The Summer is off to a great start for the Junior Girls filled with lots of activities, new friendships, and crazy weather.  The overarching theme for the Junior Girls this week would have to be “connection.” I have watched groups come together, establish their new camp routines, and begin to form their summer family.  At this point, you would think these girls have known each other their whole lives. The opportunities to bond as a group have been tremendous all week through both programmatic and social experiences.  Thanks to the hard working counselors and their attention to detail, the girls have used every moment to continue to get to know each other.

Some programmatic highlights of the week included Lip Sync Battle, The Mostest, Frosh Girls Unbirthday Party, the Lower Juniors Shark Tank, and the Upper Juniors Panic.

Every Main Camp Group competed in the Lip Sync Battle on Monday Night, where they got up on stage and performed a lip sync to a song of their choice.  The Junior Girls groups really put on a performance, dancing in unison, and leaving it all on the stage. Way to go, girls!

The Junior Girls all participated in “The Mostest” together on Tuesday Night.  It was a great opportunity for the girls to join with different junior girl groups and get to know other campers they may not be living with this summer.  What mainly stood out to me was the way they cheered for people both on their team and on other teams. We really do have THE KINDEST campers here at CEL.

On Wednesday night the Frosh Girls had an UNbirthday party complete with party games, a pinata, and presents.  They also shared their “wishes” for the summer. It was a special moment and all of the girls showed a lot of spirit and enthusiasm.

On Saturday, the Lower Juniors competed in “Shark Tank”.  All of the girls were split into teams, came up with a brand new invention, created a pitch, and presented it to “The Sharks” a.k.a counselors.  I was so impressed with their ability to work respectfully in a team and make sure everyone was being heard to accomplish their task.

The Upper Juniors showed a ton of Camp Spirit on Thursday when they competed together in a game called Panic! where they had to dress up in different costumes based on a category.  Their creativity was really out of this world and their team work was superb.

We have started off week 2 with high temperatures, but that will not bring the Junior Girls down.  I have been impressed with the girls enthusiasm even on the hottest days. I look forward to continue to watch connections strengthen as we head into week 2.   And of course we cannot wait for Group Sing, Fireworks, and the 4th of July!!!!!