Briarwood Bugle 2018 – Week 1

Check out our latest Briarwood Bugle! You can read it below or see it in glorious color and with photos here.

Briarwood Bugle 2018
Week 1

From Mike and Matt
What a fantastic week we’ve had! Camp is already in full swing. It is wonderful to walk around camp and see so many kids playing and smiling and laughing and enjoying their friends and counselors.
The Busy Bees are swarming all over camp and, if you listen closely, you can hear many of the older bunks beginning to practice their bunk shows. Fun stuff!
Leagues started, today was Crazy Hat Day, Lower Camp had tournaments, the CITs and Super CITs had their annual Fun and Wacky Games Event in Doylestown (always a fan favorite!), the Zoom Floom and Jumper started getting a workout. Awesome!
Next week, we’ve got our regular fun stuff plus Clubs, Olympics, and much, much more! Have a great weekend! Let’s do it all again next week!

COMING NEXT WEEK TO BRIARWOOD…THE OLYMPICS!!!
On Thursday, July 5th and Friday, July 6th campers in lower camp, upper camp and senior camp will participate in the annual Briarwood Olympics. Each camper will be assigned a country team. While not mandatory, campers should feel free to show team spirit and dress in the following colors:
Canada-Gray England-Blue Mexico-White Spain-Yellow Italy-Green China-Red

SOME FRIENDLY BRIARWOOD REMINDERS:

• If you want to reach your camper’s counselor during the camp day, call the office at 215-598-7143 and we will gladly relay your message. Please do not TEXT or CALL your child’s counselor directly during the camp day. Our counselors are busy watching children and we have asked them not to check their phones during the day.
• Early and Late Care is available from 7:30 am—6:00 pm sharp. Please call the office if you will need this service.
• While it never rains at Briarwood, in the event of a passing shower, please send your camper with the appropriate rain gear should the forecast call for rain.
• Apply sunscreen daily prior to coming to camp.
• Please label all clothing and personal items. That said — and because we know kids — our Lost and Found is located by the Sports Center on Upper Field.

NURSE ESTHER’S NOTES
by Esther Goldenberg, R.N.
Welcome back! What a great first week at Briarwood! Let’s go over a few summer safety tips for our campers:
• DON’T FORGET SUNSCREEN! Apply in the morning and throughout the day.
• If it’s okay with Mom and Dad, apply some insect repellent on the lower legs and exposed arms.
• Let’s stay hydrated! Start drinking water before you get to camp.
• Wear sneakers or closed toe shoes around camp. Flip-flops are for the pool areas only.
• Did I mention, NO RUNNING in flip-flops?
• Parents—we need your camper’s health forms so we can best care for your child.
Any questions or concerns, call camp and ask to speak with me, Nurse Esther at 215-598-7143

BRIARWOOD COUNSELORS OF THE WEEK:

Senior Staff:
Merri Kurman

Junior Staff:
Evan Bernstein

Congratulations!

READ WHAT OUR SUPERVISORS HAVE TO SAY ABOUT SUMMER 2018!

Busy Bees Buzz around Briarwood by Anne Witkin, Associate Director and Busy Bee Program Director: Busy Bees are always happy and this summer will be no different. They may be our littlest campers but they will impress everyone around camp. They always do! Our Bees participate in just about everything. The Big Wheel track, Zoom Floom and Jumper are fan favorites, but there is so much more! With our snazzy new tented gaga court, our already fabulous playground has become the premiere place to be. Busy Beach will get a lot of action as the Bees build sand castles and during science their curious minds will journey to the world of wonder. We will make the BLUE and GOLD proud during Color War and be involved in all special events. Once again I predict Briarwood’s cutest will WOW the audience with their performance at the annual Busy Bee show. We have a fun filled summer of events planned for ALL of camp. It is hard to believe that I am starting year 22 at Briarwood and what a privilege it continues to be to watch Briarwood campers grow up!

You’re Gonna Love Lower Camp Boys! By Sheryl Cohen, Lower Camp Boys Supervisor. It is so amazing how our camp community is growing! To all of our boys in lower camp, it is super exciting. Just ask the senior boys, CIT’s, and yes, our staff, what fun it was to be a lower camper. Those transitioning from Busy Bees will experience new and exciting activities, and campers new to Briarwood will get to experience many “FIRSTS.” Our returning 2nd and 3rd graders will build on their previous two summers, After 14 years, I still say that there is nothing like watching the campers reconnect with their friends. It’s as if they have won the jackpot and I feel so fortunate to watch our campers progress from grade to grade each year. The possibilities in lower camp are endless! Things like passing the deep-water test, finally going down the zip-line or even hitting a bull’s eye at archery. Let’s not forget a favorite at Briarwood; you get to go to clubs every morning! But not until you get to lower camp! Want to try different activities, go for it! Our club offerings are tremendous, exciting and enriching. First time campers or not, our campers are creating memories that will last a lifetime.

