Hello Camp Canadensis…

And…HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY!  I hope this blog post finds everyone in a loving spirit.  One thing I know that we are all in love with is CAMP!  With that, I figured I’d do a quick Top Ten list of “Things I love about camp!”

Here we go…

#10:  The moment I see the first bus pull into camp to officially start each summer.  The staff are holding their bunk signs, screaming and jumping up and down.  The campers are looking out the bus window so excited for camp to begin!

#9:  Taco Day!  My favorite lunch at camp!  I know that many of you are also shouting, “Not bread bowls?!”  Yes.  I love the bread bowls, too.  But, I still love Tacos more!

#8:  Making a project in the Art Center.  Every summer, I like to make something for my wife Jaime, whether it be in Glass, Ceramics, the Art Shack or Woodworking.  Maybe this year, I’ll do something int the T-Shirt design studio.

#7:  Getting to play reveille in the morning and waking up camp.  “Good Morning, Canadensis!”  What songs should I play this summer?

#6:  Shooting hoops!  Basketball is one of my favorite sports to play.  And, at camp, you can basically walk to any court within a matter of seconds.  That’s where I love to be during Free Play.  I love challenging all of the campers to a game of H-O-R-S-E.  Of course, if you beat me, it’s extra canteen!  Better practice your jump shots now.

#5:  Riding a mountain bike on the lake trail.  Such a beautiful ride and good exercise, too.  We are so fortunate to have such an amazing trail system at camp.  Of course, the ride is always even a bit more fun after we’ve had some rain and you get to ride through some puddles!

#4: Taking a kayak out on Lake Lenape.  If you haven’t taken a kayak all the way out on the lake, you’re missing out.  It’s awesome!

#3:  When I hear that a camper did something at camp that they had never tried or done before like getting up on waterskis for the first time or getting to the top of the climbing wall or learning how to ride a honda.  There are so many firsts or accomplishments that happen over the course of a single day at camp…and I always love to hear about each and every one of them!

#2: Getting to break Color War!  This well kept secret always has campers, staff and parents is suspense.  How will it happen in 2017?!  I also love Color War Sing.  It’s a great moment to see just how hard the CITs have worked putting everything together.

#1: Walking to morning line-up each day.  I get so excited just hearing the music blasting over the speakers and the dance party that is happening as I turn the corner to the amphitheater.  That moment each day gets me so pumped for the day at camp!

What are the things you love about camp?!?!

A few weeks ago, some of us took a ride up to camp to check in on some of the projects that are going on up at camp.  First of all, it is always strange to see camp in the winter all covered in snow.  Hard to believe in just two months Matt, Andrew and their pre-camp crew will be up at camp and starting to prepare for the arrival of staff and campers.  We have so many (and I mean so many) projects in the works for Summer 2017.  We will continue to unveil new pictures in the upcoming months, but here are some to share for now…

As you can see, really exciting stuff happening up at camp.

OK…it’s time for a Blog Band Call.  Very simple.  First five people to e-mail me at brian@canadensis.com with the correct answer to the question wins a sought after White Team band for band call.

This question is a Blog Math question.  Here we go…

The number of summers completed by Camp Mom Heather Fisher + the Number of Bus Locations we have at Camp + the number of letter writing days we have at camp each week = ????

Good luck!

Since my last blog, there are so many camp families I have met up with.  It’s been so great to meet all of the new and returning campers.  Here is everyone I met…

In Plainview, NY, I met up with Lucas (3rd grade; 1st summer).  Lucas likes to basketball and is currently playing on his team, the Hawks.  Baseball is a sport he plays all year round and his favorite positions to play are catcher, pitcher and third base.  He also plays soccer and enjoys playing goalie.  When at home, he watches sports and is a big fan of the Mets, Giants, Patriots, Knicks and Warriors.  He can also be found playing games like FIFA and NBA 2K17 on his X-Box.  When he gets to camp in Summer 2017 as part of our Upper Junior boys group, Lucas will be busy playing a lot of sports, riding the quads, going camping and looking forward to Color War.  Here is a photo…

Also in Plainview, I got to know Charlie (4th grade; 1st summer).  Charlie told me all about how he recently started to take and really enjoys a Crossfit class.  He also works out on the treadmill.  On top of that, he enjoys gymnastics.  Charlie is an electric guitar player and has begun to master songs like the new popular song “Closer.”  When he’s just chilling out, Charlie likes to read and recently has found himself reading books about mythology.  If not reading, he might be playing his favorite video game, Skylanders.  When Charlie gets to camp in June, he let me know that the rock wall, zipline, quads and hondas will be the activities at the top of his list.  Here is a snapshot…

