News updates about the latest happenings, events and surprises at Rockbrook Sleepaway Summer Camp for Girls. Discussions and thoughts about why camp is so important for girls.
During our camp reunion in 2009 one of the most popular events was the hike to Kilroy’s Cabin which is up past Castle Rock. Jerry took a large group of hikers on one of his wild adventures to find Kilroy’s. The group returned with wild stories, dirty clothes and big smiles on their faces!
The legend of Kilroy is famous in Rockbrook history and everyone has their own version of the story. What is your favorite Kilroy story? Just watch out if you have red hair and green eyes… You may not want to go up there!
We are all looking forward to our next reunion which will happen during the end of August 2011! We will gather again to celebrate 90 years of summer fun, friendships, and wonderful adventures (and a crazy hike to Kilroy’s of course). We hope you will be able to join us! Stay tuned for more information…
What a gorgeous time of year it is in Brevard ! The beautiful fall colors have arrived at Rockbrook and boy are they amazing. Even though it is quiet without the sounds of summer, it is a wonderful time to see the splendor of the changing leaves. The smells of woodsmoke and the crunching of the leaves are magical!
Take a short walk around the heart of camp and you’ll see bright popping color in every direction. The Junior Lodge is speckled with yellow leaves. The giant maple tree in front of Curosty proudly displays a show of red and orange. The walnut tree in the center of the hill is littering the ground with black walnuts.
Every trail in the camp is a multi-colored cascade of delight.
Here’s to the changing of the seasons! Happy Fall everyone.
We were saddened to learn this week of the passing of long time Rockbrook friend Sybil Dodson. Sybil, fondly known to us at Rockbrook as Mrs. Potter, passed away Friday, October 8 in Asheville, NC.
Sybil and her husband John were the founders of the pottery program at Rockbrook. In addition to creating and running Rockbrook’s pottery program, Sybil also managed the camp store as well as her family’s shop Mud Dabbers Pottery. Sybil was like a mother to many of the campers that she interacted with and lots of girls spent time at the camp store just so they could visit with Mrs. Potter. Her kindness and bright smile were a gift to all of us at Rockbrook. Her contributions to RBC will be long remembered.
A memorial service will be held at 10 a.m. on Friday, October 15 in the Memorial Chapel of the Brooks-Howell Home, Asheville NC. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests that memorial contributions be made to Brooks-Howell Home, 266 Merrimon Avenue, Asheville, NC 28801. Condolences may be sent through the Morris Funeral Home.
Have you had a chance to read the summer camp book series Summer Camp Secrets by Rockbrook alumna, Katy Arbuckle Grant? They are loosely based on her time spent at Rockbrook and are a wonderful read! Those of us who have spent time in the heart of a wooded mountain will feel right at home in Katy’s books.
The latest in the series is called Summer Camp Secrets- Fearless. The story centers around the horseback riding program at Camp Pine Haven. The main character Jordan is eager to learn to jump on a horse and try lots of other new things. That is one of the things we feel that make camp so special!
Katy’s books can be found online on her website at www.katygrant.com
Thanks for sharing such wonderful camp stories Katy!
Nurse Jenny had her baby! On August 13th at 3:33pm, Anna Rebecca Emerson was born. She was a little premature and weighed 4lbs. 11 oz., but is healthy and strong.
Nathan and Jenny are both happy and proud, and we’re all excited to welcome this newest Rockbrook girl!
Sunday at Rockbrook offers a change of pace. It is a much more relaxed schedule that allows both time to recuperate and to reflect. Everyone got to sleep in an extra hour this morning and come to the dinning hall in their pajamas where we were all treated to donuts at breakfast. After our leisurely breakfast, all the girls and staff had plenty of time to return to their cabins and change into the traditional Rockbrook Sunday uniform of white shorts, white collared shirt, and the red sash tied in a square “friendship knot.” When the bell rang, the whole camp lined up around the flag pole to watch the color guard raise the flag. The privileged honor to perform as the color guard is one of the many responsibilities reserved for the the oldest group of campers called the “Hi Ups.” After the flag raising, and the pledge of allegiance, the campers and staff walked in silence down the lower line to Rockbrook’s open air chapel in the woods where they sat on rustic log benches. This week’s chapel was led by the Middler and Junior lines on the theme of “friendship.” Campers and counselors from these lines prepared and presented readings, personal stories, and songs centered on the topic of friendship. Sarah Carter read a book, “Our Friendship Rules” and led a brief discussion about the story before opening the floor to any campers who wished to add their own thoughts or experiences about friendship. Chapel at Rockbrook is always a positive welcoming environment where campers are given the chance to observe, express, discuss, and reflect on some of the many experiences they are learning about here at camp.
