Apologies for the delay - the end of the trip was rushed with packing and driving and then heading back home from Columbus to PA.
The high school freshmen who came on Friday were interesting to say the least. There were just around 100 of them, with four teachers from the Esko high school, just about 5-8 minutes away from the camp. They were split up in groups of 25, and rotated through four stations - moving and splitting the logs we had moved on Thursday, making wooden nametags for the summer campers, making birthday cards for the campers, and going through an educational session about One Heartland with Jill. They were full of energy and questions ("Do you have class with Tyrell Pyror?" was a common one, actually) and we were worn out by the time they left at 2:00. We spent the rest of the afternoon cleaning the camp and finishing up projects that we had been working on all week. After dinner, we did our final reflection session, talking about what we had learned from the camp experience, and what our favorite parts of the week were. A huge thing we discussed was what we could do when we get back in Columbus to help. We had decided that, in the case of most campers, HIV/AIDS wasn't the biggest concern for them or their families - poverty was. We're going to attempt to do a group service day at the Columbus Boys and Girls Club sometime during winter quarter, to do something for the underprivledged youth of Columbus.
Saturday involved getting up at 3:30 am, leaving at 4:00 am and driving back to Columbus. Ironically, our Minnesota trip was the only Buck-i-Serv trip that didn't get caught in a huge snow storm on our drive back.
All in all, it was a fantastic trip, and I think more than a few of the trip participants are going to join OSU's Students for Camp Heartland organization, in addition to toying with the idea of volunteering as a counselor for even just a week this summer.
Monday, December 21, 2009
Thursday, December 17, 2009
Days Four and Five!
Disclaimer: I'm exhausted and I have a decent amount of pictures, so I'm not going to be writing much; hopefully the pictures speak for themselves!
Day Four was simply our day off, and our trip to the Mall of America. We were able to sleep in, and we got to the mall around 1:00. We spent four and a half hours on our own in the mall - some of us saw a movie, some of us finished our Christmas shopping, and some of us just wandered around the Mall. We wrapped up our day with group dinner at the Rainforest Cafe, which was nice.
Today was a day of a lot of work. We spent this morning addressing and writing Christmas cards to all the families that help with one of their camps in New York, and then finished up our Christmas cards that we helped make for the families that attend camp (all 170 of them for the Minnesota sessions). After lunch, the real tough work began - three hours of moving trees that had been cut down. There were around 20 oak trees in camp that were affected with (and died from) oak wilt and had to be cut down because of the danger of them falling down in a windstorm. These trees had been cut up into smaller portions, which we moved and split, using a wood splitter. In addition to that, we also moved all of the branches (which were the size of small trees) into the woods, making brush piles for animals. It was hard work, but it was kind of fun; because it was 15-20 degrees outside and we were constantly moving, we didn't get cold and were able to stay outside (working up a decent sweat) for the entire time.
Tonight a few of us drove to Duluth (which is about an hour north of Willow River) to see a huge display of Christmas lights called Bentleyville. Jill and Fels (the camp director and a camp employee) had been there last night, and recommended that a) we go and b) that we bring ice skates, because there is a giant free ice rink outside of the light display. Duluth seems like a really awesome city, and the lights display was really fun, and the skating was cold, but also a fun time.
Tomorrow come the 100 high school freshman - should be interesting, exhausting, and a blast.
Day Four was simply our day off, and our trip to the Mall of America. We were able to sleep in, and we got to the mall around 1:00. We spent four and a half hours on our own in the mall - some of us saw a movie, some of us finished our Christmas shopping, and some of us just wandered around the Mall. We wrapped up our day with group dinner at the Rainforest Cafe, which was nice.
Today was a day of a lot of work. We spent this morning addressing and writing Christmas cards to all the families that help with one of their camps in New York, and then finished up our Christmas cards that we helped make for the families that attend camp (all 170 of them for the Minnesota sessions). After lunch, the real tough work began - three hours of moving trees that had been cut down. There were around 20 oak trees in camp that were affected with (and died from) oak wilt and had to be cut down because of the danger of them falling down in a windstorm. These trees had been cut up into smaller portions, which we moved and split, using a wood splitter. In addition to that, we also moved all of the branches (which were the size of small trees) into the woods, making brush piles for animals. It was hard work, but it was kind of fun; because it was 15-20 degrees outside and we were constantly moving, we didn't get cold and were able to stay outside (working up a decent sweat) for the entire time.
Tonight a few of us drove to Duluth (which is about an hour north of Willow River) to see a huge display of Christmas lights called Bentleyville. Jill and Fels (the camp director and a camp employee) had been there last night, and recommended that a) we go and b) that we bring ice skates, because there is a giant free ice rink outside of the light display. Duluth seems like a really awesome city, and the lights display was really fun, and the skating was cold, but also a fun time.
Tomorrow come the 100 high school freshman - should be interesting, exhausting, and a blast.
