We woke up this morning at Camp Oz still riding high on the joyful feelings from the impromptu dance party in the A-Field last night after Predator vs Prey. There was music. There was a 25 person long Can-Can line. There were multiple cha-cha lines. There was singing. There were games of tug of war with an invisible rope. This party had everything! But the greatest thing that Amy, myself and our nurses saw was the complete absence of separate cabin groups. It was truly one big happy mob of 60 campers enjoying each other’s presence on a beautiful summer evening.
Our last full day was again crammed with activities to make sure that every camper got a chance to experience everything that Oz has to offer. To make sure we had enough energy for all of this, fuel today was provided by breakfast burritos, sloppy joes for lunch and chicken parmesan for dinner. Oh and don’t forget about the two different rounds of freezies to cool us down as the temperature crept back up throughout the afternoon.
Three cabins at last got their chance to be straight shooters in archery, three more cabins tightened up their harnesses for the rock wall and four cabins finally got to meet the Camp St. Croix horses. In between all of that goodness were of course endless games of Gaga and 9 Square in the Air, balance experiments on the slackline and magical visits to the teambuilding Enchanted Forest.
The two archery ranges on camp were ringing out with thwacks and thumps as our burgeoning archers peppered the targets with bullseyes. There were friendly scoring competitions with lots of chanting and clearly everyone was a winner judging by the celebrations after a good match. The campers were so encouraging that Amy, one of our medical directors, and numerous volunteers were cheered on to take their own turns with the bow and arrow.
The rock climbing today was once again amazing and you wouldn’t believe the heart that each camper displayed as they pulled themselves up to reach their goal on the wall. With the newly adjustable finishing bell that could be raised or lowered, every single camper got the satisfaction of ringing out their accomplishment no matter what height they achieved. We saw climbs that reached every part of the wall, with multiple attempts by some to try to inch just a little bit higher, and each one was extremely impressive and inspiring.
We can’t believe that tomorrow is already the last day of 2022’s Camp Oz! I know that I speak for all of us that we will miss each camper and their newfound companionship and comradery dearly. But Friday at least is time for our Oz Talent Show and we can’t wait to hear and see some amazing entertainment.
We don’t want to leave but I know every camper is so excited to fill their families in on all of the amazing things and friendships they experienced at Camp Oz. See you tomorrow!
Erik