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July 27, 2012July 31, 2021 • News • Jeff Carter

A Recipe for Community

One feature of camp life at Rockbrook that makes it so special, so meaningful for the girls and indeed for everyone here (counselors, adventure guides, kitchen and maintenance staff alike), is the strong sense of community we all enjoy. It’s a really cool thing to experience. As we all share so much together- eating, playing, making, singing, the outdoor environment, even the weather -we grow closer everyday. Combine that full-time shared experience with non-stop fun activities and events led by caring, admirable role models, and mix in time for heartfelt conversations with people who are relaxed and being their “true selves,” and our recipe for community takes shape. It’s this sense of community- inclusive, noncompetitive, caring, compassionate and kind- that forms the core of Rockbrook’s philosophy. And there is real, significant power in this kind of community; experiencing it teaches us how to be positive and brings out our best. So when your daughter returns home after camp talking about her friends and how much fun she had, you’ll also know why she’s feeling so good about herself, is a better communicator, and is more positive and responsible. Rockbrook has become her community, her camp.

Have you heard about the freshly baked muffins that Katie, our awesome baker, makes for us each day? Between the first and second activity periods each morning, Katie surprises the camp with a different flavor of muffins, and she’s not shy about trying unique, almost off-the-wall varieties. Today for example, she presented Blackberry Mint with Chocolate sprinkles. Earlier in the week, she made Pumpkin Chocolate Chip, and Banana Streusel flavors to balance more traditional muffins like Blueberry and Lemon. It’s no wonder that “Muffin Break” is a favorite time of the day.

Down at the rifle range, the girls have been blasting the black through stacks of paper targets. With coaching from Leah, Deanna and Cliff, and now with two new, perfectly sighted Marlin rifles, there are very excited young marksmen down there shooting. Some of the girls have been scoring in the 40s (a bullseye is 10 points and 5 bullets are shot per target), proud of their developing riflery skills.

At the Rockbrook equestrian center, there are girls learning to walk, trot, canter and jump their horses, sharpening their horseback riding skills everyday. For both the complete beginners and the more advanced riders, there are just the right lessons, horses and instructors ready to go. The recent sunny, dry weather has made it ideal for the horseback riding team to keep everyone involved riding, and caring for the horses during the “Stable Club” meetings.

One way to make a dance party fun is to encourage dressing up, but perhaps surprisingly, it can be even more fun if it’s a girls only affair. That’s exactly what we did tonight when our friend “DJ Dawg” Marcus came over to mix music for us in the gym for a costume dance party. With no boys around, with nobody to scrutinize or be scrutinized by, the girls can dress a little sillier, truly cut loose on the dance floor, and scream as loud as they want when their favorite song starts. All girls means all smiles and no nerves. It means dancing simply for the pure joy of it. This kind of dance is a great way to learn dance moves too- how to whip your hair, “Cha Cha Slide,” and shake it all over, hands in the air. By the end of the night, we were all a little hot and sweaty, but felt good having had this much fun together.

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July 14, 2012June 4, 2020 • News • Jeff Carter

Proud of These Girls

Horseback riding was back in full swing today under bright blue skies and without a drop of rain to speak of. Kelly and her team of dedicated instructors were excited to move their classes from the porch of the equestrian office and inside the barns, where they’ve been meeting during that spell of soggy weather, to back outside for mounted lessons. The riders in every lesson were itching to ride too, the beginners ready show what they’ve been learning about the horses’ tack (saddles, reins and bits) and the more advanced riders thrilled to be meeting a new horse. A big part of riding is creating a level of trust, friendship really, between a horse and rider. The best riders “click” with their horses, communicating clearly, respecting and sympathizing, so it’s always a great thing to see Rockbrook girls out riding and demonstrating this kind of intimacy with their horses. Almost 100 girls rode today, so it was a big day of horseback riding down at the barn!

