Monthly Archives:December 2025

“We Remember Moments, Not Days” Cesare Pavese

With the holidays upon us, it is not uncommon to reminisce about MEMORIES from previous holiday celebrations. This year my family decided to each “gift” our grand/parents a card sharing one or more special memories we have from our growing up years through more current times. It was fun to take a walk down memory lane and remember my earliest memory of getting hives from the tree my grandfather cut down on the farm, decorating cookies for hours and eating lots of frosting (all in the name of quality control!), having dinner at a table large enough to include every person in attendance, moving the Minnesota Twins ornament around to different places on the tree (just to spite my brother), having visits from Santa to our living room (a photo opportunity), playing holiday related games, delivering “meals on wheels” with my Dad, and more great family time (minus the year several of us had chicken pox)!

In similar fashion at the end of the recent summer, campers shared those things that they will never forget from their weeks spent on County D. Some of the memories were expressed by multiple individuals, while others were unique to the individual. You will notice that some are related to activities (first time trying something or reaching a certain level), while others are centered around a particular special event. Some memories make no sense because they are an inside joke to the campers and counselors from a given cabin. Regardless, this is how summer 2025 went down in the books for this year’s group of campers!

Here are the MOMENTS that made the list for each cabin group:

Silver Birch: calling my counselor “Derek”, decorating the tent on canoe trip, cantering on Pluto, trying hard not to laugh during a rainy day game (2), listening to the reading of the OD log at weekly campfires, spending time with my cousin, seeing someone on the love bench with my brother, CIT pancake breakfast, Gold Rush, Camp Birthday, Woodland Fair, picking up a bunny for the first time, cantering in riding, getting warm fuzzies from JoAnne, making nature arts & crafts, aqua aerobics, soap dips on our adventuresome canoe trip, playing limbo at the cabin, swimming with counselors while it was raining, Olympics, trail rides, pizza on Saturday, Miranda’s fun nights, karaoke, chocolate chip pancakes on our canoe trip, Spoon Tag, my first day in Sail Race

Starshine: seeing everybody in my cabin for the first time, passing to level 5 in swimming, cantering in riding, Gold Rush, swimming for cabin night, Spa Day, Gold Rush, drama-dance-gymnastics shows, pizza party, tennis, all my friends at camp, being the only one in my tennis class

Sunrise: getting “camper of the day”, end-of-session shows, our canoe trip, Farm Zoo animals, friends I have made, the horses in the barn, thalalalajalalalalala (inside joke), when Ryann figured out her role in drama, being able to do a front handspring and walkover in gymnastics, meeting JoAnne, cookout with Driftwood and Starshine, making friends, getting up on the kneeboard successfully for the first time, passing out of level 3 swimming, having a good time during Olympics, tripping over a tree root and dropping the water bucket, Olympics, Gangnam styling, kneeboarding during Rec Swim, friends, going on the pontoon boat and jumping off

Driftwood: friends, activities, doing things at the cabin, jokes from camp, my BFF’s, riding, July 15, hanging out with my friends, 4th of July games/campfire/fireworks

Sunnyside: Little Canoe, TP Fair, events, cabin nights, activities, cartwheels (2), Gary, “I am Moana of Ratatoille,” Community Day on the mini-fish sailboats (3), stargazing, canoe trip, Olympics (2), dance with Montze and Ana Roberto, spoon tag, my friends, sailing, friends, counselors, “you are it, Sydney”

Tamarack: playing cards, being with my friends (3), and Ray on the love bench with (?), playing 9-square for cabin night, girl talk at night (2), canoe trip, winning Lip Sync Contest, getting up on 2 skis, passing to sitting in riflery, TP Fair (2), water bucket war with Aquarius (3), getting stuck in the fan during the play, cabin shenanigans, having Cuau as a counselor, making new friends, Song Contest, going to the aqua tramp, winning my first ever sail race, getting up slalom on the first try, captain relay during Olympics, Rec Swim with friends, Olympics

Treetops: rainy day activities, canoe trip (5), getting up on skis for the first time, first session Rec Swim, sailing, TP/Woodland exchanges (3), TP Fair, 4th of July campfire (2), Uzz language, obsession with cheese, being in the closet at night, 2nd session drama play, hanging out with all my friends

Hilltop: TP Fair, Olympics (2), sponge tag in sailing, cabin nights (2), Fair Days (3), banquet, cowboy regatta (3), 4th of July (3), canoe trip (3), writing to TP boys, getting my 5 yr pendant, cabin nights with my friends, birthday/pizza parties, going to the bog, eating brownies with Karen (2), dressing up for Olympics and having fun

CIT’s: enjoying the natural beauty on our canoe day trip, cabin pontoon party with Lou, Northwoods stars (4), flying mustard with Amalia, getting my Golden Archer, sail race pirate regatta, Coed Show (3), meals with everyone, our cabin, talking to cabinmates at night (2), sailing with friends, Rec Swim, tennis, Western Day

Since we have been immersed in school and home life for the past few months, all of these moments become treasured MEMORIES that we pull out at random times to bring us back to those carefree days that make up a summer at Camp Woodland. If we happen to be able to gather with camp friends in the winter months, we recall those moments as if they happened just yesterday.

