Ocky for Boys

… and the winner is…

By |2014-07-23T22:28:02-04:00July 23rd, 2014|

Hello all... Our Fruit Tray competition has come to a conclusion here at Camp between the Ockanickon Kitchen Staff and the Matollionequay Kitchen Staff and the winner is... The Ockanickon Kitchen Staff's "Indian Chief" display!!!   The senior Kitchen Staff and I narrowed down the 5 daily trays last week to one finalist from each kitchen and let YOU pick the winner by "Liking" the photos on our Facebook page. I let the voting run from the initial posting on Saturday until midnight Tuesday and by a slim 136 to 117 count the stately Indian Chief won over the beautiful [...]

A little friendly competition in the Kitchen…

By |2014-07-16T16:58:13-04:00July 16th, 2014|

Hello all!! What started as some of our Kitchen Staff being a little creative and having fun with designs on our morning fruit tray for the campers, has now turned into a little friendly competition between the Ocky Kitchen Staff and the Matolly Kitchen Staff. Pictured below is an example of what I'm talking about... That is a fish made out of honeydew and cantaloupe melons with a dried cranberry for an eye. (This tray was from about a week ago and not in the contest.) So here are the rules and the way the contest will be judged... #1... [...]

A father’s letter

By |2013-08-03T07:21:55-04:00August 3rd, 2013|

I came across this awesome letter the other day from a father to his daughter. Helps put in perspective why camp is pretty amazing. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/scott-shamberg/open-letter-to-my-daughte_b_3600125.html

Three Days

By |2013-07-31T10:07:16-04:00July 31st, 2013|

After waiting through a long, anticipation-filled year, Color War is right around the corner.  There are only three days until the third annual fight between the reining champions, The Red Team, and the mighty underdogs, The Black Team.  Earlier today, Matolly captains rode in on horseback to deliver their opening speeches, and invite campers to join their teams, not just for this summer, but for every summer after.  Kelsey Henry, Black Team Captain, will keep her title for another year with nothing but victory on her mind  On the Red Team, Aly Brenner, will pass on the torch to the [...]

Homesickness

By |2013-07-27T05:20:00-04:00July 27th, 2013|

I started to go to camp when I was 5 years old at the rec center in town. I really do not remember those summers but I do remember being homesick for some of the other years I went to camp. As I have gotten older, I have been able to understand why kids (and even sometimes adults) become homesick. I was recently reading an article centered around homesickness and it listed out some great tips for parents to help their children and there children's counselors combat homesickness. Before Camp Begins: •Avoid committing to a "Pick Up Deal." We find [...]

All Good Things!

By |2013-07-05T12:17:24-04:00July 5th, 2013|

Man, do I love Summer Camp!!!  It is never easy, but it is always lots of fun!  The staff have been working incredibly hard over the past month to get Camp ready and set up, to get everyone properly trained and prepared, and in recent weeks, to deliver an exceptional Camp experience to our boys.  I have been really pleased with the first 2 weeks of our season.  We were hit by lots of thunderstorms during Session 1 and the start of Session 2, but the time spent in cabins during the storms seemed to be some of the most [...]

Ad Staff Training

By |2013-06-07T21:56:59-04:00June 7th, 2013|

My summer officially begins on Monday!  Our Village Chiefs, Program Directors, Ranger Instructors, Activity Directors, and CIT/LIT Directors all move onto Camp and spend the week preparing their activity areas, learning supervisory skills, and beginning the process of building our 2013 staff team!  We're happy to welcome back many returning leadership staff members and quite a few who are going to be in new positions this summer.  It is going to be a very busy week packed with a lot different training sessions and challenges.  I'm really excited to work with this outstanding group of young men and women and [...]

Fragrant Palm Leaves

By |2013-06-01T17:45:08-04:00June 1st, 2013|

Check out the link below to learn some neat history about Camp.  Famous Buddhist Monk, Thich Nhat Hanh, spent the summer of 1962 living in Pomona Lodge and living as part of the Boys Camp community.  Thich Nhat Hanh went on to author over 100 books and to be nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 1967 by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.  The first chapter of his book, "Fragrant Palm Leaves," describes his experiences at Camp Ockanickon.  Enjoy! http://books.google.com/books?id=-Up0tkYBnlAC&pg=PA4&lpg=PA4&dq=thich+nhat+hanh+ockanickon&source=bl&ots=Bp2N75vD8Q&sig=r6Zs9gQvIOD6GKGF5KWyEL78vzk&hl=en&sa=X&ei=0Z-qUajqDKrC4AP3qYGwDg&ved=0CDUQ6AEwAg#v=onepage&q=thich%20nhat%20hanh%20ockanickon&f=false Brent Birchler Boys Camp Director

Staff Orientation, Round 20

By |2013-05-24T13:11:14-04:00May 24th, 2013|

My 20th consecutive  Staff Orientation will be starting in a few weeks and it is still one of my favorite events of the the year.  The 2013 Staff Team will be getting together for the first time ever.  We'll be doing our first Opening and Closing Ceremonies of the summer.  Many returning staff members will be moving into new positions.  There will be lots of singing!  New staff will have their first experience at our Behind Closed Doors role playing activity.  BOB DITTER WILL BE OUR SPECIAL GUEST PRESENTER!!!!  The first Camp Dance of the summer will be rocking!  Old [...]

Open House Tomorrow!

By |2013-05-18T11:48:23-04:00May 18th, 2013|

Please come out and join us at Camp Ockanickon, Camp Matollionequay and Lake Stockwell for our 3rd open house of the season. Tours will be leaving from the Ockanickon Dining Hall (Ocky & Stockwell) and the Matollionequay Dining Hall (Matolly) from 1-4pm on Sunday May 19th. This is the perfect opportunity to learn about all the fun and exciting program we have lined up for this summer, meet our summer camp staff and enjoy some delicious s’mores! There is no RSVP needed…just swing on over! All of our open houses are rain or shine…but we always keep our fingers crossed [...]

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