The following is a fantastic article for staff members, old & new.  An upbeat, enjoyable read for campers & parents, as well.  Enjoy!

http://www.buzzfeed.com/sarahmcf/20-reasons-why-working-at-summer-camp-is-the-best-k6jl

Everybody up, everybody up, up, up!  Rise and Shine!  It’s a beautiful day in Starrucca, PA!  The birds are singing, the sun is shining, the grass is growing.  Everybody out of bed.  Breakfast, in 10 minutes,…see you there!

Now that we’ve gotten your attention,…although it’s only February and the Northeast has been pounded with tons of snow these past few months, camp is constantly on the brain for all of us in the Island Lake offices.  We love hearing from all of our campers and staff, whether it’s via email or social media.  Trip and Dustin are in the midst of their college recruitment tour, seeing lots of previous staff and hiring new fantastic counselors for this upcoming summer.

No time better than the present to send us your thoughts about your Island Lake experiences.  We’d love to hear from our campers and staff, returning and new, with information that we can post here on our blog.  Why not take a few moments to sit down and email us in your warm, cozy homes, whether it’s shout outs to your friends, memories of previous summers, poems about your camp experience, or anything else camp related?

Let’s take a quick trip down memory lane,…remember opening day when you first arrived at camp, ran off of your bus, and ran into the arms of your counselors and friends?  Watching you all scream in happiness as you embraced your special Island Lake friends is a familiar experience we love to reminisce. Evening activities (did somebody say “Revival Night”?), Lazy Days, special events such as Tribals, 4^th of July, and everybody’s favorite, COLOR WAR,…oh so many memories, we can’t even begin to list them all.

But you can!  We’d love to hear from you so you can tell us what you love so much about Island Lake.  Is it the camp directors that you love so much?  (Haha- sorry, I couldn’t resist!)  What camp memories are you daydreaming about while you’re in class?  How often do you look through your camp photos from last summer?  How much time do you spend on the ILC Facebook page?  How many online group messages do you have going with all of your camp friends?  Have you gotten together with fellow ILC’ers this winter?  What are you looking forward to most this upcoming summer?

We want to hear what YOU have to say!  Email us at info@islandlake.com and we’ll post your messages here on our blog as well as in our Island Laker newsletter.  Until then, only 137 days our Island Lake family will be together once again!  ILC U THERE!!!

Cloz Company will once again handle our clothing outfitting this summer.  Remember that there are NO required uniforms at Island Lake.  Anything that you wish to order is completely optional and each camper will receive an Island Lake t-shirt upon arrival at camp.  Flying campers will receive theirs in the mail prior to the start of summer.

Cloz is currently displaying merchandise at various locations throughout the country for “trying on” purposed.  You may also order your camp clothing, process returns and exchanges, and check the status of your order at cloz.com.

Keep in mind that all orders are placed direcctly through Cloz Company, not through Island Lake.

Remember, orders are custom made and they take time to produce.  Ordering early will provide you with time to make any exchanges.

To see a schedule of road show dates and locations, please view the February edition of our newsletter at islandlake.com.  The following is a direct link to the newsletter:  http://www.islandlake.com/pdf/newsletters/February2014.pdf

Greetings from the road!  Every year around this time, Trip and I pack our bags, hug our wives goodbye and begin our journey into parts unknown to find the best camp counselors in the world.  Literally, The World!  This year our travels have taken us to Edinburgh, Scotland, Manchester, England, Oklahoma and Ohio and it isn’t even February yet!  Future trips will take us from the snowy, great white north that is Canada, all the way to the Lone Star State of Texas.  We search high and low, near and far, no stone is left unturned in our search to discover the best and brightest new staff members for our campers at Island Lake!

This summer, when you’re getting artsy in the Arts & Crafts building or dramatic in Theatre and you wonder why so many counselors sound like characters from the Pixar movie Brave, you can thank our visit to Scotland!  In Manchester, we were helped out by two Island Lake favorites and 2014 returners: Becky Matulewicz and Katie Payne (unfortunately, all of Katie’s boyfriends couldn’t make it).  From Manchester, we used a combination of trains, planes, and automobiles to arrive in Oklahoma and have mini-reunion with noted ILC-ers:  Kenny Forehand, Ashley Oliver and Brad Henry!  All of whom send their love back to each and every one of you, and cannot wait to see you all again under the warm Starrucca sun!

Until next time!

Trip and Dustin

We have been very busy here in the winter office getting our staffing needs ready for the upcoming summer.  A lot of returning staff in a variety of departments have already committed to coming back.  We’ve also hired some great new people and we’ve just begun traveling around the globe to hire more outstanding counselors.  We hope to catch up with former staff members during our travels.

Below you will find our travel itinerary for 2014, along with who will be in what time and when.  Staff members should note when we’ll be in your area so you can come visit us.  Even better, call us in advance to make plans to get together while we’re in your neck of the woods. We usually spend the night before each camp fair in the host town, so it’s best to you call us in advance to make plans.  Did somebody say, “Free dinner???”

