morning, and we were off to the races right away! With our buddies behind us and a whole week of camp ahead, we were ready to go. Some of us were brand new to Camp IVEY, and first somethings can always make us a little nervous… but luckily, we had some Camp IVEY pros and some awesome buddies who rode the bus with us here, helped us learn the words to songs, and cheered us on all the way. This year at camp, we have 3 teams that we will be with all week from activity to activity, and today, we got to learn a little about each other. We shared some of our favorite things, we got to try all new things, and we worked together in towards common goals. These teammates quickly became friends as we walked alongside them down the paths at camp and as we marveled at their awesome clay sculptures.

We got to try our hand at some brand new things! We took turns shooting at targets down at archery, and learned that some of us might have found new talents! We built faces and masterpieces out of clay during pottery, naming our pots, and laughing with our new friends at the silly, scary, or smiley faces we created with our very own hands. We ate lunch all together as one big group, meeting even more new faces, talking about new adventures, and starting some games once we finished our food. Somewhere during the day, we realized that these new faces weren’t worth being nervous over one bit. They were quite a lot like us! We joined hand in hand, diving headfirst into every Camp IVEY. And how much easier is it to try new things with friends by our sides? Friends that give high fives whether we hit the target or we miss them. Friends that see the intricate beauty in our masterpieces that others might simply overlook. New friends that don’t at all worry that we might be a little nervous, because they’ve been nervous too. New faces and new names at 9 am, quickly turning into teammates, co-adventurers, and fellow artists by the end of the day.

The weather almost got us after lunch, with a little rumble of thunder in the background, but we simply could not be stopped! We had our new friends, and the changes in plans were no big deal as long as we were in it together! Some of us teamed up to play crazy mega soccer, working together, giving many high fives, and laughing until our sides hurt. While others of us were coloring and chatting, learning more and more about these friends we will be hanging with all week. With all of this behind us, we just cannot wait to see what’s ahead!! We went home with stories of new adventures and ideas for tomorrow. And here at camp, we absolutely cannot wait to see you for Day 2!

“Friendship is born at that moment when one person says to another: ‘What! You too? I thought I was the only one.'” – C.S. Lewis

Building a Camp IVEY Camper

I’m not sure if you know this, but Camp IVEY is not just your same old summer camp, no way! And since we are so exceptional here at camp, I thought I would dive right in and give each of you a glimpse of what exactly you might need if you set out to build your very own Camp IVEY camper….

When you’re beginning to build your camper, you’ll need a good foot to stand on, two feet in fact. Feet stepping one foot in front of the other, as they takes those very first steps off the bus at camp on Monday morning. Feet to lead the camper down paths untravelled, to step onto new shores. Your camper’s feet might be a little dirty from all the tromping through trails, and they might be a little tired from all the running, skipping, and dancing that comes with camp discoveries. But through the week, these feet will carry your camper to places they’ve never been, they will plant themselves firmly into the ground with newfound confidence, and they will leave footprints marking their way as evidence of their adventure.

The next thing your camper needs to have is hands. Hands holding onto backpack straps tightly that first morning, then waving to new faces and friends. Hands giving high fives with successes, reaching out to new friends when they need an extra hand. Camp IVEY campers have creative hands that make and mold and paint all new things in a unique and exceptional way. Hands that grab onto ropes or kayak paddles, hands that work together to reach new heights and open new doors.

Let’s not forget about your camper’s eyes. A Camp IVEY camper’s eyes are sparkling with a sense of adventure. Eyes widening at the sight of all that is ahead of them. Eyes imagining new possibilities that speak even when our mouths have lost the words. Eyes seeking opportunities not obstacles. Eyes watching our new friends grow, and eyes gleaming as they realize they’ve grown too! Eyes capturing the most intricate pictures of all our endeavors.  Eyes shining with excitement at each new day, and eyes barely able to keep open at the end of our exhausting quest.

