Blast from the Past

Ask any Rockbrook camper to name something they look forward to at camp, and they’ll likely tell you about their session’s Banquet. Many will even tell you it’s their favorite event at camp, and therefore is something exciting just from the anticipation that builds throughout the session. The Banquet is held on the second to last night, so it’s a celebration of everything that’s grown while we’re here: the creativity, the enthusiasm, the joy, and of course the deep friendships that tie this community together. It’s a party unlike any other because it happens here at camp with all of these great people.

summer camp party decorations

The CA campers (our 9th graders) take on the task of creating the magic of this event. From the very first day of their session when they select a secret theme for the Banquet, they are planning and preparing. They make all the decisions about the program, their costumes, the music, the decorations and the food to be served.

They take this planning quite seriously too, with every detail receiving attention. Using painted banners, carefully arranged lighting, streamers, table decorations, and various props, the CAs completely reimagine the dining hall, transforming it into a colorful new world.

They transform themselves too, becoming elaborately dressed characters. This is a big part of the fun for the CAs. They love taking on new personalities and dressing their parts, all adding to the theme of the night. These characters perform as well, both in short skits that can unfold a plot, and in choreographed dance numbers. With carefully chosen music, again based on the theme, the whole camp enjoys seeing all of this come together.

On banquet day, the CAs cover the dining hall windows with sheets while they hang their decorations, rearrange the dining hall and get ready in costume. Everyone knows they’re setting up for the big event, but anticipation builds as the theme is still a secret. Cheers go up when it’s finally time to enter and discover the theme. Let the party begin!

This session’s banquet theme featured music, decorations, costumes and dancing from different historical decades as the CAs went back in time for a “Blast from the Past.” They told a story of a few travelers who go back in time to retrieve the Spirit of Rockbrook, going way back to find cavemen (all the counselors), flappers from the ’20s (when Rockbrook was founded), bobby soxers from the 50s, disco dancers from the 70s, jazzercise neon from the 80s, and skaters from the 90s. Groups of CAs represented each decade and performed dance medleys for us.

Between dance performances everyone was encouraged to get up and dance, turning the whole event into a massive dance party. Eat something (chicken tenders, tater tots, salad), dance and sing, pause for photos, take in the extravagance (so much glittery confetti!) —that’s how it went.

The banquet ended, as it has for decades at camp, singing the song “Rockbrook Camp Forever.” The girls stood, arm-in-arm, singing “friends true and faithful” over and over again. Hugging each other tightly, you could sense the real meaning of the banquet. It’s about friends celebrating each other, knowing deep down that they are loved. For all of us, Rockbrook is a home like that.

Thank you CA girls for a wonderful banquet. We all loved it.

First Session Highlights Video – Part Two

Robbie Francis of FrancisFilmworks spent another day this week filming at Rockbrook, and now has edited this wonderful highlights video for us. Once again it’s a window into the upbeat action that fills our days at camp. The video does a great job of depicting the mood of camp, the friendship, the laughter, and the huge variety of fun.

Take a look, and see camp in action!

A Camp Mindset

It’s easy these days to sense that something special is happening at camp. Now as the session has “matured” a bit, it’s even more apparent. By “matured” I mean there’s a greater sense of ease in the air, a feeling of relaxing into the rhythms of camp life, a normalizing of sorts. The girls have made more friends, opened up to the new experiences offered in the activities, and become more comfortable in our rustic outdoor environment. They’ve begun to feel included, treated with kindness and respect, brought closer by a community spirit that’s enthusiastic and supportive. As they become more familiar with camp, their confidence has grown tremendously. They’ve adopted a “camp mindset” of sorts, a way of being colored by all these wonderful qualities.

summer camp lake play

This maturing, however, takes some time. When they first arrive at camp, girls are generally more hesitant. They’re usually a little nervous about their place in the group and how they’ll do away from home. Even for seasoned campers, there’s a different mindset that takes a few days to fade.

I wonder if we can attribute this to school. Perhaps these campers are arriving with a “school mindset,” a way of thinking, or a collection of assumptions that’s clashing with what camp represents. As you know, for many kids, school can be a grind, something that requires careful steps, regular effort with competitive undertones, and often includes guarded engagement out of a fear of peer judgment. It requires a great deal of individual work, pressures to perform, and evaluations. While there may be certain legitimate educational goals this mindset serves (though that’s debatable), it’s also a burden.

With school occupying so much of their lives, it’s no wonder girls arrive at camp a little out of sorts. They’re being trained to approach the world in ways that don’t apply at camp. In a way, this is the project of camp— to unwind some of the habits and assumptions taught in school, to encourage a more genuine, playful and joyful approach. Camp is here as a form of relief.