The Alpine Tower came alive with all kinds of high ropes course adventure today as well. Driving up the north driveway of camp, you may have spotted in the woods this giant, 50-foot climbing tower made of massive telephone poles, cables, bolts and rope. Up close, and particularly when there are (up to six at a time) girls climbing all over it, it’s even more impressive because there is such a variety of climbing challenges to try. There are swinging logs, tall cargo nets, climbing ropes, inclined poles, wiggly planks, and a strenuous overhanging climbing wall to choose from. At the top of the Tower, there’s a triangular shaped deck where the staff have placed a poster for girls to write their name as having successfully made the climb. Coming down from the platform is simple. Every climber is on belay when climbing, so when ready, the belayer lowers her slowly down on the belay rope. Like being on a big rope swing, it’s a fun ride.

At the rifle range, which is also set back in the woods away from camp, the girls are focused on the upcoming riflery tournament against the Camp Carolina boys. The instructors are hoping to match last session’s win, so they are really working, shooting hundreds of rounds everyday. Cliff, who is a retired law enforcement trainer and our marksman coach this summer, is helping the girls with their shooting technique as well as keeping the rifles perfectly sighted and maintained. And his coaching is paying off! Some girls are consistently scoring in the mid 30s (out of a possible 50 points- 5 shots, with a bullseye scoring 10 points) and a couple are clustering shots and scoring in the 40s. Very impressive accuracy and precision!

Get ready for tie dyes! The craft activity we call “Hodge Podge” has been cranking through tie-dye t-shirts giving everyone a chance to twist, fold and squirt colorful dyes. The process begins with soaking a plain white t-shirt (though a few other cotton items have found their way) in a solution of urea. The girls then use rubber bands to bind folds of the still wet fabric tight enough that when they apply different colors of dye, some parts absorb less dye than others. The shirts then sit overnight. It’s always fun to see what cool patterns are revealed when the they are finally unfolded and rinsed.

Tonight was a camp dance night as we hosted the young boys from Camp Carolina in our gym, and our oldest girls rode over to dance in their dining hall. For years we have done it this way, holding two simultaneous dances to manage better so many children and to play more age appropriate music at each venue. The senior girls seemed most excited about the event, but in a great lighthearted, Rockbrook, way. Instead of fancy outfits, most of them wore campy clothes, t-shirts, even crazy costumes. Most brushed their hair, I suspect, but face paint and glitter were more prevalent than make up. When came to dancing, it was just as silly, with small clusters of girls laughing and jumping together to the beat, almost oblivious to the (much more shy) boys. These are strong young ladies who know how to have good fun. You should be proud!

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July 13, 2012May 28, 2020 • News • rbc

Zeal for Dressing Up

This morning we woke to a gentle, though steady, rain. It’s really been the first time during this spell of wet weather that it’s rained consistently for more than 45 minutes or so. Most of the “real rains” have been at night, but the radar this morning showed this cell would be with us a few hours, yielding not a stormy kind of rain, but continuous little drops, almost like a beaded curtain of water. It was a morning of rain coats, ponchos and rubber boots… And mostly indoor activities. All the crafts activities, all seven of them, have their own studio, whether it’s inside one of the historic log cabins or on a covered porch, so they were unaffected. The gym became livelier with the archery and riflery girls joining the action, and the dining hall accommodated tennis players for a board game. For horseback riding, the campers had a horse grooming party, staying dry inside the barn.

The yoga classes that meet in the Hillside Lodge continue to be well attended. MK, our yoga instructor, seems to have an endless supply of poses and relaxation exercises for the girls. Today she had several partner poses to present. One was a simple back-to-back twist pose, and another was called the “Child and Fish” pose. With relaxing music playing, MK tries to create a calm atmosphere, even if the girls tend to giggle at each other trying each new pose. It’s a lighthearted activity that celebrates process and initiative rather than some notion of perfection. Being together, feeling good, and having fun are the goals; doing yoga, in this case, is the means.

A group of Senior girls headed out to the Tuckasegee River today for a whitewater kayaking trip. Being a dam-controlled river, the recent rains haven’t affected to it as severely, making it still safe to run. The water was a little muddier than usual (though the “Tuck” is always a little muddy), but all the named rapids were perfect and there were still plenty of eddies to catch and play in. In fact, the water level made the river slightly easier to paddle because several ordinarily shallow sections were now more forgiving. One highlight of the trip was a brief stop to jump off the rock right blow the Moonshot rapid… A little swimming to get even more wet!

