Camp Follow up- Parents please read-

Hello,
After a great week of camp I have a couple of announcements to pass along.

1- A Junior High Boy did find out that he had lice after coming home from camp. Please check your sons and daughters for lice. If you have questions let me know at steve@osuchurch.org, or let our nurse know jessica.lynch2009@hotmail.com. The parents of the camper believe that this was well contained but we want to be certain that you are aware,

2- There are a few pieces of camp gear left over, one sleeping bag and one luggage bin, they are in my office at the church so please let me know if they may be yours.

3- I incorrectly identified one of our consecration speakers, Dave Ruska performed during consecration but he did not speak. Sarah Toye was our 6th speaker! She did an amazing job!!!!

Steve

Quick Final Post

What a wonderful day. Again, the weather pulled through, sunny all day and a clear night as we head off to vespers.

Our last morning groups went amazing, I would encourage you to ask your teens about verbal strength bombardments. We had all the campers in each morning group speak out loud the strengths of the others in the group. Giving and accepting praise one to one is an awesome experience.

The hug line and graduation went very well and now we are off to our consecration service. We have 6 senior speakers who I know will do an amazing job, Paige Matthewson, Isabella Perfetuo, Derek Sprague, Kelsey Gessner, David Ruuska, and Jared Berman will send their messages out to our entire Senior High Camp.

We leave tomorrow around 10:30 AM, and should be in Braintree between 2:30 and 3.

Steve

Our last full day at camp

The week of camp starts slowly, Saturday we are getting acquainted with our surroundings and feeling things out, Sunday we start to get in the groove and explore the camp, then things hit warp speed and it's impossible to slow them down. I am reminded of the conversation my wife Jes and I had after our wedding, we were so in awe by how quickly everything happened and felt that we hadn't even begun to say hello to people and live that day. Camp is a lot like that, surrounded by people we love, always having conversations that matter, and of course filled with song, dance, and food!

Last night we had an amazing dance, outside on the tennis courts for the first time. It went perfectly, and the forecasted rain held off completely so we were able to put together a great camp fire and follow that up with a post-dance first, pizza for the whole senior high in the dining hall. They had the chance to talk and eat, share their dance experience and move to their own schedule for a change. We of course like to try new things each year and see how they work out, we'll check on the feedback we have from campers. (and don't fear- the Junior High had the extra pizzas delivered to their cabins so they got to enjoy as well!)

We have a busy busy day today, Morning Group is full of strength bombardment and that leads right into a picnic style lunch then the hug line, graduation, dinner, and our closing consecration service. We have 6 wonderful senior speakers who will be talking tonight, they are charged with delivering a message to the other campers, one of their own choosing, but a message that will resonate and guide our younger campers.

I hope to blog again later tonight, for those of you planning a pick up tomorrow at Braintree High School we are still on target for 2PM.
 

Cabin Wars success!!!!

Today has been an amazing day. By this time in the week we are fully into the meat of the Morning Group program and the Morning Watch, the campers are truly beginning to feel that camp spirit and to show it. I LOVE camp, especially when we have amazing teens like this!!!!!

After a great afternoon in the sun we were able to crown a new cabin war winner... Cabin 12 Junior High Girls were able to pull out the last minute win against the Senior High boys. We had great participation, costumes, and games. We also had no injuries to write home about which is always a bonus. Many thanks to the campers for all the energy and effort that they put into the day, as with all of camp, they make the program a success!

We have a formal dance this evening and then a surprise for our Senior High Campers (pizza!). The rain held off long enough and the day has been gorgeous, so for the first time ever we are going to have the dance outside. Let's hope the rain stays away and that the cool night air is more accommodating for our teens who LOVE to dance.

We will be heading home Saturday and should be at the Braintree High School parking lot by 2PM that afternoon. I'm sure that word will spread as we get closer to town.

The home stretch...

We are in the home stretch and although I have never questioned what that aphorism means in my mind it defines the time right before the end, when you have the biggest reward and are most engaged. So, in my mind, we are really on the home stretch! From the Variety show last night through the end of camp is normally a blur of wonderful experiences.

The variety show last night was great, with amazing performances and skits we had close to a 3 hour show last night. Our first year staff did a terrific job of hosting the show, introducing acts, and in a good spirited way.... making sure that the older staff got heckled! We had great performances from so many campers, Ian Goodine, Trevor Norve, Ashley Field, Manny Camargo, Isabella Perfetuo, and many more took the stage to share their gifts with the rest of camp. Many standing ovations were handed out and everyone headed back to their cabins after vespers with a song in their heads.

