Category: Where I Thrive in 1-5!

Turning right onto County D from Highway 51 always brings out my reflective side. That curvy, wooded stretch of highway is the road back to when life was simple. At camp, whatever problems I had could be worked out if everyone worked together. I learned to look for the good in everyone and discover new things about myself. I controlled my own destiny. I picked my activities, reached for my goals and the possibilities were endless. I tried new things in a failsafe environment and learned by doing, doing, and doing some more.

Woodland girls cheered one another on towards those achievements. Everyone was on the same page, working towards the same goals: fun, personal growth and learning things along the way.  As great as being a camper was, three of the greatest memories I have of the camp experience came long after my days as a camper. Perspective is such a gift! As an adult you start to realize all of the hard work and effort that goes into running a camp. John and Anne Jordan ran a first class operation during my brothers’ and my era, and their children and grandchildren continue to do so today.

In 2010, I took my son to visit Towering Pines, just to see if he would like to go to camp the following year. He got to see inside of a cabin, the waterfront, and looked at the TP museum where he saw his uncle’s name in many places. Our final stop was the dining hall where lunch was being served. I got to say hello to Mr. J, and introduce him to my son. I had not seen him since he attended my wedding 10 years prior, but he was so warm and welcoming. It means a great deal to me that my son got to meet one of the people who made TP what it is today.

The following summer when I dropped off my son, we visited Woodland to show my daughter. She toured the Farm Zoo and observed a riding class. JoAnne Jordan Trimpe was there with her mom, Mrs. J, and they both met my daughter, who was so shy and hesitant and clingy that day. I am so grateful my children got to meet the elder Jordans since they were a big part of my life growing up as well as fond friends of my parents.My third greatest camp memory is hearing my sister-in-law ask why my brother did not press harder to get her to send my older nephew and niece to camp. Having not attended a camp like Woodland or Towering Pines herself, she just did not understand what it was all about. Their youngest son now goes to TP and loves it. When she visited him there for the first time, she “got it.” It’s been fun to see both her and my own husband “converted” to people who embrace the camp experience. My husband said he wishes his parents sent him to a place like TP when he was growing up.When my then almost 8 year old daughter returned from her first summer at Woodland she was no longer the shy, clingy little girl the Jordans met that summer day 5 years ago. Originally scheduled for only two weeks, she begged to stay another two, and ended up asking to stay the entire six week session. She’s already planning to stay all six weeks this summer.

Here are some highlights from our debriefing session on the ride home:
Favorite thing about camp: Archery (sorry Sand Lake…you are too cold)
Favorite counselor: Everyone
Favorite friend: Everyone
Favorite horse: Bonnie
Favorite meal: Everything (except Fish Friday) and she discovered she likes salad, and REALLY likes the picnics.
My daughter has been a little pampered and as a consequence, can be a little “particular,” so I thought camp would be good for her in that respect. She definitely needs to do more for herself, as she is perfectly capable. At camp, she learned that she can’t always get her way and she sometimes needs to think about the group and not just herself. Most importantly, she has learned the simple pleasure of being with a bunch of girls her own age, laughing, singing and having fun together.

The question about whether a child will take to camp is sometimes a reflection of our own insecurities as parents. In the case of my daughter, she’s the youngest and I admit she is a little coddled. I was nervous she might not like some of the camp routines, but I recognize the value in her learning that there are other ways of doing things. Maybe I was really nervous that she’s not going to need me any longer? Despite that insecurity, there was one thing I did not feel any misgivings about! I was not one bit nervous leaving U.S. soil for a few days to go on vacation with my husband. I knew that anything that could possibly come up with my kids would be handled expertly by TP or Woodland.
Thank you, to all generations of the Jordan Family, for bringing our children the Towering Pines/Woodland experience. The world is a better place with more campers in it!

The temperature’s gradually increasing, the trees are blooming and the refreshing smell of pine fills the air. You know what that means, summer is just around the bend! Camp Woodland awaits the campers to come experience the glorious days filled with activities and wonderful food!

Although I was very anxious about the experience my first summer in 2009 (I will never forget the day my mom and grandpa dropped me off), I thrived! Over the past several years I have personally grown and learned so much while at camp. This will be my 7th summer at Camp Woodland and I wouldn’t want to spend my summers anywhere else or in any other way. The day the campers leave at the end of the summer is the day I begin counting down until they arrive for the next summer.

