June 5th, 2018: Day 2

 

Campers were awoken to the sound of the distinguishable Reveille, rolling through the hills of the new campground, marking the first full day of camp. The Tuck Hall began to fill with eager campers, ready to begin a pleasant meal and commemorate the first breakfast at the new property. As breakfasts ends and bellies are full, campers made their way to chapel, ready for a time of worship and fellowship. As I was approaching chapel, I was overwhelmed with the sound of camper’s voices, projecting through camp, as they came together in a time of worship.

As the day progressed, the time for first period had come and campers rushed to begin their activities. It was astonishing watching camp begin to come alive as campers participated in activities such as kayaking, riflery and cooking. Period one had now ended and period two was well on its way, as I caught myself at fencing and basketball being held at the Mark. One camper in particular, really excelled today during fencing. Colin F. strived to continue practicing and learned new skills such as lunging and parrying. Colin also through great observation and ambition, learned how to advance and retreat on his first attempt! On the other side of the Mark, basketball was going on where I noticed Aiden M., really pushing himself. Aiden throughout the course of the period, advanced in every drill that was ran and truly killed it!

As first and second period ended, the sound of the bell rang, and campers rushed to the tuck, all ready for lunch. As everyone walked inside, familiar bags full of Fritos laid on every table, signifying everyone’s favorite lunch, “Tacos in a Bag”. With lunch ending, it was now time to announce the winner of last night’s evening activity of SOCK WAR! It was the mighty Iroquois vs. the powerful Seminoles, in a well fought battle, full of heart, resilience and prosperity. Everyone fought long and hard, but it was the mighty Iroquois who came out on top, for now… After lunch, the tribes were brought together for a tribal meeting, to elect this session tribal leaders. With such an amazing group of campers, it was hard to just select 4 campers per tribe, but a decision was made. For the powerful Seminoles; Jack B. was selected as chief, Owen S. for med-man, and Duma M./Leyton M. as lookouts. For the mighty Iroquois; Leo R. was selected as chief, Hunter S. for med-man, and Phillip H./Hudson L. as lookouts.

Progressing more into the day, activities for third and fourth period were engulfing the camp. Walking around camp I saw a riveting game of ultimate frisbee going on and deciding to watch. For many campers, this was their first time ever playing, but everyone was doing a great job working as a team. Ben E. and Evan H. were on fire on the playing field, pouring out enthusiasm and both willing to go beyond to help their team out. I couldn’t help but notice as I was leaving ultimate frisbee a group of mountain bikers racing down the hill, headed towards their stop at Ridgeline. I didn’t get the opportunity to actually ride with the campers but was able to talk with the counselors who lead it after their ride. The counselors acknowledged two campers in particular, Tommy S. and Jake K.. They explained how amazed they were with their skill set on only the first day! Tommy and Jake were described as very confident riders and real leaders within the riding group.

Third and fourth period were now over and a sea of campers wearing green Sunday shirts, made their way towards the Tuck for camp picture. After the camp picture, everyone made their way into the Tuck for dinner. With dinner winding down, everyone knew what was next; it was time to announce the evening activity. As the floor rumbled from campers stomping and clapping,  The Sultan of Fun strapped a red helmet on and ran around the tables, then jumped on a bench and screamed, “Mission Impossible”, signifying tonight’s evening event. As I sit here writing this article, the powerful Seminoles and the mighty Iroquois are outside battling it out. The question, however, does stand, who will win? I guess you’ll just have to read tomorrow’s article. This is Jackson Carter signing out, thanks for reading.

 

Jackson Carter

Powerful Seminole

Little Slaty

Liberty University