look furtHER

Visiting Kadayjha at Camp - can I go next year?!

On July 11, we loaded up in Kristin’s car and headed down to Culver to visit Kadayjha at the Culver Military Academy Woodcraft Camp. (photos below)

For those who are reading our blog for the first time, Kadayjha is a bright, mature and ambitious 12-year-old who has some big dreams - one of which included attending Culver’s prestigious Woodcraft Camp.

Prestigious - and not cheap. There was no possible way Kadayjha’s mom, a single parent raising soon-to-be five children, could afford to send her. Thanks to our very own Jacqueline and Kristin’s husband Larry Swank, a Culver alum, Kadayjha went through the application process and received a scholarship to attend the 8-week summer camp.

Look FurtHER stepped in to raise some extra funds to provide Kadayjha with all the additional expenses she would have before and while at camp. Thanks to amazing support from our family, friends and even some anonymous donors, we were able to raise close to $700 for Kadayjha.

Before she left for camp, we went on a shopping trip to provide her with some things she would need, including a bathing suit, robe, some new tennis shoes, and the other required clothing.

Our day in Culver was so interesting. I think it’s safe to say that it made ALL of us want to be 12 again, going away to summer camp! While walking to K’s cabin with Takeesha, K’s mom who rode down with us, we encountered our first camper. We asked her if she knew Kadayjha, and where she might be. Her response cracked us up.

“Kadayjha? Oh she’s like my best friend here!!!”

She showed us to K’s cabin, where we met her counselor and some of her cabinmates. It was just amazing to see. So many of the campers in her cabin are from foreign counties, including Spain, Mexico, France and Switzerland. Some of the girls were chit-chatting back and forth to each other in Spanish. This is NOT your average summer camp. The girls’ cabin was in perfect order, beds made, clothes folded and all personal items put away. The girls have regular inspections they have to pass, which include not only the cleanliness of their areas and themselves, but memorizing quotes.

We saw K walking back to the cabin, and we all laughed when she spotted her mom - her face lit up as she ran to us. She excitedly showed her mom some of her math work, told us about swimming, the upcoming play and dance, and all her classes (her schedules rotates every two weeks), and introduced us to all her friends (apparently she is friends with every single girl at camp). We got such a kick out of her introductions, especially when she said, pointing to her friends, “She’s from France, she’s from Switzerland, she’s from Spain and she’s from Ohio.”

We had the opportunity to watch the girls line up to march to lunch. They had to have their shirts tucked in, stand up straight, eyes to the front and arms at their side. There seemed to be a different song, cheer or chant for everything, and K never missed a beat.

We went into Culver to have lunch, then returned to watch K play “mushball.” After a quick shower and changing into her more “dressy” uniform (which were so cute - especially when we got to see the little boys dressed up!), we had the chance to take her off campus for a few hours. It was interesting to see all the different parents come to see their children, both in the Woodcraft and the Upper Camps.

We took K to CVS to get her a few items - bug spray! - then we went to the root beer stand for some ice cream. We checked in with her to see how her bank account was doing, and she caught up with her mom and talked to her grandma on the cell phone.

After we said our good-byes, we reflected on what we’d seen. More than ever, we are so thankful for the opportunity to help Kadayjha have this experience. It is such a unique and amazing one for her. I don’t know where else she would meet and become friends with girls from other countries, have the opportunity to learn Spanish firsthand, or participate in such a wide variety of activities and classes - from archery to auditioning for a play. The camp seems like its not only fun, but really stresses structure, discipline and education.

Thank you to everyone who donated to our cause. I wish you all could have had the chance to visit K at camp, because you would truly realize how significant your donation is.

Thanks for reading this novel of a post!

~L

Crunch Time.

Off to make some more bracelets with the girls tonight!

Between work, meetings, events, school, weddings, vacation, trips (JK just back from Ireland and KS heading to China in a week!), it is pretty impossible to schedule a night with everyone in attendance these days.

In addition to Look Further (oh and our jobs!), each of us is involved in multiple community, development, service and non-profit organizations here in town.

Many of our friends work for these types of organization, and it’s amazing to witness how our entire group of friends is always more than willing to step up and support each other - especially in times when that support is needed most.

While we don’t always have the ability to write the big check, you can always count on someone to volunteer their time, knowledge, expertise and hard work.

So whether you’ve donated $10 for a bracelet to Look Further, or volunteered your time and energy with any other organization that is working to improve the quality of life in our community, thank you - and give yourself a little pat on the back. :)

And I wasn’t kidding about Crunch Time - we have to sell some bracelets people! Spread the word!

~LW