The Best of Times
August 9, 2019 by Don Gentle
Time sure flies in just two weeks. I know you are excited to see your boys, but it seems like they only arrived yesterday. After a fun morning of some activity wrap-up, pony painting, and general excitement, we took a brief break to get packed before the big event of the day. Color WAR! It is amazing how excited the boys can get for this event. I sure enjoyed watching it happen around me. We washed up (mostly), and headed back to the dining hall for our end of summer banquet. The spirits were high, the voices were loud, and the music was wonderful.
So we got a little dirty, a little crazy, and we may have even struggled a bit. You know what, though? We did it ourselves… Guided by some incredible young men that are the coolest thing since sliced bread. We learned new skills, new adventures, but most importantly some life skills along the way that school cannot teach us. We made some friends who we may only see for a few weeks a year, but they may end up being the closest friends we’ll ever have.
We sure did love it! The rain, the sun, the dirt, the wide-open spaces. For us, it was never about the destination and it never will be. Give us the journey… This is where the story is told. This is where the lessons are learned. It is also where friends and adventures are made.
Don’t forget to check my notes from yesterday about closing day. We will get things started around 10 am as soon as the boys get out of assembly. A few tips for the ride home tomorrow and next week:
- Be sure to continue the conversation about camp at High Rocks and what his highlights were. The stories are great, but sometimes boys need a little help to get the conversation started. All of the two-week parents should use their parent letter as an outline for the conversation.
- At some point next week: Sit down with your son and go through the picture galleries. He hasn’t seen them yet. This will definitely get him talking about camp and it is always fun to hear about what he was doing when a certain picture was taken. You will have your very own narrator.
- Talk about next summer. If your son wants to return to High Rocks next summer (and we hope so), go ahead and decide which session he will attend. Enrollment begins on Sunday, August 11th at 5 pm. You have a few weeks as returning campers, but after that, you may have a harder time getting a spot with the first-year applications coming in.
- Don’t forget about the parent survey. We will send out a link on Monday. We enjoy feedback to keep making camp better each year.
- One more ask… There is also an Economic Impact of Summer camps survey coming your way later in the week. Please take a moment to fill this out this survey as well.
Thank you for trusting us with your sons. Thank you for checking in every night and believing in our mission. You sure do have incredible boys and we truly enjoy having them not just being part of the High Rocks community but MAKING our community. It was a great two weeks in these mountains.
Until next year…
Don and Zoob Gentle
Directors