Let’s Go Kayaking!

Let’s queue up some adventure this summer at camp with whitewater kayaking! If you haven’t tried it, you are in for true high adventure… challenging thrills, the exciting surprises, and a solid dose of the power and beauty of nature.

There’s some really cool kayaking gear to learn about and a first step of simply getting comfortable paddling the boat, but then campers spend time on the Rockbrook lake practicing basic techniques for kayaking, like what to do if you tip over (“wet exit” or even “roll”).

Heading out to some of the local whitewater rivers is the next step. We have to master maneuvering through the river’s rapids… crossing fast-moving water (“ferrying”), stopping in a pocket of calm water (“catching an eddy”) and pulling out of an eddy (“peeling out”).

Girls love kayaking camps because there’s always something new to learn, a new river to paddle, and a new challenging rapid to conquer… perfect summer time adventure! Let’s go!

Camp Friends

For years now, we’ve been talking about the benefits of a camp experience for children, the incredible rewards that stick with them long after the active fun of camp life fades back to the demands of home and school. We talked about the meaningful transformation kids experience, personally, socially, intellectually and physically. In so many ways, camp is educational, in the best sense of the word. It’s an experience that children can draw upon later in life as they encounter new challenges, meet new people, and branch out beyond the familiar. Camp is great for kids, in truly important ways.

If you ask the girls at Rockbrook why they love camp so much, they won’t hesitate to explain that it’s the people, their friends that make it so important. There’s no doubt about it; at camp you make your very best friends. There’s time to relax and plenty of super fun things to do, so it’s easy to make friends.

In addition to the real benefit of learning how to make friends, it’s also true that simply having these “camp friends” can be something valuable later in life. Campers share so much together and get to know each other so well, they naturally grow very close, and the camp becomes a close-knit community of supportive people. Years later, for example when they are looking for a job, or getting married, or moving to a new town, these connections (this “social capital”) can really make a difference. Camp friends are there for you!

Miami Rockbrook Girls

We’re back from a great trip down to Miami Florida talking summer camp with the girls down there, connecting with current campers Morgan E., Isadora K., Sarah G., and Bella M., and meeting a bunch of new girls interested in attending camp this summer. It was so great to see everyone come out on a Wednesday night.

Super camp dads Jonathan Eismann and Daniel Kron (of Genius Jones) got the word out to their friends in Miami and the Miami Beach area, and decided to hold the party at Pizza Volante, the Eismann’s awesome pizzeria restaurant in the design district of Miami. We all enjoyed tons of great pizza and cold drinks as we watched the Rockbrook movies and talked about our favorite sleepaway summer camp.

These parties are always such a fun way for campers to relive a bit of camp and for new girls to learn about Rockbrook and all the zany fun we have in the summer.

Next time you’re in the Miami area, be sure to stop by Pizza Volante for a perfect slice, and around the corner, check out Genius Jones and its functional, smartly-designed products for parents and children.

Washington DC Camp Party

We had a great visit to the home of the Newnams’ in Washington, DC recently for a summer camp party. Fellow campers Meg and Stephanie joined Anna and Lydia to see themselves in the Rockbrook slides and reminisce about last summer. Lots of their school friends also showed up to learn more about camp and to make s’mores on a frosty evening. It seems like there are many budding equestriennes in this group!

For current campers, these parties are a wonderful way to charge up your Rockbrook spirit and for new girls they’re a way to learn about Rockbrook and imagine themselves being a part of camp.

We’re looking forward to seeing everyone at camp next summer!

Make a Pillow!

Here’s a great camp crafts idea that you can do at home over the holidays. Make a pillow! Gather up scraps of cloth and decorative fabrics. Find some buttons, ribbon or yarn. And with a needle and thread, you are ready to sew. This is a simple hand sewing project that begins with laying out the shape of the pillow. Just a front and similarly sized back. But that’s just the start of it. The front and back can be an unusual shape (hearts! Circles! Diamonds!) Now comes the decoration, the different shapes sewn on top, the yarn letters that spell something, or the ribbon wrapping around the edge. These camp crafts ideas are virtually endless. When you have all the decoration done on each side of the pillow, you sew the front and back together leaving one side open. That’s where you then stuff the pillow with a polyester fiber to make it puffy and soft. Sew up that last opening and you’ve got a cool decorative pillow, designed and sewn by you!

Posters for Girls

Mark Frauenfelder alerts us to these really cool posters by the graphic artist Amanda Vissell. They are drawn especially for girls, each having a message inspiring confidence and independence. “I am my own Captain” is our favorite, but there’s also, “I can save myself,” “I am wild,” and “I am a maverick.” Click the image to see a larger version.

The artist explains:

I decided to make a line of posters for girls. In a world where girls grow up feeling like their value is how they look these are meant to be a friendly reminder that they can do anything. That they can dream up their lives and make it happen. In the end we all do, it’s just how big we dream.

Camp is another reminder that girls have untapped abilities, that they can do amazing things far beyond what they have even imagined thus far. Camp provides daily encouragement and support as girls step out in new ways. Over time, the girls who attend camp build up a book of empowering experiences from which they can draw later in life. Rockbrook is a place for girls chock full of moments proving each of these posters.

You are your own captain!

Charlotte Summer Camp Party

Last week Sarah and Mandy traveled down to visit with our Charlotte, NC summer camp girls, and show the new Rockbrook movie and slides from this past summer. There was a huge turnout of both current campers and new girls interested in finding out more about camp. Loads of summer camp excitement down in Charlotte NC!

Since these parties are both mini reunions and information sessions, they are great ways to recharge your Rockbrook Spirit and learn what makes RBC so special. Of course, they’re bound to be a little silly and guaranteed to be plenty of fun too! Thanks again to the Crutchfields for hosting the party. Everyone had a fantastic time!

Summer 2010 — The Last Day

It’s hard to believe it, but we’ve come to the last day of our third session, and the final day of Rockbrook’s 2010 summer season. Thinking back, it’s been a wonderful session. There are so many cool things we’ve done (kayaking, horseback riding, learning archery!!), amazing friends we’ve made, and unexpected ways we’ve grown, becoming more confident, more capable and just plain happy. Over these last few weeks, camp has proven itself, once again, to be a place where we can relax and be our true selves. It’s been a joyful place, surely overrun with complete silliness at times, but also something strong and significant for all of us.

Saying goodbye is hard also, and yes a little sad. But we’re grateful for the time we’ve spent together and for the awesome experience we’ve shared. And while we’ll miss each other, we know the Rockbrook Spirit will stay with us and we’ll most likely see each other next summer back at camp.

It has been a real privilege for all of us at Rockbrook to spend these weeks with your camper. Thank you for sharing such marvelous girls!