Today we really start to get into the best morning group conversations, then we head to Cabin Wars (which has taken on a life of it's own over the past 10 years, the costumes, theme music, and level of intense competition is outstanding), and to end the day we have our formal dance. I'll check in during the dance to say hello, have a wonderful day and THANK YOU for sharing your teens with all of us for the week. The staff at camp gets just as much out of the campers as we hope that the campers get from us!

And up next... the variety show!

What an AWESOME afternoon game in the field. We had dragons and Lords, battles and treaties. In the end the whole camp got together and enjoyed the fun that was the afternoon program.
Bob Caldeira led a wonderful chapel after that program and the whole camp joined in song and dance as they enjoyed a chapel about using and recognizing your gifts.

After a quick dinner we are off to the variety show, hosted by our first year staff the show this year has 20+ acts and will start promptly at 7:30. So I am signing off for the night!

p.s. Thanks to the parents who sent me packages! What a wonderful camp family, I thank you for the Twizzlers, the cookies, and the cards, they have shared with all the campers I can find.

A camp lunch first

For the first time in my 23 years at camp we had steak and cheese subs for lunch today. Great food at camp, and for those campers who don't like things such as subs we have a salad bar that is fully stocked with fresh veggies and toppings each day during lunch and dinner.

The weather, (I feel like a broken record here...) is amazing once again. If you check the weather frequently then look up Freedom New Hampshire and you'll get an idea of how nice this week has been. Now imagine spending 75% of your day outside, and then you can imagine why I talk about the weather so much! It is a huge part of our day, and as we get into our afternoon program and free time, I'm sure we'll have plenty of games and sports happening in the fields.

Our campers are great, we had a number of campers who were homesick early in the week who have stuck with camp and are enjoying themselves now! I always tell campers that being homesick isn't a bad thing, it just means you care for your family, so that is a credit to those who are still at home. On the other side of my advice, stick with camp if you can, you'll be sure to fit in and feel supported!

Wednesday Morning

Today is one of the best camp days, with our talent show tonight we see campers at their best. Supporting each other and encouraging all of the groups gifts. It is also the start of the longer days at camp as we begin to see some seniors leave as well as many boys for soccer tryouts. I wish that all our campers were able to stay for the whole week and that none had to leave early!

The morning looks good weather wise, with potential for rain tomorrow. We hope that the weather remains warm and dry throughout the week. One of the only complaints that our campers have had this week is with the stars. The sky is not as star filled as it normally is due to the light of a very bright and almost full moon. I hope you all have the chance to step outside and see that same moon in Weymouth that your teens are looking up at each night as they gather for talent shows, vespers, and more.

Off to bed

Campers had a wonderful night in the field. We got together as morning groups to play numerous small games and solve riddles. The ultimate goal was to solve a riddle that would SAVE camp from destruction!!!!! Luckily through teamwork we were able to pull it off as a camp, just in time.

Vespers and a great camp fire followed, and some of our seniors even stepped up to play guitar for the group and lead us in song before Caroline Burns delivered her vespers message about the image we make of our selves.

We are off to sleep and get ready for a big day tomorrow, with the Variety show tomorrow night we hope for good weather in the evening. Having the variety show outside makes for a special night.

The Counselor Hunt

Campers are running all over camp as I type this, playing games in order to obtain clues to the counselor hunt game. With games like Operation, basketball free throw shooting, color by numbers, and many more each cabin has a chance to win clues as to which counselors they need to find. As with many afternoon programs this game is even more fun as the campers make it exciting with their energy.

My only concerns about campers running around outside today.... I only saw one putting on sun block! It's a gorgeous and cloud free day in New Hampshire so I'll spread the message that a little sunblock should be worn in the future.

The great French toast shortage of 2013...

If you have not heard yet, there may be a shortage of French toast coming to the Northeast United States. Well, maybe not really, but if the rest of the world ate French toast the way our campers did this morning we'd run out quickly! We had a lot of campers who wanted seconds of the delicious French toast this morning, a great meal to start a busy day.

This morning we have our customary morning group and then move into a camp wide version of Guess Who. The whole camp will hopefully have just as much energy and excitement as they did yesterday for all of our events. Even the singing of songs at Chapel has been an energizing experience. This group of campers, led by a wonderful senior class has been awesome this week.

Goodnight campers!

