A Lesson in Charitable Giving

Hello Campers and Parents!  All of you can help us reach the FLWS campaign goal of $250,000.  Note that two of our campers are learning about charitable giving with the help of their parents.  Alejandro and Erik Rojas Pratt contribute a portion of their allowances to worthy organizations.  They are aware of FLWS, and each of them is donating to the campaign.  Their parents, Maija and Pepe, are matching each boy’s contribution, and then Maija, who works at State Street, will request a corporate matching gift for the entire amount.  What a great idea!

The Rojas Pratt Family lives in Cambridge, MA, and they learned about William Lawrence Camp from alumnus Chris Summersgill and his son Clemens.  They have assisted Chris in recruiting campers to WLC over the past few years.  Alejandro (known as Ale) is in the 8^th grade.  He is 13 years old and will be a first year Senior in Summer 2021.  Erik is in the 5^th grade.  He is 11 years old and will be in his last year as a Junior in Summer 2021.  Both boys attend a bilingual school in Cambridge, and they are currently taking classes remotely, due to COVID-19.  They both enjoy sports, especially soccer, baseball, basketball, and football.  Erik plays the piano, and Ale plays the trumpet and likes to create music on his computer.  In their spare time, they like to play video games, and Erik says he’s done a lot of reading when he has been quarantined.

When asked about Camp experiences, Ale said he misses his campmates, and he wonders about his Bill Larry Boy status.  Good news for Ale:  Since he was enrolled for last summer (which would have been his fifth year), he will be a Bill Larry Boy when he returns to the Knoll next summer!  Erik said he really likes Wilderness Skills, and he misses the conversations in the cabin at night after Taps.  Both boys said that they enjoy singing the national anthems in the Dining Hall.  They have roots in Mexico, England, and the USA, so they sing all three anthems, but they don’t have a favorite!

Thank you to the Rojas Pratt Family for their donation to WLC and for demonstrating how to teach philanthropy at home.  And thank you for securing a corporate matching gift!

P.S. to the recent college grads out there:  If an 8^th grader and a 5^th grader can donate to the FLWS campaign, you can, too!  Remember that participation is important.  Every dollar counts!

Written by Board of Trustee Member and Alumni Camper Parent, Lucy Hancock

Overnight Summer Camp is a Win-Win Situation for Families

As parents, we all want what is best for our children. From the day they are born, we spend countless hours considering the right foods, activities, schools, books, and even friends to help them grow into confident, compassionate adults. We want to keep them close and protect them, but sometimes what is best for our children is to let them go.

Let them go to a place of new adventures, new responsibilities, new friends from all over the world and a new-found opportunity to take risks and get to know themselves better. Where could such a place exist, you ask? Why summer camp, of course.

Summer camp is more than just campfires and s’mores. Summer camps strive to provide their campers with a community where they are encouraged to step out of their comfort zones and take healthy risks. For some boys, that risk might be making new friends. In the Boston Globe Magazine (2/22/2019) article entitled “At Summer Camp, Friendships Blossom Without Technology”, author Meaghan O’Neill says, “Camp is a controlled but fun environment purpose-built for making friends.” Given the communal nature of overnight camp, boys learn quickly how to live with each other, cope with different personalities, and discover what qualities they value in a friend. They hone their interpersonal skills without even realizing what an “interpersonal skill” is. O’Neill continues, “Friends from school or the neighborhood are known quantities. At summer camp, whether day or overnight, kids are freer to bond without parental intervention. And that’s good for their development.”

For other perhaps more seasoned campers, that risk might be challenging themselves to master a new skill or experiment with activities they have never tried before. William Lawrence’s Honor Society program challenges campers to master and complete 18 skills ranging from building and successfully lighting a fire in front of the whole camp (nerve-wracking) to spending a night alone in the woods after felling a tree, building a fire, and setting up camp for the night (even more nerve-wracking).

Have you ever played Australian rugby, shot an arrow through the bull’s eye, sailed a boat on your own across a pristine lake, used woodworking power tools, reached the top of the climbing tower or learned to slalom waterski? These are just a few of the activities to explore, be challenged by and eventually feel a sense of accomplishment whether the skills were mastered or not. Sometimes just trying something new gives a boost of confidence and willingness to try again.

At summer’s end, campers return home transformed into more independent, compassionate, confident and helpful young men (they have to clean their cabins and sort their own laundry!) ready to put their newly-discovered abilities to work for the rest of the year.

A strong, independent, confident, compassionate child. Now that is a win-win situation for any family.

Written by Board of Trustee Member and Camp parent, Seana Crellin