November 3, 2016 – Birmingham, AL – 6:30 PM CDT
November 7, 2016 – Nashville, TN – 6:00 PM CST
November 14, 2016 – New Orleans, LA  – 4:00 PM CST
January 9, 2017 – Memphis, TN – 7:00 PM CST
January 10, 2017 – Lookout Mountain, TN – 7:00 PM EST
January 19, 2017 – St. Francisville, LA – 6:30 PM CST
January 23, 2017 – San Antonio, TX – 6:30 PM CST
January  24, 2017 – Dallas, TX – 6:15 PM CST
February 7, 2017 – Tupelo, MS – 5:30 PM CST
February 20, 2017 – Greenville, SC – 6:00 PM EST
February 21, 2017 – Lexington, KY – 6:30 PM EST
February 23, 2017 – Jackson, MS – 6:30 PM CST

WHEN: March 31-April 2, beginning with dinner Friday evening at 7CDT and ending Sunday morning after church.

WHERE: Alpine Camp, specifically the Ridge cabins and Deerfoot Lodge, with all your favorite Alpine meals

WHO: Any male who is a senior in high school this year. Weekend is NOT limited to former Alpine campers or work crew (though we hope all will attend!). Invite friends! Forward this email around to any school or church friends who might be interested.

WHAT: Our goal is to help prepare you spiritually for your college years. You will hear solid Bible teaching from John Stone, Assistant Director with Reformed University Fellowship (RUF). John has spent over 25 years working with college students.

• Current and former Alpine counselors will serve as mentors for the weekend, leading small group discussions and informal visits, sharing from experience about navigating college as a Christian. We’ll have a panel discussion with practical advice and wisdom.
• Meet new friends who might be on your campus next fall or reconnect with old friends. Utilize Alpine’s extensive network of churches and college ministries to have Christian fellowship once you arrive on campus. We want to point you towards discipleship and fellowship opportunities in college, similar to what you have known and loved when you were at Alpine.
• Do all your favorite Alpine activities one more time.  Ropes course, climbing tower, ultimate frisbee, basketball, disc golf, and even skeet shooting!

Apply Now!

Cost: $295

Travel: Parents may bring you and drop you off. You may also bring a personal vehicle or carpool with friends with permission from your parents. We will also provide shuttle service to and from the Birmingham airport for a small travel fee.

Rules and Regulations: Keys will be taken up for the weekend if you bring your car. All cell phones will be taken up as well for the weekend. We want to foster an atmosphere of being present with those at the retreat. Alcohol, tobacco, and drugs will be strictly prohibited. Remember that your behavior will affect future employment opportunities with Alpine and beyond.

The top three finishers in each race also receive tribe points for their tribe.  Many boys choose to walk or do a team walk.  Some do a three legged walk with a buddy, some carry guitars or wear a crazy costume. Lots of cheering and fun music accompanied the race.

The fun run put an big exclamation point on a final day of regular activities. There’s something about these last few days of a full term that is special. Boys know they are going home soon and they want to soak it all in. Petty differences and bickering are put aside (for the most part!). Camp runs like a well oiled machine as boys enjoy every free minute before and after meals and in between classes playing with friends.

Tonight it’s one final chance at glory for each age group in Slaughterball. When they are not playing they’ll be out in camp with an age group game like whiffle ball or capture the flag. We fueled up for a big night on spaghetti with meat sauce, buttered toast, and a green salad. Mrs. Gail is treating us right on these last few days. For lunch we arrived to chicken fingers, butter beans, mashed potatoes and her homemade silver dollar biscuits. I think we might just wake up to one last stack of hot pancakes in the morning.

Tomorrow will be a busy but fun day. This will probably be my last update as there are many details to cover before Wednesday.

We’ll spend some time in the morning taking care of necessities like packing and passing back lost and found. Get the boring stuff out of the way so we can play during the afternoon and celebrate in the evening!

In the afternoon the activity extravaganza comes our way, courtesy of Roderick. He dreamed it up a few years ago. Set on the team sports field, and surrounding areas, boys rotate by cabins to about 20 different stations in the course of an hour or so. With 3 minutes at each activity, the goal is to squeeze every last drop of camp activities out on the last day. Boys play a hole of frisbee golf on the road by the field, they play kickball, they play 4 square, gladiator ball on the Mountain, and much, much more. It’s frenetic and silly and a great way to finish our daytime plans on Tuesday.

Tomorrow night is reserved for a special banquet style dinner and awards ceremony in the gym. Activity awards will be passed out. We also give gifts to boys after they’ve been at Alpine anywhere from 4 years to 10. 4 year campers get an Alpine dopp kit with an Alpine logo. Probably the most coveted award is the 6 year fleece blanket with Alpine on it. It’s a fine Sunday afternoon napper, I know from experience.

Roderick will announce the winning tribe for the term. Then, more importantly, we’ll all gather together by cabin, not tribe, and sing a few final songs together. Some tears will be shed, many goodbyes and embraces. But as one of the songs aptly reminds us, “I’ve got eleven months to dream about next year . . . “.

Thanks again for allowing your boys to be with us this term. We are ever grateful.

As a reminder, the gates will open at 7:30 Wednesday morning. If we are not out of breakfast yet, you are welcome to drive on to your son’s cabin and wait there. And don’t forget to stop by and get any meds from the nurses in front of the Lodge. If your son is traveling by bus you have received an email with details. Don’t hesitate to contact Monique with any travel questions.

Thanks for reading and good night,

Glenn

Mountain Biking hosts the Tour de Alpine for it’s participants, a challenging trek through Alpine trails to see who the top 3 finishers are by time in each age group. The tennis courts are tense each hour as Alpine Open matches cycle through in different age groups. A seeded, single elimination bracket will eventually culminate in a champ for each age group.

Not all activities are quite so competitive. Wilderness has built small boats out of sticks and other materials. For this last period they are racing them down at the river. It’s more about the camaraderie and fun of seeing if the boat will float and hold up than it is winning!

The Alpine Masters is ongoing at Disc sports to see who the champs will be on our homemade 18 hole course that rambles throughout camp. Winner gets to don a green jacket for a photo op on the last night!

Tonight the boys who have chosen to be in Glee Club will get to sing for our friends at Camp Desoto. First the ladies will sing some of their camp songs for us. Campers who have never heard the girls sing usually have wide eyes as they hear over 200 female voices in unison. It is always impressive.

I know our boys will not be outdone! They have worked so hard under the direction of Matt McCall and many other of our musicians on staff. Matt is going to be a junior at UNC – Chapel Hill and grew up here as a camper. He has blended fun and technique all term long into the practices and I know the boys will respond tonight.

Our Trash Can Band activity, led by David Newman and Elam Miller, will have a chance to show their skills off tonight. Also our 1st Year Chiefs (rising 9th graders) have prepared a step show to present to the ladies. It is always met with cheers and screams. The 2nd year chiefs (rising 10th graders) have rewritten a tune with Alpine lyrics to Rick Astley’s “Never Gonna Give You Up”. I love that they went back to some old school 80’s for their choice. And perhaps my favorite of the evening, the Hunters (rising 3rd and 4th grades) singing “It’s Alright to be Little Bitty”, by Alan Jackson. It always brings the house down!

For breakfast we enjoyed hot oatmeal with brown sugar, buttered toast, scrambled eggs, and the breakfast bar. Saturday lunch brought roast beef and gravy, mashed potatoes, green peas, and rolls, plus the salad bar.

Tomorrow we’ll bask in all the slower Sunday traditions for one last time. We’ve had some rain today, much needed. Thankfully it has come at good times and we have not missed any activities. The weather has been delightfully cool and breezy the last few days for end of July. We are grateful.

Thanks for reading and enjoy the rest of your weekend!

Glenn

Alabama’s (famed country band from nearby Ft Payne) Song of the South blared on the speakers as the day began. All manner of characters strolled into the dining hall for breakfast. Some costumes were carefully planned while for others underwear on head and no shirt did the trick. A few of my favorites: the blow up T-rex dinosaur (the site of him flopping down the road was worth the whole day), the baby, complete with bottle and diaper, and several variations of the turkey or chicken hat. Dancing and singing intermixed with blueberry and chocolate chip pancake eating ensued once we finally entered the dining hall.

But first, Mountain Day began with a wake up call by the head counselors. Yesterday it was aided by our very own Lookout Mountain Fire Department.  One of our maintenance guys, Gene, is a volunteer fireman and graciously agreed to bring one of the firetrucks in this morning.  So head counselors decked out in costume and driven by Gene, drove down the main road, sirens blaring, to wake up camp.

