2025 Theme: Try Something New
While we always want our campers to Have Fun, Make Friends, and Grow at camp, we also put a focus on one specific character trait or skill each summer by having a Summer Theme. Over the years, we’ve covered a variety of themes. In 2012, we focused on gratitude. In subsequent summers our themes have been: Cool 2B Kind, Creating Connections, Give a Hand, Growing Grit, The Energy Bus, Find-a-Friend, Filling Buckets, Be You, Better Together, Choosing Kindness, Count on Me, and Building Empathy, which was our 2024 theme.
We chose this year’s summer theme, Try Something New, because we want our 2025 campers to challenge themselves to get outside their comfort zones and try new activities and experiences while at camp. For our first-time campers, coming to camp is a great example of Trying Something New!
At GAC this summer, we’ll practice setting goals and taking safe risks by trying new things. And we’ll encourage and cheer each other on while doing so. We want all of our campers to build confidence in their abilities and to understand that it’s normal to feel some discomfort when trying new things.
Our “Try Something New” theme builds on the work we’ve done with campers over the past few years as we’ve talked about getting outside our comfort zones, putting fear in the backseat, and challenging ourselves to try new things.
We’ve noticed more campers in recent summers who are hesitant to try camp activities they haven’t done before, and we want campers to experience the increased fun and confidence that comes with learning and practicing new skills. It is our sincere hope that our 2025 GAC campers will take this theme to heart and continue to explore new activities and grow confidence outside of camp.
During the summer, we’ll talk with campers about all the different ways they can TRY SOMETHING NEW at camp, including:
- Trying an activity they’ve never done before, like water skiing or rock climbing.
- Trying a new food or salad bar item.
- Practicing a new friendship skill, like introducing themselves to someone they haven’t met or asking a friend three questions to get to know them better.
- Challenging themselves to build a new skill in an activity they’ve done before. For example, they might try sailing a bigger boat this summer or signing up for the Will-O sailing trip.
- Learning a new camp dance (like “Tragedy” or “Foot Loose”).
- Overcoming a fear of heights by going up on the ropes course or zipline.
- Overcoming a fear of speaking or being in front of a large group by singing a song with their cabin group or acting in a skit at Big Campfire.
- Telling their cabin mates a story around the campfire.
- Reading a book (if they don’t normally read for fun) or reading a book in a different genre than what they usually read.
- Learning a new craft or hobby, like crocheting, juggling, or guitar, by signing up for a free time activity that you’ve never done before or learning from a friend.
- Starting a gratitude journal or a journal about what you’re doing at camp.
Facing challenges, acknowledging big emotions, overcoming discouragement and frustrations, and learning how to get comfortable pushing ourselves to try new things are all skills that help us – and our kids – grow our resilience and our confidence. These are traits that will help our campers thrive both at camp and in life!
Resources
Homesickness – Gold Arrow Camp – California Summer Camp and Traditional Sleepaway Camps for Children
Helping GAC Families
With the recent Southern California fires, we’ve had many people from the GAC community including current families, alumni, and staff reach out to us asking how they can provide support.
We have heard from 36 camp families who lost their homes in these devastating fires, and we have been gathering information from them about how the GAC community can help.
In addition to replacing camp supplies and memorabilia, we are also offering tuition aid to families who need financial support. The Caldwell Foundation, which facilitates camp scholarships for campers to attend Gold Arrow Camp and other camps every summer, has set up a special fire fund for the GAC families who lost their homes in the fires. All donations to the GAC Fire Fund will go towards replacing camp supplies and covering camp tuition for the families who lost their homes.
You can pledge your support (which is a tax-deductible donation) here, and we will add the amount to your next camp invoice (for families currently enrolled) and forward the funds to the Caldwell Foundation.
Alternatively, you can donate directly by:
- Using this PayPal link. Be sure to include “GAC Fire Fund” in the space “Add note to your donation.”
- Mailing a donation check with memo “GAC Fire Fund” to:
The Max and Marion Caldwell Foundation
PO Box 1653
Capitola, CA 95010
You will receive a receipt of your donation directly from the Caldwell Foundation. All funds received will be distributed by need to families who have lost items and/or their homes in one of the fires.
Thank you for your consideration in supporting our camp families!
Helping Our Kids Process Trauma & Loss
When scary things happen, communities help each other. Some people in our community are helping by checking in on their friends, offering a place for evacuating families to stay, and helping at shelters. Many people outside of California are also thinking of us and hoping that we all stay safe.