At lunch, as the rain subsided and yes the sun broke through the clouds for an afternoon back outside, Frampton announced the afternoon was to be “Disney Day” and that everyone should break out their Disney-related costumes, especially for dinner because it was Disney Restaurant Night. This is a special dinner where the counselors transform the dining hall into a themed restaurant, in this case into anything Disney, using posters, table ornaments and other decorations.

The costumes were amazing! And the enthusiasm for dressing up really showed as I’d say 95% of the campers and staff members were made up in some way or another. Just a little face paint, a goofy hairstyle, or handmade sign taped to your shirt was plenty good, even as some girls shown in complete Disney Character costumes. Lilo and Stitch, Chip and Dale, Mickey and Minnie Mouse, super heroes (from the Incredibles), monsters (from Monsters, Inc.) Winnie the Pooh, Fish (from the Little Mermaid), and more princesses than I can count came to life at Rockbrook singing their lungs out during dinner and posing on the hill afterwards for a few photos. Ever seen a frog play tetherball with a mouse? It happened last night!

It’s so wonderful to see these girls, young girls and teenagers alike, have such zeal for dressing up like this- bent over with laughter and asking for their picture to be taken so they can scrunch up their faces into an even sillier look. It shows that they are proud and self-confident, they feel safe and cared for, and they are surrounded by friends, completely free of other social pressures (no boys!). What a wonderful community for them.

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July 10, 2012May 28, 2020 • News • Jeff Carter

A Kind of Collective Euphoria

One of the outdoor adventure trips available to all Rockbrook Middlers and Seniors (girls who have finished the 5th grade and older) is whitewater rafting on the Nantahala River over in Swain County. We don’t make girls sign up for these trips before arriving at camp (or charge extra for them) because we know part of the fun is deciding to go, or not go, with your friends. And when there are two options available -a day-long trip or an overnight camping version -making that decision is important. These girls just want to be together! This can make the logistics of planning rafting trips complicated, but we have plenty of experience making it happen. Like today, when surprisingly 77 girls wanted to raft, we simply ran an extra raft of girls on both trips to accommodate everyone. After meeting our veteran guides at the river’s put-in, and suiting up in the RBC gear (Rockbrook has a special permit to do all this ourselves), the morning trip hit the first rapid called “Patton’s Run” in bright sunshine. The girls had a ball over the next two hours, laughing and screaming with every bump and splash. Some of the rapids on the Nantahala really get your heart pumping, like the one in this photo, the final big rapid called the “Nantahala Falls.” There are calm spots too, making a nice balance of floating (and chances to sing camp songs!) and high adventure whitewater. The afternoon trip also started out warm and sunny, but did have some rain for the last 30 minutes. This didn’t stop the fun however. Their Rockbrook Spirit, a kind of collective euphoria, kicked in and the girls just sang louder and paddled harder.

Back at camp, creativity ruled the day with all kinds of arts and crafts projects taking shape- watercolor painting, t-shirt scrap weaving, extruded form pottery, triple pattern friendship bracelets, beaded headbands, embroidered pillows, and paper craft decorated boxes. For some girls, sports and games like dodgeball, tennis or yoga kept them moving, if they weren’t signed up to ride the zip line course or attend the sharpshooters club taught by Cliff down at the rifle range. Elaine had the gymnastics girls working on balance and posture, and down at riding, Kelly was giving similar instructions to girls cantering around the lower ring.

For dinner Rick brought back his homemade pizza… completely homemade, with pounds of flour, yeast and water going into the dough, gallons of red marinara sauce, and a mountain of shredded mozzarella cheese. There’s something about the chewy soft crust of this pizza that really makes it extraordinary. Some like it with pepperoni, and others with veggies, but even if it’s plain cheese, the girls gobbled up tray after tray tonight. Everyone had some of the spinach salad and strawberries served on the side too, but it was the pizza that made the meal. To top it all off, Katie made fresh blueberry cobbler that had a perfectly crunchy, crumbly topping, though I suspect most of the girls were pretty full when the Hi-Ups brought out the dessert platters. So many delicious things!

