4th of July All Camp Fun Day!

Here are a few photos from our fun day! We played softball, swam, BBQ'd Carne' Asada, and watched a movie on the big screen in the chapel! What fun we all had! It was a much needed break after Angel Tree week, and a good time before heading into FV Junior High!

I have been completely remiss in my blogging duties the last two weeks! I seem to have a time like that each summer where my job and responsibilities here keep me away from the old blog. So sorry to have not kept you informed as you missed Angel Tree week entirely! In case you don't know, Angel Tree campers are those kids who have been scholar shipped to come to camp, and who have at least one parent in prison. They are a challenging group, and most of our counselors will tell you it is their favorite week of camp all summer! The kids are so open and because their life is not so easy, they really fall in love with camp! Here they are able to just be kids and have fun fun fun! Some don't get much of this in their lives and so we are glad to give them the opportunity! There were 16 decisions last week for The Lord! If you think of it, pray for them as they return to "life" and try to make sense of the decision they made at camp!

This week is Junior High camp. It is an odd thing to go from younger kids to junior highers! As you may know, they can be an interesting bunch. From what I gathered this morning, all is well and there are no major issues! PTL! As always, pray for Thursday night! I will be out there taking some photos for you today!

We are past the half way mark of summer. Here is the breakdown of what is left. Currently FV JH, next week Youth Camp in Main Camp. This means no western camp, but we will be doing the Gladiator theme! More info to come on that. Then back to FV for the last week there, and then back to Main Camp for Youth Camp #2. Three weeks after this one and we are done! I don't know about you but that seems so strange.....

If you haven't been able to send a note yet, there is still time. I will also change the staff names today so check the list as there will be a few new ones and some others deleted who have fulfilled their commitment and gone home. If I can name drop for suggestions..... Roxie and Mustang are a bit under the weather. John Wayne, Storm Breaker, Clint Eastwood and Starbelle could all use a note this week. All of our great counselors will benefit from your prayers and notes, so please don't send to just this list, but there ya go!

Toodles for now!

Activities~~

Greetins from Summer Camp! The first photo is taken inside our Nature Den. We have been putting the Den together for over a year, and are still adding new stuff in there! We have several stuffed animals, you know, the Used To Be Alive kind....there is a racoon peeking out from a tree, a fox, a couple birds, and so on. We also have a couple snakes (live) and water turtles for the kids to enjoy! They can hold the snake if they want to! The Den also gets used for our outdoor education program during the school year. This year it was added to the rotation for the FV kids to enjoy!

The second photo is actually in FV taken during an activity they do with the campers called the Slack Line. As you can see, they walk on the line aided by two staff members to balance them. Simple activity that the kids seem to enjoy a lot!

Happy Friday!

Sock Hop?

I snapped a couple pic's of the kids playing "sniper" on Monday to share with you! This game involves socks full of flower and a lot of being sneaky! Kids really enjoy it! For a full camp this week, things are going remarkably smooth. Here's looking toward Thursday!

Slide Show!!

Hungry Bear

Sometimes summer staff get to work with me in the Hungry Bear snack shop too! We tend to have a lot of fun in there, and they love working it! Gotta love those striped aprons huh! It is better than getting shake all over yourself!

Tonight is Thursday.....as always, pray for Thursdays!

Dinner Time~~

Here is a shot of inside the dining hall at dinner tonight. Kids eat with their teepee group and their counselors at the picnic type benches. I went down for dinner tonight and our cook was a little wigged out. It seems for the first time in three summers, he ran out of green vegetables! That never happens! I guess we have a group of healthy campers this week!

Here is Lily Ann waiting outside the nurses trailer with a camper who wasn't feeling to well. It is not always fun and games, sometimes kids need a little extra lovin' and carin' to get through the week. I think sometimes they get homesick and that feeling gets them transferred to Doc Mom who loves on them and sends them back to fun!

Close Staff!

This is Clint Eastwood and Annie Oakley! Clint has been here three summers now and it is Annie's first. Both are super neat kids! Clint always has a smile on his face and is so willing to help out. He is never down, always up and fun! Annie has been a sweet addition this year as well. She is a gentle and kind girl who really does great with the kids. Those big smiles you see are genuine, I see them a lot!

FV #3 starts today. This week we have about 50 campers, another small week. It is also the last week we have space in FV for campers! Yay God! I think there are a few spots for only boys here, or only girls there, but we are nicely full! We also do two youth camps up in Main Camp. This is the part of camp where there are no tee pee's, just cabins and stuff. No western theme there! In fact the theme in Main Camp is Gladiator! Lots of team sports and competitions there! Way fun for high schoolers and junior highers.

