From the Camp 

Manitou Experience is the OG of Experience Camps. It was there that this little ol' org was hatched, and it grew up quickly with a strong sense of tradition, camp values, and wacky activities. It is from here that the Experience Camps culture developed and the foundation on which everything was built. Somerset Experience came about just last year to add the girls program to our magical mixture. The combination of ManEx and SomEx is our largest camp and also our largest wait list. We still have room to grow and need your help to open more spots for grieving kids to attend. For 6 weeks, we will embrace the spirit of competition as the camper, volunteers, and friends of each camp compete against their extended camp family to see who will emerge as the winner in the Battle of the Camps.

From Me

It’s been almost a year and a half since my older brother died. I talk about him and about what happened and how it’s affected me with my close friends and my family but I never post about it because I’m not really sure how to do that. Like right now this post is taking me like 45 minutes to put together because I don’t know to communicate any of this to a wide audience but I’m just going to start writing and see what happens.

One of the hardest parts to reconcile with in the process of my grief has been the feeling of joy and beauty and connection to other people that I experience as a result of the death of my brother. It’s weird to think that some moments of pure happiness are directly associated with the worst thing that’s ever happened to me and for a while, especially in the beginning, I shut those feelings down because as far as I can tell I’m not supposed to be feeling those things. I don’t really have any right to. It took me a while to learn how to be happy again and to be uncritical of that happiness. To know that I deserve to find some light again.

I volunteered this past summer as a camp counselor for kids who've lost a parent or sibling. This place gives these kids the opportunity to meet other people who have been through something like they have, to explore certain facets of their grief that they wouldn’t be exposed to otherwise and I think most importantly, it gives these kids permission to enjoy themselves. When you lose a parent or a sibling when you’re as old as these kids are it forces you to grow up and a lot of times it causes you to lose a certain part of your childhood. But here they can have fun, there’s no judgment and they can be reminded of the things they’re allowed to give themselves, like the feeling of being a kid.

I’m realizing now that I could probably continue to write about the camp for like a crazy amount time but I’m gonna cool it. Thanks for reading.