The Hi-Hills Herald August 12, 2016
Issue#7
Top News at Hi-Hills Day Camp!
Celebrating our 50th Summer!
Performance Pride Week Though camp is wrapping up, there was no shortage of fun this week! Campers enjoyed the usual activies and our second parent luncheon of the summer. The big color war is heating up, and with only one week left, competitions are getting even more intense.
Table of Contents: Note from Camp Directors Bunk Updates
2 3-5
Dates to Remember
6
Camp Candids
6
Birthdays This Month
7
Program News Upcoming Dress Days
8-10 11
It’s hard to believe there’s only one week of camp left but we are going to be sure to make the most of our time!
Color Wars
11
Counselor of the Week
11
Trivia Winners
12
As always, visit www.hihills.com for photos from this summer!
Leaders of Tomorrow
12
Teen Travel
12
Gill St. Bernard’s School, 25 St. Bernard’s Road, Gladstone, NJ Phone: 908-234-0067 • Fax: 908-234-1611 • Email: info@hihills.com hihills.com • www.facebook.com/hihills
te o N A r u o from p Cam rs o t c e r Di
Hello Hi-Hills!
Dear Hi-Hills, Unbelievable! It’s the end of week seven already! On Monday we kicked off “Performance Pride” week by welcoming new campers to the Hi-Hills experience this summer. Performance was the theme, and perform these kids did! The tennis tournament had campers performing on the tennis courts with friendly rivalries that soon forged an alliance against the staff. Our 3D printing class created intriguing pieces with original sketches while math whizzes perfected their skills for the school year ahead! The campers in soccer camp worked on skill building, conditioning and teamwork. Thank you to the parents and friends who joined us for our traditional parent luncheon. Not much can match the smile and pride of a camper sharing their parents or special person with their counselor and bunk.
Grease was the word with our campers enjoying an encore performance. Thank you to Gill St. Bernard’s award winning director, Paul Canada, for sharing his performance expertise with our campers.
Once again, Matt Hibbett from the great outdoors created another great “Survivor” challenge to end the week. Campers performed their best to earn points for their team. We look forward to having your campers share our last week of camp together. Thank you for another great week!
Best, Cindy Wyatt – Director of Summer and Auxiliary Programs Nicole Spiotta – Assistant Director of Summer and Auxiliary Programs
Bunk Upda tes
Bunk 1: T he Foxes & Bunk 2: T he Beavers Wow! Summer is flying by, and we in Kinder Camp can’t believe it’s already week seven! This week the Foxes and the Beavers were tested in instructional swim and we want to congratulate our friends who graduated to the next level! In low ropes, we worked on team building with Miss Missie. We played Fruit Basket where each camper was assigned a fruit and, when their selection was called, they had to be ready to perform a certain task. In athletics, bunks 1 and 2 had a blast playing their new favorite game, Dead Ant Tag. The kids learned that when they saw a friend get tagged, they had to get to them and tag them back in so they could continue to play the game. The arts and crafts activity involved decorating our very own name banners by using dot markers. The kids had fun experimenting with different color patterns. They also made a 3D Finding Dory collage! Miss Mindy taught the kids the alphabet in American Sign Language through song and they truly enjoyed it! Lastly, Kinder Camp loved being a part of the Hi-Hills audience at the encore performance of Grease! They sang and danced along to the music as the performers took the stage. We can’t believe there’s only one week of camp left. Our Kinder Campers are already talking about how they can’t wait to come back for more fun next summer! -Kelly, Sarah, Zoe, Missie, and Jess
Bunk Upda tes Bunk 9: T he Chippewas
Week seven was all about new adventures for the Chippewas. The week began with several of our campers enjoying the soccer camp on site. They rejoined the tribe at lunch and spent the afternoon showing fellow bunkmates their new footwork. Additionally, several of the Chippewas who participate in the great outdoors club enjoyed an outing to the Pequest Hatchery. Here they were taught about the history and life cycle of raising trout and the life of wild animals in New Jersey. The boys also had a chance to feed them! As the week comes to an end, the blue and green color war teams are gearing up for our competition on Friday. It’s always an exciting day and a terrific way to end week seven. Till our next adventure! -Joanne and Mark
