Carnival Sunday!
August 7, 2011 by Don Gentle
Pictures from August 7, 2011 (password required)
I love Sundays at camp; it’s a special day to relax, reflect, and re-energize. We get up about thirty minutes later on Sunday, and ease into the day.
The Krispy-Kreme fairy left a special gift in the kitchen overnight…dozens of glazed doughnuts for all of us! Oh Boy was the kitchen staff excited to see that! They rounded it out with the usual breakfast fair, including hard boiled eggs, yogurt, and assorted cereals. The kids loved it.
After breakfast we all headed down to the edge of the lake to sing some songs and learn a short lesson. Zoob did a little service centered on friendship using the wonderful story of Owen and Mzee.
After our morning service we got the kids all ready and excited about the Annual Counselor Hunt! Counselors are briefed on the acceptable places to hide, while the campers are oriented on the rules of the game. Once everyone is ready, we ring the bell and the cabin groups are off to build up their score by finding the hidden counselors. Finally, we wrap up the morning with some choice activities like canoeing, swimming, the bouldering cave, ping pong, four square, tennis, or fishing.
Right after rest hour we headed down toward the gym to get the guys ready for another annual event, The High Rocks Carnival. It is a special event that only happens in this two week session. Campers participate in a bunch of games and activities. Some are games of skill where the boys can earn points like ring toss, Frisbee golf, musical chairs, card games, squirt gun “rapid fire,” or the football toss. Other activities include the counselor dunk tank, moonwalk, and face paint. The boys can use the points to purchase snow-cones, and candy. Finally, each camper has a chance at guessing how many Skittles are in a quart size container. It’s a whole heap of fun! The boys seemed to really enjoy it!
As if that wasn’t enough, we got all cleaned up after the carnival for an awesome cookout of hamburgers, hotdogs and all the fixin’s. Now Townsend is a bit of a beef connoisseur, so it isn’t just any old burger or dog. Our hamburgers are all wonderful Black Angus beauties and the dogs are of the best quality we can get! We also add in some cheese, lettuce, and fresh tomatoes from our garden. Add a few sides and a little bug juice and that is what I call a cookout!
Finally, we wrapped up dinner, dragged our full bellies and worn out bodies up to campfire hill to sing some more songs and listen to a story told by Dan Noland. It was so cool to finish the night singing taps and watching each of the cabins descend silently into the night, thinking about the great week ahead.
It sure has been a great week with these boys. Have a great night!
Don Gentle
Associate Director