Winter Camp - January 3-8, 2010

January 3-8, 2010
Forty campers are enjoying a cold but fun filled week at Camp Friendship!
For the very first time we have six people involved in the Friendship Get Away. It designed for the person who is independent, does not need 100% supervision, and loves being flexible. This week the “Get Away” participants have enjoyed designing their own schedule, making a taco salad meal, and going to the movies together on Wednesday afternoon.
The theme at this week is: The World of Entertainment – movies, magic shows, TV and more. Sunday night was the Campfire Extravaganza. Monday – Terry Nelson preformed a mix of country songs. Tuesday – Greg the Entertainer showed off this magic skills. In the evening there was a “Whodunit?” program where the campers were challenged to figure out who stole dessert from the dining hall. The Wednesday night program is a camp version of Jeopardy. Thursday night will spotlight the ever popular dance. Friday, of course there will be a talent show in the gym at 2:00 before check out!
The staff and volunteers have done a great job of keeping everyone warm and having a great vacation.

December Winter Camp at Friendship and Eden Wood --- What a Great Time!

For much of the world the last week of December means standing in line to return a gift that wasn’t quite your “cup of tea” watching endless hours of TV, or if you live in the Mid-West shoveling a lot of snow. However, the last week in December means a lot of fun at Camp Friendship and Camp Eden Wood! Seventy children and adults spent Dec 27-31, 2009 at Camp Friendship. With the help of about 50 staff and volunteers we had a great time in the snow sledding, snow shoeing, cross country skiing, ice fishing, playing broom ball and sled rides behind the snowmobile! Campers enjoyed indoor activities such as art with Ashley (who did a great time leading art for the first time), baking with Barb (yes, Barb from Liverpool), music with George (WCFV) and Kate, and nature activities with Sarah Jo! Snowmobile rides were given by Sam, Kate, Nicki and Jon. We had a house full of returning Health Center Staff who did a great job keeping everyone healthy. Nice job everyone!
All camp activities were awesome with the ever popular Dutch Action, Brown Bag Skits, game show, Talent Show and of course the New Years Eve Eve Dance, which was hosted again by our staff alumni Jeremy Wheeler from Flamingo Enterprises DJ Service . Jeremy does a great job providing our campers with a variety of music and lights! We were glad to have his wife Jenny and son, Ben join us for the dance. Thanks Jeremy you did a great job!
Special thanks to Emma Olesen’s mom for knitting and donating a big bag full of colorful hats and scarves to the campers! They are beautiful and warm!
Winter Day Camp at Camp Eden Wood was a first for us! Program Manager Kayla Anason did a great job setting up a week of camp with a lot of programming variety with winter sports activities at camp while enjoying some really fun day trips. They went to the Edinborough Park and Pool, Bowling and to the MN Children’s Museum. There were six campers and five staff and two youth volunteers who each spent half the week at camp. The staff and volunteers all did a great job providing this holiday experience. Thanks go to past Program Manager Faye Reber who worked with a college group to raise money for four sleds for the campers. The sledding was big hit! We are looking forward to a bigger group next winter.

LOCAL ARTIST SHARES TALENT & ENABLES ALUMNI TO GIVE TO CAMPERSHIP

Hello Friendship alumni and current staff/volunteers,

This fall has been busy with lots of respite campers. We are looking forward to winter camp. Winter camp is Dec 26-31, 2009 and January 3-8, 2010 at Camp Friendship. At Camp Eden Wood we are having our very first winter day camp Dec 28-31, 2009, and we are pretty excited about it. In February we will being having our first winter Camp Adventure (for children with ADD and ADHD) at Camp New Hope. We have quite a few staff already signed up for winter camp, but need more so if you are interested give us a call or go to out website and apply on line. http://www.friendshipventures.org/ If you want to volunteer, you should call Sam at 952-852-0113 or volunteers@friendshipventures.org

We have some staff changes at Eden Wood happening in October. Program Manager Erik Chipman will be leaving us for the field of nursing and Kayla Anason has been promoted to Program Manager. Best of luck to both Erik and Kayla in their new positions.

I am including in this post an article that is going to be coming out soon in our Frantic Footnotes. I want you to hear about it right away. This is a project I am really excited about. I know the artist personally and really appreciate her volunteering her talent and time! This is the first Friendship Ventures project that the staff and volunteer alumni are being asked to contribute to that allows us to come together to not only make camp more beautiful, puts your name on the wall forever and raises money for the campers we love so dear. By giving just $25 you can get your name on the mural. It would be amazing to see the mural covered with names of the people who have spent their time with Friendship Ventures caring for and supporting the campers. I hope that you will consider giving to this project and making a pledge to give on a year round basis. I am writing my check today and hope you do too! Chet

Here is the Frantic Footnotes:

A project exclusive to Friendship Ventures Staff and Volunteer Alumni will help complete and customize the underpass to Uncle Fogy's Nature Center at Camp Friendship. In 2007, the concrete walls outside this tunnel underwent a make-over, beginning the transformation from plain concrete to a beautifully painted landscape of trees and blue skies.