After breakfast Jordan Griesbeck, our camp minister, led us in an all camp devotional.  He talked about the 4 L’s of the Bible as major themes. Life (creation), Loss (Adam and Eve), Love (Jesus), and Life (eternal). Certainly a message that gave us reason to celebrate. So it was back to cabins to don those red and blue tribe jerseys.

Our Team Sports staff brought us a full morning of Olympic competition, tribe vs. tribe.  Field events, tug of war, and some relays kept us busy all morning.  And yes, there was music there too.  That’s the beautiful thing about being unplugged for a time period.  It makes you appreciate so much more.  A little recorded music on Mountain Day gets us all excited.

Lunch could not have come sooner.  Mrs. Gail’s Mountain Day special: BBQ chicken awaited us.  Served with green beans, mashed potatoes, salad, and strawberry shortcake, we feasted. She cooks the BBQ chicken all night, low and slow, in our camp ovens.  It falls off the bone.

In the afternoon Roderick introduced the new camp game I referred too, Alabama Gold Rush. A combination of capture the flag and an Easter egg hunt, played over most of camp.  Red and blue orbs were hidden throughout each side.  The team with the most found orbs, successfully carried across the border to their safe zone, would win. Scouts to Chiefs (rising 6th – 10th grades) participated in this wildly successful new addition to Mountain Day.

Hunters and Trappers (rising 3rd – 5th grades) got to enjoy some river and pool activities during the afternoon.

The best part of the whole day (and maybe the term) came at sundown.  The Alpine County Fair.  With snowcones, cotton candy, and ice cream I probably need not say much more.  But there was so much more.

As previously mentioned in the Mission Impossible post, currency at the fair is dried pinto beans.  Thanks to hard working campers we located these just in time. Loaded with an envelope full of beans, boys are turned loose in the gym and field to play fair type games to their heart’s content. Cakewalks, Climb the Mountain, and the Sponge Toss were just a few.

We topped off the day with a fireworks display out on the Team sports field last night. I’ll also mention that both before and after the fireworks the stars were some of the prettiest and most vivid I’ve seen all summer. And a nice breeze blew through camp last night and again this morning, bringing tiny hints of fall with it’s cooler air.

This morning was overcast and cooler, a perfect backdrop for activities to resume. Spirits are high as we move towards some of our last activity days of the term. You should have received an email earlier today from Carter and me regarding Closing Day plans. We still have so many exciting things planned here at camp that the end seems a long way off. But we know many of you need to make plans so wanted you to have that in hand.

Thanks for reading and look forward to reporting again soon,

Glenn

Mission Impossible is what boys look forward to all year. For those of you wondering why we have camoflauge on our packing list, this is why. It’s an all camp game of spotlight, played by cabins. The head counselors serve as Maxes, doling out each cabin’s first assignment and password.

The ultimate goal is to find whatever has been stolen from camp earlier that day. I should mention that the stealing takes place in an elaborate skit that is almost as anticipated as the game itself. It’s all a surprise so the skit brings elated screams. One year the deed to camp was stolen. One year they “stole” me. I hid out at my house all day until the appointed time, where I was placed in the spot where the cabins who had made the correct moves and gotten the right clues would find me.

Cabins are trying to get clues from the good agents and avoid being spotted by the bad agents. Get caught by a bad agent and the cabin must start over at their Max for a new mission. Eventually we all rejoice as the stolen camp item or person is recovered!

Yesterday at breakfast, as we dined on sausage, biscuits, grits, scrambled eggs, Roderick stood up and announced that there would be a change for Mountain Day. The upcoming celebration (tomorrow!) includes many special events like the Olympics played Mohawk v. Cherokee. It culminates in the evening with an old timey County Fair, complete with games, ice cream, sno cones, and cotton candy. Currency for the fair are dried pinto beans.

So . . . with beans in hand, Roderick began to tell us about the County Fair. He invited Inspector Clouseau to join us and explain a new system for the beans at the fair. The Inspector was carrying on in his finest English accent when out of nowhere Captain Jack Sparrow entered the stage (as it were). Now at this point I don’t really think anyone was sure why either of these two were here or what they had in common or who was good and who was bad. And that was the point. They began to banter back and forth and even locked swords for a moment. They were hysterical. At some point Captain Jack declared that he did not like the County Fair and ran off with the beans.

The Mission Impossible theme music began to play and the boys went wild. We had to get those beans back or else no County Fair. I’m happy to report that after a full night of cabins sneaking stealthily around camp the stolen beans were recovered. Tomorrow Mountain Day will go forward!

Stay tuned for a full update from tomorrow’s festivities.

Thanks for reading and good night,

Glenn

It is hard to believe that we are starting into our last full week of camp!  Thank you for letting your boys spend this session with us on the mountain.  This weekend has been beautiful and has been packed with a lot of fun!

Saturday afternoon, the boys had a break from their normal routine of activities and had two block periods.  The rain moved boys under shelter for impromptu activities and to me-that is when some of the magic of camp happens.  One of the best lessons that can come out of camp is when plans change due to weather, etc. and you have to be flexible and you learn how to create something last minute.

During the start of block period, I was in the gym getting decorations ready for the dance.  The Hunter age group had gathered on the porch to play a few games.  When we realized the weather was going to linger, we decided we needed to have more for them to do.  The decorations were done, the sound system was in place so the counselors decided that they could get ready for going over to DeSoto for their dance.  We turned on some music that DeSoto likes to line dance to and we taught them a few dance moves. They would be ready and could jump right in when the girls started their line dances.  After some instruction time, they had some time to free dance.  I have never seen anything like it!  They played “Let it Go” and every Hunter and every counselor was belting the lyrics.  Where else would boys be able to do that without any inhibition?  But what makes it even more incredible, is they are seeing college boys who are not trying to be too cool and who are having so much fun with them!

The Trappers and the Scouts came to the gym the next block period and the gym erupted again!  They learned some line dances.  The counselors said that when the songs, that they had learned dances to earlier, came on every boy jumped right in with the girls.

While the younger boys were in the gym, the older boys had time on their cabin porches and in the lodge and after a full week of camp they were thankful for a little down time.  Sometimes, the rainy afternoons provide an unexpected respite and a time for the older boys to visit, play games on the porch and visit with their counselors.

When the bell rang for retreat, the Hunters, Trappers and Scouts gathered to load the buses to head to Camp DeSoto.  They had a delicious BBQ picnic, played games on the field and then headed to the gym for the dance.

The Warriors, Braves and Chiefs gathered soon after the younger boys departed and got ready to welcome the girls from Camp DeSoto.  When the girls arrived, they all went to the dining hall for a fajita dinner.  After dinner, they moved to the gym for their dance.  They did line dances, a few organized square dances and also had a little time to visit.  What I love about the dances at Alpine and DeSoto is that they are at a dance, they are nervous and excited and yet they have the comfort of their counselor.  Now while most of them would die if their mom or their dad joined them on the dance floor or sat right next to them at dinner-a counselor sitting next to them is whole different ball game!  They love it and the counselors do a great job of hanging back and letting them enjoy the night but they also know when to jump and help get the party started.

Glenn and I actually met when we were campers at one of the Alpine/DeSoto parties.  I was a camper at DeSoto and he was a camper at Alpine.   We had a mutual friend that introduced us that night.  That friend is Bailey Adams, who is currently our waterfront director.  Glenn’s counselor that summer was Roderick Russ, our 2nd term program director.  I remember Roderick talking to me about Glenn when I returned home after being at DeSoto that year.  I still have letters that we wrote back and forth to one another and even a picture of the two of us talking in the gym after a Glee Club show.  It is amazing to look back and see how God weaves people in your life together.

