September 2007

Numerous campers received their 3rd-year and 5th-year paddle awards to take home with them this summer, and nine 7th-year campers were immortalized by having their names added to our Paddle of Fame that hangs in the Camp Pepin Dining Hall for all to see. (We know that there are many campers who are only a year away from receiving these prestigious honors next summer.) Congratulations to all!

2008 Summer Camp Schedule Announced

Week 1: June 15-20

Week 2: June 22-27

Kickapoo Camp: June 29 - July 2

Week 3: July 6-11

Week 4: July 13-18

Week 5: July 20-25

Week 6: July 27-August 1

Week 7: August 3-8

Specialty Camp dates will be announced with Early Registration, which will begin Monday, December 3, 2007. Open Registration will begin on Wednesday, January 2, 2008.

You Can Enjoy Summer All-Year-Long With Our Online Photo Gallery

Many campers have told us that during the school year, they enjoy re-connecting with their friends from camp and looking through the online photos from their week, so we will keep them posted on our Photo Gallery (http://www.camppepin.org/photogallery.htm) through next summer. If you see a particular photo that you would like to use as a background desktop screen on your home computer (a great way to enjoy summer camp year-round!), let us know the name and week of the photo so that we can send you a larger version of it.

Fall Retreat Season is Going Strong

A little over a week after our summer youth camp program ended, we saw our first guests of our Fall retreat season. During the Fall, Winter, and Spring, camp hosts many non-profit and corporate groups who enjoy using the facilities for meetings and breakout sessions and using the Challenge Course for team-building. So far, we have already hosted over 300 people in the last three weeks, and are looking forward to soon seeing our additional Fall guests that visit us annually. If you are interested in scheduling Camp Pepin for a retreat, information and rates are posted online at our website (www.camppepin.org). You can also contact Scott Kolby, the Camp Director, at 715-442-3811, or camp@redwingymca.org.

Staff Scoop

Ramsay Hogg and Colin McGonigle went on a post-summer trip to Las Vegas and Los Angeles. Check out their pic at the Grand Canyon for September’s Photo of the Month (http://www.camppepin.org/photo%20galleries/Photo%20of%20the%20Month/September2007Photo.htm).
Mitch Korbel will be taking classes in South Dakota this Fall.
Michelle “Shell” Lucas headed north to Alaska to work with a family and their children in the Last Frontier.
Heidi Ridgeway has jumped back into Pepin High School’s Fall athletics with several games already this season. Good luck Lakers!
Jenn Ridgeway is beginning her Fall at school in Winona.
Seth York has been helping to host retreats here at camp and is looking forward to cruising Wisconsin’s backroads this Autumn on his motorcycle.

Wish List

A landscaper who would be willing to donate up to 6 loads of black earth and volunteer to grade it around our new basketball court

A welder who would be willing to volunteer his/her services to help us build new tubular steel soccer goal posts
A sandblaster (with a portable sandblasting unit) who would be willing to volunteer his/her services to clean the underside of the Dining Hall's cement deck

Computers (Pentium 4 or faster, desktop or laptop PC’s with USB ports)
Flat-panel computer monitors
Picnic tables (wood, good condition)
Lumber (2x4, 2x6, 4x4, and 6x6 boards, 8-12 feet in length)
Chairs (cushioned seat & back)
Mini-van (road-worthy, 7 or 8-person capacity)
Cross-country skiis (waxless with bottom grooves, any length) and ski poles
Bat boxes
36’ Montreal canoe with trailer

Kimmy’s Korner

Hi folks! It’s Kimmy the Kayaker. Surely you remember me sitting up on the mantle in the Dining Hall during all those summer meals. (Thank you to all of those who sang so beautifully to me during Sneaky – you did a great job!)

At the end of every newsletter, I will have a game or a contest where you can win a camp prize.

My game for September is this:

Can you name all of the countries that were represented by our International Staff this summer? (Hint: Check out July’s Photo of the Month on camp’s website, www.camppepin.org.)

Email your answers to camp@redwingymca.org. A winner will be drawn from the entries with the most number of correct answers, and he or she will receive a YMCA Camp Pepin baseball cap from our Camp Store. The winner’s name and the answers will also be posted in Kimmy’s Korner in the October Issue of The Lakesider. Anyone can play, including campers, staff, and alumni. Good luck!

YMCA Camp Pepin Staff

Scott Kolby, Camp Director

William Norman, Assistant Camp Director

Joetta Oien, Camp Office Manager

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