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Camp Corner Newsletter- With all the latest from Camp.

Camp Corner Newsletter-Sept 2017

 


Pictures Posted...

So sorry for the delay getting pictures posted. We have so many it takes a reliable internet connection with good speed to get the 1000's uploaded.

NOW I have posted all the pictures from the summer. So be sure to see our website for all the pictures of you!   

Summer Camp Pictures  -you can always find the pictures from our home page and by clicking "Current Campers"

 


PARENT COMMENTS

Each summer we get many encouraging words from our families. Here is one such note. 

"Hello. I wanted to send a quick note to thank you for a wonderful experience for our son. He is a different kid, in a positive way. He has become more assertive and gained confidence in many ways.  He left for camp very apprehensive and annoyed with us for sending him. He came home HAPPY.

Looking forward to our girls attending your Discovery Camp next June.
Thank you for all your hard work making the camp a special place for kids."

Mom

 

What a Wonderful Summer
Yes, Camp is over and the silence of nature is everywhere except for the occasional Loon call... and the sounds of progress... Over the last 30 days Luis & Billy have been busy completing projects at camp. Some have been big, we will tell you more about that later while others a bit smaller, but all have made camp a better place.


We want to thank those nearly 40 families that believe in SNC so much that they were willing to to pay more than the basic camp price. It is the generosity of these folks that makes it possible to do so many wonderful projects from adding new docks, refurbishing our pontoon boat and our most recent adding a new roof to the Nature Center.

But at SNC we did more this summer than fix up the facilities. We built friendships that empowered campers to be more confident and self reliant while learning more about Nature and themselves.
Thank you to all
Jeff & Lonnie Lorenz

 

What Counselors are Saying!


Hi Swift Family
I already miss everyone and hope that everyone’s school year is going wonderfully

Hope to see you soon!
Christy

 

Hi Everyone,

I hope all of you got to enjoy the end of summer and have had an awesome start to the school year.  Since heading back to college I’ve had a chance to continue swimming and will get to go hiking at High Cliff State Park with my geology class soon.  Good luck in school, and don’t forget to slow down and enjoy the world around you from time to time!        -Abby

 

 

 

DID YOU KNOW THAT 70% OF OUR NEW CAMPERS FIND OUT ABOUT SNC FROM GOOGLE!

We love it when families post something positive about SNC!
Click Here to post a Google Review

 

 

The Transition- Back to Home

Returning home from camp brings excitement to the whole family. It is important for parents and campers to understand that going back home is a time to return to the "Real World" with more responsibilities, homework and parents with high expectations.

Here are a few ideas to help campers move back into society

1-Wean your kids back slowly on electronics. Now is the time to set up your expectations including: creating a charging station and have no electronics in bedrooms.

2-Give your kids downtime to reconnect with friends – Don't over program and help set up face to face times with friends

3-Encourage sleep – Camp is regimented with regular bedtimes, except for the last few days. Try to start a regular bed time routine.

4- When you see a new habit give it a thumbs up. Positively reinforce  behaviors – especially the new ones you like. It is easy to fall back into the old not so good habits.

5- Debrief. As parents of a camper, we often don't often hear camp stories till mid November. So don't worry if they are not so forthcoming, just keep asking and they will come

6- When you learn something about SNC that is Amazing or Troubling, contact us via email or phone. We want to know.


Enjoy your children it wont be long till you send them back to us.
 
 
 
 

   SIGN UP FOR 2018 

It is going to be another Great Summer!

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Over the past decades we have seen that today in America people spend more time indoors than ever before. So many screens compete for our attention that we are loosing a connection with nature and the outdoors. Obviously, there are many consequences of this new lifestyle. Yet one most don't think about is the disappearance of a "nature" vocabulary from the cultural conversation. Research shows our conversations reflect an actual distancing from nature. Yes, studies have been done that show we are using nature terms less and expressing ourselves less as it relates to nature. Read more about this study. How can we stop the screen time domination? Put down your screen and go outside. Make it a point to take your children outside and show them the wonder that nature has to offer.  At Swift Nature Camp we do it everyday. It could be a simple sunset or a frog hopping off a lily-pad either way it's about seeing the little things and enjoying them.

Dr odzy Sluchacze Polskiego Radia,

Bardzo milo bylo mi goscic w radiowym studio dzisiejszego poranka. Dziekuje wszystkim sluchaczom za poswiecony czas, za wasze pytania i zainteresowanie naszym obozem.