In Syosset, NY, I spent time with Trey (3rd grade; 1st summer) and Jossie (3rd summer; 6th grade).  Trey let me know that he is a big lacrosse player and enjoys playing middie on his teams, the Gladiators and SYLax.  He also plays flag football.  Currently, he plays on a travel basketball team.  When at home, you might find him playing rock music on his drum kit or rooting for some of his favorite teams, the Eagles, Warriors, Flyers or Syracuse Orange.  On top of all that, Trey enjoys magic and even showed me a trick during my visit.  When he makes his way to Canadensis in 2017 as part of the Upper Junior boys group, he is ready to try all of the activities at the lake, glass fusion and quads.  As for Jossie, she is also playing in a basketball league.  In the fall this year, she played on a volleyball team.  In a few months when spring arrives, it will be time to head onto to the diamond for some softball.  Of course, she is always keeping up with camp friends and wanted to give a shout out to Girls Bunk 10 from Summer 2016.  When it’s time for camp, she is thrilled to be spending the summer with her brother for the first time in four years.  And, she can’t wait for her trip to Hershey Park.  Here is a picture…

In Upper Saddle River, NJ, I got to hang out with Jack (2nd grade; 1st summer).  Jack plays center midfield on this travel soccer team, the Americans.  He is currently training in the winter playing futsol.  In the spring, he will move into baseball season and play on a team.  He favorite teams to root for are the Jets, Mets and Rangers.  Jack also enjoys building with legos.  When I visited, he was in the middle of working on a lego imperial shuttle from the Star Wars movies, which was very cool!  Speaking of cool, Jack’s family has a tradition where they travel to a different state each year to see baseball games.  This year, they will head to Texas to see the Rangers or Astros.  When Summer 2017 rolls around, Jack is looking forward to activities like parkour, soccer, baseball, outdoor cooking, fishing and going camping on his division’s overnight.  Here is a pic…

While in Rye Brook, NY, I saw Dylan (2nd grade; 1st summer).  Dylan likes to go ice skating and go skiing.  This month, he will be going to Breckenridge for some big time skiing!  When at home, you might find Dylan playing on his X-Box where one of his favorite games is Minecraft.  He also enjoys rooting for the Jets and Giants.  Whenever he gets the chance, Dylan likes to swim.  For his first summer at Canadensis, Dylan is ready for activities like the quads, gaga, basketball, soccer, football and hockey.  He is most excited about not having to do any homework, particularly math.  Here is a snapshot…

In Livingston, NJ, it was great getting to see Ari (3rd grade; 1st summer) and Jadyn (6th grade, 4th summer).  Ari told me all about how he plays defense for the Livingston Soccer Club.  He is also a brown belt in karate.  When it’s time to keep busy with activities around the house, he enjoys playing Minecraft, watching shows like “Fuller House” and “Henry Danger,” and building legos.  He is currently working on a Millennium Falcon.  Ari also loves this time of year because it means it’s time to go skiing.  When he joins the Upper Junior Boys this summer, he is excited for rocketry, waterskiing, woodworking, swim, digital photo and the ropes course / zipline.  As for big sister Jadyn, who will be in the Freshman division in 2017, she plays midfield for the Livingston Soccer Club.  Currently, it’s basketball season for her, too.  She also enjoys ski trips to Vermont.  Jadyn wanted to give a shout out to her camp friends and had two messages for them…”Shot. Shot. Shot.  Shot.”  and “That’s not fair!”  This summer, as a Freshman, Jadyn can’t wait to get away from homework, her trip to Hershey Park and hondas.  Here’s a photo…

In New York City, I spent time with Ryan (2nd grade; 1st summer) and Julia (5th grade, 3rd summer).  During the visit, I learned that Ryan loves and plays flag football.  He will be playing again the spring once the weather gets warm.  He is also a big fan of the New York Giants and can be seen tailgating before all of the games.  Dylan also plays the piano.  He enjoys video games, too, with Clans of Clans and Clash Royale being two of his particular favorites these days.  When he gets to camp as part of the Lower Junior Boys division, he is ready to continue playing his favorite sport football, roasting marshmallows and being with his big sister.  As for Julia, she is very busy with her travel soccer team, where she plays goalie.  In fact, she hasn’t let in a goal all season long.  Wow!  When it’s time to relax, Julia enjoys reading comics.  When I asked her what she is looking forward to at camp when she returns, Julia simply said, “Everything.”  She also wanted to give a shout out to the girls of Summer 2016’s Bunk 8.  Here is a photo…

