Pre-Camp: Day Three

Day Three (Saturday) of Pre-Camp was blessed with beautiful weather. After breakfast, the campers learned about Ordinary Time on our Liturgical Calendars and decorated pillowcases with a camp design. Since we had such clear skies, we decided to take the kids back to the playground (they were clamoring over it still) and then have a free swim session. 

The afternoon brought an off-campus trip to Abbo's Alley on the campus of Sewanee. 

After a short walk through the woods, we arrived at the clearing with the stream. Some of the kids elected to hunt for creatures in the creek, while others played in the field. 

 We then headed on to All Saints, the chapel on the campus of the University of the South. This chapel is gorgeous and we all took in its beauty. 

 After coming back and having one more swim (much needed after a hot, sticky hike), we cleaned up for our traditional Banquet and Eucharist. 

 Father Mark led us in a children's Eucharist that was lovely. The kids all enjoyed how hands on it was and how they got to be right up close. 

W

We ended the night with a bonfire and stories before heading to bed. 

Pre Camp: Day Two afternoon

After a delicious lunch and a siesta, the pre-campers arrived in the Art Barn to begin their afternoon activities. We split into two groups - one group did tie-dye t-shirts and one group went on a bug hunt with Miss Jen the Park Ranger. 

In addition to leading the bug hunt, Miss Jen the Park Ranger taught the Pre-Campers the life stages of a butterfly and they made mobiles. 

After a chapel activity, we had some fun pool time before heading in to dinner. 

Fun with Photoshop at Camp Gailor Maxon

Here at Camp Gailor Maxon we love to have fun. While editing the camp picture for Pre-Camp, Alex played around a bit in PhotoShop with the picture we posted last night. For your entertainment, here's our boss, doing what he does - running the show:

 

Pre Camp: Day Two (Morning)

The theme for chapel this year is "BEST YEAR EVER!", focusing on the liturgical calendar and how we use it as a guide in our lives as Christians. For the Pre-Campers, we started out this morning learning about the season of Advent and Christmas, singing some fun Christmas songs, decorating a tree, and talking about preparing for the birth of Jesus. We then learned about the liturgical wheel and made our own!

We sang some more songs and played a few games as well. 

 There are a lot of new faces at Pre-Camp this year, but some of those new faces are actually very familiar to Camp Gailor Maxon! We've got camp alums who have brought back their children to introduce them to the camp experience. 

 After chapel, we took our group picture before heading over to the Monteagle Playground. This playground is awesome. We love it!

W

We've got a busy afternoon planned as well - tie dying, a bug hunt, swimming, and more. 

Pre Camp: Day One

After most of the day spent organizing crafts, creating carnival games, making signs, and other assorted activities, the staff took a break before the arrival of the Pre-campers! Our Pre-Camp serves families with children rising 1st through 3rd grade and they come with one or both parents. 

Campers registered in the Pavilion before playing four-square, making room signs, decorating their nametags, and greeting old friends.

Oh and we got to debut the new camp logo on our camp t-shirts! We had an awesome logo designed for us to update the CGM look. Here's a few counselors with our t's on:

 After a lot of greeting, playing, and reminiscing, we ended the night with a evening prayer service and snack:

Pre-Camp is huge this year and the kids are already proving to be quite adorable. Tomorrow is going to be a full day!

Staff Week: A little humor

Captured while creating placemats for the Pre-Camp Banquet later this weekend - Phil making a placemat based on Twitter. A Dubose twitter page. A little camp humor for you.

Staff Week: Compline

During staff week, we stay pretty busy. We plan a lot, play a lot, and pray a lot. Today we had a candlelight compline service in St. Andrew's Chapel that was beautiful. It is little moments like this that we need the most during staff week. And CPR training. That helps too.

Two.

Our staff has arrived! After spending the last few days on the mountain preparing for staff week, the leadership team (myself, CHB, and Gracie) are so excited to have our staff on the mountain. We've got two days until the Pre-campers arrive and we start the 2010 camping season!!

Now off to train the staff.. more later!

Five.

Five days until Pre-Camp starts and the beginning of the 2010 camp season! Leadership team arrives today, staff arrives Tuesday to begin training, and then the Mini-Maxons and their parents arrive Thursday night!!!

