Welcome New Campers

Today we welcomed a new set of campers to Rockbrook as we opened the 2nd July mini session. Most of these campers are returning from last summer and a few are new to RBC, but regardless, you could feel the excited anticipation everywhere. The 4-week campers were also thrilled to see their old friends returning to camp and to meet the newest Rockbrook girls. It sometimes surprises people when they arrive at camp an see how friendly everyone is. We get the comment all the time, “Everyone is so nice here!” It’s true; Rockbrook is a down-to-earth, friendly place, quick to welcome new smiling faces. It takes about 5 minutes for a new camper to find a friend and head off to explore the camp. It may seem odd, but it’s a good feeling for parents, when their daughter tells them, “OK, bye mom,” effectively saying everything is fine and she’s ready to begin enjoying camp. Fostering a sense of independence is a big part of being at camp, and with friendly people all around to provide encouragement, this is a lot easier to accomplish.

RIght before lunch, the entire camp assembled on the hill. This is a chance to sing camp songs, learn about the camp activities through a series of skits, and today, enjoy the warm sunshine and mountain view. The Hi-Up girls lead most of the songs taking time to teach everyone several of the most important ones. The Line Heads also present their “Mop Awards” to the cabins that have done exceptionally good work keeping their cabin clean. This year, and different from last year, the three Line Heads decorated their mops (really brooms) as the three ships from the Christopher Columbus expedition: the Niña, the Pinta, and the Santa Maria. Why? Well, just for fun of course!

Lunch really hit the spot. We had homemade macaroni and cheese casserole, fresh local steamed green beans, and bowls of blackberries. The salad bars and peanut butter and jelly station saw a little action, but that Mac and Cheese was popular. Good stuff.

For the afternoon, a group of counselors organized a fun Hawaiian Carnival down on the landsports field. They set up several activity stations all around the field: slip-n-slide, snow cones, pace painting, hula hoops, and coconut bowling. We also had a huge inflatable water slide and another inflatable obstacle course set up. With grass skirts and colorful leis for everyone, and music pumping it was an excellent summer afternoon party. To top it off, we just had to have a shaving cream fight too. When you’re already wet, and maybe a little messy from running around, it’s so good to “clean off” with shaving cream… crazy designs on your friend’s back, outrageous hair styles. It’s all great fun, and hilarious for the girls. A quick rinse under the hose, dip in the lake, and shower before dinner, and the girls were feeling good. Be sure to scroll through the photo gallery to see more.

A great first day in the “Heart of a Wooded Mountain.”