Camp is a place that is constantly changing.  New campers and new counselors arrive each summer.  New activities are put into place.  New buildings replace older buildings.  Young campers become the oldest campers in camp.  But camp also stays the same in many ways.  Campers still wear whites on Sundays with their neckerchiefs, we sing “Thank You, Lord, for Alpine” as we have for years, campers and staff start their day and end their day as we have every day of camp in God’s word.  Many campers come back to visit when they are older and they remark on how much is still the same.  This weekend, we had a visitor stop by who was a camper the very first summer Alpine was in operation back in 1959.  He was so excited to be back and to walk around and show his wife.  He said that so many memories flooded back as we drove through the gates.  To see him there, in the midst of camp, where he had walked down the same road as a young boy was pretty powerful.  The same prayer was prayed for him when he was a camper that Glenn and I still pray for campers that here now “that they may increase in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and man.”  Luke 2:52

In 1959, he would have had a few rainy days in which the counselors made what could have been a boring afternoon into something very fun and memorable.  He would have danced in a gym with girls from DeSoto.  He would have heard a number of morning watch talks and devotions.  He would have seen the same counselor leading those devotions, flesh out their faith each day in how they taught activities and took time to talk to campers.  Alpine is about stories.  It is about each boy that comes through the front gates and the stories they bring and the stories the write while they are here.  It is about stories blending into one another.  It is about counselors and campers being written into one another’s story.  Glenn and I even started our story in the gym at camp.  But the most important story is the one that is told over and over while they are at camp.  It is what is told morning after morning during Morning Watch and night after night during devotion.  It is what is lived out on the team sports field or at the table in the dining hall.  It is that boys are learning about the love of God and that this being poured out over them day after day so that it might pour from them.

Our verse for the summer comes from John 13:35 “A new command I give you: Love one another.  As I have loved you, so you must love one another.  By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”

Our Hunters spent their Trip Day morning with the gnomes at the beautiful Rock City Gardens in Lookout Mountain, GA. There they were able take in one of the most scenic views in the entire southeast. They made their way through Needle’s Eye, Goblin’s Underpass, and even Fat Man’s Squeeze. It was definitely the highlight of their trip and an experience we hope they will not take for granted.   After touring Rock City, they loaded the bus and headed to downtown Chattanooga. There they were able to do some rock climbing at High Point before catching the IMAX movie: A Beautiful Planet. They ended the day with some delicious pizza from Mr. T’s.

Atlanta was the destination for the Trappers yesterday. They spent the morning touring Turner Field where the Atlanta Braves currently play.  The Trappers got to visit the dugout, the press box, and even the locker room. They then enjoyed a picnic in the park before heading downtown to the World of Coke. Campers were able to taste various drinks from across the globe. Beverly from Italy was an unforgettable choice of drink. After they had their fill of various Coke products, we headed next door to the Georgia Aquarium. The aquarium’s sea lion show was the highlight of the trip as the campers were amazed at all of the tricks they were able to perform. We ended the day with some piping hot pizza in Cartersville, GA on our way back to camp.

It was off to Pigeon Forge, TN and Dollywood the Scout age group. After a picnic lunch, they spent the afternoon riding all of the big rides and attractions. They enjoyed the big rides such as the Tennessee Tornado, Mystery Mine, and Barnstormer. The Scouts were able to ride the brand new roller coaster, Lightning Rod, which is the world’s fastest wooden coaster! There were plenty of thrills to go around for everyone.

Our three oldest age groups, the Warriors, Braves, and Chiefs, all enjoyed the excitement and big thrills of white water rafting. The Warriors rafted the Nantahala River in Bryson City, NC, and the Braves and Chief 1’s rafted the Ocoee River in Cleveland, TN. It was an adventure they won’t soon forget. The Chief 2’s also got in on the rafting action. At the end of their hiking trip, they also went down the Nantahala in “duckies”, or inflatable kayaks. It was the perfect ending for an exciting trip.

All in all, we had a very successful Trip Day. Everyone returned home safely with plenty of memories from an unforgettable day.

Last night they each hung a sock in the Lodge by the fireplace (nevermind if they were a bit dirty or smelly).  All the same, summer Santa brought some fun toys and candy for these boys this morning.  Last night they read the Christmas story.  This morning they received a visit and photo op with Santa.

We all got in the Christmas spirit this morning at breakfast, singing along with Christmas carols playing over the speakers.  And the crowd favorite, 12 days of Alpine Christmas, including such favorites as 7 Nutty Buddies and 2 fat dogs.  Today’s lunch was Christmas tradition, of course. Turkey and dressing, green beans, mashed potatoes, and cranberry sauce, plus warm rolls. And just like Christmas I ate entirely too much. Thankfully we all enjoyed a full rest hour afterwards (myself included!).

Besides the morning and noon time festivities, activities have rolled on as normal. The Chief 2’s are enjoying nice weather for their backpacking trip. No news from them, which is always good news. At lunch today I made one of my favorite announcements, to much cheering and applause. I told the boys that breakfast would be extra early in the morning. Because after breakfast we’re all headed out on trips across the Southeast! Trip Day is here!! We’ll look forward to bringing you all the news from tomorrow’s adventures on Friday.

Tonight, each age group is getting a turn at Slaughterball in the gym. In between games they are meeting with their counselors to go over trip day plans, rules, etc. As I type this many boys are in the gym singing, an after dinner ritual for a long time around here.

Every night boys gather in the gym to sing camp songs.  We call it Glee Club. All of camp attends for the first few days.  Then it becomes optional, with two big incentives.  Each camper that joins Glee club garners a point for his tribe.  And you get to go to Desoto one extra time to sing for the ladies.  You can imagine the shrieks and screams from the crowd as our boys serenade them to such favorites as “Desoto Girl” (to the tune of California Girls, I wish they all could be Camp Desoto Girls!).  Or “PO Box 432” to the tune of Taylor Swift’s “22” (we span many generations and genres here at Alpine!).

For dinner we enjoyed a newer entree – baked ziti – a delicious pasta and meat filled dish that the boys seem to love. Served with buttered toast, green salad with sliced tomatoes and ranch dressing, everyone had their fill.

Thanks for reading and good night,

Glenn

It is a pinnacle experience for them.  Something that many of them have looked forward to for a number of years.  They’ll hike on a section of the famed Appalachian Trail in North Carolina.  Leading these boys will be a professional guide service out of Rome, GA, Higher Ground.  We’ve worked with Higher Ground for almost 10 years now and our ministries and philosophies really line up very well together.  We are grateful for their leadership.

I have been fortunate to make this trip three times, once as a camper in 1993 and then as a counselor in 1998 twice.  It is quite a unique experience to hike with a pack on your back containing everything you need to live for that time period.  I remain great friends today with many of the guys I hiked with on those trips.  I credit a large part of that to this trip. In fact, one is our Waterfront director this term, Bailey Adams. He’s a teacher and coach at the McCallie School in Chattanooga. We camped together for quite a few summers back in the day.

With excitement to match, though not quite as much on their backs, several cabins of Scouts (rising 6th graders) hiked out of main camp this afternoon before dinner. They carried sleeping bags, water bottles, and flashlights for a night under the stars.  They cooked hot dogs and roasted marshmallows for S’mores and most likely enjoyed some songs around the camp fire.

Otherwise, it’s been a beautiful and normal day on the Mountain.  We are in a rhythm that happens naturally when boys are here for 25 days. Lunch brought meatloaf, green peas, mashed potatoes, and rolls, plus the usual salad bar.  I’m not sure that I’ve mentioned the salad bar, open to campers and counselors. Every day it is filled with a lettuce mix, spinach, cucumbers, cherry tomatoes, sliced bell peppers, croutons, pine nuts, craisins, shaved carrots and quite a few other toppings. It’s a big hit with campers and counselors alike. This evening we ate lasagna, buttered toast, and a green salad.

Thanks for reading and good night,

Glenn

Our apologies for no photos loaded over the weekend. We experienced technical difficulties with our fax line, where we also receive our DSL internet. Our upload and download speeds lurched to a snail’s pace, so slow that I could barely get this blog updated or get emails in and out. As such, it kicked out the photos every time we tried to upload, given the large file sizes. We have made arrangement to load all weekend photos off site and are doing so as I write this. Again, sorry for the wait. Rest assured all is well at camp. I look forward to doing a more thorough blog update later tonight!

Thanks,

Glenn

After their rotations through the various stations, they enjoyed eating some piping hot pizza from Papa John’s followed by a night of dancing in Deerfoot. All of the classic Alpine/DeSoto Dance songs were played. The girls enjoyed teaching all of their boys some of their many line dances, including dances to Stand, Jai Ho, and the ever-popular Elvira.

While the Chiefs were dancing the night away, the rest of camp was having a blast enjoying their own age group activities.  We call it Block periods. Every now and then we suspend the regular activity rotation for specially planned fun with the entire age group. Our program director plans these afternoons, apportioning out games to each group at lunch to raucous cheers.

