Tag Archives: Summer Camp Vancouver Island

Activities, Events, Leadership Training, Q-Town & Music, Summer Camp

It Means The World To Me

Our first week of camp with 8 to 11 year-old’s this summer, Juniors #1, is coming to an end right after lunch today. We’re so thankful for each and every child that has been with us this week!

Being blobbed at Qwanoes Beach during Juniors #1!

Each cabin of campers has had the chance to try a wide variety of activities this week. There has been something for everyone – from RC Speedway and Artrageous Crafts, to the SkyScraper in the Challenge Course, to the Aqua-Park and Fishing at Qwanoes Beach, to a whole bunch of other land and waterfront activities!

When not doing the activities, lots of events including last night’s Billy Blue’s Western Carnival have been going on. We’ve also been enjoying great music led by Russ Smith and our band Quixotic as well as challenging talks by this week’s speaker, Jonathan Headley, at Q-Town each day. On top of that, our first group of summer 2013 CIT’s has been putting all they’ve learned into practice this week as junior counselors.

It’s hard to capture in a few words all that has taken place this week! Some sad goodbye’s are going to be happening this afternoon!

Quotes Of The Week

“My little brother is there right now for his FIRST year at Qwanoes, I’m so excited for him, I know he will have the time of his life, and will make so many new friends for sure. Such an amazing Camp, and it means the world to me. I can’t wait till I go for youth camp at the end of this summer!!” ~ sister of Juniors #1 camper plus soon-to-be Youth camper, summer 2013

Singing together on piggy-back in Q-Town

“I was there just today. That camp has changed my life.” ~ Jr. High #2 camper, summer 2013, after getting home from camp

“I can’t wait for next year’s step out program when I’m old enough!” ~ Jr. High #2 camper, summer 2013

“@Qwanoes Coming for jh5 soon, so pumped! It’s always the highlight of my summer” ~ soon-to-be Jr. High #5 camper, summer 2013

What Is qrok.ca?

The qrok Tower is a popular spot to hang out while the Squirrel DJ's some music!

Hear the sounds of summer each week on qrok.ca, the finely-tuned web radio station of Camp Qwanoes. Even if you’re not at camp, you can hang out with “the Squirrel (Russ Smith) and let the music take you higher!

Be sure to visit “the Squirrel’s nest” where you’ll find contests, “Right Here, Right Now” Bible verses, more stuff, and you’ll just have to see what you find in “the kitchen!”

Coming Up…

July 20: Staff Development Day. This is a day set aside for staff to re-group, re-charge, and enjoy being together after three weeks of summer camp! We look forward to sleeping in, enjoying excellent meals, having a giant beach party, and being encouraged in a special evening Q-Town.

Welcoming our Juniors #1 campers to Qwanoes last Saturday

July 21-27: Jr. High #3. This Sunday, our third group of 12 to 14 year-old’s in summer 2013 will be arriving at Qwanoes! If you’re coming, we can’t wait to welcome you!

~ Written by Julie Bayley, Qwanoes’ Associate Program Director

 

 

Activities, Events, Q-Town & Music, Social Media, Summer Camp

Glo Concert Lights Up Q-Town

Glo Concert last night!

Today is the last full day of Jr. High #2. We have had an incredible week and lasting memories have definitely been made.

Every day has been filled with new activities and events to experience, and yesterday was no exception! Just before lunch, we got out our giant “Big Blue” slip ‘n’ slides (yes, it’s true – we have two now!) and enjoyed some “Wide Eyed & Liquified” time together.

After a full afternoon of activities on the land and at Qwanoes Beach, we had supper and Q-Town – but the day wasn’t over yet! It was time for Kick Flip Café, a giant inflatable slide, and a super-fun hang-out time by the Skate Park.

Our Music Leader Russ Smith surrounded by everyone in Q-Town at the Glo Concert

Right after that it was time for our Glo Concert. Everyone got glow sticks, white balloons were everywhere, the countdown started, and our band Quixotic appeared on the stage. It was awesome to see Q-Town filled with hundreds of campers and staff having an amazing time together.

Quotes Of The Week

Glow stick madness at the Glo Concert!

“Hurray my second time in a row going and this is by far my favorite summer camp ever i love camp qwanoes!” ~ camper, summer 2013

“IT WAS THE BEST WEEK OF MY LIFE !!!!!!” ~ Jr. High #1 camper, summer 2013

“BEST WEEK OF MY ENTIRE LIFE! CAN’T WAIT TO COME BACK NEXT SUMMER! SO MUCH FUN” ~ Jr. High #1 camper, summer 2013

“I CANT WAIT!!! I’m coming in August!” ~ camper, summer 2013

The view from the stage

See More Pictures!