Six.

Six days until Pre-Camp and the start of the 2010 camp season!

Seven.

Seven days until Pre-Camp and the start of the 2010 season!

Eight.

Eight Days until Pre-Camp and the start of the 2010 Camp Season!

9.

Nine days until Pre-Camp and the beginning of Camp Gailor Maxon's 2010 season!

10.

Countdown to Pre-Camp and the beginning of Camp Gailor Maxon's 2010 season: 10 days!

 

Camp Gailor Maxon slideshow - Are you ready for camp??

One of our awesome counselors, Lizzy Holt, made this amazing slideshow of past camp pictures. It sure got me in the camp spirit now that school is out, the air is warm, the sun is shining, and the sky is blue. Have you turned in your form yet?

View the video on Youtube here

or watch a small version here:

Introducing the Staff... Julia Gardial

We are so excited to introduce our next staff member. Julia Gardial is a wonderful person who will be joining us for her first year on staff. Here's what Julia has to say:

J

"I am a freshman at the University of Alabama. My major is Public Relations with a double minor in English and Creative Writing. In my free time, I like to read, watch movies, and knit. I'm very excited about going to camp because it has always been such a wonderful experience for me, and now I'll have a chance to give back in a small way to the place that has changed my life so much. Also, I'm pumped about our ballin' staff!"

And speaking of "ballin' staff," here's a pic of Julia with another awesome staff member, Jillian:

Introducing the Staff: Cody Hawks

The next member of staff that we are delighted to share with you is none other than Cody Hawks. Here's Cody to tell you a bit about himself:

"Howdy! My name is Cody Hawks and I will be laying down the jams this summer.  I am a rising sophomore at Middle Tennessee State University, where my major is Recording Industry with a concentration in Music Business.  My hometown is Gallatin, Tennessee, just 30 miles northeast of Nashville.  I cannot wait to enjoy this summer worshiping the Holy Spirit through music and just plain FUN.  This summer will be the best the mountain has ever seen!!"

Introducing the Staff: Hans Bauer

In our newest installment of Introducing the Staff, we're pleased to bring you the one and only Hans Bauer:

 

Hans says..."What's up CGMers? My name is Hans Bauer and I will be on the Camp Gailor-Maxon staff for this upcoming summer 2010, which is going to be "the best year ever!" I grew up in Memphis, TN where I attend Calvary Episcopal Church. Currently, I am a rising sophomore at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville studying to be a geography major and loving every minute of it. My main interests include playing lacrosse, watching college football (of course cheering on the VOLS), hiking, camping, or doing anything outside and adventurous. I have served the past three years as a JC and cant wait to get on the mountain as a full time staff member. See everyone Soon!"


And just in case the skiing picture didn't give you a good idea of who this masked man is, here's a good one of our Hans at the counselor hunt - 

Introducing the Staff... Jani Sarratt

Next on the list for staff intros is Ms. Jani Sarratt! Here are two pictures of her with fellow staff members.

 And now, for a little bit about Jani:

"Hey everyone! My name is Jani Sarratt and I am so excited about being on staff at Camp Gailor Maxon this summer. I am a freshman at Auburn University majoring in Civil Engineering and I love being down here on the plains! I am from Franklin, TN and at home I attend St. George’s Episcopal Church, but at school I attend Holy Trinity Episcopal where I love to handout with the youth group! While on the mountain I love to play guitar, go to the cross, hike, hang out in the art barn, participate in Compline, and of course, have the time of my life with all my favorite people. I absolutely cannot wait until June and Camp Gailor Maxon! "

Introducing the Staff.... Director Charles Houston Beaumont, III

Camp Director Charles Houston Beaumont is a life-long resident of Monteagle Mountain. He attends Christ Church, Tracy City and grew up in the Episcopal tradition. He has a Bachelor’s degree in Middle School Education from the University of Tennessee, Chattanooga and now works as a special education teacher in Grundy County. When not teaching or working on camp, Charles Houston spends his leisure time fishing, hiking, reading, and making art.

Charles Houston has a long relationship to Dubose and Camp Gailor Maxon. He attended camp as a camper in the late ‘80s through the mid 90’s. He served on staff for three summers during college. This is his second summer as director. His goals for camp are to see it grow, add meaningful community service, and help the youth and children of Tennessee find their place in the Episcopal community. 