What a busy day at camp, our 400+ campers were running all over camp today as they energetically took on Counselor BINGO and The Hunger Games. The weather stayed perfect for us once again, and Rev. Bill Harding's chapel message about the super heroes among us was comforting. Knowing that we are his heroes was touching for all the campers to hear. All that plus our chicken patties and our mashed potatoes may have seemed like a full day, but.........  the highlight of the day was Morning Group, AT NIGHT!!!

The campers loved their morning group at night and all the staff came back with great reviews of their deep discussions on comic book and real world heroes. I know that in my group the discussion was so touching and heartfelt that we had to stop for a minute and get a group hug in! What an amazing group of teens we have at camp, sharing of themselves to and for others, but also opening up so that they can accept and more fully understand themselves. Our world is a better place for having teens like this in it.

Tomorrow we have Guess Who as a game in the afternoon and Threat Level Midnight part II. More details to follow!

Monday morning at camp

We had a quiet evening last night after the dance, many campers and staff were worn out after breaking a sweat on the dance floor. The night was a little cloudy but we had a giant campfire and all huddled together to here Kurt Joyce talk to our teens about accountability and making mistakes for a great vespers.

Today we have morning group at night, and staff bingo in the morning. The "night" morning group (small group meetings at night) have become a well received weekly occurrence. We look forward to another great problem free day! More to come later.


p.s. scrambled eggs and bacon for breakfast brought smile to the faces of many campers.

The dance is in progress

As I type this message, I hear "Love Shack" echo through the camp. We have a Decades theme dance tonight, with some amazing and creative costumes. From Neanderthals to at least one "Manny" from the future I was as always impressed with the creativity and joy with which the teens rose up to the challenge of a dance theme. So many great costumes from individuals as well as groups, with flappers, and 60's tie-dye, togas and more we have quite a group.

The day leading up to the dance was a perfect one, the weather was warm but not overly sunny for our field games, and many campers had the chance to use the beach, the boats, and more. Our theme for the day (there is a new one each day, part of the Mystery camp idea) was Decades and we focused on the changes that have happened through out the decades. We also spoke about how change is good at our chapel tonight. The Old South Youth Council led the chapel today with song and scripture, and I was very privileged to off the message, change is good, God is constant. It is one that I hope to share more on this coming Sunday at Old South during the 9AM service.

I'm sure that we will have many many tired campers tonight after the dance, but I think they will all be very happy. Sleep well, and know that your teens are happy, healthy, and supported by a wonderful staff!

Steve

Our first ful day of camp

Sunday morning started in an odd way... for the first time I can remember the campers woke to a not so familiar sound... Greg Zopatti (with protégé Bob Caldeira close by) woke up  and the campers. Those two weren't alone though as Cole Moran joined them and added some extra energy to the wake up call!

Campers slept well and the camp was quiet last night after out opening camp fire. We had a wonderful night of old favorites like Compass, Nah Nah Nah Nah, Flee Fly, and I am free, as well as some new versions of old songs (thank you Kelsey Fritz), and even some originals skits from our very talented and hard working staff. The campers left the fire with plenty of energy for the week and even some popcorn to share back in their cabins before they went to bed.

We have a great day planned today and the weather looks to be perfect. After a nice breakfast of watermelon, pancakes, sausages, and all the cereals you can dream of, we are fueled up for the day!

Here we are CAMP 2013!!

What an amazing day! I could hardly sleep last night as I thought about camp 2013, but I was not the only one. As I got to the parking lot at Braintree High School, Sara Ellis told me she was wide awake at 5AM just like it was Christmas eve.

We loaded the 400+ campers onto 10 buses and away we went through Boston traffic to Camp Cody in Freedom New Hampshire. The teens were so full of energy as they got off the buses! Camp began it's 56th year with Rev. Robert Ripley opening the week from the council ring, as he has done for so many years.

Beautiful weather graced our presence, and a wonderful Chapel service with an inspiring message about being yourself and accepting your individuality was delivered by Rev. Leanne Walt of 1st Church Braintree.

As the sun starts to set now on the lake, we have all finished our rice, chicken, and grilled summer veggies for dinner, and at 8PM we will again come together at the council circle for the evenings Camp Fire. Song and skits from staff are on the menu, and hopefully at least one surprise (since no campers have email, I can tell you ahead of time.... we have popcorn for 500 tonight, ready to go for our opening event!)

