Greetings from Hilltop. Well, Camp is quiet for the first time in a month. In spite of the challenges of the last few days, this has been an absolutely extraordinary session. Last night’s final Evening Fire was a fitting end. When you’ve been at Camp for a while, it’s tough not to rate Evening Fires a little bit. Normally, they’re really good. Once in a while, we get one that’s a little sub par. From time to time, we have one that’s transcendent. Last night was one of those nights. There were many great moments, but two notable highlights. The first was a sea shanty led by our Head of Boys, Ciaran, and sang by all of Boys’ Side. For all of us who live in Girls’ Side, myself included due to the location of Hilltop, it was a complete surprise. The voices of the boys and their counselors were strong and joyous. They filled the room like I’ve never seen. The second moment was a surprise of a different sort. We awarded our Head of Girls’ Side, Charlotte, her Gypsy Pin. The Gypsy Pin is the highest piece of Gypsy Jewelry we award. We often don’t list it when we rattle off the types of Gypsy Jewelry because it’s given so rarely. It’s given at a point after the Polaris Ring or Gypsy Bracelet, and it’s meant to recognize a truly significant service to Camp. Charlotte fits the bill perfectly, and the Pin was probably overdue. Hearing everyone’s expressions of gratitude towards Charlotte, hearing the impact she’s had on so many campers and staff, was a reminder to all of us about how we affect each other daily. I love Charlotte, and I’m happy she got her pin, but my mind does wander to the impact on the entirety of Camp of seeing all that gratitude, impact, and emotion laid bare in the Lodge. Three of Charlotte’s former campers from Fir, our youngest girls’ cabin, from six years ago, now Seniors, spoke. Charlotte recalled that when she was their counselor, at perhaps 19, she witnessed a Gypsy Pin ceremony at a final evening fire. It makes me wonder which young person sitting in the audience last night will be recognized years from now, having impacted hundreds.
Moving from the sublime to the informative, Travel Day is going well. Many of you are already reunited with your children. For those that aren’t, flights are going smoothly. Camp is an emotionally intense experience, and lots of kids need a little bit of a re-entry period to what we refer to as “the real world.” Kids express that decompression period differently. Some come immediately with the camp stories. Other are on devices communicating with camp friends and not talking as much as their parents would like. Take your cues from your camper. The decompression period will normalize in a few days.
I hope your camper is already talking about next summer, and you may be interested to know that registration for summer 2018 is already available. We reserve spots for returning campers until November 30, so there’s no real rush, but many families like to take care of it when Camp is at the front of mind. We will send out reminders and so forth, but we do encourage you to mind that November 30 deadline. For the last several years, all three of our sessions filled on December 1, and we have no reason to believe it will be different next year. You can find that registration form by logging into your parent account at fourwindscamp.org/login, clicking on “Registration Form,” selecting the 2018 season, and filling out the form.
Thank you for sharing your children with us this month. It was a truly extraordinary experience, both for us and for them. I hope to see them all next summer, and in the off season as well.