The Hi-Hills Herald: 2014 Issue #4

The Hi-Hills Herald Issue #4

July 18, 2014

Top News at Hi-Hills Day Camp!

Celebrating our 47th Summer!

Wear Your Art

Art Explosion Week at Hi-Hills Week four brought many events and activities for campers to enjoy.

Thanks to our guest artist Ted, campers learned about federal court cases and why news reporters hire artists to paint and draw the scenes in the case. They watched a mock trial and witnessed a live drawing session from Ted. Campers also had a chance to draw their bunk friends. They used pens and watercolor to create quick portraits, similar to what Ted does.

The Garden Pary was fantastic and all our Kinder Campers did a great job performing for their loved ones. They are a beautiful bunch.

The drama production of Cinderella was a great success. After a lot of practice, the campers put on a fabulous show. Fellow campers and staff viewed the show on Friday and were so proud of what the actors accomplished. Congrats!

Table of Contents: Note from Camp Director Bunk Updates

2 3-6

Birthdays This Month

7

Dates to Remember

8

The Parent Luncheon was a great way to end the week. Campers were happy to have their parents join them for lunch and thank them for coming.

Program News

8-10

To wrap up the week, our “wear your art” dress up day was a hit with everyone showing off their beautiful artwork.

Athletics 11

Upcoming Dress Days 11 Weekly Photography Tip 11 Leagues 11 Trivia Winners 12 Counselors in Training 12 Teen Travel 12 Special Events 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, Week four has been filled with new, fun and exciting activities. To celebrate Art Explosion Week, we had four-time Electric City’s Best Visual Artist winner Ted Michalowski delight our campers with illustrations, portraiture and on-the-spot drawings. Our drama club prepared for their first performance of the summer, Cinderella, while the splash pad, pool and AquaClimb have kept our lifeguards busy all week long. This week also marked the official opening of the sport court, a new place for leagues basketball!

We would like to thank our lower bunk, upper bunk and Kinder Camp parents for taking time away from their busy schedules to join us for the Parent Luncheon and the Kinder Camp Garden Party. These are some of the many traditions that make Hi-Hills Day Camp so special. Mark your calendars this Wednesday, July 23 for Carnival. Also, Thursday, July 24 is the lower bunk late night from 4:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. We hope you can join us.

Be sure to check out our website’s photo gallery to see the adorable smiles from this week! Also, if you have not already done so, like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Cindy Wyatt – Director of Summer and Auxiliary Programs Nicole Spiotta – Assistant Director of Summer and Auxiliary Programs

Bunk Upda tes Bunk 1: Miss Kathleen’s Little Lambs Kinder Camp was wonderful this past week. Our highlight of the week was the beautiful show they put on at the Garden Party. We practiced every chance we could and we are very proud of their performance. It was a great success and the children loved the ice cream sundaes! Lucas was our star during Art Party when he was chosen to be the artist’s drawing subject. Ryan loves the pool and swam across with a kick board. Ariel loved preparing for our party and she loved practicing all the songs.

Zoe made a beautiful hat for Friday’s dress up day. Brooke made a very attractive heart necklace in pottery which is very special. All the campers seem to be bonding with their new friends. It is great to see the friendships they create in such a wonderful environment. They are so much fun and we enjoy them every day!

Bunk 2: Miss Stefanie’s Playful Piglets The Playful Piglets had an excellent week with many exciting adventures. We continued working on our balance on the low ropes course and expanding our swimming skills. Some of our stronger swimmers love climbing the AquaClimb in the deep end of the pool. We were also fortunate to take a trip to the big GSB garden to pick fruits and vegetables with Ted. This week was also the Garden Party. I am so proud of all the Kinder Campers as they did such a great job remembering the songs and the hand motions to go with it. Thank you to all the parents, siblings and relatives that came to support our campers. It is hard to believe that camp is already halfway through. I know the next four weeks will be just as awesome as the past four weeks!

Bunk Upda tes Bunk 9: Electro Scorpions Week four was especially exciting for the Electro Scorpions.

After winning the Spirit Stick last Friday, we walked around camp with a confident swagger all week long. The Art Party was fun and campers enjoyed seeing both of their counselors immortalized in some cool artwork by guest artist Ted. The whole bunk enjoyed having lunch with their parents and thanks them for coming to camp for the afternoon. The first four weeks of camp have been great and we are excited for the new adventures yet to come!

-Ben Green, Counselor

Bunk 10: Bedazzled Cheetahs It has been another fun week. Even though we had a small group, we still managed to have an awesome time at our activities. Ariana created the new bunk cheer and was excited for the bunk to learn it for the weekly “cheer off.” Hannah, though nervous at first, tried shooting the crossbow at archery. She even got the arrow right on the playing card! Ava joined us this week and was super excited about making a mask in pottery. All of our girls had a great time at the Art Party and it was interesting for them to see how court sketches are created. We all cannot wait for Carnival next week!