Bunk 10: Lenni Lenapes
The Lenni Lenapes had a fantastic week here at Hi-Hills! One of our favorite moments was going to the great outdoors to see the animals! We were able to pet and meet the goats, bunnies, chickens, and donkeys! Also, our tribe learned how to do the stitch lanyard this week which quickly became a new favorite bunk activity! Thanks to the Lenni Lenape families who joined us for the parent luncheon. It was so much fun showing them around camp! The musical production of Grease was indeed one of the highlights for everyone. Go Greased Lighting! Although we are sad to see the summer camp season coming to an end, we are excited to make the last week of camp truly a great one! -Kiara and Emily
Bunks 11 & 13: T he Navajos
The scorching heat this week couldn’t keep the Navajos down. Week seven was a great one for our tribe with swimming, the tennis tournament and athletics. Several of the Navajos attended the Soccer Vision camp and came back after a half day and impressed us with their move and fancy footwork. Members of the Navajos also enjoyed their time at the great outdoors with the crossbow and, of course, paddleboats. We are thankful that there is still time to enjoy all the fun at Hi-Hills with one more week of summer. -Patrick, Julian and Armeen
Bunk Upda tes Bunks 12 & 14: T he Lakotas
The Lakotas had a wild week seven! We were given a tour of the animals across the street on the Home Winds Campus where campers were able to pet Lucky the goat, a chicken and a pair of rabbits. They also got to look at ducks, donkeys and quails that call the great outdoors their home. The campers were in the competitive mode this week in athletics where green and blue battled in Alaskan Baseball until the last catch to come out on top! In the pool, the Lakotas all passed their swim tests with flying colors. Parent luncheon is a favorite day always at camp and getting to see the play again just topped off the day. It was exciting to see our camp friends take the stage in costume and perform! It’s hard to believe that the summer is almost gone and we are making every day last! -Megan, Erica, and Sophie
Bunks 15 & 17: T he Comanches
This week has allowed the Comanches to focus on their two clubs. First, the great outdoors gave the group an opportunity help out in creating the puzzles and obstacles for Friday’s color wars competition. They assisted Matt with his tools and coordinated the details surrounding the great “Survivor” challenge. They really enjoyed being able to contribute, and we were extremely proud to be recognized at Friday’s Council Ring. Meanwhile, the drama group put together an amazing performance of Grease for the whole camp to watch this past week and fine-tuned their lines and choreography for the final show on Thursday afternoon. They are very lucky to work with the very talented Paul Canada, Chair of the Gill St. Bernard’s Performing Arts Department, who has taken over as Director in this encore performance. It’s wonderful to see it all coming together, and we all hope that families and friends were all able to see the show! -Tom and Patrick
Bunks 16 & 18: T he Cherokees
We hope you had as great week as our Cherokees did! Here at Hi-Hills, the Cherokees have been busy preparing for the drama production of Grease on Thursday. The theater director for Gill St. Bernard’s, Mr. Paul Canada, assisted the campers, many of whom are part of our tribe, into making their performance a fantastic one. Additionally this week, our bunk participated in the annual tennis tournament where they were able to showcase their skills learned throughout the summer. Several the campers paired off in double teams and enjoyed their time on the court. This Friday we planned an outing for the Cherokees to attend the 4H Fair in Somerset. On top of our busy schedule, the blue and green teams have been meeting in order to prepare their banners and cheers for the final color wars competition next week. With 10,000 points on the line, the competition has become very intense! Who will win? Hope everyone has a safe and fun weekend! - Maria, Amanda and Kerry
r u o Y k r a M Calendar Dates to r! Remembe
August 17: Bring a Friend to Camp Day August 19: Color Wars Closing Ceremonies
Camp Cand ids
!
Bunk photos are now online and available to download at hihills.com!