Junior Counselor Applications!

Junior Counselor applications are available! If you're a rising 11th grader, 12th grader, or college freshman and are attending Camp Gailor Maxon this summer, you are eligable to apply to be a "JC."

A junior counselor's role is to provide additional support and leadership in the camp community. Although still a camper, junior counselors are seen as counselors by the campers and are expected to be role models and mentors to these youth. Being a junior counselor is an excellent leadership development opportunity for anyone interested in working with youth. 

The application is found online here and is an online form. Please complete the application by May 1st.

Introducing the Staff... Andrew Street

In our next installment of Staff Intro's, we present Andrew Street. Here's Andrew in a tree outside the Art Barn at Camp Gailor Maxon last year:

And, in Andrew's words, here's a bit about Counselor Andrew.

"Hi my name is Andrew Street and I could not be more excited about staffing at CGM this summer! I am a freshman at Birmingham-Southern College in Birmingham, Alabama and I am planning on double majoring in International Studies and Political Science with the hopes of one day working as an international diplomat. I'm from Memphis, TN and my home parish there is St. Philip, where my dad serves as rector. At camp, I love to play sports, go on nature hikes, make people laugh, not sleep during siesta, and, most of all, just spend time with friends, both new and old. CGM is where my heart is and I am SO excited to be a part of such an amazing camp staff. This is truly going to be the best year ever!"

Introducing the staff... Jillian Smith

Next in line for introductions in our random system is Jillian Smith! In Jillian's own words, here's a little bit about her:

"Hi! My name is Jillian Smith and I’m currently a freshman history major at the University of Evansville in Evansville, IN. Originally, I’m from Smyrna, TN, and before college I attended St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Murfreesboro. I love spending time with my friends and playing music, and I’m really excited about camp! I can’t wait to sing some great songs with everyone, carry out old traditions (and make some new ones), seek God, and really make it the Best Year Ever. See everyone in June!"

Introducing the Staff... Andie Scott

Next on the random list of staff to be introduced is Andie Scott, a new staff member coming off two years of staffing Winterfest (our winter youth retreat). 
 

Here's a little about Andie, in her own words...

"My name is Andie Scott and I’m from Nashville, TN. When I’m home, I attend St. Mark’s Episcopal Church. I go to school at Ithaca College in Ithaca, NY where I’m majoring in Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology with a double minor in Deaf Studies and Religious Studies. At my school I am a tour guide and a part of ICircus, Ithaca’s circus club. I also love to go on hikes and bake. I’m so excited for camp because I get to spend time with my CGM family and have a new experience as a counselor! I’m counting down the days until camp!"

Memphis area Camp Gailor Maxon Open House party 3/21

Calling all Memphis area Camp Gailor Maxon supporters and those interested in learning more about CGM!!!

CGM alum Hester Mathes has graciously offered to host an Open House information session at her house on Sunday, March 21st from 2-4 so current and prospective Camp Gailor Maxon families can come learn more about our wonderful camp. If you're going to be in the area or know of people who might be interested in learning more about camp, please send them this information.

Camp Gailor Maxon Open House
hosted by the Mathes Family
2-4pm on March 21st, 2010
687 West Suggs, Memphis, TN 38120

Come learn more about Camp Gailor Maxon! Camp Director Charles Houston Beaumont, III and Assistant Director Kathryn Elam Jasper will be present to accept applications and answer questions about CGM. We'll have s'mores, bug juice, and goldfish (all the camp staples) as well as stickers, a camp video, and pictures to share.

Introducing the staff: Lizzy Holt

In keeping with the theme of introducing the staff, I would love to announce the next staff member to join us this summer, the first of the cabin counselors we have profiled. Lizzy Holt is a returning staff member and has this to say about herself:

"I am a sophomore at the University of Tennessee at Knoxville, where I am studying Psychology, hoping to go onto graduate school to pursue a career in Counseling. Memphis, Tennessee is the place that I call home and while I am there I attend the Church of the Holy Communion. In my spare time I enjoy spending time with friends, running, baking, cheering on the Vols, and being active in my sorority, in which I am serving as the Pledge Mom this fall. I am SO excited about CGM this summer for more reasons than I can count. A few include: water hikes, songs with hand motions, ringing the bell for seconds during meal time, siesta, and telling silly stories in the cabin."