We continue to update by adding more trees, and portraits of participants and staff to the mural. Also being added to the mural are names of alumni who donate scholarships for participants. Names will be painted beginning spring 2010, continuing as your donations come in.

The mural is the creation of realist artist Vigee Blue, who is volunteering her time to the project. Vigee has been making a living with her artwork for the past five years and loves it. Although she collects inspiration from all genres of art, she is focused on realism. Vigee also teaches art classes for Partnership Resources, Inc., who provide services to adults who have disabilities.

Some of the participants you can expect to see on the wall are Jackie Mills, Jim Law Jr., and Wayne Krippner, who have been coming to camp for many years. If you have a suggestion for other camp activities you would like to see on the wall, let us know.

Friendship Ventures does not receive any financial support from government agencies, so we rely on businesses, foundations and individuals such as you to support and improve our facilities and programs.

Anyone who works with Friendship Ventures knows the level of passion we have for the community our staff serve and gratefully, you share that same passion. Each contribution made represents a significant investment in the health and well being of children and adults with disabilities. Friendship Alumni who donate a minimum of $25 will have their names painted on the mural. Friendship Ventures asks those who would like to keep giving to pledge to give monthly. This project is exclusive to Staff and Volunteer Alumni, and we hope to fill the wall with names of alumni who still carry camp in their heart, so we can fill camp with participants who love to be here.

For more information about the mural, please contact Chet at 952-852-0108.

Please add your name to the mural by making a contribution today. Send your check or money order to:
Friendship Ventures
10509 108th St. NW
Annandale, MN 55302
In the Memo: Mural, your name as you want it on the mural and the year(s) you worked or volunteered at Friendship Ventures.


You can also give direct online by following this link: https://www.givedirect.org/give/givefrm.asp?Action=GC&CID=529

Check out more Vigee Blue art on the web: www.mnartist.org/Vigee_Blue

August 9-14, 2009

It is Friday evening, and the campers have all gone and most of the staff have left for a night on the town. The office is quiet, with an ocassional respite staff member bopping in now and then. The office is too quiet. Like it will be next Friday when all the campers, volunteers and staff will have gone home for the summer. People often ask me if I am glad the summer is coming to a close and I can honestly say no. It was been a great summer. I love seeing the campers at camp enjoying their vacations and making friends. I love seeing how the summer staff blossomed into this incrediable team of caregivers who put their campers needs before their own and care about each other so much.

This was the first week that it has actually been hot outside on the day of the water carnival, so you should have seen the line of people waiting to go down the water slide. It was almost wrapped around Cardinal!

Many campers were very excited about going to the Twins game this week. We had about 17 people attend the game on Wednesday night. They made signs to hold up at the game, and part of the group was on the webcam at the game! They were pretty happy about that and the fact that the Twins really hammered the Royals. Sorry Lehi, it had to be said! Lee is one of our former staff members so spent a week working at camp this summer! Very Cool Lee, it was great to have you at camp again.

Speaking of staff alumni working, we have had some nice visits from alumni the last couple weeks. Last week Liz Wentland took a week of vacation to spend at CF with one of her favorate campers. Andrea Johnson spend a couple days working at EW. Kristin Seifert is back for a couple weeks before she starting working for VT. Wouldn't it be great to connect with your camp friends and pick a week that you want to come back and work for a week at camp or maybe go on the Ventures Travel trip together. Beth Osborne - Beasly stopped at camp this week, with her mom and ther son (cutie). Beth worked at camp in the mid 90's as an arts and crafts leader and activity coordinator. Last and not least is Kristen Rasmussen was at camp yesterday for a training for FV Ambassadors. We love having alumni stop by. Your visits and stories remind us of how your expereince at FV as influenced your life in such positive ways, plus we love to see your smiling faces.

In friendship,
Chet / PD

August 2-7th, 2009

Aspergers Camp is underway at Camp Friendship along side ouir regular sessions this week. Thirteen teens are navigating their way through daily social skills, new activities and uncomfortable situations. Yes, "uncomfortable sitations". You see, for individuals with Aspergers some of the most mundane interactions and daily living tasks can be uncomfortable, especially away from their home and usual routine. People with Aspergers have trouble reading the facial expressions and body language of others, so sharing a cabin and doing activities with others all day can be a challenge. It is a challenge that they are going well with. Ten of the thirteen are returning campers who do find comfort in returing to "their camp" where they belong, and where there are other teens like them. Despite the challenges the teens are having a great time swimming, playing soccer, fishing and canoeing. The older teens are involved with the LIT program. This new twist to the Aspergers Camp is proving to be sucessfull. The teen are in the LIT program with the other use who are volunteering for the week. Making friends and working together to lead a station at the tonight carnival during evening program.

