Two Week Sessions

Camp Deer Run 2010 has been going strong for two weeks now, and 2nd Session is about halfway over. 2nd Session is the first two week session of the summer. One week sessions of Camp are great, but two week sessions are the true measure of the greatness that Camp has to offer. The second week of each two week session (2nd, 4th, and 5th) are almost identical to the week of each other session, but the first week is vastly different.

Monday of each two week session starts off with Cowboy Day. Something unique about two week sessions is that the campers tend to be older as a whole, and usually camp the same session every year. Because of this, they know what each day is, and try to bring clothing that allows them to dress up based on the days, just like the staff does. Which means that Cowboy day usually brings out the cowboy boots and hats. Every once in a while you might see some chaps, or even a cap gun in a holster. Sometimes the group leaders will come to Flag Pole Devo on horseback. During Group Activity there is a focus on cowboy type games. Sometimes there will be relay races involving saddling a horse. Sometimes a game of Cowboys and Indians will break out. A tense tournament of horse shoes will break out. Its a great day to start Camp.

Tuesday was always my favorite day...Hawaiian Day! This is a great day for so many reasons. Right at the top for me was that this day gave me an excuse to wear a bright Hawaiian shirt and a straw hat. Just like Cowboy Day, Hawaiian Day would be celebrated by both campers and staff by dressing the part.

There have even been a few attempts to celebrate Hawaiian Day by surfing in the pool. Needless to say, the waves were never big enough. Water is a large part of the focus of Group Activity. There are usually some silly water relays, but the most exciting part is the very large slip and slide. A few years back somebody donated some large billboard covers to Camp, and these serve a wonderful purpose, the best slip and slide ever. Campers and staff get to go down the slide as much as possible, and have lots of fun.
Wednesday is International Sports Day. I'm not really sure how this became an official Camp Day, since I have heard rumors of a Reverse/Opposite Day that used to exist, but this is a fun day none the less. On International Sports Day, there are many, many sports jersey's being worn around Camp, mainly soccer jerseys. Soccer is usually played during a Group Activity, since that is about the most international sport there is. This is always a fun day during World Cup years, like this year, with all of the focus being on soccer.

The next couple of days are either the most exciting days, or the most dreadful days for campers, and honestly staff as well. That's right, Outcamping! The thing about Outcamping is, even if you don't look forward to it, you almost always end up loving it. The Hoches and Nashamies spend two nights out in the woods, and the Chueks and Wenaches spend one night each. It is a time of bonding and memory making. You get nasty and smelly and gross, but everybody else is just the same. You eat food that is cooked over a fire in a way that you never think will work, but always does. You sleep under the stars, with bugs all around you. It is just an experience that the campers don't normally get to have. Chickens are always the highlight for the Hoches. For many years, the campers got to experience the entire process of preparing a chicken for eating. That included killing the chickens, gutting the chickens, plucking the chickens, and then cooking the chickens over the fire. Today the process is much more simple. Frozen chickens are used. There aren't many people that have fond memories of plucking and gutting the chickens.
The food also includes making hamburgers in a can, cooking pancakes in a pie tin on hot coals, and breakfast in a bag. You put bacon on the bottom of a paper sack and cook it over the fire. The grease in the bacon seals the bottom of the bag to where you can pour an egg in there on top of the bacon and cook it. Of course, if you weren't paying attention, your paper bag would catch on fire if you got it too close to the flames. That means no breakfast for you.
The younger groups get to have doughnuts for their breakfast. There are canned biscuits that are fried and dusted with cinnamon and sugar. They are very good.
Another unique aspect about two week sessions is Killi Kapers. This is always a fun night for both campers and staff. Each cabin is responsible with coming up with some sort of skit, or song, or something unique to perform in front of the entire Camp. The top 3 performances are recognized at the end of the night. It is always a great night to dress up and for the campers to really showcase their talents.

Two week sessions are unique in so many ways. The best part is that the campers are surrounded by God for such a long amount of time. The staff generally try to get a little deeper in their studies with the campers, and really try to challenge the campers to search for God during their time at Camp. The campers are able to spend more time reflecting on their life with God, and are able to lean more heavily on each other to be strengthened. It is a wonderful experience, and anybody who has experienced Camp for two weeks will agree.

Camp is going well, but continue to pray for all of the campers and staff that will be spending time out there this summer. If you plan to visit Camp for any Middle Sundays, remember that everything starts an hour earlier with class at 10:00 and worship at 11:00. Hope to see many people there.

Hail, Dear O' Deer Run,

Sparky