Wednesday News

August 10, 2011 by Hank

Pictures from August 10, 2011  (password required)

For today’s blog, I asked Chris Dorrity if he could share some thoughts:

Hey everybody, this is Chris Dorrity, the head of the climbing program here at camp.  Just the other day I had an interview.  Not a job interview, but one that was part of a study being performed by an undergraduate student at a local University.  It was for her sociology class.  She said that the study was an investigation on staff members working at local camps in the area, regarding their roles, positions, personal feelings, and past history with the camp that they work at.  As I was walking up to meet with my interviewer, I was anticipating some of the questions that I would be asked.  I knew for sure that one of those questions would be “what makes you keep coming back to camp”?  The interview lasted for about an hour, and sure enough, that anticipated question was the final one asked.

I thought about it for a moment, and then answered…  The reason I keep coming back to camp is different each year.  This is my seventh summer at High Rocks and each year is unique and unlike the ones before.  Some are filled with returning staff, where everything is routine and the whole summer is awesome and runs smoothly.  Other years there is a mix of new and old staff.  There are times when teaching roles and protocol is emphasized, and there is new excitement by the staff being part of a new community.  This year we had new staff members and there were new faces at camp.  The fresh ideas and enthusiasm from a new staff cannot be matched by an older staff.  Each year is special and has its special uniqueness all to its own.  However, there are challenges and difficulties that come with each year as well.

Some years for me I found it very challenging to be so distanced from my, now fiancé, Laura.  For the last two summers, she lived in Texas and there were times when I could not stand being so far away from her.  The crashing internet and bug-bitten nights spent at campfire hill trying to talk to her were unbearable at times.  There were other times when a staff member and I would disagree about something.  Sometimes the trips out of camp would be rained out and we would not get to climb.  Sometimes getting to supervise a cabin when the counselor had their night off is frustrating when the campers have still not brushed their teeth after asking them to do so 10 or more times.  Even my bosses would get upset at me for various reasons (none of which were my fault of course).  So, each summer at camp has its ups and downs and is completely different from the others.

So is there an overarching reason that I continue to come back to camp?  Yes.  Camp High Rocks is like my family.  We get along sometimes, and we get into disagreements sometimes, but every time, without a doubt, we are committed to each other and we are there for one another.  It is my family and my community.  Not just me and the staff, however.  The campers are what make this camp the complete community.  They are the lifeblood of camp.  It is their stories, jokes, adventures, learning, goals, achievements, growth, and maturing that make me come back to camp as well.  We are a family, through and through.  We have highs and lows, cranky and happy, excited and exhausted, but in the end we are all committed to each other.  We are committed to ensuring that everyone moves forward, learning, growing, loving each other, building each other up, and making each other stronger.  This is my family, and I love each one of them very much.

See you on Parent’s Day!

God Bless, Chris

Today’s outings– There were several trips out today, including: a Green River canoeing trip; an overnight hiking trip in Pisgah National Forest; a “High Rocks” climbing trip; and lastly- a Mountain Biking trip visited DuPont State Forest this morning.  The guys in Lakeside were on the Ropes Course this morning.  Connestee had their turn on the Ropes Course in the afternoon.  Hillside & Connestee are going to Sliding Rock & Dolly’s tonight.

High Quality pictures– Some parents have been asking about getting copies of the pictures that are a higher quality than what we load on the net. We will have pictures from this session (almost 2,000 that are about ten times the resolution of the website pictures) available for sale on “thumb” drives ($30).  For those of you that pre-ordered the thumb drives, they will be enclosed in your check-out envelope on parent’s day.  If you did not pre-order one you can still reserve one by emailing townsend@highrocks.com

It’s hard to believe there are only two more program days of camp!  We will upload pictures tomorrow & may upload a few on Friday.

Enjoy today’s pictures!

Hank Birdsong