Campers have been enjoying massage from massage therapist Jaime Jost. The massages last for 15-20 minutes and are free. Thanks Jaime for adding and extra pleasure to so many campers vacation!

The "Back 40 or Gilbert's Trail" camp site (we still haven't made a decision on the name), has been very popular with cabin groups. The camp site is peaceful, not so buggy and has plenty of flat areas for tents and playing.

This morning the St. Cloud River Bat's players came to camp to "play ball" with the campers. They had campers hitting, outfielding and running the bases. There were even a couple home runs. The players were kind and patient with the campers, helping the campers feel very special to get to meet and play with the players. Thank you players for a great morning! Last night the day trip attended the River Bat's game in St. Cloud.

The mud pit has changed over the years, but the dirty, stinky fun has not. Our camper, Charles loves the mud pit. It is the highlight of his week. Yesterday he and cabin mate Derek went with their counselor, Derek. They spent rest hour flinging mud and swamp water at each other and rubbing it on their bodies. You haven't truely expereinced the full Camp Friendship expereince if you haven't been in the mud pit!

I think the only thing that might top the mud pit would be the peanut butter balls that Baker Barb has been making with the baking groups. For those of us that ate too many of those treats that Barb makes, we also find ourseves joining the morning stretches on the green with Recreation Specialist Earnest Snowden. Ernest leads fitness classes every day, but each morning to start the day an average of about 70 people have been joining him on the green to strech to music and start the day out right. Thanks Ernest, you are a fine fitness instructor.

Til next week,

Chet
Program Director

July 26-31, 2009

Participants and staff filled all 18 cabins at camp this week. The program staff chose, "A week at the movies," as a theme for the week. Sunday night they hosted a traditional Campfire Extravaganza, with goofy costumes, jokes and songs; Monday, participants enjoyed a night at the "Old wild west," where they dug for gold, learned to square dance, and took aim at the water gun shooting range. On Tuesday evening, we hunted mummies, drew hieroglyphics, and played games for our first Egyptian night. In my personal opinion, the best 'movies' are the "Who dun' it" programs, which will be held tonight. I am excited about being a part of the cast, as Madam Cuckoo.

Program staff who acted in the Murder Mystery show act their parts through a photo.

For the past three weeks Camp Friendship has been offering a new luxury for campers; massage therapy. Jaime Jost, massage therapist, has been offering 15-30 minute massages to campers, and they love it! Thank you Jaime for sharing your special talent with our campers.

A new camp site joined our community this summer. Our eighth camp site is located on Gilbert's Trail, but has not been named yet. Participants and staff who stay there say it is beautiful, and the seclusion from the rest of the world is extremely peaceful and relaxing.

Sonja and Laura cook s'mores at the new campsite.

The youth group from the First Plymouth Church of Lincoln, Nebraska has made its annual trip to camp this week. The group is lead by Youth Leader, Mitch, and consists of 21 volunteers. The young men and women. are outstanding. They truly know the meaning of serving others with an open and gleeful heart. This is about the 10th year we have seen this youth group joined camp with over 20 youth volunteers for one week.

Volunteer Program Manager, Sam, and Volunteer Village leader, Jessica, pose for a Cabin Photo.

Thanks!

Chet, Program Director

Laughter filled the Camp Friendship basketball courts Tuesday evening, thanks to a summertime carnival hosted by a local church group. Members of the United Methodist Church of Kimball came to camp to host a Summertime Carnival that campers and staff enjoyed immensley. among the members hosting the carnival, was Camp Friendship's very own Larry Blum (Thanks Larry!).

Members of The United Methodist Church pose for a photo after hosting the carnival at Camp Friendship.

Camp participants Tammy, Kim, Rachel, Kelly, and Megan watch the festivities with counselors Willeke and Sarah on the basketball courts.




Throughout the jamboree, there was excitement with bubbles, bean bag toss, mini golf, musical squares and other games. Campers walked away with great prizes, like slinkys, bubbles and toy snakes!

Camp participant Will, and camp counselor Danielle check out their prizes at the carnival hosted by United Methodist Church.

We always enjoy when visitors come to camp to entertain us. It gives our participants and staff who are here for more than one week a great deal of variety. This particular group comes to camp every summer to host a program, and hopefully they will keep spending their time with us for years to come. Over the next few weeks at Camp Friendship, you can look forward to hearing more about special events and programs. A few we are particularly excited about are Creature Encounters, and the St. Cloud River Bats coming to visit.

Counselor Tyler, participant Lyle, and counselor Adam pause for a quick photo

while enjoying the carnival.

Stay tuned,

Chet

Program Director