Dear Campers, Parents, Staff, Alums & Friends,
March is a very welcome arrival! Not only will the baseball season open this month (spring training is already underway!), but finally our 
A week or so after that, I met up with JAKE REUTER, RICK JONES, JEFF MELROSE, HITCH, and BRIAN STRAIN in Orlando for the annual conference of the American Camp Association. Contrary to the story the pictures to the right might convey, we did actually go to some training sessions and learn some stuff. The most exciting was when we heard Dr. Tina Bryson talk about all the new information we now have regarding the development of the brain in kids and adolescents (and adults) and how we can be purposeful in our work at camp to actually affect in a positive way how our campers develop, how their brains change and develop, and what a huge impact that can have on their lives as they become adults. It was fascinating, and what makes it so exciting is that we have Dr. Bryson coming to camp this summer for a full day of staff training!! It’s going to be so incredible to have her working directly with our staff, sharing her research and methods for turning that knowledge into practical and impactful ways of working with our campers. We also attended several other workshops, talked with other camp directors, and got ourselves excessively excited for the start of the summer. And, while we were there, we had some other fun too. Thanks to Mel, we had a fun night in the Magic Kingdom, in spite of some cool and wet weather. And we just really enjoyed spending time together with great friends. Did I mention that we can’t wait for camp to start?
A few days after the Florida trip, I had the good fortune of spending some time on the slopes of Summit County in Colorado. That was a blast! And Jake met me there for a day on the snow whereupon our very first run together, he blew out the binding on his ski. First run! Not to worry, he remedied the situation, and we got to ski together later in the day. You know him as a mild-mannered, easy going guy. But I’m telling you…put that man on skis and he goes completely insane!! It sure was fun to watch.
From there it was back out to the frosty Midwest, and the annual fund-raiser for Camp for All Kids. This year’s event was at the House of Blues where people from all 5 camps met, had some yummy food, and listened to some awesome music. The best, of course from our unbiased viewpoint, was MATT RODIN who played a set (at the House of Blues!!), and really brought the house down. We weren’t surprised, but people who hadn’t heard Matt play before were amazed. And some Timberlane campers came to watch Matt, which sure caught him by surprise (see the photo below!). During the event, an amazing video was shown depicting interviews of scholarship kids and non-scholarship kids all supporting the important work of CFAK. And, you guessed it, the video was created and produced by our own “old-timer” RYAN COHEN. It also starred campers JOHNNY GROSS and ERIC THOMPSON. Sure, there were other kids in it, but they were the stars. All in all, it was a good night, we raised some money for a great cause, and we so appreciate the support from many of our camp families who attended and who donated great items for the auctions. Thanks to all!
Meanwhile, up at camp, the frozen tundra has remained frozen and snow bound. When the snow piles up like this, we have to actually get someone up on the roofs of the cabins and main buildings and shovel the snow off. At last report, our caretaker, GREG FUS, tells us there is almost 4 feet of snow on the ground up there. That is huge! He sent along some photos so you can see what that looks like.
We’re in the home stretch, with openings in just a few age groups in the 2nd session. It’s going to be a full boat of happy campers again this summer, and we’re excited to welcome back the following “old-timers” who will join us again this summer: JACOB KLINE of Chicago, IL; BEN LITMAN of Denver, CO; RYAN HEARST of St. Louis, MO; DESMOND BROWN of Hillside, IL; DARION STARLLING, of Cleveland, OH; and BRANDON GOMEL of Houston, TX.
Welcome aboard to the following first-year campers who will join us this summer: ADAM COHN and HARRY COOVERT of St. Louis, MO; MARK DAVID of Herndon, VA; JACK & JEB KLESSIG of Eagle River, WI. and LUIS PRIETO of Chihuahua, Mexico. Get ready for the greatest summer ever!!
YO PARENTS: We know it seems like you just did this, but the 3rd (Spring) deposit is due by March 15th. If you have any questions, about that, please let us know. Thanks very much in advance.
It’s March, which means we have lots of stuff to tell you about. Why? Because it’s time to start getting serious about things like medical forms, the packing list, and other goodies like that.
PACKING LIST: The packing list is online, and you can view or download it from your Parent Keylog Page. Last year we prohibited flip-flops from being worn outside the cabin, and we experienced a huge reduction in foot/toe injuries. So that policy remains in place this year.
MEDICAL FORMS: As we told you in our last newsletter, we are again using CampDoc.com to handle all of our medical forms. Many of you have already completed your forms, which is great. If
you’re unsure of what forms you have not yet completed, you can login to CampDoc.com with the login info they sent you and check the
status of your forms. If you have any questions along the way, please let us know.
