Adam here!
Joyeux mardi gras and happy Fat Tuesday to you. Last night, in celebration of my “Gotcha Day”, the YAVs and interns gorged on poke (pronounced po-keh), and tonight we’re going to a pancake feed at one of the Presbyterian churches. Lots of food!
Since my last post, I’ve been staying busy. One of the best things I’ve done this year is Program Connection. In January I flew to a UCCI camp called Pilgrim Center in Ripon, Wisconsin, to spend a week sharing ideas, making connections, and collaboratively learning with other camp ministry people. It was encouraging to spend a week in the company of people who are called to camp, the interns and the veterans alike. In addition to the PCCCA Annual Conference that I attended in November with the rest of Ferncliff’s program team, Program Connection was an invaluable experience that I recommend to everyone looking to succeed in camp ministry.
I ordered Ferncliff merchandise that was delivered in January, so I’ve been working on ways to sell and keep track of our apparel as it flies off the rack! I’ve also been tasked with interviewing applicants for summer staff. The more interviews I do, the more natural they become. I realized that having a conversation (while still being sure to ask the right questions) is a better way to gauge a candidate’s qualities than awkwardly reading questions like a script. The program team is currently planning and looking forward to Spring Break Day Camp. It’s going to be awesome.
For Lent, I’m sacrificing idleness. I realized that I spend a lot of my free time clicking through Wikipedia articles, making Spotify playlists, and inhaling Cheez-Its. I’m going to sacrifice that time to make more room in my day for God to create, speak, and permeate in my soul. I love Lent and the way it builds leads us to Easter, which is my favorite holiday. More from me later!
Tyler here:
The first week of my experience as an intern at Ferncliff was spent plunging into a pool of
projects. Since that initial experience, I’ve learned how to tread water and I’m swimming at a
steady pace as I accomplish the tasks that are set in front of me. One of my larger projects has
consisted of developing an environmental education curriculum that aligns with Arkansas state
science standards. The curriculum is designed to engage campers through authentic, hands-on
educational opportunities. One of the new activities that I am particularly excited about is a
forest “fashion show” that encourages students to think critically by applying their knowledge of the local fauna to solve problems. In one variation of this activity, campers will mimic a crawfish by scuttling around with long antennae made of pool noodles as they navigate through a maze while blindfolded in order to get to their food source. (We’re substituting a piñata full of treats for the crawfish’s normal diet of decaying plant matter.)
In