Photos are going on our Facebook and Twitter pages most days in the summer. To see the most photos of each week, see our Summer Photo Galleries page. You can get a glimpse of what’s been going on so far this week at Jr. High #2, plus see lots of photos from Jr. High #1 last week! See anyone you know?!

Coming Up…

July 13-19: Juniors #1. This Saturday, we look forward with great anticipation to welcoming our first group of kids ages 8 to 11 in summer 2013 to Qwanoes! Lots of plans are in the works like Jedi’s Unleashed, Ambush at Crooked Creek, Billy Blue’s Western Carnival, tons of activities, Q-Town, great meals, time with friends and counselors, and much more. If you’re coming, be prepared for a week filled with fun and adventure! More about the Juniors program.

Hope you all have had a great start to your summer!

~ Written by Julie Bayley, Qwanoes’ Associate Program Director

 

 

Events, Youth Retreats

Early Spring Happenings

What a fun week it has been here at Qwanoes!

Trying out the new Giant Connect 4 in Club Coco!

This past weekend, about 125 kids ages 8 to 11 were at our Spring Juniors Retreat. The weekend was filled with many highlights including…

• the introduction of Qwanoes’ brand-new Giant Connect 4

• a birthday celebration on Saturday at supper for our Music & Media Coordinator Russ Smith (a.k.a. The Squirrel)

See Stevie G bringing out birthday cake to Russ!

• challenge course, archery, skateboarding, ricochet,  an evening pool party & more activities and events

Getting ready to go in the Challenge Course on Saturday!

• hearing from our speaker for the weekend Paul Olson of Burnett Fellowship Church in Maple Ridge

• the “Unstoppable” theme and much more

It was great to have kids back at camp and we are filled with anticipation for what lies ahead this summer!

All ages are part of what’s happening at Qwanoes!

One day there were Junior-age kids at camp – the next day we held our annual Senior’s Luncheon. On Monday, we welcomed over 100 seniors representing 10 different churches from up and down the Island. Scott Bayley, Qwanoes’ Executive Director, spoke to the seniors as well as Lindsay Anderson, a pastor from Saanich Baptist Church. The seniors enjoyed music by a chorale from Parksville Baptist Church and a “superb” meal provided by Qwanoes’ food services team.

Now as we prepare to go into the Easter long weekend, we want to say Happy Easter to everyone!  After celebrating Easter, we look forward to next big event that will be happening at Qwanoes… the Kaléo program graduation!

~ Written by Julie Bayley, Qwanoes’ Associate Program Director

 

 

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Very special guests visit Qwanoes!!

Juniors campers love Qwanoes!  “I’d rather spend one day at Qwanoes than a whole week at Disney World” said one of our 2010 Juniors campers.

Now that's an excited camper pumped for the viking night game!

There is nothing quite like seeing the face of a young camper light up when you announce that there will be a night game tonight!  Last night the campers came together in Q-Town and were rallied together by their team leaders and Greylock as it was time to jump into a late night adventure! What a night as campers scoured the camp on the hunt for tablets and the missing crown, all the while evading capture by the viking protectors. It was a night to remember, and memories that will last a lifetime!

Campers having fun with the NEW Battle Top Arena in Club Coco!

Right now it’s activity time at Qwanoes and campers are in the trees, down in the water and what do my ears hear? Oh it’s Club Coco of course!  I hear the sounds of campers yelling 1-2-3!! And the Battle Tops head into the arena for a battle to see which top will be left standing! I just asked Harry, Stuart,Ethan what they thought of the new game as they played with one of our Camp Grandpas, and they all said “AWESOME!!!”There are so many activities to do at Qwanoes… it’s a good thing camp is 6 nights and 7 days long!

We had a big surprise at Qwanoes the other day as some very special guests rolled into camp.  It was the African Children’s Choir!  We were so glad that they could make a special stop at camp.  We of course had to welcome them like we do all our campers! With fireworks and an arch of raised hands as they came off the bus!  Many of them had never seen a camp like Qwanoes before, so it was such a joy to see them playing soccer, enjoying a good game of dodge ball and checking out the waterfront.  At Tuck time they got into their special African dress and did an amazing performance for all our Juniors Campers right on the qrok deck! What a sight to see all these kids dancing, drumming and singing in their native African language.  All our campers were mesmerized and enjoyed Tuck time with a very unique and special show that was just for them!  Thanks African Children’s Choir for visiting on your way through!  I will never forget the little African boy by Club Coco singing “Oh, oh, oh on the island”!

Amongst all the excitement and fun at camp, there is some pretty awesome life changes that are happening in the lives of our campers! Yesterday we learnt  how Out Of This World God really is, but at the same time he still wants to have a personal relationship with us! Now that’s Out Of This World!

