Evening Programs
A favorite aspect of summer camp life at Green River is undoubtedly our evening programs. During Session 1, we kicked off the week with a Lower Council Fire. This is a camp-wide event reminiscent of the classic campfire sing-a-long, complete with stories, interactive camp tunes, and a fire built by friction. It was a wonderful way to bring together friends both new and old and provided a cohesive bonding experience to build upon in the days to come.
On Monday night, we all laced up our running shoes for a more energetic activity – the legendary game of Predator Prey. In this massive and all-inclusive game of tag (crossed with a strategic scavenger hunt and complete with sneaking around camp property), campers are divided into small cabin groups and assigned one of four species – insects, frogs, snakes, or hawks – making up a miniature food chain. Each species is required to obtain a specific number of hidden “resources” hidden around Base Camp in order to survive while avoiding attacks from species higher up in the food chain!
Our third night at camp began with “Twinner”- a concept not unlike the dinner meal we experience each night of camp, but different in that each camper and staff member dressed to match another member of the camp community. Twinner was followed by the long-standing camp tradition of featuring the many diverse talents our campers possess in a Variety Show. Campers and staff alike were splitting at the seams in response to numerous stand-up comedy acts, obscure skits, and silly songs.
Last night was decidedly one of the most eventful of the session: the one, the only, Pirate Night. Cheerful and malicious pirates alike gathered for a cacophonous meal filled with sea shanties and horribly over-told pirate jokes. Following the meal, GRP’s favorite food waste-fighting superheroes, Ortman and Scrappy, were kidnapped by unnamed pirate villains. All of camp embarked on a collaborative mission to rescue our protagonists from a hostile hostage situation and unlock the ropes that bound them to the dock of the lake. Each cabin was commanded to complete a unique task in order to retrieve one of 10 keys needed to free Ortman and Scrappy. Tasks ranged from saving a staff member from the malevolent pirates’ attacks and scoring a bus ride with Ortman and Scrappy to composing a catchy, pirate-y song with Mentor-turned-seaman Jonathan. At the end of the mission, our camp superheroes were freed from their restrains and the ill-fated evil pirates returned to whatever land they hailed from.
Finally, within a couple of hours, we will close Session 1 with a more reverent program. The Upper Council Fire involves readings of the Woodcraft Laws, insightful literature, ceremonies honoring return campers and staff members, and more serious songs inspiring us all to be grateful for the times we’ve had here at Green River. We’ll finish with the lakeside Candlelight Ceremony in which each camper sets his or her own candle boat afloat and reflects on their time at camp to the sound of our talented staff members serenading us from the dock. With music floating among the candle-lit faces of counselors and kids alike, its a loving and memorable way to conclude our camp session. We hope to see many familiar faces return to camp next summer!
-Delaney Oursler
