Summer Events

Spring is upon us as well as the beginning flutters of summer camp excitement. With warm rains falling and the ice on the lake receded, the momentum of camp life has begun. The emails and phone calls fly as the foundation for summer 2016 is set and the building blocks of our master calendar are mortared together. Jam packed with socials, banquets, trips, holidays, musicals and more, the master calendar keeps Camp Vega on track and excited for each approaching moment. Though every one of those moments are thoughtfully and thoroughly planned out, there are a few highlights that are sure to be this years favorites.

Music With a Message:

Music with a Message (MWAM) is a South Bronx non-profit organization serving inner city youth from ages 2-19. As a project of the Renaissance Youth Center, MWAM spends their summers touring the country with a band made up of the talented singers and instrumentalists drawn from the centers music programs and open NYC auditions. Their mission: To spread hope, love, inspiration and healing to inner city families and communities. Luckily, their love of spreading positive messages reaches to the rural woods of Maine. Girls at camp will have the privilege of experiencing the power of music from voices their own age. The tall pines of Vega were rocked and rolled in 2014 and we are pumped to have these talented, forward thinking, and inspirational youngsters back to entertain us with their uplifting and positive messages.

Birthday Banquet as Vega turns 80:

Those familiar with Camp Vega traditions understand that banquet themes are need to know information. Banquet themes stay a surprise, leaving a hum around camp of what the theme might actually be. Some years campers walk through archways to enter into a circus tent complete with acrobats and a big top, while other years they fall through the rabbit hole and into Alice’s Wonderland. Whichever world they enter they are greeted with long tables, marked with placemats stating their name and birthday. Campers and staff sit and eat together, finding out who they share a birthday with or who their birthday is close to. (Nothing is more exciting than finding out you share a birthday with your favorite water ski instructor!) More importantly, Birthday Banquet is a way to celebrate everyone’s birthday. With a massive cake and a fun, tasty meal, it never disappoints. The excitement grows for Vega’s birthday banquet as there is already so much in the works for her 80th birthday. Happy 80th Birthday Vega!

The 6th Annual Friends of the Belgrade Public Library 5k Road Race:

Just a twenty minute drive from camp, Belgrade is one of the most beautiful towns in Central Maine. With it’s quaint village center and surrounding lakes it definitely equals up to the Maine summer scene. Though this is the 6th Belgrade 5k it will be a first for Camp Vega, joining other surrounding camps in this wonderful opportunity for community service. There are eleven age categories ranging from 8 and under to 80 plus! There will be medals awarded to the first two men and the first two women to cross the finish line for their age group. The Friends of the Belgrade Public Library urge all speeds to register and race. You can walk, run or have a nice meander, any speed is fine with them. Camp Vega is excited to participate with Maine locals and enjoy the beauty and people of Maine outside of camp.

Funtown/Splashtown:

funtown-splashtown-logoThese two words can send any camper, past or present, into a sing-a-long of the famous local theme park jingle. Funtown began its ascent into Maine fame in the 1960’s when it opened as a drive-in diner. Year by year the owners added little attractions such as a mini golf course, batting cages and so on. Carnival rides like bumper cars, “The Zipper” and The Astrosphere were finally added in 1967 and Funtown was born. The park grew year after year and in 1996 the waterpark was added to create the Funtown/Splashtown the campers know today. The Funtown Trip is a day long trip for the entire camp. Each age group is broken down into small groups with an appropriate number of staff members assigned to each group. Campers and staff get meal tickets for lunch and dinner and there is a gift shop where campers can buy souvenirs and gifts for friends and family back home. The rest of the day is filled with laughter, sunscreen checkups, dippin’ dots, waterslides, water breaks, bathroom breaks, log flumes, tilt-a-whirls, more dippin’ dots, arcades and the ultimate test of riding Excalibur, the tallest wooden roller coaster in Northern New England. This day is a favorite for campers and staff alike.

These exciting events are but a fraction of the excitement and joy that Camp Vega offers throughout the summer. With more trips and daily surprises added to calendar each day it is obvious why campers and staff return to Vega year after year. From opening day to final sunset circle, it is a nonstop roller coaster of love, laughter and family.

For more information on the following events:

Music with a Message:
http://musicwam.org/

 

The 6th Annual Friends of the Belgrade Public Library 5k Road Race: http://www.friendsofbelgradepubliclibrary.com/5k-road-race.html

 

Funtown/Splashtown:
http://www.funtownsplashtownusa.com/history/