OTHER FORMS & INFORMATION: Isn’t this fun? On your Parent Keylog page, there are a few other forms you will need to fill out and send to us, and some important information for you as well. This includes:
*Camper Profile Form - Good stuff for us to know about your son to help us get ready for him. Also your 2nd (and last) opportunity to make cabin mate requests. THIS FORM IS NOT REQUIRED FOR CITs.
*Visting Weekend RSPV - If you have a full season camper, or CIT, and you plan to join us for our Visiting Weekend, please let us know as soon as you can by filling out this form and submitting it.
*Order Timberwear Online - A link to the Cloz website where you can buy most everything your son will need, as well as camp logo'd items. If you’d like your son to have his clothing and gear in time for camp, PLEASE PLACE YOUR ORDER BY MAY 1ST!
*Activity/Trip List - A 2 page PDF file for you to read or print out and discuss with your son. Get the ball rolling on activities and trips your camper may be interested in. Remember, there are no activity sign ups until the kids arrive at camp.
TRANSPORTATION TO & FROM CAMP: Your Parent Keylog page has this information for you pertaining to your son’s travel:
*Travel Form - This is an online form to confirm with us your son's method of traveling to and from camp. Please submit this to us no later than May 15th. Please also remember our policy regarding changes in bus travel, "Withdrawal from bus travel within 1 week of travel days will still incur full bus fares. Additions to bus travel within 2 weeks of travel days cannot be guaranteed a seat on the bus."
*Info for Campers Flying to Camp – This takes you right to the Sojourn Travel website where you can see all the information regarding flights, Unaccompanied Minor arrangements, baggage concerns, etc. IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY BOOKED YOUR SON’S FLIGHTS TO CAMP, YOU ARE BEHIND SCHEDULE! The later it gets, the higher the fares will be. If you are booking your son’s travel independent of our travel agent, that’s okay, but we must know about it. And our travel agent will not be able to assist in the event a schedule change or flight interruption occurs.
CIT TRAVEL – We have been in touch with many CIT parents already about this. We have a special email for you pertaining to CIT travel 
to and from camp that will come your way early this month.
GENERAL POLICY INFO: More fun stuff for you to read about on your Parent Keylog page.
*Unplugged Policy – Same as the past few years. We allow campers to bring their video-capable iPods to camp. This does not include iPads or iPhones (or any type of tablet computer or phone). Upon their arrival, we will ask for the iPods (in a required sort of way), and we will disable all functions on the iPods except for music with our own locking code. When the boys leave camp to go home, we will give them the code to unlock the iPod and enable the other functions. This way they can keep their iPods, have their music in the cabins, and we’re still pretty darned unplugged. No videos, no apps, no Internet, just music and happy children! WE DO NOT ALLOW E-READERS. Please remember to remove any parental control codes or screen lock codes on the devices before you send them to camp.
*Packages Policy – Unchanged this year. You can only send reading material like books and magazines. Unplugged ones!
YO OLD GUYS: If you will complete 7th grade or older this summer, you may be eligible for one or more of our "Big Trips" this summer. You've certainly heard older campers talk about these trips a lot during prior summers, so you know how special they are. Next month we'll send you a letter that will note what trips you have already completed, and what trips you are eligible for. Have a look, and if you'd like to pre-
register for a big trip that you are (or soon can be) eligible for, you can do that from our website. The link for that is here.We have booked our permits for all of the trips, including the Quetico (a.k.a. The Canadian). We are required to request Remote Area Border Crossing (RABC) permits for all participants for this trip, not just the trip leaders. This means that we will ask those of you who are eligible for this trip to try and decide before camp starts if you want to go. If so, we’ll have a little paper work for your parents to sign, and we’ll need a photo copy of your passport that we can include in your RABC application. It’s a little more complicated, but it is just so worth it! Please call or email us if you want to talk about this or any other trips for this summer.
We also want to remind you this one last time that if you will complete 8th grade or older this summer, you are a candidate to be a Big Brother for a new camper. As we noted last month, if you would prefer NOT to be a Big Brother, that's fine, but you need to let us know by
March 15th. We will begin making Big Brother/Little Brother assignments after that, so we can send those assignments out in early April. Thanks very much.YO STAFF: Paper work time for you too! You’re so lucky!! The Staff Health History form is online. You’ll still need your immunization
We also want to remind you of the training opportunities available to you this summer. These include Lifeguard Training certification, as well as recertification courses to renew your LGT and/or First Aid and/or CPR for the Professional Rescuer. Remember, your LGT certification is NOT VALID unless your CPR Pro is current. CPR Pro must be renewed every year or 2 years, depending on when you last completed it. How do you sign up? Log in to your Staff Keylog Page, and click the "Extra Training" link. And what does it cost? Not a single penny! Please do this as soon as you know you can make those training dates.
