Camp Arowhon
Skills Building
The Canoe – a craft of grace
“What sets a canoeing expedition apart is that it purifies you more rapidly and inescapably than any other. Travel a thousand miles by train and you are a brute; pedal five hundred on a bicycle and you remain basically a bourgeois; paddle a hundred in a canoe and you are already a child of nature.” […]
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Teach a Kid to Fish
Taking Action on Bullying I think it is wonderful that bullying is getting so much attention these days. There are countless foundations, awareness-raising groups, clubs at schools, and even promises of national legislation against bullying. But although recognizing and condemning it is an important first step, it’s not going to solve the problem. I always […]
ContinueWhat did you do when you were 15?
I heard an interview with Malala Yousefzai on the radio the other day. After being shot in the head by the Taliban for going to school, the 15 year old has gone on to become a world-famous advocate for girls’ education. She spoke more confidently and articulately than I (with my Ivy League grad degree […]
ContinueWhy We Don’t Sugar Coat
The hardest part of my summer job is supervising the LIT (Leader In Training) Program. The mission of the program: to grow our oldest campers into capable staff members. Arowhon’s mission of social and emotional safety depends entirely on the staff’s ability to make it real, so we hire very selectively. Most of our LIT’s […]
ContinueLetter from a camper mom
Hi Joanne, Somehow I missed opening up one of our recent envelopes from Camp A until last evening…. out tumbled a swimming badge, some awards and an extraordinary letter from Adam Ruzzo. We know that Elliot (Schrider) is very musical and, although he only started playing guitar at the end of January, his progress has […]
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Camp Has a Lot to Teach the World
There are many things I do at camp that are unacceptable elsewhere in the world (burping competitions at the dinner table, wearing socks and sandals, shoving cake in people’s faces to name a few), but there are some things I think the rest of the world ought to learn from camp. Last weekend my brother […]
ContinueLetter from a new 2013 Arowhon parent
BTW, one other note for Joanne and all the staff. We rented a cottage in August and each night Adam (AGE 9!!!!) built the camp fire based on what he learned at Camp Arowhon. On top of that, he also went kayaking with me for about an hour a day in separate kayaks and we […]
ContinueExtra Curriculars: Whose Choice?
There was a period, during each of my children’s early adolescence, when I fantasized that they would go to Harvard. This bit of maternal foolishness was a way of expressing two things: Wow! My kids are so smart! I’m so proud of having smart kids. Yes, it does reflect on me (despite my protestations to […]
ContinueArowhon paddlers enter the longest single day paddling race in the world
Representing Camp Arowhon in the longest single day paddling race in the world – Assistant Director Max Muszynski and former Head Canoeing Instructor Ben Kates. The race starts tomorrow (Saturday) morning at 7 am and goes from Huntsville to Bracebridge and back – 130 km with 19 portages. There’s no stopping on the race, so […]
ContinueThe Main Lodge is down
and the good news is…. that camp really DOES change children’s lives for the better. A new study from the University of Waterloo found as follows: WATERLOO, ON – The positive development that children and youth experience at summer camp results in sustained behavioural changes at home, school and in the community, says a new […]
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