Counting down to camp

Counting Down to Camp by Laura Tomassi, North Star Reach Event Specialist
For someone who works for North Star Reach, you might be surprised to hear that I have never been to camp. After more than a year of hearing stories from campers and coworkers alike, I had the opportunity to participate in Camp on the Move this summer and finally experienced what everyone says is true: camp is a truly magical place.

Camp on the Move is a temporary program that North Star Reach operates until construction is completed, and we are open for campers in late 2015. This year, over 60 kids from Michigan had the opportunity to fly to one of three of our fellow SeriousFun Children’s Network Camps for a week of magic. Seventeen kids and three chaperones went to Double H Ranch in New York with me from North Star Reach.

As I arrived at the Ranch with my fellow chaperones, Andrew and Josh, I was nervous and excited. After hearing all of the stories throughout the year, I still wasn’t sure what to expect. I was assigned to the Bear Cabin (15-16 year old girls) and met all of my fellow counselors and volunteers-an incredibly inspiring group of people.

When the kids arrived the next morning, the magic began. I watched campers and counselors reunite from years past. I watched new campers arrive, as nervous and excited as I had been the day before. The energy and enthusiasm was contagious and unlike anything I have ever experienced. One camper told me she had been counting down to this moment for 359 days!

Once we settled into our daily routine, it became apparent that the magic came from what Patrick, our Camp Director, has called “a spectacularly average camp experience.” Our Cabin swam, fished, and participated in archery and a high ropes course. While most of the girls in my cabin had been to camp before, for some of them, it was their first time being allowed to participate in many of the activities. For the first time, nobody was there to tell them “no.”
I was very impressed with Double H’s ability to make all of the activities universally accessible. Campers who were wheelchair bound could still participate in the high ropes course and on the zip line, ride in the canoes, and go on rides at “The Great Escape” Six Flags amusement park. The joy I witnessed on the faces of camper after camper was incredible and helped me come to better understand the great impact that camp has on these children’s lives, not just in their week at Double H Ranch, but throughout the year.

As our Cabin got to know each other throughout the week, the girls started to open up about their experiences. It became apparent that their joy was not only because of the exciting camp activities, but that they could be here with others who understood a little bit about what their life was like. One of our new campers said it was the first time she had been around a group of people like her, who understood and who accepted her for who she is with no assumptions or questions asked. Hearing that on my last night at the Ranch just further convinced me of how important it is to the kids here in Michigan to get North Star Reach built.

Camp on the Move showed me what I’ve been told all along. Now I’m the one counting down the days until camp begins next year!