Somehow, Peter and I found the strength to enjoy Knoxville, despite the sickening sea of orange that surrounded us (sorry, it’s just hard for us Alabama fans to take). Actually it was very fun. We spent the day interviewing guys in the student union, then got a chance to take some old friends out to dinner at Litton’s in Knoxville. Weston Duke, Carter McCall, Steven Thompson, Evan Warner, Garrett Smith, Taylor Stewart, Thomas Hendrix and Philip Gilman all came by to see us at dinner. Steven strongly recommended the pimento cheese “Thunder Burger” to me, but it was only after the monstrous hulk of a sandwich came out that he mentioned he had never tried it. Thank you, Steven.

After, Litton’s we headed over to RUF, where we got to hear a riveting sermon and meet up with even more old friends. Evan, Steven and Carter agreed to pose for a picture with me, which Carter seemed pretty excited about:

From Knoxville we journeyed over to Nashville, to meet some guys from Vanderbilt. What a gorgeous drive. The only thing more beautiful than the changing leaves was this beauty standing proudly by the highway:

Next time I’m voting for that instead of the Hampton Inn.

Nashville was awesome. We ran into Carver Morgan at lunch, then started up with a few interviews that afternoon. We got to see Carver again that night, along with Stephen Maroda and Margaret Pless (my sister). The three of them joined Peter, Glenn and me for dinner at Panera Bread before we went to Vandy’s RUF service.

Traveling around and seeing friends is certainly my favorite part of this job, and the people we got to see in Knoxville and Nashville made the trips worthwhile. Our next stop is Starkville, MS on Tuesday, where we’re meeting up with our Bulldog friends for some Barbecue at The Little Dooey. Wednesday we’ll drive over to Oxford and meet our friends there for a hot meal at the Pizza Den. Any former staff members in the area are welcome to join us. We’d love to see you!

Although I’ve posted a few times on the blog, I feel I haven’t formally introduced myself. My name is Weldon Pless, and I recently began working here at Alpine full-time. I was a camper for 9 summers, worked in the kitchen for 2, and then worked on staff for 4. Needless to say, I’ve spent some quality time here at Alpine, but not as a full-time employee.

Peter Hurt also recently began a full-time job here, and he too is no stranger to camp. Peter grew up just down the road (his parents run Camp Desoto), and he’s spent his fair share of summers camping and counseling at Alpine. We like to tell people we’ve spent a combined 30+ summers on the mountain, just to make it sound a little more impressive.

At first, I think Peter and I both found the off-season work to be very different from camp during the summer. The obvious difference is the lack of people. A quick Google search will show that the population of Mentone is 478, a number that easily doubles when the camps are in session. It was so quiet in those first weeks after camp that I almost felt like I should whisper, like I might disturb Mentone if I spoke too loudly.

As the weeks passed, however, I realized something interesting: Camp never closes, it only disperses. Camp really is about the people, and when we open up the gates on closing day we’re not ending Alpine for the summer– we’re releasing it.

Part of our job with Alpine is to travel from town to town, getting the word out about camp. Through this, Peter and I have the unique opportunity of seeing Alpine all over the southeast. We see it when we visit the Tyner’s in Oxford, or the Gilbert’s in Nashville. We see it when we put on a slide show for a group of boys at Jackson Academy. We see it (begrudgingly) on LSU’s campus as our friend Tim Lindsey gives us his informative tour of Baton Rouge. The Alpine family is everywhere.

Peter and I are excited about the chance to be part of something so much bigger than ourselves, and we’re thankful for the Alpine family that welcomes us in each and every town. If Peter and I have 30+ summers, I think it’s safe to say that with the friends we make at camp, and the Alpine friends we’re meeting every day on the road we’ve got about 10,000+ summers. Thanks for making our job fun. It’s nice to meet you.

Weldon

Registration info will be mailed out after the new year.  Space is always limited so get that application right back to us.

We’re fired up because it’s time to start staff recruiting!  November is almost here and that means it’s time to strike out on the highways and byways of the South to some of the coolest places around – college towns.  Weldon, Peter, and I head out next Tuesday to Knoxville and the University of Tennessee.  We’re looking forward to getting dinner with our Tennessee staff and then doing interviews with some new prospects.  Evan Warner is setting those up so talk with him if you know a great prospect.

