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With a longing for days past and a yearning for days upcoming, Hye Camp took stock of its goals and accomplishments on Wednesday, July 30, the halfway point of the 2003 session.
Once again, the main routine was in effect, including a laundry list of planned items, as well as the unexpected surprises around every corner. For campers, the first surprise came just after breakfast. With Fr. Yeprem's departure from camp, the morning service gained a new priest: Fr. Tavit Boyajian (pastor of Sts. Joachim and Anne Church of Palos Heights, IL). Like Fr. Yeprem, Fr. Tavit provided a very engaging sermon that appealed to everyone.
After two days of thoughts about love, caring and compassion, Fr. Tavit changed paths and expressed the idea of forgiveness. The gospel reading was from the famous passage John 3:16, which speaks of God's sacrifice of his only son. It was explained that the offering of Jesus provides us with the ability to pray for and ask for forgiveness, and the reason why God continually forgives. Not only were the campers encouraged to turn to God for forgiveness of their sins, but they were also taught the importance of forgiveness towards each other.
Fr. Tavit concluded his remarks by reminding everyone that God wants us to forgive others as well as ask for forgiveness.
Following the worship service, the daily class rotation began. Campers in arts and crafts spent time making beaded necklaces and bracelets. Religion class examined the faith of the Karabagh freedom fighters through a movie and discussion.
Lunch provided the perfect environment for fun and fellowship, yet the two main conversation topics remained the camp Olympics and whether the rain would hold off long enough for the campers to get in all the events planned for Wednesday evening.
During the first sports rotation of the afternoon, the first annual Lisa Mardigian Shootout Challenge took place. After shooting through the designated spots around the basket, Lisa set a mark to beat of seven points. Though a daunting task to match, six boys and a girl managed to win prizes by scoring more points than Lisa. The rain held off until almost the end of the first afternoon rotation, however when it began to drizzle, the pool was closed down, and another kink in the schedule was introduced.
The would-be swimmers from the second half of the rotation were treated to an impromptu singing-along with Maestro Khoren, along with a handful of other rainy-day activities. The rain never exceeded much of a drizzle, which provided hope that the evening was not lost just yet.
Before anyone could get too down over the rain, a pickup truck came driving up the camp road, parked in front of the main lodge and mess hall, and unloaded a large charcoal grill. What went onto the grill was quite the site for sore eyes. Skewer after skewer after skewer of shish kebabs lined the grill, and the smell of pilaf wafted out of the kitchen, just in case there was any doubt why it tastes so good to be an Armenian.
The special guest grillers of the evening, Haig Pedian Jr. and Michael Kazarian, did a great job feeding every single hungry mouth. Also deserving of special mention is John Paklaian, who so kindly skewered up and marinated enough kebabs to last a long time. Without those three men, our dinner would not have been nearly as successful.
One other very special thanks is in order for Rev. Fred Parker, Director and Administrator of Camp Hickory -- the location of Hye Camp -- who has not only accepted Hye Camp with wide open arms, he also felt comfortable enough around our campers to lead the closing prayer.
Dinner came and went much too slow, as all eyes remained focused on the heavens, until finally the evening Olympics schedule was announced and the games began for the third day. The events scheduled for Wednesday evening were ultimate Frisbee, 3-on-3 basketball, and softball. In ultimate Frisbee, the evening's two contests determined the two finalists, while basketball and softball played only opening round games.
Following the evening Olympics competition came a surprise. Even though the evening activity had originally called for the building of a large bonfire, campers and staff found a bee infestation near the fire location, so the fire had to be cancelled. This left the seemingly daunting task of coming up with instant activities for the whole camp. The eventual solution provided each camper with a choice: watch a movie or play in the game room.
The majority of campers, most especially the younger age groups, decided to sit back and relax in front of the movie, while a small minority chose the more socially active route. As the end of the day drew near, the signs of fatigue began to show on the faces of most campers, and with the next few days being very busy with classes and Olympics, the prospect of lying in bed and falling asleep became an option too good to pass up.
Posted by Jake at July 30, 2003 03:54 PM
