Day camp wrapping up at Camp Fort Hill

Michelle Patrick, Sturgis Journal
·2 min read
Making sand castles always is fun at Camp Fort Hill's day camp.
Making sand castles always is fun at Camp Fort Hill's day camp.

Day camp concludes this week at Camp Fort Hill.

It’s the fifth and final week for the camp for area youngsters and their counselors.

The week-long day camp packs in an array of activities. Day camp director Sarah Vanderlugt said they include rock climbing, archery, tie-dying, kayaking, fishing, field games, face-painting, arts and crafts like bracelet-making and walking stick-making and, of course, swimming.

The Journal met up with three day campers this week: Sofia and Reegan Duffy and Caitlin Ritchie, and they all said swimming was their favorite activity at day camp. The Duffy twins, 10, of Sturgis, have been coming to camp the past three years. They seem to enjoy it. Reegan said, in addition to swimming, she also likes to play with friends, the rock wall and finding frogs. She even found some baby frogs this week, she said.

Ritchie, 8, of Sturgis, also has been coming to camp for a few years. Besides swimming, she likes a game called "nuke ‘em." It’s similar to volleyball, only it consists of tossing and catching the ball. She also likes kayaking and fishing at the lake. She caught two fish this week and also was awarded the best paddler award for kayaking. Ritchie also likes nature hikes, the rock wall and reciting the Camp Fort Hill chant at the end of each day. It begins, “Momma, momma, can’t you see? Camp Fort Hill is fun for me.”

Campers attend camp 9 a.m.-3 p.m. each day Monday-Friday. On Friday, they visit the bog and swim in the stream that connects Tamarack Lake to Klinger Lake.

Vanderlugt said the camp had more than 50 campers each week and a waiting list that they didn’t make it through. The camp is a partnership between Camp Fort Hill and Sturgis Public Schools. Scholarships are possible through St. Joseph County United Way and fundraisers through Camp Fort Hill.

Camp is staffed by Vanderlugt and 11 counselors: Amanda Camburn, Olivia Elliott, Lilly Foster, Laci Gottschalk, Kevin Groff, Allison Hoyt, Morgan Miller, Anita Nettleman, Chloe Northrop, Abby Schlabach and Inez Ultz. Elliot is an intern and Ultz is a Burr Oak student gathering community service.

Swimming is a favorite activity of day campers.
Swimming is a favorite activity of day campers.
Tie-dying also is among the many activities at Camp Fort Hill Day Camp.
Tie-dying also is among the many activities at Camp Fort Hill Day Camp.

This article originally appeared on Sturgis Journal: news-Camp Fort Hill-day camp