Yesterday, bright red, white and blue clothing, sparkling headbands, beaded necklaces and decorations could be seen in every direction around morning flagpole.Campers and staff joyfully sang their favorite hip, hip, hooray for the birthday girl of the day.... to the USA! Buses rolled into Agawak to transport campers into Minocqua for the annual 4th of July Parade. Two hundred intermediate and senior campers took to the streets dancing to "We Got the Beat" by the Go-Gos while our juniors looked on.  Kitty, Stella, Terra and Kate did a great job of leading the LONG dance line down main street. After the parade, we headed to the Campanile Center for the Arts and enjoyed 4th of July kosher grilled hotdogs. Our patriotic spirit extended well into the evening as we watched the Min-Aqua-Bat ski show. I'm proud to have 4 seasoned Min-Aqua-Bat skiers on our skiing staff this summer teaching our campers the love of skiing on water. The Agawak girls received some special attention and shout outs from the Bat announcer. Chandler, Sven, Andrew and Fitz even jumped into a massive Agawak picture at the end of the show. As darkness fell, the night sky filled with festive fireworks and we headed back to camp exhausted after a fun-filled day.

We had a yummy Lazy Breakfast and ran morning clinics of sailing, biking, swimming, paddle boarding, pontoon rides, candle-making, pickle-ball and more. This afternoon we hosted our annual BASKETBALL BONANZA. The game ended in a half court shoot out for all camp ice cream. at the last minute, Josh F. came through for the campers with a swish of the net. Ice cream for everyone! Our afternoon ended with a Blue and White Lip Sync practice followed by a general swim in Blue Lake.

 Is there any Gold at Agawak? We will find out tonight as campers dress up in hilarious outfits, escape bandits, hunt for gold coins and search the land over for the hidden treasure. 

One of my favorite things to do at camp is to wander around and find groups of girls happily busy with something, and then stop to hang out with them for a while. It’s enjoyable because they are always keen to explain what they’re doing, to answer my questions, and generally to chat about whatever is on their minds. This can happen anytime of the day at one of the tetherball courts,carpet ball, tennis courts, picnic tables, literally anywhere. There’ll always be a group of campers huddled around taking turns challenging the winner of the last game. The same is true at the Gagaball pit, at the lake when it’s open for free swim, at the grassy triangle, up on the hill, or one of the many swinging benches around camp. Sometimes we talk about silly things, camp history, their favorite camp activities, Summer the dog, what's for dinner, favorite boat driver, family pets, and the list goes on.

This happened a few days ago, when I asked  few older campers how they were handling being away from their smartphones. I had a good hunch what they would say. Unanimously, they said they liked being at camp without their phones. They were convinced camp would be ruined if they had access to their phones during the day. Being at Agawak gives them permission to avoid the glowing screen and that insistent ping they live with everyday while at home. Camp allows them to connect more genuinely with their bunkmates and others around  camp. Here at Agawak they find real people to talk with. Agawak is about the rich memories, face-to-face friendships, and the sense of belonging inspired by living in a true overnight camping community. Did you know smartphones isolate people and are correlated with feeling of loneliness? They will admit,once they return home they"ll likely be pulled back into using their phones, "all the time", but let's hope camp life will motivate them a tad more in the future to push past what pops up on the their screen. 

We're thankful to have a place like Agawak. A place where children can enjoy themselves, learn, make connections and blossom beautifully. 

Smile on and full speed ahead!

Mary 

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