July Fourth in Maine, what could be better? Sunny skies, a warm breeze coming across Long Lake, and the annual parade that takes place in Naples. Since it is a holiday and all our campers stay in camp to avoid traveling on overcrowded roadways, we took this opportunity to take our individual and bunk photographs. Dressed in uniform, the boys posed for the camera, so at the end of the season they will leave with a memento.
Another tradition is our bunk videos, when our campers have an opportunity to “ham it up” and express the uniqueness of their cabins. These bunk videos will be in our yearbook, which is produced in-house and sent home around Thanksgiving.
Once a week, we do a nurses’ inspection. The same nurse is assigned to your son’s bunk and checks your child from head to toe. Very often a boy will get a rash, or a scratch, but wont feel it is worthy to go to the health center. By having the same nurse visit the same boys on a weekly basis, we feel there is a much greater chance we can properly manage the medical needs of the children. Since we were all in camp for pictures, today was the perfect time for the nurses to do the weekly inspection.
After lunch, our Crows and Braves boarded buses and made the short trip into Naples for the annual Independence Day Parade. Accompanied by some of the Senior campers (Okees) and a Camp Takajo marching band, the boys sang patriotic songs AND danced their way down Main Street.
As a special surprise, I chartered the Songo River Queen, a double-decker river boat. The boys boarded the boat at the end of the parade, and cruised down Long Lake directly to our dock.
With spirits high, we had a raffle after dinner for Warriors, Juniors, and Seniors. The screams of excitement could be heard echoing down the lake. Since the town of Naples has a fireworks display in the evening, we will host our fireworks on July 5. It is great to be an American, and it’s great to be at Camp Takajo. Happy Fourth of July!
