the laurel letter issue 1

8/9/2019 The Laurel Letter Issue 1

1/6

The Laurel LetterThe Official Newspaper of Camp Laurelwood

FREE

Summer 2010 Starts on a Dime

4th of July Celebrated in Style; Campers Go Patriot

By Ethan Kwassman

When you look around

camp this summer, what do you

see? Do you see the 3:1 camper to

staff ratio? Do you see a more

larger, yet close-knit camp that

encompasses all of the camp

grounds from periods 1 through

6? Indeed, those are appearances

By Ethan Kwassman

On the Fourth of July at Camp

Laurelwood, campers and staff alike

went wild for the annual Fourth of

July carnival. As always, there was an

abundance of patriotic spirit andany booths. Whether it was getting

hitched at the marriage booth or

having your face and nails painted,

he day was full of fun and unique

activities. Challenging games

nvolved B3's Three Cup Monty and

B1's classic Splat the Rat. Other

activities included sponge throwing

and water balloon contests to help

cool everyone down on the very hotand humid Independence Day.

A notable attraction at this

year's carnival was an inflatable

obstacle course and a bounce house,

which provided campers with a

much-needed break from the

challenging, yet fun-filled carnival

activities. Campers also enjoyed their

lume 73, Issue 1 Thursday, July 29th, 20

he Laurel Letter laurelletter.tumblr.com

!

!

Bulletin

Inside this issue.

Legends ofLaurelwood

Dress theCounselors Night

Camper Contest

LaurelwoodLingo of the

Week

Puzzle Page

of the camp, but they aren't wh

Summer at Camp Laurelwood

2010 is all about. What you

should be seeing is 9-time

Executive Director Ruth Ann

Ornstein sharing her enthusia

and love of Judaism with

everyone.

...Continued on pag

full of cotton candy while hopping

from booth to booth and winning

some cool prizes in the process.

During the carnival, there were so

many things so everyone wasn't able

to do everything! Yet, everyone stillhad fun.

Later in the day bright lights

and colors filled the air. The

maintenance staff had put on a

fireworks display. Using grounded

fireworks, campers and staff were

amazed by the patriotic display as

they sat on towels watching from the

edge of Girls Field. Continuing in

the tradition, maintenance membersdrove around in golf carts around

the softball field, shooting up the

bright colors as they went. Many

campers and staff remarked alike

about the opportunity to see

fireworks firsthand from the camp's

grounds.

...Continued on page 5

FR


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olume 73, Issue 1

By Ethan Kwassman

There you are, sitting outside the Mess Hall waiting for lun

to begin. All of a sudden, you see a crowd beginning to grow on dock of the lake leading into Boy's Side. You look over to the rig

of the eternal water fountain and you see what all the excitemen

all about. Like a scene only from the movies, the camp's legenda

turtle, Tank, is bobbing out of the water, feasting on the bread

dropping from the hands of curious campers. This is just one of

many tales of Tank that campers and staff alike have been tellin

for years and years.

Laurelwood has no shortage of legends. Whether it's the gh

stories of Hymie, another camp legend, supposedly haunting

noccupied bunks or dramatic Big O comebacks, each legend is told with varying interpretations andtorylines. Camps need legends to thrive. Legends are not meant for setting the truth straight or to become

art of Big O skits. They are to be passed down to future campers like an oral tradition. Many of us at cam

ght now have our own interpretation of camp legends and a story to share. All of the different viewpoint

nd contradictions in these stories make these legends that more fun to share with others.

...Continued on pag

he Laurel Letter

Legends of Laurelwood:Never Lacking in Length or Levity

laurelletter.tumblr.com

Campers Go Wild for Dress the Counselors NightBy Ethan Kwassman

Mike Fitch, a B5Counselor, had his first 2010

day off planned since last

summer. Thinking that he was

definitely going to be chosen for

he cross-dressing fashion show,

he penciled in Dress the

Counselors Night as his first day

off. Whatever the date of Dress

he Counselors Night was going

o be, Fitch wanted no part of it.And you can't blame him. All of

he counselors chosen to be

dressed in clothes of the

opposite gender dreaded

participating in some way or

another. But after all, it is a

Laurelwood tradition. And

traditions are not to be broken.

A couple days into the firstweek of the camp, Dress the

Counselors Night took place in

the Rec Hall. The junior and

senior girls' bunk drafted the

male counselors first and then,

the boys' bunks did the same for

the female counselors. The

counselors who were spared took

their campers and chosen

counselor back to their bunks to

be dressed in their finest clothes

of course, and to prepare a little

act for the show. When all the

dressing and show preparation

was done, everybody returned to

the Rec Hall for the competition.