-Betsy Swartz, Counselor

Bunks 11 & 13: T he Vikings Another great week at camp comes to a close. It was exceptionally busy for bunks 11 and 13 with fishing, theatre antics and wacky weather. Phillip and Josh looked forward to playing their parts in Friday’s play all week long. Chris can be proud of catching the first fish on the trip and Carter can be proud of his impressive targeting skills with a crossbow. The campers look forward to next week as number four comes to a close.

-CJ Blasi, Counselor

Bunk Upda tes Bunks 16 & 18: Magical Minions This has been an awesome week. The Minions have added two more campers, Mariana and Katie, to the bunch. In archery the girls were mesmerized with the crossbows and they all did great shooting at targets and even hitting a few bull’s-eyes. Our Parent Luncheon and Cinderella play was a smash! They have also worked hard through their league games. We cannot believe that camp is halfway over but next week brings the exciting Carnival!

-Maria Diaz, Counselor

Bunks 12 & 14: Double Trouble We were back again for another busy week at camp!

On Tuesday the girls went fishing and hooked a total of seven fish. Nature enthusiast Ellie caught a fish on the trip and almost netted a turtle! Lea also enjoys nature club with Ellie. Anna and Cassidy were great in the play as Cinderella’s evil step sisters. Caitlin and Bella made masterpieces like Pollock in arts and crafts and created jewelry in pottery. Sophia had a great week hanging out with friends and playing soccer in leagues. On Friday we performed a skit and a cheer during council ring.

-Megan DeMichael, Counselor

Bunk 15: T he Stormtroopers The boys had a great week. Even though the weather occasionally kept us from being outside as much as we had hoped, the Stormtroopers jumped in the pool and played some water football. Leagues are going great and all of the campers are always eager to play. Since the theme this week has been Art Explosion, the camp was visited by a special guest artist.

Ted showed the campers several of his tricks for drawing and painting. We are all looking forward to Carnival next week as well as the bunk booths!

-Matt Rivas, Counselor

Bunk Upda tes Bunk 17: Wolf Pack Once again the Wolf Pack is flourishing with a multitude of activities. Drama has been working campers to the bone in preparation for the play and we are so proud of what they have accomplished. Campers were able to experience shooting a crossbow in archery. They also explored their artistic side during the Art Party where guest artist Ted showed them some of his artwork and even demonstrated his skills while they watched. It certainly has been the best summer ever!

-Taylor, Counselor

Weekly Photography Tip: From Mackenzie

Bunk Photos are now online and available to download!

Look for the Light

When you are taking a photo, whether it is inside a building or outside on the playground, it is important to recognize where your source of light is coming from. Look around and find it. Rule of thumb: if you want a clear group photo of your friends, do not put them in front of your main light source. You won’t be able to see their smiling faces! Move so the light is facing them and your photo will come out nice and bright. Look at the photo above; you can see exactly where the light is as it shines directly upon the actors on stage.

Birthdays T his Month July 4 : Joshua Monto,

July 13: Connor Udoff

James Kolvites

July 14: Logan Weimer,

July 5: Lindsey Frucci,

Caroline Simonelli, Michael

Benjamin Sturman

Simonelli

July 7: Ashley Peck,

July 19: Miranda Braemer,

Mary Young

Max Sigmund

July 8: Isabella Orosz, Julia

July 21: Kira Bringemeier

Spinelli, Leonore Kivits

July 22: Robert Haversat

July 9: Rachel Rieger

July 26: Eleanor Lee,

July 10: Rebecca Michaels,

Sean Heo

Emily Raia

July 27: Julia Gateman,

July 11: Robert Bellina

Ryden Maeda, Rebecca Fernandez July 28: Graydon Rogers July 29: Carter Klein July 30: Emma Torkelson

Program News Low Ropes

The low ropes course has continued to encourage the campers to gain trust and challenge themselves. The expanded trust fall activity has been a favorite of the campers. Their balance has improved in many activities and the communication aspect of the course is always excellent. This is especially important during spotting for others. I always emphasize safety which is number one!

-Chris Walsh, Activity Leader

Performing Arts

This week the campers learned the note names for the treble and bass clef.

After learning the notes, we played the note race game and the campers had fun competing against each other for color points. The production of Cinderella was a complete success. All of our campers worked so hard and they did a great job with all of their parts! Thank you to the campers and counselors for making this year’s production so magical. A dream that you wish will come true!

-Stefanie Santoro, Activity Leader

Swimming

This week in swimming we introduced all campers to the back stroke and side stroke. They also worked on their flutter kick on their backs. Bunk 17 challenged themselves by balancing a cup of water on their heads while swimming back stroke.

On Wednesday and Thursday, campers worked on their side stroke and scissor kick.

Finally on Friday, we played water pole and ring toss. We all hope the weather stays nice and sunny!

-Augie Lorio, Activity Leader

Carnival is on

Program News

Wednesday followed

by Lower Camp Late Night on T hursday!

Mark You r Calendar

Dates to Rememb er!