Tonight after dinner our friend Bill Grimsley entertained the whole camp in the gym with his world famous magic show. Bill has been a full-time, professional entertainer since 1986 and has toured all over the world to perform. He is a talented comedian, juggler and stage magician, and tonight he didn’t hold back. He made two doves appear in an empty box, only to cover the box again and reveal a live rabbit instead. He sawed a counselor in half (reconnecting her shortly thereafter!), and levitated a camper by removing the chairs supporting a plank she was lying upon. The Juniors sitting on the front row were rapt and wide-eyed. He performed other classic magic tricks too, like cutting and magically restoring a rope, mysteriously connecting large metal rings, and a card trick where a card with a ripped corner appeared in a box across the stage. The Senior girls seemed particularly impressed by a mind reading trick where Bill correctly guessed one girl’s favorite food (French Fries) and another’s favorite vacation spot (New York City). “How’d he do that?” “I don’t know, but it’s pretty cool.”

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July 8, 2012May 3, 2023 • News • Jeff Carter

All of This on Her Own

Campers wearing white and red camp uniform

How we spend our Sundays at Rockbrook is a little different than other days of the week. It begins at a relaxed pace by sleeping in a little later, resting a little longer, and instead of doing cabin chores and getting dressed for breakfast right away, the girls shuffle into the dining hall still dressed in PJs and robes- literally, just rolling out of bed. There’s a special “real world” treat waiting for them too- boxes of freshly delivered Krispy Kreme doughnuts to supplement the regular fruit, cereal and yogurt bar, and today, Rick’s perfectly scrambled eggs.

The campers then dressed in their camp uniforms, which for Rockbrook means a white polo shirt, white shorts and a red tie, and assembled on the camp hill for our flag raising ceremony just in time for the sun to rise over the mountain behind camp. From there it’s a short walk along the “path of silence” to the Chapel area of camp. The Middler campers and their counselors led the Chapel this morning. They chose to sing songs, read poems and other meaningful passages, all revolving around the theme of gratitude. These gatherings are not religious ceremonies for us (they do not include readings from religious texts, for example), but rather are opportunities for the girls to reflect upon their time at camp and the broad human values and feelings that strengthen our community. We want girls of all backgrounds, no matter what their religious beliefs, to feel comfortable and included at Rockbrook, so our Chapel gatherings, set so beautifully in the woods, reflect that priority.

Meanwhile today, we also welcomed our July Mini 2 campers to Rockbrook for the start of their session. As they rode up the driveway with their trunks and duffel bags packed (in some cases, packed for weeks in anticipation!), it was absolutely clear that these girls were more than ready for camp to get started. They wanted to rush through the check in process, barely containing their enthusiasm, fidgeting while the nurses and the office checked things out. Up in their cabins, they finally got to meet their counselors and cabin mates, select their bunk, and settle down. All of this doesn’t take long, so parents are sometimes surprised how quickly they are “dismissed” by their daughters. “I got this, mom.” It can even be a little unsettling to see your girl skip off with her friends with just a wave or sly smile, but it’s good to remember that Rockbrook is her camp, not yours. It’s a place for her to be herself, grow up a little, try lots of new things and build really strong friendships. And all of this on her own! It’s a special recipe for encouraging independence and growing self confidence. Such good stuff.

After lunch a brief thundershower cooled things off and cleared up in time for the whole camp to charge up for a wet and wild carnival down on our sports field. A group of counselors, with the help of Frampton, Charlotte and Sofie, organized the event which included an inflatable obstacle course and water slide. The girls came dressed in their swimsuits and ready to get wet. There were sprinklers spraying, water pistols for just about everyone, water balloons and a bucket dumping game to satisfy that desire. The girls played the RBC corn hole game to win silly prizes, made small sand art bottles, tossed Pocket Discs around the field, and ran around stopping to hula hoop between getting a face painting design.

