Late this past July, the typical quiet of the middle Saturday of 3rd Session saw a hubbub of afternoon activity as visiting vehicles nearly filled the rec field, thanks to a hugely enthusiastic response to our outreach efforts for our second annual new camper orientation day. Billed as a “sneak-peek” opportunity for prospectives, Camp welcomed nearly 50 visiting families and children for a 3-hour tour and experiential overview of a typical day at Nature Camp.
Most attendees were families preparing to send children or grandchildren to Nature Camp for the first time, and the day afforded the soon-to-be campers a welcome opportunity to make connections, familiarize themselves with the grounds, and to meet current campers who were overwhelmingly gracious and enthusiastic about answering questions, sharing their favorite aspects of camp, and assuaging budding fears.
We are deeply indebted to Sarah Sanford, a past staffer now in graduate school at Duke University, who joined us from Richmond to share tour-conducting duties with Flip and to offer a sample Limnology class. More gratitude goes to Kate Tillotson, Assistant Director, for pitching in on a quickly-developed botany walk as the group numbers swelled dramatically in the week leading up to the Saturday. Last, but not least, thanks to camp staff and current campers, who made everyone feel so welcome!
This successful event will continue in the summer camp calendar, on the middle Saturday of 3rd Session. We invite folks who are due to attend Nature Camp in 4th session and want to get a look and feel of the place before they arrive. We also welcome anyone who wants to experience camp in a short afternoon dose.
-Stacy Luks, Board member for Publicity and Promotions, Nature Camp Inc.