The Spring Lineup

You don't have to wait for summer to enjoy fun, learning, and fellowship at Camp Sound View! Here is our Spring lineup:

MARCH 17 - MUD RUN Come get filthy running our soggy trails and overcoming challenges and obstacles. Guaranteed laughs and you will be helping to send kids to summer camp.

APRIL 1 - EASTER SUNRISE SERVICE Worship (weather permitting) on the waterfront and a pancake breakfast in the dining hall.

APRIL 18-20 - OEE CAMP For kids (10-14) who may have that week off from school. Totally affordable! Come check out our outdoor environmental education curriculum.

MAY 11-12 - MOM & ME CAMP This is Mothers' Day Weekend so this one-night campout for moms and kids to spend some awesome time together ends Saturday afternoon.

MAY 18-20 - SPRING RETREAT Our annual spring retreat for middle- and high schoolers. Come learn, worship, meet new friends, have fun, and plant pumpkins so we have them for the fall retreat.

MAY 25-28 - MEMORIAL DAY WEEKEND FAMILY CAMP. Come for all, or part of the weekend and help us get all of the summer "stuff" out and tested.

A message from Nancyrose

We need your help!! The new outdoor environmental education program at Sound View is starting in April and we are in need of your donations. We are looking for binoculars, microscopes, tripods, magnifying glasses, nets, waders, field guides of the local flora and fauna, other books related to nature or environmental education activities, and anything else that you think might be of use. We are also looking for clipboards that students can use to draw and write during outdoor activities. This is the time to clean out your bookshelves, closets, and garages and donate those books and boots that you haven’t used in years.

Please contact Nancyrose Houston by personal message if you have any
materials you think might be useful. She will direct you to a person
with whom you can drop off your donations in Seattle, Tacoma, or
Olympia. You can also drop them off personally at Sound View Camp!
Thank you so much for your generosity…the supplies will be put to good
use!

Nancyrose comes to Sound View after two years coordinating the environmental education program at Parque Omora, a conservation project in Puerto Williams, Chile, the southernmost town in the world! She is excited to share the things she learned there while working alongside researchers in many different fields: birds, freshwater macroinvertebrates, mosses and lichens, invasive species, climate change, and more. Nancyrose is a Seattle native and is thrilled to be returning to the Pacific Northwest after seven years away, studying in Boston and then migrating to Chile.

She looks forward to the rain, the smell of pine needles, and the delicious Sound View food. Since she has been speaking Spanish almost exclusively for the past two years, be patient with her if she accidentally responds to you en español!

Earn your way to camp LITs!

Sound View LOVES its Leaders in Training (LITs).

LITs have finished 9th grade (going into 10th) and spend two weeks at camp learning how to be camp leaders and putting what they learned into practical use. 

The first week is a lot of fun, still being campers (somewhat), while learning counseling and program leading skills. 

The second week, the LITs help out with the mini-campers (ages 6-9). The six-year age difference allows the LITs to be effective leaders for some totally excited campers.

The two-week experience costs $400.  Even though this program is already quite a bargain (for a two-week camp), here are ways that it can be even less.

1. Enroll in a lifeguard class.  LITs with a current lifeguard certification get 50% off of their fee!   We cannot have too many lifeguards at camp. 
2. Register NOW.  The 15% early-bird discount expires in March.
3. Help out with the Mud Run Fundraiser.  We need teens to assist in many ways with this event and we will reward your help with a $50 credit towards your LIT session.  Email Goody if interested.
4. Help out Memorial Day Weekend.  This is a combination work-weekend and family camp.  Besides receiving some awesome, advance program training (and dish washing experience), you will get $75 credit towards your LIT session.  Email Kurt if interested.

We are looking forward to an awesome summer and training future camp leaders!

Giving Tuesday

Hello Camp Supporters! 

The end of the year is getting close, the holidays are here. This day, Giving Tuesday, is a great time to remember what camp has meant to you and your family. We would love to have your continued support; both prayer and financial.

Many changes have taken place in this last year - a result of prayers and gifts from people who understand the importance of our outdoor ministry.  From the new mini-farm (with the adorable, rescued animals) to the updated waterfront and all that lies in-between, Sound View has undergone some amazing changes with an exciting new energy.  Already, campers are signed up for next summer!  Until then, we are creatively transforming camp into a place with youth/family events that span the entire year.  These you can discover on our website

If you would like to make an end of the year donation online, we would very much appreciate it. or... 

if you would prefer to send a check it can be sent to: 
Sound View Camp
PO Box 296
Milton, WA  98354

Blessings to you and your family this Christmas Season and we hope to see you at Camp very soon!