Camp Gailor Maxon Reunion 2010

Today's post is a guest-author posting courtesy of the one, the only Christy Beesley:

Hello Camp Gailor-Maxon!

Mark your calendar for Friday, July 23 - Sunday, July 25th, 2010 for the Camp Gailor-Maxon reunion. We will have a relaxing weekend of reminiscing, sharing stories, singing, hiking, hanging out by the pool, possibly helping with a project or two and sharing Eucharist together at DuBose. There has been a spark lit among the CGM community and we want the light to shine bright that weekend. We have had two reunions in the past several years and we hope to keep this tradition going & growing. Please join us and pass along the information to all of your CGM friends!

The reunion is open to all past CGM campers & counselors above the age of 21. Yes, you can bring your spouse & significant other if you wish. The CGM community of the 50's, 60's, 70's, 80's, 90's and 2000's are all invited to the reunion.

The cost of the reunion is $170 per person based on double occupancy in Claiborne Hall. Singles are available for an additional cost. The price includes all meals (Friday night dinner through Sunday breakfast), a shirt, group photo and small donation to CGM.

If you are interested, please send me a Facebook message or an email to christybeesley@gmail.com with your email address. A registration form will be emailed to you.

The peace of the Lord be always with you!
Christy Beesley
DuBose Board
Camp Gailor-Maxon committee chair

The unveiling of our 2010 Camp Staff...

In the coming weeks, we will be unveiling our 2010 Camp Staff in no particular order. Today's post is the first of many. I would like to introduce you to our 2010 Intern Chaplain, Gracie Killman.

Gracie Killman joins us as our intern chaplain after being a camper and counselor of Camp Gailor Maxon. Gracie is graduating from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill this May and entering graduate school in the fall to study religion. Currently she has been accepted to one program and is waiting to hear back from others so as soon as we know where she will be going in the fall, we'll update you!

The intern chaplain's responsibility is to lead all things worship and spiritual related at camp. Gracie has been working on our chapel program - theme to be announced soon. She will organize prayer times, plan our evening prayer service at All Saint's Chapel in Sewanee and our closing Eucharist, and will be a spiritual mentor for the camp. She will work very closely with the priests and visiting youth ministers that will be with us on the mountain.

Gracie is from Nashville, TN, graduated from University School of Nashville (USN), and attended St. George's, Nashville. She now calls Chapel of the Cross in Chapel Hill, NC home as she leads their Episcopal Campus Ministry program and works with their youth. Grace's major at UNC-Chapel Hill is Religious Studies, but she also has a flair for the dramatics and has an excellent background in theatre and dance.

Gracie is a left-handed vegetarian with a close relationship with both of her parents and her sister. She loves giraffes and e.e. cummings, hates her handwriting, and wishes on stars. Gracie is dedicated to the Camp Gailor Maxon community and has the following to say about her excitement about serving as our intern chaplain:

"I'm looking forward to another great summer on the mountain, re-connecting with old friends and making news ones. I'm also thrilled to be able to give back to a camp that has given me so much

But, I am most excited about out theme- getting to dive into our treasured traditions and bringing that alive for ourselves on and off the mountain."

Ladies and Gentlemen, we give you our intern chaplain, Gracie Killman.

What a great party!

Last Sunday we had the pleasure of going to the the Sarratt's house for a Camp Gailor Maxon party! We had tons of food, we watched the NEW CAMP VIDEO, looked at lots of pictures, and met lots of new people. We were so pleased to have 55 people at the party - some familiar faces and some new ones too. It was so much fun!!!

 Some of our Camp III campers came, including Lizzy, Bitsy, Eloise, and Jackie.

Mrs. Sarratt decorated the house so wonderfully, including food provided by the "Kitchen Lovelies," and a picture wall of old CGM group pictures - "Picture Yourself at CGM."

These girls were just the cutest ever. They enjoyed hanging out and learning all about camp.

Former camper/counselor Caroline Ramsey Rossini led us in two songs and everyone sang along.