Also in New York City, I got to know Brielle (3rd grade; 1st summer).  Brielle loves to do gymnastics.  She is also taking hip hop dance classes and rehearsing for a recital in the spring.  Her activity schedule also includes playing on a basketball team.  Brielle told me that she likes music and that Taylor Swift is one of her favorite artists.  When she is at home, she can be found making a ton of videos using the Musically app and doing art projects.  In June when she gets to camp as part of the Upper Junior Girls division, Brielle said that she will be signing up to be on the dance and gymnastics teams.  She also can’t wait for all the lake activities, including waterskiing.  Most importantly, she is ready to make some great new friends.  Here is a picture…

In Armonk, NY, I met up with Ben (2nd grade, 1st summer) and Michael (5th grade, 3rd summer).  Ben told me all about his active schedule throughout the year.  Currently, he plays on a basketball team, the Bobcats.  In the fall and spring, he plays pitcher and first base on a baseball team.  Over the past few years, he’s also gotten involved in parkour and loves the show “American Ninja Warrior.”  Ben is also a fan of the Giants, Knicks, Mets, Rangers and Syracuse Orange.  When at home, Ben likes to play board games like Monopoly.  At camp this summer, Ben told me about some of the activities he’s ready for when joining the Lower Juniors.  They were the ropes course / zipline, baseball, basketball and the water slides at the pool.  As for Michael, he is currently busy playing on two separate basketball teams.  In spring, it will be time for baseball season.  Michael wanted to give a shout out to the Boys of Bunk 9 from Summer 2016.  Here is a snapshot…

In Glen Rock, NJ, I had a blast meeting Maddie (4th grade; 1st summer).  Maddie told me that she does gymnastics all year round.  Currently, her favorite is doing all of the floor exercises.  In the fall, she also played on a soccer team.  When spring comes, it will be time to put on her glove and play softball.  While there is snow on the ground, Maddie loves to ski.  She also let me know that she is a big Oklahoma Sooner football fan, or as they call them “Boomer Sooners.”  As a Lower Inter in 2017, Maddie can’t wait for all of the activities at the lake, including waterskiing and Ice Mountain.  She is really looking forward to meeting her bunk mates and counselors and making new friends.   Here is a pic…

Back in Livingston, NJ, I spent time with Jordyn (2nd grade; 1st summer) and Ella (6th grade; 4th summer).  Jordyn told me all about how she plays defense on her Livingston Club Soccer travel team.  She also plays tennis.  But, she gets excited for this time of year because her favorite sport is skiing.  Finally, Jordyn takes hip hop dance classes and will have a recital this spring.  When she gets to camp as a Lower Junior girl, she is super pumped for the Art Shack, waterskiing, Color War and making new friends.  Ella is also involved with the Livingston Soccer Club, where she plays center defense.  Currently, she is also playing on a basketball team.  Of course, her year wouldn’t be complete without seeing her camp friends.  She wanted to give a shout out to Girls Bunk 11 from Summer 2016.  When she returns to camp this year as a Freshman, she is really looking forward to her trip to Hershey Park, Color War and the hondas.   Here is a photo…

Well, that’s all of the blogging for now.  Until my next blog, HAVE A GREAT DAY!

-Brian

Did you know that each summer Camp Canadensis draws campers from around 15 states?  We visit each new camper before their first summer at camp and I’ve just returned from a trip that combined home visits, staff hiring, a camp conference and sight-seeing in some of the most beautiful parts of America!  There is a lot out there too see, but the highlights were the campers that will be joining us at Lake Lenape this year!

Meet Luke!  He lives in Boulder, Colorado and is in 8th grade.  He will be an Upper Senior Boy this summer, and he’s been attending a camp in Colorado for the last few years.  We hung out on a school night at his house, he’s one of four siblings.  He has an older sister, and a younger brother and sister.  In school, his best subject is math…but Luke much prefers to be outside wake boarding, and he can’t wait to ride the hondas at camp.  He cheers for the Redskins, loves Mexican food, and will be playing lacrosse this Spring.

His brother might look familiar, Levi is a current 5th grader who will be an Upper Inter Boy this year.  It’s going to be his 6th summer at camp and he is very excited to finally be in Middle Camp!  Dave came on the home visit too, he’s excited to get to hang with Luke on Senior Side!

Before leaving Colorado, there were a few other members of the Canadensis family we wanted to meet up with!!

We had breakfast with Samantha, who cannot wait to be back at camp for her 2nd summer.  She’s in 4th grade and will be a Lower Inter.  She loves living in Denver, and looks forward to seeing her camp friends whenever she’s back east!  Soccer has been keeping her really busy this year.

