Author: Lee Albrecht Biear

Our favorite time of year (during the winter) is almost here!!  February 1, 2016 is National I Heart Camp Day! Help us spread the word on the importance of summer camp. Remember all those funny pictures we took of you with the “I heart Camp ” Poster. Well, on February 1, 2016 Camp Woodland campers, parents, staff, and alumni are encouraged to post their ” I heart Camp” photo as their Facebook Profile. Don’t have Facebook?

Here are a few ideas to show the world (or just your friends) how much camp means to you!

• Instagram your photo! #Woodland4Girls #Iheartcamp
• Print it out and paste on your favorite school tablet
• Post it on your Pinterest Site
• Make it a screen saver on your computer

Click the link to retrieve your daughter’s photos (we included brother-sister photos): I heart Camp Woodland Photos Link

Click the link to retrieve Camp Woodland Alumni photos:Alumni Photos Link

Need your son’s photo too? Click the link to your son’s (Towering Pines) photos: I heart TP Photos link

All you have to do is: 1- find your picture, 2- download it by clicking the download tab on the bottom right of the photo, 3-Post it this Monday, Feburary 1!

* We took these photos at the end of the summer. We apologize if your daughter could not be part of this project and hope to do the photos throughout the entire next summer! Make your own photo and post it!  We love to see your child’s creativity!

Celebrate 200 days until camp with us by participating in our first annual International Camp Woodland T-shirt day! Camp Woodland campers, parents, and staff are encouraged to post a photo to Instagram using #woodlandtshirtday on  Decemeber 7, 2015.  Everyone who participates will be eligible to win new camp gear.   Don’t have instagram? Here are a few ideas to celebrate International Camp Woodland t-shirt day:

• Snap a photo or your camper wearing  their camp gear to school and email it to: campwoodlandtp@gmail.com! (still be eligible to win camp clothing)
• Post camp t-shirt photo as your Facebook Profile pictue
• Post it on your Pinterest Site

Click on our Photo gallery to look for great photos of your children from past summers: https://camp-wdtp.smugmug.com

All you have to do is: 1– find your picture, 2– download it by clicking the download tab on the bottom right of the photo, 3-Post it this Monday, December 7, 2015!

THANK YOU FOR CELEBRATING INTERNATIONAL CAMP WOODLAND T-SHIRT DAY WITH US!

You heard it right from the source – camp is all around us! I embrace it because it means I have “family” wherever I am headed.  Hi, my name is Lee Albrecht Biear, and I have been part of Camp Woodland for over half of my life!

5th year at camp circa 2000!

I remember thinking as a young counselor, how can I keep being part of this incredible place forever?  As I was mapping out my future camp career, I thought I had to be a teacher, nurse or chef. I knew that I was not destined to be a teacher (let’s face it, teachers are gods), a nurse (squeamish around blood), or a chef (I burn water!). I had no idea how I was going to follow my passion and find a niche as a camp professional.

JoAnne & Lee circa 2001

So, off I went to follow my second passion, public health (I love helping people and the environment be healthy!).  I designed onsite wastewater treatment systems for large subdivisions, developed water pumps for impoverished communities in Latin America, and consulted for the National U.S. EPA office.  Even with a successful career, there was still an itch for camp that I was destined to scratch.

That’s me designing water pumps in Nicaragua circa 2002

Through it all, the Jordan Family had my back.  I saved my vacation time so that I could work at camp, even if just for a week.  I told my boyfriend (now husband), Matt, that we could only continue our relationship if he believed in camp.  Luckily, he fell in love with camp in one afternoon. Matt was instantly hooked as he witnessed firsthand the camp philosophies I had been preaching about – they were playing out in every nook and cranny at Woodland. Spending the afternoon at Towering Pines on Pirate Day only sealed the deal (eye patches, a cannon, and walking the plank – SOLD!).