Wiem, ze nie latwo jest wyslac dzieci w miejsce, ktorego nie znamy, do ludzi, o ktorych nie wiele wiemy, szczegolnie w dzisiejszych czasach. Jak pewno pamietacie, nasze dziecinstwo, zwlaszcza w Polsce bylo zupelnie inne. Trudniesze? Latwiejsze? Kto wie? Ale napewno mielismy wiecej przygod poza domem, czy to na kolonii, na obozie, u babci na wsi. Calymi dniami przebywalismy na lonie natury lapiac zaby, lowiac ryby, goniac, wymyslajac rozne gry i zabawy. Te wspomnienia mamy do dzisiaj i zawsze z nami pozostana.

Swift Nature Camp to wlasnie takie miejsce dla dzieci i mlodziezy. Dla mnie i dla mojego meza prowadzenie obozu to nie biznes, to nasza zyciowa pasja. Nasi uczestnicy aktywnie spedzaja wiekszosc dnia na wolnym powietrzu uczestniczac w wielu atrakcyjnych zajeciach. Moge tutaj wymiec te najbardziej ulubione przez dzieci: plywanie, tubing, canoe, kajaki, zeglarstwo, lucznictwo, strzelectwo, pracownia plastyczna, nasze obozowe zoo, gdzie mozna sie calymi dniami bawic z czteronoznymi ulubiencami, pracownia LEGO i wiele innych. Mamy dla kazdego cos ciekawego. 

Ale te zajecia to tylko czubek gory lodowej.  Dla nas rodzicow jest wazne by dziecko bylo aktywne, by probowalo nowych sportow i roznych ciekawych zajec. Jednak, co tak naprawde w zyciu sie liczy, to wartosci takie jak : uczciwosc, odpowiedzialnosc, niezaleznosc, dobre maniery, umiejetnosc pracy w grupie czy poprostu szacunek i uprzejmosc w stosunku do innych. I tego wlasnie swiadomie uczymy poprzez zabawe i inne inetersujace zajecia.

Czesto slysze od rodzicow pytanie : Co wy zrobiliscie z moim z dzieckiem?  I nie raz przerazilam sie slyszac taki zarzut. Jednak okazuje sie, ze rodzice sa zadowoleni, ze ich pociecha wrocila z obozu zmieniona na lepsze. Rodzice to widza.i doceniaja. Czesto po takim turnusie poprawiaja sie codzienne relacje miedzy dziecmi i rodzicami.  Kiedys ktos madry powiedzial, ze potrzeba calej wsi by wychowac jedno dziecko. To prawda, my jako rodzice nie jestesmy w stanie  byc rowniez mentorami dla wlasnych dzieci. To dwie rozne role i dzieci inaczej reaguja na to co rodzice mowia, a co mowia im osoby, ktore nie sa z ich rodziny. Dlatego nasz syn juz od wielu lat wyjezdza na pare tygodni na inny oboz, by tego wlasnie doswiadczyc.

Zapraszam do poczytania ponizszego artykulu o determinacji. Ja w przyplywie wolnego czasu pisze artykuly do gazetki wydawanej w Polskiej Szkole Sw. Faustyny Kowalskiej w Lombard, gdzie chetnie uczeszcza nasz syn i gdzie mamy grono zaprzyjaznionych rodzin, ktorych dzieci uczestniczyly w naszym obozie.

 

 

 

Nie przegapcie panstwo okazji i zapiszcie swoje pociechy przed 10 czerwca by otrzymac ta promcyjna cene. Prosze wejsc na nasza strone www.swiftnaturecamp, kliknac na "dates and rates" i przy powolaniu sie na Polskie Radio otrzymacie panstwo oferowana cene.

 

Determinacja. 