We grabbed a dinner in Denver with Jared (who goes by the nickname “Groundhog”) and Eric!  Always good to hang out with Eric and catch up, and Groundhog is having a good school year as well.  He has just returned from a trip to Vietnam over winter break!  He’ll be back at camp this summer to take bunk photos so make sure your ready to flash him your best smile while you lean up against the trees in The Grove!

We did this road trip in a Volkswagon Campervan/RV (which has long been a dream of mine!!).  We picked it up in Denver and started heading to Utah, and our very first stop was in Vail, Colorado where we got to visit Pete Tarnoff!  Pete is the Middle Camp Boys Head Counselor and he’ll soon be celebrating his 20th summer at Canadensis!  When he’s not at camp, he’s a snowboard instructor at Vail Resorts. Yes, he lives the life!!

Our first stop in California was in San Diego with the “Pearlman Dynasty”.  All 5 of their kids were at Canadensis this summer and we had a “camp style” dinner together with hotdogs and hamburgers (grilled by dad instead of Chef David!).  Paisley (front and center) and Cash (with glasses in the back row) are in 3rd grade and will be Upper Juniors this summer.  Sonny (back right) is looking forward to moving up to Middle Camp and being in the Upper Inters.  Ozzie (back left)  is spending the summer working on baseball.  Jones(back middle) started at camp 8 years ago!  He is going to be a CIT this summer and that means all of his siblings are guaranteed to on the same Color War team this year (last year 4 of them were on the winning Good Morning Gold, and one Cash was on Blue After Dark…and even though mom was cheering for blue, it didn’t turn into a win!).

Meet Harper!   She lives in Los Angeles, California and is a current 2nd grader.  But she’s lived in both NYC  & LA and she’s one of the oldest in her grade based on what coast she’s on so she’ll be going into the Upper Junior Girls division at camp this summer! She sometimes goes by the nickname “Harp”. We had a lot of fun hanging out after school, it was the first time I did a home visit mostly outside in the winter!  When I pulled up she was scooting on the block with her youngest sister (she has two younger sisters) and later she was bouncing on the trampoline with her dad.  Harper did the Tour & More Playday this summer, and she knew right away that she was ready for camp this summer!!  Her mom is a Canadensis Alumni and loves camp, but Harper had to convince her that summer 2017 was the right time to go, and I’m glad she did!  Here’s what you need to know about this happy, nice and easy-going new camper: her favorite food is mac & cheese (but she doesn’t like cold cheese!) and she likes the color purple.  She loves horses, and her favorite TV show is “Kickin It”.  She also likes listening to Ariana Grande and eating Laffy Taffy (but she’s glad we often have airheads in our Canteen!).  Right now she’s reading the book “The Descendants”, but she loves to read and had several books next to her bed.  She also likes the movie “The Incredibles” and “The Pacifier”.  Harper is also a talented artist and her home is filled with a lot of her great projects from painting to sculptures.  This summer she’s excited to try archery, woodworking and glass fusion electives.  She loves building things too, and she’s started her own Fortune Telling business at school which is raising money for charity.  The fortunes are very affordable, for $.25 I got a fortune and a paper airplane!  Can’t wait to see all the fun and funk she creates at camp this summer!

Also in Los Angeles, California are brothers Kaden & Noah!   They did the  Tour & More Weekend at Canadensis last summer, and can’t wait for more summer fun in the Poconos!  Their mom went to camp on the East Coast and can’t wait for them to experience it, and make tons of summer memories.  They’ll be joining their cousins Zoe & Marley at Canadensis, and on the day I visited Zoe’s Bat Mitzvah invitation had just arrived.  They are excited to be celebrating in Westchester this April!  We went on a fun tour of their house, and these guys soaked up so much camp information during my visit…I tried to quiz them at the end to see who got first pick of t-shirts, and they both knew every answer!!  They both love music and hockey, and will be practicing rollerblading before camp starts so they can join the Canadensis Hockey League for games.  Here’s what you need to know about these guys:

Kaden (left) is a current 1st grader who will be a Lower Junior Boy at camp this summer.  He sometimes goes by the nickname “KK” and he’s a little comedian who will crack you up!  He is happy, sporty and can sometimes be a little bit of a smarty pants!  For his electives this summer he’ll be trying out the batting cages and rocketry.  His favorite sport to play is baseball and the season starts really soon, but his favorite sport to watch is hockey and he loves the LA Kings.  His favorite food is pizza, and his favorite color is blue.  If he has to pick a favorite animal, it’s fish.  And the answer is the same for his favorite music…Phish!  He likes the TV show “Best Friends Whenever”  and snacking on Milky Way chocolate bars.  He also loves floor hockey, the “Nate the Great” book series, and all things Star Wars, including the movie “The Last Jedi”!

