News from Camp: November 1, 2018

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We awoke this morning to a 4 inch blanket of snow and are enjoying the beauty and serenity of our first winter scene since April. We loved our long fall but are always inspired by the changing of the seasons, especially when it is as dramatic as this one.

We are all looking forward to the relative calm of winter and the opportunity it provides to improve our programs and our facilities. We will meet this week to select dates for some of our exceptional trips next summer. These include four- and five-day backpacking trips on Mts. Elbert and Massive, Mts. Harvard and Yale, Pikes Peak, the Colorado Trail, Buffalo Peaks, the Tarryall Mountains and several more spectacular wilderness areas. We will also plan mountain climbing trips to Mt. Huron, Mt. Ouray, Mt. Oxford and Belford, La Plata Peak, Mt. Quandary, Mt. Democrat, Mt. Princeton and ten more Colorado “Fourteeners”. We are already anticipating the fun and challenge of these amazing adventures.

This year, we have another great group of staff staying on through the winter to help us prepare for camp next summer. High Trails Directors Elizabeth Marable and Ariella Rogge and Program Director Anne Shingler will be hiring staff, enrolling campers, and dreaming up new programs. Big Spring Directors Mike Adler and Mark Rutberg have assembled a great team including Program Directors Martie Adams and Noah Fisher. Riding Director Maren MacDonald and Sarah Slusher will take care of the horses and Sarah Krumholz, and Logan Parr will be focusing on our HTOEC Program. Of course, Mike Mac, Jerry, Jane, Carlotta, and Jessie will be around to help with whatever is needed.

We will again be hosting the American Camp Association—Rocky Mountain Region Annual workshop in mid-November. Attended by camp leaders from several states, this is a wonderful educational and networking opportunity and many of our year-round staff will be attending and, in some cases, presenting programs. High Trails Director Elizabeth Marable is a member of the ACA Local Council of Leaders, and has been very involved in planning the conference.

Our maintenance crew has made excellent use of the good weather—they installed new windows in the Big Spring Office and painted the entire building, repaired roofs on some our support buildings and improved drainage around the camps. During the winter, they will continue to work on all kinds of facility upgrades at Big Spring and High Trails.

Many of you have received enrollment information in the past month, and we are always happy to send our brochure to new families. We offer an early bird tuition discount for enrollments we receive before December 1. We have already received a significant number of enrollments for 2019 and are excited to watch the High Trails, Big Spring and Sanborn Junior communities take shape.

Have a very Happy Thanksgiving!

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Jane Sanborn
About Jane Sanborn

Jane began her career as a counselor at High Trails and has worked with the camps and COEC since graduating from Colorado College with a degree in English and Education. She served as the Director/Program Director of High Trails from 1970-99, and as the Executive Director of COEC for many years. She retired as Executive Director in October 2017, and assumed the role of Director of Development. Jane is also active in the American Camp Association and has served in many leadership roles. Currently, she is the Program Chair for the ACA National Conference and sits on the National Public Policy Committee.