No Boring Mondays Around Here

There’s no such thing as a case of the Mondays around Alpine! We awoke this morning to clear, bright blue skies and cool temps. We’ve seen a mix of clouds and sun today with nice breezes off and on. A short round of storms rolled through today in perfect timing, during our afternoon rest hour after lunch. It pushed our afternoon activities back a few minutes as we waited for the storms to pass but we were able to adjust no problem.

Today our campers attended all 5 of their selected activities, 3 in the morning and 2 in the afternoon. I was able to get out of the office this afternoon and walk around a bit. Wilderness and Earth Games both chose the wise decision of playing in the wet weather streams left behind from the summer shower. Wilderness held dam building competitions using all manner of natural objects - rocks, sticks, and even some impressive clay like mud. Speaking of mud, Earth Games took a, well, earthier approach to the streams. Mud Day. Less constructive, more creative. Sort of like your engineers and your art majors at college. Regardless, boys played in the streams and the mud, in nature, with not a screen in sight. Glorious. They’re having fun playing in the earth together. What’s also happening is they are learning to navigate relationships and disagreements and the “stuff” of life without you here. Play is the work of childhood. We are serious about our fun here at Alpine.

I also witnessed some of your boys shooting bows and arrows at archery and .22 rifles in Riflery (for the older ones, younger start off with air rifles). Curtis Massey is a semi retired Ft Payne police officer and school resource officer who runs our ranges in the summer. He has the heart of a teacher and loves to see boys succeed under his guidance.

All 5 classes at Horseback successfully rode horses in one of our two riding rings. Our barn is about a quarter mile up the hill (you may have passed it on your exit Saturday). We own around 16 horses who spend their entire year on our property. We prefer owning versus renting because we feel confident in who we have and putting less experienced riders on them. Bailey Adams, a teacher at The McCallie School in Chattanooga, runs our riding program in the summer. He’s passionate about horses and helping guys learn not only how to ride but take care of these animals.

I passed several groups of frisbee golfers playing through on our 18 hole golf course. Tradition at Alpine is a bit old school, utilizing wooden signs on trees for the holes. Flag footballs and traditional futbolers were deep into competition every time I passed by the field.

Our photographers told me this evening that they made it to every activity today so hopefully tomorrow you can relive our day in photos as well!

Sunday our camp pastor, Andrew Mauney, led us in a worship service where he emphasized God’s love from the gospel of Mark and shared a relatable illustration from the Lion King. In the afternoon each age group participated in various special activities around camp before heading to the store to enjoy cold, sliced watermelons, an Alpine Sunday tradition. Oh I almost forgot to mention an even older Alpine tradition - Mrs. Gail’s pancakes on Sunday morning (from her mother’s recipe who served them for years before her). They are made from scratch, no recipe, and hand flipped on the griddle by the dozen. Several thousand served up in total, along with sausage and fruit.

Today she served two favorites. For lunch, chicken fingers, mashed potatoes, and lima beans with rolls and a green salad. And for dinner, a hearty, meaty, spaghetti along with buttered toast and a green salad. At every meal options are available for boys who might not eat what is served (and of course to accomodate food allergies).

Thanks for reading and good night for now, Glenn