Camp One: Sewanee Trip

During one afternoon of Camp One, we took a day trip into Sewanee, the University of the South. Monteagle is located directly next to Sewanee's campus and we use the grounds for some of our hikes. In addition, their chapel, All Saints, is where we do our evening prayer service during the middle of the camp session. Many of our campers find themselves drawn to this beautiful campus. 

This particular afternoon, we dropped some of the campers off at the "Res," a swimming hole on St. Andrew's campus. After that, the rest of camp went into Sewanee and hiked Abbot's Alley, played frisbee, hung out, and wandered around the grounds. It was a beautiful day. 

That night we went back into Sewanee for our evening prayer service, which for this year was an Easter Vigil to go along with the theme of the liturgical calendar. Our service was at All Saints Chapel:

 

Camp One: Western Night

This year at camp one of our night activities was a Western Night Barn Party for Camp One. We told all the campers to bring western gear so they could dress for the occasion. We started with burgers in the "barn" (our Pavilion). We then had two of our adult volunteers teach us line dances (which was so much fun - thanks Jennifer and Chandler!), and we ended the night with a hayride. 

 

Camp One: The Golden Dustpan

With kids living in community together for an entire week in the cabins, it is no surprise that one of our traditions is the GOLDEN DUSTPAN. Every morning after breakfast, the campers head down to the cabins for about 30 minutes of clean-up time. They sweep, mop, tidy their area around their bed, take out the trash, and more. We feel this teaches them good habits for all of life, not just camp. 

Well, sometimes the quest for the golden dustpan gets to be about more than just cleaning. We've got some great kids here and one thing that Camp One has going for it is a sense of humor. So, bribery is never above this group... 

A witty note from the boys of Cabin 2. 

 A banner from the Cabin 5 girls.

 We love a good sense of humor - a little studying material for siesta and a dollar slipped in the cover. Don't worry, we didn't take the bribe.

A sweet note and flowers.

C

Cabin Six has a grid system for cleaning that ensures they are always in the running for the golden dustpan. 

Professions of love from Cabin Six. 

All in all, the signs, treats, and bribes are all in good fun. What it comes down to is keeping the cabins clean for the camp session but the quest for the Golden Dustpan is one that makes CGM unique.

Camp One: Rock Climbing

We have a great partnership with the Park Rangers at the South Cumberland State Park and they take us Rock Climbing and Rappelling in their parks. Monday we went to Foster Falls and while a group swam at the falls, another group climbed. Bishop Johnson joined in on the fun, as you can see below:

Camp One: Cabin Olympics

We've got a tradition at Camp Gailor Maxon of teaming up and playing games in the Cabin Olympics. This year it was Cabin 2 and Cabin 6 versus Cabin 1 and Cabin 5. There were 9 events. Ultimately, the black team triumphed after a very close match. 

 

Camp One: Silly Picture

Things are going really well at Camp One! We're having a lot of fun and staying hydrated through all this hot weather. Yesterday we took our group picture. Here's the silly version of the picture.

Camp One: Advent

This year for our chapel program, we're exploring the seasons of the Episcopal Church year through the liturgical calendar. We're figuring out how that calendar guides us through our lives as Christian and how we practice our faith through each season. Sunday at Camp One was the first day of the chapel program and we celebrated Advent. The staff wore purple, the first sliver of the liturgical wheel was posted on the wall, we sang Christmas songs, and learned about patience and preparation. 

 We also made a giant Advent wreath, with the campers doing the different readings for each of the weeks of Advent. 

 This week, Bishop Don Johnson from the Diocese of West Tennessee is with us as our priest on staff. He talked with the campers about what it means to be on God's time and to begin and end our cyclical calendar year after year in the church.

Camp One: Day one

The campers arrived tonight! We registered, had our swim test, ate our spaghetti dinner (a must for the first night of camp), had an Opening Eucharist, signed the covenant, played large group games, and split into family groups. This picture is an action shot of the group playing the "Magic Tambourine" game.

Nothing is more fun than a CGM Birthday!

Today was counselor Jani's birthday. In celebration of her birth, her mom sent up cupcakes for the whole camp! Here's the birthday girl:

 Jani, we're glad you were born and that you're on staff this summer!

Staff Week: Foster Falls Hike

The staff has been busy learning and growing together in the days following Pre-Camp. One thing we do is run through our hikes and off-campus activities, looking for potential issues and making sure we know what we're doing. Yesterday we went to Foster Falls to test out the hike and swim. It was beautiful. 

More Pre-Camp Pics

Ellen just posted more of her Pre-Camp pictures that I just had to share:

Pre Camp gets a guest photographer!

One of our awesome adult volunteers, Ellen Coleman, is also an amazing photographer who is journeying to art school in the fall to study photography. She blogged about Pre-Camp on her personal blog. Check it out!

Here's some pics she took:

Pre-Camp: Day Four (Departure)

Sunday brings departure for Pre-Camp. Today we sent home 26 members of the Camp Gailor Maxon community and their parents. To say that this weekend was amazing would be an understatement. The presence of the Lord was felt in so many ways this weekend and words cannot even begin to describe the experiences we had. The combination of old and new friends, old and new traditions, was a powerful one for us all. 

This morning we had our breakfast and then took a tour of the grounds so that the pre-campers who are "graduating" to big camp could see where they'd stay next year. We then had a final service, said our goodbyes, and went on our separate ways.