Summer 2022 – Newsletter 6

08.05.2022

Another Unforgettable Week At Camp!!!

It feels like time is flying by and yet there is still so much to look forward to here at the 12123. The past 7 days has been a whirlwind of fun in the sun, games, challenges and events. We have had the Camp/Counselor Tennis Tournament, our annual Rock, Paper, Snerson competition and so much more!

So sit back, relax and find out about everything that has been happening here under the Schodack sun!

This Week…

This past Tuesday we had an on-camp Special Event Day that consisted of lots of musical-based games and activities. Alongside a Disney-Sing-Along in the Rec Hall, there was also a new camp favorite snack – The S’mores Egg Roll – and perhaps the highlight of the day was Musical Bingo!

This first-time event at Schodack saw campers and staff dancing along to songs and checking them off on their Bingo sheets until they had a Full House!

Check out some of our pics below of everyone rocking out in the Garden to favorites like ‘Cotton Eyed Joe’, ‘YMCA’, and more!

Camper/Counselor Tennis Tournament

Each week the tennis courts are transformed into Schodack’s own version of Wimbledon as a new tennis tournament takes place. This week was no different as the ever-popular Camper/Counselor tournament was scheduled.

Seniors Girls VS CIT Basketball

Earlier this week the Senior Girls and the CITs met head to head on the basketball court in the Garden to play each other in an epic basketball game. The game was played at high intensity and the spirited event that was watched by the whole of Senior Camp and the LTs.

LT Carnival

One of the best special events that take place all summer is the Carnival presented by the LTs. This amazing event sees the LTs transform camp into a giant fairground featuring slip’n’slides, cotton candy, cookie decorating, carnival games AND even a Petting Zoo featuring Fred the Alpaca! Take a look at some of our pics below!

Kemp – The Story Teller

For many years now, the whole camp looks forward to one night activity almost more than any other, and that is when Kemp the Story Teller returns!

Kemp merges his passion for music and stories into a night of awe and wonder for each of the divisions by putting on 3 very special sets, that take place out under the stars in the amphitheater.

The best song? Why it’s ‘The Cat Came Back’ of course! And you can get a sneak preview of how that goes below.

Variety Show

Over 20 acts took to the floor of the Garden for this years Variety Show put together by our very own Rob Drama!

The night was hosted by CITs Georgia and Hannah and involved dance routines, stand-up comedy, solo drum and piano performances, as well as a skit about Frog Puns and the life of Bailey the dog!!

It really was an amazing night of performances and we are incredibly proud of all the hard work each of the acts and the stage crew put in.

Rock, Paper, Snerson!

Truly a competition like no other at Schodack with the biggest turnout ever this year. It is Schodack’s own twist on Rock, Paper, Scissors (the Snerson was added after alumnus Evan Snerson won the event for an unbelievable 5th time!).

This year was a particularly exciting finale with Lauren Snerson, former semi-finalist 7 years ago (and sister of above-mentioned Evan), taking on Dylan Altschuler, last year’s champion!

In the end Dylan took the title for the 2nd year running – incredible!!!

Division Spotlight – Middle Camp

Middle Boys

Mahogany Boys
Redwood Boys
Sequoia Boys
What another amazing week at Schodack! The Middle Boys did so many fun things and were full of smiles and laughs!
For night activity, Kemp the Storyteller kept all of the campers very entertained with his many stories about a Cat and a beautiful, mysterious moss-covered rock! This evening activity is a Schodack classic that exceeded the expectations of all of the boys.
We also had a special event called Music Day, where there was musical bingo, a Disney sing-along and even a snow cone and S’mores egg roll truck! The kids had so much fun dancing around camp and listening to their favorite songs!
The LTs put on an incredible carnival with a fun petting zoo, cotton candy booths, a dunk tank, slip n slide and a fortune teller. It was such a wonderful day that so many of the boys said that it was their favorite of the summer.
Even though this was such a fun week, there is still so much to look forward to! The Middle Boys are working hard at making the Bunk Plaque Night song, which is most definitely something they will remember for the rest of their lives! Additionally, Tribals fakes have begun! The boys are excited to know that the theme is Spider Man, and it can only begin once everyone finds the tokens hidden around camp. Lots of the boys are eagerly searching for the tokens to let the fun all begin!
The Redwood Boys had a blast at baseball, where they had a Home Run Derby and played a water version of 4 Bases. They have been loving activities and regularly play cards on their bunk porch.
The Sequoia Boys adore their time at the lake, whether they ride on the banana boat, kneeboard, water ski or wakeboard. They have a spike ball net right in front of their bunk, so have been able to play during their down time!
The Mahogany Boys are loving the climbing tower and time at basketball. They had a bunk wide basketball scrimmage, which was a huge hit. They also had a great session at arts and crafts, where they painted a nature scene.
The Middle Boys have been having a great summer and will cherish the memories they have made forever!
All the best,
Jeremy Schmelkin

