Summer Camp Recap 2016

It’s hard to believe that summer is behind us! What a memorable summer at Camp! As the Camp Song says— how days looked to are now the past, and how good it is that memories last. One of the things I like to do before planning for 2017 is to look back at this summer and the memories we all shared. So, here is your 2016 Summer Recap blog. We will take a look at the memories, feedback from our camp families, and what is to come. Enjoy!

Camper Experience

Every summer we spend the last rest period polling our campers on how well they think their cabin counselors did that session. These interactions continue to remind me of how intelligent kids are, even our youngest campers. They understand a lot more than we think. Once again we got some great feedback from our campers that help give us a clearer picture of the job our counselors do. This summer campers rated their counselors 4.7 out of 5, or 9.4 out of 10. Based upon other personal feedback, it was evident that this summer’s counseling staff was off the charts excellent. We would like to say a big thank you to the 92 families who filled out our end-of-session survey. Based upon this feedback, campers’ overall experience was rated 6.47 out of 7, with 7 being extremely satisfied. When asked, “Overall, how satisfied were you with your camper’s counselors this session?” families gave a 6.4 out of 7 rating, with 7 being extremely satisfied.

Parents said…

We enjoy the personal relationships with leadership at camp and feel like our children aren’t just a number. We love Camp Huawni.

Camp Huawni is a great starting place for children to find themselves, prove to themselves what they are made of and to find confidence within themselves maybe they didn’t know they had.

Huawni brought her joy back and we are so so greatful for each of you!!!

My husband and I agree that the 3 to 1 camper to counselor ratio is the biggest asset and sets Huawni apart from others. Especially since the counselors are so incredibly gifted in kindness, caring, energy, and don’t forget humor!

Our daughter always looks up to her counselors- you guys do a wonderful job of hiring respectable, courteous, kind, fun and loving kids to be counselors. The kids at camp are so blessed by them!

Camp Huawni was an important part of my life growing up and the very same experiences and opportunities that I had at camp are what our girls are experiencing now. Time outside enjoying God’s beautiful creation, surrounded by new and old friends and a staff that is intentional about investing in who they are. It’s an experience that every child should have.

It is a camp that embraces the true meaning of a child being a child!

Our daughter is happy, happy, happy at Camp Huawni. She loves it. I feel the smaller size, and the counselor to camper ratio are key to her personality. Our daughter is an only child, so the opportunity to be around strong older role models is crucial to her development. Your counselors are amazing.

Our son came home with new confidence and goals for what he wants to achieve next year. One being the ropes course. As a parent I am thrilled. This 2 weeks was really hard on me. I did my best not to fret and I learned a lot about myself and my son. Too bad summer only comes once a year! Thank you Huawni.

In a world where childhood is no longer about imagination and play, Camp Huwani recaptures that for my kids and let’s them experience good old fashion fun.

What went well?

All of the feedback our families gave was both encouraging and helpful. So what went well?

1. Camper to counselor ratio was a big help in campers’ experience
2. Homesick cases were handled really well
3. Shorter closing ceremony
4. Smooth camper pick up & drop off

Camper to counselor ratio

A huge part of what makes Huawni special is the intimate family feel. One of the big reasons for this is the camper to counselor ratio. We aim each year to have a 3:1 camper to counselor ratio. This year we did not quite hit our number, but we also felt that the quality of staff was extremely superb.

In all 4 sessions the camper to counselor ratio stayed below 4 to 1. We derive this number by taking the total amount of campers in a session and dividing it by the total number of cabin counselors. We do not include interns and/or leadership who do not stay in the cabin. In addition, camper to counselor ratios ranged between 1.8 and 5.3 when breaking the numbers up into Boys Camp and Girls Camp. Boys Camp during Session 1 had the highest ratio of the summer (5.3 to 1), while Girls Camp during Session 4 (1.8 to 1 camper to counselor ratio) was the lowest ratio. Based upon feedback, we once again were able to give kids the undivided time and access they needed to a lot of cabin counselors. Here’s a closer look at the exact ratios by session.

| Session | Campers | Staff | Camper to Counselor Ratio | | Session 1 | 149 | 42 | 3.5 | | Session 2 | 149 | 39 | 3.8 | | Session 3 | 148 | 38 | 3.9 | | Session 4 | 72 | 31 | 2.3 |

Our session highlight videos are probably the best reminder of just how special our summer was. Here is a look back at each session!

Session 1 Highlight Video
Session 2 Highlight Video
Session 3 Highlight Video
Session 4 Highlight Video

What didn’t go well?

As great as this summer was, there are always things to improve. Again, thank you for sharing honest feedback with us in our session ending surveys. Here’s a quick look at things that didn’t go so well.

1. More parent/cabin counselor interaction on Opening & Closing Day
2. More/better hot water in bathhouses
3. Colder drinking water and more water monster stations
4. More diligent with sunscreen/bug spray application
5. Better trunk delivery on Opening/Closing Day
6. Better food choices
7. Nicer & cleaner bathhouses

What’s next?

We are now entering a new season of camp and there are plenty of exciting projects ahead. Our first priority is to make sure our returning campers are enrolled for our Returning Camper Discount (RCD). This is our biggest and best discount, only available to families who attended Camp in 2015. As of today, 315 campers have already signed up for the RCD discount. The first date to know is August 15, 2016, which is the deadline to be guaranteed your session of choice. Starting August 16, 2016 returning campers are allowed to switch to a different session. The second deadline to save up to $500 per session is September 15, 2015. So be sure and enroll online if you haven’t already. You must enroll online by September 15th to receive this discount.

Starting September 16th, we’ll open up enrollment for first-time campers. We’ll offer our New Camper Discount (NCD) from September 16th to October 15th to all first-time campers. Why should new campers sign up early? Here’s a link to 5 important reasons that we encourage new families to sign up now

Here’s what is going on at Camp in August & September.

1. We are breaking ground on the new BOYS BATHHOUSE!!
2. Watering and re-seeding all of campus with bermuda grass
3. Getting counselors on board for Summer 2017
4. Preparing camp packets for new families look at Huawni for the first time
5. Updating all the processes and systems that make camp work
6. Preparing for our Full-Time Staff Annual Retreat where we plan for 2017!

Thank you again for entrusting your children with us. Our desire is to see them and our staff leave our gates knowing their true significance and purpose. Based upon a handful of stories that you have shared with us, that is happening and we are so grateful to be a part of it!

Warm regards,
Travis & Mandi