Then this afternoon, they changed out of their uniforms to dress up and show off their talents at the much anticipated Miss RBC pageant. The campers were given a few days notice to prepare a performance of their own invention. Cabins worked together as groups to come up with dances, skits, and songs to perform for the rest of the camp with everyone from the cabin participating. Today we saw lots of impressive gymnastics, circus tricks, dancing, singing, and fun. Many of the silly costumes campers brought from home came out of their trunks today to make an appearance and add to the fun, colorful atmosphere of the pageant.
o you know how to build a fire? Well if your camper signed up for the activity we call “WHOA,” which stands for “Wilderness Hiking Outdoor Adventure,” there’s a good chance she’ll have learned to here at camp. The counselors talk about the importance of heat, fuel and oxygen. They demonstrate the importance of dry wood (having it pass the “snap test”), and they give plenty of examples of how to stack the wood to insure the smallest twigs light first and the heat generated will rise up and ignite the larger sticks. The girls pick up on it pretty quickly, and when there’s the prospect of roasting a marshmallow, they are surprisingly motivated. 🙂
It has been such amazing weather these past few days! Cool in the mornings with a little fog early, and then warm but not too hot in the afternoon. We had one of those welcome afternoon thunder showers today, making everything moist and cool. With the creeks up again, Jessi decided to take a group of girls on a hike to Rockbrook Falls before lunch. This is the largest waterfall on the Rockbrook property, and is formed as Dunn’s Creek cascades down below Dunn’s Rock. You can see it on the camp map. The girls first hike the trail to the creek, but then make their way upstream by hopping from rock to rock, back and forth across the falling water. The falls are a good ways up and really beautiful to see.
OK, if not fire building, what about stacking 4 apples in a column? Juggling feathers? Eating an oreo cookie without using your hands, and that happens to be placed on your forehead (!)? These are just some of the games we all played after lunch in our all-camp “Minute to Win It” game. Starting with each age group in their lodge, each cabin dressed as a team and competed in several different crazy relay races. Ordinary items like golf balls and boxes of tissues became props for physical challenges. It was wonderful to see how much fun we could have, how hard we could laugh, trying to do these tasks. Even those of us watching, get a kick, for example, out of seeing someone being wrapped up in toilet paper! It was good camp fun, being with friends and enjoying silly games you wouldn’t likely do at home.
After dinner was a highlight of the session for many of the girls, for the senior girls in particular— the dance with Camp Carolina. We held two simultaneous dances with our Seniors going to Camp Carolina and their Middler and Junior boys coming to Rockbrook. Splitting like this made the dances less crowded and allowed us to tailor the music for each age group. The showers at camp got a real workout before the dance, and all 200 hair brushes got used as well. It’s quite a phenomenon! Overall, the whole affair was lighthearted and fun. Tonight the counselors dressed up like traffic crossing guards, and we saw more camp tie dye t-shirts than anything else. Group dancing is mostly the name of the game so everyone can be included. As you might guess, the girls stick together— safety in numbers!
It was a little late for us, but what a night to wrap up another great day in the “heart of a wooded mountain.”
Let’s flashback to the 80s. That’s exactly what the whole camp did on Tuesday night this week! The word went out at dinner that everyone should bust out their best 80s attire, that they should go back in time and transform themselves into jazzercise junkies and big-haired beauties ready to bop to the top pop of our favorite retro decade. There were so many tie-dyed, oversized t-shirts torn and slung from one shoulder, lycra tights and sweat bands, jean jackets and Ray-Ban sunglasses, it would make your head spin. But is was also hilarious to see how well the girls could look the part and how many of the songs they could sing— 867-5309 Jenny, I Want Candy, Mickey, Girls Just Wanna Have Fun, and of course, Thriller. The counselors had just as much fun as the campers dancing, making a conga line, and leading different group dance moves. Just like working out in the 80s, we all were sweating and having loads of fun.
It’s been a couple of days of wildlife sightings here at Rockbrook. The coolest was a peregrine falcon spotted down near the Castle Rock Lodge. We’ve known that a falcon was nesting up on Dunn’s Rock, but this was the first time someone had seen it near camp. Up until 1999, the peregrine falcon was listed as an endangered species by the federal government, and even though it was de-listed then, the NC Wildlife Resources Commission has kept the bird on North Carolina’s list of endangered species because peregrine falcons have not recovered fully in North Carolina. Last night Sarah caught a glimpse of a gray fox cutting across the hill. We’ve seen these shy, bushy-tailed, nocturnal animals at camp before, but they are rare, so it’s a nice treat to be reminded that they are roaming around these hills. Rockbrook really is a wildlife sanctuary of sorts. With more than 200 acres of wooded land that remains undisturbed most of the year, it’s easy to see why.
For our Wednesday afternoon cabin day, the Juniors held a swim party down at the lake with Luau music and games. A perfect way to spend a hot afternoon, but also made complete by a quick trip over to Dolly’s for an ice cream cone. The Middlers’ cabin day was a trip to Sliding Rock up in the Pisgah National Forest. We carted the entire line, eighty something people, to the rock after dinner when we could have the place to ourselves. I think most of the girls were able to slide 6 or 7 times before it was too dark to continue. Naturally, we all had to stop at Dolly’s on the way home for a cone of “Rockbrook Chocolate Illusion,” or some other yummy flavor. Everyone was eager to pick their favorite flavor even after dunking ourselves in the cold Looking Glass Creek water of Sliding Rock.
