Yesterday morning, after a misleading announcement (we have to keep things a surprise somehow!), campers learned that we would spend the day doing Blue & White Big Games, a crowd favorite! Blue & White teams split into two divisions, and spent the day in twelve different games – junior and senior softball, basketball, soccer, tennis, and dodge ball, as well as junior gaga and senior nukeum.

The day of games was huge, and girls showed off their athletic skills in each game. Lexie Paull dominated junior tennis to take home a Blue team win, while Halle and Samara Michaels worked hard for a White victory. Blue team seniors had a 5-0 victory in senior soccer with Samantha Linn, Ilana Spitz, Sydney Cohen, Lauren Mass, and many more, against White teams Lily Emalfarb, Ava Stein, Amanda Amiel and  Sophie Gray. Blue and White juniors brought soccer to a shootout, where Harley Cohen won it for the Blue team. White team conquered basketball with the Abrams sisters, Chloe Levitz, Morgan Paull, and Caroline Bercu winning the senior victory, and Lucy Paull, Morgan Millstein, and Devin Much continued on with the junior win. 

Yours truly had a blast pitching softball which ended in two victories for the White team. Several hard hit line drives almost knocked me out.  Sami Chernawsky hits a mean hard ball.   The Blue team took senior dodge ball with amazing plays by Mirelle Haas, Meredith Rudman, and Shayna Rudman, but White came back for a junior victory with Rachel Rosen, Winter Rafel, and Lexie Bergman going strong.

Finally, White senior nukeum and junior gaga took round three for two incredibly intense games.  White walked away with a decisive victory of eight games.  Both teams played well and were proud of their team’s effort. It was an incredible day of team work, sportsmanship and competition.

Last night, our creative evening program coordinators (Pink & Meadows) organized the first annual “Muddy Run” through camp. Campers by division started the challenge on the slip-n-slide located outside alumnae hall.  Then it was off to walk the plank located near fox-hole. From there, campers ran to the basketball courts and went through a series of obstacles. Up at the upper athletic field, campers ran through water balloons being tossed left and right. The water hose was also used to spray screaming campers as they bolted by. There’s nothing like an ice bath.  Once campers reached the lower athletic field, they had to face a pool of sticky oatmeal and a sea of Gelli Baff. Then it was off to the softball diamond area where they crawled on their stomachs through mounds of mud.  Running with bellies, arms and legs covered in black mucky, they ran to the waterfront and plunged into the lake via the waterslide.  I’m telling you personally it was so much fun! The PA’s invited me to join their “Muddy Run” and I enjoyed sharing every minute of it with them.

Final Four Commissioners Melissa Kramer, Meredith Leon, and Nikki Sheinkop revealed this year’s teams at flagpole last night. Each cabin received a package and was told that it contained the supplies they needed for P.A. Pageant. Little did they know that each package included a lollipop for every girl in the camp with a label revealing their team. This year’s Final Four teams are Duke, Syracuse, Notre Dame, and Tulane University. The Captains of Duke are Julia Turner, Emma Hickey, and Zara Ostrom with camper captains Caroline Skok, Joanna Howson, Amanda Amiel, and Hannah Felman. The captains for Notre Dame are Kate Cook, Spencer Weiss, and Skylar Prizant with camper captains Ava Novak, Isabelle Anderson, Jennifer Filler, and Sophie Gray. The captains for Syracuse are Heather Adolph, Courtney Cutlip, and Taylor Cohen with camper captains Erika Kider, Liv Ludwig, Murphy Hughes, and Allison Sawyer. The captains for Tulane are Jessica Hosey, Luci Bonfield, and Alana Bercu with camper captains Lucy Polen, Lexi Rootberg, Marley Berk, and Mirelle Hass. We can’t wait for the games to begin!

We have had a beautiful day today and can’t believe that August is fast approaching. We do not want our summer to come to an end, but know that you will have some very happy campers when they return home. Their love for this place is amazing and we will soon be counting down the days until next summer!

Smile on,

Mary and staff J