Fishing

This week we completed the first half of our fishing program. Bunks 11 and 13 were very excited about fishing and had a total of six catches. I enjoy seeing the campers having such a fun time. On Tuesday, Double Trouble went fishing. They caught eight fish while I caught a bunch of smiling faces. I cannot wait to start the next half of our trips. Thank you to our parents for allowing their campers to participate and to the counselors for helping out!

-Em Foster, Activity Leader

Tennis

This week campers have improved on their strokes and are hitting the ball very well. We have been talking about finishing through with your swing and how to hold your racket correctly. We have been playing tennis games that challenge each camper’s skills with an added element of competition.

-Marc Willemsen, Activity Leader

Archery

The campers were given an introduction and opportunity to shoot a modern crossbow. Although it is an ancient weapon the modern versions are extremely accurate. Campers had hands-on training with the Horton Eagle, a crossbow specifically made for beginner archers. It is lightweight and can be used comfortably. Once the campers became proficient and comfortable with the Eagle their goal was to hit a target with cards attached to it, which would earn them points for their color teams. The archery club also had a chance to try an Excalibur Crossbow delivering arrows at a blazing speed of 350 feet-per-second. All in all it was a great week for archery.

-Matt Hibbitt, Activity Leader

Program News Pottery

In pottery this week we worked on finishing up projects from the previous weeks.

Some bunks got to make masquerade masks to wear on Friday along with bracelets. Everyone also had the chance to work more on the pottery wheel. I enjoy the reaction from the campers when they get to see the final product of their hard work! All the campers each have their own way of expressing themselves with art and it has been shining through. The creativity that each camper brings to the table is outstanding! Keep up the good work; we are all artists!

-Savannah LoPrinzi, Activity Leader

Nature

This week in nature the campers learned about butterflies, dinosaurs and birds by playing animal bingo. Lower and upper bunk nature clubs continue to be a hit and everyone is enjoying their time learning about the environment. Next week during Carnival the campers will try their luck with tossing ping pong balls into floating flamingos!

-Mr. Nature, Chuck Hogan, Activity Leader

Arts & Crafts

This week has been the best week so far for arts and crafts. Inspired by the fabulous Art Explosion theme of the week, campers learned about two very famous artists: Jackson Pollock and Monet. They observed their work and then tested out some of their skills in painting. Everything came out looking beautiful. Most exciting this week was our special guest Ted who came in for Art Party and talked to the campers about federal court sketching. We created a mock trial with the counselors while the campers sat on the jury. As the trial continued, Ted drew the members of the trial, similar to what he does for news reporters. We then gave the campers a chance to try portrait drawing.

Everybody was very engaged and thought Ted’s job was very cool.

-TT Dechent, Activity Leader

ing m o c p U ys a D s s e Dr

Program News

It’s Carnival Week!

Dress like a Carnival character!

Leagues Leagues is a camp-wide competition that involves a variety of games such as soccer, tennis baseball and basketball in which teams of campers compete to win!

The campers play on their teams and play for points every week. Shout out to all players for good sportsmanship and participation. Here are the standing thus far!

CURRENT STANDINGS Boys Team W L T Pts.

s Athleticr Corne

Chompers 9 0 0 18

Yellowjackets 3 6 0 6

Green Gladiators 1

8

0

0

2

Blue Banzais 5 4 0 10 Girls

Team W L T Pts.

Majestic Dragons 7

2

0

0

14

Super Mighty Lions

4

2

3

11

Green Machine 1 4 4 6 Domination Assoc. 2 6 1 5

Leagues have really taken over the athletic program with fantastic participation and effort. The rookie Michael kept the Yellowjackets going in soccer. It was a close game in tennis baseball between Domination Association and the Green Machines, but Domination Association pulled through for their first win of the season. The Chompers retained their perfect season in basketball with Mitchell, John and Zach making a batch of hoops. Keep it up everyone!

-Marc and John

ia v i r T y l k Wee Winners

Monday: Mitch Dubson, Emma Torkelson Tuesday: Meghan Cohen, Madison Gesualdo Wednesday: John Toolan, Michael Hlavaty Thursday: Edward McCartny, Cassidy Gesualdo Friday: Kayla Rush (Counselor)

Teen Travel ining

in Tra s r o l e s n Cou

here g Program row in in ra T in lors to g The CounseDay Camp continues w to “Be o h ls il g at Hi-H teens are learnin rever they in size. The pping up to help wheral of my te e Better� by sed. I was proud of sevt and greet e d e e to m are ne rve them volunteered teens who Camp families and se . They are our Kinder ts at the Garden Party aily and in d refreshmeneral clubs and bunks lessons to v ry e e s e arch helping me also tak their free ti improve their skills.

This week Teen Travel has been off campus in Connecticut for their Camp Getaway! They have been so busy and they are having an amazing time! Check in later for more updates on our teens and what they are up to next week.

-Mackenzie

Mindy

Special Events

Wow, we cannot believe it is week four. This week Kinder Camp hosted their annual Garden Party full of songs and snacks that they shared with their families. Parents joined us for lunch on Friday followed by the drama production of Cinderella! It was a huge hit and all of the kids performed at their best. Bravo everybody!