Superhero Summer Camp in Review: "It Was Perfect"
Buoyed by the expertise of camp production Superheroine, Gay Lynn Pierce, the 10-month behind-the-scenes preparations for Emerson's Superhero Summer Camp called for a balanced mix of exuberant chaos and 'all is well' calm. Yet, the generous donation of volunteer blood, sweat and tears culminated in a fun-packed week of religious education for participating campers.
Hailing from a myriad of cultural backgrounds, the group of 11 boys and girls met each Unitarian Universalist core value learning experience with wide-eyed wonder. Whether arts and crafts, science-driven projects or the reading of "The Nightengale," camper enthusiasm was at little risk of waning.
The hot fun picture is incomplete unless I provide a glimpse into the moment that became seared in my first-day memory. Despite July's norm of unrelenting humidity, I was briefly swept away by the summer splendor, dancing in a circle with the campers and Assistant Camp Director, Deborah Wotring.
Of course, I'd never seen Deborah 'cut a rug' as her limbs freely succumbed to Pharrell Williams' global anthem, "Happy." Memories of my mother, whose eyes lit up whenever she heard the 2013 hit, flooded in also. Upon learning "Happy" is one of Deborah's favorites, it didn't take much to literally convince me that it's her happy song.
Given its musical contagiousness, the upbeat tune stayed in my head until camp closed. Not only is excess credit owed to both the human Superheroes and Superheroines who made the vision a reality but also to the power of song which set the summer camp success course.
Although minor hiccups are normal with enormous undertakings such as this, a young camper's summation of his Emerson Superhero Summer Camp experience sticks with me to the point of unforgettability: "It was perfect."
Without the collective awesomeness of Pierce and Wotring plus Alejandra Posada, Jill Rose, Ellen Norton, Dori Wolfe, Valerie Blair, Terry Rooney, Ron Joe, Linda Condit, Jamila and Reese Johnson, and Charlie Ritz, perfection would've been an impossibility.
Shari Wright, UU Education Coordinator