Middle Girls

Redwood Girls
Sequoia Girls
Willow Girls
Mahogany Girls
What a week for Middle Camp!
Our middle girls have had a jam-packed wonderful week full of activities and treats.
The week kicked off with the highly anticipated ‘LT Carnival’ where an assortment of amusements awaited them. From the marriage booth, cookie decorating and a petting zoo featuring puppies, goats and even ducks, the fun had only just begun! After indulging in cone-ice’s and cotton candy, everybody got the chance to refresh themselves on the inflatable slip and slide! Needless to say, it was an amazing day!
Next up in our week was Musical Day, where Middle Girls really had their time to shine. No one knows music better than our Middle Girls, and they had a chance to show it at Musical Bingo! The Willow Girls dominated the dance floor with their groove to Cotton Eyed Joe, and the Mahogany’s showed everyone how to boogie to ‘Watch Me’! The dancing didn’t stop as we headed to the Rec Hall for a Disney themed dance party! Everyone knew all of the words to Let It Go and we sang our hearts out- the Sequoia’s even had the chance to wow us once again with their Lip Sync performance when their song ‘Love Story’ came on! Later that night, the famed Story Teller, Kemp, came to camp and delighted us with his stories. Redwood Girls were particularly excited to hear ‘The Cat Came Back’, an incredibly catchy song that has become a tradition for when Kemp comes to visit!
Not only have the events been incredible this week, but treats also came in the form of a S’more Egg Rolls truck and Kona Ice! Middle camp tucked into deep-fried egg rolls filled with chocolate and marshmallow’s which everyone was agreed was the best dessert EVER.
And if you think that we couldn’t fit anymore fun into our week, you would be wrong! On top of all this, some of the Middle Girls squeezed in a Kayaking trip, and wowed us with performances in the Variety Show!
Middle Girls are really making the most of the last couple of weeks of camp, getting every drop of fun out of every moment!

Division Write-Ups

Junior Boys

Hello Hello Hello!

What a week it has been! The sun has been shining and the campers have been playing!

Tribals is imminent, we’ve seen a couple fakes so far and are all curious what the theme of the break will be!

The Acorn Boys had a fantastic time at the LT Carnival, they loved decorating cookies and meeting the animals, especially the baby goat!

The Beech Boys took to the courts, in the camper/counsellor tennis tournament, they were the best cheer squad for their fellow campers and staff! I see some future Nadals out there! They’ve also been putting in lots of time preparing for Bunk Plaque Night.

The Cypress Boys had a ball at Musical Day, a dance party in the rec hall, with all the best bangers, a delicious snack break with s’mores egg rolls and the always popular Kona Ice Truck,  followed by an amazing session of music bingo!

The Dogwood Boys love getting their French hat on and making crêpes in cooking. The toppings were the best bit from marshmallows to sprinkles! Oui Oui boys!

The next week holds so much excitement, the Variety Show will be so entertaining, and trip day will get all the wheels rolling at rollerskating!

Junior girls

Another fantastic week has flown by here at Schodack! The Junior Girls have been making the most of every possible minute. We started the week with the fantastic LT carnival. There were waterslides and cookie decorating, and the LTs also brought in an entire petting zoo right on camp!! The bunnies were the highlight of our day; they were the cutest and fuzziest little guys ever (along with the baby goat). The LT carnival was one of the many exciting events of the week; we also had a nighttime pool party with all of junior camp.

The Acorn Girls have continued to have blast during cooking they all learned how to flip and make crepes. They love this activity period because they get to spend it with their friends the Acorn boys.

The Beech Girls have been loving building up their ‘camp wrists’ and trying to see who can get the most on their arms. The counselors have also joined in and have quite the stack going.

The Cypress Girls have had so much fun at all of the activities, during campers’ choices they usually can be found practicing their skits for the variety show!

The Dogwood Girls have been playing really fun games of hide & seek in the bunk. Along with that, they also have been having the Dogwood spa and even painted some of the other DH’s nails.

The Hickory Girls had so much fun learning the dance to “50 ways to say goodbye” by Train. They’ve also been building really cool bed forts on the top bunks!

