Why We Do What We Do

Anderson Woods Camp was founded with the intention of fostering individual personal growth among our special people whom we serve.  Toward that end the first several summers of camp were multi-week sessions that emphasized life skills such as cooking and washing laundry.  While we are fortunate to now have a full-time cook that prepares our meals, and we no longer teach campers how to wash their clothes, every activity in which campers participate is intended to provide opportunity for growth.  

Some activities are taught more directly, such as when we make our beds each morning or when we work together to wash the dishes following that meal.  Other activities that are more recreational in nature provide a wealth of incidental learning, such as the teamwork that is learned through a game of kickball, the patience learned from trying to catch a fish, or, perhaps most importantly, the social skills learned from sharing a cabin with new friends for four days.

It is rewarding, yet not surprising, when we hear from the caregivers of our campers how a camper has become more sociable and more independent following a session at camp. Camp is a place for campers, staff, and volunteers to come together as a team to embrace each others many abilities and seek to find the best version of oneself. 



  

A Typical Day at Camp

7:30 am     Wake up and get dressed.  Those assigned to "dishes"
                     set the tables, while the rest gather on the porch of the    
                     dining hall for our daily flag-raising ceremony.

8:00 am     Breakfast

8:30 am     Dishes, teeth brushing, making our beds, cleaning our 
                      cabin and tidying our personal belongings.

9:00 am     Morning activities, which often include, but are not 
                      limited to fishing, hiking, kickball, a visit to the barn, 
                      tie-dying t-shirts, painting rocks, making bracelets,  
                      gathering vegetables from the garden, Wiffle ball, a
                      scavenger hunt, baking bread, hand-churning ice cream,
                      picking berries and preparing jam.

11:30 am   Everyone gathers back at the dining hall to clean up for
                    lunch and set the table.

Noon         Lunch, often a picnic lunch

12:30 pm  Dishes for some, rest time for others.  Campers and 
                    staff alike return to the cabins to rest for a while.  Some
                    campers will sleep, while others may read a book, or join
                    some friends on the deck of the cabin for a quiet game 
                    of cards.

2:00 pm    Swimming or other water activity for relief from the heat 
                     of the afternoon sun.

4:30 pm    Showers, after which campers gather on the dining hall 
                     porch to sing songs and socialize while waiting for dinner.

6:00 pm    Dinner, a cookout at least once a week, 
                     followed by more dishes.

7:00 pm    Evening activity, often a hike to the Unique Tree or to  
                     high pasture to watch the sunset and sing songs, a
                     dance, or a hayride.

8:30 pm    "Prayer circle," during which everyone has an opportunity
                     to share about his or her day or any other special 
                     thoughts.

9-10 pm    Prepare for bedtime, and lights out.