Sending Your Daughter To Summer Camp Has Many AdvantagesPosted by Beigette Gill on July 25, 2017
Every kid young or old looks forward to summer. Two months away from school filled with sunshine. And days playing with friends and no homework! Summer camps offer unique opportunities during the summer months. Camps like Fernwood Cove offer heaps of sunshine. More importantly, the activities and opportunities your daughter experiences are extraordinary. Learning new skills in the beautiful surroundings of Maine is priceless. Getting up on water skis for the first time on a crystal clear lake. Climbing to the top of the rock wall among the incredible pine trees. Learning to trust a horse as a partner and friend. These are just a handful of the advantages of sending your daughter to summer camp. Camp allows girls to make the most out of their summers. Away from the stress of the outside world they truly experience the joys of being a kid.
Creating Life Long Friendships
Campers spend their days learning new skills in a variety of activities. More importantly, Fernwood Cove girls develop strong friendships with girls and counselors from all over the world. Expanding the definition of a family to include up to 30 bunk sisters, bunk cousins, bunk moms, aunts and uncles. Campers leave the noise of the 21st century behind for just a few weeks to truly be able to hear the world around them. Supported by their new bunk family they embrace simple living and gain respect for nature.
Campers take safe risks and explore new activities with the support of their bunk family and greater camp community. Campers gain new skills while being supported by counselors, CITs, and fellow campers. With a focus on fair play and inclusion Fernwood Cove girls of all ages and abilities experience successes. Cheers of support can be heard everywhere from the sports fields to the theater on Performance Night. The genuine support and sense of pride felt when a friend faces their fears or overcomes an obstacle is extraordinary. The development of empathy and understanding for others is a huge advantage of sending your daughter to summer camp. They leave camp with a greater ability to look outside themselves. A greater ability to ensure others are happy, not just themselves.
Greater Awareness and Appreciation
Once campers, CITs, and staff arrive at 350 Island Pond Road they are immersed into the extraordinary world of camp. Campers quickly adjust to living in bunks without electricity. To life without their electronic devices. Instead of the sounds of social media notifications they are able to appreciate the sounds of the waterfront at night. Instead of the constant glow of computer and phone screens they enjoy the glow of the breath taking stars. And the face to face conversation at meal time. These small things that can be ignored in the ordinary world are enhanced in the extraordinary.
These small things become the big things at camp. They help to create the meaningful relationships. Additionally they help us to develop a greater awareness and appreciation for our surroundings. First a greater awareness of the natural beauty that surrounds us daily. Then a greater appreciation for our friends and camp family. And a greater awareness of the work that counselors do to create the magic of camp. Finally, a greater appreciation of all of the little things that make camp extraordinary.
Campers and CITs also learn then importance of giving back and being part of a larger community. They begin to understand the value of true friendships. The value of staying true to themselves. As well as the value of contributing to the greater good. One of the biggest advantages to sending your daughter to summer camp is that she returns home valuing the little things in life. And a greater awareness and appreciation of their camp experience and who it has helped them become.
Independence Through Camp
Camp also allows girls to gain independence away from parents while under supportive and safe care of counselors and staff. They learn to make decisions and choices on their own while also managing themselves and their belongings. As well as learning to be accountable for themselves while also being a caring friend or “big sister” to others. For some, this can be intimidating. For others this is the first time they’ve ever been given a form of responsibility and it’s a new and exciting adventure.
Young or old, all campers and CITs are given the opportunity to hold some form of responsibility or leadership role. Whether its being assigned a job at bunk clean up, helping a Cove Sister, or planning an event for the camp community to enjoy. Every girl is exposed to different opportunities that help them gain more out of their camp experience. Additionally they help them with future endeavors as well.
The advantages of sending your daughter to summer camp are unlike anything else. From Trip Days to Performance Nights, Campfires and everything in between. Summer camp gives girls the opportunity to experience and spend their summers in the beautiful outdoors. Furthermore, they learn irreplaceable life lessons along the way. Focusing on values such as:
- Personal Growth
- Community
- Simple Living
- Friendship
- Respect for the Outdoors
- Traditions
- Diversity
Each Fernwood Cove girl leaves the summer with a multitude of memories. Memories of adventures and challenges. As well as memories of starry nights and sun-filled days. They return home with lessons learned and skills gained. As a result, Fernwood Cove girls return home the best versions of themselves. There is no greater advantage of sending your daughter to summer camp.