For snacks we had goldfish, an endless supply of snow cones, and drinks for everyone. Bringing the whole camp together for this kind of raucous event, mini and full session girls alike, is a great way to kick things off for the new girls. They can let loose right away, and by the end of the afternoon, they’re already feeling at home. I took a short video of this crew you see below. It’s posted on the Rockbrook YouTube channel and is very cute.

girls with face paint showing they love rockbrook

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July 7, 2012May 28, 2020 • News • Jeff Carter

A Lot in our Neighborhood

High above Rockbrook, but still on the camp property, is Castle Rock, a bright grey rock outcropping so large it’s visible all over the nearby river valley. You may have seen it if you looked up and east standing on the porch of the Hillside Lodge at camp. Once you hike to the top, up a beautiful wooded (also steep!) trail, there’s a spectacular view of the Blue Ridge Mountains. In addition though, Castle Rock offers us some really great rock climbing. There are several routes to choose from- a zig-zagging hand crack called “Shazam,” and delicate finger crack called “Dragon’s Tail,” and a long, high exposed route called “Bam,” to name a few. When we combine all of these routes with trips we can take into the National Forest, there’s a lot of rock to climb in our neighborhood! And climb we do!

Down at the Rockbrook lake, especially during the two free swim periods, girls are busy in several ways. Some are addicted to the water slide (affectionately known as “Big Samantha” …for no reason other than it being a name that’s mostly stuck!), shooting down and heading right back to the top along the boardwalk. Others are happily perfecting their dives and cannonballs off of the diving board. Some are swimming laps to be awarded membership in the “Mermaid Club,” which earns them a special treat at the end of the session. Today a group of girls was trying to climb up on a floating tube, while others were placidly floating by. In every case, the girls are enjoying the cool mountain spring water of the lake.

Meeting in the log cabin we call “Goodwill,” which is named after the plantation in South Carolina where Nancy Carrier, Rockbrook’s founder was born, there is a regular activity called “Journalism.” This is one of the more peaceful options for the girls at camp because it focuses on writing. It could mean creative writing- poetry, short stories, even movie themes -taking surveys or recording interviews around camp. What makes this activity particularly popular with the campers are the writing games they often play. One of these is called “M.A.S.H.” (which stands for “Mansion, Apartment, Shack, Hut”) and it involves the girls writing a list of words fitting into categories like where you’ll live, who’ll be your spouse, what your job will be, and then, using random selections from each category, fashioning a coherent story they can present to the group. These can be pretty hilarious and fun for the girls, and even more so since they are supposed to predict the future life of the writer. Once per session, the Journalism activity also publishes a camp-wide newspaper comprised of the favorite writings from the class.

A group of Juniors today were surprised with a trip out to Dolly’s Ice Cream stand for a sweet treat. If you haven’t heard of Dolly’s yet, you will from your girls. It’s a great, classic ice cream stand located near the entrance to the Pisgah Forest, a perfect spot for passersby to stop. Quite ingeniously, Dolly created special ice cream flavors, combinations of flavors and toppings really, and named them after all of the local summer camps. You’d be correct to guess that lots of juniors ended up ordering a cone of “Rockbrook Chocolate Illusion.” Very yummy stuff.

Summer Camp Counselor and Camper eating ice cream

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July 2, 2012June 4, 2020 • News • Jeff Carter

Girls with Moxie

Moxie is a good way to describe it… that impressive quality these Rockbrook girls have driving just about everything they do, from singing songs in the dining hall, to making tie-dye t-shirts, to learning how to canoe. The word is a neologism, more well known in Maine because of the soda, but it’s a great way to describe having “vigor, verve and pep,” “courage,” “skill and know-how,” as my dictionary defines it. There’s something about camp that brings out the moxie, making everything more fun and exciting. It’s akin to a “spirit for life,” an enthusiasm for doing. All kinds of adventure, sports and creative activities, punctuated by free time with friends and wrapped in a multicolored layer of silliness, is the name of the game around here. And like one Rockbrook song puts it, these girls have “ginger, pep, spirit, grit and wit,” making it all the more awesome.