One of the things I have learned over the years is that campers (and staff) return to camp because of the people. Sure, activities and traditions are part of the draw to come back to camp. However, these wouldn’t be the same without the individuals who are there to create the memories we rely on this time of year when summer is still over a half a year away.

As we get ready to turn the page from one calendar year to another, the lyrics from the song, “Witchcraft,” come to mind: “Memories that linger, constant and true…memories we cherish, Camp Woodland, of you.”

Camp Comes to YOU

The pre-Thanksgiving gathering in Chicago was the kickstart to camp reunions anywhere, anytime! It is EASY to host your own reunion for camp friends where you are (in-person or virtually). Let us know HERE that you are interested, and we will help get it organized!

ENROLL for SUMMER 2026 at Camp Woodland

Now is a GREAT time to enroll your camper/s for 2026 and reserve your spot/s. Register here for those moments that turn into memories: https://cwtp.campbrainregistration.com

Sociologist Ray Oldenburg first introduced the idea of the third place—a space that is neither home nor work (or, for young people, neither home nor school). More recently, writer Kristin Kenzy has breathed fresh life into the concept, reminding us why these spaces matter now more than ever.

According to Kenzy, “a third place delivers social connection, a sense of belonging, and critical relief from our responsibilities at home and work.” For adults, that might be a favorite café or community center. But for the campers who return to Camp Woodland summer after summer, we know exactly what that third place is: right here on County D, among the tall pine trees, on Sand Lake, and in a community where they feel deeply known.

Why Camp Woodland is a Third Place 

Every June, campers arrive with duffels full of clothing and hearts full of anticipation. What they step into is not simply a camp session—it’s a living, breathing third place that offers:

1. Social Connection

At Woodland, connection happens everywhere:
– In the dining hall when the entire camp erupts into song 
– At the barn when a camper cheers for a friend’s first trot
– In the cabin before bedtime when the counselor is reading the goodnight story

Here, conversation isn’t something squeezed between tasks—it’s the point. Campers discover what it feels like to be listened to, supported, and celebrated in a community designed to bring people together.

2. A Sense of Belonging

Belonging at Camp Woodland doesn’t depend on achievement, appearance, or perfection. A Woodland girl is embraced for who she is the moment she arrives. Traditions, shared experiences, and the sheer joy of growing up together create bonds that stretch far beyond one summer.

It’s this belonging that keeps campers returning year after year—and keeps Woodland alumnae connected long after they’ve traded sailboats for laptops and riding boots and helmets for career attire.

3. A Break from Everyday Responsibilities

Camp is a rare gift in a world buzzing with notifications, pressures, and expectations. Woodland asks something beautifully simple of campers:
Be present. Try new things. Be yourself.

Free from academic stress, schedules, and the curated world of social media, campers find spaciousness—mentally, emotionally, and socially. They reset. They breathe. They remember what it feels like to play, explore, and grow without the weight of comparison.

Connection With as Little Friction as Possible

Kristin Kenzy emphasizes that “communities thrive when people are routinely guided to connect with each other, face-to-face, with as little friction as possible.”

This is the Woodland way.

Campers don’t need an invitation to connect—it happens organically. They live together, learn together, and navigate the ups and downs of cabin life together. Friction is minimized by design:

• Devices stay at home (or in a safe place at camp)

• Staff intentionally foster collaborative, supportive environments

• Rituals and routines gently pull everyone into shared moments

Face-to-face is the only way things operate here—and the result is authentic, durable relationships that feel increasingly rare in the outside world.

A Third Place They Carry With Them

By the end of every summer, something magical happens: Camp Woodland becomes more than a destination. It becomes an anchor point, a source of confidence, and a place campers carry in their hearts long after they’ve returned home.

Because that’s the power of a true third place—it changes you.
It strengthens you.
It reminds you who you are.

And every summer, Woodland campers return to the place that gives them exactly that.

We hope your daughter/s will join us in 2026 so they can find or return to their third place!