Celebrate World Kindness Day!
Join us in celebrating WORLD KINDNESS DAY!
Hi Camp Families & Staff,
With the holidays quickly approaching, it’s a great chance for us to focus on small acts of kindness we can do to bring positive changes to the world. Did you know that people around the world celebrate kindness on November 13? It’s World Kindness Day!
And, for those of you who would like to make kindness a focus for longer than just a day, how about practicing kindness for the next 30 days?
Want to join us for 30 Days of Kindness?
All you need to do is commit to doing 30 kind acts over the next 30 days. You can participate as an individual or as a family!
Here are ideas of what you can do:
• Commit to doing at least ONE daily kindness (DK) each day. These can be small acts of kindness or big ones – an encouraging sticky note to a parent or sibling or a bigger project. You can do the same thing every day – like writing one thank you note or text each day – or you can pick any combo of different kindness acts.
• Consider doing (alone or with your family) a bigger Weekend Kindness Challenge (WKC).
You can find ideas of people to write notes of appreciation to on our printable Kindness “BINGO” board! Keep track of how you’re spreading kindness using our printable Kindness Tracker! Also, here are some printable GACspirations to keep you inspired to spread kindness!
Daily Kindness (DK)
How many acts of kindness can you do this month? There are 30 days in November, so if you do one kind thing each day, that’s 30 ways to make yourself and others happier this month! If you miss a day, you can always do two acts of kindness on another day to catch up. And, if you go over 30 acts, all that means is that you’re spreading even more kindness to the world, which is a good thing.
Weekend Kindness Challenges (WKC)
Since on weekends we tend to have more time, we’ve saved some more time-intensive kindness ideas for the weekends. These are just suggestions. You can come up with your own kindness ideas, too!
WKC #1: Offer to Help Elderly Neighbors or Friends
Ask neighbors who may need assistance how you may help them around the yard or doing other things around the home. Offer to get them supplies from the store when you go with your family to get yours!
WKC #2: Send a Care Package to Someone
Create a care package for someone who you know is working extra hard or could use a bit of surprise happiness — again, this could be someone close to home (maybe your own family member!) or someone across the country.
WKC #3: Write a gratitude letter
Who is someone you really appreciate? Take some time to write them a letter about what you appreciate about them. If you are able, read the letter aloud to them either in person or on the phone. You’ll make their day and your own!
WKC #4: Plan an In-Person or Virtual Celebration
There are many important events that are coming up in your friends’ and family members’ lives that we don’t want to forget. Pick an upcoming event such as someone’s birthday, an anniversary, or a surprise thank you celebration and start planning! One thing that you can do is contact all of the person’s loved ones and ask them to send you a video, a message, or a physical note that you can collect and give to the person all at once on their special day. You can give them guidelines such as “tell them what you love about them” or “tell them a funny memory you have with them” or you can leave it open to the sender of the message. You could also organize all of the person’s loved ones to call them at different times throughout the day and deliver their messages personally. If you had enough time to receive physical letters, you could organize them into a book or a nice box for them to keep. Alternatively, you could plan a “surprise” virtual (via Zoom or something similar) or in-person event where all of the guests knew that it was a party for the special person. It could be fancy or a fun costume theme, the possibilities are endless! Your special person will feel so loved. If this feels overwhelming to you, pick another friend or family member to help you brainstorm and plan what would be best for your special person!
DOWNLOADS
For Parents: Why is Kindness Important?
Being considerate of others will take your children further in life than any college degree.
Marian Wright Edelman
Being a considerate, kind person who thinks about others is a character trait that helps children form good relationships and leads to a happier life as an adult.
What does this mean for super competitive parents who want their children to succeed at all costs, even if it means cheating and being mean to others? It could be helpful for parents to know that research has clearly shown that kind people are happier people, and happier people, in turn, are more successful in life. In jobs and in future relationships, kindness will take our children “further in life than any college degree.”
Focusing on kindness needs to be a higher priority for everyone who cares about children.
In our cut-throat, competitive culture, where assertiveness and achievement are glorified and valued, focusing on developing kindness is often overlooked.
There are anti-bullying posters and speakers at most schools, but where is the message about the powerfully positive impact of kindness?
Parents and youth development professionals, including teachers, coaches, and camp staff, know that wording things positively and telling kids what we DO want them to do is far more effective than a list of “don’ts” and “nos.” So, why hasn’t this message translated into how we teach children to treat one another?
We’re talking with children a lot about not bullying each other, but we’re not talking with them enough about what we want them to be doing instead — which is, of course, to treat each other with respect and kindness. I propose that as parents and youth development professionals we flip the “anti-bullying” message into a “pro-kindness” one.
Ways to model and practice kindness
Get kids to focus on kindnesses that they have seen by asking them to point out kind acts they have witnessed or done.
Brainstorm with kids kind things they can do for others and help them follow through. Focus on small, easy kindnesses rather than huge things.