With this kind of fun happening each moment at camp, with these girls exercising their moxie, it’s easy to forget that through the tunnel and down by the river, the Rockbrook Equestrian Staff and their 29 horses are just as busy teaching horseback riding. Kelly, the Equestrian Director, told me she’s got 93 campers placed in classes throughout the week, ranging from beginners to advanced riders. Kelly places campers interested in riding into lessons that match their interest, experience and current riding ability, and then those classes meet several times each week. It becomes a complicated schedule, but also a busy one given how many girls want to ride this session. The advanced riders tend to be out in the late afternoon, so that’s a good time to see jumping and faster cantering. It’s just beautiful to watch, especially in the upper pasture where the view of Dunn’s Rock is so prominent in the background. Coming in the morning is a treat too though because you can talk with the youngest riders, see them learning the fundamental skills of riding and relating to their horses with such care and attention. No matter what their level, horseback riding for many girls is their favorite activity, and is quick to bring out the most wonderful smiles and feelings of accomplishment.

Moxie describes the pulse of our campers really well, but when it comes to the counselors this session, their moxie can be seen in the patience, compassion and caring at the core of their relationships at camp. Here too, these great young women are confident and lively in their teaching. They are fantastic role models, trustworthy and responsible, treating everyone fairly and with respect, and at the same time enjoying themselves and laughing just as hard as their campers. Our counselors have a “spirit for life” at camp, a verve making them friendly and instinctively aware of their camper’s needs. Sofie and the other Rockbrook directors take great care recruiting staff members, but it’s this special quality we’re looking for. We know it makes the best counselors, and this summer, they’ve definitely got it.

When the summer wraps up and your girls return home, we hope you’ll see their moxie a little more clearly, and marvel at its power in new ways.

Camp Kid splashing down off the waterslide

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June 29, 2012June 4, 2020 • News • Jeff Carter

Oblivious to the Weather

It seems like the weather is on everyone’s mind these days, everywhere except here at camp. While it’s been hitting triple digits for many cities in the southeast, Rockbrook has defied the forecasters and just today crept into the nineties. In fact, if you ask our Rockbrook girls about camp, they probably won’t mention needing air conditioning or feeling burdened by the humidity. That’s probably in part because it still very predictably cools off at night, reaching into the 60s, and making it comfortable sleeping conditions in the open-air cabins, but it’s also because, from the girls’ perspective, what we’re doing at camp -all of the adventure trips, in-camp activities, and special surprises- fills the day so completely. We haven’t slowed down one bit because of the weather. If anything, the girls are more fully engaged- shooting, riding, climbing, painting, hiking, tying, decorating, floating, and zipping all day long. It’s incredible to consider that all of it is happening simultaneously!

Another reason the girls seem oblivious to the weather is how well we all are eating thanks to Rick’s kitchen magic. Each meal brings out a surprise item, whether it’s the freshly baked chocolate chip scones for breakfast, the secret-recipe guacamole that accompanied our famous “taco lunch” yesterday, or the mountain of homemade smashed red potatoes he prepared with chicken tenders and green beans for dinner. He has also been serving an endless supply of fresh fruit at every meal- awesome strawberries, local sweet blackberries, watermelon, peaches, and of course bananas and apples available 24/7 out on the dining hall porch. Oh, I should mention the wild muffin flavor we had today: oatmeal, date, pistachio. Maybe a little on the healthy side, but I heard from several girls they liked them just fine.

You may have noticed that Rockbrook is an accredited camp, that we have agreed to meet or exceed more than 300 industry standards as defined by the American Camp Association. Among summer camps in America, these define the best health and safety practices for all aspects of a camp’s operation, facilities, programing, and staff qualifications. This accreditation requires an on-site visit to demonstrate and/or document compliance, and today was Rockbrook’s ACA visit (“inspection,” though they don’t like to call it that!). You’ll be pleased to know that our two visitors were very impressed with Rockbrook. After touring the entire facility, examining most of the activities, and reviewing a 5-inch thick folder of documents describing our policies and procedures, we sailed right through everything. This isn’t too surprising since we’ve done this well for years now (We were one of the first camps in the area to become ACA accredited back in the 1980s.), but it’s nice to strut our stuff a little and receive this kind of praise.

