Hello Canadensis!
Yes, I know. I have been very delinquent on my blog posts. Somehow, someway, time has escaped me and have neglected my Canadensis Cyberworld! I am sorry and hope to make it up with this October Catch Up Blog. After reading the following, I hope that all of you will be satiated (good SAT word for all you CITs) and will have had your fill of all things Canadensis and the happenings in the Life of Brian (a Monty Python movie title, by the way).
Over the past month or so, our Winter office has been getting back into the swing of things. We want to thank all of the campers that completed our annual survey. In compiling the results, we now have a 100+ page report of really wonderful feedback. We use this information every year to continue to grow the camp program new heights each Summer. It is such a wonderful tool for us to evaluate the summer from one year to the next.
And, by the looks of it, Summer 2012 was simply amazing for our campers! We have already received so many incredible e-mails and phone calls from camp families, letting us know about their awesome experience. At the same time, we have gotten word from a lot of campers and staff of planned reunions and get-togethers that have already taken place since camp ended or plan to take place in the upcoming months.
As for our own get-togethers, our Annual Reunion, celebrating Summer 2012, will be held on Saturday, January 5th at Funtime America in Cliffwood, NJ from 10:30 am – 12:30 pm. This is the same location we had our reunion at last year and from your feedback, all the campers and staff that attended let us know that it was a great place for this event. The facility is jam packed with games and rides as well as an eating area. We hope that our camp families and staff will save the date on their calendars now. Here was the online invitation that was just recently sent out…
Our Annual Reunion in January is sure to be a blast! Save the date now!
Along with the Reunion, we are planning to once again have our Canteen on the Fly events in November. We are still working out specific locations and times, but we will be hitting areas in the Philly suburbs, northern New Jersey, Westchester County and Long Island. Be on the lookout for e-mails, letting you know when we will be in your neighborhood and ready to eat some ice cream. We have also been working on a T-Shirt give-away for all those that attend.
As is always the case, if we learn of any get-togethers or special moments involving our campers or staff, we will post them here on our blogs. In an effort to catch everyone up, here are some that were sent to us over the past few weeks / months…
Bunk 5 Girls (from L to R) Julie Pulewitz, Joey Dallow, Jordan Plant and Bailey Germain met up in New York City.
They even got their picture posted on one a big screen in Times Square! How cool is that?!
Bunk 4 Boys (from L to R) Luke Finkelstein, Ryan Sher, Ben Cramer and Sam Finkelstein saw each other at the beach!
Bunk 4 Girls Joey Dallow and Avery Shaw met up for some frozen yogurt.
Alex Frieder and Matthew Portnoy from Boys Bunk 14 were hanging out after camp.
The Keim Brothers, Upper Inter Boy Harrison (center) and Junior Boy Ben (right), met up with Upper Inter Boy Dylan Carruba at the beach!
Girls from Bunk 17 (from L to R) Megan Lucks, Ava Steele, Jayme Lerman, Lauren Ambos, Madison Pilavin, Logan Katz, Margo Yellin and Jenna Fromer ride in style to celebrate Jayme's 13 1/2 Birthday!
OK. So, the next one needs a little explanation. As you may remember in a previous blog, Freshman Boy Eric Miller was the lucky recipient of Bruce Springsteen’s harmonica that was thrown to him by Bruce at show he attended earlier in the year. Just when he thought this would be a memorable moment in his life, at a show after camp, things were taken to a whole new level. If you’ve never been to a Springsteen concert before, it is typical for Bruce to bring up one lucky fan to help him perform the song “Waiting on a Sunny Day.” Well, suffice to say, that lucky fan was Eric Miller. Here is the video of which I am completely jealous of. Ha Ha!
On a personal note (and sort of on a camp note), since camp ended, Jaime and I have been busy with our wedding planning. Our date is set for Mother’s Day weekend. Where you ask? Well, we decided that Camp Canadensis was the most fitting location for this memorable event! Jaime and I are excited that amphitheater will be the place where we will be making things official. With Summer 2012 being Jaime’s fourth summer, she has felt very strongly connected to camp and she couldn’t think of a better place to celebrate.
Since camp ended, Jaime and I have also been getting in our fill of concerts…one of our favorite things to do together as a couple. In the past few months, we have seen a ton of shows, including God Street Wine (an old favorite of mine from my college days), Bruce Springsteen (on his birthday, nonetheless), Ben Folds Five, Spin Doctors and Blues Traveler. All good stuff. Of these, Bruce was probably my favorite. After a two hour delay because of lightning, Bruce played from 10:30 pm to 2 am. And, like I said, at midnight, it was the Boss’s birthday, which made the show extra special.
Of course, my weekends have also been filled with the New York Football Giants. Finally, Eagles fans, I will no longer mention the Super Bowl score from last season now that a new season is upon us. Although the Giants are currently sitting atop the NFC East division, I will subtly remain quiet (for now) since the Eagles won our first meeting this season. However, I hope to get revenge in the final week of the season. As you may know, we love to tailgate in Lot L12 before every home game and I had the pleasure of seeing a few camp families stop to say hello and enjoy some BBQ. Thanks to Ben Keim and dad Dan Keim as well as Noah Stern and dad (also, camp doctor) David Stern for stopping by and seeing us. Speaking of football, it is great to hear that so many campers have used Fantasy Football leagues as a way of staying in touch through the Fall months. How is your team doing this year? Mine…not so good.
One final camp note: this Friday, our Year-Round Crew will be volunteering at WHYY-FM (which is the National Public Radio station in the Philly area), taking donations for the station. During the day, we are sure to be mentioned on air, so our Philly-based families should tune in! If you call in to donate, there is a very good chance you will be talking to us.
Well, that’s all of the blogging for now. I hope you now feel more caught up in the Life of Brian. I promise to blog much more (and more frequently) in the months to come until Summer 2013. As Group Leader Pete Tarnoff asks, “Is it too early to start the countdown?”
Have a great day!
-Brian
