Camp One: Carnival Night

During our night activity planning, the camp staff was trying to decide what to do with our "extra" night of Camp One (Camp One is longer than the others by a day). We decided that a Carnival would be really fun and went about planning it. Somewhere along the line, we also decided it should be a surprise for the kids, so we started calling it "Monday Night at Camp." We had the kids meet in the Downstairs Chapel and we led them to the Pavilion for their surprise:

Waiting for them at the Pavilion were games, music, and some ridiculously dressed counselors:

We had a ball toss, a football throw, a black jack table (with M&Ms!), face painting, corn hole, a photo booth station with costumes, a cookie walk, Minute to Win It games, Pin the Cross on the Mountain, and dance contests:

Even our chaplain, Kira, got in on the fun!

After a fun night of playing, we ended with a night swim and a prayer before heading off to bed!

Camp One: Cabin Olympics

Our daily schedule for camp is pretty routine - breakfast, morning chapel, family groups, lunch, siesta, afternoon activities, free time, dinner, night activities, bedtime. What makes camp fun is the variation in those particular activities. Our night activity for last night was the ever-popular Cabin Olympics challenge. Each cabin is given a list of challenges to sign up for (balloon toss, sprint race, volley ball, dodge ball, bible trivia, counselor trivia, and name-that-tune were on the menu for this year). In addition to competing, one big part of the Olympics are the team-spirit and sense of healthy competition. The outfits these kids come up with are hilarious as well....


The sprint race:

Cabin 1 Boys decked out in red:

Cabin 6 girls watching the action:

The winners of Cabin Olympics, Cabin 2:

Volleyball:

Cabin 6:

Cabin 5 girls in their tacky gear:

Intense Bible Trivia:

Camp One: Swim Test

One of the great camp traditions is that every year once all the kids arrive, our very first task at hand is to do the swim test. All the kids sit on one side of the pool and hear the rules from the lifeguards:

(Camp Lifeguards Mary Blythe, Jillian, and Jani)


Other counselors make themselves useful as well:

The kids jump in 4 at a time, tread water for 30 seconds, and then swim the length of the pool. Once everyone is done, we break in the pool for the first free swim of the week!

Last, but not Least.... Cody Hawks

So we've been doing this meet the staff series. And once staff week started I had all but one person done and then one thing led to another and now I'm just posting about this staff member BUT it is not due to any personality reason on his part because Cody Hawks is amazing.... Meet Cody:

Cody, or CoCoD as he is sometimes called, is attending the University of Tennessee in the fall, having previously attended MTSU. Cody has been accepted into the special education program and aspires to get his Master's and become a special education teacher. Cody is the head of our music team, playing guitar and generally entertaining us all. He is personable, reliable, and fun - all qualities that make him a wonderful counselor. Cody is from Gallatin, TN. 

Camp One: Opening Eucharist

Camp One started yesterday afternoon with 42 high schoolers. The Dubose Board meeting coincided with the start of camp and so we thought it would be a neat experience to do a joint Eucharist. We always do an opening Eucharist for camp sessions but this one was made even more special by the presence of our guests. We sang a lot of songs, shared communion, and showed them how long a peace can really take when you all are so excited to see each other. It was a powerful experience. 

Check out our T for this year!

Last year we got a new logo for Camp Gailor-Maxon, one that brought us into the new millennium finally. We love our logo and are so grateful for the graphic designer who did it for us. We decided to use the logo as our t-shirt this year and so we wanted to share our T-shirt for the summer with you all. Each camper will receive one. If you're an alum or camp supporter and want one, email us at cgm@duboseconferencecenter.org and we'll work out the details! 


Here's Ella at the end of Pre-Camp, sporting her new t-shirt:

Staff Week!

Your camp staff is busy planning away the summer, getting ready for camp to start on Saturday full time! Pre-camp was a blast and now we're buckling down and getting some work done. 


Oh... but you know it couldn't ALL be work:

Found cleaning out the storage, old tie-dye from last year.... Alex and Phil model.

We're having so much fun!

Day two of pre-camp is underway! We had a full day yesterday - everyone slept very well. In the afternoon we had Siesta (spelled q-u-i-e-t) and then went off-campus. People could choose between going to Sewanee and Fiery Gizzard. In Sewanee, we walked Abbo's Alley (a nature trail with a creek) and then went to All Saints Chapel and the bookstore. The Fiery Gizzard crew hiked a short but adventurous hike, then swam in the water hole before coming back. We all gathered back at the pool and swam together before dinner. After dinner we played "In it to Win It" (a take-off of Minute to Win it, the game show) with family groups before having a bonfire with stories and s'mores. 

