When a child goes off to camp for the first time, your courageous camper grows but so does everyone else in the family. At Swift Nature Camp we widen their horizons, help them make new and lasting friends, and discover new skills. Camp is so much more than just daycare. and you wouldn’t be considering camp if you didn’t think it would add to your child’s growth and development. Although camp can help your child learn to be a better swimmer, acquire a better canoe stoke, or learn pottery, the real benefit of camp will be when your child returns home and you see the increase in self-reliance and self-confidence. This is what camp is all about! It is so much more than fun and activities. What a gift!
Even though you know all the social and emotional benefits that a quality camp experience can give your child, don’t be surprised that you have mixed feelings about giving up your child for a few weeks. Most parents do! After all, nothing takes more trust than giving your child over to the care of other adults. Finding this trust, letting your child see that trust and letting your child go off on his or her own adventure with your blessing takes courage! It is also why we believe you too will grow from the experience of camp! It is only a stepping stone to your child leaving for college.





For many Finding the RIGHT Children’s Summer Camp is the most stressful challeng of the winter season. Choosing a camp should not be taken lightly. Summer camps are not a one size fits all. Careful consideration must be made to match your child’s needs wants and desires up with the proper Kids camp. If you have never done summer camp before or if you have I suggest going to Summer Camp Advisor, this website will help you understand what day camp and resident camp is call about. There is a lot of reading but it will help ensure your child has the best summer. 




Who does not love Ice Cream with all the trimmings? If you have been to Swift Nature Camp...you know this site all to well. It is that special time when instead of going into town and getting Ice Cream at the best ice cream store in the world the Village Scoop we get to have Ice Cream at camp. What a joy it is We have camp counselors hand it out and put on all the good stuff. You know sprinkles, chocolate sauce and even a cherrie. Of course the real deal is you have to earn Ice Cream at Swift Nature Camp, it is not all that hard to do...JUST KEEP YOUR CABIN CLEAN FOR INSPECTION!
LET’S PLAY.At Swift Nature Camp we have a wonderful swimming area full of fun toys, not to mention Wally (the water trampoline) & Sally (the slide). "Free Swim" is one of the most anticipated times of the camp day, but "Instructional Swim" is there to help give you build the confidence for those free swims. You can even earn American Red Cross Swimming levels
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Charter into new waters this summer. For many kids, coming to camp is a big adventure! One of the biggest challenges is swimming in a lake. We all have had experience swimming in a nice blue pool. There is security in being able to see the bottom of the pool. Lake swimming is to enter the wild water and to cross a border. You pass the lakes edge and you break the surface of the water itself. In doing so, you move from one realm into another: a new realm of freedom, adventure, magic and occasional danger. Watch out for those Turtles and Fish! At Swift Nature Camp we have a wonderful swimming area full of fun toys, not to mention Wally (the water trampoline) & Sally (the slide). "Free Swim" is one of the most anticipated times of the camp day, but "Instructional Swim" is there to help give you build the confidence for those free swims. You can even earn American Red Cross Swimming levels

Camp is so different than home because often at school children hangout with kids that are homogeneous. Thats right all the same, same age, same gender, same community and more. Opportunities to make friends are not much more than others in class or down the block. However, at Swift Nature Camp kids get an opportunity to spend time with others, both younger and older and from different parts of the country or world. It is interesting how often the older teens become natural leaders for the younger kids, by “adopting them”.Not only is this true with campers but also for counselors as well. Our staff are generally college aged folks studying to be teachers. They truly look at SNC as a learning opportunity. They are camper centered making them great role models for todays youth. Then consider the SENIOR staff at camp...the oldsters do round out a super community which entices children to make new friends. This year we are so excited that our pottery program will get a blast at camp. Our new Arts & Crafts Director Laura has years of experience in pottery and working with clay. So this year more than ever before we hope to see campers sculpting, and working on the wheel and kiln firing all those projects. All this means that there are going to be wonderful projects coming out of the ARTS & CRAFTS CASTLE this summer. Stuff like sculpted animals, multi-colored tiles, giant coil pots, and delicate wheel-thrown cups and bowls.
Let nature be a part of your clay work by taking a smooth slab of clay and press natural forms into it so that they leave intricate textures. You know, acorns, twigs, leaves, and tree bark, they all leave amazing patterns. then this can be turned in to a vase or some other vessel or just a fired the way it is.
Swift Nature Camp’s summer pottery program is going to be one of our most exciting programs in the summer of 2009. There’s almost an endless variety of pottery projects to make which you can take back to home your family and friends.
Swift nature Camp is so much more than FUN. Our tree of Values helps campers concentrate on the importance of group living skills. The life skills that are so important to yourself and to others. The tree has 12 branches that include: Responsibility, Persistence, Honesty, Enthusiasm and a host of others. Nation wide there is a program called Character Counts. This is our program and each day we use these values. But it’s when we focus on them and keep them in the forefront of our daily life that it helps us make good choices. Daily we might see these values as you help another camper carry a hiking pack or maybe as you forgive a camper that touched your stuff. Swift Nature Camp, like life has many opportunities to use the SNC tree of values. After all camp is just a little piece of life that you will never forget.
When Swift Campers think of camp they think of playing outdoors in Nature but they automatically think of the animals in our camp zoo and Nature Center. Our campers are crazy for critters and nature and critters. Not only do we have animals at camp we have guest speakers bring in some animals to camp that we all can appreciate. We have lots of animal related activities and offer the opportunity to interact with animals. Plus, you can even bring your own pet from home. How cool is that? An animal camp that lets you bring your own pets!