Finally, the most important part of our Camp IVEY camper is the heart! To bond the entire body of your Camp IVEY camper, you’ll need just the biggest heart you can find. A heart overflowing with joy as memories from camp experiences held ever so close. A courageous heart, that bravely tackles the newness, and even as the heart races, it carries on, over new obstacles and into the hearts of our friends we make here. A heart that beats to its own tune, not like the other hearts you might know. This heart outpouring in the forms of laughter and song. This heart with room enough for friends to stay and adventures to continue on past just one week. The heart of a Camp IVEY camper, the essence of their very core, coming to camp to be inspired, and in turn, inspiring the hearts of each person it meets.

And there you have it, just a very simple recipe as if you could even begin to build what makes our exceptional campers so you could have your very own. And to our parents, you do indeed have your very own! And how lucky are we, as you allow us to share your very own Camp IVEY camper, built from scratch, to be with us next week! We absolutely cannot wait, and we will see you Sunday!!

Rockin’ Our Way to Camp IVEY

The final countdown to the best week of summer is well on it’s way! We are only 11 days away from Camp IVEY, and we couldn’t be more excited to see you all soon! As you might already know by now, this year’s theme is Camp IVEY Rocks! Inspired by the “Augusta Rocks!” community known locally for painting and hiding rocks around town, connecting people in a new and creative way, centering on the joy of expressing yourself in the simple ways and sharing it with those in your community. What a lovely concept, and definitely one that I can tie back to the core of what makes up Camp IVEY. Our Camp IVEY team has already been hiding rocks around our Augusta community because we want all of you involved in something as unique and exciting as our very exceptional campers. And just like the rocks being hidden and found are all different with unique shapes and sizes, colors and crevices, our campers are even more so, with individual backgrounds and experiences, perspectives and challenges. At Camp IVEY, we celebrate the exceptionalities, painting ourselves throughout our journey together with new colors and patterns, each stroke representing new experiences, friendships, and adventures!

Beyond that, our campers are ROCKSTARS! Stepping out onto a new stage that first day of camp, beginning to play softly at first, then rocking and rolling their way through camp, playing more confidently with their new friends, and finally singing louder than ever before! We, the counselors, are the #1 fans of your rockstars, cheering the loudest on the very front row, screaming for an encore by the time the week is over. At Camp IVEY, we can hardly wait for the July 23rd, when we will get to meet each of you! Some of you, now seasoned camp hall-of-famers, while others are embarking to camp for the first time ever! Either way, here at camp we can’t wait to see you shine.

As I continue to think about each of our remarkable friends, I can’t help but be overjoyed at the thoughts of adding new members to this Camp IVEY family. And once again with the rock comparisons, each camper and camper family is a cornerstone in the foundation that makes up Camp IVEY. Each and every one of you is why Camp IVEY exists; it’s what we are all about and what we wait all year for. Every Camp IVEY camper and family fit into our foundation, building us stronger and stronger, year by year. And while together we form a firm foundation, individually, we still might feel like little pebbles… We might not yet know where we fit or how truly exceptional we are yet, but do not fret, here at Camp IVEY, we are not in it alone! We are always in the adventure together as we experience new things, traveling outside of our known territory with our friends solidly at our sides, holding our hands, making us strong. And this, is why Camp IVEY Rocks! Not because we are all big, strong boulders, but instead because we are just our own unique stones, different sizes and shapes, colors and crevices, but together not alone, forming the foundation of a camp family last year, in 11 days, and in the many years to come. 11 days and counting, Camp IVEY friends, until we are rockin’ our way to Camp IVEY with you!!

To Camp and Back Again

Can you believe it has been an almost an entire year since Camp IVEY??  We definitely can’t, but this past weekend, we were back at camp training ramping up for this year’s camp! This weekend we expanded our camp family with lots of new faces, eager and excited to meet our very exceptional campers in just a few weeks!

As we introduced ourselves, the nervousy newness began to fade, and we learned we didn’t all come from the same background, have the same experiences, or live in the same city, but we did have something important in common. We all came with love for camp, minds anticipating new adventures, and hearts for campers we haven’t even met yet. As we walked the paths at camp, we could almost hear the laughter and imagine the discoveries that would soon take place here.  We sang camp songs, quieter at first, but quickly growing louder as we came together in community (and as we learned all the words). We dove headfirst into team building activities, learning more and more about one another, communicating in new and different ways, and bonding together as one Camp IVEY family.

