On New Year’s Eve a few weeks ago I was at camp having just DJ’d a rocking party to ring in 2016 (Amos Moses anyone?). It was the first dance I led using a set of new speakers we bought for camp. The old system, the hearty speakers that have made every Wednesday night dance happen since Dennis stopped calling the dances back in 2001, finally gave up on life in a dramatic poof of smoke during an Outdoor Education event this last fall. As I put the new sleek speakers back in their cases I couldn’t help but feel a little nostalgic for the giant system and it’s familiarity. As the New Year’s Live campout wound down, and an entirely new year began, I started reflecting on Kitaki and it’s changes in my window of time experiencing it.
The first cabin I stayed in at camp was Kiowa Cabin. It might not be the Kiowa Cabin you are thinking off because my “Kiowa cabin”, is now known as “Old Kiowa”. Old Kiowa is now full of bed frames and other old stuff, and probably inspires some apprehension from new campers as to what manner of creature inhabits it’s interior. However it was the first cabin I stayed in and I have fond memories of walking up the crooked concrete stoop. Who knew that first night in that cabin that I would still be involved with camp almost 29 years later. In looking back there are so many changes I have seen: Flag Pole Hill became Flat Top, Pop Stop became Juice Jam, the Mecca became the pool and the pool became the Mecca, an erosion riddled corner of forest became Ft. Pawnee, Juniors Camp became Discoverers, and so many more.
In reflecting on all this change and growth at Kitaki I am also struck by how much Kitaki has influenced the lives of those who have attended it, and the foundations it has helped provide for the people that have become Alumni of Kitaki; foundations of friends, of values, of faith, of appreciation of the natural world, and more. It is humbling to see what people share on Facebook in the Knights of Kitaki group, or in person out in the community, about the impact that camp had on their life. A few months ago I attended the wedding of two Camp alumni, Keenan and Allison (“Nosilla”). During the toasts Allison’s father stood up and pulled from his jacket pocket one of the actual registration forms he had filled out to send Allison to Kitaki as a camper. He shared the importance of Kitaki in Allison and Keenan’s lives, in bringing them together, and the connection that has grown because of it. What an incredible story!
So as I sit in my office planning for another year of Summer Camp, and the future of what Kitaki can be for the kids who attend, I am excited to share with you some of our plans for camp in the near future. Right now we are working on plans for a revamped Camp Fire Amphitheater (more details in this newsletter), we are building a new bridge for the East Camp Expressway (the old one fell over after a rain storm see the picture here). Summer Camp 2016 will see the debut of Stand Up Paddle Boards at the Lake. In the near future we are planning a new Earth Sheltered Building Village that will serve as a home base for Kitaki’s trip programs and brand new Ranger Camp, which debuts this summer.
I am beyond excited to be restarting the Embers Newsletter, to have a venue to share Camp’s successes and challenges with you, and to have a platform for you to share your camp story as well. As we continue down this road we will be looking for you to get involved at camp in the way that you want to. For some that may mean glancing at this quarterly newsletter. For others it may mean writing a story for the newsletter, volunteering to help with a project, attending events, or helping financially support camp. More than anything we want Kitaki to live not just as a memory, but as an active presence in your life. We hope this newsletter will be just one of many ways for camp to be a part of your present. We’ll be in touch!
May the spirit of the forest watch over you,
Jason Smith
Executive Director