Roderick Russ is our program director for 2nd Term. He’s a husband and father of five and a teacher at Montgomery Bell Academy in Nashville, TN. He’s been doing this particular job for 8 or 9 summers, and on staff much longer. In fact, Roderick and I first became friends when he was my cabin counselor in 1992 and ’93. I was 14 and 15, my last two years at camp, and he was a student at Ole Miss. It’s personally really fun to get to reconnect each summer. More importantly he possesses tireless energy and enthusiasm for the program, designing plans to entertain 265 boys from sunup to well past sundown each day.

So yesterday he planned block periods for each age while the oldest boys enjoyed the company of the Desoto ladies. Some enjoyed the cool confines of the river and pool. Others played capture the flag or extreme 4 square or Alpine cricket on the tennis courts. And last night he gave them what they’ve all been waiting for – Slaughterball! Alpine’s version of dodgeball, it’s been played around here for years and years.

Except for the Braves (rising 8th graders). They packed their sleeping bags and a water bottle and hit the trail for cabin overnights. Each cabin teamed up with another cabin and picked one of our overnight locales to cook out hot dogs, roast marshmallows for S’mores, and enjoy a night under the stars. It was a lovely night with a half moon overhead.

Today’s been back to normal activities, minus a brief rain storm we waited out this afternoon. Boys played games with their activity counselors under shelter in their activities. Sometimes these impromptu breaks from the routine prove to be memorable for their spontaneity.

Saturday nights at Alpine almost always mean it’s time for a feature presentation in the gym.  After a long week of playing hard it’s nice for everyone to get a break after dinner for a movie. Tonight’s feature is Space Jam.  They’ll be treated to a Moon Pie snack midway through the movie (another longstanding Alpine tradition).

This evening we enjoyed “hamburger night”.  After going through a buffet line with burgers, baked beans, and all the fixin’s and condiments campers sat at their regular tables. Usually we dine outside on buffet nights but because of the rain we chose to enjoy the dry chairs of the dining hall.

Tomorrow morning we’ll get to sleep a little later (a Sunday morning tradition) and be greeted in the dining hall by hot pancakes and sausage.

Thanks for reading and good night,

Glenn

A homemade miniature golf course built all around and in front of the cabin. They fashioned clubs out of sticks, probably 2 feet in length (perfectly sized for an 11 year old). At the end of each club multiple colors of duct tape wrapped multiple times around something to form a nice looking golf club. They actually looked like golf clubs. “This is my chipper,” one camper said. “Here you want to see my putter,” said another.

“What do you use for golf balls,” I replied.

“Oh, we collected all these walnuts (or some variation)”. Sure enough, they had a nice pile of “golf balls”. They invited me to play a hole. Tiny little sticks with duct taped fashioned flags stuck in the ground in various places around the cabin. Around each flag a small hole was dug, probably 6 inches in diameter and about the same depth. It took me 3 strokes to get my ball in the hole from the designated tee box (a dusty patch of mulch and ground cover).

“What is par on this hole,” I asked, eager to know how I measured up. 4 one of the boys said. No it’s 3 said another. Seems they still had to work out a few kinks! But, hey, this is what camp is all about. They informed me that there was to be a Cliff Dwelling Invitational soon, and that maybe I could get an invitation to try out. Maybe. Look out Phil Mickelson and Royal Troon.

Today Alpine entertained two visitors from the American Camp Association. Every 3 years we undergo a reaccreditation visit. Today was the day! There are hundreds of standards, covering Site and Facility, Activities, Health and Wellness, Trips, Risk Management, Human Resources, etc. It’s best practices for our industry. I always highly recommend to parents checking with any camp you are considering sending a child to see if they are ACA certified. It’s a big deal, just not highly publicized in a lot of markets.

Happy to report we passed with flying colors. We exceed most all standards and the visitors were very pleased. This is owed to the amazing people we have around here, from kitchen and housekeeping, maintenance, and program and counselor staff, plus our super organized office staff who handle so much of the written documentation. We do it because we learn something new every year from going over the standards. Any organization should always be seeking to improve. And as soon as we think we as an organization or individuals at Alpine think we have it all figured out, we are in big trouble. We always want to learn from others in our industry.

So, this morning Carter and I showed our visitors around camp. As we walked in the Canyon cabin area to see some cabins and bathhouses, we coincidentally happened upon Cliff Dwelling. The boys had just finished cabin inspection and had a few minutes to kill before the bell rang calling them to first period. Let’s just say the Cliff Dwelling course has really been taken to the next level in 24 hours. More clubs, more holes, more enthusiasts.

They excitedly called to us, with visitors in tow. The visitors are camp people so they didn’t mind. The boys showed us all what they were doing. The ACA visitors loved it.

One of the visitors remarked to me that this is why we have camp. Boys (and girls too) are endlessly creative if we just give them some time for free play. Their imaginations run wild. He was exactly right. No screens. No coaches or parents telling them what to do. No official golf practice for a tournament. No test to study for. Just a few minutes here and there to create this makeshift golf course. None of those other things are inherently bad. It’s just that children, and boys especially, need this. They need time for unstructured play.

I’ve been here enough summers to know that this is happening all over camp. I just happened to be in the right place at the right time (twice) to be invited into this world. I don’t want to overdramatize this. It’s just boys having fun at camp, impromptu. But I do believe it is formative in so many ways. And a gift you are giving your boys. Thanks for allowing them to be here.

Mrs. Gail pulled out all the stops today for our meals (could it have been because of the ACA visitors???). For breakfast, hot pancakes and syrup, sausage, canteloupe, and the granola/fruit/yogurt bar.

Lunch pleased everyone – chicken fingers, butter beans, mashed potatoes, rolls, and her secret Shazaam sauce (think thousand island or comeback, with a twist).

Life is good at camp. Boys have played hard at camp these last few days, enjoying the routine of activities. We are now into the second rotation of activities so boys are feeling settled and at home. In the next few days I’ll hope to give you some inside reports from some more activities.

Thanks for reading and good night for now,

Glenn

On Sunday each age group had a chance to sign up in the gym and create a schedule.  It is like old timey registering for classes in college where you would go from one booth to the next signing up for what you want to take and when.

Boys get to choose their own activities.  They think about what they might need (boots, swimsuit, etc) and then show up to that activity on time.  They couldn’t name this, but for a child there’s a great amount of satisfaction in that kind of independence. Even for my own children that kind of responsibility is a stark difference from our normal life at home. We plan and pack everything they will need for each activity and school day. Not bad, that’s what we do as parents. That’s why camp is so good for them. It’s good practice for one day when we won’t be around to make sure everything is just right.

Boys sign up for 10 activities, plus each age group does team sports.  We use a snaking schedule that is hard to explain but allows for variety in the order.  Yesterday we participated in periods 1,2,3 in the morning.  Then 4 and 5 in the afternoon.  Split of course by a recharging lunch.  After lunch a much needed rest hour (maybe they wrote that letter home!).  Then a quick snack at the Store.

Today 6-10.  Tomorrow, 11, 1,2,3,4. And so on.  In this first rotation counselors spell out safety rules and other guidelines and then let the boys try out the activity.  Tennis worked on forehands and backhands to assess boys’ skill levels.  Mountain biking set up cones in the road and practiced emergency stops among other maneuvers.

The Project Adventure (ropes course) starts out with team building games and low initiatives to help bond the group.  Maybe the best place to be the last few days was Little River (and the pool a close second).  Boys jumped in the cool, clear waters for the first time, in life jackets.

This morning as boys rolled out of bed an unmistakable smell greeted many. Bacon! Literally you can smell it wafting down the road. It hit me as I walked from my house to the office for my early morning meeting. It puts an extra bounce in everyone’s step as they head to breakfast, a crowd favorite. Served with French toast and syrup on the table, we enjoy together. At every breakfast we also provide a cold breakfast bar. Greek yogurt, granola, blueberries, bananas, and usually several other types of fruit are available.

Thanks for reading and good night,

Glenn

Glenn

Everyone who’s been to Alpine knows what will greet them upon arrival to the Dining Hall on a Sunday morning. Mrs. Gail’s homemade pancakes, hot off the griddle. Gail and her staff arrive extra early on Sunday mornings to allow enough time to flip all those pancakes (warming ovens do the trick for those first batches). I’ve never asked how many they flip on a typical Sunday morning. We are feeding over 350 this term including all counselors and staff. I eat 3 or 4 (more than I should as the ole metabolism doesn’t process them quite like it used to!). And I’m probably on the lower end for some of these growing boys. I bet they make close to 2000.