Wrapping up the day, local master storyteller Gary Greene visited camp for a campfire program of songs, stories and skits. As the sun set across the valley and the campfire crackled, the Middlers and Juniors joined Gary singing a few songs and acting out characters in a couple of his stories. Gary really knows how to focus a crowd, even when it’s about 100 little girls all under 12 years old! Meanwhile, the Senior girls were holding an “open mic” coffee house in their lodge. This was a chance for girls to sing or play an instrument, recite a poem, perform a dance or tell a brief story with their friends. Every performance, no matter how poised or polished, was wildly received with the whole line whooping and clapping at the end. To me that was another example of how supportive and encouraging the girls at Rockbrook are toward each other, how much they’ve grown closer and become good friends. For the typical teenager, that can be a big deal… To be accepted and included, in an important way, loved by her peers. Camp is a community with that power and that spirit. Seeing it action is always a real treat.

Camp girl balancing on gymnastics high bar

Camp girls soaking their feet in the creek

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June 24, 2012June 4, 2020 • News • Jeff Carter

The Embrace of Camp

Opening the main session of camp, like we did today, is a great event at Rockbrook, one bringing together enthusiastic staff members dressed in their camp uniforms, smiling and encouraging parents, and hundreds of super excited campers. The collective energy of all these people, most of whom have been waiting for this moment since last summer, is almost explosive. Like wild pogo sticks, girls were jumping up and down trying to hurry up their moms. They were squealing with happiness seeing each friend, whether a counselor or a camper. Reuniting with camp, rejoining the great community of people here, is an embrace that feels really good. While most of the campers arriving today and the staff greeting them already have Rockbrook roots, it didn’t take long for the new girls to sense how warm and friendly this place is. Cabin mates were quickly swapping stories, heading off to explore the camp together, to play a little tetherball, or to make a simple friendship bracelet while trunks were moved and other campers arrived throughout the morning.

As the last few parents said goodbye and headed down the hill, the first event was an assembly on the central hill of camp beneath the big walnut tree. In the bright sunshine up there, and with the occasional light breeze, the view of the mountains (and Cedar Rock off in the distance) was gorgeous. Sarah led the assembly, introducing the head counselors and special staff members. The Hi-Ups, our 16-year-old campers, stood up and taught everyone a couple of songs from the RBC songbook, including the 3 different “Line Songs” (each age group’s rallying chant/song). Karin and Courtney, our camp photographers, then snapped a quick photo of everyone according to the state (or country!) where they live. It looked to me that NC had the most, with GA and FL close behind, but there was definitely a wide range. You can see them all in today’s photo gallery.

Remember, you access the daily photos by logging into your parent account established when you registered for camp. The system allows you to “star” your favorites, email photos to friends (at no charge), and even post them to your Facebook wall. Easy sharing! You can also send “guest accounts” to friends and family members, allowing them access. There’s a way to purchase prints and hi-res downloads too. We post a lot of photos, some coming in late at night, so be sure to check back often.

After lunch, which was a great example of Rick’s wholefoods approach- his homemade macaroni and cheese, fresh fruit salad, local tomatoes, peas (and regular salad bar and PB&J station), we began a fun rotation where cabin groups took tours of the camp, visiting all the different activity areas and buildings. Later today when the girls sign up for their first set of in-camp activities, it will help them to know where to find Curosty, Goodwill, the Hillside Lodge, the Alpine Tower, Hiker’s Rock, and the Riflery range, for example. Another stop on the rotation was our gym, where Charlotte and Frampton charged everyone up with several “get-to-know-you” group games. They ran around playing “Birdie on a Perch,” raced together during “I’m a Rockbrook Girl and You’re a Rockbrook Girl if…,” laughed their way through “Chicken in the Hen House,” and played a little “Knockout” basketball. Breaking the ice a little with these games was just right to get the afternoon going.

The third stop in our rotation was the lake where everyone was treated to a quick dip to demonstrate their swimming ability, and afterward receive a personal swim tag and green swim bracelet. The entire lifeguard team, including Sofie and Sarah, help run all the girls through this process of jumping in the lake, swimming out 50 feet or so, back another 50 feet, and treading water for 60 seconds. For some girls, the “refreshing” temperature of our mountain stream-fed lake makes this more difficult (or at least a good reason to swim quickly!), but the majority of the girls do well, qualifying them to swim in the deep section of the lake and to ride the water slide. For girls who struggle, the lifeguards will offer to help them improve, and when ready, retest them, but in the meantime require them to wear a lifejacket in the shallow end of the lake. There are two free swim periods scheduled each day, so if a girl wants to work on her swimming skills, there are many opportunities to work with the lifeguards.

