Girls Camp

[The_Tick]

The YW President and I already had a sit down with the Bishop, and he has run it up the pole to the Stk Pres. (His FIL).

We love the YW President of our ward. Outside of my wife and I she is probably the most important adult in my daughters life. She is great.

My daughter does enjoy the socializing part of girls camp. It is just that they have every minute of every day planned. There is no down time.

JL,

Don't blame California. Don't even blame Bakersfield. This is a SP issue. He is a micro-manager and things went from really good and fun in the Stake to really....no fun in the last 6 or so years.

And I did tell you that I went to the play and enjoyed it.

[The_Tick]

Practacle jokes are a no no at camp now.

They will get you sent home from our camp.

[JohnnyLingo]

JL,

Don't blame California. Don't even blame Bakersfield. This is a SP issue. He is a micro-manager and things went from really good and fun in the Stake to really....no fun in the last 6 or so years.

And I did tell you that I went to the play and enjoyed it.

Trying to make fun of Utah Mormons = funny, trying to make fun of California Mormons = not funny. Got it.

[myboynoah]

Please tell this story.

I started to write it down, but frankly, it is so silly that I couldn't go on.

One problem of a lay ministry is that we get what we pay for.

[falafel]

Trying to make fun of Utah Mormons = funny, trying to make fun of California Mormons = not funny. Got it.

I seriously think you did not get it.

[The_Tick]

Trying to make fun of Utah Mormons = funny, trying to make fun of California Mormons = not funny. Got it.

Settle down Francis. I was pointing out that it had nothing to do with the state I live in. It had to do with the people in my Stake.

I don't bash Utah Mormons either. I leave that to the pros on this board.

[Mrs. Funk]

In our ward, we had a sacrament meeting devoted 100% to each girl in attendance at Girl's Camp giving a summary of the activities. Well-intentioned, but we heard the same 4-minute talk 15 times that day...

Anyway, having attended GC, it seems--much like EFY--an exercise is systematically exhausting young people and then having a testimony meeting. During the testimony meeting, sleep-deprived and homesick girls splutter and bawl and confuse emotional and physical exhaustion for an intense spiritual experience.

I'm unsure about other GCs, but they had us running from 6:30 AM until after midnight. Every minute was planned with this activity or that... even our "free time" was structured.

GC didn't do much for me. I returned home exhausted and dirty and confused. We weren't really "camping." They made us use our tents to store our stuff (and girls bring A LOT of crap to "camp") and then sleep under the stars instead of in the tents.. One year, we had a crazy windstorm that was kicking up little dust devils and we were told to hunker down in our sleepingbags.

Minor infractions that normally would slide were suddenly a big deal. One girl was drawing on another girl with a permanent marker, and they BOTH were sent home because they were apparently trying to make a tatoo?? A girl gave another girl a back massage and they were disciplined and told that daughters of God don't touch each other like that. The whole thing is mindboggling to me.

[myboynoah]

Two more differences:

* The girls have much, much better food. Much, much better.

* For some stupid reason they didn't enforce the no-cellphone rule at girls camp. That caused problems.

[JohnnyLingo]

During the testimony meeting, sleep-deprived and homesick girls splutter and bawl and confuse emotional and physical exhaustion for an intense spiritual experience.

Wow, that's just harsh. Were you involved in the planning meetings on how to manipulate young women into thinking they were having a spiritual experience?

Settle down Francis.

LOL! Right, because your response of "Don't blame California. Don't even blame Bakersfield" was very laid back. Funny.

[Swimmer]

We can't stand girls camp at our place. This is my daughters 5th and last year.

I am glad that this is our last year with the oldest. Saddened that next year is the first year for our youngest.

We hate girls camp in my household as well. My oldest daughter is 17, and has always attended girls camp since she was 11 years old. Yes, they allow 11 year olds to go if their birthday is before a certain deadline. Anyway, every year single year, I have had to pick her up a day or two early for a big swim meet. She would always miss out on the last week of preparation for the meet, but was willing to do so because she thought she was doing what she was supposed to by attending camp. It always seemed to work out very well.