We are so lucky once again this year to have a huge return of counselors to help make sure 2014 is your best summer ever! Check it out!!
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| This will be Eric’s 3rd summer at Timberlane, though it seems he’s been with us for much longer. Eric is 28 years old and is from Cleveland, OH. He currently works as an instructor and Team Building Director for the Catalina Enviornmental Leadership Program at Catalina Island Camps off of the coast of LA. Eric is all about bicycles, and he’s a mountain biking madman. During the winter months he worked at an indoor mountain biking park in Clelveand building trails. This summer he will again be a cabin counselor and will head up our Mountain Biking program as well as helping out at the Ropes Course. |
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| It is summer number 10 coming up for Jordan. He is 20 years old and a sophomore at Indiana University majoring in Informatics and Business. Jordan played tennis in high school and tries to get out on the golf course anytime he’s back home in Tucson. This summer he will be a cabin counselor, will again head up our Golf program, and will help with Tennis and Waterskiing. |
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| Kathy is back allll the way from South Africa for her 9th summer at camp. She is 29 years old and works in Cape Town as a climbing guide and camp facilitator, while also taking courses in Environmental Education. Kathy will again be our Climbing Director this summer, which is great ‘cause the new addition to the climbing tower is going to make that a very high demand activity! |
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| A freshman at the University of Illinois, studying ballet and pop music, Joey is back for his 11th summer at camp. He’s originally from Deerfield, IL, though given his passion for the St. Louis Cardinals, you’d never guess that. Joey is 19 years old, and he will be a cabin counselor and will again head up our Athletics program. |
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| This will be Joey’s 13th summer at camp, where he will be a cabin counselor and will head up our Fishing program. Joey is 21 years old and a junior at the University of Tampa majoring in Biology and double minoring in Chemistry and Business. Joey is the university president of the Inter Fraternity Council (he founded a ZBT chapter on campus too), and is taking SCUBA classes. |
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| It is summer number 13 coming up for Colby! Colby is a pre-med senior at the University of Illinois, and after graduating this spring, spending his summer at camp, he will begin medical school in the fall. Amazing! Colby is originally from Buffalo Grove, IL, and he is 22 years old. He will be a Village Director, a cabin counselor, and he’ll help out with Waterskiing, Swimming, Fishing, and the Ropes Course. |
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| After a summer’s absence, we’re happy to welcome Jeremy back. He is 21 years old, and is a graduating senior at McGill University in Montreal. Jeremy will earn a degree in Political Science and History. While at McGill, Jeremy played on the baseball team, helping them nearly win a World Series in the process. This summer is Jeremy’s 10th at camp, and he will be a PA Director, cabin counselor, and will head up our Baseball program and help out with Floor Hockey, Weights, and other sporty activities. |
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| The big man is back! Stephen is from Columbus, OH, where he has been buried in snow all winter long. In between bouts of shoveling snow, Stephen has been studying to sit for the CPA exam. He will be 25 years old this summer, and for his 5th year, he will be a part of our Kitchen Staff. |
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| Jonathan is back for his 4th summer at camp as a member of our Maintenance Staff. “Eagle” is 29 years old and lives in the Phoenix area where he works and goes to school and Chandler-Gilbert College. He’s a junior and he’s studying Mechanical Engineering. |
STEPHEN WAYNE
Say hello to the following first-year staff who will join us this summer:
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| Aviry joins us from Tucson, AZ where he is a sophomore at Pima College studying Emergency Medical and Outdoor Education. He is 21 years old, and he also works as a teacher at Outer Limits early Childhood Center, which happens to be owned by Timberlane “old-timers” Bill & Debbie Berk. Aviry has worked at other camps, and was an outdoor leader last summer. He is passionate about his work with kids, and he joins us this summer as a Trip Leader. | |
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| Kim is an RN from Watersmeet, MI, so she knows the Northwoods! She is finishing up her bachelor’s degree in Nursing at Walden University. Her nursing career has included prenatal and nursery care at a hospital as well as private nursing for adults and children. She has two boys of her own who will join us this summer as well, and Kim will be one of our nurses. | |
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| Daniel is originally from Georgia, though he currently calls the Phoenix area home. He is 29 years old, and is completing his army service this spring.Daniel attends Arizona State University, studying Accounting and Business. Through his time in the army, he has developed a wide range of useful skills, and this summer he will join is friend Jon Williams as part of our Maintenance Staff. | |
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| Emmet is a Junior at Cornell College, studying Geology and Studio Art. He will be 22 years old this summer, and he grew up in Oak Park, IL hanging out with Jake Reuter a lot when they were kids. Emmet has worked with children before in a day care setting, and has grown up outdoors. He is experienced in canoes and kayaks, and this summer Emmet will be a Trip Leader. | |
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| Luke is from Oak Park, IL, and grew up not far from Jake also! Yep, he and Emmet are brothers. Luke is 18 years old and he has been sailing for most of his life. His free time is almost always outdoors sailing or canoeing and camping. He hopes to be able to race sailboats in college. This summer Luke will be a cabin counselor and will help out with Sailing as well as Arts & Crafts, Rocketry and other activities. |
AVIRY CHRISTY
DANIEL VAN BUREN
EMMET WILDER
Here in Tucson, MAX GOOTTER has been playing basketball for his club team and his middle school team. 