Wednesday will find us on the move to Nashville for a little time hanging out at Vanderbilt.  We had a great group of Vanderbilt guys last summer including Stephen Maroda, Nelson Graham, Andrew Dudas, Patterson Fenelon, Peyton Davis, and Carver Morgan.  We’ll have a reunion with these guys and are counting on interviewing a number of their friends (Stephen Maroda is setting those up).

The next week will find us at Mississippi State and Ole Miss.  New RUF pastor Brian Sorgenfrei and his wife Liza are friends of ours (and he is a former staff member), so we’re looking forward to seeing them and having dinner with all the Bulldog faithful (hopefully at Little Dooey’s, some of the best BBQ in the state of Mississippi in my opinion).  Talk to Brian or Price Davis, who’s setting our schedule, about interviews at State.

Then on to Ole Miss where Carter and the girls will join us and hopefully the O’s too.  We always have a great time staying at the Inn at Ole Miss and interviewing guys while looking out over the lovely Grove (Talk to Sumner Abraham about setting up an interview there).  3 year staff member Hammond McEver is the new RUF intern there after graduating from Washinton and Lee last May so it’ll be great to catch up with him.  And Les Newsom, longtime RUF minister there is an Alpine alum and good friend.  The highlight of the week will be staying for the weekend in Oxford to see if the Rebels can hold their own against the solid looking Tennessee Volunteers.  We’ll be setting up an Alpine tent in the Grove so please come by and see us if you’re there that weekend (more on the location later).

Tentative plans for the week before Thanksgiving call for trips to Auburn and Georgia.  More on those soon.  We also hope to travel to Wake Forest, Virginia Tech, Virginia, and Washington and Lee the week after Thanksgiving.

Veteran staff, we hope to see you out on the road.  Thanks for continuing to spread the word to your friends about Alpine.

For rapids that flow,

Glenn

Like September, October is full of travelling for the Alpine crew. Glenn and Peter kicked off the month with a slide show at the Gilmer’s home in Mobile. The Gilmer’s sons John and Lee were both on staff, and their other son Walter will be a Chief II this summer. Needless to say, the Gilmer’s are an Alpine power-family, and the slide show was a great start.

The next stop was Atlanta, which was perfect because the Alpine off-season crew had U2 tickets! The concert was epic, as you would expect, and Bono rocked the house (even though we were about a mile away from the stage).

Glenn went on to do slide shows in Lookout Mountain, New Orleans, Gulf Port and Hattiesburg. Unfortunately I stayed back at camp during these, but he said they were all really fun. I got to jump back on the tour for  a three-day stint in the Pelican State. First we headed to Shreveport, which was awesome. The Barro’s house is beautiful, and it was great to see Mikey and Thompson again. Peter and I feasted at the Superior Grill, a fine steakhouse just down the road, and it made the whole week of driving worthwhile. From Shreveport we went to Monroe for a showing at Covenant Presbyterian Church. Haynes Barr and his parents were our hosts, and Peter and I had a great time catching up with them.

Mississippi was next, and it didn’t disappoint. I always love the drive through the Delta. It’s a lovely change of pace from Lookout Mountain. The Peasters welcomed us to their home in Yazoo City, and the Bobo’s did the same in Clarkesdale. There’s enough Southern charm in those two houses to fill up all of Mississippi. And speaking of Southern charm, we got to meet up with former counselor Mark Noland at Abe’s Barbecue, where I ate more than any one person should.

After the Delta came the Jackson show, which is always one of our biggest. We showed the slides in Jackson Academy, Glenn’s Alma Mater, for some of our favorite past, present and future campers. We ate at Newk’s after, and got to hear the scoop from the newly engaged Malcolm Saxon and his lovely fiance. No, I’m not making this up. Malcolm is engaged.

Our final Mississippi showing was in Oxford. The Tyners offered their living room (and some really good punch) to a handful of boys, and we had a great time sharing and reminiscing about this summer at camp.

It was quite a month of travel, and it got us really excited about seeing all these friends again this summer, and hopefully seeing some of the new friends we made. Tonight we’re off to the Green’s house on Signal Mountain for our last October show. We can’t wait!

We kicked off our slide show tour of the southeast in Birmingham (always one of our favorite stops). Birmingham is a great place to see a big group of campers as well as former staff members. The Hartline, Haynes and Galloway families were gracious enough to host us at the Emmet O’Neal Library, and whoever brought that big pile of Alpine tree cookies deserves an honor camper award.