The Sound View Staff
Kurt Sample, James Goodman, & Natalie Castle

Season's Chill and Early Bird Warmth

Greetings from Sound View Camp!

Well, it's here.  After a wonderful start to fall, the weather is now as it usually is .... chilly and wet.  We took advantage of the sunny, dry days at camp with some much needed renovation projects to better transform Sound View for year-round groups as well as summer camp. Now, we are in 'button up' mode and appreciating our warm, cozy spaces to get some marketing done.

15% Early Bird Discount
is NOW until March 1st.

We really want families to sign up early this year.  This helps us plan more thoroughly and provides a huge discount for those who do.  Rates have not gone up from last year (YAY) but the only discount we offer is for signing up early - a whopping 15%!  To take advantage of the discount, only the deposit is required.

For early, early birds:   A Sound View knit hat will be mailed to those who sign up before January 1st.  What a great 'stocking (hat) stuffer' for campers longing in the chill of winter for the summer magic of camp!

This summer, packed into three weeks,  we are offering:

• Two sessions of Mini-Camp for ages 6 to 9
• Three sessions of Youth Camp for ages 8 to 14
• Three sessions of Expedition for ages 12 to 15.
• One NEW Construction Camp for ages 12 to 15
• Two 2-week LIT sessions.  During week two, they assist with the mini-camp program and gain great leadership skills.
• Volunteer staff positions for those ages 16 and 17.

FIND OUT MORE AND REGISTER HERE

Sound View Camp is truly a remarkable place.  We hope that you will make it a part of your plans for next summer.

Please, Like Us on Facebook.
We are getting close to 1,000 likes, and are curious to see what happens.

Picture Section of Website

I created a new section to the website. "History in Pictures".  We have all sorts of photos in all sorts of form lying around camp - from scrapbooks, to photo albums, to CDs, to images on hard drives and Facebook and I think it would be great to archive these by year on the website.  Many will have to be scanned, resized, and cropped.  Hopefully, the 30+ years of Soundview can be gleaned with photos as well as twenty or so years of Wakoma.

Feel free to send me any pictures (and the year) that should be included.  

Right now I just added some great pictures taken by one of our rovers this summer.  Of course we have more from the summer of '17 and these will be added also.  Enjoy!

Middle/High School Retreat Dates

The Middle/High School Fall Retreat is set for October 27-29.

This is an awesome year to have the retreat so close to Halloween because October 31st marks the 500th anniversary of the beginning of the Reformation!  

So .... (wondering what this is all about) .... besides all the great stuff we have planned for a tween/teen retreat at Sound View (crafts, games, good food, camp activities, fun & fellowship), we will also explore REFORMATION - what it is - why did Martin Luther post his theses on the door of All Saint Church to create the beginnings of the Protestant movement.

Learning and role playing will bring that day to life so you won't want to miss out.

The weekend begins at 6 pm Friday and ends at 2:00 pm on Sunday.  Bring a friend - it will be fun!

MORE INFORMATION - CLICK HERE

Chalet Renovation Fund

First of all camp this summer is going wonderfully.   The infusion of new ideas from James Goodman (Goody) - our site manager (summer program director) - along with a fantastic blend of new and old staff has made this summer a success.  Kids want to come back not only next year - but next week!  

This is our last of three sessions - the fullest yet - and for the next couple of years, I hope to concentrate on filling them with a waiting list before expanding.  Our early-July session was a no-go but we successfully transformed it into a unique family camp week and we know, that with a year's marketing, this will become a popular week with families and a feeder into our youth programs.

Next week we are hosting Camp Fire Orca (Tacoma) as they run their youth camp at our site.  This is coming around full circle as Sound View was once Camp Fire Camp Wakoma with many of our structures built by them (Tree House, Chalets, Longhouse).  It will be wonderful to have them here.

The week after that (August 13-18) we are hosting the Peace Community youth from the Hilltop neighborhood of Tacoma.  This is a new outreach also to youth who would benefit much from being at camp.  At the same time - we are running TEEN RENOVATION CAMP.

Our goal is to make the five chalet cabins heatable (weatherized) so we can expand our capacity by 20 beds and have the ability to host scout groups and family camp groups in that unique village.

The teens that will be helping do this will be learning skills they can take on a mission or use all their lives.  We will be tearing up and laying down a new insulated floor. sealing and insulating walls and ceilings, installing windows, and building custom beds.   

After the work is completed, each teen can take pride in a real service project that will benefit the camp for years.

I am asking for funds to get this done.  We figure it will cost about $1,500 per chalet and we have 5 of them.  They have names - but no one is really attached to those names - so this would be a great opportunity for your church to have a building named for it.  How cool would that be?

So, are you in? 

