Camp Woodland Blog

Working  in the office, Wendy and I get to peer into camp and  see campers working on their tumbling or new dance moves.  After seeing the focus of all the gymnastics class, it was clear to me that our awesome gymnastics instructor, Tori, should write about her experience preparing for the big gymnastics show held at the end of every 2 week session:

Week two brings much excitement with shows for dance, drama and gymnastics.  Shows are the perfect opportunity for campers to demonstrate their leadership skills. The campers in gymnastics work together to make up their routine. They even choose a song that everyone in the class agrees upon. Teamwork is also demonstrated when the girls are making up their floor routine. All of the gymnasts have so many different ideas of what they should do with their limited time for their floor routine. The girls have to work together to incorporate all of their good ideas.

Tori assisting gymnast

 As one of the Gymnastics instructors, it was incredible to watch how hard these girls worked on their routines. The girls never stopped perfecting their routine. I will be the first to admit all of the girls were successful in achieving their goals for this session. Each day in gymnastics we worked on improving skills for the girls to show off to their friends, parents, and counselors at the end of session shows.  Each and every girl was successful in some way this session, whether it be getting more flexible, landing their back handspring, or simply remembering the routine during shows.

We are so proud of each and every girl for the numerous hours of hard work they put into their routine.

 Counselor Tori, Camp Woodland Lifer

Freshman at University of Wisconsin

With a whopping full five hours of archery this session, it is no wonder that the girls are all aspiring to be the next Katniss Everdeen. Campers are enjoying themselves so much in the process to ever think about stopping! I never read any of the books from The Hunger Games trilogy, but I have to give it up and thank the media for all of its roaring popularity. It was definitely a positive factor in almost half the camp signing up for archery this summer.

Apart from the endless fun of shooting every day, there is so much more to archery than just a bow and an arrow. Over the past two weeks, I have taught a lot of new girls how to shoot for the very first time:

• Picking out a bow that will suit them
• Showing them how to hold it correctly
• Most Importanly-shooting arrows!

Honestly, I have seen nothing but progress. I’ve seen just as many arrows miss the targets as hit the targets, but that’s what archery is about! You shoot a round, and sometimes it seems impossible, but a lot of the times you get that accomplished rush of joy when you hit all your arrows on the target, or reach an anticipated score, or pass another level. It isn’t easy, and I understand that not every girl will be able to even hit the target every round, but the fact that they still return every day even more enthusiastic to shoot than the last is unbelievable.

My biggest message as an archery teacher is to make sure that the girls know that it is okay to shoot three rounds in a row and not hit a single arrow on the target, just as it is okay to qualify every round and pass levels every day. It is all in the process of learning, and they understand that as each day goes on, they only have more hours of practice to rely on. Each girl has shown a tremendous amount of perseverance by pushing through any failures because they understand that that’s all part of the process.

From a teacher’s perspective, I could not be any prouder. There have already been a dozen of levels passed and we only finished the first 2-week session! I cannot wait to see how much each girl will continue to improve and grow as both an archer, and a camper, learning lessons of patience, persistence, and perseverance along the way.

Thank you Sara D for awesome description of Archery!!!

Happy Independence Day!  I have to say that this is one of the few years that I am not at camp on the 4th of July, and it feels a little strange!  I had a string of over 20 summers where I spent the holiday at camp (either in WI or NC), and it feels weird to be in the “real” world and hear the tour vehicles with their guides on a loudspeaker system drive by my house in Galveston, TX, giving the visitors to the Island historic information about the neighborhood in which I live.

So, I decided to share a little historic information of my own about the 4th of July at Camp Woodland, since it is one of the rich traditions that campers experience summer after summer.  I remember my very first year as a counselor at Woodland in 1986 waking up to the sound of HORSES by my cabin instead of the usual wake-up bell.  I was a little startled to say the least, but I decided to roll with it and get into the spirit of the riders who were telling us that the “British were coming” and got my ten 13 and 14 year-old campers out of bed!

