Where the rubber meets the road...

As I sit here drinking hot chocolate and watching the snow fall outside, I think of (what else?) all of my time at Lake Tahoe. I know right now the lake is cold as ice and that the snow is probably piling up there, too…but I just keep thinking of blue skies, warm sun, and all of you. It seems like many of you are having similar thoughts, as I have heard from more of you in the last two weeks than in a long time. I love it.

Lately, I feel like I have been hearing a lot of negative things about camps. People say that kids just go to camp, come back excited for a week, and then lose their excitement. They think that you have to have ongoing, continuous programs to make a change in people. I agree in part: if we could spend three months at camp or if we could somehow meet up each month, that would be better. However, I don’t think that fact diminishes Tahoe and the experience we all had there. Quite the contrary, I think it speaks volumes of the unbelievable nature of our beloved camp, considering the impact it has in less than a week’s time.

I need you guys to prove me right, though. I will be making a pitch to hundreds of advisors in December to send their students to Tahoe and they are going to want to know why they should. I can talk until I am blue in the face, but they need real, tangible examples of how students have benefited from attending the camp and what those students have done to better their schools, communities, and the world since camp. Here is the argument I have to combat: Anyone who attends these camps is already great and they would plan an amazing Homecoming regardless of attending camp. That actually may be true, but I know you all do things bigger than that. School events are great because they create a sense of camaraderie, belonging and spirit among a student body. That in and of itself is a noble goal. But the skeptics want more.

So, what is it that you can do—or can continue to do—in the world that makes a difference. What is it that you wish you could fix? Don’t wait, you can make the difference now. As President Kennedy said famously, “If not you, who? If not now, when?”

When I go to see these advisors in December, I need to prove to them that Tahoe is worth what I say it is. So, if you have stories or testimonials about “life since Tahoe” and “what you’ve done (been inspired to do) since Tahoe,” I would really like to hear them. Don’t worry about bragging, I need to brag about you. And, most importantly, I need to know HOW Tahoe made this impact on you, because that’s what they want to know.

If you haven’t figured it out yet, they don’t want this to this to succeed. No, its not some conspiracy, but everyone is a skeptic. You’re part of this underdog effort to restore these life-changing camps and I hope you know that. You are Tahoe. You are the future of these camps. What you do day-in and day-out is the camp. Tahoe is not your AC, your JC, the director, Zephyr Point—it is what you do. So, help me sell you. Do great things, like I know you can and do, and then tell me about the things you’ve been up to since camp, so I can say, “See?”

I miss you all dearly, but I am keeping you in my thoughts as I sit here watching the snow build up like my memories of camp and you all.

Let me know what you’re doing! I need it!

Much love,

RF