Gotta Get Down on Friday!

Today's morning assembly was just bursting with spirit!  JP, the FuManchu's counselor, used his awesome DJ skills to pump up the kids, and everyone was giving 110% with their dance moves!  It was the perfect start to a hot, hot, HOT Friday!

Our Director, Amber, led this morning's assembly.  But because the spirit was so crazy, she needed a little help.  Thank goodness for this camper from the Balbos!  He may be little, but he has some BIG personality and definitely made this an unforgettable assembly.  We may have a new host for morning assembly from now on... we'll see!

To make this morning even better, both the CILTs and Camp 3 had cheers!  The CILTs did a great job with a remix to Justin Bieber's song "Boyfriend," but Camp 3 definitely brought the heat with this cheer to Adele's "Rolling in the Deep."  Here are some of the lyrics!

We can't help feelin'

We've always had it all

Rolling in the heat

We've had our heart inside of the camp

And we've played it to the beat

Because of their awesome cheer and amazing respect, Camp 3 took home the Spirit Stick for the seventh time this summer!  C-A-M-P 3, YOU KNOW YOU LOVE CAMP 3!

Have a happy Friday and a wonderful weekend.  We can't wait to see you on Monday for WEEK 4!

Rising Sun Love,

Megan

Hoedown Throwdown!

In honor of this week's theme, Camp Rising Sun has seen a LOT of country dancing - my favorite!  Obviously we celebrated in assembly with our typical crazy dance moves... but for the campers, just dancing in assembly wasn't enough!

Earlier this week, the CILTs (Campers in Leadership Training) spent an afternoon in a line dance class with one of the Y's Fitness Instructors.  They worked so hard and ended up with a wonderful routine!  Here's a video from their practice session:



Then today, Blair used her Dance Week in Performing Arts to work on some more country moves.  She started with some traditional country music, but let's face it, we LOVE our camp songs!  Blair and the campers put a country twist on some of our favorites, like the Cha Cha Slide, Wobble, and the Cupid Shuffle.  Looks like we'll have some new dances in morning assembly now!

Soccer... FIFA Street Style!

At camp we have a few staple Ranks that are held every day such as Basketball, Creative Arts, and Target Sports.  These are always so much fun, but what makes them even better is when counselors put a unique spin on these activities.  Today, D'Vario did just that by hosting Camp Rising Sun's first FIFA Street Soccer Rank!

The campers had such a blast helping him set up for the Rank and then playing in 2v2 and 3v3 games.  When they weren't playing, campers practiced their shooting on the side to prep for their next game. 

I have never seen such intense soccer playing before!  We tried to capture it from a different angle too, so defintiely check back for some pretty crazy videos of this great Rank!

Dancing for a Cause!

This morning, we were joined by some very special guests:  dancers and teachers from Cary Dance Productions (http://www.carydance.com/).

We knew that they were going to come into the Performing Arts Rank, but they surprised us with a $1000 check to We Build People, a community-wide effort to raise funds for and provide support to children, teens, and adults who would otherwise not be able to participate in YMCA programs.  They raised this money through a benefit dance performance, and we so appreciate their donation especially because it directly affects our campers.  Though many people are able to afford camp, there are a number who unfortunately cannot.  We Build People makes it possible for kids to get the same experience as their peers by providing scholarships for families so that they can afford camp.  For more information on We Build People, please visit http://www.ymcawebuildpeople.org/ or ask any counselor!

After this generous show of support, Cary Dance Productions stayed around for Performing Arts Rank where they taught a hip hop routine to Justin Bieber's song "Boyfriend" (a favorite at camp!).  The kids absolutely LOVED it!  They even got to see a performance by a few of the dancers.  Thanks, Cary Dance Productions, for a great Rank!

Jump Around!

For as long as I can remember, I've had two main goals for my time with the YMCA:

1. Become a Counselor at Camp Rising Sun

2. Become a Super Skipper

I've (obviously) accomplished my first goal!  However, the second goal unfortunately remains a distant dream.  As a camper, I always saw the Super Skippers practicing in the gym, and I loved getting to watch them do crazy tricks!  Spying on their practices was always one of the best parts of my day.  When I heard that Jumprope Camp was being held this week, I was SO excited because it meant that I would get a chance to relive some of my childhood memories and see the Super Skippers in action again.  Check out some pictures from my visit! 

 

This camp is led by counselors and Super Skipper volunteers who teach campers tons of tricks throughout the week.  Today the campers rotated from station to station where they worked on double unders, rodeo, crosses, double dutch, and rope throws.

I had such a great time hanging out with these campers today, and I can't wait to visit them again for their next sessions in mid-July and mid-August!  I may not be a Super Skipper, but I do love Jumprope Camp!

Country-Western Wacky Wednesday!

It's been a Country-Western kind of morning here at Camp Rising Sun in honor of our week's theme: Hoedown Throwdown! There were cowboys and cowgirls EVERYWHERE, from assembly to Backyard Games in the Woods to Target Sports in Hawaii! Check out some pictures from our Wacky, Wacky Wednesday!

In today's skit, Wild Bill - who had his money stolen yesterday, oh no! - found a new friend:  Sheriff Amazing.  Hopefully this pair can find Wild Bill's money by the end of the week!

