This summer our older girls were so blessed to be able to attend Camp Saint Joan of Arc, a summer camp for Catholic girls in the Pacific Northwest, for the first time! They were nervous (and so was Mom!) before hand but ended up having an incredible time. They especially loved meeting so many other Catholic girls and developed some wonderful new friendships. It’s a loooooong drive from our home but hopefully we can get them back to camp next summer!
– Day 1 –
.: Father Blessed the Campground :.
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| Father asked the girls a few questions as he prepared to bless the campground… |
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| “What does the color green symbolize?” (incorrect answer… incorrect answer…) “Ohhh! You girls are killing me!” I just loved watching him interact with all the children. They loved him. He is such an awesome priest! And I’m not just saying that because he is my brother-in-law. 😉 God Bless Father G! |
.: Breaking the Girls into Groups :.
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| The girls all named their groups after saints. Chiquita was in Team St. Philomena. |
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| Twinkle Toes was in Team St. Maria Goretti. |
.: Setting up Camp :.
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| Just look at that smile! |
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| I said bye to the girls and told them I’d be back in a couple days… |
– Day 2 –
.: Hiking :.
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| Photo Source: Father G |
– Day 3 –
I was able to drive out to the camp for the afternoon and evening on Day 3. These are just a few of the activities the girls (and seminarians/priests!) enjoyed during camp.
.: Hula Hoops :.
.: Firearms & Marksmanship Fundamentals Course :.
After a lesson at the campground we loaded up in vans and drove to the shooting range.
The girls all have beautiful voices and sang on the drive.
The view was gorgeous!
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| Photobombed by Mr. F! |
You can find even more pictures (and you might recognize a certain someone behind one of the rifles! So FUN!) in Christine’s post about Camp Saint Joan over at Memories of a Catholic Wife & Mother.
(Also please keep Christine’s husband and family in your prayers!)
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| …and 9 of my 10 shots actually hit the target! lol |
.: Praying the Rosary :.
.: Dodge Ball :.
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| Mr. M & Mr. F Choosing Teams – Pick me!! Pick ME!!! Father N was the last to be chosen. |
.: Get the Bacon :.
.: Jump Rope :.
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| Here comes Mr. F! |
.: Tug of War :.
.: Pizza Man :.
.: Ask Father :.
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| Both priests answered questions that the girls had placed in a box and told stories while the girls enjoyed some S’mores made by the mom volunteers using the BBQ. No campfires allowed this year! |
Father G. came put the books of the bible to music on a recent vacation to help the girls remember the names. I didn’t get The New Testament on video, but here is The Old Testament! Sorry for the poor quality, it was dark and I was using my cellphone. The girls were a little distracted by the faces Father N. was making while looking through the questions in the “Ask Father” box! 🙂
– Day 5 –
.: Morning Mass :.
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| I got up extra early and was able to drive out to the campground and join all the girls for Morning Mass on the last day of Camp St. Joan! It was so beautiful, peaceful and reverent! Deo Gratias! |
.: Breakfast :.
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| These two hard working mamas were amazing and I had so much fun visiting with them during the short time I spent at the camp. May God reward you both for the sacrifices you and your families made for the all the girls! |
.: Signing Camp Books :.
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| My boys thought this was interesting… not something that happens at any of the boys camps they have attended! 🙂 |
.: Camp Cleanup :.
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| Just a few leftovers from Camp Saint Joseph and Camp Saint Joan of Arc… No campfires were allowed this year due to wildfire danger! |
.: Group Photos :.
St. Joan of Arc, Ora Pro Nobis!
Love those tug of wars pictures! Just curious, were the girls required to wear skirts?
2015-08-19 20:38:44
I love these camp posts (I need to find something here!).
2015-08-19 20:51:59
I love those tug of war pictures too! 🙂
As for all the girls wearing skirts, the camp packing list requested: "Since one of the virtues we are trying to foster in our young ladies is that of dressing as a lady, the girls should wear a skirt or dress that covers the knees during all camp activities (with the exception of when swimming and for sleep attire – attire for swimming must be modest)."
2015-08-19 20:56:17
How exciting! I know my boys always love Camp St. Isaac Jogues in PA. Hopefully they will develop some other girls' camps throughout the country. Thanks for sharing! God bless!
2015-08-19 20:57:17
I have no words… I'm sitting here trying to think of how to describe such a blessing! Your girls are so lucky to have been able to go. It will be something they will never forget!