Ready-Set Go! By Harris Sax I direct the sports programming here at Briarwood. Our staff is a group of qualified high octane individuals that give their all each and every day. Briarwood campers not only participate in traditional sports but also participate in innovative games, fun fitness activities, and unique team sports games. The sports staff works with all of our campers from our youngest to our oldest. Our goal is to provide a fun and enjoyable experience for everyone. We believe in the motto, “If you had fun you won.” Our campers will feel this way during Intercamp Games, Olympics and Color War just to name a few. It’s not about the winning or losing, but most importantly about having fun and gaining a greater appreciation for physical activity. We are looking forward to a great summer with all of our campers and can’t wait to see you out on the fields.

Splishing and Splashing by Rob Resnick – Pool Supervisor It’s hard to believe that 33 years ago I put my name on the dotted line and I’m still here. I’m excited to get started with our swim program. Briarwood Day Camp has an impressive swim program; we follow the guidelines of the American Red Cross as well as have an enthusiastic team of WSIs and lifeguards. Our Busy Bee swim program consists of three levels where they are taught basic aquatic safety and swimming skills, all while increasing their comfort level in and around water. Achieving success and social interaction with others is very important. In fact, it catapults them to the next step, our Learn to Swim Program. Learn to Swim is for ages 6 years and up and is designed to help swimmers achieve maximum success. Learn to Swim is based on a logical six level progression that helps children of different abilities develop their water safety, survival, and all-around swim skills. The pool staff is looking forward to making this summer a rewarding, safe and enjoyable summer for all of our campers.

Specialists are Special, (and super) by Harry Markovitz, Specialist Supervisor (AKA Briarwood Traffic Cop)
Where did the time go? I have been at Briarwood for 32 years and I have even seen many of the Busy Bees grow up to become counselors. Even after all of these years I get excited about returning to my summer home. What a great place to spend the summer. Our specialists are topnotch and have an enormous amount of talent to share with each camper. They are very skilled at helping kids achieve their personal best.

Lower Camp Girls Rock! By Melissa Berkowitz, Lower Camp Girls Supervisor: Briarwood Day Camp has been my happy place for myself and my own children for the past 5 summers. I am very much looking forward to meeting all of girls who are experiencing the Briarwood magic for the first time, in addition to seeing the smiling faces of our returning campers. Lower Camp has so much to offer our amazing 1st, 2nd and 3rd graders! From former Busy Bees to new campers, all lower camp girls will share such an unforgettable experience. From bunk shows and deep water testing, to archery and ceramics, lower campers are always ready to try something new. Let’s not forget about CLUBS! Each camper can try different activities of their choice. They can attempt something new and exciting or continue with a club that they are passionate about! Look out for amazing theme days, a spirit week, and even mini campouts! Sheryl and I know that Lower Camp really is the place to be!!! Overall, memories and friendships will be made at Briarwood to last a lifetime! I am ready to make Summer 2018 the best ever!

Upper Camp Boys (The Hill) …a story by Spencer Glass Did you know we now refer to Upper Boys Camp as The Hill? Did you know that almost every counselor and junior counselor on The Hill is a former Briarwood camper? Most of them were my campers when I was a counselor. What this means for your son is that they are being guided by counselors who know the best of the best of Briarwood. One of the newer things on the Hill for the campers are leagues. The whole Hill is divided into teams for amazing competition and fun in athletics. We also have GOTH Thursday (Game on the Hill) every week for fun and prizes.

Upper Camp Girls, Bouncing around Camp, by Randi Weisman- Upper Girls Supervisor: Growing up within this division is amazing. I can’t wait to share my heartbeat with all “MY” girls! The upper girls division is in store for some great Briarwood days this summer. Some traditional … like bunk shows, carnival and mini-campouts … and some AWESOME surprises along the way! (Wait till you see, I can’t tell you. But I surely CAN’T WAIT!!) Girls coming from lower camp finally participate in senior leagues, and enjoy every minute of it. I love being with this group of girls and sharing their fun days. They may come home at the end of the day full of glue, glitter, clay and dirt and exhausted from the sun, but I can promise you one thing, they can’t wait for more!

Senior Camp Is Ready For A Special Summer, by Dan Feldgus, Senior Camp Supervisor: There is really no way to describe the activities that only Senior Camp campers get to enjoy everyday without making people jealous. This summer, like all summers, our campers will work with younger bunks and enjoy the full complement of activities that Briarwood provides all campers, but we are the only campers that get to venture off-site every week. As you read this we have already had our whole Senior Camp enjoy time at Central Park in Doylestown, and our Super CITs went to Rebounderz for some jumping fun. But we aren’t finished. We will be sending groups to the beach, to Escape the Room, to NYC, to Hershey Park, to Bowling/Laser Tag, and even to spend a few days at Busch Gardens and Williamsburg! I’m exhausted just thinking about it. Our incredible Senior Camp staff this year consists of Paul Richman, Orli Glickman, Alex Kieffer, and Devyn and Sorelle Sax. This all adds up to the greatest part of being in Senior Camp, the smiles and laughs that we share. Briarwood’s Senior Camp is simply the place to be!