Director Jud's Blog

A Time to Give Thanks... A Message from Director Jud: Teen Summer Camp

Posted by Jud Millar on Wed, Nov 23, 2016

 

We live on a giant ball of water, dirt and rock called The Earth that orbits our star called The Sun.  As we orbit The Sun, we the inhabitants of Earth are traveling through space about 1000 miles per hour.  The Earth is tilted on it's axis at an angle of 23.5 degrees relative to it's Summer-Camps-For-Teenagers.jpgorbital plane around the sun, this time of year those of us who live in the northern hemisphere, specifically at 40.5762 degrees north of the equator we start to trend further from the sun.  During the summer month we trend closer to the sun and all of us at Stone Mountain Adventures enjoy warm temperatures and are able to swim in Raystown Lake, go white water rafting, wear flip flops and chacos all summer and live in shorts and t-shirts.  As we trend further from the sun the temperatures begin to drop and the leaves change color from deep green to bright oranges and red and then to brown and eventually fall to the ground to be turned into much and then to dirt.  As we trend still further from the sun temperatures continue to drop hovering around and below the freezing mark and the moisture in the air freezes and falls first as now flurries and then as snow storms.  This change from 85 degrees + in July and August to 15 to 35 degrees in the late fall and winter months is dramatic.  We earthlings call this the changing of the seasons.  

I am thankful for the changing of the seasons and recognize the changes in my behavior and emotional state as a result.  I have so much more to be thankful for...

 

I am thankful to all the families who put their trust in me...summer-camps-in-pa-2.jpg

Choosing the right summer camp for any child can be a daunting task.  Once you have decided on a camp there is a "leap of faith' that takes place in trusting that camp with your child.  I am thankful to our families at Stone Mountain Adventures for putting their trust in my with their precious children and I take that responsibility seriously.  I have always inherently known this but now as a parent I feel it more personally now.  I am thankful to our SMA Families.

 

I am thank to our incredible summer staff...

overnight-sleepaway-camp-in-pa.jpgHaving been a camp counselor at SMA Summer Camp for Teenagers Summer Camp for Teenagers for 3 summers and the Director of the Global Works Fiji, New Zealand and Australia Program for 7 summers I know first hand the amount of energy, personal commitment and hard work it takes to work at a summer camp.  I also know that we cannot reach our mission of creating growth experiences for teenagers without the dedication and enthusiasm of our incredible staff.  To our camp counselors, our kitchen staff and our support staff in the barn and around camp I am thankful.

 

I am thankful to our campers..

I was a camper at Camp Minnehaha for 1 summer in WV and a camper at SMA overnight-summer-camps-in-pa-1.jpgTeen Summer Camp
Teen Summer Camp
for 5 summers.  I would like to express my gratitude to our fantastic former and current campers for believing in me, for being excited about our activities AND bunk junk AND Jud Games.  Without you there would be no Stone Mountain Adventures.  I am thankful to our campers.

 

I am thankful for my family...

teen-summer-camp-2010.jpgI grew up at camp on the farm the eldest of 6 boys with the most supportive and loving parents a person could ask for or imagine.  Now at the age of 44 I am so lucky to be a husband to a truly remarkable woman and a father to 2 incredible children ages 10 and 8.  I am inspired by my family everyday and work hard to be an exemplary person and to show kindness and compassion while living life with a sense of humor.  I am thankful for my family.

 

 

I am thankful for my health...

At a young age my family instilled in me a love of the outdoors and a passion for sports. the-best-summer-camps-in-pa.jpgThrough the rigors of sports practices and games I learned to love pushing my body to it's limits.  I have learned through my outdoor experiences rock climbing, mountain biking, hiking, fly fishing, wakeboarding, snowboarding and skiing that the better shape my body is in the more success I find in these activities.  I do not take my health for granted, I try to find time each day to make my body better.  I recall my freshman year at Elon University University going to workout with my friend Jon Sup and we both concluded the"We only have one body to live this life in, we better find time to take care of it and make it stronger everyday." SMA is one of many summer camps in PA. I am thankful for my health.

 

"We Must find the time to stop and thank the people who make a difference in our lives" - John F. Kennedy

New Call-to-action

 

Overnight Sleepaway Camp in PA

 

Overnight Summer Camps in PA

 

Summer Camps for Teenagers

 

Summer Camps in PA

 

Teen Summer Camp

 

The Best Summer Camps in PA

 

The Best Summer Camp in PA

 

 

 

About Director Jud's Blog

This blog will give you the "411" about everything that is Stone Mountain Adventures Teen Summer Camp!  Everything from "Summer Updates" to useful family and camp resources.  Check it out! 

Subscribe to Email Updates

Recent Posts

Posts by Topic

see all