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
Day Three!
Another day of small, organizational projects here at Camp Heartland. We started off the morning by unloading a donation of food from Sara Lee, which meant getting bundled up and braving the -2 degree weather (with a windchill in the negative teens!). Next we started prepping the camp facilities for Friday, when 100 local high school freshman (yes, that's 100 thirteen and fourteen year olds!) are coming to do a massive volunteer day as a part of their health class. That involved mopping the entire basement of the camp and then setting up enough tables and chairs.
We then moved on to what we thought would be a pretty simple project - testing out the art supplies in the arts and crafts room, to make sure they all worked (the 100 freshmen are going to be making birthday cards for the campers at one of their volunteer stations). That involved testing around 1000 markers to make sure they still worked, unclogging all the glue bottles and refilling them with glue, sharpening 100's of colored pencils, and then organizing the entire craft room. It wasn't the simple project that we imagined, but it was great, because all ten of us spent the entire morning in one room, joking around as we scribbled with markers and performed surgery to remove clots on glue bottle caps.
After lunch we split up to accomplish a few smaller tasks. Some of us folded laundry, some of us organized the quilts in the basement, some of us spackled dents in the wall from recliners during the summer, and some of us headed outside to load books into a van - One Heartland (the parent organization of Camp Heartland) gets so many donations that they donate what they can't use, which I think shows how interconnected service organizations are. We spent the rest of the afternoon back in the arts and crafts room, making holiday cards to send out to the families of the campers. Again, all of ten of us were in a room, singing to Christmas songs and generally having a really great time. I'm still amazed at how close a group of nine students and one advisor can get so close in such a short amount of time while doing service.
We sat around after dinner and did a short reflection, focusing on what service actually is. Kristen (my co-leader) and I felt that this was important to discuss, because it would be easy to think that sharpening colored pencils and setting up tables doesn't do anything to directly effect the children that come to camp in the summer. However, the fact that we can do this kind of jobs frees up Jill (again, the camp director) to be able to work on paperwork, phone calls, and all the types of things that allow camp to go on in the summer. No one on the trip thought that what we were doing was unimportant, which really speaks to the character of everyone on the trip. We also chatted about what made us decide to go on a Buck-i-Serv trip; I thought it was fantastic that most of our motivation was just because we all like to do service.
Reflection was followed by one of the most intense games of Catchphrase I've ever played, then more movie watching. Day Four (which is actually day) is our day off and our trip to the Mall of America - should be a good time.
We then moved on to what we thought would be a pretty simple project - testing out the art supplies in the arts and crafts room, to make sure they all worked (the 100 freshmen are going to be making birthday cards for the campers at one of their volunteer stations). That involved testing around 1000 markers to make sure they still worked, unclogging all the glue bottles and refilling them with glue, sharpening 100's of colored pencils, and then organizing the entire craft room. It wasn't the simple project that we imagined, but it was great, because all ten of us spent the entire morning in one room, joking around as we scribbled with markers and performed surgery to remove clots on glue bottle caps.
After lunch we split up to accomplish a few smaller tasks. Some of us folded laundry, some of us organized the quilts in the basement, some of us spackled dents in the wall from recliners during the summer, and some of us headed outside to load books into a van - One Heartland (the parent organization of Camp Heartland) gets so many donations that they donate what they can't use, which I think shows how interconnected service organizations are. We spent the rest of the afternoon back in the arts and crafts room, making holiday cards to send out to the families of the campers. Again, all of ten of us were in a room, singing to Christmas songs and generally having a really great time. I'm still amazed at how close a group of nine students and one advisor can get so close in such a short amount of time while doing service.
We sat around after dinner and did a short reflection, focusing on what service actually is. Kristen (my co-leader) and I felt that this was important to discuss, because it would be easy to think that sharpening colored pencils and setting up tables doesn't do anything to directly effect the children that come to camp in the summer. However, the fact that we can do this kind of jobs frees up Jill (again, the camp director) to be able to work on paperwork, phone calls, and all the types of things that allow camp to go on in the summer. No one on the trip thought that what we were doing was unimportant, which really speaks to the character of everyone on the trip. We also chatted about what made us decide to go on a Buck-i-Serv trip; I thought it was fantastic that most of our motivation was just because we all like to do service.
Reflection was followed by one of the most intense games of Catchphrase I've ever played, then more movie watching. Day Four (which is actually day) is our day off and our trip to the Mall of America - should be a good time.
Monday, December 14, 2009
Day Two!
Today was a much looooonger day of service here at Camp Heartland. We worked on a lot of organizational projects today, getting the camp back in order after a summer (and fall) of camp sessions. We organized a closet of a million different types of paint - I honestly had no idea there was so much variety, other than exterior/interior! We moved a whole closet of sleeping bags, and organized the entire "drama closet", which is essentially all of the costumes used all summer. And that was all before lunch!
