High Tech Randi

Greetings and love to my Shibley family.  I write to you today from the comforts of my home, specifically my dining room which is now my make-shift office.  As I glance out my window I see the gardeners starting their spring clean-up and my heart and spirits are lifted as I know Summer is coming.  And for those of you who know me, Shibley Camp is my happy place.

I have my Shibley special events calendar to my right and the yummy menu to my left.  I have binders filled with group schedules to check over and a pile of resumes to go through.  And while I love in-person face-to-face interviews in the Shibley Winter Mansion followed by a great tour of the grounds, I am practicing social distancing and having wonderful conversations with potential staff through Facetime, Google Duo and Zoom. Never in my wildest dreams would I have envisioned myself juggling 2020 technology and digital platforms, but then again never could I have imagined what’s going on around us either.  Usually, when I’m in the office I will give a nod to Heath or Danny to set me up, but these days I am doing it on my own and feeling quite proud of myself. Haha….. full steam ahead as we hire great staff who are equally as excited for Day 1 of camp to arrive.

Through the turmoil and uncertainty come hidden gifts and treasures.  All of us have been given the gift of time, which hopefully we shall use wisely. Think about our normal daily routines and how we take them for granted, and let’s face the new with a smile. Let your creative inner spirit blossom.  How many of us in our hectic busy daily routines dream about what we would do if we had a free day.  I have been spending oodles of time facetiming with family from all over the country and reconnecting.  Long walks with my husband around the neighborhood have been joyful.  I even cleaned a few closets and put pictures in photo albums-YES!!!!!!  PHOTO ALBUMS!!!!!

My favorite part of the day is facetiming with our Grandson, Brody, now 18 months old.  My son or daughter in law, who are also working from home, hold the phone and we watch him go.  We sing together, recite nursery rhymes, read books, play with puzzles and just gush over every move and sound he makes.  It’s heaven.  Most of us are home now with our core loved ones.  Take this opportunity to spend quality time.  Have special conversations, play board games, watch old home videos, share pictures of loved ones , share playlists, dance in the living room, cook recipes you always hoped to make but never had the time for.  You see what I mean…..you can do anything you want with your favorite people in the world and time is on your side.

As far as camp goes, we are at your service. The new normal still has us registering new campers for Summer 2020, hiring staff, planning programming and improving the grounds.  We can be reached on the camp office phone or you can reach out by emails.  We are here for you to answer any questions that pop up.  Our Shibley family remains our #1 priority and we wish you well and best wishes as we get through these challenging times together.