Camping Trip Reflections
New Parent Perspective
By Erin V., Parent of Dancing Bird Nolan and Future Village 3rd Grader Miles
Tell us a little about yourself and your family.
Our family consists of Rex, Erin, Miles and Nolan. Rex works in the web development field and is definitely a tech geek. I work with at-risk, gang impacted and underprivileged youth in the San Jose area. The entire family loves the outdoors and camping. Rex is a trail runner, as well as a mountaineer. I am a former rock climber, who now enjoys hikes with her boys, Krav Maga, as well as the occasional trail run with dog Tashi. Miles and Nolan love all things Star Wars, legos, science experiments, board games and playing in the great outdoors.
What did you enjoy the most about the Village camping trip?
We loved all of the fun activities planned by the camping committee, like making a family sign for our campsite. We also got a chance to enjoy the beach with new friends.
What are your favorite, most lasting memories?
My older son Miles turned 8 over the camping trip, and even though he doesn’t go to Village, so many of the parents and kids went out of their way to make him feel included and celebrated. In his opinion, it was one of his best birthdays, which is saying a lot because we took him to Disney for one of them!
What would you say to families who haven’t had a chance to experience the camping trip and might be nervous about it?
As a new family to Village, when we first arrived we were honestly overwhelmed by the sheer size of the camping trip, 540+ people! However, within no time we felt we got to know so many families who went out of their way to ensure we felt welcome and included. We enjoyed getting a chance to get to know so many new families and current Village families. Getting to bond over s’mores and campfire talk was a blast.
Veteran Family Perspective
By Lynne Marie S., Parent of Fearless Falcon Sawyer, Snowboarding Snow Leopard Cael, and Rockin’ Redwood Dashal
This year our family enjoyed the Village camping trip after a one year break. We regretted missing it last year and promised ourselves we would make it work this year.
As our kids get older and the extra activities pile on, it can feel like a low-priority event for our family. However, this year we worked around our schedule, ducking out of camping activities for a half day on Saturday to attend soccer and baseball games. And, to make it all work, we played it really easy by renting a cabin.
We arrived Friday afternoon and our kids took off immediately with their friends. Our 5th grader seemed keenly aware of this being his “last” camping trip, much to my surprise as it certainly is not our last as a family.
The various posses of bike-riding Village kids road round and round the campground with an independence and freedom my kids do not often get to enjoy. There is freedom in our community, freedom to let our kids roam and socialize and share, and freedom for us parents to enjoy a relaxing chat with other parents.
I am grateful we made a commitment to make it to this event. We have wonderful memories and full hearts.