We might be running around camp painted in colors searching for counselors. We might be dressed as Greek gods and goddesses. We might be sleeping in the forest in hammocks, or just floating in the lake in a tube. In all these activities and more— throughout our days— we’re building a “camp mindset,” a way of authentic connection, a freedom to explore, and a lightness everyone finds refreshing.

When you pick up your camper at the end of the session, I bet you’ll notice this change. In addition to the memories of camp being fun, and the many friendships they’ve made, my hope is that your girls will return home carrying their camp mindset with them. And while the pressures of school will inevitably creep back in, I hope they can move through the world with more camp confidence, camp values, and Rockbrook spirit.

girls summer camp chickens

Passionate Communicators

A friend of mine asked the other day how camp was going, and I said, “Great! There’s so much good stuff going on.” On the one hand, it’s obvious if you take a look at the photo gallery. You’ll see girls engaged in a huge variety of activities. They’re outside riding horses, shooting archery, and rolling kayaks. They’re climbing rocks and playing tennis, weaving fabric into stuffed animals, tying and dyeing t-shirts into amazing colorful patterns. They’re swimming in the lake and doing back flips in gymnastics. They’re eating a fresh-baked muffin each morning and taking time for a brief rest after having lunch. They’re bathed in sunshine and sometimes pausing for the rain. They’re singing and dancing, and dressing up in a costume just for the fun of it.

Of course, there’s much more than that going on at camp, more good stuff that can’t be seen in the photo gallery. We could point to the friendships being formed and strengthened, the subtle strides toward greater self-confidence, and perhaps a refreshed appreciation for the natural world. I’m often amazed by the sense of freedom that the girls feel when they realize that kindness and caring are what matters at Rockbrook, that they can be more genuinely themselves when they’re not afraid of being judged. Life at camp just feels really good, so good, they can’t help but smile.

Hammock conversations

There is still something else happening that I think is a significant good for everyone here. It’s pretty simple, but also pretty constant, and that’s all the in-person conversation we enjoy. This is easy to imagine. Throughout the day, during certain activities, the girls are listening to each other, sharing stories, chatting about whatever is on their mind. They might be playing tetherball or gagaball, working on a needlepoint project, or even splashing through whitewater in a raft, but they’re also face-to-face with friends. During their free time, they might be just “hanging out,” or exploring the creek for example, but they’re usually engaged in easy conversation with whoever happens to be nearby. It’s one of the pleasures of camp: always having an opportunity for enthusiastic, interested conversation.

How different from ordinary life! And you know why? Ordinarily, I think most people don’t have this opportunity because our personal devices have taken over. Our smartphones have isolated us from others, making this kind of real-world conversation rare… at best, occasional. With a screen to look at, with the ding of notifications calling, how many of us are having meaningful conversations? Even in a room full of teenagers, if they all have their phones, are they connecting with each other? At the very least, we’re all distracted and interrupted by these devices, undermining whatever in-person communication we might be lucky to have.

summer camp conversations

I have to wonder how a smartphone in every young person’s hand is holding back their ability to communicate, hindering this critical skill. Like anything else, conversation takes practice. Sure, it might be “awkward” at first, but if we retreat to the safety of text messaging, or some other emotionally sanitized electronic communication (emojis!), something is definitely lost. If kids are too quick to shrink from in-person conversations, I think they’ll struggle to form meaningful relationships. It will be harder to connect with others and to discover how much another person truly cares for you. After all, it’s only through heartfelt conversation that we can grow closer to each other. If your smartphone is always first, if your main outlet is social media, what are you missing? I’d argue, it’s a lot.

This is yet another reason why camp is great. By ditching our screens and offering an endless parade of opportunities to have conversations with loads of other people, we’re training passionate communicators. Camp provides real world examples of the rewards that spring from genuine conversations— the rich connections, the array of emotions, and the lasting satisfaction of it all. It might not show up in the photo gallery, but there’s a joy here too.

whitewater rafting teenagers

Appreciating Simplicity

Sundays are all-camp days at Rockbrook. Instead of each camper following her individual activity schedule, or a cabin group sticking together for “cabin day,” we spend the day all together for several different events. It’s a refreshing change of pace, and often filled with surprises.

This morning we began by sleeping in a little extra, which felt especially good after our busy week at camp. For breakfast, Rick arranged for fresh Krispy Kreme donuts to be delivered, adding them to our regular breakfast fare of fruit, yogurt, and cereals. Then we had time to get cleaned up and change into our camp uniforms, for campers the white shirt, shorts and red tie, and for counselors their red polo staff shirt. The whole camp, now all sharp in our red and white, lined up around the flag pole on the hill for a short flag raising ceremony. The Hi-Ups raised both the American flag and our camp flag, and we all recited the Pledge of Allegiance and sang “America the Beautiful.” These simple camp traditions settle everyone down before walking down to the chapel area of camp.

