Tag Archives: Club Coco

Events

The “Mac & Cheese & Milkshake Lady”

Janet Anderson surrounded by kids in Colombia while on a Qwanoes missions trip

Many of you know that Janet Anderson, Qwanoes’ Board Chair and our friend, passed away on October 14 after a courageous battle with cancer. A service in celebration of Janet’s life and a carnival (yes, you read that right!) were held on Saturday, October 27 at Oakridge Baptist Church in Vancouver. Janet’s desire was that this service would be a party and that lots of kids would be there!

So what was it like to be there on Saturday and why did Janet want this to be a party and a time of fun?!

Janet's pastor Barton Priebe leading the service (note the balloons - they were everywhere!)

Janet’s celebration of life was an event those who were there will remember for a very long time! It was a truly unique and God-honouring experience. The service was all about what Jesus can do in a person’s life. Camp Qwanoes had been asked to put on the carnival Janet requested and we were ready. Once the service ended, the carnival got going and it was almost impossible to get around from one room to another in the church – it was jam-packed!

What it was like being at “Janet’s Celebration of Life Carnival”

The candy table "in sweet loving memory of Janet"

Picture walking up to a beautifully-decorated table, getting a colourful paper cupcake holder, and filling it with delicious candies of all types that are displayed all over the table….

Girls and the "Green Man" enjoying the carnival!

The carnival also included a whole bunch of fun games and challenges, face painting, bubbles, music, popcorn, cotton candy, hot dogs right off the barbeque, macaroni and cheese, Ice Cream Island, milkshakes from Club Coco, Shave Ice Palace, the Tuck Shop – you name it… it was there! I heard kids at the carnival saying that it was the best carnival they had ever been to! I know I felt like I was a kid again for a couple of hours. Janet would have been so pleased!

Help love kids to life at Qwanoes!

Those who knew Janet are aware that she was passionate about Qwanoes’ mission of loving kids to life… helping them discover, live, and share life like no other in Christ. For those who were not there on Saturday, an exciting opportunity exists to help love kids to life at Qwanoes! Janet’s husband Frank has requested that gifts in memory of Janet would be given to Camp Qwanoes. Several families that are also passionate about the mission of Qwanoes have committed to match the gifts that are made in memory of Janet! Every $1 given will be matched by $3 for the first $20,000 given – meaning that your gift will be quadrupled!

To give a gift to Qwanoes in memory of Janet, please contact Betty Bayley at 250-246-3014 or toll free at 1-888-997-9266. Or you could mail a cheque to the camp with a note that your gift is in memory of Janet. To have your gift quadrupled, please give by November 15.

Step right up!

Why Janet wanted her celebration of life service to be a party and a time of fun

Janet’s husband Frank made it clear why Janet wanted her service to be this way:

  • “She would be in Heaven where there is no sorrow, no tears, no sadness, only rejoicing, peace, and love and we here can also rejoice in this.”
  • “She wanted to recognize how joyful her life in Christ had been. She wanted to show that living the Christian life is exciting, fulfilling, and full of fun.”
  • “Because of who she was… a fun loving, exciting person. She was known by nieces and nephews as the ‘Mac and Cheese and Milkshake lady.'”

I know that I am inspired by Janet’s life and by what went on at her celebration of life. I agree with Janet, as she said shortly before her death, that life in Christ is “wonderful!”

~ Written by Julie Bayley, Qwanoes’ Associate Program Director

 

 

Activities, Leadership Training, Q-Town & Music, Summer Camp

Sun Shining So Bright

Camper enjoying the many different features of our floating Aqua-Park!

1st Camps of Summer Underway!

What a beautiful day at Qwanoes with the sun shining so bright! You know it’s summer when at 10 a.m. it is 23 degrees out! We are right in the middle of Junior High #2 and our summer camp season is well underway. This year’s summer theme is “LIVE IT UP” and boy oh boy, that is happening all over Qwanoes this week. Campers will be at the beach, swinging from trees, having cabin discussion time, in Q-Town, in the skatepark, playing All Star Games, all over in Club Coco, and the list could go on and on!

In Q-Town last night we rocked it out with Russ the “Squirrel” and Quixotic singing a lot of brand-new songs for summer 2012. Following that we listened to our speaker Randy Carter. Randy is a great speaker – full of stories – and we laughed together a lot! Not only are Randy’s life stories funny, they really help get the point across about what it means to LIVE IT UP in our day-to-day life.

Group of girl campers with their counselor Beth from Northern Ireland!

So what’s happening right now at camp!!?? It’s cabin picture and video time here at Qwanoes. I was just out on the main field and saw all the campers and counselors spread out in their cabin groups looking their “campy” best!

