April 6, 2007
The
following article will be published in the Eastern Shore
Episcopalian. If you have other ideas about how to prepare
children for a stay at camp, email them to Julia. We will post
ideas from camp families here as well!
Every summer, we welcome
hundreds of campers to Camp
Wright. Some campers have been coming to camp for
years, others are campers who grew up to be counselors and CITs and
still
others are visiting camp for the first time.
Time spent at camp is time spent learning, growing,
making new friends
and trying new things. Campers are able
to get the most out of their camp experience if they are well prepared
for time
away from home. So, I surveyed some of
our camp parents, camp staff, and camp nurses to come up with ideas of
how to
get ready for a great summer on the Chesapeake Bay!
Veteran
Camp
Parents
Suggest:
·
Label
everything! You never know where your
very favorite T-shirt, or flashlight might end up!
·
Don’t send your
best clothes, and try to send extra t-shirts and shorts.
Clothes worn at camp have a history of
getting rather dirty.
·
If you would like
to receive mail from your camper, provide her with addressed stamped
postcards. Camp is so much fun,
youngsters often have trouble remembering to write!
·
Remember that Camp Wright
does not encourage calls home (except in extreme situations); prepare
your
camper for this. Don’t send a cell phone
with your son or tell him he can call at anytime.
·
Send a deck of
cards or mad libs with your camper.
These things are great for rest hour and often help
campers play with cabin
mates on the first day of camp.
The Camp Nurse
Suggests:
·
Be sure to share
health and emotional concerns (e.g. Bedwetting, phobias, sleepwalking)
with the
camp nurse and counselors. These concerns
will be kept confidential, and will better prepare our staff to care
for your
child.
·
Rest assured that
the Camp
Nurse
has standing orders for over the
counter medications. If your son or daughter has a stomach ache, head
ache,
cold symptoms, etc… our nurse can take care of it!
·
When talking to
your child before camp, encourage her to immerse herself in camp
activities. Remind her of how much fun
she will have and all the new friends she will make.
Try to avoid telling her how much you will
miss her.
Our
Camp
Staff
Suggests:
·
Practice being
away from home. Weekends at Grandma’s,
overnights with friends and visits to Uncle Steve’s will help
youngsters get
used to sleeping somewhere new.
·
Attend the Camp
Wright Open House on May 20th, camp staff will be on hand to
greet
campers, give tours and answer questions about CW.
·
Carefully review
packing lists and camp information, having particular items, such as a
reusable
water bottle, shoes to wear in the bay, and a dressy-but-not-too-dressy
outfit
for the end of session banquet will help campers fit right in to the
camp
traditions and procedures.
·
Talk, talk, talk
about camp. First timers who come to camp with unanswered questions can
be more
nervous than other campers. Many answers
to camp related questions can be found on our website, www.campwright4life.org if
you can’t
find an answer there, contact the office and we will do our best to
help!
I
hope all of our camp
families are looking forward to a great summer.
I know that the entire staff here at Camp Wright
can’t wait to meet our new campers and reconnect with old ones. See you soon!
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