Activity Registration is Online!
Friday, March 10, 2006
You would not believe how much is going on here in the Heavenly World! Spring has arrived- complete with warmer days and daffodils. All of our "Get Ready for Camp To Do" lists are "getting done!" The mailing to campers and parents just hit the post offices. Soon we will hear the activity choices and arrival plans for our campers. This year we are online! Parents will be able to login and find the pre-camp forms and information links and will send information directly to us online. This will allow us to have all of the camper information up to date and at our fingertips. Getting this new system set up has been a full time process for the past month with Gordon being the "techno-geek" web designer and the rest of us doing lots and lots of checking and testing. We hope that camp families will find it to be much more convenient for them!
We've also recently updated our Activity Descriptions. Check these out to see how many activities are offered on a regular day at Camp Illahee. Of course this list does not include all of the evening programs- skit nights, game nights, talent shows - or the cabin overnights, days on the ropes course and hikes out of camp! There are so many things that we are looking forward to this summer, but mostly we look forward to the noise! It's great when the campers are here and the girls are laughing and singing and even(occasionally) "breaking it down" in the dining hall. And speaking of the dining hall, we are definitely going to eat well this summer! With Nancy McCrory returning for her 4th summer to manage our kitchen, and with Brenda, Rita, Pat and Judy by her side, we are all in good hands.
Finding the best counselors for the summer is an Illahee tradition! It involves lots of travel and interviews. Kris enjoyed visiting with Mary Lake Newton and Jordan Kinder at Clemson University, and just the other day Carol saw Kathleen Stark at Furman University. Gretchen traveled to Chapel Hill to interview former campers Katherine Erhinghaus and Anne Rogers Smyth who will be returning as counselors this summer. Laurie has been talking a lot with Harriet Morton, who is returning for her 5th year as riding director; she is on the lookout for a few more great horses for camp. She has also been actively coaching Erskine College and Lander University's equestrian teams. Lander recently placed 4th out of 11 in the regional horse show. Way to go Harriet! Dave Hartsock can't wait to return for his 3rd season directing the tennis program on the brand new Illahee tennis courts. He is coaching the high school boy's tennis team this season. I hope they do as well as his girls' team did- placing first in the state of Ohio! Lauren Bennett is enjoying teaching 4th grade in Cashiers, NC, and promises to come help lead some climbs this summer after her school year ends. Kirk Bjorling (a.k.a. Cream Cheese) will be scrambling up the rock with Illahee climbers. Since finishing college in December, he has been working in Brevard and saving his money for a big trip out west to climb with former climbing instructor Brian Williams. Brian is now a sponsored climber! Jason Parker will head the kayaking program and returns for his 5th Illahee summer, and Gareth Tate will shift over from opening up camp to working with Parker for his 2nd summer. Robert Dye, returning staff member, and Brevard College wilderness studies professor, will be full time at camp this summer directing the trips program and leading canoeing and kayaking trips as well as hikes. Rachel Westbrook will come into port from her six months working in Hawaii on a cruise ship in time to return as head of ceramics for her 4th Illahee season. Molly Christman will return for her 14th summer to Illahee to get us all in shape with Aerobics/Fit for Fife and to open up the woodworking program. Jessica Gallagher is moving to NC from Arkansas before the summer. She is looking forward to being JC mom this summer- her 5th at Illahee.
Molly Morgan returned to Vanderbilt from Scotland in time to represent Illahee at their camp day. This summer at Illahee- her 13th- will find her over on Pineview as head of hill. Morgan Sullivan is going to hold down the fort over on Hillbrook, returning for her 3rd summer to be head of hill. After taking a summer off and spending the year teaching pre-school in Thailand, Toya West will spend part of her summer vacation at Illahee- her 7th year at camp! Courtney Jones, Jenna Hunke, Virginia Pleasants, Laura Houston, Erin Morrison, Melissa Poorman, Libby Hunter, Becky Trudel are all veteran counselors returning for another summer at Illahee. More staff updates will follow soon!
