CAMP A Message from Our Director

Dear Parents,

Thank you for taking your valuable time to review this handbook. Its purpose is to inform you about the operation of Hermann Sons Life Camp and the changes we have made to make Camp the best it can possibly be for your child.

Every year as the summer draws to a close, we begin the process of evaluating our summer camp program. I read every camper survey, read every parent and staff member survey and come up with a plan to improve the summer camp experience for our junior members. This process is never easy as we value all opinions expressed. For the past two summers, the most popular meal (based on camper surveys) was the Chinese meal. However, it was also the least popular meal.

Another area which splits opinion (80:20) is the pick-up and drop-off procedures. Parents are asked to remain in their cars when dropping off and picking up their camper. We recognize that this may be a concern for some parents, but this process has proven to keep drop-off and pick-up well-organized and time efficient.

• This in-car drop-off and pick-up will be the process used in 2023.

In summer 2021, the overall health of our campers was very good, and it was again in 2022! I put this down to the additional cleaning and sanitizing procedures implemented since 2021.

In 2022, campers took even more control of their summer camp adventure by adding a half -day elective program each day. This worked very well, and we look forward to improving elective offerings again this upcoming summer. MORE INFORMATION IS AVAILABLE ON THE NEXT FEW PAGES, however, please do not forget to select and submit your child’s top 6 activities for the Specialized program as soon as possible.

Last summer, each week I scheduled all the campers their activity choices. Most of the campers received their top three activities (around 85%). This is only possible if the selection is completed in a timely manner.

SPECIALIZED PROGRAM (chosen at home): This is the traditional method campers have used to choose their activities. Before Camp, once you have enrolled your child, you will be asked to select their TOP 6 activities in order of preference. Your child will be scheduled 3 of those top 6 activity choices. Please keep in mind that campers who choose a double-period activity will only get 2 of their top 6 activities. These Specialized activities will be scheduled Monday through Thursday.

• The girls (Riverside) will attend these classes in the morning.

• The boys (Hilltop) will attend these classes in the afternoon.

Be curious, not judgmental!

Bunking

Our priority when assigning campers to their dorm is to provide everyone in the dorm the opportunity for an excellent summer camp experience. As a parent or guardian, you will complete the Dorm Assignment & Check Out Form. Through this form, parents can request who the camper would like to share a dorm (cabin) with and whether they prefer a top or bottom bunk (bed). We cannot guarantee these requests. Form link: https://www.hermannsonslife.org/dorm-assignment-check-out-form o If a request is made by a camper to bunk with a younger child, the requesting camper will be placed in the younger cabin. Younger campers will not be assigned to older camper dorms. o Placing campers in age-appropriate dorms provides them the opportunity to make friends of their own age and that provides for a better summer camp experience. o Creating a large group of friends in one dorm is not beneficial to the rest of the campers in the dorm who have few or no friends. These campers often get excluded from dorm activities by the established friend groups. This happened in 2022 and I will not allow it to happen in 2023. o AGE-APPROPRIATE placement of campers in dorms is more important that what dorm a child is placed in.

Please keep the following in mind when requesting bunk mates (friends/relatives).

WE DO NOT SCHEDULE CAMPERS TO THEIR DORMS UNTIL A COMPLETED HEALTH HISTORY FORM IS ON FILE.

Before camp, if you receive an email stating your child has “NO DORM” – that means they have not been assigned to a dorm because the Health History Form has not been submitted. If you need to make changes to the form after it has been submitted, bring an updated form on arrival day and provide it to the Medical Staff.

Getting campers in bunks with their friends is a high priority for us. We do have some bunking rules for you to consider.

• Remember we try not bunk campers together who are more than one year apart in age. The younger campers often cling to their older siblings which negatively affects both of their camp experiences. You will be asked what grade your child is entering after the summer.

• The number of friend requests for assignment to the same dorm is limited to FOUR.

• We do not guarantee bed placement in the dorms. Campers will be assigned throughout the dorm. When requesting friends on the Dorm Assignment Form, the first name listed will be a bunk friend (top/bottom beds). The second and third names listed will be in the dorm. Only the first four requested names listed on the form will be placed in the same dorm.

• Placing campers in age-appropriate dorms sometimes means that the actual dorm your child is in is not their “expected dorm”. Dorm placements are not always linear. Sometimes we have a lot of younger campers in a session, or a lot of older campers in a session. This means that your teen camper may not always be placed in either Hawk or White Tail, or if we have a lot of 12-year-olds, they may be placed in Bob White or Coyote.

Best regards,

Ian “Gunner” Brassett Executive Camp Director

Hermann Sons Life Camp

P.O. Box 629, Comfort, TX 78013-0629

Office: 830-995-3223

Be curious, not judgmental!

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