Two more days of Juniors Camp left, it’s going to be awesome! And then we will soon be welcoming Juniors Camp #2!

African Children's Choir makes a special stop at Qwanoes!

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A BIG thanks and Qwanoes OPEN HOUSE this Saturday!

A BIG thanks goes out to all those who were a part of our Family Work Weekend and Qwanoes Day of Prayer! Everywhere I look you can see the evidence of the hard working team who helped get Qwanoes even more ready for the summer.

Gathering up in the morning to start our day in prayer.

Saturday was a very BIG day as more than 225 people gathered at our fireside to start off the day in prayer. Normally when you sit at the fireside everyone faces towards the centre, but not this time! We all gathered in a circle and looked out at other parts of Qwanoes and visualized all our campers around camp. We lifted up prayers on everything we were looking at and visualizing, from campers on the blob, playing in the carpetball hut, lining up for a meal, heading over to Q-Town, to running of those buses! What a great way to get focused for the day and why we are all here!

Lots of painting happened during the day!

From there teams poured out all over Qwanoes to tackle many, MANY projects in getting ready for the summer! To name just a few… staining of the new Huckleberry Hideout bathroom, doubling the size of our carpetball hut, clearing the weeds around the stairs to the beach, adding another row to our fireside, painting tables, creating the summer kitchen, weeding the volleyball court, cleaning chairs & windows, spreading wood chips in the challenge course, cleaning cabins, cleaning buses, and the list could go on and on! As you can imagine everyone was exhausted by the end, but it was a fabulous day of serving the Lord together at Qwanoes!

Praying at one of the Sky Ridge Cabins.

We ended the day right back at the fireside in prayer just as we started, rejoicing in all that was accomplished! We then walked around Qwanoes praying at different areas together about what God is going to do this summer. The day wasn’t over yet! Next was a delicious dinner, family games, a great fireside with S’mores and finally ending our night with video highlights of our day in Q-Town! Thank you to all those who came out and joined the team!

Come and see for yourself! This Saturday is the annual Qwanoes OPEN HOUSE! Grab you sunscreen & bathing suit and come on down to the Qwanoes beach! The whole waterfront is ready for you, from rocket rides to the giant slide! Or head into the forest and challenge a friend to a race down the “Screamer!” There is so much to do from the skateboard park, sports court, archery, climbing tower and more! We will even have a special OPEN HOUSE Q-Town just for you. There is no cost to the whole day, so come be our guest and join us for lunch and dinner too! All you need to do is let us know you are coming. Go online and get all the details, including transportation options for those on the mainland.

Experience Qwanoes Beach for yourself! Come be our guest!

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Family work weekend here we come!

We had a great weekend here at Qwanoes during our Staff Leadership Orientation time. There was a time of team building, looking at the heart of Qwanoes and of course, great leadership training. We can’t wait to have all the staff and our campers here soon!

Family Work Weekend is coming up this week and we will have just over 200 people here on the grounds helping prepare Qwanoes for our campers and at the same time having some fun as a family! We still have some spots left! If you are interested please check out the website for details and give Qwanoes a call to let us know you would like to come.  This event is FREE, we would love to have you here a part of it all! Not only will there be a great time of serving, but you’ll experience fun games, firesides, tasty food, quality family time and more!

Can’t make it to the Family Work Weekend? Then come on over as our guest to the Qwanoes Open House on June 12th! This event is FREE! Just give us a call to let us know you are coming and if you are needing a ride from the ferry terminal. Bus transportation is on us and we will be meeting both the 7:45 am and 10:15 am sailings to Duke Point. Check out our website for all the details! Come try our activities, meet our staff, experience a special opening Q-Town and hear some of our new songs! It’s time to experience Qwanoes for yourself!

Ever wonder what the inside of the Qwanoes Blob looks like? Now you know!
Saturn being pulled by our head lifeguard!

We are getting ready for all our campers! From the entrance sign to the waterfront, we are getting everything ready for another great summer season! I was just down at the waterfront today and the Aqua Park is almost all set up! We have staff down there right now working really hard to make sure everything is ready to go. Check back soon to see pictures of our brand NEW Castaway Castle, coming soon to Qwanoes beach!

Took a walk over to Huckleberry Hideout and as you can see the NEW bathroom is looking great! You Huckleberry Hideout girls are going to absolutely love this bathroom!

Huckleberry Hideout NEW Bathroom coming along great!

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It’s not too late to save! HST is coming this Friday.

We had a great time visiting Richmond Baptist and North Valley Baptist last Sunday! Everyone was so welcoming and excited to hear about all the things happening at Qwanoes and how they can get plugged in.  I’d like to send a shout out to Pastor Jeff from Richmond for taking me out to lunch! This Friday we will be at BC Christian Acadamy, come by and say hello!

