Posts Tagged ‘leadership’

Ohana Camp, Hulbert, and all of Aloha bids farewell to Deb & Andy Williams

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Sunday, January 1st, 2012

Deb & Andy WilliamsAs we ring in 2012, Aloha bids farewell to two people who, as much as anyone over the past quarter-century, have embodied The Aloha Foundation’s spirit and traditions. Deb and Andy Williams, who ran Hulbert Outdoor Center for two decades and Ohana Family Camp for the past six years — are retiring. They’ve introduced hundreds, perhaps thousands, of people to the Aloha experience during their time here, and broadened that experience to include people of all ages.

On a still-warm day in December, they sat in the sunroom of their Norwich, Vermont home and reflected on their own Aloha experience. Not surprisingly, they talked a lot about their work at Ohana, the family camp they helped build over the past decade.

“One has very few opportunities in a career to start something from scratch,” said Andy. (more…)

Risk, Adventure and Your Child: One Feeds the other at Vermont Camp Aloha

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Tuesday, May 11th, 2010
Aloha Girls Camp Vermont Sailing

Skills training allows kids to take healthy risks.

A rogue gust capsized the small sailboat, sending the Farley-McSorley family tumbling into the chilly Vermont waters of Lake Fairlee.  As their life jackets bobbed them back to the surface, 10-year-old Madison took charge.

“Mom, Dad, are you OK?”

Satisfied that they were, Madison quickly and confidently guided her parents through the task of righting the capsized boat and they headed back to camp to dry out.  Safe on shore, Anne and Brian gazed in amazement at their daughter, who had been a shy and retiring 5th grader when they dropped her off at Vermont’s Aloha Hive Camp a few weeks before.

Anne’s face broke into a grin.  “This is great!” she thought.

The family’s experience is emblematic of a growing school of thought amongst parents and childhood development experts: that creating a childhood that is completely safe – that is to say, free from risk – is to rob children of vital growth opportunities.  The self-confidence Madison showed as she led her parents through righting the boat and returning to shore was the result of learning to master a situation that contained real consequences. (more…)