Scouts and Leaders coming to Scout Camp.
Summer Camp Newsletter No 1 2024
I’m hoping that this newsletter finds you all well and at last, like me, getting into the Christmas spirit. And hopefully you are all getting enthused and sort of half ready for the up-and-coming Summer Camp that starts on the Third of January 2025.
Please arrive at the Waitawheta Camp site at the back of Waihi after 1 pm on the third of January, and before two o’clock. Our first meal supplied will be dinner time. So please have had your lunch before you arrive. And we will need to be all set up and functioning as a full camp site by the time the Welcome Ceremony starts.
We are very short on Leaders and Parents staying on our site this year, so we are desperately in need of many extra hands to help us with the set up. So, with that in mind, we will be needing and expecting for all the adults to stay for a good length of time and help put up the tents for the Sleeping and the Dinning area.
Your first job will be to register your Scout on arrival, with Sue & Rebecca, over in the office area and then after that you can then head over to the site with the Youth and gear. Please think about your own comfort as well, with sunscreen, hats and snacks as you could be there for 3 or so plus hours.
I will now just take a few minutes to introduce myself. In case this is your very first Summer Camp. My name is Janine Van Marrewijk (My Scout name is Magpie) and I come to this 2025 Summer Camp as the Scout contingent Leader, with plenty of years of valuable and learned and experience not only in Scouts Camping, but I have attended many Jamborees and countless Summer Camps. Each Camp is different and learning different things, each time is a given. I am looking forward to this years challenges.
Each Leader on site will get a allocated Job so Leaders please give some thought on where you think you can best be utilised. We have jobs like 1st Aid officer. Water and Gas duties. Tent duties. Washing line duties. These are some that need to be checked and sorted each day. And when there are issues, Scouts will then know who best to ask to help sort them.
Youth will be in allocated tents, according to their Age. As we aim to have the youngest Scouts all together in a similar aged tent and not being kept up by the older scouts talking about different things. If you have a Scout that has an adverse reaction to a tent mate we will deal with it after a few days, if and only if needed.
If you have youth with daily or maybe, only sometimes, medical issues, and Medications, please hand that personally to me so that so I can have a thorough understanding of the requirements needed.
Food allergies can be another issue, and it is important you are upfront with all expected reactions including the severity of reactions we can expect. I know from experience that Parents expect their young people to follow the normal diet for themselves as if they were at home, but away at camp it could be difficult to keep them to their norm, and often a whole range of parent supplied foods are sometimes ignored by the youth and they take the opportunity to eat the same as everyone else. Please talk to me privately by phone before the camp or when you have my full attention during the camp set up time. So I can encourage the youth to eat according to requirements.
Lists of Gear needed and what to bring with you will be on the Web page, however. A couple of things need to be individually mentioned here.
It will say a rain jacket. Please supply a rain jacket that will keep them really dry. Activities continue during the rain. Parents have been known to send their scout with the light weight jackets that are wet through in no time and the youth spend their time wet and miserable. Or I end up heading home and find jackets that are suitable amongst my farm jackets. Please don’t allow them to bring their most favourite often very inappropriate jackets that they no doubt love and want to wear, but don’t actually keep them that dry in a rainstorm. Please pack two if need be, a light weight rain shower jacket and a heavy duty rain coat. Gumboots are also an optional extra you could consider bringing.
The other big bugbear I usually encounter is the light weight sleeping bags youth sometimes arrive with (you know the ones, a barbie or Thomas the tank engine themed ones) these sleeping bags are only designed for indoor use and not for tents for nighttime sleeping. I apologies if that sounds terribly condescending to our experienced scouters, but I have seen it many, many, times. A warm extra blanket is needed as well, if they are hot sleepers a cotton sheet may be handy as long as they keep a sleeping bag next to them so as to pull over themselves at 2 in the morning.
Our sleeping tents are usually a mix from different groups, and I hopefully hear from each group as to what they can bring, or I will be ringing each group for a chat, with a list of needed requirements. I personally like to have two room tents with floors in, that sleep 5 youth comfortably or six at an absolute push. If you have some available to bring please get in touch with me. I find they stand up to the Waihi Wind well and prefer these for our two-week Summer Camp.
All tents stay up on site when the Scouts leave for the use of the cubs that are arriving the next day and come down and packed away on the last day, of our Cub Camp. Please if you can take the time to put up the tents you are bringing and check things like water proofing, zips, polls and guy ropes etc, and that all the tents have all their needed equipment with them. And hopefully you will then take the opportunity to mark your tent poles with matching coloured tape and paint on your peg ends, so it all can be easily distinguished as belonging to the correct tent.
All youth are expected to be up off the floor in high stretchers. Bags can then fit under them. And this makes for a roomier and hopefully tidier tent. No floor matrices allowed. And small, low to the ground “W” type stretchers are not useful. If you need to, please ask around to borrow the appropriate type of stretcher. I have a few spare ones I usually bring with me if you require one of these, please don’t hesitate to book one from my lot. I have 5 spare ones available.
There is no need to bring the usual ditty bags as we have a full set of cutlery and plates coming to camp to use. A small personal first aid kit would be handy. (its probably on the list to bring.) with plasters in it and extra insect repellent and extra sunscreen. Extra extensive supplies will of course be on the cooking trailer, but their own one encourages a little bit more independence.
Personal water bottles will be needed and should be clearly named and also a favourite cup for milo and orange juice are all that will be required.
There is a tuck shop on site and extra pocket money could be useful. There will be badges and extra scouting things for sale. Including soft drinks and sweets and ice blocks. If you feel more confident with putting a small allocation of money in separate envelopes for daily distribution, please feel free to do so. Clearly name them and seal them and hand them to me on arrival.
I will put out another newsletter to talk Tents and gear soon. How ever, If, you have any questions or need to get in touch please email me with concerns. And I am looking forward to meeting you and spending time with the excited and keen scouters this coming January.
Yours in Scouting
Janine Van Marrewijk
0274171031
vanm@xtra.co.nz