OLYMPICS ARE HERE!!!

Our routine at Golden Slipper Camp is pretty consistent throughout the entire encampment: we wake up, have electives and bunk activities, eat with our bunks, and enjoy an evening program with the rest of camp. Whether it is Monday, Wednesday, or Sunday, you can expect us to follow that routine.

There is one notable exception: Olympics.

For four days and four nights, the camp is divided into four teams that compete in a variety of events that show off the skills we teach at GSC. Some of the competitions are athletic, like basketball, gaga, swim meet, and tug of war, but we also have plenty of non-athletic competitions. The non-athletic competitions include a song contest, sign contest, speeches, and, most importantly, the two characteristics we value most at Golden Slipper Camp: Spirit and Sportsmanship.

Each encampment's Olympics have a bowl title, which is the theme of the Olympics. The timing and bowl of each Olympics are always a surprise to campers and counselors. They find out these elements after an evening activity or during some other time that we are gathered as a camp, when the 'Breakout' happens. The Breakout is an elaborate skit prepared through a lot of hard work from our administrators.

This year, the Breakout happened after MTV Night on Sunday. We began dismissing bunks from the Pavilion when I, Uncle Brando, shut off the lights and played "In the Air Tonight" by Phil Collins -- the traditional signal that something special is happening! When the lights cleared, the Breakout began with Uncle Chad and Aunt Irina hosting the 2008 Academy Awards. The 2008 1st Encampment Olympic Bowl is the Adventure Movie Bowl (thanks to alumni Steph Smoluk for the idea!), and the rest of the skit introduced our four teams -- all of whom are competing for Golden Slipper Camp. The teams are Indiana Jones, Jurassic Park, Back to the Future, and The Goonies. (Click here for pictures of the Adventure Movie Bowl Breakout)

The last surprise surrounding Olympics is who has been selected as a team officer. This is one of the highest honors we can give to counselors and campers during the summer, and they do not take it lightly. For some, like the Captains (staff) or Lieutenants (Council Boys and Girls campers), they only receive this opportunity once in a Slipper lifetime. Here are the team names, colors, and officers for each team:

Team 1: The Goonies (White)
Captains (staff): Aunt Monica Moretsky & Uncle Alex Kronstadt
Lieutenants (Council Girls & Boys campers): Julia Warshafsky & Andrew Hyman
Corporals (Friends & Kadden campers): Cheyenne McCollough & Alex Pak
Sergeants (Strauss & Vogelson campers): Alexis Frey & Chris Neri

Team 2: Jurassic Park (Red)
Captains: Aunt Alexis Yett & Uncle Bill Green
Lieutenants: Erica Eckel & Mike Regan
Corporals: Meryl Warshafsky & James McNally
Sergeants: Tamara Psmenitsyna & Jared Roman

Team 3: Back to the Future (Blue)
Captains: Aunt Abby Heller & Uncle Michael Reeve
Lieutenants: Caitlin Rose & Danylo Zatserkovnyy
Corporals: Gabriel Fernandes & JaNaye Jones
Sergeants: Veronica Dilorio Marsden & Daniel O'Connor

Team 4: Indiana Jones (Yellow)
Captains: Aunt Whitney Ford & Uncle Isaiah Richardson
Lieutenants: Alison Ormont & Ilya Gourin
Corporals: Alyssa Loera & Eric Groysman
Sergeants: Viktoriya Manasyan & Patrick Gibson

Congratulations to all four sets of officers, and good luck over the next four days!!!