Our next stop was Memphis, TN. We came for the slideshow, but stayed for the barbecue. Former counselors Rob Langley and Harvey Kay were kind enough to join us at Central Barbecue for a feast that rivaled the Alpine county fair (maybe). I think Peter ate about 3 racks of ribs.

The Nashville show came next. Luckily we had about 24 hours to digest the barbeque before the Gilbert’s were offering hot pizza in their lovely home. Afterward we went to the classic Nashville taco joint, SATCO,  with a whole crew of former Alpine staffers. People warned me about gaining weight in college, but no one prepared me for the Alpine off-season. Nashville was a blast, especially since we got to see some old friends like the Farrs and the Gilberts.

We finished September with a trip to the Cross’s home in Athens, GA. The Cross’s son, Curry, worked some tech magic and got the slideshow going on their TV, and even gave everyone a quick and funny rundown of the Alpine/Desoto square dance we have every summer. It was hilarious. After the slideshow, Peter and I grabbed a milkshake with some UGA students who worked with us this past summer.

With company and food like this, it’s hard to complain about a full-time job at camp. Check the website soon for more updates!

When the guys sing “For rapids that flow” during the summer, I never really picture the rapids being right below our waterfront swimming area.

Camp may be a little soggy, but it hasn’t stopped our off-season groups from having a blast. Baylor School is wrapping up their Freshman retreat here as I type, and Broadway Baptist Church is bringing a group to camp this evening. Hopefully they’ll have a sunny retreat, but as you probably already know, a little rain never slows down the fun at Alpine!

Cities without a location are usually at someone’s home.  For more information on a particular slide show, call our office, 256.634.4404. 

We hope to see you this fall!

Hope to see you there!

We know many of you are busy with football or other sports workouts.  We’ll be thinking about you as you get ready to go back to school.  Work hard and remember what you’ve learned on the Mountain.  Take the Mountain to your school and your friends.  Staring school in the face, I bet there are a lot of you out there who would go for one more game of Slaughterball!  Guess that will have to wait until next year. 

Speaking of next year, today we mailed out the 2010 Earlybird cards that you signed at the end of camp, indicating you’d like to return next summer.  Please talk this over with your parents and get them mailed back in to us as soon as possible.  We want to save your spot before we offer spots to new campers and fill up camp.  Your parents need to mail back the card by September 15th with their signature and a registration fee. 

Hope to see you next summer on Lookout Mountain!  Have a great school year.

For rapids that flow,

Glenn

Will Miller with his nephews Cameron (left) and Ian Bush.

It is always a treat to have camp alumni stop by to visit.  Yesterday, July 8, we had a wonderful visit with Will Miller.  Will was on a business trip in this area with his employer, Phonetree, which specializes in medical software.  Will was originally from Knoxville, TN and was a camper for six summers and a counselor one summer.  Will and his wife, Kenzie, now live in Winston-Salem, NC.  Their two sons, Trey and Duncan, were also Alpine Campers.  Trey is in his 4^th year at UVA and Duncan will be a sophomore this fall at the Naval Academy.  Will has two nephews at Alpine this summer.  They are Ian and Cameron Bush from Appleton, WI.  Ian is on Work Crew and Cameron is a first year chief.  This is Ian’s 10^th summer and Cameron’s 8^th summer at camp.

Will says he still recalls with fondness his first summer as a camper, living in Longbow cabin with John Gilbert as his counselor.  He attributes his faith in Christ to his counselors who nurtured him and provided a strong moral compass for him during those many summers on Lookout Mountain.  Will and his family have a long history with Alpine Camp, and it was such a treat to have him back on the mountain.

Most recently he has written a piece for PBS called “Getting Your Child Ready for Camp“.  It is a great article with very practical advice about going off to camp.  Bob has lots of other great information on his website and blog. 

Bob has been a great friend to Alpine and our family over the years and we are grateful for his contributions to camp.

He was just wishing out loud, not expecting it to really happen, but his mother ran with it.  She secretly contacted his friends and arranged a surprise birthday dinner in Montgomery.  After his sister’s soccer game in Alabaster, Trey’s dad met them by the interstate with Russell Galloway in tow.  Russell distracted Trey all the way to Montgomery, so that he didn’t even realize they weren’t headed back to Birmingham.  They drove up to Chili’s, and Fox Carlson, Duncan Blackwell, John Coleman Poole, and George Sellers were waiting inside.