Summer Camp Vancouver Island Kids Camp
NEW - Brochure and Poster in the mail!

Our NEW full-length Qwanoes brochure is in the mail and will be in your hands shortly! Inside the brochure you will find our new “Out Of This World” poster and maybe even a photo of  YOU or someone you remember from camp! It contains all our summer camp programs and more!

We would like to help you avoid the new HST tax and save 7% on your camp registration fees.

IMPORTANT NEWS: As you are aware, the BC Government is introducing the HST (harmonized sales tax) effective July 1, 2010.

If you sign up for camp no later than April 30, 2010, and pay the registration fee in full, you only need to pay the GST of 5%…and this will save you 7% of tax! BUT HERE’S THE KEY…the full payment must be received no later than April 30.

For additional information regarding HST please see our HST info page.

As always, we’re glad to answer any questions you might have. Of course, you can always register anytime on our website: http://www.qwanoes.ca/register

Yes – it’s almost time to put the boats in the water, turn up the sound in Q-Town and bake 800 cookies for our first summer mugup. New adventures, new friends, and new discoveries every day…we can’t wait! Summer Staff Advance Crew starts tomorrow and that means we will now have summer staff at camp getting ready for the return of all our campers!

Coming up soon!

Women’s Retreat – April 30 to May 2
Young Adults Retreat: May 14 – 16
Family Retreat: May 21-24

Summer Kids Camp Vancouver Island summer camp
Qwanoes NEW brochure and poster on the way to your house!

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A weekend of celebration!

It was our Kaléo graduation this past weekend and 28 students celebrated with friends, family, staff and our local church community! It all started on Friday night with the students heading to Victoria for a special last time together and parents having a reception at our Qwanoes Guest House. Many parents came from all over Canada – I actually spoke with a couple who came all the way from New Brunswick by train!

The next morning we celebrated together with three students being baptized right on Qwanoes beach! Yes, the water was cold, but it sure made for a very special and memorable way for these three students to remember their time at Kaléo.

Kaleo Graduation 2010

In the afternoon we all packed into Club Coco for the graduation ceremony.  Scott Bayley (Qwanoes Executive Director) and Merrill Dyck (Vice president at Briercrest College & Seminary) shared a few words of the impact and change that has happened in the students as well as how much they were appreciated  by the local churches. Jeremy Derksen did a fantastic job delivering the Valedictorian speech as he took us on a journey of what it was like to be a part of Kaleo 7.

Kaleo Graduation banquet

The day ended with a fabulous celebration banquet in the dining hall where everyone enjoyed a delicious meal prepared by the Qwanoes kitchen staff… the desserts were everyones favorite!

If you are interested in Kaleo or know someone who might be, you can always visit us online!  There are still a few spots left for next years Kaleo program!

Qwanoes may be coming to a church near you! Last Sunday, we spread out to three different churches ( Dunbar, Sooke and Squammish Baptist)  and had a great time sharing the exciting things happening at Qwanoes. This week we will be at Campbell River Christian school, North Valley Baptist and Richmond Baptist church.  Come by and say hello to us!

Coming up soon!
Advance Crew for Summer Staff – starts April 28
Women’s Retreat – April 30 to May 2
Young Adults Retreat: May 14 – 16
Family Retreat: May 21-24

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Kicking into high gear at Qwanoes!

There are so many exciting things happening at Qwanoes right now in preparation for summer! Advance Crew is only 14 days away and very soon there will be summer staff members here on the grounds getting ready for all our campers!

New rock going up on Pacific Woods Lodge right now!

New for summer 2010! As you can see from the picture, the Pacific Woods Lodge rock is going on the columns and it will all be ready for when you get here!

There’s a brand-new bathroom for Huckleberry Hideout! We just staked out the site for the new bathroom for our Huckleberry Hideout girls cabin village, and the building is going to be great!

Music video road trip to Calgary and back!

BREAKING NEWS! Stevie-G and Russ “the squirrel” are on a road trip right now to Calgary and back! They are shooting a music video for our “Out Of This World” summer 2010 theme song, which is all part of celebrating 15 years of Q-Town music!

Tents on the Sky Deck Tent put up today!

Our Sky Deck tents were just put up and we will soon be rolling out the tables and chairs!  There is so much activity going on right now and we can’t wait to have all our campers back enjoying a meal under the Sky Deck tents very soon.

Coming up soon!
Kaléo Grad coming up on April 17th
Advance Crew for Summer Staff – starts April 28
Women’s Retreat – April 30 to May 2
Young Adults Retreat: May 14 – 16