Summer Camp Wrap-Up!
Summer camp at Fircom always feels like somewhat of a warp in time and this year was no different. June rolls around, real life is underway, and then suddenly September is approaching. Every year in retrospect, there is a strange sense of suspicion “did that actually happen?”
It really did happen. Beautifully so.
The night before Kids Camp 1 kicks off the season, the Summer Camp team gathers at Campfire Rock, while the waves roll into shore around us and the sun is setting, we encourage each other to share, usually about our hopes for the summer. We all have shiny, tidy hair, a distinct lack of baggage underneath the eyes, no ombre tans, and most importantly, a pair of matched socks on our feet. We are not dusty yet.
Our Kids Camps 1 and 2 started out strong, with an actual place to land on the Horseshoe Bay side for check-in since the park had mostly re-opened. During these two Kids Camp weeks, we are happy to have been able to reinstate the Counsellor-In-Training (CIT) program, a program that Fircom has not had for quite a few years and one that we hope can thrive for many seasons to come. This year we also put into place the all-gendering of our accommodations and the universalizing of our washrooms, something we will carry forward into our future summer seasons. Theme Days were a highlight of Kids Camps 1 and 2; we can firmly suggest that if you have never had an alien parasite gradually invade your brain whilst you wear a tinfoil hat and slowly turn green, you should give it a go.
Mom & Kids Camp is a well-oiled machine, one that Terra, Fircom’s Executive Director, has honed for years. The mothers are warm and welcoming, and it is a delight to see familiar families come back time and time again. During Mom & Kids Camps, we get even tinier campers than we do at Kids Camp, a factor that poses an interesting switch-up for the Summer Camp team. Programs that the Camp Counsellors create and lead are geared toward the age group that they have, which, during Mom & Kids Camp, can be quite the range. This summer we have learned that the biggest fans of campfires are not the kids, but indeed the mothers screeching along at the top of their lungs, almost ferociously, while we sing about trees in the ground and something about bananas.
During Mom & Kids Camps, we also have Polaris, an out-tripping program running for the same duration. This group of Polaris teens go on hikes, practice canoe and kayak rescues, and voyage away to a different part of Gambier Island to explore its beauty; this year they went to Douglas Bay. We hope to continue expanding the Polaris program so that Polaris campers can explore more parts of Gambier in following seasons.
Camp Cha7elkwnech is a week of camp full of intentions. It is a chance for campers and staff alike to become more educated on not just the Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish) land Fircom is located on, but how those teachings can change the perspective one holds throughout everyday life. Cultural programs at this camp included beading, cedar weaving, songs and dance, and many more, led by Squamish Elders and facilitators. Camp Cha7elkwnech will always be an immense privilege to attend, learn from, and experience, for which Fircom is indescribably grateful for.
We started the summer camp season early June with a super fun group of Dad & Kids for the annual weekend camp, and finished the summer with two weekends of Family Camp. It is a ridiculously joyful thing to watch kids and parents have fun together in a space unlike any. Talent Show is something we host several times a summer, but shout out to the families and staff who rocked the Family Camp 3 (September long weekend) Talent Show— that one will certainly be hard to top!
Just as there are so many ups, Summer camp is not without its downs. As with all endeavors, there are moments that prove challenging, and sometimes warrants shedding a tear or two. Undoubtedly, the takeaway from these difficult experiences is how to improve for the next season. Here at Fircom, we are always looking to change positively, to take things we learned in the previous seasons and apply it to the future, for our future staff and campers.
By the end of the season, we on the Summer Camp team have approximately 1234567890 beaded lizards, eye baggage so large the airline has to charge us extra, and yes, we became extremely dusty ombre human beings with not one pair of matching socks, yet somehow, we keep coming back for more. So thank you to all the people who make it possible for us to keep the Fircom magic flowing, beautifully so. Thank you to the land that somehow keeps giving; thank you.
See you all next year!
