Hi there!

If you can believe it, we’ve made it to Packing Day, which means it’s coming to a close…(cue the sentimental music)!

Yesterday evening, we had a thrilling and heartwarming time dancing and singing as well as hanging out and immersing ourselves in the effervescent summer vibes in the backyard during the Fair Day Dance – see photos below!!

This morning, we rose half an hour later for a leisurely al-fresco breakfast with our cabins before gathering in the Front Yard for the last Morning Meeting of the summer!

In addition to our morning staples (e.g. Groups, Announcements, Thought du Jour and our designated Birthday announcer, a jolly skunk this past week), there were some special heartfelt additions including gestures of appreciation for all of our standout counseling, pro, office and PD alongside nursing, cleaning and maintenance staff this summer (and for a handful, countless summers prior), and of course Peter and Meg.

Afterwards, campers finalized their admirable packing efforts to prepare for their homeward journeys before populating the backyard one last time with that singular infectious energy for lunch and then reinhabiting the cabins for rest period and fun closure-inducing daytime cabin activities around camp.

This afternoon after a logistics-powered transportation meeting, we’re getting ready to end the day in the best and iconic way: the annual Lobster Banquet + Closing Pinegrove!

For the first affair, the dining hall and campers will be jazzed up with table cloths and patterned bibs respectively for a feast starring the vibrant crustaceans (or delectable chicken parm or greek-style spanakopita for those contrarily inclined) and pints of Ben & Jerry’s distributed via a certain cow-costumed individual emerged from her planet!!

In the aftermath, campers and their counselors will walk up the big hill in meditative silence and take seats around the blazing fire in the shade of the pine trees to witness individual performances by each cabin, usually featuring a parody or two and some poignant choruses.

To close out the evening as well as extend our love and farewells to each other, the ceremony will conclude with the annual bittersweet candle-lighting procession during which every camper will have the chance to share a personal greeting to every other. It’s projected to be a beautiful night for this soulful experience… 

We’ll write tomorrow for the last update (plus photos) – stay well until then 🙂

Warmly,

H.V. Scribe

ROAD RACE

BASKETBALL GAME

FAIR DAY

FAIR DAY DANCE

PACKING DAY

HVA

Hi from the Scribe!

Yesterday evening, we witnessed the fantastic hour-long production of MATILDA by our standout cast – see photos below! Featuring a spiteful principal, euphonious sweet-tooth and dynamic band of supportive friends/precocious children/talented performers alongside two Matildas – not to forget rousing musical numbers like Naughty and Revolting Children – the show was a treat for the senses! On that note, shoutout to the costume team and Backstage Ninjas who made the spectacle spectacular 🙂

After that fun-filled Lazy Day, campers rose early this morning, some earlier than others, for FAIR DAY! To kick things off, a vivacious bunch jumped out of bed before their cabinmates to grab an early breakfast before hitting Camp Road for the epic annual Road Race marathon, a tad over a mile!

 

After ambling to the dining hall for their own breakfast, the rest of camp convened in the Front Lawn to cheer on their friends as they made their final stretch, sweaty but smiling! Though we may have *run* into some schvitz, our energy was nothing but sunny!! 🙂

 

In light of the weather, the scheduled Camper v. Counselor Basketball Game was postponed for (hopefully!) this afternoon, but the other events continued as planned – including setting up for the cabin-manned Fair Day carnival-style booths before heading indoors to bittersweetly continue our valiant packing efforts as departure day nears.

When the bell rang, campers gathered in the Rec Hall for a screening of the video classes’ humorous and engaging video productions including Matilda highlights! (The watch party will continue tomorrow with the full-length camp slideshow…)

 

Immediately after, the Fair began!! With stations including a water slide and inflatable jousting alongside fun and silly activities like the Marriage Booth, name changing, face-painting and candy grams – suitably supplemented by corn dogs, fried dough and ice cream – the good vibes were pervasive (and contagious)! Check out more photos tomorrow 🙂

If the weather holds up, camp will soon convene at the Basketball Courts for the highly-anticipated game before moving onto a memorable dinner and the classic, groovy and glorious Fair Dance!! After dancing and singing the evening away, we’ll all be spinning into deep sleep tonight…

So many things happening; we’ll keep you posted!

Cheers,

H.V. Scribe

MUSICAL

BOWLING

FAIR DAY

 

FAIR DAY ART SHOW

 

Hellooooo HVC!

Woody the Woodpecker back from my long summer nap to fill you in on all! things! sharing! night! It’s a beautiful, warm lazy day here in the valley so it’s the perfect time to catch you all up.

We gathered at the Rec Hall to watch performances from our incredible campers and teachers, kicking things off the right way with a rousing performance from the HVC Rockband! They played only the hits, and boy did they sound good!

And we were wowed by dance performances in ballet and jazz and modern, and by sweet songs from our guitar and ukulele classes! And of course there were wacky performances from puppet-making class, tennis and fishing, plus a cool display of runway fashion. A song performance from our advanced scene and song study class rounded out the roster! It was an amazing night of talent, and so fun to see everything our campers have created this summer!

Yesterday afternoon, campers also received their white books, which are special hardbound books to keep notes from pals, memories, and addresses to write each other during the winter time. And, in a grand finale, HVC’s first ever pickleball tournament came to a close with the final matches held in both the camper and staff brackets! Monty from Forbidden Planet came out on top for the campers, though it was a tough competition! Carmi, our resident glass guru, bested in the staff bracket. Congrats to all the pickleball players and their awesome spectators! We had so much fun on the courts in the early evening each day.

And today, the older half will continue in the sporty spirit during their Olympic Day competitions while the younger half is out on a fantastic glow-bowling trip! We’ll all get lazzzy this afternoon by the pool before watching the highly-anticipated Matilda: The Musical!

More soon,

Woody the Woodpecker

 

Hey guys!

Yesterday we had a fabulous time watching the HVC production of Alice in Wonderland! Short but oh-so-sweet, it was truly delightful to witness the on-point costumes and whimsical props (shoutout to costume design and the Backstage Ninjas!) supporting the finely-delivered witticisms, an unsuspected musical number, and riveting scenes in the iconic settings of the illogically punctual Tea Party and the Queen of Heart’s royal croquet lawn. A huge shoutout to the cast – all your hard work over the past two weeks simply dazzled on stage! (See photos below!!)

Today, campers awoke at the typical bright ’n early time for a dual fan-favorite Bagel Sunday + Egg Bar breakfast before delving into our last day of classes! Alongside finishing up art projects to be shown at the Art Show during Fair Day, campers are rehearsing songs, dances, musical numbers and more for tonight’s Sharing Night evening program and making their final memories in their sports, animal and waterfront classes 🙂

Speaking of sports, the Pickleball Tournament staff finals is scheduled for Interest Groups today, and it’s bound to be an epic event! Another imminent match we’re excited about is the iconic Camper vs. Counselor Basketball Game; stay tuned for that…

Although classes may be ending, there’s so much more fun to come before we say goodbye, including another Lazy Day tomorrow – be sure to check back for details!

Talk soon,

H. V. Scribe

THE PLAY

CANDY CRUSH