And, everyone got a sticker or two on the way out! We ordered new Camp Gailor Maxon stickers for your laptop, nalgene, car, guitar case, etc - we'll have them at our Memphis party too if Memphis people want them!

A huge thank you to the Sarratt family for putting on this wonderful event in Nashville. I can't wait to see all sorts of camp supporters at the Memphis party on March 21st at the Mathes family's house!

Camper Applications

I would like to encourage you all to head over to our website, http://www.duboseconf.org/camp.html, and download our new and improved camper application.

Good news coming out of the new application:

- Parents of multiple siblings only have to fill out one application! There is a part at the bottom for the additional information for the subsequent siblings. I know this makes things a bit easier for our camp families.

- Camper Referral discount: This is big news. This year we are introducing a referral discount. Existing campers can refer new campers to Camp Gailor Maxon and receive $50 PER REFERRAL for doing so. That's right - existing campers, you could get your camp paid for by enlisting new people to come to camp with you. If you get 10 people to sign up for camp that have never gone before (siblings not included), that is $500 off your camp fees. All you've got to do is get the new campers to list your name on our form. You'll list the names of the campers you've recruited on your form. We'll match them up to qualify you for your discount.


In order to miss the late fee, please submit your application by April 22, 2010. If you've got Adobe, you can type in the application and email it back to us. Otherwise, you are more than welcome to print it, fill it out, and send it back to us in the mail.

New Dates for Camp Gailor Maxon 2010

Faithful camp friends,

You may have noticed on our new flyer and on our website (http://www.duboseconf.org/camp.html) that we changed the dates for Camp I just a bit. Last year we had an overwhelming response to Camp I and decided to extend our senior high session to a week and a half. When doing our budget, however, we realized that this change would make our Camp I session very expensive for our families due to the extra costs of room/board and bus use for activities. We try very hard to keep the cost of Camp Gailor Maxon in range for the variety of economic statuses that our churches' members have and because of this, we needed to compromise. With that in mind, we did extend Camp I, just not as much as we had hoped. The new dates are:


STAFF:  JUNE 1-2, 2010 & JUNE 7-10, 2010

PRE-CAMP:  THURSDAY, JUNE 3rd -SUNDAY, JUNE 6th

Rising 1st, 2nd & 3rd graders with a parent



CAMP I:  SATURDAY, JUNE 12th - SATURDAY, JUNE 19th

Rising 10th, 11th, 12th & college freshmen



CAMP II:  SUNDAY, JUNE 20th - SATURDAY, JUNE 26th

Rising 7th, 8th & 9th graders



CAMP III:  SUNDAY, JUNE 27th - SATURDAY, JULY 3rd

Rising 4th, 5th & 6th graders

Camp Poster

Thanks to some amazing alumni working very hard in our Alumni Advisory Group, we've got a gorgeous poster to share with the world. Check it out!

If you want a copy of this poster to distribute to your church or friends, please email cgmdir@blomand.net and we will speedily get you one via email. Camp Gailor Maxon 2010 is already shaping up to be an amazing year. We've got big things planned.

A message from Board President, Buddy Adams

Dear Camp Gailor-Maxon Supporters,

Speaking on behalf of the board, we appreciate the tremendous amount of support that has been expressed for Camp Gailor-Maxon (CGM). Many people have shared how their family members’ spiritual lives have been touched by experiences they’ve had at camp. It’s helpful to have been reminded of that.

The board has today approved the 2010 budget for CGM. It also approved the establishment of an alumni advisory group to funnel ideas for improving and helping grow CGM.

The success of all the programs at DuBose, including Camp Gailor-Maxon, is directly dependent on the number of participants that attend. Over the past 5 years, we’ve gone from 222 campers in 2003 to only 114 campers in 2009. The goal for 2011 is to increase attendance by 20% to 139 campers.

While attendance to CGM has been going down, the board’s camp committee, with the assistance of the advisory group, is working on ideas to turn that trend around. But, the quickest way to help the camp is to encourage and recruit more children and teens to attend!

Thank you for caring enough about Camp Gailor-Maxon to share your concerns with us. With your continued support, both CGM and DuBose are sure to have bright futures.

Very sincerely,

Buddy Adams
President, DuBose Board