It has been 6 weeks since the 93rd season “wrapped” at Illahee. Leaves are fluttering down from the trees marking the transition into fall. We have pulled out our fleece jackets and the leaf blowers! It has been an exciting month with the debut of our online camper registration. By the end of September, all sessions were full with waiting lists except the Junior session (August 3rd to 8th for entering 2nd to 5th graders). Camp families loved the convenience of finding the application on the website and hitting the “send” button minutes later. I missed opening the applications to see smiling photos, (and Liza and Newton missed the flurry of the Fed Ex truck which always means dog treats), but the enrollment process was smoother and a new tradition is born. You can learn more about the enrollment process and applications on our website. http://campillahee.com/planning/forms.php.
We are looking forward to camp reunions and movies coming up and have begun sending out E-vite invitations rather than snail mail notices this season. Atlanta will be our debut gathering with the 2013 movie highlights on Sunday, October 20th followed by Charlotte on Thursday the 24th. We’ve also scheduled reunions in homes in Raleigh, Greensboro, Richmond, Greenville, Columbia and New Orleans and will be updating our travel schedule with more shows within the next week. If you have friends who would like to learn about Illahee, let us know! New campers, old campers and future campers are all welcome to the Illahee gatherings.
We want to see our families at the camp movie parties. It’s a great time for us to visit and learn more about what campers and parents value about Illahee. Some girls are a little nervous about going away from home, and the gatherings help build confidence and excitement for the upcoming summer. Returning campers can help to answer questions and let new families know what to look forward to, and we love the chance to meet people in person.
This fall we are unveiling a new Illahee view book that Gretchen has been designing! While the website has our most current information and continues to evolve with details about the camp program, we find that it’s hard to beat “print.” The design process has been a fun project as we’ve sifted through the past two years’ photos and have worked to convey the heart of Camp Illahee. We can’t wait to share it with you in a few weeks when it’s “hot off the press!”
And as far as press news releases, Dave and Kris celebrated the beginning of October by traveling with their tennis group to a tournament in Hilton Head where Dave placed first in the mixed doubles and the men’s singles- playing nine matches in three days! As he would say, “Now that’s what I’m talking about!” Guess he has been staying in practice on those Illahee courts! More news will be coming up soon as we travel and make plans for the 94th season at Illahee, sure to be our BEST SUMMER EVER!