Much to everyone's amazement,

the chosen counselors seemed to

in their new roles quite well, withcourse, a little exaggeration from

campers who dressed them.

Cameras flashed as the cho

counselors showed off their ensem

and moved to the beat of the mus

Hilarity ensued as the participant

exaggerated aspects of the opposi

gender, with everything from

mannerisms to speech. The judgin

was based on the ensemble and th

act that came with it. The winners

were determined by the audience

applause to each of the acts. In th

end, Barbara Harding and Jon

Rubik's Cube Scheiber were

victorious.

The camp's legendary snappingturtle, Tank, lives in this lake.

Thursday, July 29th, 2


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olume 73, Issue 1

Legends of Laurelwood:Never Lacking in Length or Levity

...Continued from page 2

If you got a story regarding

legend to tell, don't hesitate to

hare it with your bunkmates and

eers at camp. A legend can't

ecome a legend until it is shared

with others. Of course, all legends

ave some degree of truth, but

ltimately they are based on

bservation and all sorts of

ssumptions. You, the readers of

his paper, now have tremendous

ower. We are finally going to

write down these legends and

ecord them. Maybe it was some

nidentified creature you saw (or

hink you saw) on an overnight


...Continued from page 1

What you should be seeing is

Barnett Goldman's amazing ability

o organize some of the most

wesome campwide activities suchs inflatable obstacle course races

nd the always fun and

ntertaining game of dodgeball.

What you should be seeing is

xactly why you came to

aurelwood this summer. You

ame for the people, for the

xperience, for the memories you

ave and the ones that willistinguish this summer from the

thers.

Indeed, Laurelwood in '10 is

estined to be one to remember.

taples of Laurelwood like brothers

Craig and Josh Barrows return on

taff for their gazillionth summer,

nd five continents are represented

Summer 2010 Starts on a Dime

trip in Pioneer Village or an

unimaginable game of muddy gaga.

Now, be sure to remind your

audience that legends are based

solely on your observations or how

you remember the story being told

to you. Telling stories of legends can

be a lot like the game of telephone

since a great deal could be lost in

translation. We know that Tank

exists. However, it is probably very

inconceivable that Hymie is going to

haunt your bunk or that an

uninvited four-legged visitor is

going to drop in on your camp-out.

Still, if all members of your audience

agree to hear your story, you're as

good as gold to add to Laurelwo

oral storytelling tradition.

Everybody loves a good s

This is something everyone can

without much practice. Of cours

you can flesh out of the story or

practice telling it in a certain wa

And of course, stories are best to

when they incorporate as much

the five senses as possible. Here

Laurelwood, the newspaper staf

eager to hear all about various c

legends and possibly publish the

in a future issue. If interested, b

sure to write an article for a futu

issue and hand it in for

consideration.

by staff members this year. Places

such as Colombia, South Africa,

France, Israel, England, Hungary

and Scotland are some of the places

that foreign staff members callhome. At camp, you've come to

know Ilana as the guitarist. You've

come to know Barnett as the leader

of the Gladiators ( la Campers vs.

Counselors day). In addition, Josh

and Alyia have become a major

force in Upper Camp. Of course, the

staff core forms a powerful nucleus

of foreigners, veterans, first-timersand a substantial amount of junior

counselors.

The list of junior counselors

(which would run off this page)

may be long, but their knowledge of

camp traditions and ability to make

this summer as enjoyable as

possible is just as rich as any staff

member.

In addition to the people

popular destinations such as th

octagon gaga pit on Boys' Field

the beach volleyball court on GField have provided campers th

opportunity to improve their

athletic agility and to take

advantage of the summer sun. Y

have to look at all that Laurelw

has to offer you and make the m

of it. That may involve impress

Hazel by zipping through the ro

course in Pioneer Village, orshowing off to Pete by kayaking

extra lap across the length of th

lake. However, it has to be

something that makes you say,

Look at what I just did! You m

your summer at Laurelwood m

than anyone. Here's to Laurelw

in '10!



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olume 73, Issue 1


Camper ContributionsThe following campers contributed to the Laurel Letter as

part of the Newspaper Elective:Shea Belsky, David Duhl, Justin Devos, Ethan Schaffer,

Josh Baron, Gabriella Silverman, Sadie Snow, Jenny

Steinberg, Sam Gropper, Nicole Goldstein, Stella Berfas,

Lily Dudel, Caroline Jaffe, Hadar Ben Haim, Sarah Stein,

hoshana Golovin, Melanie Sillman, Sapir Shushan, Ross

Pellenberg, Ellie Tein, Liani Levy, Julia Schaffer, Sam

Cohen, Miriam Roday and Ilana Sheveloff

WANTED

!

