Paul Szmal: Not exactly the greatest camp weather, but we're going to talk about camping, specifically 4-H Camp Bristol Hills, and joining us to talk about that, Jess Middleton. Hi, Jess. How are you?
Guest: I'm good, Paul. How are you?
Paul Szmal: Good. Good. I want to send out best wishes to James Hooper as well, because unfortunately he was going to join us, and I know he's feeling a little bit under the weather, so Jim, hope you feel better soon. So we are just about upon the season. When does 4-H Camp Bristol Hills open this year, Jess?
Guest: Well, we're opening July 1st, and it's kind of an interesting opening for us because it's on a Wednesday, but this year, one of the new things we're trying out is called Sampler Camp. And so for July 1st through 3rd, we're running our day programs for kids that are five years old up to 16 years old, looking for a day-only type program. And it's a three-day thing, so you get a taste of camp, and we're hoping that kids will get excited about it and then come back for future weeks as well. And the resident camp is probably what people know Camp 4-H Bristol Hills for best, and there looks like our one, two, three, four, five sessions of resident camp this year.
Paul Szmal: There are, and you know, we run our resident camp. That's certainly our biggest program for the five weeks. And then during those five weeks, we're also running our day programs as well. The first resident camp, by the way, is July 5th through the 10th. There are also three other occasions in July, one in August.
Guest: This is for grades three through five, the six-day, five-night overnight camp experience, or what I call the classic summer camp program.
Paul Szmal: Our summer camp, our overnight program is actually for grades three, third graders up to 16-year-olds.
Guest: Ah, okay, okay.
Paul Szmal: Just going by the website information that's here. The day camp, as you mentioned, runs concurrently with that. Looks like there are a couple of other different camps that are also offered, and correct me if I'm wrong on these, Jess, but there is a camp for older campers who want to enjoy the camp experience, but have other maybe evening activities, maybe, you know, summer sports activities, things like that. And it's called Progression Camp.
Guest: Yes. Yeah. That's been a great program for us. Again, for those third graders up to 16-year-olds that have engagements at night, or maybe they're not feeling super comfortable about spending the night at camp yet, but they can still come and enjoy all the activities that we run throughout the day. And then there's also, I love the name of this, Sprout Camp. This is for the younger set.
Paul Szmal: Yes. Yeah. That's for kindergarten through second graders. Our youngest campers, and that one is happening during our July 1st through 3rd week as well. And also there is the Adventure Camp, which offers a little bit of a different set of activities.
Guest: It is. It's a wonderful program. We focus on team building and community building. So they start out by getting to know each other and working through some, oh, brain teasers and, you know, things that you've really got to kind of think outside the box while they're still on the ground. And then they start to get to know their group and how they function together. And eventually they make it up to our low ropes course. So they might be swinging across, we call it the nitro crossing. They're swinging across a river of toxic peanut butter on a rope or they're traversing their way across a cable to get from one tree to another tree, really, really fun stuff. And then eventually they make it to our high ropes course where they're attached to a belay system and doing things 20, 30 feet off the ground.
Paul Szmal: That sounds like fun.
Guest: It is. It was one of my favorite programs when I was a camper. Now there are other programs too. There's an animation master camp. There's a first aid master camp. So there are plenty of different choices that kids can have, young or older, to be a part of 4-H Camp Bristol Hills. And you mentioned, I believe Jess, that registration is open. When does registration close for these various camps?
Paul Szmal: So we accept registration until the programs themselves are full. So there are some weeks that get filled up prior to camp starting. And then there are some weeks that we're able to continue accepting registration throughout the summer for. One of the things that makes 4-H Camp Bristol Hills go is the camp counselors. And you also have some counselor-in-training programs that are happening as well.
Guest: We do. Those are for our oldest campers. We have a leader-in-training and a counselor-in-training program. And so it's for 14 through 16-year-olds. And it's interesting because a lot of the kids that have grown up at camp then become our camp counselors. So it's a wonderful way to continue our traditions and really have a group of young adults that are so invested and so excited about camp. Speaking of traditions, how many years has it been now for Camp Bristol Hills?
