Day 1 of the Mission House Reading Camp was a great success.
The day started day out perfectly when our bus picked up our first camper, Tenneh, at 7:15am--Tenneh ran out of her house, carrying her shoes, saying, "I'm so excited; it's finally here!" Another camper, Judith, called me three times before the bus arrived at her house, just to make sure we hadn't missed her. The campers' excitement was contagious.
Last year, as a teacher, I spent only three hours every day with the kids. Those three hours were pretty intense, and even though I was interacting, sometimes one-on-one, with the campers, it was easy to stick to the task at hand and not really get to know the students on a deeper, more personal level.
Riding the bus this morning and picking up the campers has already made this year such a different experience. Stopping at individual homes, I saw and spoke with the campers' moms, their dads, and lots of their grandmothers. I saw where they sleep, eat, and play. It was my favorite part of the day. Although the houses aren't the prettiest and the places to play aren't always the greatest, I was able to see a side of the students that makes me appreciate them and love them even more. The students aren't the only ones who learn at camp. I just looked through my pictures from today and am already excited about tomorrow.
-Holly Davis from Emmanuel Episcopal Church in Winchester is a camp director of the Mission House Reading Camp
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