The Hi-Hills Herald Issue #7
August 7, 2015
Top News at Hi-Hills Day Camp!
Celebrating our 49th Summer!
Performing Arts Week at Hi-Hills What an eventful week seven! It was performing arts week at Hi-Hills and everyone got into the spirit! From creating puppets and an “under the sea” mural in arts & crafts to rehearsing color wars skits, campers truly engaged in this week’s theme. Our drama club has been hard at work since week one of camp, and this Thursday they dazzled us with their production of The Little Mermaid. We all sang along with the cast, and are so proud of all the cast members and Stefanie and Taylor, our specialty counselors, for their hard work! Adding to the drama, campers participated in another intense survivor challenge at the great outdoors on Friday. In addition, many of our campers, counselors and staff got very creative on dress-up day to celebrate #drama!
On Tuesday, we hosted our second Bring Your Friend to Camp Day of the summer, and welcomed so many new friends! Campers and their friends enjoyed themselves to the fullest. On Thursday, parents, grandparents and siblings joined us for this summer’s final parent luncheon. Bunks 11 & 13’s counselor, Patrick, kept us all entertained with his saxophone playing, and Kinder Camp performed in front of everyone, giving us a sneak peak at their Garden Party performance scheduled for next week. We cannot believe that there is only one week left of camp, but we have so much fun in store for everyone. We are ecstatic for sprit week, which will include the annual Hi-Hills talent show, ice cream social, a wrap-up of color wars, and of course many other surprises and attractions! Have a great weekend and see you in week eight!
Table of Contents: Note from Camp Directors Bunk Updates
2 3-5
Bunk Photos
6
Birthdays This Month
7
Dates to Remember
9
Program News
8-10
Upcoming Dress Days 11 Counselor of the Week 11 Leagues 11 Trivia Winners 12 Counselors in Training 12 Teen Travel 12
Gill St. Bernard’s School, 25 St. Bernard’s Road, Gladstone, NJ Phone: 908-234-0067 • Fax: 908-234-1611 • Email: info@hihills.com hihills.com • www.facebook.com/hihills
te o N A ur o m fro Camp rs to c e r i D
Hello Hi-Hills!
Dear Hi-Hills, YIKES–We can’t believe it’s the end of week seven already! Monday began with an overflow of enthusiasm from last week’s Olympics theme. The spirit and rivalry that still hung in the air between the blue and green teams made for fun banter during morning assemblies. The friendly rivalry between campers was soon forged into an alliance against the staff in preparation for the first ever tennis tournament and third annual campers-versus-counselors basketball game. The game was not only a nail-biter, but it was tremendous fun as well. I can still hear the cheering from all the fans in the stands. For the first time in three years, the counselors managed to come out on top, but everyone played like a champion. Please check out our Facebook page as well as our website’s photo gallery for more details and pictures from the game. Our coveted drama production took place on Thursday where our campers performed in The Little Mermaid Jr. The campers and our performing arts directors did a fantastic job! Thursday was also our second parent luncheon of the summer. We love the look on campers’ faces when they proudly introduce their new friends and counselors to their parents. We know it’s difficult for parents, grandparents and special friends to take time out of their day to join us–thank you for making the day so special! Friday was a whirlwind of activity. The tennis tournament, basketball game, our second survivor challenge at great outdoors and the blue vs. green team skits amazed us all and certainly finished the week off with a wow! We look forward to having your campers share our last week of camp together. Thank you for another great week! Cindy Wyatt – Director of Summer and Auxiliary Programs Nicole Spiotta – Assistant Director of Summer and Auxiliary Programs
Bunk Upda tes Bunks 1 & 2: T he Little Rascals Week seven was a busy one for The Little Rascals. We started the week off by welcoming two new campers to our group: Emilia and Finleigh. On Tuesday, we had picture day, where Ariel, Henry and Ellie flashed their biggest smiles ever! On Wednesday, our little fish were tested in the pool, and Maddy, Jadesola and Zack showed us all what they have learned by moving up to Level 2. Meanwhile, Dashiell, Sam and Syndey C. continued to practice their kicks and floats at Level 1. On Thursday, we had a double treat. First we performed a song at the lower and upper bunk parent luncheon, where Salome, Maliah and Brooke sang their hearts out. In the afternoon, the drama club treated us to a great performance of The Little Mermaid. Ryan, Sydney A., Lauren and Ainsley were mesmerized by the show! It is hard to believe that next week is already week eight! However, there is still a whole lot of fun to be had. Next Wednesday is our second Kinder Camp Garden Party, so keep your eyes peeled for details to follow.
