We are excited for our upcoming 15th summer of Mountain Friends Camp! As of April 3rd, space is still available for families with youth under age 10 in Family Camp, and we are waitlist-only for Youth Camp.

Staff are still needed for this summer, so please tell your friends and help spread the word! We are recruiting camp counselors and support staff ages 18+, and counselors in training ages 16-17. Working at camp is a chance to build intentional community, learn and share tons of valuable skills, make a difference for youth, and live a simple outdoor life for a few weeks. Whether you most enjoy hikes, swimming, art and music, group games, quiet contemplation, cooking tasty meals or all of the above, we likely need your gifts! Adults of all ages are welcome to apply for all or part of the season.

Mountain Friends Camp 2022 Approach to COVID-19

MFC has learned a lot about operating camp during a pandemic and avoiding infectious diseases over the last two years! After a successful pivot to virtual “community camp at home” in 2020, campers and staff were happy to return to in-person overnight camp in 2021. We worked hard to develop policy and learned how to use multiple layers of precautions to prevent Covid-19 or other illnesses from spreading at camp, and learned we can still have fun and build community while taking health precautions

Our focus, as Mountain Friends Camp, is always to follow our mission to provide a camp experience grounded in the Quaker values of peace, community, simplicity, integrity, equality and stewardship for a diverse community of young people and adults. In making decisions and communicating with families and our community, we strive to act with integrity and transparency, and prioritize camper and staff well-being. This long healthcare crisis has reinforced the importance of our mission and the crucial need to prioritize the physical, mental, emotional and social health of our campers and staff in everything we do.

Like last year, we look to CDC and State guidelines, the American Camp Association and the Alliance for Camp Health for information and best practices, and consider examples from other summer camps. The COVID-19 pandemic has only gotten more complicated to navigate in 2022, but fortunately the tools and knowledge at our disposal has expanded as well. We will continue to monitor public health developments and guidelines, and will communicate changes if needed.

• Testing before camp and at arrival

We will require all campers and staff, regardless of vaccination status, to provide documentation of a negative COVID-19 test before camp, AND take a second test upon arrival in the presence of camp staff. The preference is for a PCR test taken within 48 hours before arrival. Alternatively, a rapid antigen test may be performed 24 hours before arrival. If COVID levels are high and/or increasing, we will likely do additional rapid testing 3-4 days into camp of some or all participants

• Health screening 

All participants will be asked to self monitor and report any potential COVID-19 symptoms or exposure for the 2 weeks prior to arrival at camp. Our health staff or director will verify on arrival, take a temperature and ask about any symptoms or exposure. Please do not come to camp with any recent symptoms or exposure to infectious disease! “MFC COVID-19 MFC Pre-Arrival Health Screening and Test Results ” link: https://form.jotform.com/221654390765158

• Vaccines

We highly encourage and give hiring preference to staff and CITs who are able to obtain full vaccinations for COVID-19 prior to camp, and so far are glad to report almost everyone is already fully vaccinated. The vaccine is highly recommended for campers, but is not required. We encourage everyone to get the recommended booster(s) as soon as you are eligible and at least two weeks prior to camp as well. 

We continue to recommend campers and staff receive routine childhood vaccinations as well, and document immunization status for all participants.

We recognize that not everyone, and at this time no one under 5 including our camp director’s two children will be able to be vaccinated, and that the vaccines are much more effective at preventing serious illness than mild infection. Our staff and volunteers include elders in their 70s, and individuals with a range of health conditions participate at all levels, so we ask that all prepare to take precautions to protect our intergenerational camp community. We will not have two sets of rules for vaccinated and unvaccinated campers, but vaccine status will influence the procedures for testing and options for what happens if there are symptoms or COVID exposure at camp.

• Precautions before camp

We ask that participants and families do your best to limit exposure to COVID-19 or other diseases for the two weeks before camp, especially during travel and if COVID levels in your community are high or rising. We ask all campers, their families, and camp staff to follow guidance for travelers in the 14 days before camp arrival to reduce exposure to COVID-19. For these two weeks, please limit exposure as much as possible, this includes physical distancing, mask-wearing when indoors or when unable to physically distance outdoors, avoiding unnecessary travel and crowds, and refraining from indoor social gatherings with people outside of your households

• Approach to symptoms 

We’ll continue to screen all participants daily for symptoms of possible illness during camp, and test and/or send home those with potential symptoms or known exposure as needed.