We call this area the “Chapel” because it’s a beautiful, quiet spot in the forest where we can gather as a community and reflect on some of the values that help make Rockbrook special. The program is not a religious ceremony, but instead a collection of short camper reflections, songs, and something by Sarah, often a children’s book— all revolving around a theme.

Today’s theme was “Simplicity.” The Middler Line campers shared how nice it was not having to bring fancy bathing products to camp, and using simple things instead. They also talked about enjoying being away from technology, appreciating friendships, nature, and even Felix, the camp dog.

camp simplicity chapel

We learned a new song called “Simple Joys,” with some campers leading it. Then we sang “Simple Gifts,” with six campers playing the ukulele and singing along. We also sang “Blue Skies,” learned the camp song, and “Heart of the Wooded Mountain,” another classic.

Sarah read a book called, Small Things Mended, by Casey W. Robinson. It’s about how taking care of little things leads to more joy. The story follows a man who starts fixing things for neighborhood kids, first a pocket watch, then a music box. Word spreads, and soon everyone begins bringing him things to fix. He decides to host weekly lunches with produce from his garden, fixes up his garden, and realizes how happy he is because he’s surrounded by friends. He discovers that even a broken heart can be fixed simply with friends.

Lately, some of us have started referring to our chapel as an acronym: Community, Happiness, Adventure, Peace, Earth, and Love. Chapel is a time to celebrate all of these things we enjoy at camp. It’s a time for us to slow down and appreciate the simple things that mean so much.

Ready for Adventure

You might know that there are a lot of camps in this part of western North Carolina. About 100 years ago (104 years for Rockbrook), camps started popping up as mountain retreats from the summer heat, but also places with great access to nature. Cleaner air, cooler temperatures, and spectacular natural features like lakes, waterfalls, rock cliffs and long range mountains views were a real draw. While parents established cottages and visited resorts, camps catered to their kids, offering a place more suited to their interests and needs. Camps have survived this long because kids love being here, and now I think there are 16 overnight camps in this county alone.

One big advantage for camps in this area is the incredible access we have to nearby forests and wilderness areas, which makes all kinds of outdoor adventure possible. A few miles south of Rockbrook is the Dupont State Forest, 10,000 acres of protected land known for its huge waterfalls, lakes and hiking trails. North of camp is the Pisgah National Forest which is over 500,000 acres and likewise is known for its rock faces, trails, scenic streams and waterfalls. Our very own camp property is a 200-acre mini example of these forests with Castle Rock, Rockbrook Falls, old growth trees, trails and hidden swimming holes. Rockbrook is uniquely fortunate in this way.

I mention all of this because in addition to the regular daily activities at camp, the four in-camp activities each camper has as part of their day, Rockbrook’s outdoor adventure staff plans special out-of-camp trips that are optional for the campers. These trips are announced during meals and girls can sign up to go. It means missing their regular activities, so the decision can be a dilemma… you can’t do everything! “Should I miss riflery and pottery to go hiking?” It can be a tough choice, but there’s always a big interest to try these adventures. Some trips are only half a day, like a day hike to an overlook. Others take a whole day, like whitewater rafting, kayaking or rock climbing in Pisgah. Despite this dilemma, these trips are quite popular among the girls.

This week, for example, there was an adventure trip everyday. There was a day hike in Dupont, and another in Pisgah, on Monday. Tuesday, which is generally our big rafting day, brought almost all of the Middlers over to the Nantahala for a day of whitewater and splashy fun. On Wednesday, we saw girls flying through the trees on the Zipline course and in the evening, all of the Seniors braving the chilly ride down Sliding Rock. The Kayakers took trips on both Thursday and Friday, to the French Broad River and the Tuckaseegee River. There was also an overnight backpacking trip for Middlers on Thursday night. Another group spent the night camping in Eno hammocks on the camp property… adventure glamping among the trees in hammocks… “Glammacking,” we might call it.

It might be easy to forget about these trips happening when there is so much regular in-camp action. Some girls, though, try to go out of camp for these adventures whenever they have the chance. There’s so much to see, new thrills and challenges to experience, on these trips. They are another way for the girls here to try new things, things that require a little nerve, a little extra effort, and a little real-world challenge. Our regular days provide moments like this, but trips turn it up even more.

Of course what makes these trips so fun is not just the novelty or rush of the experience. It’s also the feeling of accomplishment that comes with it… jumping off the rock that starts the zipline, staring down the rushing water of sliding rock, steering your kayak through the rapids, and so forth. Overcoming these sorts of challenges becomes almost natural for the girls here because they’re surrounded by supportive friends, bolstered by true camaraderie. It’s what we all do. Camp girls will tell you; they’re ready for adventure! And that’s pretty neat.

summer camp girls rafting in north carolina

First Session Highlights Video

Here’s a real treat for you: our first highlights video of the summer. We’re fortunate again to have Robbie Francis of FrancisFilmworks working with us this summer. Robbie’s been coming to camp, filming and making these videos for us since 2015. He has a marvelous knack for capturing so many of the sweet moments of camp life, and editing it all into a couple of minutes of video.