THE ILLUSTRIOUS D TWAIN.He has returned to our grounds once again, and

saga has taken upon an extra flight. He is seen

more elastically now, swinging from tree to tre

climbing ladders that extend to the moon and

flying with squirrels while making his way

through vertical vines. Rumor has it that he can

spotted after dark, camouflaged behind a row o

trees, ready to pounce like a wildcat. Others ha

spotted him hanging from inner branches knowas rafters, claiming that he transforms from man

ape, as his animal calls sound throughout the

night. He is known for responding to question

with a very distinct Chuh. One should beware

him sneaking up behind you as he may grab yo

shoulders to prompt conversation in a move on

known as The D Twain. If you can spot him a

tame him, rewards will be sure to come your w

Coming Next Issue:

Learn from LaurelwoodersHave a particular skill that you would

like to share with others? Well, The Laurel

Letter Bulletin has just the resource you need.Beginning in our next issue, You, the readers

will have a chance to teach others your particular skill

in your very own Learn from Laurelwooders column.

ubmit all how-to articles no later than Friday, July 30th,

for a chance to have it featured in the next issue.

Want to become Internet famous?You can now post for the Laurel Letter blog. Place all

articles for the Laurel Letter blog in the Ziploc bags

marked Laurel Letter located in the back of the MessHall. If selected, the Journalism Staff will post your

content online, giving credit where credit is due.

Place all articles for the next Laurel Letter Bulletin in the

Ziploc bags marked Laurel Letter located in the back of

the Mess Hall.

Want to be a part of the end-of-the-summer issue?

Anyone at camp can report and write an article for the

Going Home edition. Start getting in your articles for the

ull-scale newspaper now. Place all articles for the Laurel

Letter Newspaper in the Ziploc bags marked Laurel

Letter located in the back of the Mess Hall.

Laurel Letter Contesfor Issue 3

Write about a certain skill, or talent that yo

have and either explain what you enjoy abo

this activity, or explain how to do it or imprupon skills in it. We'll only take a few and t

best ones may earn you a reward.



5/6

olume 73, Issue 1


...Continued from pa

Earlier in the day, America's national past time was play

as the Old School Staff defeated the New School. After th

counselor softball game during rest hour, juniors and

seniors got another opportunity to jump on the inflatab

at Girls Field. Super Seniors engaged in such activities li

boating, dance, basketball, and speed ball.And of course

with the nature of the American summer heat being wha

was, all camp got a chance to dip in the pool to cool off.

Overall, it was surely an incredible Independence Day

celebration!

4th of July Celebrated in StyleCampers Go Patriotic

!

Visit the online camp

community at Bunk1.com

http://tinyurl.com/LaurelwoodBunk1

Register today to check out the latestphotos of this summer!

LaurelwoodLingo of the Week

Brought to you by theLaurelwood Library

Freeze Gopher!Verb; phrase used to command

peopleto freeze in place; used as a gameduring meals to determine who's

stacking.(After reading Freeze Gopher! above, youshould freeze in place until you're told to

Unfreeze.)ie.: Counselor calls Freeze Gopher!

(Johnny moves his arm

and Counselor actually sees himmove). Counselor tellseveryone to Unfreeze and says,

Okay, so far, Johnny is stacking.Then, counselor puts his finger on

his nose.(Never mind that, we'll

leave that game for another time.)

Chess Puzzle

Find the checkmate within thischess game.

Hint: There are two movesremaining.

http://tinyurl.com/LaurelwoodBunk1http://tinyurl.com/LaurelwoodBunk1http://tinyurl.com/LaurelwoodBunk1http://tinyurl.com/LaurelwoodBunk1http://tinyurl.com/LaurelwoodBunk1http://tinyurl.com/LaurelwoodBunk1http://tinyurl.com/LaurelwoodBunk1


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olume 73, Issue 1


This issue has been created bythe Newspaper Elective Staff.

Head Editor:Ethan Kwassman

Layout & Design:Jon Rubik's Cube Scheiber

Super Senior Camper Editor:Shea Belsky

Photo Credits to Barnett Goldmanand the CL Bunk1.com photographers.

CreditsWe would like to thank Shea Belsky for his contributions in

athering, writing and typing up articles. We also like to thank theffice staff for collating, distribution mechanisms and letting us useheir computers whenever we needed them. We also extend ourhanks to Barnett Goldman and all the CL Bunk1.comhotographers for letting us use photos taken from their cameras

or this issue. In addition, we deeply appreciate the efforts of Laura,he Programming Director, for enabling us to use the Laurelwoodibrary and for scheduling time devoted to journalistic work.inally, we would like to thankYOU, the readers, for supporting usom the beginning and reading this very issue today.

Puzzle Page

All answers to puzzleswill appear in Issue 2 of

the Laurel Letter Bulletin


the laurel letter issue 1

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