Today is the day to sign your child up for Camp Purple, a free camp for military kids. Em has been twice and Abs once, and they both loved it.
Go here.
You can read about our experiences with Camp Purple here.
Showing posts with label Camp Purple. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Camp Purple. Show all posts
Thursday, March 31, 2011
Friday, August 3, 2007
Operation Camp Purple
Today we picked Em up from Camp Purple. We paid the extra money and my mom and I went to have lunch with her before the ceremony. We waited patiently while the dorms before her got to eat and then we got in line with her. She had made a new friend who was just as sweet as could be. The food was even good too! Em and her new friend filled us in on everything that they had been doing over the last week. My baby is growing up!
There were many activities that the kids did each day--riflery, rock climbing, swimming, canoeing, community service, environment, drug and alcohol awareness and tons more.
Riflery??? I was shocked! My baby with a gun? It was just a pellet gun and they learned gun safety as well, and she loved it! She made new friends, learned new skills and had the time of her life.
For the ceremony they had all the parents seated and then they had the children march in. We watched them pass out thank yous to the counselors and staff involved in putting this together. Yea NMFA!!!
When all of that was done they had the campers come up one by one where they presented them with a certificate and a picture of all the staff and campers in a nice mouse pad type frame that said "Kids serve too". After each camper received their items they went in front of a microphone and said their name, which parent was in the service, what branch and where they were stationed. After the first two children said "Iraq" I was in tears. My mom wasn't much better as she was crying too. I finally got a little better until a little boy got up there and said his name and something to the effect of my father is protecting us, providing for our freedom, and a few other things. I wish I could remember his exact words because it was pretty powerful coming from a 9 year old little boy. I started crying all over again. What a mess I am!
We made it through the rest of the ceremony, attended a flag ceremony and then got all of Em's items and hit the road. She had tons of stories to tell and about half an hour into the trip she was passed out from exhaustion.
So from our family to NMFA, the Dell Foundation, the Sierra Group and all other people and sponsors that made this camp possible, we thank you from the bottom of our hearts. My daughter had the time of her life and for her to be in an environment with other children that understood where she was coming from and were walking in her shoes, the experience was priceless.
For those of you who have children, keep an eye out in your area next summer for these camps as they are entirely free and a great camping experience for your children.
There were many activities that the kids did each day--riflery, rock climbing, swimming, canoeing, community service, environment, drug and alcohol awareness and tons more.
Riflery??? I was shocked! My baby with a gun? It was just a pellet gun and they learned gun safety as well, and she loved it! She made new friends, learned new skills and had the time of her life.
For the ceremony they had all the parents seated and then they had the children march in. We watched them pass out thank yous to the counselors and staff involved in putting this together. Yea NMFA!!!
When all of that was done they had the campers come up one by one where they presented them with a certificate and a picture of all the staff and campers in a nice mouse pad type frame that said "Kids serve too". After each camper received their items they went in front of a microphone and said their name, which parent was in the service, what branch and where they were stationed. After the first two children said "Iraq" I was in tears. My mom wasn't much better as she was crying too. I finally got a little better until a little boy got up there and said his name and something to the effect of my father is protecting us, providing for our freedom, and a few other things. I wish I could remember his exact words because it was pretty powerful coming from a 9 year old little boy. I started crying all over again. What a mess I am!
We made it through the rest of the ceremony, attended a flag ceremony and then got all of Em's items and hit the road. She had tons of stories to tell and about half an hour into the trip she was passed out from exhaustion.
So from our family to NMFA, the Dell Foundation, the Sierra Group and all other people and sponsors that made this camp possible, we thank you from the bottom of our hearts. My daughter had the time of her life and for her to be in an environment with other children that understood where she was coming from and were walking in her shoes, the experience was priceless.
For those of you who have children, keep an eye out in your area next summer for these camps as they are entirely free and a great camping experience for your children.
Monday, July 30, 2007
Camp Purple and other things
Abs started her next acting camp today. This one is from 9-12 and they are putting on Aladdin Jr. I think that the short day will help her get through it with minimal problems. She is excited and they are auditioning for parts tomorrow. I hope she is happy with what she gets! It should be a really cute play. They gave us a CD of music to practice so I am sure we will all be singing the songs by the end of the three weeks.
My in laws kept Abs and Junior today and my mom and I took Em to Camp Purple. I was unsure of what to expect, but it all worked out. They were very organized with setup and had different stations that we had to go through--MRE's (where we signed up to eat lunch with them on Friday), TA-50 (where they picked up a disposable camera and an Operation Purple bracelet), Currency Exchange (where we gave them money for the trading post), Canteens (they were given a water bottle), etc. It was cute. They also had a world map where the children put pictures of their Soldiers around the edges. It was really neat to see all the moms and dads pictures and sad at the same time. They are all missing out on so much in their children's lives.
Anyway, we got Em checked into her dorm, she had a swim test and we left her singing a song about a frog that got run over by a car and was licked up by a dog. I am sure it is one that she will drag home and we will all be singing within a few days of her return.
The drive home was quiet and DH was able to get the kids from his mom's house and attend the FRG meeting and I made it to a cycling class. DH cycled from our house to my mom's house on Sunday so he was more than willing to pass on attending class. They also are allowed to miss PT the next day when they attend the FRG meeting.
The kids are all nestled in bed (I am sure Em is still up since I think they had a dance party scheduled till 10:30 tonight, those wild partiers!) and DH is packing for NTC. (NTC is the National Training Center at Fort Irwin, CA, where they play war and train for Iraq) He will be gone about a month or so, but with summer winding down and school about to start I am hoping that we will remain busy and the time will pass quickly. He will miss my birthday, but he has missed the last 5 I think, so I am starting to get used to it. Who needs cake anyway! Certainly not my hips!
My in laws kept Abs and Junior today and my mom and I took Em to Camp Purple. I was unsure of what to expect, but it all worked out. They were very organized with setup and had different stations that we had to go through--MRE's (where we signed up to eat lunch with them on Friday), TA-50 (where they picked up a disposable camera and an Operation Purple bracelet), Currency Exchange (where we gave them money for the trading post), Canteens (they were given a water bottle), etc. It was cute. They also had a world map where the children put pictures of their Soldiers around the edges. It was really neat to see all the moms and dads pictures and sad at the same time. They are all missing out on so much in their children's lives.
Anyway, we got Em checked into her dorm, she had a swim test and we left her singing a song about a frog that got run over by a car and was licked up by a dog. I am sure it is one that she will drag home and we will all be singing within a few days of her return.
The drive home was quiet and DH was able to get the kids from his mom's house and attend the FRG meeting and I made it to a cycling class. DH cycled from our house to my mom's house on Sunday so he was more than willing to pass on attending class. They also are allowed to miss PT the next day when they attend the FRG meeting.
The kids are all nestled in bed (I am sure Em is still up since I think they had a dance party scheduled till 10:30 tonight, those wild partiers!) and DH is packing for NTC. (NTC is the National Training Center at Fort Irwin, CA, where they play war and train for Iraq) He will be gone about a month or so, but with summer winding down and school about to start I am hoping that we will remain busy and the time will pass quickly. He will miss my birthday, but he has missed the last 5 I think, so I am starting to get used to it. Who needs cake anyway! Certainly not my hips!
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