This place is rich with enthusiasm, full of action, and far too complex to summarize. These videos provide a wonderful glimpse into our world. I think you’ll really enjoy watching.

A Cabin Day Afternoon

First session Rockbrook campers have been settling in for a few days now, and it’s just the start of camp! They have already had incredible experiences, including white water rafting, weaving, pottery, backpacking, and many more. One of the best parts of the week is cabin day, which takes place every Wednesday afternoon of the session. 

afternoon cabin group swim

Camp provides the perfect environment for creativity and opportunities for counselors to have fun with their campers. This is especially true for cabin day, because the possibilities are endless! Counselors and programming team members spend hours each week planning special afternoon activities for campers by gathering supplies, workshopping group experiences, collaborating with other counselors, and finally executing plans. Each cabin has different activities tailored to their interests and personalities. When I was a counselor it was always fun to hear what my campers liked and then develop an afternoon where they could all have fun together. It is an amazing opportunity for campers to bond, especially since they aren’t all together as a group in activities during the day.

4 silly camp kids

Counselors usually have the best luck balancing an “active” activity with a more relaxing, crafty activity. This way, there is something for everybody in the cabin that plays to the campers’ different temperaments. Counselors can also come up with themes for the day, including pirates, fairies, mermaids, detectives, animals, or anything that fits with their campers’ unique interests. Campers and counselors can hike to Castle Rock or Rockbrook Falls, go to the mermaid pools, use the lake, use our activity spaces to make crafts, and make special memorabilia to represent their cabin group that year. We are so lucky to live in this beautiful space at Rockbrook, so the possibilities are endless. Counselors and our programming team work extremely hard to pull this off every week, and campers always have so much fun!

The best part of cabin day, in my opinion, is the opportunity to spend time as a cabin group outside of the cabin. Beyond the day-to-day in-cabin routines, there are not many instances where everybody in the cabin is together at one time. Cabin day is one of the best ways to cultivate a positive cabin dynamic and strengthen the camp experience. Connection is the foundation of Rockbrook, and this is just one example of how we build it. 

Relaxing and Compelling

Today, we woke up to a cool misty fog dulling the greens of the forest. It was only about 58 degrees, so as the girls made their way to the dining hall for breakfast bundled up in all sorts of fleecy long-sleeved things, they were clearly not at home. No climate controlled room, but instead the moist smell of crisp mountain air. No clatter or buzz from an alarm clock, but rather the ringing of Rockbrook’s 100-year-old bell. Conversation in the cabin, friendly calls of “good morning!” between cabin mates, spurred everyone along. No school, or swim practice, or carpool to reach on time, but instead a day with friends filled with different activities to look forward to. Today was when we would really dig in to camp life.

camp girl smiling with horse

The first thing to notice about what we might call a “regular day” at camp is that it is packed with action, completely filled with girls busy doing things in the many activities. Out in nature, together with other girls of varying ages, they’re deeply involved being challenged in sports, being creative in the arts, and being thrilled by adventure. And the variety of these experiences is incredible. They’re riding horses, shooting arrows, and climbing our Alpine Tower. They’re weaving on looms, sawing through wood, and zipping along high among the trees. They’re hitting tennis balls, and rolling out balls of cool, moist clay. They’re learning too! Learning about some of the local birds, about how to aim a target rifle, about the parts of a whitewater kayak, and about how to do a cartwheel, for example.

But they’re also learning something else that could be even more important. They’re learning to relax into whatever they’re doing, even when they aren’t in a group activity (a “class” with a “teacher’). Our “regular days” have three dedicated blocks of free time for the girls when they are not in a scheduled activity: a “free swim” before lunch and dinner, and a chunk after dinner we call “Twilight.” These are true free times when they can be with friends, visit the lake, play a game like tennis or gagaball, or just relax on the hill. Different from the regimen of school where each minute is “on task” for the most part, camp life provides time (and space!) to explore, discover, connect and meander no matter what a camper’s inclination. Combine that with an almost endless supply of friendly companions and we’ve got something really special. It’s both relaxing and compelling at the same time. Hmmm… is that a definition of fun? Maybe. No matter what, I’d say it’s the perfect combination to help kids grow.

Camp is great like that. It fosters so many positive personal developments, from making friends to the kind of self-confidence that sprouts from new experiences in a supportive environment. There lots more to be said about that!

For now, I hope you’re enjoying the online photo gallery we update everyday. The photos provide just a glimpse into our days at Rockbrook, but they do convey some of the action, the delight, and the spirit we all enjoy. They’re fun to see, but I bet you’re jealous you can’t enjoy it too!