Pre-Campers are here!!

We kick off our summer with the very first session of camp being our Mini Maxon Pre-Camp. At Pre-Camp we have rising 1st, 2nd, and 3rd graders and a parent. We do all of the fun things about camp but cram it into one weekend. 

Our pre-campers arrived last night and we've already set out having fun for the day! We had breakfast, sang in the chapel, had a children's chapel activity, and played at the playground. We just ate lunch and now we're going on to Siesta (spelled Q-U-I-E-T). 

Camp Staff: Mary Blythe Puryear

Meet Mary Blythe:

(on the left, pictured with one of our other counselors, Jani)


Mary Blythe Puryear is a first year staff member from Nashville, specifically Franklin. Mary Blythe is a rising sophomore at Samford University in Birmingham. A former volleyball player, Mary Blythe is both athletic and feminine combined. She is excited to be on staff and really loves queso dip!

Camp Staff: Andrew Street

Meet Andrew:

Andrew Street is returning as a second-year staffer for Camp Gailor-Maxon. Andrew is from Memphis and graduated from St. George's Independent School in Collierville before heading down to Birmingham-Southern College, where he is a rising junior. Andrew is outdoorsy and loves to climb. He is worldly in his views and supports the Invisible Children movement for Ugandan child soldiers. Andrew is one of our resident Mountain experts, having spent 3 years here in Sewanee while his father was in seminary. 

Camp Staff: Andie Scott

Meet Andie:

Our next staff intro is Andie Scott. Andie is a second year staffer who just graduated from Ithaca College (hence the picture above). Andie is from Nashville and is currently interviewing and applying for programs and graduate schools to continue her successful training for her future. Andie is known for being kind-hearted, dedicated, and a giver. Another thing Andie is known for is her abilities as a contortionist - she was in the circus at her school!

Camp Staff: Alex Hoelscher

Meet Alex:

Meet Alex. This is his third year on staff and he is the force behind our amazing camp promotional video. It makes sense that the video is awesome because Alex is a Media Arts Major at Montana, studying Digital Video Production. Alex is from Murfreesboro, TN originally but makes the trek across the greater US for school bi-annually. Along the way, he likes to take photographs - another talent of his is photography. Alex is well known for his maturity, dry sense of humor, and dedication to Camp Gailor-Maxon. 

Camp Staff: Jani Sarratt

Meet Jani!

(pictured above - board member and camp alum, Christy Beesley, camper Carter, and Jani on the far right, doing the CGM Line Dance).


Jani Sarratt is a rising junior at Auburn University (War Eagle!). A native of Franklin, TN, Jani attends St. George's Episcopal Church. Jani is head lifeguard and on the music team for Camp Gailor-Maxon. A fun fact about Jani is that she gets to celebrate her birthday at camp every year! 

Camp Staff: Hans Bauer

Meet Hans Bauer, the third staff member we're introducing in this countdown to camp. Hans is from Memphis and attends the University of Tennessee, Knoxville where he is a member of Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity, studies Geography, and hangs out with his cat, Sadie. Hans takes pride in his German heritage and is ruggedly outdoorsy. He loves the sport of Lacrosse and also boasts that he was into the Memphis Grizzlies before they were big. Hans will be leading outdoor recreation this summer. 

Camp Staff: Jillian Smith

The next staff member to get her intro is the one and only Jillian Smith. Jillian is serving her second year on camp staff. She hails from Smyrna, TN and is a rising junior at University of Evansville in Evansville, Indiana. She is a history major and spent this last semester abroad in England (with all sorts of fun travels over Europe during the course of the semester). Jillian is one of our lifeguards for the summer and also serves on the music team. 

Camp Staff: Phil George

Today, we start the first of our staff introductions. We'll be unveiling the staff here on the blog with bios. First off:

Meet Phil. Philip George is a Germantown native, congregant at St. George's Episcopal Church in Germantown, and attends the University of Tennessee, Chattanooga. There he is a rising junior studying Environmental Engineering. Phil is eco-conscious and avoids high fructose corn syrup. He enjoys a good frisbee and has an uncanny vocal similarity to Robert Goulet. On a hot day, you might find him eating pistachio ice cream.  