We had another action-packed week here at camp and can’t to see what we get up to next week!

Upper Boys

It was another incredible week for the Senior boys at Camp Schodack! 

The boys were excited all week for the big Senior vs Waiter Basketball game! They spent days coming up with the starting lineup and different plays to try and beat the waiters. All of senior camp was in attendance dressed in all black to cheer us on. Senior boys were off to a quick start with a few 3 pointers, but the waiters battled back creating a demanding lead. It was a hard fought battle through the end, but the waiters came up victorious. It was such a fun event nonetheless.

It was a beautiful sunny day on Thursday so Senior camp was lucky enough to spend a “Blister Day” at the Lake! All of the Senior Boys and Girls were able to try Kayaking, Swimming, Water Skiing and much more! We were even able to fit a whole bunk of boys onto our mega paddle board! It was such a fun way to cool down on a sunny day!

We are hard at work preparing for our last triple crown event, “Bunk Plaque Night”! BPN is always a favorite as people get to look back over the summer and remember all of the fun memories from the summer. We have picked our songs, have been writing lyrics, and have started painting our plaques! They boys are ready to perform this Saturday!

Upper Girls

The Senior Girls had another great week here at Schodack. We started the weekend off strong with the return of the LT Carnival! The girls had a fabulous time eating snow cones, sock wrestling, visiting the petting zoo, and so much more! For night activity the entire senior division headed to the garden to watch a Senior Boys v Waiters basketball game.

The start of the week saw more activities for the Senior girls, full days with good weather and fun. The Senior 3 girls had a great time at kickball and Dance. The Senior 1 girls played Handball and Tennis. The Senior 2 girls played some intense Gaga and had Dance on their schedule for the day. That evening or night activity we had the most fun yet. All the Senior girls had snacks in the rec hall followed by a super fun single. All the girls talked to different people within the division, and all got to know each other a little better.

Tuesday saw a special activity day come back to camp. We had BPN practice, followed by a blister day morning. All the girls relaxed by the pool and hung out with their friends. The afternoon was just as fun, with musical afternoon. The Senior girls first got to enjoy S’mores or Apple Pie eggrolls, followed by a Kona Ice. We then headed to the garden for a fun game of musical bingo. All senior camp were dancing away, showing off their best moves to win some bingo bucks for their bunk. We then headed to the playhouse for a dance party with Eli. We all had the best time and loved the afternoon.

For night activity the storyteller returned, and we all went to listen down in the amphitheatre. This is one of our favourite night activities on camp and all the girls loved listening and singing along. The best night activity of the week by far was the Senior Girls v CIT basketball game. The crowd cheered loudly and really got behind all the girls. The Senior girls brought their A game and really put a lot of effort into it. Campers and staff had the best time and we couldn’t be prouder.

We had another action-packed week here at camp and can’t to see what we get up to next week!

 

LTs

The LTs were seen in glorious light this past week. It commenced with the seven stages of putting on a major event – The Carnival…. or, The Carnival presented by the LTs as we like to say! It starts with the conception of the idea, moves through planning, purchasing (supplies) and set up of equipment – then costuming, execution (of the event itself) and never forgetting the clean up so that an hour afterwards there is no trace that Carnival even happened save for the smiles on the campers’ faces and the satisfied glow of an occasion brilliantly realized by the LTs. This was followed in short order by the 3rd Challenge Day – Greek Day – which was closely fought and leaves the overall winner still in doubt! These have been a massive success all summer and we are looking forward to the finale on…

As I write our second years are heading to Union College for a tour by current undergrad and tour guide Jeremy Schmelkin – these college visits have proved invaluable in learning which questions to ask when our LTs go on tours in the next year or so.

The Waiters enjoyed a great basketball game against the Seniors earlier in the week and tonight our CITs will also play the Seniors in The Garden in front of an audience.

The week ahead is packed – Bunk Plaque Night is on Saturday while the iconic LT Show – which promises so much this year – will take place on Tuesday. That really will be an ‘all hands to the pumps’ day!

LTs out the Nott Memorial – The only 16 sided building in the Northern Hemisphere
Taking a tour inside Union College

Other Stuff This Week

Enjoying the face paint at Carnival
Shooting for bullseye at Archery
Friends with bucket hats are the best friends!
Just noodling around at the pool
Hanging with our Squishmallow!
Posing at Night Activity
Hickory girls

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And that’s everything for another week! We’ll be back next week with updates on Bunk Plaque Night, Tribals,  our last Trip Day and so much more. Have a great weekend everyone!