World Cup and More!
Dear Parents & Friends,
Vive la France and congratulations to the French nation for winning the World Cup today. If you are a soccer fan, and we have many of them here, you surely were aware that the finals of World Cup were happening. I don’t ever recall so many parents asking if we would be showing the game. We did show it even though it had already been played a couple of hours before. So no one was a spoiler today, we turned off the internet for staff and asked everyone on staff not to check their phones. Most were working all day so that was next to impossible. I recorded it at home and brought it over around 1:30 to show after lunch through rest hour.
Even better our Special Day theme was World Cup which included many stations that campers visited throughout the morning. There were, of course, soccer games happening all day. There was even soccer water polo at the pool, World Cup Photo Booth, Soccer Skills Training, Flag Decorating and much more. For those that didn’t want to watch the game, there was Thunderball, more 8 a side soccer, and arts and crafts going on throughout the afternoon. It’s amazing how much soccer (futbol) has grown since Anne and I have been at camp. At least half our campers play or have played. The sport is actually how I became involved in camping which is a long story.
One of our staff members is from France so it was nice for him to be cheered on by most of the camp. There were a few Croatia fans and I can understand that. They’ve never been to a world cup final and they are a small country that’s been through several splits and formations as late as the early 1900’s. With a population of just over 4 million it was hard not to pull for them. I understand their coastline is beautiful.
For you non-soccer fans, the news at camp is that Mountainside and Riverside took off for their adventures today. Mountainside went in five different directions for their five adventures and Riverside tackled the backpacking trail known as the Foothills Trail. Both groups will be out until Wed. Coming up this week will also be Main Camp adventures for kayaking, mountain biking, hiking, and climbing. We’ll keep you posted on those. I can hardly believe we’re already into the third week of our long session and halfway through our C-2 session.
While we were thinking very internationally today as it related to the game, I sometimes feel like Gwynn Valley is its own little country. There is so much going on and lots of behind the scenes work. We have our small little democracy, our infrastructure including good health care, our department of transportation and housing, our agricultural system in place, food distribution center, education department also encompassing counseling, a ministry of recreation and adventure, and a strong cabinet who advises and works toward the betterment of camp. There are two presidents –one woman and one man and several vice presidents equally representing the genders. We also have a balanced budget and a healthy economy. Our population is very young and healthy which makes for a vibrant economy and lots of fun (good for the body and soul). I know it’s a stretch but it’s fun to think in these terms. We’re not ready to declare our independence at this point but we certainly can declare that camp is a great place to be. Stay tuned!
