February 17th Multicity Events for Mountain Friends Camp!

Join Friends in Colorado and New Mexico, and virtual connections across the country today for sharing greetings, news and raising funds for Mountain Friends Camp 2019! The specific purpose of our fundraiser is to help buy a washer and dryer (a target amount of about $1,000), so we can stop sending staff off to town for laundry. Any additional amount raised will go to our campership fund!

Santa Fe: COME ONE AND ALL!  Santa Fe Monthly Meeting (directions) is hosting a “Bet You Can Do It” ASIAN BUFFET to raise funds for MFC. We’ll hear from young friends and camp staff about their time at camp, and connect with the virtual all camp get together. 630 Canyon Road, Santa Fe, NM. 12 pm. 

Boulder: Boulder’s Senior Young Friends (SYFs) will be supporting Mountain Friends Camp with a pancake fundraiser. (Event Facebook Link)
The SYFs (many of whom are past campers) invite you to join them and other Friends for a delicious pancake lunch, and learn more about Mountain Friends Camp! 825 Upland Avenue, Boulder, CO. 11:30 am.

Virtual: Join Friends of Mountain Friends Camp all over the country for our first multicity MFC event! Reach out to Ana (director@mountainfriendscamp.org) if you would like to join in the group video chat, or even host an event in your town! We’ll also be live-streaming part of the time on Facebook, see info here
Our goals are to raise $1000 for a camp washer and dryer for 2019, get more people excited about coming to camp this summer, and have FUN!

Board Weekend in Denver

Mountain Friends Camp thanks the Mountain View Friends Meeting for your warm hospitality during our annual board board meetingweekend March 20-22. Board members were joined by campers, young adult staff and a few interested local Friends for a fun weekend of worship, discernment and plork (play+work) for our Quaker summer camp. Nine of us traveled from four states plus DC, and nine came from around Colorado. Our focus for the weekend was visioning and planning the next 5 years. We spent time considering the locations we’ve held camp at so far and what we need and want in a permanent location (and how to discern the difference between needs and wants!). Our recent 501(c)3 status, camp policies, staff orientation, support for grieving campers, 2015 plans, finances and outreach kept us busy. We divided up board tasks into three main committees for the next year, and invited campers and others join and participate in committee work. Of course since this was about camp we also had great food, singing, games, worship, fellowship and outdoor time in the beautiful Colorado sunshine.
Big thanks to Paula and to Ruth for hosting so many out of towners, and to Penny and Judy for bringing us delicious that gado gado dinner Saturday! Most everyone stayed for Meeting for Worship on First Day, with a few of our camp staff taking the First Day group to the park for some camp games. Afterwards we enjoyed a bountiful potluck spread, and showed some pictures for a MFC Q&A. We left with warm hearts and renewed resolve from the many reminders of what we love about Mountain Friends Camp!board meeting
REMINDER: We still have plenty of room for campers age 10-15, family campers, and are looking for 1-2 medics and a few male counselors. Learn more, sign up, refer a friend, contact Ana, or donate to support our camp mountainfriendscamp.org

How Time Flies, When You’re Growing Quaker Leaders!

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Mountain Friends Camp 2013 is quickly approaching. We’re putting together another amazing group of summer staff, including some of our favorites from 2012 and newcomers from outside the IMYM sphere. Camper registrations are coming in fast as well. There are only 5 more spots for week one, so if you’ve been meaning to register, send in your paperwork or contact me today!
An exciting milestone for me this spring is reading counselor in training (CIT) applications from several of our pilot program campers. These wonderful young people were 12 years-old in 2010, and made our first year so much fun. Now they’ve grown up into new positions of leadership and responsibility. One CIT application reads:

I’ve been coming to Mountain Friends Camp since the year it opened it’s doors, and I want to continue to enjoy a wonderful summer there again. I also want to get to be more of a role model for younger campers, and learn how to become a more responsible person. . . I enjoy painting and drawing, so I would be more than willing to help lead any art workshops or even do some face painting. I also love to hike and play sports, and could help supervise either activity. :)”

We had many goals in mind when Mountain Friends Camp was nothing more than a blip of a committee and big dreams-living Quaker testimonies, deepening our spiritual connections, playing cooperatively, working joyfully, increasing nature intelligence, changing the paradigm-and a central component was growing Quaker leaders. I know I have grown in my four years as a summer camp director, and I’m so proud to see the commitment, compassion and creativity our campers and CITs bring to the camp community. We are lucky to have them at Mountain Friends Camp, and I know they let their inner Light shine wherever they go.

Campers at Ariel at the Wolf Sanctuary

2010 campers with Ariel at the Wolf Sanctuary