-Beth, Zoe, Viviana and Jamie
Bunk Upda tes Bunk 9: T he F irejets The Firejets started off week seven with some intense leagues games! This week we welcomed Declan to our bunk, as well as Palmer, who joined us for our second Bring Your Friend to Camp Day. At the great outdoors, we showed our new friends how to shoot a crossbow, go fishing, and ride paddleboats. In arts and crafts, we made paper bag raccoon puppets, and had a blast swimming in the pool during both instructional and free swim. We all enjoyed ourselves watching the drama club perform The Little Mermaid. What a week! -Joanne, Jason and Ben
Bunk 10: T he Lovely Ladybugs Bunk 10 had another fantastic week at Hi-Hills. We welcomed a new camper, CeCe, who was a great addition to our bunk. While we missed Ariela this week, who was preparing for the much anticipated performance of The Little Mermaid, we were so excited to cheer for her as she took the stage. This week, our bunk spent some time apart preparing for the color wars skit that everyone performed during Friday’s council ring. Another special event that took place was the parent luncheon. It is always a pleasure meeting our campers’ parents and watching them bond together at Hi-Hills. It’s been an eventful week, but we are ready to take on the final week of camp with excitement and spirit! -Betsy, Kerry, Kiara and Emily
Bunks 11 & 13: T he Speedy Cheetahs The highlight for our bunk this week was the great outdoors. In archery, campers had fun learning to use crossbows instead of regular bows. In fishing, campers have been learning how to cast and they have very successful catching sunnies, bass and other aquatic life. All campers now know how to cast with new techniques thanks to Mr. Em. Paddleboats continue to be a success and campers love to race each other on the lake. Congratulations to Lorenzo and his teen travel partner, Eddie, for winning the camper tennis tournament! -Patrick, Julian and Mark
Bunk Upda tes Bunks 16 & 18: T he Sensational Showstoppers Week seven has been an awesome week! Our girls have worked so hard on the play, color wars, leagues and our daily camp activities. The Little Mermaid was an absolute hit. Watch out Broadway; our cast was absolutely sensational! This week the Showstoppers have shown their talents, and we are so proud of how much they have achieved this summer at Hi-Hills. Our parent luncheon was also a smash, and it was wonderful meeting new and returning parents. As we get closer to our final week of camp, the girls will face other challenges. Which team will prevail as the girl’s leagues champions: Dark Magic or Blue Lightning? Everyone have a safe and lovely weekend! -Maria, Cara and Jessica
Bunks 12 & 14: T he Hi-Hills Heroes We had a really great #drama week with the Hi-Hills Heroes! Although Cassidy was not with us often, we were so proud to cheer her on as she killed it during The Little Mermaid performance as Flounder! During fishing this week, Ellie caught her first, second and third fish of the summer, while Tori caught her first fish ever! Campbell had a great time in pottery club, where she made an owl and a pot! Andrea enjoyed capture the flag club with her brother David. Ava explored the stream with the rest of the bunk, where she had fun catching critters. Annie made a splash at the pool during both instructional and free swim. We had a wonderful week, and can’t wait to see all the fun week eight brings us! -Megan, Dylan, Erica and Amanda
Bunk 15 & 17: T he Bronanas Week seven started off with a dramatic entrance! Everyone was buzzing with excitement for the production of The Little Mermaid. Down at the great outdoors, the boys gained experience in archery with crossbows. Low ropes was a success where we took on a secret agent mission and climbed to the top of the wall. Leagues reached the high point of the season as we entered the playoffs! The Bengal Tigers and Maroon Macaroons have advanced to the finals of the 2015 leagues season. Overall, it was a great week for the boys! -Matt, Graydon, Andrew and Armeen
Bunk Photo s
Birthdays T his Month August 6: Emily and Will DeCotis August 7: Olivia Rubano August 8: Michael Fritzlo and Caitlin Murgatroyd August 9: Andrew Agresti and Annabelle Beekman August 10: Brooke Babinec, Kerry Colford and Julia Streger August 12: CeCelia Criscola August 13: Robbie DeVergillo
August 16: Emilia Criscola, Sienna Marsala, Bradely Matthews and Erik Raszkowski August 18: Ryder Stine August 19: Dylan Beers August 22: Tristen Miscia August 23: Grace Rubinstein August 24: Chase Thomson August 26: Zoe Olsen August 29: Leo Slayne
m a r g o r P News Low Ropes As the summer begins to wind down, we continue to try new challenges and break our records here at low ropes. We are getting faster at the timed beam course challenge, swinging higher on the rope swing, growing stronger as we climb over and through the tire challenge, and building more confidence in our trust falls. We are also introducing an element new to this summer: the climbing wall! With the help and spotting of many counselors and campers, we are climbing over the 10 ft. wall! It is so encouraging to see how much our campers have grown this summer. -Missie and Chris
Performing Arts Congratulations to the cast of The Little Mermaid! Our campers did an amazing job putting on the show for their friends and family. We are so proud of each and every one of them and we thank them for their hard work and dedication. We hope you’ve learned as much from us as we have from working with you. Hooray for a successful performance! -Taylor and Stefanie
Swimming This week during instructional swim, we tested the campers on their swimming skills, which came from the American Red Cross “Learn to Swim� program. All of the campers did a wonderful job performing their skills, and some of them passed to the next level. They should have a swimming booklet, which shows which skills they performed. Thank you again for letting me and the lifeguard staff teach your campers how to swim. -Augie
