Posts Tagged ‘summer camp programs’

Starlight birthday: One of a Kind

Thursday, July 5th, 2018

Does your birthday fall while here at camp? Then you are in for a special Camp Starlight-style birthday celebration.

Birthdays are special because this is the one day every year where everyone celebrates YOU! If you have your birthday during the summer, this celebration gets taken to a whole new level!

The excitement begins at line-up where birthday campers, often decked out in-tutus, sashes, and birthday crowns, have the distinct and coveted honor of skipping around the flagpole and helping to raise the flag. The celebration continues after lunch when the birthday camper, their bunkmates, and sibling(s) head to the Canteen for their very own birthday party complete with a birthday cake, slushies, candy and of course, a birthday surprise.

In between all the fun and excitement is a specially scheduled birthday phone call for campers to call home!

Campers love celebrating their birthdays at camp with their Starlight family of friends and eagerly look forward to their day in the spotlight. That is because a birthday at Starlight is memorable from sunup to sundown.

Camp Starlight Opening Day Video

Tuesday, July 3rd, 2018

Good Vibes at Camp Starlight

Monday, July 2nd, 2018

The environment you are surrounded by has a major impact on your life. If you are in a positive environment, chances are, those feelings will rub off on you. It’s a natural process called entrainment, where you become synced internally with the strong external rhythms around you.

At Starlight, the environment is like no other, so there is no denying the positivity you feel just by being here. When you set foot off the bus at the beginning of summer, your mood instantly lifts.

You breathe in the fresh mountain air and you feel rejuvenated. The purest vision of nature surrounds you in the form of rolling hills, breathtaking lakes, and dense green woods that stretch as far as the eye can see. It’s hard to not feel refreshed and positive when you have this incredible view as your backdrop for seven weeks!

In addition to the picturesque surroundings are the people who make up Camp Starlight. Staff and counselors are handpicked to be a part of the Starlight team and they embody the Starlight philosophy. Their energy, love, enthusiasm, and integrity is contagious. Without knowing it, campers are picking up traits and values from these leaders, encouraging them to live with joy, compassion, and empathy.

Throughout the summer the values of tradition, spirit, friendship, adventure, fun and family become ingrained in campers and everyone becomes in tune with the good surrounding them.

They say you become a combination of the top 10 people you spend the most time with. Aren’t we lucky to spend this summer together with our Starlight family!

A Night of New Friendship and Old Tradition

Wednesday, June 27th, 2018

It’s the second night of camp and Girls Side and Boys Side alike were already eager to meet their new camp sisters and brothers. As much as the campers are obsessed with the old friends they’ve waited ten months to hug, they also could not wait to make new ones. Just over 24 hours after arrival the kids stayed up late catching up, passed their swim tests together, and were onto the next new adventure asking left and right about the camp sister and brother reveal. To say that the campers were looking forward to tonight is an understatement. After a jam-packed first day including a pizza lunch, athletic evaluations, the first fruit call, polar bear plunge, and divisional meetings to kick off this season, the campers couldn’t wait to read the message and find out their camp sisters and brothers. Through the commotion of hugging, yelling, and running into each other’s arms, everyone found their siblings.

The Boys Side and Girls Side made it down to their respective campsites hand in hand with their sisters and brothers. Ben S. and Marlie K. with over nine summers at Starlight lit the fires with David and Allison leading in the ceremony. Every camper listened intently as the Upper Senior Boys and Girls shared about what being the oldest campers at Camp Starlight meant to them.

Bringing back amazing campfire traditions for the summer of 2018, the girls sang about a moose named Fred, the flowers and daffodils, and more, in various repeat-after-me campfire sing along favorites. Likewise, the boys cheered and showed off their divisional spirit showcasing one of the loudest HOORAH’s the inter division had ever seen.

Before the end of the night, every camper found a star in the beautiful Starlight sky, closed their eyes, and made a wish. Just as they came, all of the campers left hand in hand after a night of bonding, celebrating, and experiencing Camp Starlight tradition. It was the perfect end to a magical first day at Camp Starlight!

 

Getting Ready for Camp Starlight

Tuesday, June 19th, 2018

This summer, I’m heading off for a two month adventure of a lifetime.  I’m packing my bags and heading off to…

SLEEP AWAY CAMP.

Yep, you heard that right.  I’m heading off to Camp Starlight (along with my 3 kiddos) to head up their media team.