Według Słownika Języka Polskiego determinacja to zdolność do podejmowania konkretnych, stanowczych decyzji spowodowana mocnym wewnętrznym przekonaniem i siłą woli. 
Jaka to wspaniała cecha charakteru... Ile by człowiek dał, by mógł  własnym dzieciom przypisać ten walor. Obowiązki w domu nie powodowałyby ciągłych konfliktów, lekcje byłyby odrabiane bez problemów  i narzekań, a to przekładałoby się na większą samodzielność naszych dzieci. Tego wszyscy chcemy dla naszych pociech, prawda? I tak naprawdę, dla siebie tez.
 Wiemy, że zdecydowanie, stanowczość i silna wola determinują osiągnięcie wielu celów. Ciężka praca popłaca, mówi stare powiedzenie. Ale czy zawsze przynosi satysfakcję , zadowolenie czy też jest powodem do  dumy z odniesionego sukcesu?
Z własnego doświadczenia wiem, że sukces nie zawsze przynosi satysfakcję. Często staramy sie zadowolić oczekiwania innych, i wtedy determinacja może przynieść skutki negatywne, takie jak stres, frustracje czy nawet depresję. 
Wychowując nasze dzieci uczmy je determinacji, ale takiej, która kierowana jest pasją, zainteresowaniami a nie strachem przed opinią i oczekiwaniami innych. Odłóżmy na bok nasze niespełnione marzenia z dzieciństwa i pomóżmy dzieciom odnaleźć to,  co na początku  będzie budzić w naturalny sposób ich zainteresowanie, a z czasem przerodzi się w  zamiłowanie a nawet pasję.. Proponujmy im rożne zajęcia, czy to sportowe, czy artystyczne. Dziecko od razu nie będzie wiedziało, czy lubi piłkę nożną, grę na pianinie czy teatr jeśli my jako rodzice nie damy mu możliwości by tego doświadczyło. Wspierajmy pasje naszych dzieci. Prawdopodobnie  będzie  to kosztem naszego wolnego czasu, tzw. „ świętego spokoju” i z cała pewnością  wygeneruje to dla nas dodatkowe  koszty finansowe. Jednak wierzcie mi warto podjąć to wyzwanie.
Wiemy, że mała iskra potrzebuje tlenu, by rozpaliła ognisko. 
Jeśli dziecko przejawia zainteresowania w danej dziedzinie, to należy tą namiastkę pasji stopniowo rozwijać. I ważne jest by zacząć od zabawy, by dziecko widziało, że to co robi daje mu radość i satysfakcję. Możemy oczywiście dzieci zachęcać ale musimy pamiętać, ze na tym etapie, ważne jest by dziecko sie dobrze bawiło, by z podjęta formą aktywności kojarzyły się mu tylko pozytywne przeżycia i emocje. To najlepsze wzmocnienie, które będzie budować prawdziwa determinację. Prawdziwa pasja nigdy nie zaczyna sie od ciężkiej pracy - zaczyna sie od zainteresowania i zabawy. 
Po tej fazie wstępnej należy uczyć dziecko jak radzić sobie z dyskomfortem, który pewnie się pojawi i   zabrzmi to  jak paradoks, jak czuć sie z nim wygodnie. To ważne by potrafić przeciwstawiać sie trudnościom. Najlepiej uczyć sie tego poprzez ćwiczenia w ich pokonywaniu . Róbmy to powoli, mimo niewygody nie poddawajmy się. W takich sytuacjach nauczmy dzieci, ze głębokie, powolne oddechy, relaksowanie ramion to bardzo pomocne narzędzia w chwilach stresu. Przyjmijmy niewygody i nie bójmy sie ich. Nie unikajmy trudnych rozmów, zaryzykujmy nasze relacje z innymi poprzez pokazanie kim naprawdę jesteśmy, co naprawdę czujemy. Zauważamy ludzi, którzy potrzebują pomocy i zaoferujmy im  ją. Nie odwracajmy sie od problemów innych ludzi. Nie bójmy sie tego. To ważna umiejętność, którą możemy przekazać naszym dzieciom. Róbmy to, co dobre, nawet jeśli jest to dla nas niewygodne.
Verba docent, exempla trahunt,
Seneka miał rację nie ma nic lepszego niż przykład szczególnie rodzicielski.
Determinacja, pasja, zaangażowanie w  swoje obowiązki to cechy, których  dzieci powinny uczyć się od nas, rodziców . Jeśli odnajdziemy w sobie pasję, będziemy gorliwi i niestrudzeni w swoich aktywnościach to wtedy możemy " zawojować świat".
Jola Lorenz
Wlasciciel obozu Swift Nature Camp  
www.SwiftNatureCamp.com

Memorial Day 1-3pm
Come Meet The Swift Nature Camp Staff
Ask Your Questions
Kids Play Games
Meet Critters from The Camp Zoo



This OPEN HOUSE is always a big hit. It is a great time to meet other campers and Staff! We will play games and answer any last minute questions you might have about camp, it's perfect as a "getting to know you time" before camp starts. If you are still not sure if Swift is the place for you this summer - stop on by, we love to talk about Swift Nature Camp.