We had the upmost honor of playing campers for a day! We learned archery, a new skill for some, while others were old pros. We kayaked out on the lake, working together in a whole new way. We took turns trying out our artistic sides, painting camp rocks to hide around camp and around town. With each activity, we got just the tiniest glimpse of the awesomeness that awaits us during camp week. By Saturday afternoon, we left Lakeside with full hearts and minds buzzing with all that Camp IVEY will be.

We came back together Sunday afternoon, and got an even clearer picture of our nothing short of exceptional campers. Our knowledge grew deeper and our bonds stronger. We turned pipe cleaners, foil, and popsicle sticks into symbols of friendship, independence, confidence, joy, and growth, bringing these words to life before our very eyes. Just as the campers will experience the meaning of these words during Camp IVEY, our counselors and youth board members also got to experience them this weekend. We came together Saturday, fairly independent beings, walking our own paths. We formed friendships quickly, finding commonalities and connecting. As the days went on, we became armed with more knowledge, becoming confident in all things Camp IVEY. We experienced the joy that comes with our camp community as we supported one another in new situations, building on the strengths within our group. Finally, we grew! We were no longer Saturday morning’s room full of strangers; we are now the flourishing Camp IVEY family!

We can’t pinpoint exactly when, but sometime during learning and laughing, Camp IVEY became very real to each and every one of us. We began building the foundation for the best week of the year. Now all that’s left, is meeting YOU! Our most exceptional cornerstones of camp, our Camp IVEY campers, and we are bubbling over as we count day-by-day until July 24th.

Camp IVEY Days 5 & 6: Growth and Things to Come

Well, the first year of Camp IVEY has come to an end. It’s really difficult to put into words what all has happened this week, and how each and every camper and counselor has been changed. The word of Friday was growth, and truly, the amount of growth that is possible over the course of 5 days is just incredible.

Friday morning we took a field trip to the Augusta Sailing Club, and many of us got to sail on a sailboat for the first time! In the afternoon, we had some free time to revisit our favorite camp activities for the final time, and we learned archery. As we went from activity to activity on our final day, it was hard to not compare how our campers interacted on day 5 versus day 1. The transformation was so obvious. By the end of Friday, we had campers who had hardly said a word on day 1, leading the entire camp in song. The support the campers and counselors gave one another created this atmosphere for everyone to thrive. From the tiny seeds on Monday, we were absolutely blooming on Friday!

Friday, we created picture books together commemorating all that had happened this week and celebrating our accomplishments! From catching fish, to shooting targets, to climbing rock walls, we all had so many successes that we could hardly fit them into our books. Later that night, we had an extra special time around the campfire. As we sat there roasting marshmallows, singing camp songs, and eating our s’mores, we realized how much of a little camp family we had become. We weren’t sitting with the same people from just our little groups, but here all together we were all interacting and celebrating together. For the end of our campfire, we read the very profound words of Dr. Seuss in “Oh the Places You’ll Go”, and it was a perfect telling of not just our Camp IVEY journey this week, but how will we carry on after camp. We ended the night by releasing glow balloons into the sky, a beautiful represent of us, reaching up to the stars, shining our colorful lights to everyone we see. We would love to stay bundled up in this little camp world in a bright and colorful bunch, but we must go out, take all the things we’ve learned and keep moving forward in a world that might not understand us.

This week our campers have been nothing short of AMAZING. The friendships made, the goals accomplished, and the confidence gained, does not disappear now that this part of our journey has ended. From here, it’s onward and upward. With these experiences in our back pockets and camp friends in our hearts, we go back to school, back to our everyday routines with a new perspective. We now know what we are capable of, and who we can be! We are independent. We have friends to support us. We have joy. We are confident. And wow, how we’ve grown!