2015-08-19 21:08:07
It looks like they had a great time! So nice to see modestly dressed young ladies!
2015-08-20 00:18:37
Well, he is not my brother in law, I only knew him a few short months and he is one of the finest priests I have ever met! My children will tell you the same.
2015-08-20 00:58:04
Yup, totally jealous now! I agree with Amy, what a blessing to be able to go to a girls camp like that. I hope it will always bring happy memories to these girls.
2015-08-20 06:26:05
Great pictures! It makes me feel like I was there. My daughter gave all the details to each picture. It was fun for her to reminisce. Also noticed Mr. F. photo bombing! Too cute! Looks like the priests and seminarians had just a much fun as the girls! Thanks for sharing!
2015-08-20 14:03:39
Do you have suggestions for where to buy chapel veils? Thanks, and God bless!
2015-08-20 22:57:36
Awesome camp experience!
Random question: do you know of anyone who publishes a 1963 liturgical wall calendar? My family would like to have one for 2016.
2015-08-24 16:52:38
Just awesome! What a great experience with so much fun! Thanks for sharing the pictures!
2015-08-26 04:22:00
Hi Victoria, I've never purchased a calendar with just the 1963 dates, but there are a few sources for wall calendars that include both the Extraordinary Form (1963) and the Ordinary Form (1969).
I love buying the beautiful wall calendars from Saints Galore for my husband to use at work.
TAN Books usually has a few options each year. This year they include: 2016 Mary and the Saints, 2016 Life of Our Lord Wall Calendar, and 2016 the Angels Wall Calendar.
Michelle Quigley will be coming out with her 2016 Liturgical Wall Calendar in September.
Hope that helps!
2015-08-26 23:10:18
I have been asked this question so many times over the past years, I should really put together a post with our favorite places to buy veils! Lately some of my favorites (and the girls' favorites) have been coming from Robin Nest Lane, and not just because she has an ad in my sidebar. They are such lovely veils! 🙂
You can find the links to a few other favorites at the bottom of this post.
2015-08-26 23:13:38
My favourite is from the Transalpine Redemptorists. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=NvnS7PoWAyE (this is a video about their calendar) I missed out on it this year, I left it too late and they'd sold out. I won't let that happen again this year but will get in nice and early. When it's available you can get it from the Papa Stronsay bookstore (the link is shown in the video details). I love how it shows the liturgical colors for each day of the year. It is a very detailed calendar, one of the best I've seen. Something to consider though is that many of the newer saints are not listed on it. You'll need to write those in if you want to remember them. Though you may find yourself needing to do so with any calendar depending on who it is important for you to remember.
2015-08-27 00:14:01
My daughters really like the look of the Robin Nest Lane ones best too. We're hoping to get some soon.
2015-08-27 00:18:06
Great suggestion! Thanks, Sharyn! I have heard of their calendar before but have never seen it. Thanks for including the link to the video. Do you know if they still publish their newspaper? I've been meaning to subscribe ever since Br. Nicodemus Mary sent me a copy last year but haven't yet… It was lovely!
2015-08-27 01:54:06
The FSSP seminary publishes their own calendars too.
2015-09-01 14:14:54
Where is this camp at? I live in Portland but would love to look into this for my daughter next year. Is there a website that lists details such as cost, times, etc?
2015-09-04 20:32:04
They do! Thanks for the reminder, Leah!
Here is the link to the 2016 calendar: http://www.fraternitypublications.com/20prfrofstp…
2015-09-14 14:49:07
Yes they do. I just subscribed myself, though I have bought issues in the past from my local parish. I got my first copy from the subscription last week and it had a beautiful colour section! I wonder if that is a one off thing or something new? It made for a good read with a cup of hot tea ☺️
2015-09-17 02:37:34
Oh, they've just put up a pre order link for their calendar
http://papastronsay.blogspot.com.au/2015/09/papa-…
And the link for the newspaper subscription
http://papastronsay.com/catholic/
God bless!
2015-09-17 02:41:57
There isn't actually a website for this camp, though the FSSP seminary does have some pictures and a few more details on their website: http://fssp.com/press/2014/10/recent-events-at-st… I believe it was just announced through the parish bulletin. Wouldn't it be great if we had a camp like this here in the Archdiocese of Portland!
2015-10-07 04:22:56
Yes! I wish there were something here in the diocese. Who knows, our lips to God's ears! I have some friends who are moving up to where this parish is and who knows, maybe we'll be able to do it after all. Just such a long drive!
2015-10-09 00:56:32