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We are currently replacing the Junior 2 Pool at Shibley with a brand new pool and this brought back some fond memories for me as both a camper and as a lifeguard and swim teacher.  I swam in that pool as a 6 and 7 year old back in my camper days.  The pool was purposely designed to be just the right depth for the height of those age campers. That was the Shibley secret so that campers will feel comfortable and are more likely to learn to swim.  I learned a lot of my swimming skills in that pool under the instruction of some very fine swim teachers.  I became a great swimmer during my camper years at Shibley and later worked as a certified lifeguard and swim instructor at that very same pool.

Swim instruction at Shibley has always been priority one for our campers.  It is a lifelong skill that is not only fun and great exercise, but it allows you to always feel confident and fearless around pools and oceans. Teaching children to swim can also be a great summer job while you are going to school.  Helping others learn to swim and to feel comfortable in the water can be a very satisfying endeavor.  My favorite campers to work with were the ones who in the beginning would not even get in the water.  I mean they would not even come close to the pool or even look at the pool.  Using a gentle approach, I was able to get them in the water so they could learn to swim with the other campers.

These campers would start out holding on to the side of the pool and refuse to put their faces in the water.  Later that summer these same campers were  swimming in water over their head.  I remember getting thank you letters from the parents of these campers who started out with such a fear of the water and who now were swimming like pros. Their parents were amazed.

I was lucky to have the opportunity to give so many campers a skill that they will have for life and that has always given me a great feeling inside.  It also taught me the life lesson that helping others was something very worthwhile and that is why I love dedicating my life to creating excellent camp experiences for children. We are looking forward to creating new memories in the brand new Jr. Pool 2.

I had the joy and privilege this past month of becoming a grandma for the first time.  Brody Lucas Chase was born on September 17^th at 9:25 in the evening.  It was a wonderful delivery, and mommy, daddy and baby thank goodness couldn’t be better.  This baby boy is the first grandchild on both sides of the family, so you can imagine the unmatched excitement from all sides.  Brody Lucas had a loud and enthusiastic cheering section in the waiting room as all 4 soon to be grandparents and aunts and uncles spent the day together.  Even before Brody arrived, you could feel the love welling inside all of us, and the ease with which these 2 families came together as we had done before when Jacob and Lindsey were wed.  There is something magical about a newborn baby and how this little precious being could instantly bring so much love and joy. A renewal of faith if you will.

I had been told time and time again that being a grandparent is the ultimate joy in life. And it is!  It’s like being the cherry on top of the ice cream sundae. I have a wise friend who describes grandchildren as the sweet desserts of life.  And they are!  But here’s the part that took my breath away that I didn’t see coming…..watching my own son become a parent. This was an aha moment I will never forget. Watching this beautiful young couple become a family of three. I saw my son, who loves laying on the couch watching TV, and still playing video games, transform into  the most attentive, adoring  father and husband.   Please don’t misunderstand, he was always a terrific husband, but for those of us who are parents, we know that something very special happens to you when a child of yours comes into this world.  And life is never the same.

Dear Shibley Families,

I am so excited to be joining you at Shibley Day Camp and wanted to take this opportunity to share a bit more about myself with each of you! I have been fortunate enough to spend my whole life in camping living ten for two. I began working my way through the camp hierarchy at a very young age. After having been a camper for many years, I then embraced the roles of counselor, group leader, head counselor and most recently, associate director.

I am so lucky to have been able to spend my entire professional career in camping. After 15 years full time at a premier sleepaway camp in New York it is exciting to now have the opportunity to be a part of the Shibley Day Camp team. I am extremely passionate about camp and all that it affords children far beyond the home and school settings and I am eager to partner with each of you to ensure success for every camper here at camp. I look forward to connecting with you personally and getting to know each Shibley family and staff member. In the meantime, if you would like to reach out I would love to hear from you at Stefanie@shibleydaycamp.com.

Warm Regards,

Stefanie

This past summer I was really impressed by a group of boys. They were our 2018 Super Senior Boys 1 (SSB1) and they embody the GREEN Values that we celebrate at Shibley.

Many of these boys play competitive travel baseball. They are athletes, and they are the right kind of athletes. One evening after camp I watched some of them play and win a championship game. It was especially exciting for me; my daughters are passionate about dancing but I have fond memories of playing ball growing up. I also had the honor to be the special guest pitcher and play softball with SSB1 at camp. Each of these games was exciting, but the game played at camp showed a lot about these boys and all the boys as well as all the other boys in that group.

They were competitive and took every play seriously. They were upset when they made an out. They showed disappointment when a teammate struck out or didn’t make an “easy” play. But all with the most respect and empathy you would want from any friend or child. They get it. They all do. You could see how they felt, but their sportsmanship was top notch win or lose. They moved on to their next activities with a smile.

The campers in the group who excel at other sports or academics or swimming or singing also played hard and contributed positively to the success of their teams. Some surprised themselves and showed great improvement with the bat and glove from the beginning of the summer to the end. The sportsmanship taught by the counselors and displayed by the campers was exceptional.

And then it’s these other campers’ time to shine when they go to cooking…and tae kwon do…and science… and theater…and arts & crafts…and the adventure park…etc. And at each of these venues all of the campers showed the same enthusiasm as when they were on the ball field.

They are great children with great values instilled by the adults and role models in their lives, including of course the excellent SSB1 group staff.  Some of the staff attended that championship game at night and have formed positive relationships with the boys over their summers at Shibley. We are lucky to have loyal Shibley Group Leaders and Counselors that truly care about their campers and spend their own personal time supporting them.  And we are lucky to have the boys of SSB1 at camp. We hope to see them (and you) at our Fall Festival in a few weeks.

Shibley Shibley!

heath@shibleydaycamp.com

This summer we held a food drive to fill the pantry at St. Peter of Alcantara Church. We want to thank all of the families for their donations during Visiting Week! This is just some of what we collected!

Here are some letters the campers wrote to the veterans that this food will be donated to:

 

When the road looks rough ahead

And you can’t get that shibley shibley out of your head

Just remember what your old pals said

You’ve got friends at Shibley

 

You’ve got troubles, and we’ve got’em too

There isn’t anything that we wouldn’t do for you

We’re here all year so come and visit soon

You’ve got friends at Shibley

 

There’s lots of other places that you could possibly be

Faraway vacations and cruises out to sea

But none of them compares to a day at Shibley

 

And as the schoolyear goes by

Our friendship will never end

Any season and no matter what time

You’ve got friends at Shibley