The lodge was decked out in “red-white-and-blue” decorations that I’m sure the CIT on duty the day before had put up to make our dining experience festive.  Campers and counselors alike wore various patriotic clothing combinations of their own to contribute to the holiday celebration.  Activities continued as normal throughout the day; however, the hype for the evening’s “Red, White, and BOOM” campfire at Towering Pines built as campers negotiated the shower schedule to be sure everyone was squeaky clean and had time for proper primping before donning their Woodland Wear to get on the shuttle to drive to the boys camp.

While I’m sure that someone will write a blurb about the “Oooh, Aahh, Wonderfulness” of this highly anticipated campfire tomorrow with all of the fun songs, skits, and firecracker dedications, I can’t help but think about the tie-in to the true meaning of the reason we celebrate this July holiday in the first place.  We can be grateful to the many men and women who fought for the freedom we enjoy today and you can sleep even better tonight knowing that your camper has an incredible opportunity this summer to exercise this right during her camp experience at Woodland.

Here are just a FEW of freedoms that come to mind when I think of a summer at Woodland:

• the choice to select activities according to interests and talents
• the ability to try something new if desired (the 2nd activity sign-up is this weekend!)
• the opportunity to get to know girls from a variety of  geographic locations, backgrounds, and age levels that may be different from their own
• the encouragement to be “real” and not some “fake” version of yourself
• the gift of being in an outdoor environment where the sky, lake, trees, animals, and flowers make up your living room
• the support of counselors and other caring adults
• the chance to be independent during this growing time away from family and friends from home
• the time to be away from stresses and worries and have more FUN than you ever imagine!

So, the next time you hear, “Let Freedom Ring”, you can be thankful that your daughter has this AMAZING opportunity to experience Independence Day EVERY day…just by being at camp!

p.s. I am looking forward to joining the caring group of adults who look after your camper(s) from July 13th-August 3rd, and I CAN’T WAIT!!

We had a very special week at Camp Woodland for Girls. We already think it was special because it was the first week of camp. But we also celebrated 6 camp birthdays! I have to admit camp birthdays are magical around here.

I remember when I was a counselor back in the day and wished I had a birthday at camp. 70 girls start your daughter’s day right by singing happy birthday at assembly. After morning assembly, it is off to activities where everyone showers the birthday girl with happy wishes on her special day.

For other campers, it’s all about hoping they are going to have a girl in their cabin with a birthday. After evening activity they get a special treat…..Birthday party! The whole cabin celebrates with our traditional camp birthday cake (angel food) and the best part….a sparkler for the birthday candle.

Happy Birthday to all of our Birthday Ladies!!

Amanda O
Alex K
Adri S
Olivia J
Jenny D
Lindsay K.

Enjoy the humorous writings of Jerry Abney.  Win Oaks Farms has been exclusively furnishing the horses for Towering Pines in 1946 and Camp Woodland starting in 1970.

Dear Blog,

Although we have never met, Lee Albrecht Biear seems insistent I should drop you a quick note on the riding program and the start of camp.  I don’t recall you as a camper. I was here from 59-64 and with a name like “Blog”- I’d surely remember you.  Funny, Dad (Win) doesn’t recall you either.  Did you ride??

Regardless, after the longest coldest winter I can recall, summer is in full bloom with the opening of camp and the passing of the solstice.  There have been quite a few changes in the horse line up.  At Woodland, Jake has retired due to the “Arthritis” – he’s at home loafing with this friends and a tall saddle-bred named “Big Red” has filled his stall.  The younger girls are really enjoying the new smaller horse, Little Buck!

Things are running well at Woodland, which is a real tribute to our counselors (Bobby B and Grace W) running the program – I am pleased and impressed by all their hard work.  With 2 full days of riding behind us, it’s shaping up to be another excellent year at Woodland – but that’s not a new thing here!

Well Blog, I’ll sign off and hope you can get up for a fun visit or the end of the summer horse show – I’d be really curious to meet you!  It seems everyone knows you except me!  Do you know any of the Bartells? They were here after me.  Just curious!!

Best wishes,

Jerry Abney
Retired Elementary School Principal
Win Oaks Farms of Crandon, WI