WHEN: Monday May 29th

TIME: 1pm-3pm

WHERE: Willowbrook Wildlife Center (Glen Ellyn, Il -near College of DuPage) We hope you can make it to this fun program. Please dress for the weather. If you have any questions call us at 630-654-8036.

Happy Trails

Lonnie & Jeff

DIRECTIONS
WILLOWBROOK WILDLIFE CENTER IS LOCATED

Camp Corner Newsletter
Just returned back from camp after a few weeks. While you are busy finishing up school we are busy getting ready for your summer camp adventures to start. Here are just a few things that we have been doing.
 
Who Stole the Swift Nature Camp Sign?

No need to worry... After 23 years we thought it was time to give the old sign a makeover. So as you come over the last hill on your way into camp please be sure to take a special look at the New camp sign and tell us what you think.
 
MORE CANOES = MORE FUN
 
We have nearly doubled our canoe fleet for 2017, bringing our total number of canoes to near 40 in all.  Perfect for those Adventurous Canoe Trips we will be having this summer.
 
 

What Happens Before You Arrive to SNC?

Pre Camp is all about doing projects, so when you arrive, you can enjoy all the updates. This is Luis (from Mexico) It is his 2nd summer at SNC. He is usually seen around camp helping Super Tom fix and repair things.  Here Luis is replacing the benches on the Pontoon boat -Dah G Dah. Be sure and ask Luis to your table for Lunch some time, he loves hanging with the campers when he has time.
 
 
Super Tom
Every Summer Camp has a few unsung heroes, that work timelessly to make camp special for everyone. Super Tom is ours, he has been with camp since 2001 and he is the only member of the camp staff that lives on the camp property all year long.During winter it can get pretty lonely at camp with no other folks around. Maybe that's why every summer he is so excited to see us all. Tom is always ready to fix things that need fixing but more importantly he is ready to have a chat, so be sure to say "HI" to him when you see him at camp.
 
 
 

MEET GRISHIN
Grishin has lived in New Zealand for half of his life and the other half he lived in South Africa. Be sure to have him speak his native language for you... it is unlike any I have ever heard before. Grishin is sort of a sportsy guy and has played cricket and rugby for his school teams, he was even captain.  Do you think he is playing with an Erector Set in this picture? NOPE, he is actuall helping to rebuild to Boating Docks.
 
 
Welcome Billy

This is Billy's first summer at Swift Nature Camp. He is from Mexico and and will be helping Super Tom and Luis during the summer. One of our goals is to finish restaining the cabins, so that will take a lot of time and energy to sand off all the old paint to get them ready for stain. This will be Billy's main project of the summer- 5 more cabins to go.
Can you tell what Billy is working on in this picture? It's Dah-G-Dah the Pontoon Boat. For 2017, New carpet, floor boards and paint have been added.
Will it be the same color?
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Did You Know that Swift Nature Camp had a full length Documentry made at camp? It follows a few of our campers around a normal day of camp.  The makers of the movie had a full range of the camp and were able to film anything they wished. The story that developed was a surprise to us all.
SEE IT NOW FOR FREE
 
Be sure to get all the latest information so you are ready for 2017.
  • This Summers Information

  • Willy is happy to be back at camp. We will be celebrating his 10th Birthday. For him he is getting older and not as active as past summers. He has developed a slight limp and has become hard of hearing. So you might just see him lying down and sleeping, waiting for you to give him a belly rub.
    He can't wait for that....

HOPE YOU CAN MAKE IT TO THE OPEN HOUSE

WILLOWBROOK WILDLIFE CENTER
 Glen Ellyn, Ill.

 

This OPEN HOUSE is always a big hit. We usually have nearly 30 campers and parents attending. It is a great time to meet other campers and Staff! We will play games and answer any last minute questions you might have about camp, it's perfect as a "getting to know you time" before camp starts. If you are still not sure if Swift is the place for you this summer stop on by, we love to talk about Swift Nature Camp.