Families should be prepared to pick up campers within 12 hours of notification from camp.

We will require at least 5 days off camp isolation and a negative rapid test before coming to camp or returning after a positive COVID test, and 48 hours after a fever resolves without medication. If at least 7 days have passed but the participant continues to test positive with a rapid test, we will consider allowing them to attend with clearance from a doctor.

• Precautions during camp

Precautions at camp will in part be dependent on levels of Covid in the community (as measured by the CDC county guidelines). 

Regardless of Covid levels:

Good hand washing, outdoors and fresh air activities, and screening/monitoring symptoms will be our focus throughout camp. The first few days we will eat meals and do most indoor activities with members of our sleeping pod/yurt.

If Covid levels are high in New Mexico and many of the counties and states our participants are traveling from, or moderate and trending upwards in the weeks prior to camp, we will take additional precautions. This can include but is not limited to: social distancing, doing more activities with only our yurt groups, and requiring masking indoors (with n95 type masks highly recommended). In a higher Covid level environment, we will also restrict staff activities off campus. If we take these additional layers of precautions, we would re-test a substantial portion of campers and staff after 3-4 days, and if we have no positive cases then our goal would be to consider the full camp as one “bubble” and make masking and social distancing optional in most situations at camp. Individuals who choose to wear a mask when not required to do so are always supported in that choice! 

See 2021 Updates and Policies here: https://mountainfriendscamp.org/2021-information-and-updates/

Welcome to Mountain Friends Camp 2020: Community Camp at Home! We’re hard at work in staff orientation this week and are so excited to see what fun, community, and camp spirit we can make together this summer! If you missed it, see our “Meet the 2020 Staff” newsletter here.

Below you’ll find several important notes and instructions for your family to help everything go as smoothly as possible this summer.

• Virtual camp via Zoom

1. • Before the first day, take a little time to set up your camper for a smooth experience. If you have not already used Zoom for video chatting/meetings, read the instructions here: https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-us/articles/201362193-Joining-a-meeting?mobile_site=true. Please also take a look at Zoom’s privacy information here: https://zoom.us/privacy. We will not be recording or taking screenshots other than occasionally, with everyone’s awareness and consent, for promotional purposes.
   • Set up your camper’s hardware. We recommend a desktop/laptop if possible, so that each camper is able to see the group. If not, a tablet or a smartphone will work. If using a handheld device, please have a place to prop it up so it can be used hands-free with the screen remaining visible.
   • Choose a location with enough space for your camper to stand up and move a bit, and also consider location and privacy for other family members (we recommend having your camper’s backdrop be near a wall, rather than a view into shared rooms).
   • For the first 2 days, and ongoing as needed, please have an adult help get your camper connected and able provide ongoing support.
   • If any of this is challenging, please let me know before camp starts so I can help!

• Buddy Boxes

1. • For those registered for Session 1, Buddy Boxes will be mailed to your camper next week. The boxes should arrive by the Saturday before the camp session begins, so you’ll have time to open them ahead of time. We strongly suggest “unboxing” into a larger box/bin, and having an adult on hand with your camper to get started looking through the activities and materials.
   • We’ll be sending Buddy Boxes for Sessions 2 and/or 3 together, so if your camper is signed up for both weeks we’ll send an extra special box with more materials!
   • Siblings will receive shared boxes in most circumstances, with a mix of individual and shared items.
   • “Save for later” items, for those doing Zoom sessions, are labeled and include: Superhero theme day; positive traits wordsearch; electric candle; and pancake party supplies!

