What's New!

Our theme for May, is "What's New." You would think that going into summer # 47, there wouldn’t be much to talk about with regards to changes and new additions.  But, due to circumstances beyond our control (a tornado), we have a plethora of new items and ideas which will be woven into the Doublecreek fabric.  We did what we always do, and turned the lemons into lemonade!

Let’s start with physical changes.  Thanks to the tornado, we had a lot of repairs facing us.  We now have a new roof over our riding arena.  Also, thanks so the storm repairs, we have a new and improved pumphouse for the pool – the new pumphouse roof is now worthy of our great filter system. (I knew you would be overwhelmed to hear about the pumphouse, but wait, there’s more!)  The dance barn and stage is now repaired and ready for business.  We have a new and improved Lost & Found area, so if your camper loses something, we have a nicer place for you to go look for it.  And like a monster that wouldn’t die, the big waterslide or Carter’s Cowabunga 3.0 has come back to life for the second straight year after being knocked down by brutal winds!

Be sure to check out buses # 1 & 2 – they will be sporting new looks for the summer.  We have new stables at Riding, and a beautiful a new tractor shed.  Oh, we will have new horses as well as several new games.  The most intriguing addition is Soccer Darts.  I have no idea how that one will work.  Do you throw darts at the soccer ball or soccer player, or do I have it totally wrong?  I’ll get back with you on that one.

Finally, we'd like to give huge kudos to the newest member of our leadership team, Parker!  Parker is our Staff Coordinator, and thanks in part to his awesome recruiting skills, we’ll have wonderful new counselors.  That’s always a great addition.  It’s the nature of Doublecreek, to have counselors work for several summers, usually while they’re in college; then they move on to their careers.  While some counselors are moving on, others are joining us.  It’s a comforting dynamic – a constant blend of experience and passion, paired with fresh enthusiasm.

The last addition is our most precious one – Aunt Trudy’s memorial.  We've partnered with Cafe Java to plant a tree a few feet from Scott Kirtley’s memorial. Scott was our former director and a beloved grandson of Uncle Carter and Aunt Trudy.  A commemorative stone will be placed at the base of the tree.  It makes me joyful that the place chosen to honor her is where we start every day at Doublecreek – where we say the “Pledge of Allegiance” and sing “You’re a Grand Ole Flag!”

-- Joe Ray