What a great few days it has been up here. Yesterday we celebrated Chuck Illig’s 50th summer at Robin Hood. Over 50 ex-campers and staff members came from all over the US to surprise and honor Chuck. We had a special dinner in the dinning filled with laughter and stories about Chuck. A dozen or so people dating back from 1951 rose and honored a man who has given his life to the Realm. Chuck has touched over 15,000 lives during his tenure here. He has worked for all 3 owners of RH and is a person who DC and I look to every day for guidance and support. He truly is Camp Robin Hood- a walking and talking history lesson about all that is right in the Realm.
Two of those people who came back to honor Chuck- one a new mother herself and both of whom worked for DC and me our first few years asked a favor of me. They as Scribes of 2002 buried a time capsule behind their bunk. They wanted to dig it up and go back in time. I asked for permission to join them and to also invite this year’s Scribes….the girls started to cry in the dinning hall when we discussed it this morning. Thirty minutes later we hit gold. It was amazing to watch our old and new Scribes cry tears of joy together. I asked all the girls to assemble back here in 10 years. Scribes of 2002 will be parents of campers and some lucky few Scribes of 2015 will be visiting Judges for GW. It made my whole summer – seeing my daughter (currently a Scribe) and all of her friends explode with emotion. Watching these girls lead Girls Camp this summer and knowing that they will be the backbone of the next 6 years at the Realm makes me so proud.
Day four of Color War has begun. Chuck’s 50th year celebration has concluded, Saxon and Scribe speeches are around the corner, Scribes of 2002 accomplished a long standing promise to one another. We all move forward here at the Realm, a special place where 88 years later it is still all about the people….
Woody
