Last weekend began with talent show tryouts for Sunday night’s big event. Singing performances dominated the entry list, and we were so impressed with everyone’s abilities!
We woke up Sunday to heavy rain, but we didn’t let that stop us from having an amazing Baseline service, opting to move things from our lakeside amphitheater inside to the Rio Grande Dining Hall. Longtime camp friend Father Steve was our speaker for the morning, and he talked about our summer verse (Galatians 5:22-23) and the ways in which we can practice the concept of joy in our daily lives. Everyone then learned Father Steve’s famous – and aptly relevant – song, “Rejoice, Rejoice.”
After lunch, campers had free time around camp, prepped for the talent show, and did a deep clean on their cabins. After dinner, we all gathered together in the Grid Iron pavilion for the 2025 CBS Talent Show! The evening featured 27 acts – the most in camp history! Talents included magic tricks, singing, ballet, rubix cube solving, dancing, tumbling, and drawing. Everyone enjoyed a brief intermission between acts with some sparkling cider and ice cream sandwiches. The night’s winner was a Work Crew camper named Fernando who stunned audiences with his card magic trick that got a standing ovation. We’re still trying to wrap our heads around how he did it!
Monday was a surprise for campers from the start as it was a CBS-declared Y-TRAP (party spelled backwards) day, featuring all sorts of goofy switcheroos, like dinner for breakfast, running backwards on the soccer field, wearing clothes inside out or backwards, and breakfast at dinner! In fitting with the day’s theme, campers were also surprised by a morning version of Mission Impossible, a surprise event at camp that interrupts a scheduled activity with a special game campers play to win a prize and “save” camp from some sort of spy. Although the game typically takes place at night under a spy-approved cover of darkness, the backwards festivities obviously dictated things had to go otherwise. For breakfast at dinner, campers had beignets, a French toast casserole, a cereal bar, omelet bar, and fruit with morning cartoons! After eating, everyone went to the Thicket area to enjoy a pirate theme night that ended with a CBS version of Disney on Ice!