Talk with kids about how they feel after someone has done something kind for them or after they’ve done something kind for another person.
Questions to Ask Kids to Spur Conversations about Kindness
• Share something kind they’ve seen someone else do this past week.
• What’s the kindest thing someone has ever done for you?
• What are kind things we can do for our friends? Siblings? Parents? People we don’t know?
• How do you want to be remembered by your classmates and friends?
“You can’t live a perfect day without doing something for someone who will never be able to repay you.”
— John Wooden
This topic is so important to Gold Arrow Camp and to Sunshine that she dedicated an entire chapter of her book, Happy Campers, to kindness: Camp Secret #8: Make it Cool to be Kind. Each chapter of Happy Campers ends with five different “Bringing Camp Home” activities to consider trying in your family.
More Kindness Ideas
Read (or listen to) Wonder by R.J. Palacio
One of GAC counselors’ favorite read-aloud books is R.J. Palacio’s Wonder. Consider reading (or listening – Audible version is free right now if you sign up for a free Audible trial) to Wonder individually or as a family read-aloud. Get some popcorn and have a family movie night to watch the movie version after you finish reading.
Do you like Pinterest? Check out Sunshine’s Kindness board.
Five Ways to Raise Kind Children, Greater Good Science Center
Being Kind Makes Kids Happy, Greater Good Science Center
The Power of Kindness, American Camp Association
Happiness Tip: Commit to Kindness (Christine Carter, Raising Happiness)
Camp T-Shirt Day
Camp T-Shirt Day is Tuesday, November 8th!
We invite all Gold Arrow families and staff to join us and other camps around the world as we celebrate International Wear Your Summer Camp T-Shirt Day on November 8th. Do you want to take part in the fun? It’s easy, just wear your favorite GAC shirt (or any GAC gear!), take a picture, upload it to social media, and use the hashtag #CampTShirtDay. If you tag us too (@goldarrowcamp), we’ll share some of our favorites on our Instagram. We can’t wait to see your best GAC gear! Learn more about Camp T-Shirt Day here.
Manhattan Beach 10K Highlights
The GAC Runners had another successful year at the Manhattan Beach 10K! Thank you to the campers, parents, staff, and alumni who represented GAC on the course and at the booth! There were lots of smiles from a happy runners crew. Also at this event, the winner of a free week at camp was selected from the many names of parents who completed their 2022 Parent Evaluation by September 10th! And the winner is… The Shallenberger Family. Congratulations!
If your school or town hosts a running event, let us know! We love to be a part of these community events.
Be Resilient Summit for Parents and Kids!
Are you or your kids feeling overwhelmed or stressed by school, work, or life in general? Want some ideas and tools to help grow the important trait of resilience in yourselves and your kids?
Something we’re passionate about at GAC is helping both parents and kids learn how to manage strong emotions, improve communication with others, and grow important character traits for flourishing – including resilience. At camp, we talk about growing grit through challenging ourselves to try new things.
Registration is officially OPEN for the Be Resilient Summit, and we hope many GAC families will join this free online event that gives kids and parents tools and ideas for being kind, managing stress and persevering through challenges.
We’re so excited to share this FREE 6-day event with you!
This is an event for parents and kids! It’s totally unique.
For one full week in October, The Be Resilient Summit will let you attend daily online sessions from experts on managing frustrations, calming techniques, dealing with emotional hurricanes, how to handle boredom, having tough conversations… and so much more.
Audrey “Sunshine” Monke is one of 25 amazing speakers with topics ranging from how to set healthy boundaries, being brave, mindfulness, how to talk about tough things and everything in between! Sunshine will be talking about how Grit is Grown Outside the Comfort Zone (a topic she covers in her book HAPPY CAMPERS) on Thursday, October 20 at 11 am PT/2 pm ET.
Other speakers include some of our favorite parenting experts, including:
Debbie Reber with Embracing Your Unique Timeline: A.K.A, Why You’re Right Where You Should Be
Devorah Heitner, PhD with Secrets of Texting Like a Champ!
Ned Johnson with The Science & Psychology Behind Test Anxiety AND What Parents and Kids Can Do That Helps.
Janine Halloran, LMHC with Creating your Reset Space: A place to learn & to calm down in your home
The summit kicks off on Monday, October 17th and it’s going to be 6 action-packed days that you won’t want to miss.
Click here to learn more and get your family’s free ticket!
Mini Camp 2 Special Events Schedule
“Foxtrot” Receives 2022 Coach’s Award
In 2009, Gold Arrow Camp lost a dear friend. Ken “Coach” Baker (March 10, 1951 – April 5, 2009) worked at GAC as Camp Assistant Director and Director from 1981-1992 and had a huge, positive impact on many of us who are still here at camp today. Ken was instrumental in helping Sunshine purchase Gold Arrow from Jeanie Vezie in 1989, and mentored Sunshine, Monkey, Woody, Chelster, Tigger, Junior, Trapper, and many other GAC staff during their early years working at camp.