I ran into a group of girl campers hanging out in the shade and asked them what they are looking forward to this afternoon… and this is what I heard back as they yelled over each other: “Swimming! Tubing! Night game! Rocket Plus! Lunch!” Sounds like a whole lot of fun to me. Their counselor’s name is Beth and she is here all the way from Northern Ireland. I asked the girls what they like about their counselor and they drew in close to Beth saying, “She is super nice, so sweet, super chill, and we are going to visit her in Northern Ireland!” Beth replied back, “Ah, you guys are the best!”

Here go our CIT's for their hike to "the Point"! Then they slept out under the stars next to the ocean. (Counselor In Training Program)

We still have some room in some of our summer camps and the Counselor In Training program! Check it out online.

All Star games coming up next and then lunch! And then time for activities all over the camp! Love summer camp!

 

Giant Canada Day Party Last Week!

By the way, last week at Jr. High #1, we had SO much fun living it up at our giant Canada Day party! Hundreds of Jr. High campers and staff (from Canada & many other countries) got together to celebrate Canada’s birthday with music blasting from the qrok Tower, Ice Cream Island, Shave Ice Palace, eating cake, and seeing the sky light up! To catch a glimpse of this, see our “Giant Canada Day Party At Camp Qwanoes” video:

 

~ Written by Jay Kennedy, Qwanoes’ Assistant Director

 

 

Activities, Camp Staff, Events, Leadership Training, Summer Camp

Club Coco is being invaded!

Summer staff team 2012 unites

New staff have been arriving every day over the last two months, but now TODAY is the biggest day with new arrivals almost every minute! Staff Training starts today and staff from far and wide are descending on Qwanoes to prepare for an amazing summer together! One week left until Junior High #1 and then soon campers will come rolling into camp in cars and buses! Fireworks will be going off, the qrok tower will be pumping out the tunes and summer 2012 will underway!

Who is going to get the Skee Ball high score this summer? Maybe you!!

Club Coco is being invaded with brand-new games for Summer 2012

Summer staff couldn’t wait to try out the new games in Club Coco! Earlier this year the Giant Connect Four joined popular games like Battle Top Arena already in Club Coco – and now Club Coco just got three brand-new games for summer 2012! That’s right – four new games to try out just as soon as you arrive!

Bumper Pool – Fresh out of the box (literally)… Defend or attack?! That’s the big question when playing this game. Who will be first to score all their balls and be declared the winner??? Campers this summer will love this new game! It’s Carpetball with a twist!

Take a rest in style with the Club Coco giant bean-bag chairs!

Skee Ball – Step on up and try your skills at another new game. It’s like bowling mixed it in with a little target practice! Challenge your friends all week long and see who gets the high score for the week!

Massive bean-bag chairs – You will never see a pillow any bigger than this! Need a break? How about settling back in one of our three giant bean-bag chairs! There is always plenty of room to fit one more!

Giant Connect Four – New to summer 2012! It has been a big hit all spring and now it’s time for our summer campers to try it out for the very first time.


Try Bumper Pool - this awesome new twist to carpetball! Defend or attack, what are you going to do??

 

While in Club Coco this summer be sure to try an old-fashioned milkshake, tasty smoothie, or another treat from the Coco-Hut… come and enjoy!

~ Written by Jay Kennedy (Qwanoes’ Assistant Director)

 

 

Activities, Summer Camp

What…?

With 75 activities in the summer at Qwanoes, it’s a challenge to choose what to do! But it just got even harder!

Yes, it’s true – we’re already adding LOTS for this summer. At Qwanoes Beach… Paddle Surfing, a Freefall Slide, a brand-new Super Slide and Super Totter, an Aqua Rope Swing. Plus even more fun in Club Coco. There’s tons!

But now – there’s one more brand-new choice! …Ready? 

Debuting summer 2012 is Qwanoes RC Speedway!

What…? Yes, we’re adding high-end, high-action outdoor super-sized RC car racing! Join a friend and race against four other teams at the same time! Each car is over two feet long – “this ain’t no Mario Cart video game” – these cars are real, fast, and built for racing!

Think you have the skills? Well – put them to the test against all your friends and the rest of the camp. Don’t even think of googling for the cheat codes… ’cause there are none. Just you, your pit-crew partner, and the track.

At Qwanoes we always seek to make a week at camp one of the greatest weeks ever in the lives of our campers! Around here there is always more fun and always new adventures every year. No summer is ever the same at Camp Qwanoes!

Come and experience Qwanoes’ RC Speedway for yourself. We can’t wait to welcome you!

See more about our new activities for summer 2012 here.

~ Written by Scott Bayley (Qwanoes’ Executive Director) & Julie Bayley (Qwanoes’ Associate Program Director)