Carpe diem. Lauren & I hope everyone had a meaningful High Holidays and is having a wonderfully sweet fall season. As we continue to explore different ways we might connect more with our camp families during the school year (our “off season”), we wanted to weave through our Directors’ Blog a series of posts that pose difficult questions around the “point” of the summer camp experience. Of course, Lauren & I believe passionately in the transformative possibilities of the Blue Star experience, and we know there are many parents who are not quite sure of the value of a summer at camp. Rather than “preach” one side of the debate, or worse yet shy away from it completely, we choose to embrace it.

Should we send our children to summer camp? There it is.

Last summer we came across the article posted below. It centers on an ongoing dialogue between two friends and colleagues (both active parents!) about the merits of a part of the summer away from home. While I will let both writers speak for themselves, I will offer my brief take.

In short, Lauren & I believe that the Blue Star experience is an integral part of a child’s whole education. At Blue Star we believe that children can and must make their own choices as it relates to what pursuits and activities they want to explore on a deeper level. We believe that children growing up today, including our own Eli, need to learn how to interact face-to-face with other children, reading social cues and navigating peer dynamics. We believe the pure fun that campers enjoy at Blue Star, in addition to the strong community they help build each summer, is essential to their positive growth. *Now see what some others think…

http://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2014/07/07/should-you-send-your-children-to-summer-camp

PART 1:  Our Conservation Generation mini-series…

Carpe diem. Blue Star always has been at the forefront of innovation and positive change, doing our small part in helping make our world a better place. Lauren & I are grateful daily to be the current custodians of this movement that has been part of the Popkin family for 68 seasons.

Tikkun Olam is part of our DNA. What is most important to Lauren & me in our parenthood journey with Eli and for us in our camp director journey with Blue Star is creating the space within which children can discover what really makes them happy. Directly connected to this ideal is our strong belief that doing good (for others and for the world) is the central ingredient in the happiness recipe.

So this past summer we launched Conservation Generation in partnership with Avi Djanogly’s Gabi H2O award-winning and world-wide program. This program highlights environmental stewardship and allowed us to put into practice our “programs with a purpose.” Having amazing fun is a guiding principle in everything we do at camp, while learning how to appreciate our beautiful nature surroundings and vital natural resources.

Part of this program involved enlisting the help of our campers and their parents—YOU! Together, in partnership with you, we planted 500 trees with the National Forest Foundation.

Just getting us all to camp left a carbon footprint of over 500 tons of CO2. On average, a broadleaf tree will absorb about 1 ton of CO2 over the course of its estimated 100-year life. By planting 500 trees, our Blue Star family has helped to absorb much of the CO2 emissions made by campers and staff travelling to camp this past summer. Wow!

*Of course, there is a lot more to Conservation Generation. Coming soon in Parts 2 & 3:  Re-cap of all of our camper-led arts projects focused on water conservation AND the three behavior changes at camp & how we made a difference…

Carpe diem.  Lauren and I recently moved onto camp for this summer and along with Eli (who is very much in the “terrible twos” now) have embraced this seasonal transition.  Really, leaving our off season home and life to drive with cars packed to camp is more like a family tradition.  Here we are, and we can’t wait for all of you to join us!

With the Old Lake and vibrant green trees outside of my office window it is time to announce our summer THEME:  be bold. Let’s start with the more literal translation of being bold in the context of the Blue Star experience.  We encourage our campers to stretch beyond their comfort zones in trying new activities, reaching out to a new cabin mate to begin a lifelong friendship, and standing up for what they believe.  In addition to the word—bold—in and of itself, we are taking it a step further by turning “b.o.l.d.” into an acronym that represents our three core outcomes (which we have blogged about throughout this off season).

Build community.

Open our hearts (to do good and practice the philosophy of tikkun olam).

Learn to Discover our best selves.

In order to fulfill these core outcomes we all must take a leap of faith.  It takes boldness to extend a hand to a cabin mate who is having a difficult time adjusting to cabin life.  In so doing we might make a new friend or, at the least, share kindness with others.  Along the way we are indeed building community.  That’s bold.

It takes boldness to think beyond ourselves and consider the impact we have on our surroundings.  Every individual impacts in some way on the other people with whom she or he interacts and impacts on our natural environment.  This summer we will launch our Conservation Generation initiative in partnership with Gabi H2O and the American Camp Association as the pilot camp in a creative effort to positively change behavior around water conservation.  Each camper will have  opportunities through this project and myriad other venues to do good.  That’s bold.

