We had an anonymous comment on our Impact post that I'll paraphrase -- "the blog makes it look like the only important thing that happens at Evergreen is summer camps." It's not a question, but a question is implied, and it's a fair question and I'd like to address it!
Through July and August, summer and family camps aren't the only important thing that happens at Evergreen: they are quite simply
the only thing that happens at Evergreen. As part of summer camp, we have an A/V crew that's on hand to capture the summer's progression: all the crazy games and cute kids and fun activities and chapel times and firesides and whatever else. In addition to taking sweet photos, they make weekly DVDs that campers can take home at the end of each week. Our campers' parents also sign a waiver that allows us to take their kids' pictures and use those pictures on our brochures, in newsletters and here on the blog.
From September 1 - June 30 (or there abouts), Camp Evergreen is open to guest group rentals. Guest groups include, but aren't limited to, schools (bands, leadership teams, class trips, outdoor education classes), boy scouts and girl guides, professional organizations, church youth groups, church college & career groups, ladies' groups, sports teams, clubs, and more. Guest groups come for anything from day trips to multiple night trips. They do all the same activities that our summer campers do and some additional ones ... trail rides and wagon rides, climbing wall, initiative tasks, the Upper Challenge Course and low ropes, canoeing (when the pond isn't frozen over!), archery, the Animal Game, and so on. You can find out more about
the activities we run with guest groups on our main website.
We have staff here who lead activities, cook food and provide maintenance and custodial services for guest groups. But, when our guests are under 18, our staff don't provide direct supervision those students: guest groups are required to bring their own chaperones, who stay with the students in their accommodations and accompany them to the activities that are led by Evergreen staff. That's probably one of the biggest differences between guest group season and summer camping season ... that and the fact that we don't run chapels with guest groups. Some guest groups run their own chapels, but that obviously depends on who the group is and what they're here for.
Under normal circumstances, you won't see pictures or stories about our guest groups in action on the blog. We don't ask their permission to use their faces or their stories for promotional means -- and "promotional means" includes the blog. But that doesn't mean we don't love our guest groups! We have several groups who have been coming to visit every fall or spring for years now, including groups I remember from when I worked as spring staff a full decade ago, and we look forward to seeing them again each year. We also have lots of fun getting know new groups! You just won't see them on the blog.
The other thing that happens here from September 1 - June 30 is retreats (for example,
Rise Up, Rise 'n Shine,
Ladies' Retreat and
coming soon ... the Uprising and Fathers and Sons' Retreat). Retreats are Evergreen events -- and we post about them (hence the hyperlinks).
So, if you look at blog posts from July to August, there are lots and lots of posts and they're all about summer ... because that's what we do in July and August! The rest of the year, you'll see posts about stuff that's going on on site (stay tuned for posting about our first
Cabin Fever! cabin build), about our staff, and such things. Anonymous, have I at least partially addressed your implied question?
(And, p.s., I'll try to be more faithful about blogging in the coming weeks and months, because my August/September showings were weak at best.)
posted by kerry.