• What to expect from zoom sessions

1. • Zoom schedule:
     • Monday-Thursday 1-3 pm (Mountain Time) Zoom camp activities
     • Friday 1-2 pm plus a special 6-7:30 pm evening campfire/creativity night.
     • I will email the zoom session link the Saturday before each week, this link is for you family only and not to be shared with anyone.
   • In general, sessions will have a combination of “full camp” activities, “camper’s choice” elective activities, and time for sharing and games with your camper’s assigned small groups and counselors.
   • Supervision during camp sessions is still the responsibility of the parent/guardian. We will be engaging with campers and sharing activities, but don’t have the ability to provide physical supervision of safety and well-being over Zoom.

• Camper Behavior expectations

1. • We’ll be setting specific camp norms with campers, to help everyone have a good experience together, but in the meantime campers should be ready to:
     • Engage and share
     • Listen to the counselors
     • Respect everyone in the community
     • Have fun!

• Camp Fees

1. • Pay any remaining camper fees by mail: Mountain Friends Camp, 2455 N Race St, Denver, CO 80205
   • Or online at mountainfriendscamp.org/donate page, with a note of your camper’s name and week(s).

Please let me know if you have any remaining questions, or ideas for how we can best support your family this summer. Thank you for joining us in this new adventure!

Anastacia Ebi

Camp Director

director@mountainfriendscamp.org

Dear Friends,

I have difficult news to share with you today. The Mountain Friends Camp Board met last weekend, (virtually, of course!) to discuss the upcoming camp plans. After much heart-felt discussion and discernment, the Board has decided to cancel plans for in-person camp programs this summer. We anticipate that there will be a variety of feelings and thoughts about these changes, and we will be reaching out in the next week to individual camper families who have registered, to review next steps. I will host a Q&A session live via Zoom, to answer your questions and give everyone a chance to share. This call is scheduled on Saturday, May 9th, at 5 pm Mountain Time, for anyone who wishes to participate and share. Click here to sign up for this and future events

In the next few weeks, the Board will be busy developing ideas and ways to build community and support for our campers this summer through other remote means. The options we’ve discussed include virtual camp programs and activities, and maybe even a “camp-in-a-box” mail subscription! We welcome your feedback and ideas about how we can continue to further the mission of MFC:

“To provide a camp experience, grounded in the Quaker values of peace, community, simplicity, equality, integrity, and stewardship, for a diverse community of young people and adults. At camp, we are inspired by the Quaker ideal of “letting our lives speak” by putting our values into practice. We seek to minimize our environmental footprint and maximize our engagement with nature.”

Our first priority is the health and well-being of our campers and their families, our staff, our host community at Collins Lake Ranch, and the larger regional community. The risks and uncertainties of this pandemic are beyond what our staff and the Ranch are equipped to prepare for and handle this summer. The regional and national situation is changing quickly, and while there is a chance that restrictions on gatherings and businesses will be lifted by mid-June, we feel the need to make the best decisions we can, with the information we have at the given moment. If the wider health situation improves substantially, there may be opportunities for small-scale, local, camp reunions or outdoor activities this summer or fall, and we will update you as the months proceed. Until our incredible camp community can gather in person again, we hope you take good care of yourself, your family, and those in your communities who need the most support.

In light of offering virtual and other media options for camp this summer, our aim is to extend our focus, resources, and plans to include preparing for the 2021 camp season. If at all possible, we’ll be back together at Collins Lake Ranch. The Board invites you to continue to hold Mountain Friends Camp in the light, as we discern our plans for the future, relying on the strength of our vibrant Quaker and wider community. We want you to know that we are in this time together, learning new ways to take good care of each other, and discovering our way forward, with gratitude, hope, and trust!

In the Light,

Anastacia Ebi

Mountain Friends Camp Director, on behalf of the Mountain Friends Camp Board

Celebrate your love for Mountain Friends Camp all  year round, with our 2020 calendars! Order through the link below, now at the discounted price of $15!

http://www.lulu.com/content/legacy-lulustudio-calendar/mountain-friends-camp-calendar-2019/25698427

This summer our staff, with help from campers, wrote articles about our daily camp activities and special highlights of the summer. Read all about it!

