Grand Dance Festival

One of the most anticipated events of each session is the Grand Dance Festival. This is a night of dancing, singing, and an ice cream treat for all of our campers to enjoy one of the final days to spend all together as a whole camp. Some campers love the dancing, while others favor the Rec Center activities, but whichever you prefer it is a memorable night for everyone. One of our Wolf campers shared what she loves about the camp dance.

Emma Mardosz, 3rd session Wolf

Emma pictured on the right

Every year, the Grand Dance Festival marks the winding down of the session, but the event itself is anything but wound down. Every Fox, Coyote, Wolf and staff member play games and dance the night away. While tether ball and 9 square are always fun, for me the best part of the night is when a song that everyone knows comes on. I vividly remember dancing with my cabin for every second of “Lip Gloss” and singing every word. Early in the night, the Foxes run all around the Wabi singing along to their favorite Disney songs until it’s time for ice cream. The staple songs of the night, especially for Wolves, always cause screaming and jumping to the beat. We all know every word of Miley Cyrus’ “Party in the U.S.A.” Everyone jumps in a circle to “Mr. Brightside” by The Killers and I’m left with “Stacy’s Mom” stuck in my head for days on end. The Wolves may run the dance portion of the event but even the Coyotes sing along to “Don’t Stop Believing” and sway arm in arm to Wagon Wheel. By the end of the night however, the older kids are still going strong to “Africa” by Toto, “Fergalicious,” “Chicken Fried,” and so many more. This event creates so many memories that my friends and I will always tell stories about. During the winter, we love to sing along to “Stacy’s Mom” over Facetime after dancing to it at the GDF. Regardless of the endless fun, heartfelt songs that everyone jams out to, the best part of the event is the very last song of the night. The Wolves are the only campers left, and everyone is starting to get tired and out of breath. “Bohemian Rhapsody” comes on, and every camper and counselor sings every single word. We eventually end in a circle holding hands and swaying to the song. This song and the Festival in general are such a unifying, fun, and genuine event and it truly embodies the spirit of camp.