“My boys had an amazing summer—best ever…they loved some of the new activities and the old standby’s they enjoy.”
“I like the way they encourage the kids to go out of their comfort zone, but don’t push them. It’s just the right amount of encouragement.”
“Our son loves the camp. This is his 6th year. He was very happy that Sewataro has added new activities such as the rock climbing wall and music studio.”
“Sewataro has all of the best qualities that a camp could hope to offer any family. I only wish that they had a camp for the parents.”
We have carefully read and digested the satisfaction surveys you filled out last summer, and—as gratifying as your overwhelmingly enthusiastic comments were to read—we also heard suggestions that will help us make camp even better.
One suggestion was for us to find new adventures to challenge our middle and older campers. A low ropes course was mentioned by more than one survey respondent, and that will happen this summer in a big way. Project Adventure has been engaged to construct a course that has seven different stations, and they will begin putting it together as soon we get a favorable stretch of weather. When we get closer to camp time, they will give a hands-on tutorial to our staff in its maximum use.
Another idea mentioned in the surveys was that of going off grounds for field trips. So, this summer, for the first time since the 1970’s, we are taking middle and upper campers on canoe trips on the Concord River. Henry David Thoreau would be proud. And as a special treat for our two oldest tribes, there will even be an overnight field trip to a north woods destination, yet to be finalized.
And we haven’t forgotten about our youngest campers. A major innovation is the creation of a new play area for them, something that might spur their imaginations as they move about it. Tree houses have always had a certain appeal, so Mark thought he might build it around an old tree. He’s already made sketches of it and will soon begin construction. We’ll keep you updated with pictures on the website.
There were other things we learned from the surveys as well, about transportation costs, about swimming, about the activities, etc., and we have done some tweaking to make all of these better. In the case of the bus transportation, by taking on some of the administrative costs ourselves, we have significantly reduced the price with no change in carrier or service.
The most gratifying thing about the surveys, of course, was your recognition that, in the spirit of our dear Alba Taylor, we are absolutely committed to keeping Sewataro at the very top of the day camp ladder.
Posted By: Rockashaw Bill
Bio: I was born and raised in New Orleans, went to Jesuit High School and Spring Hill College, then got a Ph.D. in English at Brandeis. I taught English for 25 years at Southeastern La. Un. in Hammond, La., until I retired in 2004 to take care of my wife, Alba Taylor, and assist with Camp Sewataro. I've written books about contemporary authors Peter Matthiessen and JamesSalter, and published articles about modern and contemporary fiction.
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