Tips & Tricks for Parents

Parents-want some tried and true tips and tricks from the year round CCB team and alumni parents? We got ya covered in this blog!

Before camp

• Choose your pre-signs with your son! Pre signs are due a few weeks before your son’s session. Make sure you log in to camp in touch and (with your son!) choose his top in camp and tripping activities. Available on camp in touch under "forms and documents".

• Write a letter to your son's counselor. Our counselors read, and re-read, and re-read these helpful hints and tips from y’all. Available on camp in touch under "forms and documents".

• Make sure your son writes a letter to his counselor. If the counselors read our parent's letter a few times, they read their campers letters a hundred times! Available on camp in touch under "forms and documents".

• Have your son help pack via the packing list. Having him involved is KEY. Stick to the packing list-we have crafted that list since 1924!  

Some MUST PACK and sometimes forgotten items...

• *Water shoes-needed for rafting/wet activities
• *Stationary and letter writing kit
• *Plenty of towels and socks! Always the first items to be lost
• *Shower caddy and shower shoes-cos shower time needs to be made simple!
• *Warm clothes/blanket-Evenings can get chilly!
• *2 sets of sheets

Some DO NOT pack items that are sometimes packed

• *Cell phones/ipads/ipods/earphones-all not allowed!
• *Candy/snack-we don’t like to feed the local wildlife on cabin row!

Additional tips...

• Write your sons FIRST and LAST name on EVERYTHING he owns. We have sharpies at the camp store to write his name in all new purchases.
• Decorate your car! Free vita pups for a whole session for the camper with the most enthusiastic Camp Carolina decorated car!

Opening Day

• Avoid the temptation to arrive early! Gates do not open until 10AM. Arriving right on 10AM will allow the small window of waiting for excitement (we let the cars through the gates in small "batches") but won’t verge on boredom/nerves by waiting in the car for an hour.

• Wear shoes that are suited to uneven/hilly ground. CCB is rustic! Expect wet grass, gravel roads and hills!

• Take advantage of the local coffee truck (bring cash!) that heads out to CCB for Opening Day! Nothing like an iced latte on a hot summer's morning. We also have free vita pups on offer (slush puppies!) and plenty of water coolers and sunscreen around camp to keep the whole family happy and healthy.

• Have your exit plan prepared and ready. Remember a positive and confidence instilling goodbye sets your son up for success on Opening Day.

• Have medication and instructions organized to pass off to our infirmary staff during the health screen.

• Decorate the cabin! Pictures from home, encouraging letters from home, flags etc. Making their cabin feel more homely goes a long way for helping the campers feel at home in a new environment.

At camp

• Write handwritten letters (but not too many!)... To instill independence from home the boys need a few days without contact from home. Receiving a surprise letter every few days with a bunch of  updates is way more exciting than the same letter each day.

• Try to enjoy time with other people in your life. You will miss your son immensely but knowing he is safe and happy allows you to put time into relationships you have been thinking about. Or take a little time for yourself!

• Follow the fun on our Social Media and via the photos uploaded each evening to camp in touch... You can almost hear the enthusiasm!!!