Olympic session’s Color War is, for many campers, the highlight of their time here at Weequahic. It is the craziest, most memorable week they will have at camp. Color War is something campers look forward to all summer and is truly a bonding experience for everyone. For our CIT’s, however, Color War is the pinnacle of their time at CW. It rounds out the many years they have spent here and is the finishing touch to their experience as campers.
Color War is led by all the CIT’s, with the help of two counselors, and really gives them all a chance to show leadership, responsibility, team work, gratitude, attitude, and courage to our younger campers. Our CIT’s must show good sportsmanship and team spirit and really lift up their teammates and give them a reason to win.
During Color War, competitions include various sports, ceramics and woodworking and a CIT basketball game. Some camp favorites are tug of war, egg toss and bucket brigade. Apache, a similar competition to the Gitch (Tribal Wars), involves every team member in a giant relay race. Another fun event is marble call. Whenever a specific song is played over the intercom campers must run to the flag pole to put colored marbles in their buckets. This event is particularly funny because it can happen at any time.
On the final evening of Color War, we have sing night. Over the course of the week all the CIT’s practice for this event because it is a really special time when all of camp comes together to celebrate the summer we have all had together. Each team presents their plaque along with a skit. The CIT’s from each team then share their March, a song to celebrate their respective team, Memory, an Alma Mater from a previous summer, and Alma Mater, a song about their experience here at Weequahic.
Color War is a very special time at camp and is a wonderful chance for us to grow and become a closer community. It is a great opportunity for our CIT’s be true leaders and we know they will do a fantastic job. We want to wish everyone a fun and exciting Color War and cannot wait to see all our CIT’s in action!
Tomorrow is Wee-Excel Day; a special event day focusing on a camper’s program of choice. There are a wide range of activities for campers to choose from including Sports, the Arts, Adventure and “Olympic Prep.”
Some of our intensive sports camps include basketball, golf and roller hockey. Those campers wanting to play golf go to a local club where they get to play 9 holes on a challenging course. Our golfers love this opportunity because they really get to push themselves and see how much they have improved over the summer.
We also offer day long hikes for all age groups and our campers absolutely love the experience. Hikes are broken up by division and trails usually run for about 4 miles. The views are spectacular and campers get to cool down in falls that they pass along their route. After a long hike campers are treated to Jericho’s ice cream and feel refreshed upon their return to camp!
In preparation for our performance of Shrek, campers involved in the play have the entire day to practice their lines and songs, set designers can put their finishing touches on set pieces and the stage crew can work on lighting and cues. We also have a creative option for campers interested in activities such as scrapbooking, ceramics, photography, and painting. This gives campers a chance to paint any items they have made in ceramics or woodworking or make a book full of all the wonderful memories they have made here at camp.
In anticipation of Olympics, all our campers have been trying to guess when the breakout will happen. Olympics is a very exciting multi-day event that all our campers and counselors look forward to, so we have something called “Olympic Prep” for our older campers. These campers practice for certain events such as the hatchet hunt, grape tossing and counting to a minute (with a blindfold on). This gets all our campers super pumped up for Olympics breakout and is also a prime opportunity for our older campers to utilize their leadership skills on their respective team and help younger campers in their events when the time comes.
Wee-Excel Day is a wonderful opportunity for all our campers to dive into an activity they truly enjoy. Campers get to see the amount of improvement they’ve made over the course of the summer. It is also a time for them to use all the skills they have learned from counselors and fellow campers.
The grass whispers to you as you stride down the hill. When you near the lakefront, you hear kids yelling and laughing with joy. The wind whistles a happy song while the sun smiles down on you. You beam back up and you suddenly feel like playing a game of pickup basketball. Luckily, Camp Weequahic has this, which along with other activities, contribute to its perfection. With these activities come life-long friends and then everlasting memories. As you can see, Camp Weequahic is a place you never want to leave. After three to six weeks of spending time with your second family, your real parents are the only thing taking you back.
The first thing you want to check out once you arrive at Camp Weequahic are the activities. In the morning, you are tired, yet thrilled for the day ahead. Maybe a nice game of tennis or basketball will warm you up. During the first basketball league morning, you get evaluated. Then after the draft, you split into teams and see if you can make it into the playoffs. You want to play in the league so much that you are bummed when you realize it’s only every other morning. But as the sun starts bearing down on you around midday, you want to go snag your bathing suit and cannonball into the waterfront. As you plunge in, the cool water lazily glides over you, soothing the effect of the warm summer day. Your friends jump in and you realize you never want this to end. What with the perfect-temperature water and the incredible experiences, who would? After splashing around and scuffling to get to the top of your favorite floats, it’s time to get out. When you do, the warm air rushes back to meet you. Springing along with your friends, you race to put on your towels and crocs, then to get back up to the bunk. As the day comes to a close, the realization comes that you need to get as many competitions in as you can. Everyone races to behind the boys’ cabins to play mini basketball hoops, ping pong, taps, and kickball. I wonder who will win!
During all these remarkable activities, you meet and make new friends around camp and in your bunk who you’ll keep in contact with for years. For example, JP is one of my best friends. I met him at Camp Weequahic, and we talk and text all the time. When you have your bunkmates, all the activities suddenly seem more fun. Plus, your friends will always be with you: When something sad happens, who’s there to help you through it? When you hurt yourself, who’s there to comfort the pain? When the best thing ever happens, who’s there to congratulate you? The answer is indefinitely your friends. They are the ones you can depend on to have a good time. At lunch, it won’t be fun dancing by yourself to the music; you need to have other people there jamming with you. I mean what’s better than dancing to your favorite song with your chums as the sweet buttery dinner aromas flounce around your nose? But when you sit down as the mouth-watering crumble-in-your-mouth brownies are finally being served, you realize there are also friends you make who aren’t in your bunk. When you are playing a game or taking part in an activity without your cabin, you’re going to have to hang out with other people. You can embrace this during Tribal Wars. Depending on what tribe you’re on, you will be with different campers and counselors. For example, on Seminole (the tribe I was on) was this kid named Spencer. He wasn’t in my bunk, but we still became friends.
With friends come tons of exceptional memories that will never leave you. There are bound to be times where you win your football league or water ski with your friends. And if not, there is always the Camp Weequahic dance, eating ice cream in the enormous trough, and MTV night. The best part about these valuable memoirs is you get to share them with those around you. When you are at MTV night, I promise that you will never forget that moment where you are singing and dancing to a song with your bunk. But strangely, no matter how embarrassing and awkward, you will always have fun. Another great experience is Tribal Wars. Even though through these three tremendous weeks you may be against your friends, it is also one of the more exciting parts of camp. When our co-director suddenly stops the Weequahic Play with a blazing torch in her hand, you know you will never want to go; you never want this to stop. You are only waiting to find out what tribe you are on for about fifteen minutes, but honestly, the suspense kills!
In conclusion, Camp Weequahic is a place you might be nervous about going, but terrified of leaving. Once you arrive, you know you are in paradise and you’ll never find another place like this even if you devote your entire life to it. Once you start engaging in the activities, you make new friends with whom memories are made. After your session at camp is over, you’re begging your parents not to take you away. You try convincing them about how it’s so great. They finally drag you out but you only have one thought in mind: Camp Weequahic is a place you never want to leave.
