June 20th: Final Shows!

June 20, 2026

Our first session of the summer is wrapping up! While we are so sad to see these campers go, they certainly go out with a bang!


The last day of Camp looks a little different from our usual routine. After breakfast, campers spend some time packing before heading to Castle in Chapel (which we’ve lovingly coined “Chastle”). The youngest three cabins finally get their turn as Castle hosts, and after leading us in a song, we move into one of the most meaningful parts of the morning: awards!!


Here at camp, we offer levels and certificates across a variety of activities, and our final day is our chance to celebrate the hard work and progress these campers made over the past three weeks. This year, awards were given for passing levels in Kayaking, Archery, Tennis, Tumbling, Riding, and Mountaineering. We also celebrated a record number of new inductees into the Bullseye Club and Dam Swimmers (see the campers reciting the Dam Swimmers' pledge below!).

Following lunch and rest hour, we head into one of the biggest highlights of the session: Final Shows! Campers have been preparing all session long in Riding, Dance, Acting, Music, and Tumbling, and it is so fun to watch their friends and counselors cheer them on. We kick things off at the covered arena with the drill team, whose “Lion King”-themed performance featured costumes and even painted horses. From there, we move to the Castle and King Arthur’s Court to watch the rest of the performances. Some standout moments included Michael Jackson–inspired Tap and Hip Hop routines, a guitar class performing “Riptide,” and a Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders–inspired Tumbling routine.

To close out the afternoon, we gather at the tennis courts for the grand finale: the Camper & Counselor Tennis and Pickleball tournament finals. Both matches were incredibly close, and it was so much fun to watch (and quietly cheer on) these duos!

As the session comes to a close, we can’t help but feel both proud and a little bittersweet. These campers have grown so much over the past few weeks, and we have loved every second spent with them under Old Bald. watching bonds form and a mutual love of Merrie-Woode develop has been truly special. As a favorite campfire song says, “we’ll all be back again next year!” Until then, we’ll be holding onto these memories and celebrating what an amazing June session we had!

Chug-a-wump, 

Robin & Frost 

Related Articles

June 18th

June 18, 2026
With the end of the session getting closer, there are a ton of special traditions that happen in the last week of camp! This morning was the Bum’s Prank. The oldest cabin, Bum’s Rest, plans a prank for one of the last breakfasts of camp, complete with a theme, costumes, music, and more! This year, the theme was America, more specifically “God Bless Bum’s Rest,” in celebration of the upcoming 250th Fourth of July. They focused on the Hamilton/Founding Fathers/1776 aspect of American history, complete with powdered wigs for all involved! Instead of the wake-up bell, we were awoken by Reveille, followed by “The Star-Spangled Banner” and “Party in the USA.” Bum’s decked out the Dining Hall, complete with the “Declaration of Bum's Rest” (with Dammie’s signature bigger than John Hancock’s), the infamous fake horse, and a canoe right in the middle of everything.

The Merrie-Woode Values: Spirituality

June 16, 2026
Spirituality: Camp Merrie-Woode is a place of reverence and is based in the Christian faith. As we wrap up this first session of the summer, we are especially grateful for our time at Merrie-Woode, the Place of Rarest Beauty, and for the way that it reveals God’s presence in our daily lives. Merrie-Woode's natural beauty evokes a sense of awe and appreciation for our Creator in those who have the opportunity to observe it, especially the campers and counselors who spend their summers beneath Old Bald. Recognizing the importance of Camp as a sacred place, the first line of Merrie-Woode’s Mission Statement speaks of “a sanctuary of rarest beauty which inspires a lasting awareness of God’s presence.” Admiration of nature is often the basis of spirituality at Camp. Campers instinctively acknowledge that the many wonders of the outdoors are God’s handiwork. Some of our favorite reflections about Merrie-Woode are found in the pages of The Lake Fairfield Ripple , a collection of camper and staff writings and drawings published annually since 1923. In one early edition of The Ripple , a camper expressed the connection between God and nature in poetic verse:

June 14th

June 15, 2026
Sundays at camp are very special! The rest of the week, our campers have eight activities; four they attend on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, and four on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays. But Sundays have a totally different schedule. Campers get to sleep in an extra 30 minutes (always a win!), and breakfast is a treat: quiche, cinnamon rolls, and even Lucky Charms! Afterward, the girls have some time to clean their cabins before we all gather in Chapel. We sing, listen to a few readings, and enjoy a skit or performance. Today, one of our ukulele classes performed “I’ll Fly Away,” with everyone singing along. We also had a camper skit acting out a Bible story, complete with sheep costumes and two designated campers playing the part of trees!
ALL ARTICLES