Lauren and I believe that it takes boldness to discover what makes us truly happy.  The process of self-discovery can be illuminating and liberating, even if the change it inspires is subtle.  We believe that what is most important about this process is that our campers find happiness.  That is what becoming successful in life means to us.  We think that’s bold.

Carpe diem.  Lauren and I would like to take a moment to wish everyone a happy spring…finally.  I then want to offer the words of Henry David Thoreau who wrote in Walden to “Simplify, Simplify.”  One word, repeated twice.  What a useful reminder!  Reading a section of another book recently, I stumbled upon Thoreau’s words.  With this message of simplifying in mind, I want to highlight two healthful updates for this summer toward that end and our thinking behind them.

Unplugged…Our evolving approach to tech on camp.  Camp provides the space for the unique opportunity of an “unplugged” experience.  The focus gets to be on connecting with camp friends, staff, and the beautiful natural surroundings.  Items that interfere with the goals of our camp community simply do not belong in the camp setting.  To be clear, all cell phones (regardless of what their intended use may be and including “back-up” cell phones) are not allowed at camp.  Laptops, I-Pads with Cellular, Kindle Fires and portable DVD players are also NOT allowed.  Bringing a basic I-Pad or I-pod touch to camp is strongly discouraged.  We do acknowledge that there are some items that campers may wish to bring with them for use in the cabin during “downtime.”  Unfortunately, many items campers may bring for “downtime” (hand-held games, e-readers, I-pods, basic I-pads or I-touches) are now almost always internet connectable.  Since we do not want to ban the use of items like these when they are for camp appropriate activities like reading a book or listening to music, we do reluctantly allow their use during quiet time in the cabin.  Internet that is available at camp in order to assist various areas or camp offices in running effectively is locked and cannot be accessed by campers. We hope this helps to clarify both our reasoning behind the nuanced policy AND the actual policy (which will be enforced).  To delve deeper into this hot button issue, check out the following npr interview with Richard Louv, author of Last Child in the Woods:  Saving our Children from Nature Deficit Disorder.  We have found it illuminating.

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4665933

Healthy Choices…What’s new at Granny’s. In addition to trying to create a more healthful space where our campers and staff can be freed up to really explore and more deeply connect, we have put a lot of energy into what we offer at our famous Granny Sara’s Store.  Part of the balance we are looking to strike in this realm is with allowing our campers to make their own choices AND with providing more healthy options from which to choose.  With that, we are happy to announce that we will offer bottled water, Vitamin Water, less soda, and even more nutritious (and still delish) options.  We feel strongly that what we feed our bodies is just as important as what we feed our minds.  Camp provides endless opportunities for being active and being outside.  Being healthful also demands that we give ourselves more of the “right stuff” to help us re-fuel.

Lauren and I welcome the opportunity to talk in more depth with any of our camp families about these two areas.

Carpe diem. Lauren and I want to begin this 2nd off season blog entry simply by wishing you an extra Happy 2014! As we get ready to enter a New Year, we invite you to create some time to pause and reflect on this past year. At the same time we encourage you to set new goals for yourself and share them with your family and close friends. It is only in a community where we all can truly support each other. One of my personal goals for 2014 is to create time and space every day to practice mindfulness. That might take the form of yoga, meditation, or being more “present” with Eli when spending father and son time together.

This concept of mindfulness also can be thought of as being more “heartful.” One of the most powerful aspects of the Blue Star experience is the forming and deepening of lifelong relationships. Our campers, parent community, and alumni comment consistently on the special friendships they forged at camp. Learning how to be a good friend requires a certain understanding of compassion. That is what being heartful is all about to me.

With this idea of heartfulness in mind we want to highlight the second core outcome we hold for our campers. In last month’s blog post we explored our first core outcome of self-discovery. Once we better know our true selves we begin to make real connections with others. Making connections is the kindling for building community.

Building community. In his book, Leadership Is an Art, Max DePree challenges leaders to re-think what it means to lead. DePree is chairman emeritus of Herman Miller, Inc. and was elected by Fortune magazine to the National Business Hall of Fame. He believes that the intention of an organization must be to build community. “Community is where it happens. In communities we are all given opportunities and the chance to make the most of them.” Further, “Only in communities do we respect and honor and thank the people who contribute to our interdependent lives. Only in communities can we truly forgive each other.” (DePree xi) When I read and re-read these words I think immediately of Blue Star. Building community is our good work; in community we find the lifelong friendships.

