Archives for November, 2007

ROCKing in South Florida!

Friday, November 30th, 2007

While just being in Florida and enjoying the warm weather (while it is freezing cold in Black Mountain) made this trip great to start with, the three showings that we just had on the southeast coast of Florida made the trip one of the best ones this season!

I started my tour of the Atlantic side at the Dunn’s house, where I got to hang out with veteran camper Chris Dunn and his mom in Fort Lauderdale. Not only was Chris there to help get us excited about camp but we also had a few other friendly faces help share the story of Rockmont. The younger Chris – in the striped shirt – is going to camp for the first time this summer and we were excited to tell him all the great things he can expect to do there. He is certainly looking forward to it! And so are we!



With the show at the Dunn’s sort of starting the trend of having a great amount of veteran campers and a wonderful amount of guys that are interested, I ventured north to Palm Beach Gardens where I was warmly welcomed by the Michols. I had visited the Michols last year, but this time I got to meet Mrs. Michols, which was great – the fact that she had ordered pizza for everyone didn’t hurt my first impression of her! And after grubbing on some tasty slices we watched the new DVD and then we watched the old one too! Needless to say the new guys have a great idea of what a summer at Rockmont looks like! And after a great show I bid the Michols adieu, thanking Andrew and Davis for their great help sharing the message of Rockmont I was on the road again!

Then it was back to I-95 to head further north to Palm City. When I arrived at the lovely fountain on the way to the Yates’ home I said, “I’ve got a good feeling about this one.” And sure enough the evening at the Yates’ was right on par with the last two. Mr. and Mrs. Yates treated us to some delicious chicken pasta, salad and tasty bread – not to mention dessert! Whoa! And we had a fantastic group of guys there to share the story with! Drew Mayo and Matthew Brown, along with Davis Yates, really did a great job of telling the new guys all about the great things at Rockmont, and also they were great at some sweet holy motions that we were happy to share with everyone! I know that Davis, and Drews’ younger brothers Jared, and Dawson, can’t wait to turn 10 so that they can join their brothers at camp (10 is the minimum age in their houses, not for Rockmont). It was just a great evening of fun, food and Rockmont, the perfect end to a great week of shows in South Florida!
Thanks again to the great families that hosted me and helped spread the good news about Rockmont! We look forward to seeing you in the summer!

Virginia is beautiful this Time of Year

Wednesday, November 14th, 2007

While it was cold and rainy when I was in Washington D.C., every day I was in Virginia was great! On my way to Richmond I stopped by Raleigh to say hey to some of the CIT’s from last summer, some of whom will be joining us this coming summer as JC’s!
When I got to Richmond I was greeted with a warm welcome by the Vaughans and some even warmer chili! Unfortunately and due to reasons unknown, there were only a few of us that watched the video at the Vaughans – those people being me and the Vaughans (and their dog!). We did take use of the evening though! Charlie and Will taught me how to play Guitar Hero, a great life skill!
Next stop was the beautiful and historic University of Virginia where I met with former campers and staff, Harris Hudson, JJ Litchford and Chris Marsh! We were joined for dinner by some prospective counselors and enjoyed some great pizza!
Then I was off to the capitol for some sightseeing and ultimately a home in Alexandria, VA. Thanks to a wonderful camp mom I was able to go see the White House, more specifically, the West Wing! Wow! The Oval Office is pretty amazing.
Then on Sunday afternoon I was welcomed by the Talley family in Alexandria. When I arrived it was not with the best tidings because the Redskins lost to the Eagles just as I arrived, but Mr. Talley rallied (no rhyme intended!) and we had a great show!
About six family representatives joined us to watch the new video and also gave us great feedback on the new DVD that is nearing completion! We had a great time and answered a lot of questions, which is always good!
After DC I was on my way down south again. The final destination on this trip was the Saunders’ home in Roanoke. As we were waiting for folks to arrive it was great to chat with the Saunders’ and see what amazing people it took to raise our own Martin Saunders and of course his younger brother Edwin aka Mini-Mart!
We had a great time and were joined by a few other Rockmont families and I think we did a good job of convincing Jackson Breakell, Thomas and Will’s brother, that Rockmont is a great place to be in the summer! We also had lots of great food, as you can see! We look forward to seeing you all this summer!
I’m back at camp now and it was a great trip through Virginia. Thanks again to all the families for having me! I hope to see you again soon!