I went to camp once when I was 8.  Camp Summit in North Carolina.  It was the best two weeks of my life.  I always wanted to go back.  Camp Summit no longer exists and life happens as it may.  I never did return as a camper or counselor.  Until now…I’m the 41 year old camper.  This is my kids’ first sleep away camp experience and feelings range from “a little nervous” to “wishes she was already there”.  What’s not lost on me, is the privilege to see and hear my own kids’ camp experience in real time and photograph it.  It’s an incredible opportunity.  But it’s not just my own children’s experiences, it’s the lives of 560 boys and girls.  As a photographer at a summer camp, being a mom is the biggest role I’ll play.  I’ll photograph each child as my own.  As an artist, and a mom, I want the parents at home, who are hitting “refresh” on their computers to feel and see and hear the same things through my photographs.   It’s a huge responsibility and I’m 100% up for the challenge.

The Starlight media team consists of three photographers (including myself) and a videographer.  The next 8 weeks will be a creative journey the likes I’ve never known.  Between telling Camp Starlight’s daily story and creating visual content for social media and marketing, I’ll be CREATIVE and CREATE EVERYDAY!!  All the best parts of being a photographer wrapped into one without the daily grind of running a business.  I will grow as an artist and a photographer.

I’ve spent the last week packing my three kids for the best summer of their lives. (BTW, packing three kids for 7 weeks away from home ain’t no joke!)  Thank goodness for Excel spreadsheets and advice from experienced friends.

Follow my journey on instagram @courtneystudios and @campstarlight_official.

See you at camp!

xo,

courtney

Without Camp Starlight I Would Be

Friday, June 8th, 2018

When campers come to Camp Starlight for the first time they are surprised that this is a place where you find out so much about yourself you never knew before. Whether its discovering a passion for music or a talent in archery, campers at Starlight quickly find out how much they have been missing out on before coming to camp. Additionally, campers realize how much they would miss out on if they never spent a summer at Camp Starlight here are a few things campers would be without Camp Starlight…

  1. Bored: Every sport and activity imaginable is presented at Camp Starlight so campers are always on the move learning new things and skills. Ceramics, tubing and producing music videos just aren’t on the agenda on the couch back home.
  2. Unmotivated: Campers are constantly encouraged by coaches, counselors and staff to do their best so they can be their best. It doesn’t matter if the support is for a sport, musical performance or a chess tournament, campers are always being supported and guided to success.
  3. Unpassionate: The loads of unique activities campers get to experience often help them develop and find their passion. Exposing campers to all different kinds of sports, arts, music and games guides them to figure out what they are truly great at and then propel them to excel in their passion.
  4. Unchallenged: Not every activity at Camp Starlight is mastered in one activity period so specialists really challenge campers to conquer a skill or understand a strategy over a period of time. The challenges campers face is what helps them become better players and leaders as they take the time and effort to overcome their challenges.
  5. Uninspired: With staff from all around the world and opportunities that only come once in a lifetime, Camp Starlight inspires campers to be individuals and pursue what they love best. Campers look up to their counselors as role models, believing that they can become a professional soccer player or artist just like them if they put in the hard work. Camp Starlight helps campers believe in others so they can believe in themselves.

Why Camp Starlight is Worth the Travel Time

Tuesday, May 1st, 2018

For many counselors at Camp Starlight a significant amount of distance is required to travel to get to camp. Driving literally across the country or flying seventeen hours straight from across the world, counselors are dedicated to make it to Camp Starlight. What makes those insanely long trips and flights worth it? The reason these counselors spend a long amount of time travelling is because they know that spending the summer at Camp Starlight is a once in a lifetime experience and a summer you can never replicate anywhere else. When counselors interact with the kids for the first time and see that they can change their lives for the better, all the jet lag and hours spent standing in line at the airport melts away. Nothing can compare to the rewarding feeling of helping a camper learn a new life lesson or help them overcome an obstacle, so when a counselor travels from around the world to Camp Starlight, those are the feelings they want to experience and celebrate. The counselors realize that even though they spend a lot of time travelling to get to camp, campers wait around all year long to return to Camp Starlight. When someone asks a counselor from Australia if the seventeen hour flight was worth it they usually respond with another question: was the ten month long wait to return to camp worth it? The answer to both questions lies in the amount of campers and counselors that do make that return trip–almost all of them.