After lunch, we braved the Minnesota winter for the first time, as half of the group moved shelves, televisions, and food from an outside storage facility into the camp. The rest of us worked on washing two solid days of dishes, since the kitchen's hot water heater had been broken the past two days. After we had finished working on organizing parts of the main camp, we moved out to the shower houses and organized all of the towels, sheets, and ot
her laundry-related things out there. The winter weather here is cold, but (at least today), it seemed to be just as cold as winter in Ohio. Though, the wind chill tomorrow is supposed to be around -20, so we'll be staying inside all day tomorrow.Tonight is another night of movies, hot chocolate, and getting to know each other better. Everyone on the trip has reached a nice level of comfort with each other; the conversation flows really easily and we usually wrap up each meal cracking up.
Sunday, December 13, 2009
Day One!
Our first day at Camp Heartland was a relaxing one. We were allowed to sleep in, and then had a fantastic brunch. After that, Jill (the camp director), gave us an overview of the history of Camp Heartland. This was after a tour of the camp - it's a little like being at summer camp when we stay here, what with bunk beds and wooden nametags and such. Except, y'know, it's -2 degrees outside. After the tour we watched two films as a group - one which was a short documentary (produced by the founder of Camp Heartland) about a woman and her two sons and how a family lives with HIV/AIDS. The woman, a close friend to Camp Heartland founder Neil, was infected with the virus by her ex-husband, and passed the virus on to her youngest son. The film consisted of interviews with both sons and the mother, interspersed with scenes from their life; arguments over medications, the two boys playing together, and the mother discussing how she hoped to live the rest of her life.
The little boy with AIDS, Nile, was the first camper at Camp Heartland in 1993. Just this pass year, Jill informed us, he was married, with Neil being in his wedding. It was a nice reminder of how difficult HIV/AIDS is to manage on a daily basis, and also a reminder of how much medical treatment of the disease has progressed in 17 years. The second video was a slideshow of pictures and video from the camp sessions in the summer - a completely different experience from the first video. Jill also spoke to us about how One Heartland (the organization that manages the camp) has expanded to a family based camp in New York. and a two week session in Malibu, California. In addition, since their campers have grown so old (because fewer children are being born with HIV), they have expanded their focus to more groups of children with special needs, including camps for runaways from the Twin Cities, homeless children, children who have Crohn's disease, and children with seve
re allergies.
We spent the rest of the afteroon working on organizational projects around the camp:
- organizing the sheets, blankets, and towels for the main lodge
- organizing all the clothes that the camp has to give to campers who don't have enough clothes for camp
- organizing the closet of board games
After dinner, we had a little bit of group reflection, talking about our reactions to the films we watched and learning about the camp as well as talking about our experience on the trip so far. We then played Scategories as a group, and are now watching movies or working on some arts and crafts for the camp.
It's been great!
re allergies.We spent the rest of the afteroon working on organizational projects around the camp:
- organizing the sheets, blankets, and towels for the main lodge
- organizing all the clothes that the camp has to give to campers who don't have enough clothes for camp
- organizing the closet of board games
After dinner, we had a little bit of group reflection, talking about our reactions to the films we watched and learning about the camp as well as talking about our experience on the trip so far. We then played Scategories as a group, and are now watching movies or working on some arts and crafts for the camp.
It's been great!
Saturday, December 12, 2009
We're Here!
15 hours in a 12-passenger van, and we've arrive (all 10 of us) safe and sound at Camp Heartland! Not much more to say, other than I need to relax and get some sleep!
Sunday, December 6, 2009
Last week!
Thursday was our last training session as a cohort of trip leaders. It was a relaxing, even slightly informal meeting. We went over some last minute details (where to pick up our van, where to pick up the sweatshirts for participants, etc.) and discussed reflection on the trip for a little bit. We ended the meeting by hearing a 3-5 minute presentation from every trip leader pairing on their trip. I loved it. I know my trip pretty well, because I was a participant last year, but it was so interesting to hear about all the other trips, which, honestly, I didn't know that much about. The only downer was hearing about how a lot of trips are going to go to the beach in their spare time - the weather forecast says it will be around a 7 degree windchill when we get to Minnesota!
This Saturday, the majority of the trip was able to meet up at Donato's and just hang out; it's nice to get to know people on your trip before you spend 14 hours in a van with them. Everyone seems really relaxed, I think it's going to be a great trip.
We leave on Saturday at 6:00 am! I'll be updating the blog a lot more once we get there, complete with pictures and everything.
This Saturday, the majority of the trip was able to meet up at Donato's and just hang out; it's nice to get to know people on your trip before you spend 14 hours in a van with them. Everyone seems really relaxed, I think it's going to be a great trip.
We leave on Saturday at 6:00 am! I'll be updating the blog a lot more once we get there, complete with pictures and everything.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