Paul Szmal: It has been 101 years.
Guest: Oh my goodness. That's right. Yeah. I remember we were talking about that last year, the centennial celebration.
Paul Szmal: Yeah. Yeah. We had a huge year last year.
Guest: Wow. So now we're in triple digits. Yeah. Well, let's hope for a huge year this year as well. Any improvements to the facility that have been made since last year or was it just the general maintenance of going in, getting things cleaned up, opened up, and ready to go for this season?
Paul Szmal: Yeah. We've been doing a lot of that. We just got a grant to get new tables and chairs in our dining hall. So we're incredibly excited about that. And not for this year, but for next year, we were just awarded a huge grant. So we'll be able to dig a new swimming pool and have a new pool house as well.
Guest: Oh, cool. Very cool. So do we file that under breaking news, Jess, or?
Paul Szmal: I know, right? It's pretty exciting for us. We were thrilled when we got the grant and we actually just started. It was an $800,000 grant and then we have $200,000 that we need to raise on our own. So we've just started our ask for supporters for funds for that.
Guest: Right. Right. And that support can come from anywhere. That can come from people whose kids have gone to the camp. That could come from businesses making donations, that sort of thing.
Paul Szmal: Absolutely. Every little bit helps. All right. So what do you think the most rewarding experience is from your side, Jess, from the people that are there, the counselors, the support staff, what do you think the most rewarding experience of being at camp is for them?
Guest: Oh, gosh. You know, I know for me, I've really been able to watch generations grow up through camp. You know, there are some campers that I had when I was a counselor back many, many years ago who I have now hired their children to work at camp. So it's just phenomenal to watch kind of people's career trajectories and life trajectories play out and watch these generations of campers coming up through camp, growing up and becoming part of staff and then going out on their own.
Paul Szmal: Yeah. And that is one of the neat things about having the longevity that Camp Bristol Hills has had is that it does become generational because, you know, kids go and then they grow up and maybe they become counselors or as they get older and have children of their own, their kids are going to camp.
Guest: Absolutely. Absolutely. So again, camp is getting ready to open the first week of July. If you want to find out more, there is a 2026 brochure you can download. If you go to cceontario.org, right at the top of the page, you'll see a link for 4-H Camp Bristol Hills. If you click on that and scroll down a little bit, you'll find the information on not only what the camp is about if you're unfamiliar with it, but also how you can be a part of the Hilltop Fund, which can help to bring kids to camp whose parents may not have the financial resources to get them there. There are summer camp jobs that are listed there. And there's even a camp store because, you know, sometimes you got to stock up on stuff.
Paul Szmal: Absolutely. And, you know, going on with the jobs, we are still looking for nurses this summer, camp nurses. Most of our nurses work for a week at a time. And if they're a parent, they get a free campership for all the camp-age kids they have living in their house. If they're not a parent, they can get two scholarships per week's work. So maybe they're an aunt or uncle or a grandparent and they can send, you know, either their relatives or neighbors, whoever to camp for free. And there's also a $600 stipend per week worked as well. Also want to mention, too, that in addition to hosting the campers throughout the course of the summer, you can actually rent Camp Bristol Hills for corporate or family events.
Guest: Absolutely. Yeah, we have we have groups that come out just for the day. Like I said, we just got a great donation for new tables and chairs. So we're so excited that we won't have folks sitting at cafeteria tables anymore. It'll be very helpful for our rentals coming out. And then we also do overnights as well. So we have other camps that come in that run for anywhere for a couple of nights to a full week. We've got different programs that we offer, like outdoor cooking, outdoor navigation, crafts, team building. We love having people out to camp for sure. And again, if you want to find out all the information, go to cceontario.org and click on 4H Camp Bristol Hills.
Paul Szmal: Jess, as always, appreciate talking to you. And here's to a successful 101st year of operation.
Guest: Thank you, Paul. Thanks for having us on.
