I’ve written about former campers and where they are now, whether it is up at Shamu stadium as a trainer or working with sea lions or in the Florida Keys on a lobster boat, but this story may be the best yet. A few weeks ago, one of SeaWorld San Antonio’s first campers brought her own family back to camp. Julie was a part of our first day camp group in 1992 and part of the first resident camp in 1994. She then came back as a camp counselor in 1996 & 1997, the years that I was a camper.

Last year, the American Camp Association (ACA) launched a campaign entitled “Because of Camp…” With YouTube videos and bill boards, it got people thinking about the benefits of camp: friendship, responsibility, skill development, self confidence, etc. People from all walks of life can experience camp and I think no two people get the same thing out of the camp experience.

I’m usually the type of person who waits until the week of Christmas to do all of my shopping. I don’t know if it’s because all my family is out of town and I don’t like travelling with presents or that I’ve never gotten into shopping online and having stuff shipped (except for last year), but that’s the way I do things. I make my list, plan my route and am done within a few hours.