Ken had an amazing way of making even mundane tasks like picking up trash and painting buildings feel monumentally important. He had a way of clapping his hands together and giving a pep talk that got everyone fired up to do their jobs well. Ken had a near-constant smile on his face and took every challenge that came his way in stride. We all knew we could go to him with any problem and he would help us figure out how to fix it.
To honor Ken, in 2009 we established “Coach’s Award.” This award has been given each year since to a leader at camp, nominated by his/her peers, who motivates others through positive leadership and encouraging words and exemplifies Ken “Coach” Baker’s dedication to GAC’s vision.
To select each year’s recipient, we ask the entire staff to complete a nomination form, where they put the name of one person whom they think deserves this honor. They include comments about the person they nominate. We have such a high caliber of staff, many of whom are extremely positive and exemplify what Coach stood for, and we are grateful for the legacy he left us and that so many people at GAC are incredibly positive and motivating to others.
2022’s recipient, Jacob “Foxtrot” Harris, stood out in those many nominations for his patient and positive leadership of our youngest campers and for his love of camp. His name has been added to Coach’s Award, which hangs in our camp store.
Foxtrot has a long history at GAC. He was a camper for six years, from 2012-2017 and joined our staff in 2021. He has primarily worked as a Group Counselor for our youngest campers (ages 6-7) and has shown exemplary counseling skills. His two sisters, Sydney “Squid” Harris and Hailey Harris, are also both long-time campers. Squid is an 11-year camp veteran, with 9 years as a camper and 2 years on staff.
There were many amazing comments about Foxtrot in his nominations, including:
He is such a positive and happy person to everyone he interacts with. I’m sure he has tough days, but he doesn’t show it. He always puts his campers first and never complains about being tired, being alone, dealing with 12 campers, etc.
If you’ve never seen Foxtrot interact with campers, you’ve been denied a real treat. He maintains focus on his campers at all times and exudes positivity, flexibility, creativity, grit, and most of all, kindness. He shows his campers, by his stellar example, how to embrace challenges, try new things, and have a lot of fun. Although Foxtrot’s personality tends to be quieter and his contributions to camp sometimes play out through deep personal connections with his campers and peers, Foxtrot’s legacy and impact are evident to everyone here. His strong work ethic, great attitude, and friendliness will carry Foxtrot far in this life. On behalf of everyone, I will say that we are better for knowing him and grateful that Foxtrot shares himself so fully at camp.
Foxtrot is inspiring to me. He takes difficult situations in stride. He is kind, patient, and warm-hearted. He is a great role model and helps make camp a great place. I love his work-ethic and attitude about everything. I can’t help but be happy when I’m around him.
Foxtrot is such an amazing, caring, well-rounded guy. Foxtrot cares so deeply about his campers and truly embodies the GAC way. Being with baby bears is no easy job and Foxtrot somehow does it year and year. Foxtrot is amazing and camp truly would not be the same without him.
I can only imagine the energy it takes to work with bears all the time. 4 sessions seems like an impossible task, yet everytime I see you, you have a bright smile, endless enthusiasm, and a kind word to share. You work tirelessly and without complaining all while making time for other counselors. Your dedication to your campers, and leadership among other counselors is infinitely impressive. You have created such a positive atmosphere at camp and watching you work helps me be a better counselor.
He is amazing with all the campers always taking care of them in a kind manner.
When I envision a good role model for how to act both inside camp as a counselor and outside of camp as a generally good person, Foxy comes to mind. His perpetual positivity is inspiring, and his constantly good attitude that everything will be alright is something I can only hope to attain. He is the perfect embodiment of GAC.
Foxtrot has always displayed pure positivity. There is never a moment when he’s down and his attitudes are contagious. He also does such an amazing job with the youngest boys as well and I genuinely don’t think anyone else embodies GAC like him.
Foxtrot’s innovation helped me in so many situations. He made me a better counselor through his patience, kindness, and resilience.
Such an amazing leader, to be that good with baby bears is so impressive. His dedication is amazing and so appreciated!
His patience with his bear’s and his dedication to GAC is easily seen in all his actions. Listening to him tell stories to his cabin every night is so sweet. He is a great friend and person all around.
Bears’ Social – Session 4
Our Bears campers had a fun night of dancing and ice cream! We always love watching them socialize with each other and make new friends!
Eagles’ Social – Session 4
Our Eagles campers enjoyed a fun social together this week. On Tuesday, they had a fun evening of casino games, laughter, and ice cream!
Carnival – Session 4
As always, Carnival was a blast for all campers and staff! Check out some highlights from the day here!
Lions’ Social – Session 4
Our Lions campers had a blast at their social on Sunday evening. They had a fun evening of games, laughter, and ice cream!