There are so many different activities that you may never get a chance to try at home. If you’ve always been more of a waterfront person, there’s always an opportunity to experience and thrive with some land sport activities! That is what is so great about getting to change your schedule every 2 weeks, because you’re able to try various activities throughout the summer.

You’re sent out on your own with a group of about 8 other girls to live in a cabin (under counselor supervision, of course!), learn from each other, and grow together. The girls come from all over the country and world, giving them the wonderful opportunity to explore different cultures and learn new things. It’s amazing what knowledge and experiences other people can bring to the table; there’s so much to learn!

Over the years, I’ve realized camp is the best place to be yourself, somewhere where you are not being judged. I learned you should always express your true self, because you are the only “you” there is in this world and you have a lot to offer!

The summer awaits for levels to be passed, unbreakable bonds to be formed, experiences to be shared and memories to be made. I am ready to thrive in the summer of 1-5 and enjoy being myself, are you?

Authored by: Raquel R.
High School Graduate Class of 2015

Natalie teaching Sailing!

It’s that time of year again—when school is spiraling to its end, and it becomes that much harder to pay attention in class as a hint of summer drifts with the breeze through the open windows.It’s also a time of year when contact with our camp family tends to spike:

• Camp friends rise to the top of your messaging inboxes
• They become your most frequented contacts on Skype (if they weren’t already),
• and get tagged the most on your Instagram photos (#60days!).

For me personally—and, I’m sure, for a lot of others as well—it means taking little moments for myself to reflect on past and future summers. Not only does doing this help keep my sanity in tact for final exams, but it helps ease my restless eagerness to get back to the north woods. As always, my mind naturally wanders to the theme for this summer — “Where I Thrive in 1-5” — and what it means to me.

What strikes me most about “Where I Thrive in 1-5” is that it isn’t a theme that only applies to this upcoming summer. Rather, it’s relevant to the Camp Woodland experience as a whole.

There have been endless conversations — both within summer camp communities and outside of them — about how school, while a fundamental factor in the growth of one’s character, can certainly be supplemented by other learning environments. Undeniably, a more traditional education offers foundational knowledge necessary to understand the world around us; however, there are other settings that teach us helpful rudimentary skills and simply don’t get the same recognition. Camp manifests this idea in the most perfect way — that a child or teenager can thrive not only within school, but also outside of it in environments that are equally conducive to his or her individual and intellectual development.

Education is a valuable and cherished privilege, and — as an aspiring educator — I will be the first to admit and endorse that idea. At school I’ve learned a multitude of things: from reading and writing in kindergarten to calculus and European history in high school. We are told, time and time again, that the world holds these things to the highest esteem.

However, within the same span of years as my formal education, I have also learned how to not only respect adversity, but to treasure it. I have learned how to succeed creatively as well as scholastically, and that weaknesses can become our greatest strengths if they are guided with care and passion. I have learned how leadership can shine through in hundreds of unconventional ways, and that it is possible to have two homes and sisters that were borne not of blood, but of the deepest friendships. And I have learned all of this not through school, but through camp.

Camp is where people of all ages can go to learn that thriving and succeeding can be measured by so much more than academic standards. You can explore dozens of different activities and hone hundreds of different skills, but it all boils down to one thing: you will discover that you have more potential than you ever thought possible.

Camp is not only the place where you will thrive in the summer of 2015, it is the place you will return to time and time again to find how you have grown and evolved into the person Camp Woodland shaped you to be — someone who flourishes with the help of skills and experiences that you gain in the summer and carry with you into the fall, winter, spring and years to come.

For me, “Where I Thrive in 1-5” isn’t limited to this summer because — like so many things at camp — the memories I make and the abilities I gain during those six weeks are unlimited; this idea was just as relevant during my first summer as it is for me today, thirteen years later.

So as you’re Skyping, texting and Instagramming your little heart away, be sure to take a moment out of your day to think about how you can thrive this summer, whether it be trying a new activity or stepping up as Team Captain during Olympics. Because camp is right around the corner, and the opportunities you seize this summer are sure to last a lifetime.

Author: Natalie B. ~13 year at Camp! Sophomore At UW-Madison

by Jenny de la Fuente

There is something very mystical that I still don’t quite understand about my summers at Camp Woodland for Girls. Even though every summer appears to be very similar to previous summers, every year I learn something completely new about myself.