At the recent Blue Star reunion in South Florida I was reminded of the power of those very lifelong friendships. Being part of the re-connecting across generations that happened in the two short hours at the reunion re-enforced for me the meaning of that Blue Star Magic. We look forward to turning another page as we enter 2014 and gear up for our 67th season…

Carpe diem. Hope everyone is having a beautiful fall season. Lauren and I are inspired to begin an off season blog series. Over the next several months we will be sharing some of our thoughts about our larger vision for camp. In addition, we will offer humbly different take-aways from the latest research in the field of education in an attempt to spark further inquiry on your part. After all, the important work we do as camp directors ultimately leads to the best outcomes for children when we are in partnership with you—their parents. We invite your comments, feedback, and insights as we want this to be a dialogue.

So I will begin with our big vision. From there I will connect to the first of the three core outcomes we want your children to experience as Blue Star campers. Lauren and I envision a sustainable space at Blue Star that is a living and breathing microcosm of what we think the larger world can become. Lauren’s father and director emeritus, Rodger Popkin, often reminds us of a quote from Gandhi. “If we could change ourselves, the tendencies in the world would also change. As a man changes his own nature, so does the attitude of the world change towards him.” Of course, the bumper sticker version goes something like…”Be the change you wish to see in the world.” The point remains the same. We believe Blue Star is a place where children discover their best selves, make connections in an intentional community, and learn to practice Tikkun Olam.

Self-discovery. This is where our camp journey begins. It is the foundation for everything else that happens through the Blue Star experience. Lauren’s grandfather and co-founder of Blue Star, Herman Popkin, used to say that every child possesses a unique gift. The work of camp then is to encourage each camper to discover what her passion is and to go for it. We create a safe haven amidst the natural beauty of the Blue Ridge Mountains where every camper is able to gain confidence and independence in discovering his best self. I leave you for now with the link to a TED talk by the spoken word artist, Sarah Kay. In it she describes her own exploration of self-discovery, and I find it inspiring.

Carpe diem. Hope everyone had a sweet Memorial Day Weekend. Lauren and I are settled in at camp with Eli now. As we have navigated the journey up to camp, I have tried to “step up to the balcony” and remind myself of the bigger picture. My mind has taken me back more often than not to the nitty gritty details of what to pack, how to organize the car with all of Eli’s toys (and some clothes), and then where to fit all of our stuff in our summer log cabin. Once in a while I am able to stay present and realize that all of this movement is naturally part of transition.

Our small family’s transition flows together with the larger transition from off-season to summer camp. Being part of this “pre-camp” process is exhilarating, eye-opening, and sometimes a little daunting. Every day there are so many moving parts, all working harmoniously as part of the greater whole (even if it doesn’t always sound like a symphony). For example, our long-time caretakers—Uzi & Wayne—assemble as many summer staff as they can to transform this spot into the beautiful camp we all know it as. At the same time, we are hosting and running various staff training programs.

Not only do we have all of our outdoor adventure and waterfront activity specialists go through the most rigorous courses in their fields, but we also host our very own Blue Star Training Institute where we host staff members from other camps who want to take the classes. More broadly, we are laying the foundation for the safest, most fun, and greatest skill developing summer.

Lauren and I can never say too much how much we deeply appreciate all of the work and thoughtfulness that all of our team pour into pre-camp. It is amazing to be part of the transition. For sure, it’s beginning to look a lot like Camp…

Carpe diem.  Hope you had a meaningful Passover. Lauren and I thought we would seize the day by updating our blog in anticipation of this summer 2013. We will frame these spring entries as a “Directors’ Blog” where we share ideas we are thinking about that relate to camp in some way. Of course, we might sprinkle them with some behind-the-scenes insider info to let you in on some of what’s going on to get ready for our 66th summer of Blue Star magic.

One read that caught my attention recently was actually an article my dad emailed to me in what has become a Herschthal family ritual of weekly shared e-readings. It is an article about the importance of a family story, or narrative, that connects its members and gets passed down from generation to generation. On multiple levels it really is hitting home for me. Of course, it reminds me of the unifying story we tell each spring during Passover. Also I see connections to the generational transition at Blue Star in which I am grateful to be playing a small part. Continuing to tell Blue Star’s unique story and beginning to add new chapters is exactly what we are venturing to do. Further, the article has me thinking of the stories and rituals Lauren and I will create with Eli as we honor one of our core values of family time.

On a different note…all of our Camp Leaders and our Program/Special Events Directors were in town last month for our annual visioning and planning retreat. Lots of giant post-its were strewn across the walls with tons of cool ideas for things like Color War theme (that’s all you’re getting out of us here!), new In-House Options, and a brand new camp-wide “Weekly Show.” Everyone was fired up all weekend and brought a lot of positive energy. We are excited that we now have sprung forward (though we wish we could get that hour of sleep back) because the next season looks like summer…