Oh, I forgot to mention that Rick and his kitchen magicians amazed us all again with a dinner of homemade pork barbecue, beans, coleslaw, fresh cut fruit, and chips. It takes all day to prepare the barbecue, but it’s worth it. We’ve been hearing the “Cook’s” appreciation song sung a lot these days!
Welcome August Mini Session Campers!! Welcome to Rockbrook! Today a big group of new and a few returning campers arrived for this, our last mini session of the summer. Like our other mini sessions, these are shorter sessions perfect for younger and first-time campers, so for the majority of these girls, this was their first day at Rockbrook. After waiting most of the school year and now until August, their anticipation made for high pitched, and maybe a little nervous, excitement. It doesn’t take long though to settle down after meeting the staff members and other girls, and realize how friendly and welcoming everyone is. Parents are sometimes surprised how quickly and easily their daughter is ready to say goodbye, and to run off with her new cabin mates.
While the new mini session campers were checking in and getting settled, the full session girls followed our regular Sunday schedule— sleeping in a little, enjoying a breakfast with fresh Krispy Kreme donuts, dressing in their white uniforms and red ties, performing the flag raising ceremony, and attending the wooded chapel service. Chapel today was put on by the Senior campers and the theme was “Growing.” Right before lunch the whole camp gathered under the big walnut tree on the hill with the gorgeous mountain view in the background, for our Sunday assembly. This a chance to introduce key staff members (e.g. Mandy, Jessi and the Line Heads), see skits about the various activities available at camp, present the “Mop Awards” to the cleanest cabins, learn and sing a couple of new camp songs, and afterwords, take state photos. Biggest state this session? North Carolina, by far.
Right after lunch the new campers and their counselors zipped down to the lake for their “swim demonstrations.” Sarah, several lifeguards, and Elizabeth, our head of the waterfront, ran through the exercise designed to test everyone’s ability to swim and tread water. When a girl “passes” the swim demo, she receives a special colored buddy tag alerting the lifeguards of her swimming skills. If someone’s uncomfortable in the water, or if they can’t complete the “demonstration,” she will have to wear a life jacket and stay in the shallow end of the lake, but is certainly welcome (though not required) to come down for swimming lessons during her swimming activity or during one of the free swim periods.
The afternoon’s activity was a crazy water carnival we held down on our sports field. It was crazy because there was so much action, so many girls having fun in different ways at the same time. We had a giant inflatable water slide where after climbing up, would shower you as you flew down into a pool of water at the bottom. There was a tent where several counselors were painting faces (and arms, and backs and stomachs!). We had a coconut bowling game going on, and a “cake walk” game where the girls danced in a circle, landed on numbers, and if lucky won a tasty cupcake prize. The snow cone machine was making icy treats non-stop, and everywhere there was someone working out a hula hoop.
The slip-n-slide was probably the biggest hit. What could be a better use for a long sheet of plastic? Stretch it down a gentle hill, add a little baby soap and water, and launch yourself down for a wet slippery ride! Add some upbeat music and you’ve got an awesome time. The big surprise though, was a shaving cream fight at the end of the Carnival. We passed out a couple of cases (yikes!) of shaving cream, and the girls took off trying to spray each other, splatter it in each others’ hair, and ultimately cover their entire bodies in white slippery foam. All kinds of creative hairstyles soon appear, with laughter and smiles all around. Be sure to check out the photo gallery to see more of that. We rinsed off a bit under the hose, and headed back up for a quick shower before dinner. Whew! What a fun afternoon, and a great way to open the August Mini session.
We just learned from Phyllis S. that Shirley Lampton has died at age 84. Shirley was a counselor for several years on the Senior Line and taught singing and riflery. She and Fannybelle were dear friends and remained so for decades after attending camp.
Phyllis writes:
Shirley was a humble, self-effacing embodiment of the spirit of Rockbrook. She was a dedicated Professor of Piano at Erskine College in Due West, SC (where Fannybelle had been Dean of Women and Professor of English). She also practically gave away piano lessons at her home for countless young people. (When she moved to the retirement center, she gave her grand piano to one of her former pupils, who had gone on to study organ under Marilyn Keiser at Indiana. He attributes his success to Shirley.) When she retired from Erskine, a piano scholarship was established in her honor. (A lecture series was established for Fannybelle.)
Now there is only one older member of our little reunion group: the remarkable Dr. Ellen Lensing, age 91, who had to move to Milwaukee last year to live with her sister because her (Ellen’s) health failed. Ellen worked in the office with Jerkey and was a counselor on Senior Line.