Every Wacky Wednesday, we hold a contest to find out which camper has the best costume.  Usually, each huddle gets to send ONE representative for the contest - but since the spirit was so wild and crazy today, each huddle was able to send TWO representatives!  Talk about a WACKY Wednesday!

The winner is decided based on who gets the loudest cheers. Today, it was a pretty close call between these three campers but ultimately a girl from the Donkey Kongs in Camp 2 was declared the winner! Congratulations!



Congratulations also go out to the Yoshis on their SPIRIT STICK win!



Camp Rising Sun's First "Horse Race"

As promised in an earlier tweet (www.twitter.com/RisingSunYMCA), here is the video of today's spontaneous "horse race" that I saw down in Hawaii.  It was a pretty intense battle, but "Grassy" came out as the winner!  Our campers always surprise me with their creativity and wild imaginations!

A Day of Fun at Camp Rising Sun!

Today there were so many fun things going on at camp that I couldn't choose just one activity to blog about!  Here's a little taste of a typical Tuesday at Camp Rising Sun!



My day started with a visit to swim lessons where the kids were working on treading water, swimming the distance of the pool, and even blowing bubbles!  They'll be swimming in no time!

Next, I went to an awesome assembly where we got to watch today's episode of this week's skit!  Whiplash and Wild Bill (on the left) met a new friend who turned out to be a foe!  Check back tomorrow for a full update on our Country Western friends!

The campers were full of enthusiasm today with Camp Two Head Counselor Ryan leading his first assembly of the summer!  We had a wild dance party, followed by intense cheering all for the SPIRIT STICK!  The Balbos, our second youngest huddle, ended up winning - congrats!

During morning Ranks, I caught a few shots of our campers having the time of their lives!  From soccer, to hockey, to just playing around on the Side Hill, everyone was busy having lots and lots of fun!  I was so impressed by how hard a lot of our campers are working towards passing off their Ranks.  Make sure to check out your campers' Rank books and ask what skills they passed off every day!

At lunch time, I stopped in the Poole Room to celebrate thsi little girl's birthday!  To go along with Camp Rising Sun tradition, her birthday song was followed by a Pie in the Face.  I'm sure our counselor Ashley had just as much fun as the birthday girl!

During Huddle Time, I stopped by the Hulihees and the Chinpuffs to check out their fun activities!  These kids always have the best time together at camp!



I ended my day with a visit to Performing Arts Rank where Blair was teaching these campers some dance technique.  Every time I walked in the room, these campers were mastering a new skill.  Make sure to check the blog on Friday to see some Country Western dancing in this Rank!


All in all, it was another fantastic day at my favorite place in the world:  Camp Rising Sun!  I know tomorrow is going to be even BETTER because it's WACKY WEDNESDAY!  Make sure to dress up like anything related to this week's theme of "Hoedown Throwdown" - that means cowboys, square dancers, really ANYTHING!  I'll put some of the best costumes on tomorrow's blog, so check it out.  Have a wonderful night, and we'll see you tomorrow!

Rising Sun Love,
Megan

(Megan.Warren@YMCATriangle.Org)

Camper Spotlight!

Every day at Camp Rising Sun, campers are recognized by their counselors for good deeds and for displays of our main character traits:  Caring, Respect, Responsibility, Honesty, and Faith in God.  It's always really special for a camper to be rewarded, whether it's through beads (for Camp One and Camp Two) or bandanas (for Camp Three, our rising middle schoolers).  But what's really cool is when campers are recognized by other campers, and that's just what happened today!

When I arrived at camp, I was pleasantly surprised by a note in my mailbox complimenting one of our Camp Three boys.  The note made me so happy that I just HAD to find this camper!  He was down at Gaga Ball, his favorite activity, playing with some friends.  Here are some pictures from their game.

With this being his second summer at Camp Rising Sun, he has made quite an impression on his friends.  A few of the other boys in his huddle said that he was always friendly and honest.  One of his best friends said, "I'd give him every bandana out there.  He has heart.  He's just kind."  It was so inspiring to see these 6th graders talk so highly of their friend!

A Sweet Reunion

A camper from the Balbos was selected to attend a super secret "Milk and Cereal Party" (a tradition at camp!). While this party was totally AWESOME, little did this camper know that his good day was going to get even better!

This afternoon, Camp Rising Sun was blessed with the opportunity to witness the sweetest moment ever. This little boy has not seen his mother in about a year, as she has been serving our country as a soldier in Afghanistan. We were so lucky to be involved in this reunion!

This special surprise will definitely live on as one of my favorite moments at Camp Rising Sun!

Camper Accomplishments!

Week Three at Camp Rising Sun is off to a great start! We had a crazy-spirited morning assembly with a LOT of dancing and a LOT of cheering!

Our campers have been enjoying tons of fun activities.  We've even had a few campers make some very big accomplishments! 

First, we had a camper lose a tooth right after morning assembly.  He was so excited to show it off to all of his friends!

During morning Ranks, this Camp Three camper made a bullseye!  This achievement inspired me to try for a bullseye, but it's definitely not as easy as it looks!

This camper from the FuManchus, our youngest huddle, also had an exciting morning.  Today is his very first day of camp!  When he walked into Rides In, he was a little nervous, but just a few hours later he was playing around camp like he has been here for weeks!  He's given himself the nickname "Mileysaurus Rex" based off of one of our camp areas (the Miley Cyrus) that he saw on his camp tour.

We have some AMAZING campers - check back for more updates and exciting stories!