They are thin, not too sweet, with traces of almond flavor. She complements the carbs with sausage patties and canteloupe. Lunch is a baked chicken that is delicious with a crunchy crust and tender inside. And goes well with the rice and gravy, green beans (cooked in lots of good things to make it taste better), yeast rolls, and sliced pears.

There is something soothing about looking forward to these same meals each Sunday. It’s a visible and olfactory reminder of the celebration and rest of a Sunday at Alpine. The remainder of this post is excerpts from posts I’ve written in the past about the experience at an Alpine table.

Food at Alpine is a big deal.  When my father in law, Dick O’Ferrall started camp his father gave him one piece of advice.  His father, by the way, was Dr. Carter O’Ferrall (hence my wife’s name) a much loved physician in Jackson, MS who had delivered most of the boys who camped at Alpine those first few years.  So his advice was that no matter what else you do don’t skimp on the food.  Serve quality food that boys will eat.  And so that is our goal every summer.

There are 3 blessings, one for each meal, that we have been singing for as long as I’ve been at camp.  And I am pretty sure much farther back than that.  The last note of “Amen” is usually mixed with the beginning sound of 300 plus chairs pulling back as we take our seats, eager to pass what’s in front of us and catch the next bowl headed our way.

We place an emphasis on manners and service at the table.  Not a white table cloth, cotillion type manners.  More like: this is a community and we have to think about others type table manners.   When we’re hungry, food can bring out the most selfish sides in all of us, and I include myself and all the other staff in that category.  We actually spend a lot of time in Staff Training talking about it.  We are very intentional in how we treat the table experience.  It’s an intimate experience and boys take away a lot from their time in the Dining Hall.

We pass all the food around in one direction.  We each take a reasonable portion to make sure everyone at the table gets a little bit (this does not come so naturally when you’re hungry!  Sometimes our instinct is to pile as much on our plate as we can without regard to the others.) We wait until everyone at the table has been served until any of us takes the first bite.  It all seems sort of obvious as I write it but when you get 12 or 13 hungry males at a table it takes a practice and self discipline.

And of course there’s plenty of food and the high school boys on Work Crew are happy to come and refill our serving bowls and platters.

Thanks for reading and good night for now,

Glenn

My name is Glenn Breazeale.  I was able to meet or reconnect with many of you today. My wife Carter and I are the directors. We have been directors since 2006, full time staff since 02.  Prior to that I was privileged to serve on summer staff for 4 summers as a counselor and head counselor.  Growing up in Jackson, MS, my parents gave me the gift of camping at Alpine for 6 summers.  Carter grew up at Alpine.  Her parents are Dick and Alice O’Ferrall, longtime directors here, and now emeritus.

We make our home at Alpine all summer long, along with our two girls, Caroline and Gigi, age 10.  Our house sits across the road from the team sports field and gym, with screened porch almost directly across from the gym. Many nights I’ll sit on our porch listening to the sounds of your boys playing as I type some news that hopefully you’ll find interesting and informative.

Thank you for allowing your boys to be with us this summer. We know it’s a big deal. Our girls went off to camp last month for 25 days. They loved it, their third year. But they also got a little homesick a few times. I did too when I was a camper at Alpine. It’s perfectly normal.

So we know a little about what it might have been like to be in your shoes today, whether dropping off for the first time or the 3rd or 4th year.  And we hope the same for your boys this term that we hoped for our girls.  Even if they are a little bit homesick that’s OK.  We are gonna take good care of them, like we would our own girls. And if you get a homesick letter or two this week that’s pretty normal too. Write them back a brief but reassuring note. Tell them there’s nothing going on at home and that you are so glad they are at camp. And that they are right where you you want them to be.

But of course it’s the counselors who really make Alpine for the boys.  And this is a really strong group, maybe one of the best we’ve had in years. They are high energy and also very caring.

This afternoon we took care of a few necessary items. Boys received knitwear, sizes checked and tags labeled by the ladies in the store. Health checks including screening for lice and fever.  Cabin pictures that you should see posted on the login portion of the website tonight.

Shortly after you left we gathered in the gym for our opening meeting with all of camp.  Carter and I welcome the boys to Alpine.  I opened by reading from John 13:34-35.  Jesus gives a mandate to his disciples, on the night before he would be crucified.  “As I have loved you, so you must love one another.”  We talked about how we are called to love one another at camp because Jesus has first loved us (not to get Jesus’ approval).  We told them, therefore, that at Alpine we are all free to be ourselves and not worry about impressing others.  That Alpine is not a place where boys pick on or bully.   We introduced all of the head counselors, doctor, nurses, and other leadership staff.  We emphasized the importance of boys letting us know if something is bothering them so we can help them.  We covered some basic boundaries and safety tips.

Boys need to get active quickly, as you all know.  So this afternoon and tonight, in addition to Slaughterball, each age group is playing other fun games around camp.  Several age groups are ending the evening around different campfires, roasting marshmellows for S’mores.  The other age groups will get their turn soon.

For dinner we enjoyed the traditional opening meal of homemade chicken and dumplings, green peas, corn, green salad with sliced tomatoes, and Mrs. Gail’s homemade silver dollar biscuits that hopefully you got to try today.

Thank you, sincerely, for giving your boys this gift. We consider it a high privilege.

Thanks for reading and good night,

Glenn

He looked a bit angry and was mumbling something about more taxes. Mr. Jefferson informed his highness that we intended to declare our independence from England. King George, extremely upset, grabbed the tattered decree and took off.

Instantly the dining hall went wild and the Mission Impossible soundtrack began to play. The campers now had a part to play in this fine Fourth of July. Take back the Declaration from King George and reclaim our independence. So tonight that’s exactly what they are doing.

The game is played as a cabin. Sent out with clues, cabins must complete a mission from place to place, receiving clues each time from good agents. But bad agents loom all over camp as well.  Get spotted by a bad agent and it back to base to receive a new mission. Hopefully we’ll recover the stolen document and all will be well.

We fueled up this evening on BBQ pulled pork sandwiches, baked beans, chips, cole slaw, and sugar cookies. Does it get any more American than that!

In just a few minutes I’m headed out to set off some 4th of July fireworks to top off our night after Mission Impossible. We’ve got some good ones this year.

Tomorrow will be a busy day. The last few activities, packing, and final banquet tomorrow night. This will be my last update for the term with so much happening tomorrow. Thank you again for allowing your boys to camp with us. It is truly a pleasure. We always want your feedback to make this place better. So don’t every hesitate to email Carter or me. glenn@alpinecamp.com or carter@alpinecamp.com

And as a reminder, gates will open at 7:30 Central time Wednesday morning. Most folks will be picked up by 10.

Thanks for reading and good night,

Glenn

I’ll give a bit more detail, in case all this Glee Club talk is a little fuzzy. Glee Club has existed for years and years at Alpine, traditionally gathering after dinner every night to sing fun camp songs. Through the years, our reportoire has been added to by creative counselors. Hit songs are given Alpine lyrics. Some that have stood the test of time are Desoto Girls to the tune of Brown Eyed Girl, Blues at Alpine to the tune of Clapton’s Wonderful Tonight (it’s a woeful story of a boy who’s hair is sticking up at the dance), and Hey, Tree (please ring that bell) from Hey Jude.

They did an incredible job tonight for the ladies of Desoto. A few special performances to highlight: the Hunters got oohs and aahs from the girls with their version of Alan Jackson’s famous country tune, It’s Alright to Be Little Bitty. 1st Year Chiefs entertained with rhythmic step show, stomping out beats to the cheers of the girls.  Chief 2’s received rave reviews for their rewrite and rendition of “Hey There Desoto” (adapted from Plain White T’s Hey There Delilah). And we all enjoyed listening to two groups of Warriors perform their drum beats they’ve learned in the Trash Can Band activity.

After both performances we gave everyone a few minutes to socialize before loading the buses back to Alpine.  It was a late night, arriving back just before 10. Thankfully Sundays allow for a late Reveille, so the wake up bell rang at 8 instead of 7.

Today’s been a nice laid back Sunday. This afternoon cabins got to choose a fun activity or game to play with their counselors.  Then we gathered for Richard to cut us some cold, juicy watermelon, per custom.  Tonight we’re playing a few age group games before ending our day of rest with a Vespers service, again per custom.

