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Glorieta camps offer “good, old-fashioned” camp experience
Glorieta Summer Camps offer programs for boys and girls.
"Glorieta boys and girls camps are the jewel of the Southwest – it’s an undiscovered treasure," Heather said. "We wouldn’t trade any camp in the world for this one. It has everything from good, old-fashioned archery and canoeing to worship and quiet times all in one of the most beautiful settings you’ll ever experience."
Heather’s five children agreed – or at least they did when you could get them to slow down long enough to give their opinions. The two-week camp for children who have finished first through 10th grade is chock-full of activity.
Camp Glorieta for Boys, Camp Glorieta for Girls and Glorieta Family Camp (debuting in 2010) are the three elements of the Glorieta Summer Camps program offered by LifeWay Christian Resources.
"We are always, always busy doing something," 10-year-old Jimmy Murry confided while waiting his turn at four square. "It’s pretty fun – especially since we don’t have to see our sisters that much."
A chorus of boos sounded as the entire younger boys’ cabin, including younger brother Paul, backed up Jimmy’s statement. They happily explained that the girls stay on their side of the camp while the boys stay on their own side. This brought laughter from a counselor. He quickly added that the boys were still sore about losing to the girls on Newspaper Night, one of the few activities where the two camps interact.
Heather took in the scene, beaming at the camaraderie among the boys. This was exactly what she imagined her kids would experience at camp – good, clean, old-fashioned Christian fun. She counted it a privilege to watch her kids have fun and grow in Christ. After making the 1,400-mile trek from Georgia, camp staff suggested she stay around and be the "Camp Mom." Duties included washing more than 60 loads of camp laundry, which changed her mind slightly about "clean" fun – especially after mud pit day.
"Mom! Mom!" exclaimed 9-year-old Paul from the edge of the mud pit. "Did you see that? Did you see how much mud? Totally covered!"
It was hard to distinguish one boy from another. All were covered from head to toe in the slippery, dark gray slime. Only eyes and teeth shined bright white among the laughter and horseplay.
Bible stories came to life in the depths of the mud. A mud city design contest found one cabin building Jericho and its infamous falling walls. As the boys constructed their masterpiece, they recounted details of the story of Joshua and his army.
"The aim of many summer camps is to entertain the kids constantly, but look at these guys," Heather said, pointing to the mud-caked melee. "They are making their own fun. You can’t plan this kind of creativity and impromptu Bible teaching."
The three Murry sisters, on the other hand, crinkled their noses at the mention of the girls’ mud pit day. They admitted it was fun until it started raining. Twelve-year-old Meredith Murry quickly changed the subject to include her "all-time favorite" activity: horseback riding. As she went into great detail of how to brush a horse, others from her cabin joined in, adding their own tips. As the various stories melted together, showing the mounting excitement of actually riding the horses, a first-grader stepped from behind the group and made her voice known.
"It’s just the bestest thing ever!" she said, summing it up as everyone nodded in agreement.
This is the first camp experience for Ally Murry, 14. She admitted she was pretty nervous about it in the beginning, but quickly realized how silly that was. She couldn’t imagine missing the fun of singing and dancing or participating in the Circle of Progress.
Dressed in black shorts and white tops, the girls entered the Circle of Progress ceremony in total silence. A sense of seriousness enveloped the room. A camp counselor explained the ceremony. Each camper receives an "honor necklace" and learned the secret Glorieta girls’ handshake. (A handshake so secret, it cannot be revealed in this article.) A different colored bead represents each cabin. Campers had opportunities throughout the two weeks to earn more beads based on different activities.
"Why do we use a circle?" asked the counselor. "A circle means unity. We are coming together as one group of girls put on this earth for one purpose – to serve God."
Slowing down enough to hear God is something campers in the older girls’ cabin relished. Alexis Murry, 15, and her cabin mates said they like getting away from the busyness of their mid-teen years and just hanging out with each other and God. With no computers, no television and no cell phones, the teens filled their time canoeing, camping and hiking.
"It’s awesome. There’s nothing to worry about here," Alexis said with a wistful sigh. "It’s just two weeks of pure fun. And there’s not a more beautiful place in the world to talk to God than in the Prayer Garden."
This intimate setting was exactly what Heather was searching for in a camp. She pointed out that counselors have a lot of one-on-one time with the campers, and the children become friends with everyone.
"Glorieta is a smaller camp with fewer kids, but they have just as many activities as the one at Ridgecrest," Heather said. "It’s just a good, old-fashioned camp experience like I had as a child."
For more information about Glorieta Summer Camps, including next year's new Family Camp, visit GlorietaCamps.com or call 866-794-CAMP (2267).
