June 24 2025

I love learning new things, it is an integral part of life (which is why we include “Mental Growth” as a pillar of the Four-Fold-Philosophy). So imagine my delight when I learned that the entire eastern half of North America was going to experience a “Heat Dome” this week! Oh Boy! Hot temperatures, high humidity, for days on end… a fact that we will embrace with a good attitude as we keep our eye upon the donut, not upon the hole in this situation.

Today will be the warmest day of the week, possibly the warmest day of the summer. Ninety Two Degrees + Sunny Skies + 80% humidity = HOT. So we drink LOTS of water, we turn on the misting stations (there are four around camp), we seek the shade (it is ten degrees cooler in the shade), we add fans to the cabins (bought 100 fans yesterday, wiping out the stock in the local Walmart, Sam’s Club, and Lowes), and we smile. The girls are happy to be here (the volume when we sing is deafening, the energy of the dancing is contagious, and when we sing loud and dance like banshees, our faces light up with giant smiles and wide eyes filled with delight.

Camp is good. You would have been so happy to see your daughter dancing in the pit this morning, listening intently to the Morning Assembly devotion, or holding hands with her cabin during the closing prayer at EP last night. There is a sweet spirit in this place, and we are all just glad to be here (though on days like this, we do wish the rumors of AC in the cabins were true).

Last night’s Program Skits were great. The counselors were witty, delightfully hamming it up for the crowd of campers. The outdoor setting enhanced the acts, as we savored the cool breeze coming off the lake and the soft dappled sunlight filtered by the 100-year-old poplar trees. It was laid back and funny at the same time. The fireflies rose as we watched the last ten minutes of the show and enjoyed the cool night breeze before dismissing for our nightly allotment of Nilla Wafers (2).

The Tentalow Lip Sync EP tonight will be fun. The girls were already debating the theme song they would choose and showing off their best dance moves yesterday afternoon. By showtime, the girls will be primed and ready to give us a great show! I bet we will have time to catch fireflies as they arise from our feet, easily caught and quickly let go. Hopefully, we will have time for a camp-wide dance party on the stage before Call to Quarters.

Today’s rundown:

Breakfast (Ham, Baked Apples, Biscuits, Grits, Fruit, Cereal),
Joke “S-Car-Go”
Morning Assembly (The Pavilion Verses)
Nice, hot weather (blue skies, 92 degrees, breezy).
Lunch BLT’s, Pimento Cheese, Turkey Salad
Dinner Pan Fried Chicken, Red Rice, no dessert (first Shoppe)
EP Tentalow/Bungalow Lip Sync

Photographs… We prioritize photography (hiring outside photographers, supplying top shelf gear, and working to capture the spirit of camp as we blaze away all day long). Our goal is to upload a couple of thousand photos by taps, hopefully getting a couple of good shots of each girl in camp. We go to different classes, rotating the time we go to class… hopefully catching the girls doing what they love best. We try to frame the shots correctly and adjust the camera settings to ensure they are clear and well-lit. We try, in short, to meet your expectations. We always fall short of this goal. In an attempt to crack the code, we purchase new equipment and hire photographers who know what they are doing. They are not professionals and sometimes miss the mark…know that our heart is in the right place.

We are so very grateful to share this summer with your girls… grateful for your prayers… grateful for your support. THANK YOU