There’s much to do in these last few days, as we pack in every minute of fun and group bonding we can.  I’ll hope to give one more report over the next few days.

Thanks for reading and good night,

Glenn

Yesterday and today activities have been focusing on final competitions in some cases.  The Disc golf guys are playing the Alpine Masters.  Of course the winner gets to wear the Alpine Green Jacket (but only for a picture, we just have one, a fine piece of clothing purchased at the local thrift store).

At lunch an older camper came to my table to show me his latest Crafts creation.  With varying types of duct tape he had fashioned an entire fedora like hat. It looked really good and he’s been wearing it all day.  Emily and her staff in the Crafts shop have done an amazing job of bringing out boys’ creative sides with all types of projects.  We try to do projects that will be fun for boys.

Behind all activity is what I love most about camp. Boys are enjoying the friendships that have been formed. By now hometown friends don’t really mean much. Nobody really remembers where anybody else is from. It’s just camp friends. And it’s not all roses. By this point, boys have had to learn how to mend many of those friendships.  Put 6 or 8 or 10 boys in a cabin for 25 days and they have to learn.  And the counselors help them learn.  It’s not always easy. Even if they have brothers and sisters at home, when else do you live in such close proximity with so many people for this long.

Tonight we celebrated the 2nd Year chiefs in a traditional Alpine ceremony called Council Ring.  Set in our seated amphitheatre with a campfire and a few tiki torches as our back drop, it’s combination comedy and ceremonial. Counselors provide the comedy in the form of some much beloved skits. Then we honor the 2nd year chiefs, 18 in all this year.  Combined they have over 125 summers of camping at Alpine!

Breakfast this morning was oatmeal, with brown sugar and butter on the side, scrambled eggs, toast along with fruit and yogurt. For lunch we enjoyed fried catfish, black eyed peas, creamed corn and green salad. Homemade mac and cheese, pinto beans, ham, cornbread, cole slaw, and salsa for dinner.

Thanks for reading and good night,

Glenn

Mountain Day begins with a wake up call by the head counselors. This morning it was aided by our very own Lookout Mountain Fire Department.  One of our maintenance guys, Gene, is a volunteer fireman and graciously agreed to bring one of the firetrucks in this morning.  So head counselors decked out in costume and driven by Gene, drove down the main road, sirens blaring, to wake up camp.

What you would expect is that boys would sleepily stroll onto their porches, rubbing eyes and wondering what is going on.  But what you see is boys that are prepared.  Instantly boys pour out of cabins decked out in costume, some real and some made up moments before. Word spreads quickly that it might be Mountain Day.  So they are ready.

After breakfast Richard Cox, our program director, led us in an all camp devotional.  Then it was back to cabins to don those red and blue tribe jerseys.

Our Team Sports staff brought us a full morning of Olympic competition, tribe vs. tribe.  Field events, tug of war, and some relays kept us busy all morning.  And yes, there was music there too.  That’s the beautiful thing about being unplugged for a time period.  It makes you appreciate so much more.  A little recorded music on Mountain Day gets us all excited.

Lunch could not have come sooner.  Mrs. Gail’s Mountain Day special: BBQ chicken awaited us.  Served with green beans, mashed potatoes, salad, and strawberry shortcake, we feasted. She cooks the BBQ chicken all night, low and slow, in our camp ovens.  It falls off the bone.

In the afternoon Richard introduced a new camp game for the older boys. Alabama Gold Rush. A combination of capture the flag and an Easter egg hunt, played over most of camp.  Red and blue orbs were hidden throughout each side.  The team with the most found orbs, successfully carried across the border to their safe zone, would win.  The game was met with great enthusiasm by the boys.  I think we have a winner.

Hunters and Trappers (rising 3rd – 5th grades) got to enjoy some river and pool activities on this hot Mountain Day afternoon.

The best part of the whole day (and maybe the term) came at sundown.  The Alpine County Fair.  With snowcones, cotton candy, and ice cream I probably need not say much more.  But there was so much more.

Currency at the fair is dried pinto beans.  Loaded with an envelope full of beans, boys are turned loose in the gym and field to play fair type games to their heart’s content. Cakewalks, Climb the Mountain, and the Sponge Toss were just a few.  Several boys told me this was the best day they could remember.  We will all sleep well tonight.

Thanks for reading and good night,

Glenn

Growing up at camp, I have always had a love for the outdoors.  Family hikes were a weekly ritual.  I was often the child who would be slowly moving down trail, stopping to pick each little bluet flower I saw.  To this day I still love their intricate detail and delight in their simpleness.  Today, I was reminded of children’s sense of wonder.  Glenn and I have been going through different cabin areas meeting with individual cabins.  We call them cabin check in’s and they have quickly become one of my favorite parts of camp.  We like to take the time to touch base with the boys and hear how their camp experience is and remind them to tell their counselors or one of us if they need anything.  This morning, I was in a cabin in the Canyon.  I was listening to the boys and we talked and laughed for a few minutes.  As I was about to leave, they started to tell me about a turtle that they thought was going to lay eggs soon.  One boy asked if I wanted to go see where they were.  They all jumped and asked me to come with them.  Of course I was going to go with them-what an invitation!  I was very honored!  They rushed me up next to one of the little bridges in the Canyon and sure enough, they had sticks strategically placed to protect the hole that they thought held the precious eggs.  A camper from Hunter Hollow ran up and informed us that the turtle had dug the hole but had not laid them yet.  Then we looked under another bridge and saw the turtle.  Now, they are waiting to see when the eggs will be laid!

As I left the Canyon, I was struck by the shear joy the boys were taking in the creation surrounding them.  And I was truly  touched by how they wanted to share that with others-including me.  Glenn and I want boys to have the time and the place to be boys and explore what is around them on this mountain.  I think it is crucial for them to have a place where they can stop and slow down in the midst of a busy world.  It grounds them.

Small moments, such as this morning’s turtle sighting, are part of what your child is getting out of camp each day.  He is learning that he doesn’t always have to be entertained by a screen.  He is interacting in big ways and small ways with boys from different towns, different states.  He is outside all day everyday and having a blast!

There are so many moments like this one that are happening each day at camp.  It is a such a joy to us when we get to share them with campers.  As your boys go to sleep tonight, they will hear the rush of the river and the sound of crickets.  I pray that when they are older, and are all grown up-they will be reminded of theses noises and all that they learned on this mountain.

Thanks for reading,

Carter

This morning as activities resumed after a restful Sunday, tennis began the first rounds of the Alpine Open.  Each age group competes through a single elimination seeded tourney. Excitement builds with each round.

Minor Sports is holding it’s annual Petanque tournament.  Bocce Ball for the common person.  Petanque works with the finely honed tastes of Minor Sports.  Boys are encouraged to wear collared shirts (they love the made up silliness of it all).  After pairing up and picking a team name (let’s be honest, this is the most important part), they compete against other pairs in their class.

Earth Games constructed a Grit man with some of the leftover grits from breakfast. The kicker is that they then walk around camp asking passersby what they think about their artistic creation.  Any negative comments about the grit man and you better run like crazy.  Because otherwise you are going to get pelted with grits.  Carter, having been on to the grit man since a young age, wisely strolled up to the class wearing a raincoat, zipped and hooded tight. By the time she got to my office her raincoat had remnants of grits on it.  I guess she didn’t think it was a very good looking grit man!

Some Braves and Chiefs taking climbing had a chance to leave camp for the day and try their hand on some real rocks.  Sandrock is a natural cropping of large boulders and rocks about 45 minutes from camp.  Higher Ground, our trusted guide service, plus two of our ropes staff, belayed the boys all day on climb after climb.

This evening the rain died down just in time for everyone to get a shower and get to dinner fresh and clean.  Chicken spaghetti, buttered toast, and green salad with tomatoes greeted us.

Thanks for reading and good night,

Glenn

We ended afternoon activities a bit early in order to give everyone time to “get shined up”. Your boys clean up real nice. Richard rang a bell about 5:35 calling all the Hunters, Trappers, and Scouts to the waiting yellow school buses in front of the Lodge.  One cabin of 9 year olds told me slyly that they already had paper in their pockets.  For what I asked?  They looked at me like I was dumb.  For getting girls’ names and cabin numbers.  If only it was that simple and innocent in the real world, right?  One young boy told me honestly, “I’m really excited but a little nervous.”

