Article 6/28/17 Camp Timberlake for Boys

As the sun rose over the misty mountains, this morning, the boys of Timberlake knew it was going to be a special day. Today, the men of Graybeard took the helm, as many of them move toward their final days as campers. Today shone a bittersweet light on the campers of the oldest cabin, as they took the day upon themselves. Today was Staff Appreciation Day; less about the appreciation of our current staff, and rather an appreciation, or acknowledgement, that these men in Graybeard are the future of Camp Timberlake. Today was about growth for tomorrow. What a day it was for the men of Camp Timberlake!

Each of the Graybearders did a tremendous job in each of their activities, showing passion and love for both the campers and the activity itself. Though it may not have been easy, each one of them grew today, as leaders, as people, and as followers of Jesus. They took a step today towards the ministry of Camp Timberlake: Friends through Growth and Adventure.

They saw the hard parts about teaching classes, growing to appreciate the work that the staff put in every day. They were able to witness much excitement from the other side. They even got to wear the black polo shirts that our staff wear on opening and closing days. They experienced today what it meant to be a staff member.  Best of all, the younger campers got to see them in leadership positions, witnessing the already super-cool Graybearders become staff, like they may in years to come.

Meals looked a little different today, as the Graybeard campers sat at the heads of the tables and counselors sat at the tables like campers. After the morning breakfast of chicken biscuits and hash browns, the men went outside for the morning yell! They hustled on up to chapel where Michael A. led chapel for the second day in a row. Michael did a phenomenal job!

For cabin cleanup, there were three Graybearders assigned to each cabin, where they experienced the ever so challenging task of getting young men to clean. Then, Graybeard themselves went to clean their own cabin (even with limited time, they still managed to win the day, scoring a perfect 10 on cabin cleanup).

Activities were wonderful today. Each Graybearder taught a couple different classes, each making it their own. James B. taught kayaking, mountain biking, and soccer; Owen S. taught archery and fencing; Ethan O. taught paintball and soccer; Miles B. taught riflery and canoeing; Garrison B. taught climbing and archery; Jonah O. taught cooking and fencing; Nathan V. taught paintball and team sports; Reed F. taught pottery and climbing; Bryce B. taught backpacking, climbing, and paintball; Michael A. taught mountain biking and guitar; Jake L. taught mountain biking, team sports, and kayaking; Cameron S. taught kayaking and tennis; Jay W. taught wrestling and archery; Spencer G. taught riflery and swimming; Tommie B. taught cooking and rocketry; and last but not least, Alex taught backpacking, pottery, and rocketry.

At lunch, we ate grilled cheese and french fries! So good! They also announced the winners from Tribal-palooza yesterday…the Seminoles won 2 and the Iroquois won 2! The competition for the banner is heating up!

It was a very special day here at Timberlake! Garrison B. completed his Gold in Climbing, way to go Garrison!

In anticipation I write this article, for the event of tonight is El Presidente, where we play the infamous stealing skins, with the added bonus of a handful of campers being worth extra points. Catch is, only the campers who have been elected know their role.

In Christ,

Connor Aycock

Proud Iroquois

Little Slaty Counselor

Climbing Instructor