The whole Biear Family at camp circa 2015

Fast-forward 6 years from that fateful camp visit with my husband, and I am working at camp again and have been part of the year round team since 2012. Remember, when I said the Jordan Family has stood behind me while I found my way???  Well, it is so true!  They supported my dreams as a public health professional, and also welcomed me back as the marketing director for both camps. I am in a fulfilling position and enjoy working with the campers and staff each summer. I help keep camp around us all year by organizing camp reunions, managing our social media sites, and networking with our very talented alumni.

Mimi Alumni Reunion in Houston Texas, October 2015

I am honored to be part of our very inclusive Alumni Family. Our Alumni are simply the best! I love hearing about their camp experiences and finding the common thread we all share through the Woodland and Towering Pines experience. It is amazing how the traditions and philosophies have shaped our lives and will always be a part of us.  It is fun to see how as counselors we positively impacted the next generation of campers!  Once you join the Camp Woodland and Towering Pines community, you become part of the family.   It means that camp can be around us, even if we can’t always be physically there.

We hope you can attend our next Camp Event.  Details are below:

Date: Sunday, November 22, 2015
Time: 3:30-5:30pm
Location: 1834 Lincoln Avenue Northbrook, IL 60062
RSVP: jstarcamp@aol.com

“We welcome you to Camp Woodland! We’re mighty glad you’re here! We’ll send the air reverberating with a mighty cheer. We’ll sing you in, we’ll sing you out, to you we’ll raise a mighty shout! Hail! Hail! The gang’s all here. We welcome you to Camp Woodland!”

The day we’ve all been waiting for has finally arrived: the first day of camp. Throughout this past year, similar to the last seven leading up to this day, a constant feeling took solace in the bottom of my stomach and remained there from the moment I turned off of the Woodland Road last summer to the moment I turned onto it once again. This blend of nostalgia and eagerness for the summer to come served two functions: to remind me why this quaint paradise pulls me back year after year and to serve as the light at the end of the tunnel after a long year of school.

Although the ten months in between camp sessions filled with classes and homework are extensive, the “camp bug” that resides at the bottom of my stomach always gives me a reason to persevere. No matter how difficult reality may be and how vastly my camp nostalgia may grow, the knowledge that this summer paradise will always await me time and time again provides me with the comfort and confidence I need to focus on the present while maintaining my eagerness for the future. “One month from now, you will be relaxing on the beach next to Sand Lake soaking up the sun and listening to the sounds of the waves crashing onto the shore, endless laughter, and the pleas of all of the girls who beg for double canteen,” I tell myself. And, oddly enough, here I stand once again in the paradise whose mere memory urged me forward these last ten months.

After a long year, we finally reached the end of the tunnel; the long-awaited paradise; the ultimate cure to the “camp bug.” The cabins are open, the horses are waiting, the guns are clean, and the sailboats are wading. We could not be more excited for you all to take this summer to relax, to enjoy, and to thrive. Welcome home, campers!

-Alex K
Treetops Counselor

One of the best things about camp is seeing how campers grew over the year and witnessing their eagerness to learn something new. This comes in many different forms including learning something new about themselves, reconnecting with camp friends and making new ones, and even trying new activities. As a counselor, the most fulfilling part of the camp experience is learning something new from the campers. Whether it’s a new craft project, song, dance, or story we learn just as much as the campers! Their excitement to learn a new skill and master another drives us to try new ways of teaching. Each summer I learn so much from the campers and even about myself. Learning doesn’t end with the end of the school year and camp is the prime example of how anyone can learn to thrive in a variety of different activities. Throughout the summer whether campers are at camp for two, four, or six weeks, it is obvious how they become more independent and comfortable with themselves as well as working as a team!

My parents still say that going to camp was one of the best things for both my sister and I because we thrived! We are comfortable in our skin, are willing and eager to get to know new people and try something new, and camp provided opportunities for us to become leaders. Learn, Laugh, Lead is not just a slogan it is a fact of what camp provides each and everyone who attends.

I, for one, am so excited to see how experienced and novice campers take advantage of this summer. Camp is “Where I Thrive in 1-5” and has been for years! What about you?

Authored by: Sara F
2015 Masters degree in Public History, Wright State University
Camp Woodland Camper, Senior Counselor