The First Week of Camp
It’s Survivor Week at Camp Tannadoonah! It’s our first week of the 2008 camp season, and it has been an amazing week so far. We have a total of 85 campers attending this week, and everyone is having a fantastic time.
Sunday night after we all checked in, the campers went down to the waterfront for the swim test. We were very happy that the thunderstorms all held off until we had all finished swimming and were back upstairs for dinner.
Given the crazy weather around the country this past year or so, I’ve been receiving a lot of questions about our safety procedures at camp. During staff training, we spend a lot of time discussing procedures and what to do in different situations. This is particularly relevant this year, as just last week 4 Boy Scouts were killed in a tragic accident when a tornado hit their camp.
Miss Sue (my assistant director) and I each carry walkie talkies with built-in weather radios. Whenever there is a storm watch, we alert all of the counselors in camp (by walkie-talkie), just to make sure they stay aware of what’s going on. We have several different signals for severe weather, so if a counselor doesn’t hear the message over the radio, we also blare the air horn and ring the big bell outside Main Lodge to signal an emergency.
If a tornado warning is issued, we immediately bring all of the campers to two central locations: The Dining Hall and Morris Lodge. Both of these buildings have basements, so they are the safest places in camp to bring the kids. During the time we’re waiting out the storm, we sing camp songs and play games to keep the kids calm. We monitor the weather radar and radios, and if it gets bad, we move the campers to the basements. We do periodic drills with the counselors to make sure they stay sharp and remember all of the proper procedures for various emergency situations.
Anyway… back to Survivor Week! On Monday night we had cookout and cabin night. We at hot dogs & s’mores cooked over the fire, and then each cabin planned an activity together. On Tuesday night we had a crazy game of Capture the Flag. Tonight was our Talent Show, which I’ll write about more later (and post pictures!).
We’re all having a great time, and I just know this summer is going to be the best one yet!
~Ms. Amber
