Camp friends are the best friends…
Mary and Rowan at Nature class
For this last installment of of Refer a camp Month, we will be talking to Rowan and Mary Ruth, 7th graders, who were first time campers together in 2022. They are more than your average camp friends, as they have grown up together in the Twin Cities. Mary Ruth referred Rowan to camp, and they both got to join Club Paradise last year. I sat down to talk to them about what it was like referring your friend to camp you had not been to yet, and how their experiences went as first time campers together…
How did your friend first approach you about camp? Is this the first time you had heard of Foley?
M: Well my older sister Frances went to camp first and would tell me all about it when she came home every summer. So Frances sold me and then I sold Rowan!
What did they say that convinced you the most to try it out?
M: I told Rowan all about waterskiing, because she had always been scared to try it.
The girls with friend Paloma at Crafts
R: Yes the waterskiing! Because Mary is right I was terrified to try waterskiing, but I just thought ok well maybe I would try it this summer if I went, it made me really want to go then.
What was your favorite memory from last summer? With your friend?
M: Just being together in the cabin was so fun!
R: Yeah we would shine our flashlights at the ceiling at night and have little puppet shows during Flashlight Time.
M: Oh and I loved Friendship Campfire! Because Rowan and I had made so many mutual camp friends, mostly in our cabin, and we all got to be together during Friendship.
R: I totally agree with Mary, it was so nice to be with everybody. We still talk to our camp friends! We have a Pocahontas Cabin group chat that we text each other in.
M: Oh and we signed up for Archery together every sign up! That was super fun to be together and do that.
R: That’s right! And we both got a couple of awards too, definitely doing that again next year.
How would you tell someone about Foley now?
Mary and Rowan at Archery
M: I would tell them about the amazing experiences they will have. They will meet lots of new people and make great friends, and try things they couldn’t do anywhere else.
R: Yes! I convinced my brother Dexter to come this summer for the first time. I told him there would be activities he had never tried before.
What are you most excited to come back and do? Try new?
R: You know what I am so excited for actually, is windsurfing! I always saw people doing it on the lake in the cities and wanted to try. And I did it last year and I loved it!
M: I can’t wait to make more friendship bracelets, and get back into Archery with Rowan. OH! And I want to try sailing on one of the bigger sail boats. We both did bics last year.
You guys could be on a sailing crew together!
Yes! (screamed in unison)
Thank you both so much, it was so good to catch, and I’ll see you this summer!
M&R: Byyyyyye Ally!!!
Thanks to both Mary Ruth and Rowan for sitting down to chat with me! If you want to find out how to have an experience like Mary and Rowan, check out our Club Paradise! And if you’re not registered for camp yet, head here, go go go!!!!