I wanted to tell you that your prayers have been helping so much! The staff this year is close. Now, our others staffs have been close, but each year brings its own challenges and drama. I am happy to report that there has been extremely minimal drama this summer! They all enjoy spending their off time together and going into town on the weekends to shop, eat out, hangout at the square and so on! They are neat kids! I am removing a couple names form the staff list this week as a couple kids have gone home. Service staff contract for 3-5 weeks, so those names will change or drop periodically through the summer. If you no longer see a name you did before, it just means their contract has ended! I think we may have new staff coming in in a few weeks as well. There is another set of training at the end of June for July staff members. I update the list so you don't send notes to those who are not longer here. Feel free to keep praying for them though! I have seen a few notes come in and I thank you! It is so awesome for the kids to get these notes, you guys rock! Take care~~~~

Coyote Jack~~~

Some of you remember Coyote Jack, my dad! He usually comes out at least once a summer to visit, and thoroughly enjoys his character in FV. The returning staff love him as well! I had two girls tell me the other night that my dad was "so cool!". I know right! Dad has always been a Good Guy, but has turned to the dark side this year! He loves hanging out down there with the campers as well as staff!

Camp is going well this week. There are only 36 campers, so it fairly easy to contain them! The counselors are enjoying the kids. Always remember to pray for Thursdays!

This is Pancho Villa with his sweetie, Miss Scarlet. The wedding (in real life) is set for November! Pray for them as the summer can put iteresting strains on a relationship. These kids are top quality! They are so cute together....Pancho is also a summer intern at camp. I love this guy, infact I already have his wedding gift picked out! (another great story!)

This week I will attempt to get some photos of the staff doing activities with the campers during the day. They only wear the costumes at night during "town time". I think it will be fun for you to see some of the other things they do! Until then, send a note, say a prayer! Thanks----

Week #2

Okay, so I know I didn't update much last week. My apologies! It was a super busy one for me. Anyway, So much to report! Last week there were 5 salvations! Woo hoo! Also, primary camp had 2! Yay! The staff had a great weekend off and it was much deserved. Some hung out here at camp, some went home to be with their families, and some stayed with friends. The first weekend they get to leave is always like a mass exedus here! I happened to be driving INTO camp as they were all leaving at about 2:30, and man, the dust on the road out was tremendous! I meant it when I said mass exedus! Over the weekend, we had a couple kids sleep over at our house, about 15 of them watchd movies here at night, and I think there were kids here off an on all day Saturday. At one point there were about 12 of them sprawled on my living room floor playing Apples to Apples! Whew.......good thing I love these kids!

So insert Bad Guy #1----Pancho Villa! He is one of the leadership staff, and he has gone to the Dark Side, as it were! Remember the Orlando Bloom story that I have yet to recount to you? Well this is the guy! Anyway, as the theme goes, the Bad Guy's seem to keep getting away with mean stuff, and the good guys can't stop em'! But as we all know, Good wins in the end! Stay tuned. Pancho is (in real life) getting married this fall!

Chapel

Here is Johnny Ringo getting ready to play worship for the campers! These kids play the best music, God always blesses us with talented musicians....



This is Panama Jack on the guitar! Great kid!



Sweetpea and Hop-a-long and Nomad!




There is Deadwood and friends doing a skit that is not quite a legend here, but close! The real legend signiature skit that we do here is called the Sin Chair! Anyway, in this skit the kids are supposedly filming a movie. There is an accident where the bus (Deadwood) runs over a pedestrian! The direcot calls CUT and asks them to do it over with more speed, more emotion, more whatever. Over and over about 4 times until it is just right! It gets a little more dramatic and funny each time. The kids just laugh!



As you plainly see (ha ha) she has been struck by the bus and her friends react!





"Did I really do that!"



"cut....one more time.....with more emotion!"



Hope you enjoyed sharing the skit with us!

Today the primary campers leave and there is about an hour and a half where we move tee pees, set up, pray and prepare to start over! This first weekend is always like that. please pray for the staff as they may be more tired this week since there is no off time. Normally, campers leave Friday morning, we clean camp and they are off until Sunday at 1:00. But this first weekend is always different! Later I can let you know about descisions! Until then.....if you felt led to send a note to someone, this week would be a great time to start! Don't feel like you need to send one to everyone, just a few would help! If you were able to send 5 notes, that would be just a couple dollars in stamps and the blessing would be multiplied a
ga-zillion! All you really need to to say is that you care and that you have prayed for them! Simple!

Hugs and smiles~~~~

OUCH!

So this is Maybeline Fox, Jessica West and that is Tulsa Jack on the ground. Apparently he hurt his knee this week and rumor has it it was "friendly fire" from Mustnag Sally! Ha! Pray for Tulsa's kneee okay?!!

Primary camp is going very well. The kids are having a great time, the counselors and staff are figuring things out, it's going great! Tonight is spaghetti for dinner! Yum! Take care~~

Laundry

This is what I came home to today! So funny! I wash laundry for the kids each summer (for a fee of course!) and I made my laundry announcement last night, so this was what was waiting for me this afternoon! They brought it all the way into to the kitchen, and lined it up in front of the laundry room door, in order of who was first! They make me laugh! Just a quick post for ya!