Kira Bender, MS OTR/L
Center for Connection, Pasadena, California
We have many camp families, staff, and alumni who live in Pacific Palisades, Altadena/Pasadena, and the greater Los Angeles areas who have suffered the loss of their homes, schools, places of worship, and businesses. We join our entire GAC community from outside of the Southern California area in expressing our deepest condolences for the devastating losses so many of our cabin mates, co-workers, and friends have experienced.
This interview (watch the video here or listen to audio only here) with Dr. William Lacey is a resource for families and other adults who want strategies for helping kids process the trauma and losses many families in our community have experienced.
About Dr. Lacey
Dr. William Lacey is a Licensed Psychologist who specializes in neuropsychological assessment of children, adolescents, and young adults. His clinical expertise for neuropsychological assessment includes diagnosis, academic and treatment planning for individuals with neurodevelopmental concerns (e.g., learning disorders, AD/HD), traumatic brain injury, epilepsy, complex emotional difficulties, and other complex medical conditions. Domains of psychotherapy expertise include depression, anxiety, borderline personality disorder, behavior difficulties/ADHD, trauma and grief, transgender care, and peripartum depression. Dr. Lacey has training in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, Trauma & Grief Component Therapy for Adolescents, Parent Management Training, Parent Child Interaction Therapy, and Dialectical Behavior Therapy.
Dr. Lacey was born and raised in Detroit, MI and lived in Houston, TX and Boston, MA for extended periods of time. He uses a whole child approach and focuses on the context and culture surrounding our children and how that effects the way they interact with the world.
In addition to this interview, here are some additional resources for families who have been impacted by the recent fires:
Here are ways for the families to contact and reach out to Dr. Lacey:
website: https://www.cfcsantabarbara.com/will-lacey
email: william@thecenterforconnection.org
Twitter: DrLaceySB
Instagram: CFC_SantaBarbara
Resources
Tips and scripting to help caregivers navigate conversations with children.
Talking to Children About the Fires, The Center for Connection
Need support? Want to offer support?
If your family has been impacted by the fires or you are interested in supporting others in our GAC community, please fill out this form.
We are grateful for the love and connection that define our community during both the happy times and the difficult ones, and we are committed to helping our campers, staff, and families stay connected and supported during these difficult months ahead.
December Kindness Calendar
Hello all! Can you believe it is the last month of the year already!? Here are 31 ideas to keep your kindness going through December. Have a fabulous month! You can download the printable version here.
November Kindness Calendar
November is a great time to show gratefulness, so make sure we are showing others how thankful we are for them. Enjoy November’s Kindness Calendar and you can print a calendar here.
October Kindness Calendar
The new month means we have new ideas of ways to be kind to those around you! We hope these ideas fill your bucket as you fill others’ buckets. You can download and print out your own October Kindness Calendar here. Happy October!
September Kindness Calendar
Happy September from Gold Arrow Camp! This month, we’re continuing to celebrate kindness with our September Kindness Calendar. Follow the prompts each day and practice kindness wherever you go! You can download and print out your own September Kindness Calendar here.
Manhattan Beach 10k, Here We Come!
It’s that time of year! The GAC Runners are headed to Manhattan Beach on October 5th, 2024 for the 47th annual Manhattan Beach 10k! We love attending this race for so many reasons, but especially because we get to see so many wonderful GAC families. This event only offers a 10k race, so if that is not your cup of tea please come hang out with us at the Gold Arrow booth. We would love to catch up with all of you! There will also be a group photo taken at the GAC booth at 9:00 am. We can’t wait to see you there!
Details and registration information are available here.
Welcome Mini Camp 2!
Counselors are excited and ready to create MAXI fun and friendship during Mini Camp 2.
Some fun statistics about this week’s campers include:
45 first-time campers at GAC!
25 returning campers and
4 3-year campers
We are so excited for this week that will be spent having tons of fun, making new friends, singing songs, playing games, enjoying campfires and so much more! Make sure to keep up with everything going on at camp through our News section.
You can see what we’re eating this week during Mini Camp 2.
Summer 2025 Registration Now Open for Returning GAC Families
Hello GAC Families!
Registration for Summer 2025 is now open for returning GAC campers (and siblings) and families who were wait-listed for 2024. We cannot guarantee or hold space for your camper, and registrations will be processed on a first-come first-served basis. We recommend enrolling as close to August 1 as possible and before September 16 when we open enrollment for new camp families.
Some age groups in our two and three-week sessions fill very quickly, so be sure to check out the 2025 Dates & Rates, 2025 Availability, and contact us if you have any questions. Please enroll your camper through your My GAC Login or the Campanion app.