As the buses rolled out you could hearing singing and chanting that no doubt continued all the way to Desoto.  They were kind enough to host these younger campers for the evening.  Those same buses, once unloaded, returned with the older girls from Desoto.

At Alpine, we dined on a Fajita buffet, complete with black beans, grilled chicken, sauteed onions and peppers, cheese, salsa, and guacamole.  Carter and her crew go all out to make the girls feel welcome.  Cut blue and pink hydrangeas in mason jars adorned the center of each table in the dining hall.  The scene was set for the dance in the gym with twinkle lights hung from rafters along with multi colored bandanas strung on twine overhead.

Our DJ’s for the evening played all the old favorite line dances.  Desoto girls know them instantly and begin to motion with the beat.  The Alpine boys gladly follow along.  We mix in some newer favorites and the night is set.

Very appropriately, camp minister Jordan Griesbeck brought us a message from Luke 15 this morning and talked about how Alpine is a place where we celebrate a lot. We celebrate birthdays, we celebrate special events like Mountain day, we celebrated last night.  Luke 15 brings us various parables that Jesus told where people celebrated the finding of something that was lost (sheep, coin, and most dramatically, a son).  He reminded us that the Bible is not just full of rules and no fun.  It’s full of celebration especially when lost souls are found.  And that we’ll celebrate to no end one day in Heaven.

The images were vivid and fresh after last night’s celebration with Desoto.  And again today at lunch when the winning tribe celebrated their slightly larger point total for week 2.  The Mohawks came out ahead and thus enjoyed an extra bowl of ice cream.  The competition is close and it’s anybody’s to take for the term.

Sunday lunch is traditional.  Crispy baked chicken breasts, green beans, brown rice with gravy, rolls, and pears await us after church.  This afternoon each cabin will pick a fun activity to do with their counselors.  A few cabins are playing board games on our back deck while making homemade ice cream. I’ll probably need to sample some!  Other cabins will go on hikes or maybe have a scavenger hunt around camp.

Late this afternoon, before showers, Richard will cut cold watermelon on the team sports field for all to enjoy.  Sundays at Alpine are joyous.

Alright, I better go check on that homemade ice cream . . .

Thanks for reading,

Glenn

The Hunters loaded their bus for a day full of fun activities in Chattanooga. They started their day at the beautiful Rock City Gardens. There they enjoyed walking the trails through the gardens and took in one of the most scenic views in the entire southeast, as they were able to see seven states from the overlook at Rock City. From there they headed down into the valley of Chattanooga. After enjoying a delicious hamburger from Cheeburger Cheeburger, the Hunters spent the afternoon rock climbing at High Point Climbing & Fitness, and finished the afternoon by watching the IMAX movie “A Beautiful Planet” at the Tennessee Aquarium. After their IMAX experience, the Hunters enjoyed some delicious pizza from Mr. T’s Pizza, a local Chattanooga favorite, and headed home.

The Hunters weren’t the only ones who had a full schedule of trip day plans. The Trappers headed out to Atlanta and spent the morning touring Turner Field. There they were able to sit in the Braves dugout, take in the view from the press box, and even got see some historical artifacts such as the bat and ball Hank Aaron used to hit his 715^th homerun. After eating a sack lunch, the Trappers headed to tour the World of Coke. They were able to open happiness as they entered the vault of the Coca-Cola secret formula, got a behind the scenes glimpse of the bottling process, and were able to taste different soft drinks from around the globe. If you have a Trapper, be sure to get his thoughts on the Italian drink Beverly. From the World of Coke, we then headed next door to the Georgia Aquarium. The boys were amazed at the big size of the whale sharks and manta rays. Who knew a Manta Ray can grow to be 23 feet wide?! And we took in a live sea lion show, viewing some amazing tricks and acrobatics of these creatures.  After the aquarium, the Trappers enjoyed a delicious pizza dinner on the way home.

The Scouts spent the day in the Great Smokey Mountains of Tennessee as they enjoyed their day at Dollywood, seeking all sorts of fast thrills.  Campers returned proudly exclaiming that they’d ridden rides like the Tennessee Tornado and the Wild Eagle!

It was off to white water raft for our older age groups. The Warriors headed to the Nantahala River for their rafting trip. After enjoying a sack lunch, they were briefed with safety instructions and off they went. The Nantahala is near Murphy, NC and is a perfect beginner rapids course.  The river is cool and refreshing and Nantahala Falls, at the end, provides a big thrill.  On their way home they enjoyed a piping hot pizza dinner at Papa’s Pizza in Murphy, NC. For most boys, whooshing down the river rapids was the highlight of the day. Others couldn’t stop talking about how delicious the pizza was.

For the Braves and first year Chiefs, it was down the Ocoee River. They enjoyed floating down the river, surfing the rapids, and riding the waves.  The Ocoee is a dam controlled river with more adventurous runs.  After their rafting adventure, they headed to The McCallie School in Chattanooga for some swimming and Mr. T’s pizza.

And it was a triumphant, and slightly smelly, return home for our Second year Chiefs after 3 days of backpacking the Appalachian Trail.  The trail passes very near the Nantahala Outdoor Center in Bryson City.  These boys rafted down the river in individual duckies (inflatable kayaks) before enjoying a feast of Papa’s Pizza in Murphy, NC.  A shower with soap and shampoo has probably never felt so good as last night for these boys.  I got a chance to visit with them this morning for a bit.  They loved the trip.  Consensus was it was very hard but completely worth it for the views and the camraderie.

This morning our program director, Richard Cox, wisely let us sleep in to 7:45 after the late night return.  Then Mrs. Gail greeted us with warm, piled high pancakes on this fine Friday morning, a rarity except on Sundays.  Activities got back into business mid morning after each age group conducted a post breakfast Morning Watch.

We’ve had some nice cloud cover today, a welcome reprieve as the heat and humidity have returned from vacation after last week’s cool temps.  Still it’s the Mountain, cooler than most places, with tons of shade.  Tonight we’ll enjoy a camp wide movie in the gym, another wise decision by Richard after two very busy days!

Plus we’ve got to rest up for Saturday night.  Word on the street is we might be putting on our dancin’ shoes!  Stay tuned for that update on Sunday!!

Thanks for reading,

Glenn

Glenn

Anyway, today I took the mic and announced that tomorrow morning bright and early chartered buses would be rolling into camp for Trip Day!  The dining hall exploded with cheers and screams.  It’s a highlight of the term.  Tonight after dinner each age group gathered in a designated spot to go over their particular trip, what to bring, etc.  This post will be a bit short because there is much to do.  We’ll be gone all day, getting back pretty late tomorrow night so I’ll look forward to giving you a complete rundown on Friday.

Now campers are out enjoying a night game with their age group before an early bedtime in the next few minutes.  Reveille tomorrow morning is at 6:30, breakfast at 7 before we load those buses.  Nurses will be offering dramamine at breakfast for any boys that get motion sick on a bus.  And of course all the emergency meds like inhalers will be packed and available. I’ll also mention that these trips are included in your tuition for camp so everything is paid for in advance by Alpine. They won’t need any spending money for anything.  Counselors will have some extra money for any unexpected expenses.

Almost every group will take a sack lunch chicken sandwich and chips and then enjoy either pizza or fast food burger for dinner.  Out of camp that’s not a big deal.  But when you haven’t been in the “real world” in sometime they become real big deals!

Two quick stories.  At lunch a Hunter came up to our table to tell us about his special dessert.  He and his cabin, with counselors had picked some blackberries around camp during some cabin free time.  Having harvested these treats there was only one thing to do.  Take them to Mrs. Gail.  So today at lunch Mrs. Gail made their table a special blackberry cobbler.  She and her mom have been doing this for years for boys who pick blackberries or blueberries.  I guess we were farm to table way before it was cool!

This hunter also wanted us to know that in a few weeks there would be enough blackberries ripe to feed the entire camp for 3 whole days!  He was very excited about his discovery. By the way, lunch was a favorite today.  Chicken fingers with Shazam sauce, butter beans, mashed potatoes, and homemade silver dollar biscuits.

At dinner a Warrior proudly told me that he “hit it in the trash can” at golf.  To make it fun and “campy” we put some metal trash cans out on our driving range at various distances.  They make for great targets.  And it’s very gratifying to hear the ping upon hitting it – which is really hard I’ll say.  I asked him if he’d played golf before and he said no.  He was so pumped to be learning and must be making good progress.

Part of “growing in stature”, one of our goals from Luke 2, is gaining confidence as you grow by learning new skills.  We hope you’ll see that when the boys come home.