19 days until Staff Week starts (and thus the start of Camp Gailor Maxon 2011!) Check back tomorrow for another staff sneak peek. 

Giveaway!

Hey there camp fans! Camp is right around the corner and the countdown has started. In order to celebrate the start of Camp Gailor-Maxon 2011, we've arranged a little giveaway. Here's the deal:


We have four of our aluminum BPA free water bottles to give away - your choice of color (blue or green):

So, you say you want to win one of these CGM water bottles? Follow the directions below:
1) Go to http://www.facebook.com/pages/Camp-Gailor-Maxon/200102083359722?ref=ts and "like" Camp Gailor-Maxon's facebook page


2) Now that you've "liked" us, post a status about CGM, tagging us (you do this by doing an @ symbol and typing Camp Gailor-Maxon and a box shows up that is our page and you click on it to tag us). This status can be anything about CGM, like that you've registered for camp, that you miss camp, your favorite memory, etc. 


3) Once you've done 1 & 2, come back here and comment that you've liked and commented. That will be your entry for the giveaway. In order to qualify, we need to know who you are, so make sure to leave your name on the comment! 


This giveaway will run until May 15th (which is the last day to register for camp without the late fee). On the 16th, we'll run the numbers through a random number generator and announce our winners! You'll need to email us shipping info (we'll take care of shipping charges) or if you want it to be a gift for your camper, tell us their name and they will get it at registration. 


Oh and by the way - love these water bottles and worried you won't win one? You can always buy them ($15). If you are a camper/have a camper, we'll deliver during registration. If you're just a camp enthusiast, we'll mail it to you with a small shipping fee. Email us at cgm@duboseconferencecenter.org for more info!!


21 days until the start of Staff Week and Camp Gailor-Maxon 2011!!!

Kickoff to Camp: Countdown

Well, folks... believe it or not, Camp Gailor-Maxon 2011 is almost here!!! We're 22 days away from staff week, 25 days away from Pre-Camp, 34 days away from Camp I, 42 days away from Camp II, and 50 days away from Camp III!

In the spirit of kicking off our countdown to camp, we're going to be doing some special things on the blog in the coming weeks. We'll be announcing our counselors, highlighting each counselor, giving you guys previews of the activities, and more. 

But today, the first day of our Kick-Off, we are excited to announce that we will be hosting a giveaway. That's right - tomorrow we will post a link with instructions on how to win some FREE camp stuff! Check back tomorrow, Monday May 9th, for more information.

Camp parties!

Want to learn more about Camp Gailor Maxon? Want to show off CGM to your friends? Come to one of our camp parties! Co-directors Kathryn Jasper and Charles Houston Beaumont,III will be there, along with veteran campers and some of our summer staff!

Memphis area: February 27th at the Holt Family's house, hosted by the Holt Family and co-hosted by the Mathes family. 2-4pm, 5356 Glade View in East Memphis

Nashville area: March 6th from 2-4 at the Sarratt Family's house in Franklin, TN - 2701 Longwood Drive

Hope to see you there!

Welcome to the Camp Gailor Maxon blog!

Greetings from Camp Gailor Maxon! You've found our camp blog, where we journal our daily life at CGM. During the summer sessions, we post each day with pictures and stories from that day. If you scroll through the site, you will see a glimpse into the daily life of CGM. If you're new, you might want to start by reading about CGM here and then visiting our virtual tour here.  Our dates for Summer 2011 are posted to the right and if you want an e-mailed or snail mailed copy of our 2011 Camper Application as soon as it comes out (so you get the early bird discount!), sign up for our mailing list (also to the right). 

Camping Registration Season begins!

Happy New Year!! As of today, January 1st, our online registration system is up and running for all camps, Pre-Camp through Camp III. Go to http://duboseconf.or/applicationsandforms and register your camper. You pay a $250 deposit online through our secure server, then we send you a bill for the rest of your total, payable by the beginning of camp. We are very excited about the online registration, as we believe it will be easy for our camp families to register their campers online. 


Deadlines:
-Register by March 15th and receive our Early Bird Discount (-$25)
- Register by May 15th to avoid late fee ($75 for registrations after May 15th)


We are continuing the referral discount program again this year - $50 off the returning camper's fees for EACH new camper they refer!


We are looking forward to seeing you at Camp Gailor Maxon 2011


- Charles Houston and Kathryn