Shire Village Camp
Founded in 1972, Shire Village Camp is a coeducational residential summer camp for 7 to 14 year olds located on 96 acres of hills and woodland in Cummington, Massachusetts.
On the grounds are two riding rings, a tennis court, athletic fields, a filtered pool and a large brook which flows into a private pond and into the Westfield River, which flows through the campgrounds. Traditional activities offered are theatre, music and dance, arts and crafts, film and photography, swimming, canoeing, horseback riding, gymnastics, field trips, and nature exploration. In addition, the camp offers tai chi, shiatsu, meditation, yoga and emphasizes a nonsexist, noncompetitive approach to sports activities which include archery, soccer, tennis, softball, volleyball, basketball and Frisbee.
Shire Village Camp was once described by The Boston Globe as a camp that "...espouses liberal values; it's nonprofit, nonsexist, nonracist, nonhomophobic, nonsectarian, and noncompetitive." It also offers vegetarian meals and has a policy of avoiding chemical additives and preservatives in food served at the camp.
History
Shire Village is steeped in traditions, and has a strong community feeling, with many memories hidden, or exposed, within. While the camp has Undergone some changes, there is still a "free spirit" mentality associated with the Shire. Past campers can fondly remember the days were walking around barefoot was not only encouraged but the norm, where it was customary to sit on the hill for an hour and focus on learning how to Cloud Burst, and trust games and messages of protest and cooperation were expected. Many traditions remain today, and the songs that have been sung at Shire for years and years continue to permeate the air at camp fires and in the Courtyard before meals begin.
Campers, Counselors, and Sessions
Many Shire village campers return year after year and former campers have sent their children. There's a deeply-entrenched community feeling to the camp, with years' past names scribbled and inscribed into the walls of all bunks. When walking onto the property, one feels the rich history that Shire boasts, whether catching a GLIMPSE of the layers of paint hiding past scenes on the theatre stage's wall, visiting the photographs dating back to the 1970s displayed in the dining room, or making a trek into the woods to find the elusive 'Lisa's Rock.'
Some campers return to work as counselors, support staff and administrators, holding onto their memories as campers, and helping to recreate an environment that continues to teach compassion, cooperation, and choice. Also, it is where many campers have their first kiss! Several former campers are now serving on the Board of Directors. The camp boasts a popular teen staff training program, titled Camper Workers, who are placed within a bunk and serve as an additional set of hands, as well as working on other projects around the camp, including kitchen work and facility beautification tasks, which have included painting, building, and creating treehouses, swings, bleachers, and a nature barn.
All bunks are named for trees, with campers progressing alphabetically with age, moving from Birch to Evergreen to Redwood to Spruce to Willow. On any given year, there are a number of hybrid bunks, and for the past several years, these have included Acorns, as the youngest, Sycamores, and Sprillows.
Sessions begin the first week of July through the end of August and introductory two-week sessions are available for children 7 to 9 years of age. Shire Village is a small, intimate camp (AbOUT 100 campers and 50 staff) and campers attend either the July, August, or both sessions. The July Session is 4 weeks long, while the August Session is only 3 weeks.
Optionals and Daily Activities
The typical day at Shire is split into four Optionals, wherein campers select their own activities from a variety of offerings presented by counselors, promoting choice, independent thinking, and decision making. Optionals range from non-competitive sports activities (such as Ultimate or Softball) to strolls down to the Westfield River, to typical arts and crafts projects or not-so-typical ones such as playing with Oobleck. Music is often heard, both organized and resulting from optionals such as "Found rock band."
All members of Shire Village are expected to Contribute to the community, with various tasks assigned on a daily basis to staff and campers, alike. The chore which elicits the most vocal distaste is Work Projects, or the cleaning of the communal bathroom, the Necessary. There is a long standing tradition of Work Projects which begins before breakfast with the singing of the Work Projects song, and then the calling of each selected camper's name. There is also a rich history surrounding Work Projects, which underwent a period in the 1990s of being called Razzamatazz. Camper Council decided to switch the name back to Work Projects.
Evening Program occurs every night and can range from being a movie, which until a few years ago, was still played on a 35mm reel, to a camp-wide game. Some favorite Evening Programs include Pillow Stuff, The Co-Counselor Game, Giant Games, and CW Surprise. Everyone agrees that Evening Program is the most wonderful aspect of a Shire Village day. What with the gorgeous dusk and the bittersweet sentiments brought by that back-to-bunks bell, it is the most special and intense thing at Shire.
Free Time
In addition to more organized periods there is supervised free time when campers can play, sing, talk, or just relax. During afternoon free time we have a snack which May Be ice cream, nuts or fruit.
Campers are involved in the governing of the camp by participating in regular group discussions and Camper Council meetings that concern all members of the community.
Shire Village works hard to maintain a balance between recreational and learning experiences, with skill development an important part of the program. Some activities require commitment on the part of campers involving days or even weeks. For example, no one is allowed on the three-day canoe trip or The Appalachian hike trip without first achieving the basic levels of predetermined skills (the safety necessity for this is obvious). This means attending skill sessions, usually once a day, for several weeks.
End of Camp
The summer ends with a camp-wide banquet in which all of camp eats a themed dinner (campers vote on the choices, and the one with the most votes is served at the banquet). Some campers and staff dress up for the occasion, while others have historically dressed in strange or themed costumes.
After Banquet is complete, campers gather in the theater to watch short skits performed by fellow members of Shire Village Camp. Banquet includes a wide variety of skits, and songs, the most notable being the tradition of the Willows singing a group song, as well as a presentation of CWs receiving Shire Village Staff t-shirts. Staff members introduce each baquet skit with MC acts, of which there are some traditional ones that are used year after year, including the Cows in the Grass, Lemme, Toothbrushing-Arms belonging to another person, and several others. The banquet night skits often go until around 12:00 PM to 12:30 PM.
The following day campers are picked up by their parents, or alternatively leave on the camp bus bound for home.