I have set up a special donation fund for the chalets which you can find here.

Thank you so much for supporting Sound View.  We know we are making a difference - sharing Christ's love -  in kids lives every day.

A great start!

It is AMAZING how much fun you can pack into the first 24 hours of camp.  But, isn't that the point?

Favorite Camp Tools

I am packing up my car with stuff I will need for camp because , the groups are starting to stream in, requiring two of us to live here,  and staff training is happening really soon, and I can no longer rely on commuting back and forth from Anderson Island (where I live) by boat.  This summer, my residence is the Garden Cabin.  I like it - well mostly - it is a long walk to the bath house.

Every staff member has their favorite tools that they bring to camp.  For some - a favorite devotional book.  Maybe for others - a "bag of tricks" - games and such to entertain and amuse any group.  Some bring the things that give them comfort and the willingness to share feelings with all they encounter.  Some bring teddy bears.  Some bring the perfect costumes for all occasions (I don't know how they do it).  Each leader has discovered her or his unique tool, for the toolbox, to make camp a special place unlike any other.

For me - it is my 35 year old 12-string guitar that I bought new after I graduated from college. Does that give you an idea how old I am?  This guitar and I have been everywhere, singing at literally thousands of campfires, on quiet front porches, with friends or often alone.  I think music is a powerful tool and I believe that people who sing together - the old songs, as well as the new - can rejoice in so many ways.  Although I will pick up a banjo, or ukulele, or play the piano when needed - my guitar is the tool that works best for me to reach others to share the camp spirit.

Hopefully you can come to camp this summer and sing with me.  I know all the old "hippy" songs, the ones I made up myself,  praise songs best sung at camp, and the silly ones meant for kids.  I may think my fingers are clever and my mind is sharp to remember all this - but maybe it is my old guitar on autopilot, making the moment special.

Imagine - a life-changing letter

Imagine - a parent receiving a letter that goes sort-of kind-of like this....

_______________________________________________________________________

Greetings from Sound View Camp!

 Your child has been given an opportunity to attend Camp Sound View - for free.    This is a resident (sleep away) camp in Longbranch, WA.  This opportunity is compliments of your local Presbyterian church.

 While at camp, your child can enjoy these activities:

•  CAMPFIRES
• ARCHERY
• ARTS & CRAFTS
• CANOEING & KAYAKING
• BEACHCOMBING
• SWIMMING IN THE SOUND
• SPORTS & GAMES
• SKITS & SONGS
• MORNING CHAPEL
• HIKES, GARDENING & NATURECRAFT
• ROPES COURSE
• UKULELE LESSONS
• PAINTBALL
• CRAZY AND FUN EVENING PROGRAMS
• GOOD FOOD
• ENTHUSIASTIC LEADERS
• MINI FARMING & ANIMAL CARE
• FUN! (AND MORE FUN)

 Please call Kurt at Sound View Camp - 253-884-9202 - (Extension 1) to get your child signed up.  Or, if you have Internet access, you can do it online with the sponsorship code.  If you need help with transportation to and from camp, please call.

We are looking forward to serving your child at camp.

___________________________________________________________________

Now imagine that parent:

• Maybe struggling to stay afloat
• Maybe homeless
• Maybe needing some quality, unhindered time to look for work
• Maybe a refugee
• and trying to be a good parent nonetheless ....

.... and all of a sudden, a chance presents itself for their child to enjoy a wonderful experience away from home, fed, taken care of, in a positive Christian environment.  Wow!  Isn't this what we are all about as the Outdoor Ministry for the Presbytery of Olympia?

A healthy camp is one that is diverse  - full of kids of ALL socioeconomic means who want to have safe, positive experiences in the out-of-doors with caring leaders.  $375 sends a kid to camp for a week and at the same time makes a parent a hero.    

Please consider donating to our scholarship fund so more of these letters can be distributed.

I would look up, and laugh, and love, and lift.

I think this poem is wonderful.  What do you think?

I would be true, for there are those who trust me;
I would be pure, for there are those who care;
I would be strong, for there is much to suffer;
I would be brave, for there is much to dare.

I would be friend of all—the foe, the friendless;
I would be giving, and forget the gift;
I would be humble, for I know my weakness;
I would look up, and laugh, and love, and lift.

For years, the YMCA has used it as part of their Christian "Raggers" program but the poem is much older - dating back to 1906.

The last line is my favorite because I think that it embodies everything we hope to see in a camp leader and what we desire to pass on to each camper.

I would look up - eyes to heaven.
And laugh - because being joyful is God-given.
And love - because we are compelled to do this.
And lift - because it is the right thing to do (no exceptions).

1 Timothy 4:12
Let no man despise thy youth; but be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity.