What a packed 24-hours it has been! We greeted bus-loads of second session and rookie campers with lots of hugs and joyful shouts, welcoming both our returning girls and those new to
Agawak.

We then gathered in Happy Camper Hall, where cabin assignments were announced and campers and counselors took the stage and were swept off to take their cabin picture.  On a very warm and
sunny afternoon, our waterfront was bustling with swimmers and tubers trying to cool off in Blue Lake.

Our night time activity was the much-anticipated Blue and White reveal. New campers were divided up into their Blue and White Teams. Veteran campers cheered them on as they smashed their hands into either Blue or White whipping cream. Over time, campers develop a special bond with their teammates and a love of their team. They learn the importance of teamwork, good sportsmanship, and perseverance in every game! 

I often speak to alumnae who are now in their fifties, sixties and older and they still clearly remember every lyric and every tune of their Blue and White Team cheers. They remember who won Capture the Flag forty years ago and whose lip sync was an encore performance.

While I love to see our camp in a smooth transition between sessions, and full of happy campers, this time of the summer also makes me wistful. We wait a long ten months for these
glorious two months. And then, the time passes so quickly, too quickly, and camp is somehow half over. I remind the girls every day to try new activities and make
new friends, to make every hour of every day count. Thankfully, our days start early and run long.  Sunday evening it was Blue and White Tug of War, and then, we were off to bed for a good nights sleep.

Early this morning, we had a "send-off" ceremony for the CITs. They are headed out on their 6-night
Boundary Water Canoe trip, an adventure and honor that the oldest group of campers get to experience every summer. They have been canoeing and portaging for the past two weeks which will help them paddle, paddle their way across new waters.

After their departure, I heard many comments from the younger girls exchanging their plans to keep coming back to camp until it's their time to go! It is the same words I heard from the CITs of 2019 several years ago when they were young campers and witnessed that summers CIT's heading out on their Boundary Water trip.

What a blessing it is to be the director of Agawak and experience
this circle of life and this circle of friendship.  Watching your girls grow up is the very best part of my job. Thank you!!

Smile-on,

Mary