Campers Appreciate Parents Every Day in the Summer

Thursday, April 5th, 2018

Parents of Camp Starlight campers have to work very hard all year long so their kids can enjoy a summer of fun and make memories with their friends. Even though campers are not able to see their parents when they are at summer camp, they appreciate every single thing their parents still do for them when there are some miles distancing them apart. Parents don’t see this, but campers literally light up when they see they have received mail from their parents in the morning. They clench onto the letters as they scan over every line, overjoyed to hear from their parents and the biggest smile stretches over their face. Every word from their parents means so much to them, even if they are stubborn to admit it. The days leading up to visiting day are the most anticipated for the campers too, telling their counselors all about their parents and cleaning up every corner of their bunk to impress them. They prepare in every way possible to welcome their parents into camp and wake up early the day of visiting day, eager to hug them. The moments leading up to the time campers get to see their parents show how much campers truly appreciate and love them. All they can do is stand on their tippy toes to catch a glimpse of their parents when the tape isn’t cut, and when the tape is cut, they sprint faster than they ever have before to see their parents. Campers appreciate and love everything their parents do for them, even more in the summer because that is when they realize how special their parents are to them.

Being a Camp Counselor: Learning Skills that Will Help You in Any Profession

Monday, March 12th, 2018

As summer approaches, individuals are faced with the question of where to work for the summer. While acquiring an internship can give you extensive experience in your respective field of work, the benefits of working as a camp counselor are too large to ignore. For seven weeks, you are working in a fast-paced environment with people from all over the world. These seven weeks present challenges, valuable lessons, and an increase in skills you never realized you had.

Recognizing Individuality

Living in a bunk day in and day out with both campers and co-counselors is a unique situation that many people wouldn’t necessarily find themselves in. As a camp counselor, you are presented with the task of getting to know each of your campers on an individual level in order to establish strong relationships and ensure a safe and enjoyable environment. The ability to recognize the strengths and weaknesses of each of your campers is a skill that is highly valuable in any profession.

Building Confidence

The environment at camp allows counselors to discover their individuality and be themselves. This environment of acceptance fosters the development of each counselor’s confidence and overall skill set. With higher confidence comes clearer decision making abilities, higher quality instruction, and stronger performance.

At camp, you are both a coach and a mentor to not only the kids in your bunk, but also to the rest of the children at camp. Camp transforms counselors into natural leaders with the drive to be successful. The confidence that is established at camp can be carried over to all aspects of life after the summer is over. From going into a job interview to giving a presentation to your boss, having confidence in yourself will allow for the highest success rate.

Team Building and Problem Solving

Working with co-counselors at camp teaches a valuable lesson in both teamwork and problem solving. Although your co-counselors are around your age, they can be from all different parts of the world. Counselors come to camp from the United States, the UK, South Africa, and Australia. This wide range in backgrounds presents the opportunity for understanding and appreciating different cultures, working with varied experience levels, and finding a common ground to resolve conflict and effectively problem solve as a cohesive unit.

Communication

The fast-paced nature of camp highlights the importance of learning flexibility and communicating with those around you. Whether it be schedule changes caused by inclement weather or adapting to the preferences of your campers, the ability to be flexible and innovative is a lifelong skill that allows your leadership capabilities to excel.

The combination of the skills learned as a camp counselor which include communication, problem solving, flexibility, individuality, and confidence, is a key factor in being successful to any workplace. When faced with the decision to apply for an internship or a counselor at a sleepaway camp, take into consideration that in just seven weeks, lifelong skills will be developed and achieved.

Why Kids Need Camps Now More Than Ever

Monday, March 5th, 2018

Take a moment and look around you. Whether it be at a restaurant, at the movies, at a park, or in your own home, there is one constant that is found at all times with individuals; mobile devices. Phones, iPads, and other forms of technology have taken over daily life. It has become impossible to have a simple meal with family or a playdate with friends without the distraction of technology.

Before the influx of technology occurred, children used to ask for hands on presents that fostered creativity and adventure for holidays and birthdays. I remember the excitement I had on my seventh birthday when I received my first bicycle. Seven year olds today, however, receive iPhone 8s for their birthdays. While technology has a lot to offer individuals, it can have an extreme negative impact on the development of our youth. Creative impulses and a sense of adventure are diminished as children plug in their headphones and sit inside for hours at a time exploring their latest technology.

The solution to this lack of real living is simple: spend your summer at camp. Sleepaway camp offers children a seven week experience that they will never forget. In one summer, concrete memories will be made and lifelong skills will be acquired. Time spent outside in the fresh air with friends provides children with more tangible skills than a mobile phone ever could.

Technology continues to grow at a rapid pace each and every day. Soon, our world will be filled with artificial intelligence and self-driving cars. The need to be independent will be diminished. This is why kids need America’s Finest Summer Camps now more than ever.