Jenny Celebrates 10 yrs

I have been going to Camp Woodland for ten consecutive summers since I was 13 years old. Woodland keeps old traditions alive from year to year; we sing Princess Pat after dinner and go on nature walks in the Climax Forest. We get excited about Song Contest and hope that our song will get picked for Co-ed Show. We work hard to get that flip right for the gymnastics shows or to play in the TP/Woodland Tennis exchange. It seems like summers blend together making separate memories become a single journey. How can a place where campers return summer after summer allow you to learn so much about yourself?

Cousins

Camp is a place that permits you to learn about yourself in so many different ways. My first summer I learned that it is okay not to be fluent in English because at camp everyone understood that it is not my first language, and they encouraged me to keep practicing. Camp is place where you challenge yourself everyday by going outside of your comfort zone. It is actually very gratifying to know you have the courage to explore new things. Camp Woodland is the place where I have met the most amazing people and where I’ve made friendships that will last my entire life.

Final Banquet Tennis Awards

Camp Woodland is the place where you let go of the stress and pressures of daily life. The only things that you actually have to worry about are having fun, being yourself, and doing cabin clean up every morning. At camp you get the chance to connect with nature and leave technology behind. It is a great feeling to be with the people you are supposed to be with and do the things you are supposed to be doing at any given moment. Something that I personally find so hard to do these days!

My days at camp have been the happiest of my life so far, and I can’t wait to go back and create some new memories for myself and live new experiences that will allow me to grow as a person.

Happy St. Patrick’s Day from Hilltop 2014!

During the month of March, I often think of Kermit the Frog and the song, “It’s Not Easy Being Green”.  While Kermit is referring to the color green in his song, I am reminded of a state of being.  When you are “green” at something, it often means that you are new.  There are many times in life that we are put in a new situation, whether it be changing schools, joining a sports team or club, moving to a different location, starting a new job, switching careers, etc.

Coming to camp for the first time may bring about feelings of being green.  Being new can seem scary or challenging at first.   You may be wondering if you will fit in, if the other campers will like you, if the food tastes like what you eat at home, if your bed will be comfortable, and a long list of other thoughts that may be crossing your mind in the days and months leading up to your first sleep-away camp experience.

First of all, you should know that at Camp Woodland, we LOVE having new campers join us each summer!  It is fun to welcome girls from new places that will contribute to the diverse culture of geographic locations that are represented each year.  This will add to a growing list of connections that you will make by having friends from all around the world.  New campers bring a fresh perspective and energy that is important to the life of camp – we THRIVE because you are a VITAL part of our camp family!

To help you feel comfortable in your new summer home, we have several things in place to make it easy for you to get in the groove of camp.  First off, your counselors will greet you with a BIG smile and lend a hand with moving in and settling into your cabin.  They will explain the routines of a typical day and will be ready to answer any questions you may have.  After that, you will get to play a ton of FUN games that will assist you with learning the names of the other girls in your cabin and around camp.  Because we are a smaller camp, it is truly a place “Where Everybody Knows Your Name” in a very short amount of time!

Before selecting your activities for the first session, you will have the opportunity to take a tour and see where each takes place, meet the staff, and find out all of the cool stuff you will get to do.  Evenings will offer an opportunity to do a cabin activity, be part of our weekly campfire, or choose a different activity based on a weekly theme.  You will be a pro in no time!  Dan will serve some awesome meals that will provide comfort as you spend your first few days at camp.  Don’t be surprised if you ask your Mom when you return home to cook a recipe that is something new you tried at camp!

New can also be exciting!  You will be embarking on an adventure that may be different from what your friends may choose to do this summer.  Even veteran campers experience a taste of “being green” each summer.  They may be in a different cabin with a new mix of campers from the year before or they may decide to try a new activity or challenge themselves in an old one.  The great thing is that we are there to support each camper every step of the way.  So, maybe it really IS easy being green after all at Camp Woodland!  Come see for yourself and join us for summer 2015…we can’t wait to meet you!

We would like to invite you to learn more about the Camp Woodland Advantage at our Spring Sing Around the “Campfire” Night:

When?

Sunday, March 22, 2015

Drop in anytime from 4-7 pm

Where?

The Buzz Café

905 S. Lombard Ave

Oak Park, IL

Please RSVP to: jstarcamp@aol.com

 (cookout style dinner: burgers, hot dogs, fruit, chips, and a yummy s’mores dessert!)