Birthdays T his Month
August 8th: Jayson August 8th: Caitlin August 9th: Andrew August 10th: Brandon August 11th: Anna
August 11th: Eli August 13th: Robbie August 15th: Cameron August 16th: Erik August 16th: Bradley August 19th: Dylan
m a r g o r P News Tennis Week seven has really been amazing! The campers have increased their cardiovascular stamina with running and jumping rope! Working together with a partner during doubles play has been a focus all week. The saying, “teamwork makes dreams work,” has been our theme on the tennis courts this past week. The 2nd Annual Hi-Hills Tennis Tournament was a great success! All of the campers and staff that participated in the tournament had tremendous support from all the bunks, counselors, and staff cheering them on. Looking forward to having even more fun in week eight, the last week of camp! -Chris
Swimming With the last week of camp approaching, we spent week seven evaluating campers from Kinder Camp all the way to bunks 16 & 18 on their swim performance. Here at Hi-Hills, we take water safety, learning to swim and how to handle yourself in the water seriously by following the Red Cross “Ready to Swim” program. These are age-appropriate levels that apply to preschool age children up through young adults. Your camper will receive a certificate highlighting their current swim level. It will feature your camper’s current swim level along with the requirements that need to be met. It has been a pleasure teaching your children this summer and watching them grow in their swimming ability and spreading their water wings! -Augie
Fishing The fishing and catching ratio remains steady with just about every camper scoring at least one or two catches every session. The catch and release program has been very successful this summer. The use of a specific size of mostly barbless hooks is the main reason the campers continue to score on most of the outings to the pond. The good luck is sure to continue next week for the last catches of summer 2016! -Em
Program News Great Outdoors The crossbows have definitely hit the mark with the campers; hands down it is the most requested activity at the great outdoors. Due to the accuracy of the crossbows, the distance has been increased to the targets as the young archers get comfortable with and master the new style sights as well as the use of the new bows. The Horton trainer series are mounted with a modified Olympic-style sight consisting of a rear peep sight and a front pin. The bows are extremely accurate within their respective range and we have already had a few Robin Hoods amongst the campers who have actually put one arrow into the back of another arrow already in the bull’s eye. Well done, everyone! The great outdoors club will be wrapping up its bird house project and will review the wildlife station photos captured over the past several weeks. Some of the club members from the upper bunk clubs will be making walking sticks for hiking. The “Survivor” challenge for week seven has been a marathon relay of previous challenges that are set up so teams move through the challenge station, picking up points accordingly with each designated area. The challenges are shortened to accommodate the time frame. The giant sling shots have kept the campers busy catching tennis balls or with the water balloon wars. The campers continue to launch and catch the tennis balls with fishing nets at 75 yards plus. The game is giving them a good amount of exercise and testing their hand eye coordination and depth perception with each launch and catch.
Archery The crossbows have kept a steady flow of campers from all bunks on the range. Instruction from Ms. Cara and Mr. Matt has definitely increased the campers’ confidence and skill. Targets had to be moved back further to reduce the number of arrow repairs from these young archers. Campers adjusted quickly to the shift in the range, further improving their long range skills and have a new longer range capacity to aim and target.
Paddleboats Captain Thomas continues to encourage the camps to engage in boat races and or racing and retrieving tennis balls and other balls out on the water.
