Tag Archives: Summer camp
Has it really been two weeks?
Posted on 16. Jun, 2011 by Kenny.
I’m slightly embarrassed by how little I’ve posted in the last 2-3 weeks. It’s certainly not because I’ve got nothing to say. Things have been busy on an epic level and I’m devoting all my time to pressing matters. Maybe next week I’ll get back into a little rhythm of posting, even if it’s just a few posts a week. I’m sure many of you are feeling the business of summer as well. This is our time, right?
So, in the next few days or so (mostly today) I’m going to be asking for a little creative help. I’m finalizing my summer camp messages. In three weeks I’m taking a group of 3rd-5th graders to camp. I’ve been hired by the camp to speak the week our kids are at camp as well as the week following. Fortunately, I wrote all the messages 3 months ago.… Read the rest
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Thoughts on Summer Camp: Getting Kids to Register
Posted on 26. May, 2011 by Kenny.
Up to this point I’ve talked about deadlines, registration discounts, and other philosophical points about camp. But what about getting kids to just sign up? Trust me, I know the feeling of checking the website or email every day to see what the grand total is currently up to. I’ve lost sleep worrying if we’d get enough kids to sign up. I remember one camp that required us to pay for 200 to secure the facility. We felt that it was a good long-term option for us even if it meant that we’d take a hit by bringing less the first year. The previous year we had taken a few more than 100 kids, so it was going to be a stretch.… Read the rest
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Thoughts on Summer Camp: Catalytic Experiences
Posted on 25. May, 2011 by Kenny.
As a Children’s Pastor, I’ve gone to summer camp for 9 years. This summer will be my 10th Summer Camp (where I’ve actually taken my own kids to camp). Of the 9 camps, seven of them were what I would call “catalytic experiences.” Two of them were several days of fun. The two “fun” camps were camps that were already planned and I took the kids to, either because we didn’t have enough kids to take on our own or I was new on the job and there wasn’t time to put it together on our own.
First of all, I’m not saying that a camp can only be a “catalytic experience” if you plan it yourself. There are a handful of camps out there that serve up a life-changing experience with relevant and challenging content.… Read the rest
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Thoughts on Summer Camp: Deadlines, Discounts, and Limited Capacity
Posted on 24. May, 2011 by Kenny.
I have some personal opinions about getting parents to register their kids to camp. I know that others do it differently, but this has worked for me for years. Here’s what I’m taking about.
Limited Capacity: If at all possible, I’m always going to put a limit on Camp. Usually this is because I have to pay a deposit in advance and I’d rather maximize that deposit instead of being idealistic and losing a lot of deposit money. I also prefer the limit because there’s something positive about something that is full or sold out. It communicate that it’s probably worth something. I love putting “limited space available” in my promotional materials or even telling parents, “you better register now before all the spaces are gone!” Now, it’s never fun to turn kids away but there are always a few who don’t make it to camp.… Read the rest
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Thoughts on Summer Camp: Determining registration capacity
Posted on 24. May, 2011 by Kenny.
Last year was really the first year we have taken kids to camp. When you’ve never taken kids to camp before, there are a lot of unknowns. Really, it’s a numbers game. How many kids should you commit to take? What’s a reasonable number? I think that there are a lot of things to consider.
- How far in advance are you promoting camp? The longer you have to promote, the more kids you’ll be able to bring.
- Is there a lot of other competition? Are you offering mission trips or several other big summer activities? Parents are going to pick and choose and if you’re doing a lot of other stuff, it will impact the number of kids who will attend.
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Summer camp video
Posted on 30. Jun, 2010 by Kenny.
After this week I don’t plan to publish any more camp posts. My production director was on a post-camp vacation last week, so I just got the final day of camp video. It’s a great video that shows a snapshot of all the best parts of camp. It’s about 10 minutes long, so feel free to skim. 
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Purpose for camp
Posted on 10. Jun, 2008 by Kenny.
I’m right in the middle of kids camp. It’s going pretty good. Like I said in a previous post, it’s one of the few times I’ve taken kids to camp and simply came as a participant. When you’re used to planning and running your own camps, it’s naturally difficult to just go as an attendee. Perhaps it would be easier if the camp you decided to attend was incredibly similar to the camp you would host. The trouble is that not two camps are alike. Many camps have varying purposes. Here are a few:
- Discipleship Camp: Some camps are designed for kids who already go to church and it’s simply an opportunity for kids to continue getting what they experience on a typical weekend.
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