AIDAN MEASE has been riding his bike and playing with his friends in the neighborhood. DAVID BERK is on a swim team and went to Florida for Rodeo Break (doesn’t everyone get Rodeo Break?). In the Chicago area, JOE and HENRY LEVY have been snowboarding and playing hockey. SIMON LEVY is his hockey team’s goalie, and they won the NIHL championship for their division. They are seeded first for the state tournament. ZACH WALDEN has been busy…he went to Israel for a week last month, he attended the CFAK event at the House of Blues (along with JESSE MCCAULEY, DAVID HEIMAN, ROB GOTTSHALL, and ETHAN TEICH.), and he’ll be here in Tucson this month for spring break. JOSH SPAETH helped me out with a visit with a new camper early this month, and that was great!
Our Arizona staff have been enjoying the weather here in the desert these past few weeks. JOEY RODIN took a dive off of his skateboard (after he ran into a tree) and broke his nose…so that isn’t so great. He’s busy with school and his fraternity. DAVID ARTZI has an internship working with a football scouting web service (scout.com). LANCE BANTLIN is ready to be done with school and get to camp! “Old-timer” MAX WEINTRAUB is graduating this spring from the U of A, and has been preparing for the real world by playing loads of golf. Up in Phoenix, ROSS KRULISKY is graduating high school this spring, has been accepted into several universities, and has yet to decide which he will be attending. His high school soccer career just ended, and he was the captain of the varsity team. MATT RODIN, coming off his triumphant appearance at the House of Blues in Chicago, is headed to St. Louis soon to play in a house concert with the support of the Lynch family. DANNY LEVY has produced some amazing artwork, and some of it was selected for a visual arts exhibition in Evanston, as well as the art selected to be the poster for the event. “Old-timer” MICHAEL BREEN is busy with graduate school at the University of Chicago, and came by the CFAK event. “Old-timer” SAM “PICKLES” KAHN was also at the CFAK event, and he’s been kept on his toes with his teaching job on the south side of Chicago.
BRAVO TO OUR MARCH BIRTHDAY BOYS: Parker Annan - 3/1/2002, Alexander Echt - 3/1/1999, Brett Miller - 3/1/2004, Wil Craig - 3/2/2001, Dillon Berlin - 3/4/2002, Jack Robinowitz - 3/4/2005, Javy Vallejo-McCann - 3/6/2003, Jordan Castleman - 3/8/2000, Ben Sollinger - 3/11/2001, Jonah Gerstein - 3/12/2004, Joey Ettinger - 3/13/2003, Harris Lerner - 3/14/1999, Spencer Coplan - 3/15/2002, Jonathan Bloom - 3/20/1999, Sam Jaffe - 3/20/1999, Brian Strain - 3/22/1981, Desmond Brown - 3/23/2002, Max Boron - 3/26/2004, Sean Slattery - 3/26/1993, Matt Rodin - 3/27/1992, Joe Berns - 3/28/2001, Brandon Cramin - 3/28/1996, Sean Hogan - 3/28/1992, Daniel Rothstein - 3/28/2003, Aaron Berkowitz - 3/29/1996, Michael Bloom - 3/29/1996, Adam Rubin - 3/29/2000, Joey Salit - 3/30/2001, Zach Coplan - 3/31/2000.
We will write you again in April! Have a nice start to Spring!!
Benches up,
