This past weekend, a major change in energy and perspective descended on the 12523. And we couldn’t be happier.
Excitement for our graduating Upper Seniors and Soopers, who headed off at 6AM Saturday morning on a charter bus bound for JFK Airport to begin their service trip in the Dominican Republic, running a one-week day camp at a local school in coordination with the DREAM Project. And excitement for the Seniors, who boarded a charter bus headed for a very different location: Lake Placid.
Seniors head to Placid!
Scenes from day camp in the Dominican Republic
And, following a whirlwind bunk cleaning and setup, excitement for our twenty-eight 1-week campers, who arrived on Sunday at 2PM to begin their first sleepaway camp experiences.
For myself, I love imagining how Scatico must look and feel for a first-time camper. That magical mix of both exuberance and nervousness. Embracing the daily routines of lineups, meals, activities, and bedtime. Independence and adventure. Meeting new friends and counselors and older campers—knowing that many of these connections will last for years to come.
I spent time with each of the groups on Tuesday, asking the SITs (Scaticonians-In-Training) what they were most looking forward to during their week at camp. Their answers ranged: Fishing, Cooking, Soccer, Gymnastics, Swimming, and Woodshop. Wednesday’s Mystery Ride (the power of a posted schedule), Waterfront Cookouts, and (on girls side) Dance Show. Getting launched off the Rave at the Waterfront and becoming a “Flying Squirrel” (at the high ropes course). Even two votes for “hot dogs.” And, most importantly, “making friends.”
We often speak to the Scatico community of the “journeys” that await in life. For our graduating Upper Seniors and Soopers—the Service Trip foreshadows the end of their journeys as campers and the start of new paths for the many who will return as Junior Counselors in 2025. For the SITs, we hope they will embrace and remember these first-time Scatico experiences. The power of first steps.
SITs at tennis
SITs at Dance Show