WHEN: Monday May 29th

TIME: 1pm-3pm

WHERE: Willowbrook Wildlife Center ( you can get directions below)

We hope you can make it to this fun program. Please dress for the weather. If you have any questions call us at 630-654-8036.

Happy Trails

Lonnie & Jeff

DIRECTIONS
WILLOWBROOK WILDLIFE CENTER IS LOCATED
on the east side of Park Boulevard across from College of DuPage, one mile south of Roosevelt (Rt. 38) and one mile north of Butterfield Road (Rt. 56).

(630) 942-6200

2017 heading simple
As a Director of an Overnight Summer Camp in Wisconsin for over 20 years, I have seen a change in how parents deal with their children. Obviously,  when I was a kid my parents spent alot less time worrying about me. Oh sure I was loved but I was given time to figure stuff out on my own even if that meant small failures or getting in trouble. But more importantly, I was given something we all want more of TIME. Yes, my parents did not schedule me in after school sports, tutoring or band. No, in my day I played with friends, watch an 1hour of TV per day (now they say the average kid is 8hrs on a screen) and figured out things to keep myself busy. Yet, with all this time on on my hands, something was bound to come out of my mouth "MOM, I'm Bored" and the her response was almost always the same "Go Outside". Today, parents hear the "I'm Bored" much less, because kids just pick up a screen and stay entertained for hours. I was speaking with a substitute teacher the other day and she said its so much easier now that 10 years ago.  I have almost no discipline issues because when students finish their online in class assignments they pull out their phone and keep engaged, causing less classroom flareups.
Research is showing this may be a bad thing, see below article. I am an Outdoors Summer Camp activist and for years said, WE ARE ADDICTED TO TECHNOLOGY! Only recently have others picked up on this and are telling us to put down our phones... And do what Mom said "Get Outside"!
 
 

Child psychologists insist that boredom is an enriching experience.

With the rise of screen time and “helicopter parenting”, i.e. hovering, we’ve seen a decline in the good-natured negligence that many of us were raised with during the 80’s and 90’s, which consisted of “go outside and play, now.” Parents nowadays feel pressured to turn their children into productive little performers, by filling their time with camps, sports, lessons and play dates. And while there are advantages too, say, learning to play the piano, researchers insist that the absence of planned activities is also an enriching experience. The best thing you can do for your kids this summer? Let them be bored.

“Your role as a parent is to prepare children to take their place in society. Being an adult means occupying yourself and filling up your leisure time in a way that will make you happy,” explains Lyn Fry, child psychologist, “If parents spend all their time filling up their child’s spare time, then the child’s never going to learn to do this for themselves.”

For the same reason that mindfulness has spread like wildfire among the wellness community, children also need to learn strategies to contend with the fast-paced, virtually-ruled nature of modern society. We also know, as adults, that being stripped of our televisions, iPads, and obligations are bound to offer a refreshing perspective and force us to interact with our surroundings in a new and different way.

Certainly, it is tempting, and perhaps we have been conditioned to feel that being bored is a waste of time. Not so— idleness is integral to allow our imaginations to grow. Dr. Teresa Belton, a visiting fellow at the University of East Anglia told the BBC that boredom is crucial for humans to develop “internal stimulus,” which, in turn, cultivates true creativity.

“There’s no problem with being bored,” says Fry. “It’s not a sin, is it? I think children need to learn how to be bored in order to motivate themselves to get things done. Being bored is a way to make children self-reliant.” Another way this helps kids is by eliminating the cycle of seeking validation for every little thing they do. Throwing out expectations is a tool to help kids truly know themselves and their preferences, and become more individually confident.

This summer, take away the screens and let kids simply do their own thing, such as playing with their toys in their room or outside in the yard. Experts also encourage writing a list of activities with children, including basic past times such as riding a bike, playing cards, drawing with sidewalk chalk, painting or reading a book. When your children approach you complaining of being bored, remind them to refer to the list. They’ll thank you later.

True Activist / //www.trueactivist.com/the-best-thing-you-can-do-for-your-kids-this-summer-let-them-be-bored/This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.">Report a typo

2017 header friends

Enjoy a Summer Camp In the USA

Thinkstock/diego_cervo

The Social and Emotional Long-Term Benefits of Summer Camp

 Summer camps help children to foster social relationships without the aid of a parent.

