Meet the staff!

The 2011 Grace Point Summer Camp Staff
Back row, from left: Parker Bailes (Boys' Cabin Leader), Alex Parkinson (Outdoors Assistant), Joey Courtney (Assistant Director), Taylor Bartz (Counselor), Parker Cantelou (Outdoors Director), Alex Haralson (Camp Program Director)

Front row, from left: Sarah Bailey (Arts & Crafts Director), Gabi Caballero (Girls' Cabin leader), Zak Bathe (Lifeguard)

Camp 4

Session 1 - Harry Potter Hullabaloo

Campers seemed apprehensive about the new staff at first. But soon after, the campers warmed up and welcomed us like family. It was great to hear, "this was the best week of camp!" from several campers. From swamping to lazy Wednesday with Saturday morning cartoons, it was hard to top each day from the last.

Karina fishing with live worms!

Slytherin and Ravenclaw partake in a grueling match of quidditch.

After a hike up the trail, Nick attempts to start a fire with one match.

With a little bit of help from the Parkers, Bailey and Leia were shooting like champs by the end of the week.

Rebecca and the rest of the campers under the limbo stick.

Jessica and Matt hang on for a wild ride on the tube.

Members of Ravenclaw gather around the bonfire to conclude the night.

Welcome to Camp!

The 2011 season of Grace Point Camps has begun!

We kicked off the summer on June 2 with Family Camp, a session for rising 1st, 2nd, and 3rd grade children with their parents. It was a beautiful weekend, and an experience full of first-time campers here at Grace Point!

Our theme this year is "Where His Feet Pass," and is interpreted by a different Spiritual Director each week. For Family Camp, the Spiritual Director was the Rev. Rob Travis, Church of the Ascension, Knoxville.

Thanks to all who attended, and to all who helped make Family Camp an exciting start to the new camp year!

Fr. Rob leads a reflection with the children using images of seeds.

Sam and his father Brad talk about a story in the Bible.

Juliana draws a picture while the Rev. Peggy Blanchard looks on.

Camper Zach looks at the BCP with counselor Parker.

Ross and grandmother Suzanne read from the BCP during morning program.

Camper Eva chats with Fr. Rob during morning program.


William and his father James hang out in the chapel.

Camper Bo removes arrows from a target on the archery range.

Counselor Alex teaches camper Charlie how to use a bow and arrow.

Camper Cecilia prepares a shirt for tie-dye..

Camper Emma shows off her tie-dye shirt.

Meet the neighbors.

Things are buzzing around Grace Point as we get closer to the start of camp season. All the signs of winter's dormancy are gone, and everything is plush and green.

We've had some new neighbors move in recently: a pair of Osprey are now nesting atop a tree on The Point. I strolled down there this afternoon to introduce myself, which stirred up Mama Osprey. She was quite talkative. Though I am not fluent in Osprey, I'm pretty sure I couldn't reprint on this blog what she was saying to me. This is, after all, a family show. I stayed long enough to snap a couple of frames and was on my way.

These beautiful birds have made Grace Point home... another reminder of what makes this place so marvelous. Time spent out here is time spent in a place the city cannot offer. It's a place abundant with wildlife and devoid of noisy city streets. It's a place sprawling with forest and shoreline and noticeably lacking in storefronts and sidewalks. It is, simply put, a peaceful little patch of Creation.

I hope that you (or your children) will come and spend some time with us this summer, to experience the wonders of Grace Point... and to meet the new neighbors.

Spring 2011

Though clear signs of winter still abound at Grace Point, the arrival of spring has bursts of color pushing through the greys and browns. Flowers are blooming, birds are chirping, and leaves are beginning to bud on the trees.

Yes, spring is here... and that means that summer can't be far behind! It's time to sign up for summer camp at Grace Point! Planning is well under way for the 2011 camp season, and it will be here before we know it.

Our theme this year is "Where His Feet Pass" and is inspired by a line from the Eleanor Farjeon hymn "Morning Has Broken". This summer, we will explore images of The Garden and The Wilderness as ideas of the challenges we face in our everyday lives.

Please visit our website at www.gracepointcamp.org to download camper registration information. If you've not been to Grace Point Camps before, please take a look through this blog to see what happened last summer. If you have been here before, please mark your calendars now for camp!

And remember: money should never be a reason to miss summer camp! Scholarship applications are on the website alongside the registration forms.