You can keep meals simple with less cooking or cook every meal above a fire or a on a camp stove.

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1 Yes, you can take your girls camping! FYI for all I would like to encourage you to try to camp with the girls. It may be the only time they will ever have the chance to do it. You can make it as easy as possible, or make it very detailed, depending on your leaders experience with camping. The files that are included are just ideas or our lists, to get you thinking about how it could be done. There is not just one way to camp. Check with your club s families to borrow supplies if you need them. Think outside the box Incorporate a badge or two to work on while at camp. Check out the camp and use what they have available for you. We have camped different ways. Years ago we camped in cabins. Those camps had some organized activities in place for us to participate in. We moved from camp to camp until the last YMCA camp was sold, and we decided to start using tents. We had the advantage of having a Cadet group in our church that camped frequently. We were able to use many of their supplies, to get us started. We have camped in the church because of bad weather. We have camped in a leader s yard. We have gone away to a camp that had nothing more that fields and a bathroom. And this summer we are headed to a forest preserve that has bike trails we plan to ride. You can keep meals simple with less cooking or cook every meal above a fire or a on a camp stove. Check with area churches to see if they want to plan a camping trip with you. Here is one thing we would recommend: Have a plan B, C, and D in place. You can plan everything except the weather. We added a new twist to our plans this year. We left at midnight on the first day of our two day, bike ride/camping trip. Two hours of thunder and lightning and pouring rain, flash flood warnings, and we grabbed girls (9) and food and left. We split to two houses, met up for breakfast in the morning, and it became a pool/game day at one of the houses. Two counselors went back to deal with the leftover mess. We had fun, but not the adventure that we planned! Also, know exactly how to get out of the camp. Everything looks different in the pouring rain at midnight. Notes from Flory Hoving Area 22

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11 General Plan (and be flexible) Pre plan all details, see other lists for ideas. Think about transportation. Have to fit girls and lots of gear, personal and for sleeping, eating, activities. Set up first. Show the girls, but have them do work. Eat. Each cook own food. Each helps clean up. Go over rules. Devotions Night Hike Campfire, Singing Tent time 10:00 Breakfast Devotions Make sack lunches Bike Hike, lunch along the way Games/craft/badge Dinner Each makes own food Devotions??? walk, free time, games Camp fire Tent time 10:00 Breakfast Games/walk Clean up/pack up, hopefully tents are not dewy. Otherwise will have to be set up at home to dry thoroughly. Ride home

12 North American Camps The Areas listed below already camp regularly some annually, some biannually. Check in with the Area Coordinators and Leadership Trainers and let them know you would be interested in joining, or help to start a new tradition in your Area March 17-19: April 28-29: June 1-3: July 21-23: August 5-6: August 13-18: 2018 June 8-10: Area 5/Northern California Silver Spur Christian Camp, Sonora, California Contacts: Melinda Costa and Debbie Veenstra Area 30/Florida GEMS Splash Fest (aka Camp!) Marriott Orlando World Center 8701 World Center Drive, Orlando, Florida Contacts: Heather Putnam and Karyn Dekker Areas 18/Minnesota, North & South Dakota, & Nebraska & 19/Northern Iowa GEMS Camp at YMCA Camp Foster in Okoboji, Iowa Contacts: Allison Vander Haar, Brenda Liddle, Loretta Vander Streek, and Robyn Kelderman Area 20/Southern Iowa GEMS Camp Camp Wesley Woods, Nixon St. Indianola, Iowa Contacts: Linda Menninga and Kim Roose Area 15/Montana & Wyoming Camp Yellowstone Alliance Adventures, Cottonwood Canyon, Bozeman, Montana Time: 10 AM Saturday 1 PM Sunday Contacts: Debbie Allsop and Jennifer Bos Area 35/West Michigan GEMS Camp Contacts: Jennifer Darling and Mary Jo Vander West Area 3/Washington GEMS Camp (they go every other year) Lake Retreat Camp, Ravensdale, Washington Contacts: Tammy Rabb and Lenore Wierenga Note: The GEMS Executive Board acknowledges and celebrates the amazing impact Get Connected! Camp has had on the thousands of girls who have attended throughout the years. Currently, we are assessing all of our programs, and as we prayerfully consider how to ensure the greatest impact for every girl, we are putting camp on hold for We hope to have a more complete assessment and decision by the end of the year.