JANUARY

Jan 21 – Oklahoma State – Trip/Dustin

Jan 22 – Oklahoma – Dustin

Jan 24 – Ohio State – Dustin

FEBRUARY

Feb 5 Guelph – Dustin

Feb 6 York – Dustin

Feb 11 Ball State – Dustin

Feb 12 Indiana – Dustin

Feb 13 Purdue – Dustin

Feb 15 Manchester – Trip

Feb 16 Amsterdam – Trip

Feb 18 Springfield – Dustin

Feb 19 Amherst – Dustin

Feb 19 Texas A&M – Trip

Feb 20 Texas State – Trip

Feb 21 University of Texas – Trip

The campers are still talking about it. Last year’s teen trip to Cleveland and our previous trips to
Boston, Toronto and Niagara Falls, and Montreal were absolutely great. For all campers entering
9th grade and higher, we are going to once again offer a multi-day trip to Toronto and Niagara Falls
this summer. This trip will include visits to the CN Tower, the Hockey Hall of Fame, Canada’s
Wonderland Amusement Park, Ontario Science Center, a boat ride up to the falls, and other
attractions during the 3rd session.

At least one member of the Stoltz family and another camp director will accompany the trip so you
know it will be organized and safe. There is an additional tuition of $625 for this trip. No
payment is due at this time and the additional cost will be added to your child’s tuition.
Our previous trips filled up quickly. If your child would like to join us on this 3rd session trip,
please fill out the enclosed trip form ASAP to be sure that your child does not get closed out. If
your child is not yet enrolled for Island Lake Summer 2014, please fill out the enclosed registration
form along with the trip form. If your child is already signed up for Summer 2014 but is not
enrolled for the 3rd session and would like to join us on this trip, please contact our winter office.
All cancellations for this trip must be submitted in writing by May 1st.

PLEASE NOTE THAT ALL CAMPERS ARE REQUIRED TO GET THEIR PASSPORTS
FOR THIS TRIP.

We’re looking forward to another great summer and a successful trip to Canada!

ILCUTHERE!

Fondly,
The Stoltz Family

We hope you all had a wonderful New Year’s celebration.  Who amongst our Island Lakers made New Year’s resolutions this year?  Who is still sticking to their resolutions and following through with them?  Every year millions of people make resolutions but how many actually stick by them all year long?

We’d love to hear from you about any interesting New Year’s resolutions that you made this year and whether you’re still following them.  Just email us at info@islandlake.com or wendy@islandlake.com, include your full name, and we’ll post your responses here on our blog.  We hope to hear from lots of our Island Lakers!

Happy New Year!

The following article was written by the father of a couple of our long time ILC alumni, Jessica & Ali Elkin.  It’s a great read that we highly recommend.  We thank Larry for including us in his article, as well.  Enjoy and Happy New Year to all!

http://www.palisadeshudson.com/2013/07/summer-camp-is-good-for-parents/

All of us at Island Lake wish you, our devoted camp families, a happy and healthy New Year.  May this upcoming year bring you only wonderful experiences, lots of love, and good health all around.  As we reflect on the 2013 calendar year, the summer is what stands out the most in our minds.  We worked extremely hard to create a joyful, fun-loving atmosphere for all of your children to prosper in.  We are now planning for the greatest Summer 2014 one could ever imagine.

A great deal of Island Lake good and welfare has recently occurred for several of our current and former Island Lakers.  We’d like to take a moment to extend our heart-warming congratulations to the following people:

1.  Corie Kanter– Everyone’s favorite theater director recently received the ring of her dreams,…oh, along with a proposal,…from her long-time boyfriend (& now fiancé), Jackie McHugh. They’ll be tying the knot in August of this summer and we are all so excited for them!  You deserve only the best, Corie!

2.  Amanda Stern– Recently got engaged to her special man, Gregory Schatz.  Although Stern no longer spends her summers with us at Island Lake, she will always be a part of our family (& we will always continue to call her “Stern”!).  She grew up with us as a camper, CIT, counselor, and finally a group leader.  We look forward to her visits every summer, and she will always hold a special place in our hearts.  (Is it too much to ask that they name their first born, “Island Lake”?  Yeah, we didn’t think so but hey, it doesn’t hurt to ask!)

3.  Ali Williams & Zach Brun– Ali & Zach met at Island Lake a few summers ago, so many of us have witnessed their relationship as it has blossomed over the years.  They recently got engaged and we are so happy for them.  We just hope they can still fit ILC into their summers, all the while planning for a wedding.

4.  Christy Bounds– Our former Science Department director recently got married to David Murphy.  Even greater news, they’re expecting a boy in March!  Congratulations to the two of you!  We can’t wait for our future Island Laker to join us in another 7 or 8 years.  In the meantime, please visit us this summer and bring that little bundle of joy with you so we can all welcome him to our ILC family.

HAPPY & HEALTHY NEW YEAR TO ALL!  ILC U THERE SUMMER 2014!

All of us at Island Lake would like to wish our camp families a special happy holidays!  Keep the countdown going, as ILC Summer 2014 will be here before we know it!

ILC U THERE,

Your Island Lake Family

(Bev, Mike, Matt, Wendy, Craig, Trip, & Dustin)