Noah (right) is a current 3rd grader who will be an Upper Junior Boy at camp this summer.  He is cool, funny and smart and definitely wants to try the floor hockey, waterslides and batting cage electives this summer.  He’s involved with an after school program called “Rockstar” which puts bands together that practice and then they play a gig!  Kaden participates too and they’ll be in the same band when they are older.  Noah sings, plays guitar and keyboard so we’ll definitely be lucky to have him in our Rock Band at camp this summer!  He doesn’t watch a ton of TV, but his favorite show is “Phineas and Ferb” and he cheers for the LA Kings.  He had some of the best answers I’ve ever gotten when asking about favorite things…his favorite animal is a koala, his favorite music is classic rock, and his favorite food is In-N-Out burger (even though I only eat grilled cheese there, I 100% agree!!).  He also likes the color red, Twix bars, and Star Wars.  He showed me a huge Star Wars lego model he had recently built which was impressive!  He’s also read all the Harry Potter books, and “Deathly Hallows” is his favorite.  Can’t wait to have them both at camp!

When we pulled into Paradise Valley, Arizona, I pretty much headed right over to see Dylan & Jaden!  Dylan will be spending his 4th summer at camp.  He’s currently in 4th grade and can’t wait to be a Lower Inter…this year there are a bunch of new electives he can try, and he’s excited to step up and ride the Hondas and get his hands covered in clay on the Ceramics Wheel.  He is staying very busy in Arizona with soccer, he’s on a travel soccer team and playing all the time!  His big sister Jaden is getting her 5 year jacket this summer!  She’s currently in 8th grade and will be an Upper Senior Girl at camp this summer.  Last year her bunk won All-Camp MTV Night, they take it very, very seriously!  Jaden takes camp in general very seriously…she’s staying at her current school for 9th grade because the dates work out better with the end of camp, and she doesn’t want to miss anything!  This year she’s gotten very involved with her school’s Speech & Debate team,  and she is part of a very successful Duo Interpretation.  Right after I saw her she was heading to Stamford for a competition, and just before coming to camp she’ll be in Alabama for another tournament!

Also in the Phoenix, Arizona area, I visited new campers Daralee & Tavi!  Their dad is a Camp Canadensis alumni, and both parents grew up in Pennsylvania.  They are so excited for them to spend the summer with us in the Poconos!  They did the Tour & More Weekend this past summer, so we talked about memories and then started to focus on things for the summer ahead!  They have a younger sister who is only 4 years old…but she would hop on the bus to camp  with them if she could!  Here’s what you need to know about these siblings:

Daralee is a current 3rd grader, and will be a new Upper Junior Girl at camp this summer.  She sometimes goes by the nickname “D”.  She is a very serious dancer who practices 4-5 times a week at her studio, and is constantly on the move.  We watched some of her recent team videos on the computer and I was totally wowed, and her season just started!  We’ll be lucky to have her on our competition team this summer!  She is strong, smart and creative, and this summer she can’t wait to test out lots of activities like windsurfing, water slides, glass fusion, ceramics, gymnastics, painting, art shack and of course dance!  Her favorite food is watermelon, she loves the color sky blue and her favorite animal is a puppy (but for the holidays she got a cute guinea pig as a pet, and named him “S’more”!).  Her favorite TV show is “Bunk’d” and she likes listening and dancing to pop music.  She cheers for the Eagles (that makes her Philly parents proud!) and her favorite candy is Laffy Taffy.

Tavi is a current 1st grade, and will be a new Lower Junior Boy at camp this summer.  He goes by two nicknames “Tavster” and “Tot”…and I think “Tot” will be the one that sticks at camp!  He also got a pet for the holidays, a gecko named Jackie that I got to  hold, she was very friendly and had tons of spots!  In his room he also had a huge lego Starwars ship that he built with his dad, and he played me a song on the keyboard.  He’s very fast, and likes to run so you’ll have to be quick to keep up with him!  He’s funny and smart and likes to play ninjas.  He can’t wait to try ceramics, gaga and the water trampoline this summer.  His favorite food is chicken nuggets, he loves the color blue and the TV show “Ninja Turtles” (he also had some of their fatheads up on his wall).  He cheers for the Philadelphia Eagles with the rest of his family, and he loves to snack on Kit Kats.  His favorite book is “The Hulk” and he loves “The Lego Movie” and can’t wait for “Lego Batman” to come out soon!  Can’t wait to have them at camp!