August 2022 by Satish Iyer
We sent our son to a weeklong camp to camp Sonshine - Shiloh this past week.He completely enjoyed the experience from the first day to the last day.For us parents, the organization, logistics and convenience of having our son participate in the camp as well as managing our daily activities was perfect!The camp is located in a beautiful picturesque 100 plus acre ranch in Roca, Nebraska. We would simply enjoy the daily drive through the beautiful countryside to drop our son off and pick him upWe had a courtesy phone call from my sons group leader, the day prior to the first day of camp, just to introduce himself and let us know what to expect during each day. We appreciated that touch of courtesy a lot!From what I saw, the camp is very efficiently run by a team of experienced camp directors, managers and counselors who are well attuned to the needs of the children, who enrich their camping experience through engaging activities that stimulate their physical as well as social well-being.Every evening when I picked up my son, he would excitedly relate lots of stories about what he did at camp that day.He had an overnight sleepover the night prior to the final day, and on the morning of the final day my wife and I drove to the camp to pick up our son as did the other parents.We were treated to a delicious breakfast of pancakes and coffee and then shown a video of all of the activities that the kids participated in throughout the week. It was clear that the kids had a lot of fun and engaged in a lot of rough and tumble activities that they normally would not be a part of, given the busy, suburban lifestyle we all live these daysAfter the presentation the kids took us parents out on a hike through camp, to show us all the trails, ponds and streams and bridges and other improvised equipment that they had built or had played on during the week.I was very pleasantly surprised to hear my son say “dad, it’s OK to step off of the path and walk through the woods, you won’t get hurt!” Coming from a child who is very persnickety about bugs and other creepy crawlies, it was a wonderful transformation!The staff were extremely kind, empathetic and loving towards the children. This was the most important factor that helped my son really love his experience at camp.My son wants to do another camp next year at camp sonshine and we will definitely make it happen for him