Program News Athletics The excitement continued in athletics during week seven as Alaskan Baseball took center stage and returned to the court as one of Hi-Hills’ traditional favorites. Campers from the upper and lower bunks truly had a blast playing, as they attempted to score runs by tossing a soft playground ball into the playing field and circled their partners to score as many runs as possible. Fielders recorded an out by lining up wherever the ball landed, passing it through their legs in a line, and completing a successful pass from the back to the front of the line. Some of the games were real nail-biters, going down to the final at-bat before a winner was decided. Kinder Camp also got into the game this week on the field, as they participated in some intense games of “Dead Ant” tag. One more action-packed week remaining, as we look to close out the 2016 Hi-Hills season with a bang! -John and Marc
Arts & Crafts There were several art creations produced by campers of all ages during week seven. Campers created a hot plate or trivet to use at home with decorative tiles. Each camper had the opportunity to create their own individual design. Our Kinder Campers were in first place and had the chance to create their own first place medals to wear in honor of the Olympics. They show their Hi-Hills camp pride well! These young ones also used dot art to create their very own decorative name plates. Additionally, our Kinder Campers have been very busy finishing up their name signs. It is important for students to identify the upper and lower case letters in their own name as well as being able to identify their own name in print. Each camper created a room name sign using dot art. Over the summer, campers have been exposed to a variety of art skills. To incorporate this week’s drama theme, campers have been creating a 3D art where they folded, twisted and applied their characters with different textures on the plate. -Mindy
ing m o c p U ys a D s s e Dr
August 12: Color Wars Team Pride
Color Wars 2016 The week seven color wars challenge was a compilation of all challenges the campers and counselors participated in during previous camp weeks. The challenge course consisted of water and balance challenges, a cradle pull, a ball maze, and a word puzzle. Points were awarded for each activity. The campers and counselors performed at their highest level of competition yet. It was beyond exciting for campers and counselors alike and brought color wars to new heights. Next week’s finale will be epic in true “Survivor” fashion. The two team captains will go head to head in a fire building challenge. This will be sure to light up our last competition to end the summer hotter than when it started.
r o l e s n u Co of the Week Patrick DeMichele
Week seven’s Counselor of the Week honor is presented to Patrick DeMichele, Head Counselor of bunks 11 & 13. It is very fitting to recognize Pat during this 50th summer at Hi-Hills, as he has spent much of his life — thirteen years to be exact — growing up here. This summer also marks a transition: his first as a Head Counselor. Pat has risen to the occasion and made this summer fun-filled for both campers and his fellow counselors. Pat’s friendly and competitive presence is felt around Hi-Hills, especially since he serves as a captain of the green team for color wars. With each “Survivor” challenge, Pat is encouraging and provides strategy to his teammates to go for green and win the challenge. Pat’s sister Megan, an earlier Counselor of the Week recipient, is currently a captain of the blue team. Nothing like a little family color wars competition! Pat’s leadership within the Navajo tribe, outgoing personality, and willingness to always be the first to volunteer for ANYTHING at Hi-Hills clearly sets him apart. Year after year, Pat consistently gives his all at camp and makes it a special place for everyone here. On behalf everyone at Hi-Hills, congratulations on being Counselor of the Week!
ia v i r T y l k Wee Winners
Tuesday – Madison, Ben
Wednesday – Brianna, Julian, Sophie
T hursday – Ryan, Maria
Friday – Sam, Andrea, Lucy, Erica, Dylan, Andrew
orrow: m o T f so Leader anna Lackaw
rs who ng leade and this u o y r u o amper one of ritten by Hills as both a c gram. This was w is le c io ti r LOT p fies the ere at H ven’s ar Week se many summer hin the brand newShe truly exemplir in the t t lo . has spenactive participan for her at camp amazing counse year, an nd different role would make an sonal journey: a new a ristics of what Christina’s per e nt, and thrful e characte future. Here’s ti a p e b wonde nsible, be respothe bunks was a taught me to w o h d s ha g in rne Kinder py.” Bein mer I lea that Jenn This sumce of being “camplied everything le, when I was inument. importan ce because I ap eeks. For exampls to settle an argges and experien e past seven w t resolution skil ampers of all a utcome. during thused my conflic w to work with c r a successful o portunity Camp I s taught me ho at their level fo ad the great op d the Jenn ha plain directions weeks, I have hful counselors an x how to eut the past seven with my wonder gside them. o h g work s that go alon u o Thr rience to er and expe amazing camp
to
Jenn Mon
Teen Travel: Apache Week seven Teen Travel camp activities were busy with lots of new places and venues to explore together. On Monday, we went to Powerhouse Studios where the campers played awesome TV-style games and got to throw pies in the counselors’ faces! On Tuesday, we traveled to Pennsylvania and played paintball in the fields and had a fabulous time running around the woods! On Wednesday, we took our activities on the road once again as we went bowling and headed to the Shake Shack for delicious homemade milkshakes before heading back to camp. We looked forward all week to wrapping up watching the final performance of Grease and enjoying the color wars competition on Friday! See everyone back next week for fun times with Teen Travel. -Chrissy