Movie Night

This is currently my living room....full of staff members! There are over 30 kids in here right now! We are watching a movie called Heavy Weights. It is tradition to watch a camp movie before summer starts! I baked some yummies for them and as you can see they are all piled in my small living room! Good thing the TV is big! By tomorrow I will have the current list of "camp" names for you to pray for. When you send mail, all you need is their camp name and the address. Trust me, our mail lady knows how it is in summer! Tomorrow I am getting photo's of them in their costumes ready for campers! It is so fun when the campers arrive! I liken it to Disney Land. Music is playing, everyone is in costume, and having a good time! the difference is that we share Jesus love!

Thanks for reading along!

You may recognize this staff member! Ryan is officially summer staff for the first time this year! He has been haninging out with the staff for 5 years, but now is really "one of them"! Anyway, this is after the mud pit in main camp was filled....I managed to get the mud out of his jeans, but the tank top didn't survive! The mud pit is a huge draw all summer! Ryan's camp name is Deadwood!

Campers arrive tomorrow....hooray! The staff is all excited and ready to go! Today was an off day filled with fun stuff, and they have been banished to bed after the movie tonight to get plenty of sleep before tomorrow arrives! Pray for our campers and staff as we gear up and welcome the first campers of teh season!

A new day!

Sorry to say, I have no photos for you! I have been super busy getting my part of Frontier Village ready today,and I didn't take time to grab the camera!

Many of the kids have chosen their camp names, they are so funny! We have Deadwood, Calamity Jane, Belle Star, Indiana Jane and many more.

The last couple days the staff have been working on preparing FV for campers, training on proceedures and how to best relate to their campers, as well as building team closeness by doing various fun activities. In fact as I write this they are at the courthouse square having a scavenger hunt. It is good for them to get close and get to know each other since they will have to work and pull together so frequently the next couple of months!

I do have a prayer request. For various reasons we have had several staff members not be able to fulfill their commitment and have backed out before they even got here. Most are very legitimate. However, this means we have some positions to fill. We especially need male counselors and crew members. Please pray that God will send just the right team members our way!

I will do my best to get some photos tomorrow for ya! Until then....Happy Memorial Day!

Here we go again!

Happy summer friends! I hope you are as ready for school to be out as I am! Man, what a great but uber busy year ut has been, especially here at camp. It will be good to be back in touch with you and have you praying again for our counselors, service staff, crew members, rec. team and campers!

Today is the day our summer staff members arrive here at camp for a week of training and preparing before campers arrive next Friday! I don't know where the time goes, but then wait, yes I do! Life!

We have roughly 40 staff members that will join the scene today. They come to us from all over Arizona as well as other states. We have college graduates, college students, high school grads and students, and some recent junior high graduates all ready to take on all we do for God here this summer!

The theme this year is Day of Reckoning. You will notice I changed the title of the blog this year to reflect that. I have decided not to delete the posts from last summer so that you can take a stroll down memory lane (I did and it was fun!) and remember all the things we prayed for and enjoyed last summer, if you were a blog reader with me then. If you were not, then this is your catch up course! Here is a description of the theme and how it plays out:

The theme for this year's Frontier Village is Round-up: The Day of Reckoning. Campers will experience camp in a whole new way as they try to make sense of an unfair world. Why would God allow the "bad guys" to win? Why doesn't good always have the upper hand? The lesson is simple - God is always in control, and sooner or later, there will be a day of reckoning. The only question that remains is, which side will you be on when that day comes?


Cool huh! It is sure to be a summer of impact and memories for all!

As this week progresses I will update you with the goings on of the staff members, there are always some! Did I ever tell you the "Orlando Bloom in the Prescott Mall" story? It was a huge prank and so fun! These kids crack me up! They have such a great time together and it is all good clean fun! As the kids choose their western names, I will let you know so you can pray as well.

Last summer, the staff members were so encouraged by the notes and words of encouragement that you friends mailed to them here. I cannot tell you what it means to these kids to receive a piece of mail from a stranger on a day when you are tired, busy, excited about what God is doing, missing home, weary of teepee living, and so on....to hear that they have been prayed for and that someone besides their MOM cares enough to take time to write! It is huge, and God always has the timing down perfect. When God leads you to drop a note in the mail, do it! It will be a blessing for sure.

I would love it if they could recieve notes 2-3 times over the 10 weeks they are here! Last summer I know a couple of you "adopted" one staff member by name to pray for. Super! If you want to pray over the whole lot of them, super! Whatever God leads you to do! If you are struck with an idea, let me know. One gal wanted to know if she could drop by some homemade snacks....you betcha! If you have an idea, email me and let's work it out. If all you have time for is prayer, trust me that is numero uno! I just know that every summer we are under some kind of attack, and, trust me, it has started already. The most important thing to me is that you lift us all up in prayer as God leads!

Okay, that was long! I will let ya go for now, and post more later! As I post new articles, and slide shows etc., you will get an email from me directing you here to read it...okay! Hugs and love.......Shelli (AKA Dixie for the summer!)