From left to right: John Coleman Poole (Greenville, AL), George Sellers (Montgomery, AL), Fox Carlson (Montgomery, AL), Duncan Blackwell (Montgomery, AL), Trey Lockett (Birmingham, AL), and Russell Galloway (Birmingham, AL)

Trey was surprised, and the boys were so excited to catch up, eat a meal together, and swap camp stories.  These campers have grown up together at Alpine, and when you see them talking, it is hard to believe that they only see each other for one month every year.  We can’t wait to see Trey, Russell, Fox, Duncan, John Coleman, and George coming back through the front gate for First Term.  Thanks for sending in pictures!

We’re putting two new washers courts at the Ping Pong pavilion.  We’re adding at least one Washers court to the Ridge, as well as a new foosball table and hopefully a ping pong table.  On the Mountain we’re hoping to add a couple Ping pong tables to the porches of Mountain Hollow.  We hope to have a giant sandbox in Hunter Hollow for creating mazes and tunnels and sandcastles.

Tree’s been working on a lot of new games.  Ramp ball’s a human size version of Rollerball like you might play at Chuck e Cheese or the local fair.  The Trappers (finishing 4th grade) this year are going to the Georgia Aquarium and the World of Coke for Trip Day!  This is going to be an incredible trip.  Boys finishing 3rd grade in Junior Camp get to have a tour of the Mayfield Ice Cream dairy in Athens, TN – which of course can only end with one thing – world famous Moosetracks!!  Then they are headed to Chattanooga for a huge surprise that only they will experience on Trip Day.  Here’s your hint: it’s coming out new and it’s the opposite of down. 

Peter Hurt’s going to be heading up Horseback staff this summer - he’s a lifelong Alpine camper and counselor who’s been the Head Wrangler at a dude ranch in Colorado for the last two years (in other words, a real cowboy!).  He’s bought several calves and plans to let some of the older boys who take Horseback be real cowboys.  They will get to round up the steer on horseback. 

No doubt there’ll be many other new activities and games this summer, many invented while hanging out on a cabin porch with friends.  That’s the beauty of camp – no matter what you’re playing, new or old, complicated or simple, you get to do it all with camp friends and counselors in God’s beautiful creation.  We’ll see you soon – can’t wait!

Weldon Pless (far left) with Rob Langley, David Steele, Chris Kerr and Clarke Norton

Here is an essay written by Weldon Pless.  Weldon has been at Alpine every summer since he was in the first grade (only missing one summer).  This year, after he graduates from Ole Miss we are excited that he will join our full time staff.  I think you will enjoy Weldon’s reflections on camp!  

Whenever I buy new music, I buy records. And that’s not just slang for CDs. I’m talking about black, vinyl, old-timey records. The ones you put on and sit back to listen to the entire thing without stopping. To me, Alpine is a bit like those records.

Records are sort of a step back in time. You can’t skip around to your favorite tracks or put all the freshest songs on a playlist. You can’t stick in your headphones and walk around town listening to records, or even play them in your car. But there are some really good things about it too. Listening to records allows you to really listen to the music. Once I take the time to put one on, I sit there and I listen to the whole thing, and I let myself enjoy it. I listen closer to songs I might have skipped if I was listening on my iPod. Stepping back in time to listen to my music actually lets me listen better. It slows me down and holds my attention. 

The same is true of Alpine. Every summer I come back to ride horses instead of driving cars, to watch sunsets instead of watching television, and to sing songs instead of listening to the radio. It’s a step back in time, but it frees me up to really enjoy the summer. 

Sometimes during the school year I don’t give myself a chance to slow down. I never stop long enough to notice the things around me like the sounds and smells of nature that are so prominent at camp. When it rains during the school year, I put on a movie or surf the internet. When it rains at camp, I listen to it.

I also have deeper conversations with friends at camp than I usually do in my life outside. At camp there is time to really talk. Whether it’s while walking to an activity period, playing ping pong, or eating a meal, deep conversations at camp seem to rise up organically. I think it’s because we’re given a schedule and an order in our days, and it frees up our minds to dwell on other things. Alpine lets us take a step back and enjoy living, and it’s one of the biggest reasons I come back every summer.