After dinner tonight the girls will have cabin meetings, getting to know each other further, and then making their first selection of activities. They’ll choose four different ones (2 in the morning and 2 in the afternoon) that they’ll keep for 3 days before selecting a new set on Wednesday evening. The excitement level all day has been humming at about 100%, and now ready to launch, I suspect it will be difficult for everyone to sleep soundly tonight. Like most days at Rockbrook, there’s just too much to look forward to.

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June 16, 2012May 28, 2020 • News • Jeff Carter

Camp Mastery

Many of the girls at Rockbrook are becoming yoga masters thanks to MK and her extraordinary yoga class. Set in the beautiful, stone hillside lodge (which by the way would be a nice place for a wedding ceremony), there’s plenty of room on the hardwood floor for purple yoga mats. MK plays calm music and begins each class with stretching and relaxation exercises, before introducing 2 or three new Yoga poses. There seems to be an endless variety: tree, half and full pigeon, lotus, warrior, eagle, plank, child, frog and bridge poses. Some poses require two people to balance and harmonize together, adding even more challenge and interest.

Camp girls climbing tower wearing polka dot pants

The alpine tower climbing activity is likewise producing master climbers. Many girls have by now had multiple chances to climb, to work their way up, over and around the different obstacles of the tower. They’ve leaped across the Swinging Logs, scrambled along the Cargo Nets, and carefully balanced up the Corporate Ladder. They’ve done pullups over the Squirrel’s Nest, and enjoyed the ride down from the 50-foot-tall platform at the top. Some girls fearlessly flip upside down for a moment while being lowered (something they call doing a “spiderman”), while others simple hold on anxiously ready to reach the ground.

The afternoon brought the return of the “Redbird Olympics,” an all-camp event of games and relay races we hold down on our lower sports field. We first divided everyone into three teams (Red, White and Blue) making sure to include campers from all three age groups on each team. Each team then built their team spirit by dressing in their color, adding some face and body paint, and creating a team chant. While members of each team competed in different races, the others cheered them on. Pairs of girls tied a leg together for a 3-legged race. Other pairs squared off for a water balloon toss. Groups of 8 raced to thaw a frozen t-shirt by pulling and squeezing it, but also putting it under arms, on bellys and other warm body parts. Oddly, these were races, but we didn’t keep score as the groups rotated through the different activities, making it irrelevant which team “won” in the end. Funny how things can be more fun if you don’t keep score.

The highlight of the afternoon, however, was the slip ‘n slide and shaving cream battle that followed the relays. With bright, warm and sunny weather, getting wet and flying down a long, slightly soapy, piece of plastic is just great fun. Some girls launched themselves on their stomachs and others on their knees, but it didn’t take long for many of them to be sliding the entire 100 feet of the plastic slide. When the bottles of shaving cream came out next, it was nothing but squeals of delight as the girls raced around trying to slap white foam on each other. Soon arms and backs were slippery and white, but faces and hair quickly followed, with some girls ending up completely covered in shaving cream. Mastery again! Nobody was safe from getting at least a little of the white stuff on them, staff members and directors alike! The girls absolutely loved this whole scene. You can tell by that mischievous gleam in their eyes and the huge grin on their faces. Be sure to scroll through the photo gallery; you’ll see what I mean.

With everyone smelling so good after a quick shower, we announced during dinner that (surprise!) tonight we would have a square dance with High Rocks Camp for Boys. Our Senior girls would go there and they would bring their younger boys to Rockbrook so we could hold two dances simultaneously. Everyone was a bit shy at first, but with the help of the caller, soon gained confidence and learned the moves of the Virgina Reel, and basic square dancing. After a quick breaks for cookies and pink lemonade, the last few dances were even more lively and fun. A the end of the night on the bus ride home, I could tell that what began initially as skepticism about this being a “square” dance, had changed into chatter about how much fun they had meeting the boys and laughing at the mistakes everyone was making while dancing. These Rockbrook girls are so friendly and always quick to smile, they know how to enjoy themselves.

Wow, what a great day in the Heart of this Wooded Mountain!

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