Wednesday: Kinder Camp Garden Party
Program News
T hursday: Talent Show Friday: Ice Cream Social and Last Day of Camp
Tennis The tennis program has continued to progress throughout the summer. The campers have been incorporating their cardiovascular development from running around the tennis courts and performing on the agility ladder. They all are continuing to improve their forehands, backhands and volleys (net shots). Some exciting events on the horizon are both the camper tennis tournament and the staff tennis tournament. Keep swinging! -Chris
The Great Outdoors (where the smiles and fun never end)
Crossbows returned to Hi-Hills this week, and campers were treated to instruction, a little history, and some practice. Modern crossbows have evolved into an extremely accurate horizontal bow; some of the more advanced ones can achieve speeds of over 400 feet per second. The campers have been using the Horton “Eagle” crossbow, which was developed as a trainer series of crossbows for teaching new or beginner users how to properly and safely operate and shoot the bow. Emphasis is put on safety and is the basis of all instruction. Campers have already engaged in mini competition rounds shooting at targets the size of a quarter with much success. Archery has proven to be one of the most requested and favorite activities this year. Campers usually do not want to leave the archery range and it is also a favorite club. The new location on the Home Winds campus and improved state-of-the-art equipment, including the ballistic Kevlar/nylon blended net for stopping the arrows, has made the new archery range one of the camp’s highlights. Fishing this week was nothing less than exceptional. The daily catch record for any one activity period was officially broken. Bunks 10, 12 & 14 collectively landed 13 large fish in one period, with another seven fish, which should have been landed but managed to slip the hook at the bank. Paddle-boats remain a steady highlight of the great outdoors sessions. Now that the boats have been flagged as “green team” and “blue team,” campers enjoy challenging other boats to races in, out, and around the buoys. The wildlife station yielded over 700 photos this week and we will be switching back to videos next week to see what else is lurking nearby in the woods. -Matt, Sarah, Thomas and Em
Mark You r Calendar
Dates to Rememb er!
Program News Pottery This week in pottery, we have been exploring texture in a whole new way as the campers made shoe print wind chimes! Using the soles of their shoes, they have been capturing some awesome textures that they will glaze and string together. Each one will be one of a kind! -Savannah
Nature This week in nature we worked on some nature crafts and searched the nearby field for bugs and butterflies. Participants in the upper and lower bunk nature club continue to have many enjoyable experiences. Next week, we will take our last walk of the summer in the Peapack Brook. -Mr. Nature
Arts & Crafts This week, campers made puppets in honor of performing arts week at Hi-Hills. Bunks 1 & 2 made lion puppets using brown paper bags, as well as handprint crabs in anticipation of The Little Mermaid performance. Bunk 9 created “Rocky the Raccoon” puppets and got to put on their own puppet show with the remainder of their art time. Bunk 10 created Fabulous Frog puppets, while Bunks 11 & 13 used paint and other various art materials to make puppets of their choice. One camper created a dragon with huge wings! Bunks 15 & 17 crafted folded pocket puppets using construction paper folded into thirds. Teen travel came in and created posters for the play and signs with words of encouragement to cheer the cast on. This week’s camp wide project is an “under the sea” mural; each bunk is a form of sea life, while each staff member is a piece of seaweed! -Lindsay
g n i m o c Up ays D s s e r D
Next week is Spirit Week! Dress up theme is Color Wars!
Counselor of the Week #COTW
s e u g a e L
Joseph Raymonds Week Seven’s Counselor of the Week is Joseph Raymonds! New to Hi-Hills this year, Joseph has already become a favorite among campers. He has also had the privilege of working with several bunks from Bunk 9 to Teen Travel!
Hi-Hills Leagues Playoffs Results
Campers nominated Joseph because he is always happy, ethusiastic, willing to try diffferent things, and even combatted his fear of water slides. Whenvever campers are feeling down, he tries his best to make them feel a lot better. But most importantly, he is really really kind and caring. Congratulations Joseph!
Basketball:
As always, many thanks to all counselors for their hard work!
Tennis Baseball
-Macaroons 12, Bat-Men 1 -Blue Lightning 16, Blazing Comets 4
Soccer
-Bengal Tigers 5, Clementines 4 -Dark Magic 2, Kangaroos 1 -Macaroons 7, Bat-Men 1 -Blue Lightning 5, Blazing Comets 0 -Bengal Tigers 3, Clementines 2 -Dark Magic 4, Kangaroos 3
FINALS – WEEK 8
BOYS: #1 Maroon Macaroons vs. #2 Bengal Tigers GIRLS: #1 Blue Lightning vs. #2 Dark Magic
ia v i r T y l k Wee Winners
With an extra Broadway bonus trivia round and so many trivia winners this week, there are far too many winners to count! Congratulations all! Get excited for a final week of trivia :)
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Have a wonderful weekend! Get ready for a spirited week 8!
Teen Travel This week, teen travel went to Mountain Creek Action Park and had a great time going on water slides, cliff jumps and the wave pool. On Wednesday, we went to the Jets training camp, where we got to see the team scrimmage and practice. On Thursday, we stayed on campus to support the drama production of The Little Mermaid! We had another fantastic week, and look forward to next week! -Craig, Kaitlyn and Joseph