We are blessed with an amazing staff, amazing teens, and from all my interactions today at the High School parking lot, AMAZING parents. Thank you all for growing these great teens!

Steve

Less than 48 hours until Camp 2013!

We have only a short time until camp 2013 begins, this blog will be updated on a daily basis with the camp "happenings". We look forward to an amazing year, 405 campers and 76 staff will be joining us this year.

Make sure to have everything packed up and with your teens for Saturday morning. We meet in the Braintree High School parking lot at 9:15 to load the trucks and get on the buses for the trip to Camp Cody in Ossipee New Hampshire.

The camp address is:
Cody Education Center
9 Cody Road
Freedom New Hampshire, 03836

We do mail call everyday, packages (I like twizzlers) and letters are welcome.

See you all very soon!
Steve
steve@osucuhrch.org

p.s. If you have gift cards for teh 50/50 raffle that you would like to donate, please bring them along to the parking lot Saturday. All proceeds from the raffle this year will go to the Sugrue family.

STEVE FLAHERTY AT THE HELM

Steve Flaherty begins his duties as Acting Youth Director at noon today - Sunday, June 30th.

Many thanks to the members of the Old South Union Youth Group, the advisors, and the Youth Group parents for 41 GREAT years. "How blessed am I to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard."

Please embrace Steve in the same manner that you have embraced me.

Take care of the starfish... be kind to the mermaids... fill all the buckets you can.

Blessings!

Terry

YOUTH GROUP on JUNE 16

Youth Group meets for the final time before the summer break this Sunday - June 16 - at 7:00 P.M. On the program are Tin Canny Awards, Ice Cream, Camp Cabins, etc.

YOUTH GROUP ON JUNE 2, 9, and 16

OUR JUNE YOUTH GROUP SCHEDULE

June 2      Grades 7 and 8 @ 5:00 to 6:00     Looking Back... Looking Ahead
                Youth Council @ 6:15 to 7:15       Planning meeting with Steve
                Grades 9 - 11 @ 7:15 to 8:30       Looking Back... Looking Ahead

June 9      The Youth Groups do not meet on June 9th

June 16    All three Youth Groups meet together @ 7:15 P.M. - SUPER SUNDAE

June 17 - 19     Rafting Trip for the Class of 2013

CELEBRATION FOR TERRY

Photos of last Sunday's CELEBRATION FOR TERRY can be viewed at:
www.staceynorlingphotography.com
go to: ALL MY PHOTOS
go to: THANK YOU TERRY MARTINSON CELEBRATION

May 16

May 19 - CELEBRATION FOR TERRY - WHS - 1:30 to 3:30 P.M. - ALL ARE WELCOME!

May 19 - All three Youth Groups meet for Tin Canny Voting and Elections: 5:00; 6:00 and 7:15

May 26 - There is a dance for ACTIVE Youth Group members only... $5/person... the theme is: THE THRIFT SHOP

June 2 - Junior High @ 5:00... Grades 9 - 11 @ 7:15... Youth Council @ 6:15 P.M.

June 9 - No Youth Group meetings

June 16 - All three Youth Groups meet together at 7:00 P.M.

APRIL 28, MAY 5 and May 12

All three Youth Groups meet at their regular times on April 28 and May 5th: 4:00; 5:30 and 7:15 P.M.

Ninth Graders will be outside on My 5th for Kodak Kapers - please wear a sweatshirt...

May 12 all three Youth Groups meet together at 7:00 P.M. for Youth Group's Got Talent

Camp List and Waiting List will be distributed on May 5th.

Camp payments are due in full by June 16th @ 9:00 P.M.

APRIL 7 and 14

Sunday Night - April 7 - our Youth Group meetings will focus upon: THERE'S A HOLE IN MY SIDEWALK...
All three Youth Groups meet at their regular times...
Sunday - April 14 - the Youth Group meetings will focus upon: LIVE LIKE YOU'RE DYING...
All three Youth Groups meet at their regular times...

March 14

Sunday's meeting - 3/17/13 - is THE SILENT MEETING... even in the silence, it's lots of fun... it's also St. Patrick's Day - prizes will be awarded to the Youth Group members wearing the most green.

3/24/17 - The meeting is based on There's An Alligator Under My Bed... we'll be talking about our fears.

3/31/17 - There are no Youth Group meetings on Easter Sunday, but there is a SUNRISE SERVICE on Great Hill @ 6:30 A.M. Terry will be preaching the sermon at this service - all are welcome!!!