Thanks for reading and good night,

Glenn

As I type this most boys are just across the road from where I sit, singing at Glee Club.  Every night after dinner boys gather in the gym to sing camp songs.  All of camp attends for the first few days.  Then it becomes optional, with two big incentives.  Each camper that joins Glee club garners a point for his tribe.  And you get to go to Desoto one extra time to sing for the ladies.  You can imagine the shrieks and screams from the crowd as our boys serenade them to such favorites as “Desoto Girl” (to the tune of California Girls, I wish they all could be Camp Desoto Girls!).  Or “PO Box 432” to the tune of Taylor Swift’s “22” (we span many generations and genres here at Alpine!).

No news from the Chief 2 trip which is good news.  They’ve had nice weather as well so they are probably hiking away, enjoying the sights and sounds of a beautiful trail, and each other’s company.

Breakfast this morning was a time honored favorite, French toast and bacon, with canteloupe and the yogurt/granola bar.  In fact, Mrs. Gail’s French toast is even memorialized in a Glee club song as well, “Say It’s French Toast”.  It’s to the tune of Weezer’s “Say It Ain’t So”(I told you we span many genres!) Talented counselors through the years have written all of our Glee club songs.  Say it’s French toast, Mrs. Gail don’t be a heartbreaker, Dear KB’s I’m aching for French toast and some bacon, I’m starving, I’m famished, I need some French toast on my plate, yeah, oh yeah!!!!

Around camp activities hummed today.  A camper found me at lunch to tell me about his shooting at Riflery.  He had never really shot a gun before camp and was making huge progress.  He was so confident with his accomplishment and promised to bring his most recent target for me to see.  I can’t wait.  My guess is that he’s not the best athlete at home, nor maybe at camp.  This is a place he can excel.

Lunch consisted of chicken patties, cheesy potatoes, steamed broccoli, and rolls.  For dinner the KB’s had the night off to go in town, with their counselors.  We served a taco buffet on paper plates in their absence.  Tostito chips, ground beef, rice, grated cheese, sliced tomatoes, lettuce, salsa, and sour cream lined the buffet.  We get to take our plates down the line and pick and choose.  Unfortunately I like it all so my plate was piled way too high!

Tonight all the Scout age group (rising 6th graders) are out on an overnight, though they split into several camping locations for smaller groups.  Another perfect summer night for sleeping under the stars.

Thanks for reading and good night,

Glenn

Yesterday the Hunters (rising 3rd and 4th graders) asked me to lead their Vespers service.  When I was a counselor in 1997 I had Hunter cabins all summer long.  I loved it!  Plus my girls are about that age.  So I’m a bit partial to these youngest boys in camp.

We built a fire in a rocked fire ring overlooking some large trees down in the gorge that carries Little River.  We sang “Lord I Lift Your Name on High” and “Amazing Grace”.  Then I read them “The Tale of the Three Trees.” If you are not familiar, it’s an old folk tale that tells the story of three trees who had visions of grandeur.  But alas, they were chopped down and sold. Used for a common animal feed box, an old fishing boat, and squared off beams, they resigned themselves to being of no use.  You probably see where this is heading, but they all ended up being used for Jesus at various times in his life.  The campers listened so intently and quickly picked up on the applications.

The excitement in the air this morning was palpable.  For one, it was a new week with fresh activities and some great things in store (Trip day, hint, hint).  Plus I looked down the road to see a lot of excited Chief 2’s (rising 10th graders) and their counselors walking down the road, backpacks on their backs.  These backpacks held sleeping bags, tents, cooking utensils, stoves, flashlights, chacos, and all the ingredients for three days of backcountry food prep. These boys left on a chartered bus after a warm breakfast of grits, scrambled eggs, toast plus the granola/yogurt bar.

It is a pinnacle experience for them.  Something that many of them have looked forward to for a number of years.  They’ll hike on a section of the famed Appalachian Trail in North Carolina.  Leading these boys will be a professional guide service out of Rome, GA, Higher Ground.  We’ve worked with Higher Ground for almost 10 years now and our ministries and philosophies really line up very well together.  We are grateful for their leadership.

I have been fortunate to make this trip twice, once as a camper in 1993 and then as a counselor in 1998.  It is quite a unique experience to hike with a pack on your back containing everything you need to live for that time period.  I remain great friends today with quite a few of the guys I hiked with on both trips.  I credit a large part of that to this trip.

With excitement to match, though not quite as much on their backs, the Trappers (rising 5th graders) hiked out of main camp this afternoon before dinner.  I stood on the road and cheered them on as they carried sleeping bags, water bottles, and flashlights for a night under the stars.  As I write they are cooking hot dogs over an open fire at one of our wilderness campsites.  One counselor packed his guitar on his back as he walked past me so I bet they’ll be some campfire songs.  There are also a few cabins of Warriors out on overnights as well (rising 7th grade).

Otherwise, it’s been a beautiful and normal day on the Mountain.  We are in a rhythm that happens naturally when boys are here for 25 days.  Temps are still cool, many wore sweatshirts to breakfast.  Lunch brought hamburger steak, green peas, mashed potatoes, and rolls, plus the usual salad bar.  This evening we ate red beans and rice with sliced sausage, buttered toast, and cole slaw.

Thanks for reading and good night for now,

Glenn

The Little River flows atop Lookout Mountain for it’s entire course, holding the distinction as the longest river in North America that flows completely on top of a Mountain.  It eventually empties into Weiss Lake near Gadsden, AL but not before carving out the largest canyon east of the Mississippi River.  Little River Canyon is located south of us, and south of where the two forks of the river merge to create such a natural wonder.  We are located on the west fork of the river.  With a dam at our waterfront we are grateful to claim one of the widest portions of the river, perfect for swimming and canoeing.

When I was a camper all we did was swim in the river (which was plenty fun for this city boy!).  Over the years camp has added quite a few “toys” down there.  It started with a tower, a necessary launching point for a 100 foot water zipline.  Holding onto bike like handle bars, the zip carries you on a gradual descent into the river.  Boys get to enjoy two Wet Willie Water slides, both 50 feet in length and made out of canvas.  We pump water from the river in a hose up to the top to slick it up for a fun ride before a fast plunge into the river.  All campers and staff wear PFD’s during any river activity.

A few summers ago we added an aqua jump with a Blob attached and a rope swing.  The aqua jump is a trampoline like circular feature anchored in the middle or the river.

Below the dam are rapids that flow over rocks and around boulders. Today the Waterfront classes began a rotation where they get to swim and play in the rapids during their class.  It’s a favorite part of the term for most.  I love that amidst all of these cool elements the best time is had below the dam in God’s creation.

The weekend began with some unusual excitement around these parts.  The usual afternoon smells and sounds of sweat and screams were replaced with the wafting of perfume and high pitched laughter. The Chiefs (rising 9th and 10th graders) welcomed the Senior campers from Camp DeSoto. The late afternoon consisted of groups rotating through several fun and creative activities. Human Bingo, PA games, various yard games, and Apples to Apples to name just a few.

After their rotations through the various stations, they enjoyed eating some piping hot pizza from Papa John’s followed by a night of dancing in Deerfoot. All of the classic Alpine/DeSoto Dance songs were played. The girls enjoyed teaching all of their boys some of their many line dances, including dances to Stand, Jai Ho, and the ever-popular Elvira.

While the Chiefs were dancing the night away, the rest of camp was having a blast enjoying their own age group activities.  Capture the Flag, floor hockey, and spotlight were just a few of the competitions to be had.  Several of the Warrior cabins (rising 7th graders) were able to enjoy a magnificent night out under the stars, roasting hot dogs and marshmallows.

Saturday nights at Alpine almost always mean it’s time for a feature presentation in the gym.  After a long week of playing hard it’s nice for everyone to get a break after dinner for a movie. Tonight’s feature is Rookie of the Year.  They’ll be treated to a Moon Pie snack midway through the movie (another longstanding Alpine tradition).

This evening we enjoyed “hamburger night” al fresco.  After going through a buffet line, campers and counselors sat in groups around the dining hall and lodge.  Breakfast this morning consisted of hot oatmeal, with brown sugar, scrambled eggs, toast, yogurt, granola, and fruit.

Tomorrow morning we’ll get to sleep a little later (a Sunday morning tradition) and be greeted in the dining hall by hot pancakes and sausage.

Thanks for reading and good night for now,

Glenn