West is Just Like My Real Family

My name is Iyana and I went to North Shore Day Camp AND Timber Lake West this past summer and I LOVED it! It was the best of both worlds!

Like both of my older brothers, Shaun and Jared, I started out at North Shore Day Camp when I was 4 years old.  And also like my brothers, as I got older, I knew that I was also ready to go away to sleep away camp too – just not for the whole summer. I had made so many friends at day camp, and even though my brother Jared would be at West with me this summer, I was still worried about if I’d be able to make new friends at sleep away camp too. I went to BOTH camps this summer and it was the best summer I’ve ever had!  THE BEST SUMMER!

For the first half of the summer, I went to North Shore Day camp. Then, when I went to Timber Lake West’s bus stop to go to sleep away camp, I saw a lot of new people.  I was nervous…  BUT, as I stood there with my parents and brothers waiting to get on the bus, I began to see some familiar faces too that I already knew – from North Shore Day Camp!  I wasn’t the only one with this great idea of going to both day camp and sleep away camp!  So on the bus I went!  I was really excited and couldn’t wait to do all the great things I had been hearing about from my brothers!

My first day at West was really fun!  As soon as everyone got off the bus, we went to our bunks, picked out a bed, unpacked our stuff, and then went to a huge BBQ! By the time the next morning came around, everyone in my bunk was the best of friends.

My favorite thing about West, besides all the food, is all the activities I get to do that I couldn’t do anywhere else.  I LOVED being out in the lake and going on the banana boat.   I also LOVED the different shows we got to do in front of the whole camp.  Whether it was a talent show, or a play, it was a great feeling to see and hear everyone cheer you on and clap for you as if you were a star.  Another thing was Color War.  Then there was the Art Barn – Actually, I really loved everything about West! It’s just so hard to pick a few things!!!

When my mom asked me to describe an example of how West is like one big family, I told her that all the older kids treated me like I was their little sister and looked out for me, we all ate together, and that every single night the camp director would come into our bunk just to say good night to us just like my mom does with me at home.  Just like in my regular family, West really treats us all if we were one big family.  I can’t wait for 3^rd grade to be over so I can go back to West next summer!!!