However, last year, we were told that if she could not attend the entire week of camp, she would not be allowed to go at all. So, she has not attended the past 2 years, and feels like she has missed nothing. Her swimming, education, playing the flute, and the gospel are her life, but she is not willing to give up what she loves to do in order to please some busy body church leader.

My youngest daughter is 8, and is just getting into competitive swimming, but unless things change, she will never have the opportunity to attend girls camp, and frankly...I could not care less. I believe girls camp should be about enhancing lives rather than taking girls away from what they love. And by the way, I feel the exact same about mid week church meetings for the youth. My son has had nothing but static because he chooses to work, swim, and do homework rather than attend Young Mens meetings every Wednesday evening.

[TripletDaddy]

Two more differences:

* The girls have much, much better food. Much, much better.

* For some stupid reason they didn't enforce the no-cellphone rule at girls camp. That caused problems.

Did they have cell phone reception at camp? Our stake doesn't even bother enforcing the no cell phone rule. Once they get out to the mountains, nature enforces the rule for them.

The no iPod rule, on the other hand....

[KillerDog]

In our ward, we had a sacrament meeting devoted 100% to each girl in attendance at Girl's Camp giving a summary of the activities. Well-intentioned, but we heard the same 4-minute talk 15 times that day...

Anyway, having attended GC, it seems--much like EFY--an exercise is systematically exhausting young people and then having a testimony meeting. During the testimony meeting, sleep-deprived and homesick girls splutter and bawl and confuse emotional and physical exhaustion for an intense spiritual experience.

I'm unsure about other GCs, but they had us running from 6:30 AM until after midnight. Every minute was planned with this activity or that... even our "free time" was structured.

GC didn't do much for me. I returned home exhausted and dirty and confused. We weren't really "camping." They made us use our tents to store our stuff (and girls bring A LOT of crap to "camp") and then sleep under the stars instead of in the tents.. One year, we had a crazy windstorm that was kicking up little dust devils and we were told to hunker down in our sleepingbags.

Minor infractions that normally would slide were suddenly a big deal. One girl was drawing on another girl with a permanent marker, and they BOTH were sent home because they were apparently trying to make a tatoo?? A girl gave another girl a back massage and they were disciplined and told that daughters of God don't touch each other like that. The whole thing is mindboggling to me.

This might be my favorite post ever.

[faith]

My best friend’s father was in charge of the scouts when I was a youth. My friend and I would get so infuriated because we saw such a double standard between the boy’s scouting program and girl’s camp. We felt like the boys actually learned valuable survival skills, while the most rigorous things we ever did was go on an overnight “Adventurer” hike, which was only one night, and we had to make a fire and cook our own meal. We begged and begged to go on the Eagle Scout hikes and camping trips to no avail. Our Branch President sweetly tried to put the same honor on the “Young Women Recognition Award” that is bestowed upon those achieving Eagle Scout, but we all knew that it was a totally different sort of thing. We resented that we weren’t given the same sort of opportunities as the boys and that as girls we were only expected to really work on our spirituality.

Even with our frustrations at not being allowed to be involved in the scouting program, my best friend and I absolutely loved Girls Camp. We really enjoyed the opportunity to spend time with other LDS girls (we had hardly any in our branch) and to get to know some of the adults in our Stake better. It was at girls camp where I interacted with older teenage girls and learned quite a bit from them about the world.

[myboynoah]

Did they have cell phone reception at camp? Our stake doesn't even bother enforcing the no cell phone rule. Once they get out to the mountains, nature enforces the rule for them.

The no iPod rule, on the other hand....

Apparently so. They were kind of remote, but not remote enough.

What's a mountain?

[myboynoah]

This might be my favorite post ever.

That's some very high praise, Mrs. Funk.