OUR STORY
WE ARE WAUKEELA
CAMP LIFE
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Waukeela has been welcoming new campers for over 90 years!
Our two-week program is designed with intentional goals to help each of our campers develop and grow.
We offer an introductory, two-week option for first-time campers who are entering 3rd to 5th grade. Normally we only offer this introductory camp to first-time campers but we do make exceptions occasionally due to individual circumstances. We always ensure that our two-weekers have a very experienced counselor to help them settle in quickly to Waukeela, especially as it may be for some campers their first time away from home.
We try to make sure that our two weekers get a taste of every fun thing that Camp has to offer so they get a real feel for the magic of Waukeela. They are treated just like full session campers but obviously we want them to come back every year as full time campers so we make sure that we cram as many fun activities as possible into their stay. On their last morning we treat them to their very own acknowledgement and leaving ceremony, in which every camper is called up to the front and recognised and spoken about by their counselor and fellow campers.
We can’t wait to welcome your daughter to her first year at Waukeela!
MAY 2035
A Tradition of Growth: Campers to Counselors
Camp Waukeela also offers two 3-and-a-half-week overnight camp sessions. Over time we are seeing more campers stay for the full 7 weeks. Each program is designed to provide age-appropriate growth and leadership opportunities for all Waukeela campers. A high percentage of our campers go through all three sessions, and then become Counselors in Training (known as CITs), then go on to become counselors.
Have you noticed any changes in your child since coming home from camp?
"My daughter is much more confident, and is taking more charge of her own care -- no more shower battles, for instance. She's made a time for herself every other day and does it without our prompting! Bedtime is also much easier, too. She is taking so much more initiative. She's self-advocating more as well. How wonderful to see these changes after only 2 weeks!
2 Week Session
12 years old
"I love the people they are becoming, I think they are kinder and kinder to themselves too. There is something about the values you teach and that are even reflected on the letters written to them by counselors, which just instill such kindness and a reminder to treat themselves with the same respect they expect from their friends."
3 ½ and 7 Week Sessions
11 and 15 years old
"I see a more confident and secure young lady. I see her helping out around the house more, communicating more and overall just growing as a person. She now has the confidence to truly be herself and get to focus on what makes her happy and not be so pressured to please her peers"
3 ½ Week Session
15 years old
"More responsible for herself in many ways. I think being away from social media and unplugged gave the mind a rest."
3 ½ Week Session
10 years old
"My oldest daughter went to camp having recently gone through a difficult time with friends, feeling defeated and alone. She came home empowered and confident. And my younger entered a dance competition - something she would have NEVER done a yer ago. It proved to her that she can try new things without shame or embarrassment."
3 ½ Week Session
12 and 14 years old
"My camper has grown, and blossomed developmentally...she has "come out of her shell" to an observable degree. I think that this speaks to the intrinsic experience, but also of the special care that she was under."
2 Week Session
12 years old
"It’s Camp Waukeela talk ALL THE TIME! She loves having something that’s just hers and sharing bits of it with us."
3 ½ Week Session
9 years old
"Confidence is booming!!! And they cannot stop talking about it to family and friends."
3 ½ Week Session
11 and 14 years old
"She is super happy (she is a happy person, but she bloomed ) she sings and dances all day long and her confidence is just as high as a 9 year old can get. The confidence shows because she used to hesitate in trying new things and now she likes to try new experiences without hesitations she just does it. I think camp was wonderful, just what she needed."
2 Week Session
9 years old
3.5 Week Sessions
7 Week Sessions
Most of our campers come for a 3 and a half week session. Throughout the session, campers try all our different activities, they begin to specialize in things that pique their interest and they form deep and meaningful relationships with other campers. Our 3 and half week session program is carefully designed to allow kids to settle into camp, fully immerse themselves in nature, and feel a deep sense of belonging to our community.