Summer Newsletter 2018 MFC 

We are sorry to have sad news to share in this holiday season. Senta Hoge, our host from 2014-2016 at the Santa Fe Tree House Camp, passed away December 9th. Please join our Mountain Friends Camp community in holding Senta and her loved ones in the Light. Senta passed on quickly and in her own home,  leaving behind memories of joyful and peaceful times in nature in the minds of the thousands of children and adults who came through the Tree House Camp over the decades. 
The Mountain Friends Camp board members prepared a few affirmations and memories of Senta to share with her loved ones. If you’d like to add yours, email Ana at director@mountainfriendscamp.org

“I find it hard to actually believe that Senta has passed on ~ since she clearly didn’t age a day since i first met her as a small child to when my children first met her! Her advice to simplify life by just feeding the campers baked potatoes nightly might not have influenced menus at camp, but it influenced menus in my home. Senta’s indomitable presence and consistent, unapologetic strength as a woman will be remembered by myself and many other young girls and women who crossed her sphere of influence. You will be missed, Senta.”
-Bonny Moss, MFC Board President

“Today I am remembering Senta’s love for the animals…Because I had known her for 30+ years, I knew many of her animals and got to watch her care for and about each one of them!
She had two dogs named Uno and Etso that were her hearts delight for sure. For a while she took care of Boufka, Mieke’s dog and also Alec, Charles’s dog And of course Nanga… Besides Trigger, she had a horse named Martini that she rode. And adopted Pompeii two years ago. There were also donkeys and goats. She loved and fed the birds, all kinds..She protected the horny toads and the owls. Senta definitely was ‘one’ with the natural world and all it’s many inhabitants. Looking back, I find it curious that there were deer living on her property this summer after many years when we saw none. Maybe they were coming to give her a gift in her last summer? Once there was a woodpecker that lived near her house and we watched it all year into the next summer..She was really happy it kept returning.. (like the ravens) So Senta, I hope you are in a place where the animals are close in spirit and know that I will always remember your compassion and curiosity for all ‘God’s critters’…”
-Beverley Weiler

“Over and over when we were at the camp, Senta would stop to chat and share little suggestions about cool wooded areas on the property good for a hike or a nature activity, plays and programs they used to put on at the pavilion, the importance of clear safety rules at the archery area, how the barn could be used on a rainy day. I think at first I saw this as her having difficulty “letting go” of her leadership role. As I listened more carefully I heard her much more just wanting to give from her experience, to share her love of the place and of the outdoors especially. Quite a richness of years put into that dream.”
-Eric Wright

“When I first met Senta I was in my early 50s and feeling I was almost on the downhill side of life. I was so impressed and inspired to learn that Senta was already my age, and had a long and busy career behind her when she and Charles conceived the idea for Tree House Camp and then slowly but steadily worked to put flesh on the bones of their dream for the next several decades: a whole new life when many people in their phase of existence would  be contemplating a future of week-earned rest and retirement.
Although Senta came across as a somewhat formidable presence at camp during the times she came down to survey our daily activities, yet there were a couple of times when I was with her neighbor Diane when Diane was checking in with Senta about necessary doctor visits and the like. Then I was privileged and humbled to see the vulnerable gentler side to this amazing woman, and the love and respect in which she was held by those who were closest to her. I am only sorry that I entered her life so late in the day, and could not learn more from this unique fellow being.”
-Lucy Bauer

“Senta lived and shared her deep love and connection to the animals at camp every year. Last summer in her introduction to Tree House Camp talk with the campers, I heard for the first time about the family of ravens who’d lived at the Tree House Camp since before the camp founding. She’d known them as individuals, talked to them, they watched her and respected her space, they wouldn’t come into the kitchen area but if she brought an apple down to the horses and left it for a moment it was fair game. With all the animals, her lesson for kids and adults was, “Oh, well they’ve been here longer than we have. This is their home you are visiting.”
In 2014 I was planning to travel in Jordan and Israel/Palestine in the fall, and loved her advice and excitement for me and Ari. Her stories about exploring with Charles, car camping with one other couple, driving for days across the desert and finding waterhole across Saudi Arabia were wonderful. I’d love to hear more, hopefully from those she had more time with to relax and share stories.”
-Ana Ebi

Senta at the ropes course, 2016