13 GEMS misc camp out list: Tents Tarps Lanterns pot to boil water on grate over fire Walkie Talkies Bug spray Suntan lotion Water jugs Water Coolers Ice Plastic table cloths Matches waterproof? Long lighter Pot Holders Pie Irons Marshmallow sticks Saran Wrap Lots of foil Ashley allergic???? Zip lock bags Pot for boiling water Paper plates Napkins Cups Hand Sanitizer Buckets for near campfires Camera Charge battery? Garbage bags Extra Blankets Pencils and/or pens First Aid Kit Whistle Canopy Pan Spray - Rakers also bringing Table Covering plus extra for bathroom doors Tape Scissors Wipes Plastic Table skip there are 3 picnic tables Foil pan for dunking bread for French toast plastic Tongs Whisk Dishwashing soap Hand Soap Towels Scrubby Washcloths Plastic gloves Whisk Broom(s) Container for Phones and Electronics Tongs Lg ladle Spoons Can opener

14 There are many badges that can be incorporated into a camp out. Even if only the doing part is done on site, badge work can be filled out later (or beforehand). This list is by no means, complete. It is meant to be a springboard to get your creative juices flowing. Camping (of course) Hiking Biking Cooking Braiding ----see separate instructions for fish clip Swimming (if a lake or pool available) Fishing Candle making (we did it in the sand) When we got together with multiple grades or many churches, in order to make sure that we were not repeating a badge for anyone, we would borrow from the cadet badge book, modifying, adding, subtracting, to make it work for us. We have used all of the following. Leather craft Kite flying (you make a kite, then fly it) Map reading (Hide separate ingredients and have the girls follow the coordinates on a compass to put together their own trail mix). This takes a more advance preparation. Canoeing/Boating Archery (we used a cadet counselor to lead this one) Bird watching (done on an overnight at our church with an early morning hike to go look for birds). see birds badge file. For a Rainy day or a late evening activity From the Discovery Studio badge book God s Spirit in me The Gospels Our witness in God s world From the Discovery Place badge book (newest badge book edition). Any of the badges in the Knowing God or Understanding God s Word section of the Badge book Pick a badge and use it for the basis of your devotions for the camp out.

15 GEMS Campout Menu Activity Guideline Bread American Cheese Mozzarella Cheese Pizza Sauce Lemonade Carrots Grapes Snack Eggs Potatoes Bread Peanut butter Jelly Fruit Orange Juice Milk Coffee Hot Chocolate Granola Bars? Juice Boxes Bread Meat Turkey, Ham Cheese Chips Fruit Apples, Almonds, Raisins Goldfish Hot Dogs Buns Condiments ketchup, mustard, salt, pepper S mores chocolate covered Grahams, marshmallows Pie Filling, Bread French toast Eggs, Milk, Cinnamon, Syrup Sausages Orange Juice Milk Snack Start Fire Set up Tents and Campsite Make own Pudgy Pie Dinner Singing around Campfire Before Bed snack Get ready for Bed Fried Eggs/Toast/Hash Browns Clean Up Walk or Bike Leathercrafting, Fishing and Games Make own dinner Clean up Games, Night Hike? Camp Fire time again Make Breakfast Clean up Food stuff Pack up Personal Gear Games or walk Sweep out tents Pack up tents last. Pack up cars.

16 Camping Scavenger Hunt What color is the table cloth on site... Does site... Have a tent, pop-up, or motor home? Bring back a...brochure Bring back a flower How many slides are at the playground? What color is the flag at the beach? Who is staying on site... Bring back a bug Bring back the tallest blade of grass Bring back the fattest stick What color is the vehicle on site... How many trees are on site... Bring back three different shaped leaves Bring back 5 smooth stones Bring back a picture of a bird Bring back the signature of one of the counselors What kind of dog is at site... Bring back a picture (like on a phone) of someone in your group in the creek Bring back a picture of the american flag Bring back pictures of three different state's license plates How many giant steps between the camp host's white board and the number of site... How many giant steps across the creek bridge? Bring back a picture of food from a magazine.

17 GEMS campout shopping list: Food Bread Hot Dog Buns American Cheese 100 Mozz Cheese Pizza Sauce 2 cans Pepperoni Carrots, Cucumbers, Celery etc Grapes, Apples, other Eggs Hash Browns Sausages Margarine Tub Jelly Peanut Butter Syrup Napkins Non Food: Plastic Gloves Bug Spray Sun screen Ice Zip lock bags Hand Sanitizer Garbage Bags Hand Wipes Dish Soap Deli meat Ham, Turkey O.J. Milk 2 Gallons 3 Gallons Lemonade powder singles? Hot Chocolate Pks. Instant coffee Tea Bags Ketchup, Mustard Salt Pepper Cinnamon Marshmallows Chocolate Bars Graham Crackers Raisins Goldfish Almonds Craisins Chips Pie Filling Paper Plates Cups

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