NEW YORK CITY - Children spend up to 180 days in school, not counting weekend functions, school-sponsored extra-curricular activities and socializing with friends. For most kids, it’s a huge part of their world.

Camp offers your child a different environment in which to grow their social skills and expand their friendship circle.

The primary feature of most camps is that they offer recreation and creativity in a structured environment.  That structure usually provides for downtime to just hang out.

Here, are a few of the many positive features of going to camp.

 

Another Opportunity to Develop Social Intelligence
According to psychologist Daniel Goleman, who coined the term, social intelligence is broken into two parts:

Social awareness is the ability to monitor our inner world — our thoughts and feelings. Social awareness refers to qualities including empathy, attunement to others and social cognition.

Social facility, on the other hand, refers to how we use our internal social awareness to interact with individuals and groups successfully, such as self-presentation, influence and concern for others.

Camp is a key opportunity for kids to develop both sides of their social intelligence by offering them a way to practice becoming adept at socializing by offering them access to many new people and environments.

The more children can practice their social intelligence, the more smoothly they can incorporate the skills for the rest of their lives.

Emotional Challenges
The structure of camp presents an ideal environment for children to build resilience. As I’ve mentioned before in my Mental Wellness column, resilience is having the ability to take failures in stride and retain a positive outlook on life and one’s abilities.

There are a myriad of examples where resilience can be fostered while at camp, whether it be on the losing side of an athletic competition, navigating the social waters of cliques and peer groups, or (in the case of sleep-away camp) not being able to lean on a parent’s intervention, thereby learning to “smooth” things out on one’s own.

Camp also allows children to experience the full range of emotions in relationships in a compressed time frame of several days to several months. Children get to experience the nervousness, excitement and, eventually, the sadness that comes from making new friends, connecting with those friends and then having to say goodbye at the end. This experience will repeat itself over and over again across one’s lifetime and it is a different experience from the cycle of the academic year.

Expanding the Definition of “Who I Am”
For good or for bad, we often times get labeled early in our lives as an athlete, an artist, musician, as gifted or talented, as a “brainiac,” or other, more derogatory, things.

After I finished graduate school, I worked at an academically-oriented summer program for high school kids, located on a major college campus. It was a very LGBT-friendly environment, and many of the LGBT students expressed that they felt most like themselves at this program. This was in stark contrast to their school experiences where they felt they had to “hide” their true selves, due to fear of judgment, ridicule or violence. The students were very grateful for this camp.

Like those LGBT teens, kids of all kinds can find a place to expand or change their label at the right camp.

In the age of specialized summer camps, children who excel or have an intense interest in a subject can spend their summers exclusively pursuing their passions. A secondary gain from this is that the other kids attending camp are also the ones labeled in the aforementioned ways back home. As a result, your child can be defined less by their passion, or what they “do,” and more by their character and the other traits that go into their “true” sense of self.

If the child has had negative experiences at school or in their neighborhood, they get exposure to a different world that may feel more accepting, walking away with a belief that there is a place for them in world.

The Investment
Sometimes summer camp can be a costly financial investment for parents, particularly when it comes to food and lodging and travel at camps such as sleep-aways.

But whether it's a free camp or a paid camp, a good one requires kids to invest in their experience, whether it's through their intention to build friendships or their willingness to push boundaries to the unknown.

If a child spends the summer growing their social network, building resilience, developing a positive sense of self which helps them be who they really are, then the money spent on summer camp is a priceless investment in your kid’s future.

 

PLEASE VOTE FOR YOUR FAVORITE SHIRT FOR 2017

 

CAAMPCORNER1 2017

CAAMPCORNER 2017

Summer camp News Letter - all the latest for 2017

archeryOften parents ask: Why is an Overnight Summer Camp the right thing for my child? As a camp owner & director of a summer camp in the Midwest, this seems like an odd question. But then I have to stop and realize, that if a parent has not gone to a summer camp or even if you did go to camp, you might not understand how camp has changed over the years. First, I think it is important that I say, I cannot speak of all camps but I can talk about Swift Nature Camp and other fine Overnight Summer Camps. So over the last 25 years, summer camps have realized they are important in a child's development in 3 main ways. First, they connect kids to nature and then reduce or eliminate screen time. Second, Overnight Camps help children learn interpersonal skills that build confidence as they move into adulthood. Thirdly, free play is a big part of what happens at camp. This day and age kids are so scheduled, they no longer have time to just make up games and goof off and be creative. But what does all this mean to your child? Below are 10 areas your child will benefit from while at camp:

 

 

1. Diversity

Far too often we live in our little village or community. Swift Nature Camp exposes kids to people from all over. Last summer we had 20 states and 5 countries represented at camp. This helps kids learn that the world is big and that despite the distance and the difference in cultures, we all want the same thing, to feel cared for, feel safe, have fun. Camp creates a world of peace and reconciliation rather than conflict.

