Christy and I went to Girls Camp the last week of July. We had been asked to be cooks so we went up on Monday to help set up the kitchen. The tent moms, most of the leaders and the older girls (junior counselors) also came up on Monday so our first served meal was Monday evening. The YW girls came piling into camp on Tuesday, all excited and wide awake. Camp ended on that Saturday but we left on Friday night due to prior commitments (like Adam's baptism on Saturday).
Chris and I shared a tent and I took our trusty aerobed to sleep on. Worked like a charm! The only way to camp, let me tell you.
The camp is at Lower Bucks Lake in California and it was hot -- in the high 90s every day. And the dirt -- ! It clung to everything, got into closed buildings, and was ever present. We thankfully did not have any wind storms because that would have been downright nasty.
We were two of eight cooks in the kitchen and shared stories and laughter with all the sisters. We had such a good group of sisters -- hard workers, quick to laugh, and willing to do anything to keep things moving along. We learned new songs, made up some songs, and performed a spectacular skit one night at campfire! Well, it was spectacular to me seeing as how it was written in the afternoon by one of the ladies and we had one rehearsal before the performance.
I got up about 6:15 every morning because the sun was up and it was time to use the bathroom. It was a tad bit of a walk to the staff's bathroom so once up, I stayed up. It was so beautiful in the mornings -- the lake was quiet, the birds were singing and the camp was just beginning to wake up. I helped the early morning cook to open one of the wooden window covers so the morning seminary (6:00a) and shiver shivery girls could come up and get hot chocolate. The shiver shivery girls were girls who got up and jumped in the lake at 6:30a as a right of passage (one activity I can pass up with absolutely no regret).
We cooked for about 50 adults and 6th and 7th year girls in the camp. The 200+ girl campers cooked at their campsites. They came up and got boxes of food for each meal, cooked and ate it as ward groups. This year they tried campsites in ward groups rather than year groups. Haven't heard the final word on how it worked out but it didn't seem to be a disaster or a negative thing. I admire the tent moms who helped the girls cook over a barbeque pit three times a day. However, we cooked lunch and dinner for the whole camp on Friday. The bishops came up on Friday afternoon and a very nice brother in the Stake cooked tri-tip for Friday's dinner. We served over 300 people for that meal!
One of the things I found fascinating is the counters at the windows. We scrubbed them before and after every meal and the rags were still picking up dirt. We even tried bleach one day -- cleaned them pretty good (so we thought) but one hour later they were giving off dirt. When you go to girls camp, your level of cleanliness is at a whole different level than at home.
For those who have never been at girls camp, this must sound like a miserable experience. Oh, so not true! It's so much fun being around the youth and leaders that love the youth. We heard strong testimonies up there and saw a lot of friendships evolve. The girls are enthusiastic and love to go from the waterfront to crafts to taking a nap. Campfire songs rock the trees and each announcement or skit is met with cheering and clapping. I didn't see any tears or hear any complaints from any of the girls. We had girls show up at the kitchen to help just because they had free time.
Chris and I have both told the leaders that we'll go again next year! The spiritual high from being around righteous young woman and their leaders lasts for weeks afterwards. As long as I can physically do the work, I'm on board!!