“Kid, you’ll move mountains! Today is your day! Your mountain is waiting. So get on your way!” -Dr. Seuss

Camp IVEY Day 4: Creating Confidence

It’s day 4 here at Camp IVEY, and we are still going strong! We are all such good friends now and have had many adventures together so far. With all this under our belts, we are tackling even more daunting challenges during camp! Today, our word is confidence, and it is so fitting because with our friends by our side, we can be confident in any new ventures we try. On day 4, we began our day outside playing parachute games, and as we are more comfortable with each other we take turns leading in Simon Says as we laugh and joke together. From there our morning activities moved into something else new as we took a creative movement class as a big group.  For some it was definitely outside of our comfort zones, but we all learned to express ourselves in a different way than before.

Our confidence doesn’t come from being better than anyone else around us, but it comes from the support and acceptance from our friends.  As our friends cheer us on and believe in us even before we believe in ourselves, we find it within ourselves to try new things, even the scarier ones. This afternoon we had some of our more scary obstacles ahead of us in the form of a rock wall, bungee trampoline, and water slide.  From some, it came easily with no fear at all, but for others of us, it took all the courage we could muster to strap into a harness and leave the ground.  For those of us with fears about these new things, our friends stood beside us, held our hands, reassured us that no matter what we were the brave ones, and cheered for us in all our attempts.

With all this support behind us, so many of us saw for maybe the first time that we were great and brave and strong. We found ourselves to be confident, and we stepped out into new waters.  Whether we ventured 2 feet off the ground or 20, we claimed our success and triumphed over the doubts and fears! From there, we jumped at the opportunity to try again and again, and we high-fived over goals met and challenges won.

Today we climbed, flipped, dove, and soared. We didn’t find out that being the very best at any activity gave us some superior form of pride, but instead, we found that we could do more than we ever thought possible, and that faith that others had in us caused us to see within ourselves and find our purest confidence. As we go forward into our last day of adventures tomorrow, we will take this confidence with us to those adventures and further still. Beyond camp days, these memories will serve to remind us of what we can accomplish, and who we have supporting us on the journey. We are so proud of each and every one of you today, and we cannot wait for the adventures to come!!

Camp IVEY Day 3: A Journey of Joy

Today was Day 3 at Camp IVEY, and our word of the day was joy! Joy may have been the word that was the focus of today, but this entire journey from the planning stages until now has been filled to the top with joy. Each day this week has just been a complete overflow of that. What exactly do we mean by joy? Joy, beyond just a state of happiness that changes when the circumstances change, but a determined choice to face whatever life throws at you each day with resilience. If there is one quality that our campers embody more than any other, in my opinion, it would be this one.

This morning, as we sang songs together, more and more campers joined in than in the past 2 days and sang louder and danced more freely than before. Then we traveled down to the fields where we got to spend time with some horses, go fishing and kayaking, and play games. Our campers jumped into all kinds of activities today armed with smiling enthusiasm throughout the whole thing. It has been 3 long and full days of camp trekking around in this crazy July heat, and our campers are handling it like champs and grinning all the way.

This joy we see and experience on a daily basis is infectious. Our counselors feel it, and our joy flows out into our friends and to all the staff here. This afternoon, we got to play with the parachute together, working with our friends to accomplish different goals. As we did silly activities like trying to keep a beach ball from touching the ground as long as we could, we laughed until our sides hurt at getting the ball stuck in a tree or missing it over our heads. Here at camp, as we sat on the ground painting a mural together, there is only joy as we express ourselves however we want.

As we wrapped up today’s activities, we gave each camper an opportunity to share their favorites. To talk about friends we’ve made, successes we’ve had, and goals we’ve reached.   As we shared, campers and counselors alike, we found that we have taken delight in so many things in just 3 days! For each person, it was something a little different, and we didn’t all find joy in just one activity or project. However, amongst all of us, we found joy from the littlest things, like having yogurt for snack, all the way to the big goals we’ve accomplished! I hope you will share in this spirit of joy with us today from hearing our stories and seeing our pictures, and we will see you bright and early tomorrow!!

“There are far, far better things ahead than any we leave behind.” -C.S. Lewis