2. Self-esteem

When kids are away from parents, they need to be decision makers. They do this with the encouragement from "Older Brothers or Sisters" - their counselors. We understand kids may make mistakes and that's OK at camp, because we are there to redirect poor decisions to good decisions. Making good decisions and being responsible for yourself builds self esteem.

3. Nature

Most parents agree their children are outside much less than they used to be. This “nature deficit” is causing increased stress and weight gains in our youth. At Swift Nature Camp we get kids outside, teaching them about nature while having fun in it.

4. Independence

Self-development and  independence happen at camp because campers are empowered to be responsible for themselves, with guidance from camp counselors. The day starts with getting ready, which includes brushing your teeth, making your bed and sweeping your cabin. This helps kids learn how to take care of themselves.

5. Leadership

When living in a group, there are times that you will naturally speak up and lead the group. This builds a child's character while providing confidence as they interact with others.

6. Memories

So often kids are in programs to just spend their time. Swift Nature Camp provides children the opportunity to make lifelong memories. Often we hear "Camp friends are my best friends" Why? Because when you live with someone, you become much closer than just seeing folks casually during the day.

7. Friendships

Making friends is a skill that needs constant practice. Camp is a wonderfully friendly place that provides these opportunities. At SNC our campers tend to know most if not all of the other campers within a few short days. For our older campers it's a time of supporting the younger ones, and for the younger ones, it's a time to trust and ask for help from the older campers. Camp is all about friendships, thus teaching and giving practice to children how to be more socially confident.

8. Exercise

Camp life is filled with a get up – and get moving attitude. Camp is all about doing! Our days are action packed all the time, except for a brief rest period in the afternoon. So whether you are chasing frogs, swimming or shooting a bow , at Swift Nature Camp we are active all the time.

9. Activities

Camps like ours provides numerous activities that can develop into life long passions. Kids can do so many activities that it is just a matter of time till they find the one that's best suited for them. Camp exposes many children to hiking, fishing, sailing, swimming, archery & canoeing all for the very first time. These passions can continue to grow throughout their life.

10. Engagement

Often we just look for something to eat up the time for our kids. Yet, as parents we know we should be doing more, but we are busy and have a life of our own. So, summer camp gives you back your time while assuring you that your child's needs are being met to the highest degree. The number one comment we hear from parent is "what have you done to my child"? We used to get worried, but after all these years of being a camp director, I see that it's just parents' way of telling us that their child has changed for the better during their time with us. We are intentional in what we do and maybe those parents' questions are why we do camp every summer.

If you would like to chat more about Swift Nature Camp or learn more about our Overnight Summer Camp For The First Time Camper please give us a call at 630-654-8036. We would love to help out.

Dear Lonnie & Jeff
I don’t know if I said this to you but SNC changed my life, the time I spent with you guys was easily the most amazing and wonderful I’ve ever had. Been there, in another country, away from my family and friends made me realize how much I love and need them, this experience made me more mature, responsible and (in my parents words) a better man… Thanks to that summer now I’m closer to my Dad, I learnt to forgive problems I had with old friends and what I think it’s the most important thing is to value everything life and God has given to me.

 

You have one of the best jobs in the world, working for kids it’s a huge blessing and I wish you the best luck for all the upcoming summers (hopefully one of those I will be able to comeback). Keep being awesome and doing everything the way you do because I can tell it’s working not only for campers, but for your staff. Thank you so much, God bless you and Swift Nature Camp.

Thank You Again
Salomon

 

To all potential staff reading this, SNC Changed my life it will change yours if you you are open to change. Learn more about Swift Nature Camp

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Winter

25 Baybrook Ln.

Oak Brook, IL 60523

Phone: 630-654-8036

swiftcamp@aol.com

Camp

W7471 Ernie Swift Rd.

Minong, WI 54859

Phone: 715-466-5666

swiftcamp@aol.com