Camp Constitution’s 18th annual family camp held at the Singing Hills Christian Camp in Plainfield, NH, concluded last Friday (July 17). Attendees came as far as California, Florida, Texas, Oklahoma, Michigan, North Carolina, Maryland, New York, Pennsylvania, and even Plainfield, NH.
Monday, our first full day, began with an optional swim and/or run and then the morning devotions, prayer, and flag raising, followed by a recitation of the Preamble of the Constitution led by Mrs. Edith Craft, our junior camper director.
Keeping with our American 250 theme, the first class taught by Pastor David Whitney of the Institute on the Constitution was “The Declaration of Independence.”
Altogether, there were eighteen regularly scheduled classes and three optional afternoon classes held for our older campers and adults. Instructors included Catherine White of the Constitution Decided, authors Felecia Nace and Alex Newman, Kurt Hyde, Tom Moor, atmospheric scientist Professor Willie Soon, Camp Chaplain and author Rev. Steve Craft, Charmian Rondon, Pastor David Whitney, Geroge Dewhurst, Keith Hanson and Julie Wilkinson.
Our junior camper (ages 5-11) instructors were Edith Craft, Donna Deantis, Jessica Whitworth and Kathy Mickel who also served as our camp nurse.
Our room counselors were Willow Whitworth, Josh Viliniskis, and Seamus Fitzgerald. Support staff included Roberta Stewart, Vito Viliniskis, and Phil Polizotto, our videographer. Our recreational director was Sapphire Giminez, assisted by Kathy Lynch.
Morning room inspection was conducted by our head counselor, Elden Stahl, and Camp Newspaper Editor Mark Afleck. We not only look for cleanliness but a Christian and Patriotic theme. Rooms are graded each day, and the winner is declared in the Thursday paper.
After lunch, campers participated in running an obstacle course organized by Mrs. Sapphire Giminez, who served as our recreational director and was former college basketball player. She was assisted by Kathy Lynch who also was a college athlete.
For the third year in a row, martial arts expert George Dewhurst conducted an optional workshop called Christian Self Defense.
Throughout the week, attendees enjoyed the pond and pool as well as the numerous recreational opportunities including basketball, volleyball, a Gaga pit, and ping-pong and chess tournaments.
After dinner, where we sang “Happy Birthday to the United States and several campers celebrated birthdays, we had two more classes conducted, and between classes, we had a flag-lowering ceremony.
The night ended with our evening campfire where campers and staff sang songs, played musical instruments, conducted skits, told “Dad Jokes”, and enjoyed a fireworks display.
On Tuesday Mr. Keith Hanson of Critical Dynamics taught a class on the Right to Keep and Bear Arms, and in the afternoon, he conducted an optional marksmanship class giving campers-many for the first time-the opportunity to shoot a .22 rifle.
Wednesday afternoon we took a field trip to the Billings Farm Museum in Woodstock, VT.
We had visits from Cynthia Rusis of Turning Point USA and Ann Savastrano of First Love Works, who discussed the activities of their organizations. Our guest instructor, Julie Wilkinson, played the abortion nurse in the movie “UnPlanned: The Abby Johnson Story. “
The Johnson Family brought their violins and performed at our evening campfire and also did a rendition of the “National Anthem” before class.
Before lunch on Thursday, Junior Campers dressed in Colonial attire participated in their annual parade. Thursday afternoon was our annual wiffle ball game. For the first time in many years, the Shurtleff All Stars lost to the Newman Barnstormers.
Thursday night was our closing ceremonies that included remarks by Rev. Steve Craft and Pastor David Whitney, speeches by those who entered our essay contest, and the announcement of two “Super Campers”-a boy and a girl who are awarded camp tuition to our 2027 camp. This year’s winners were Hailey Lankford and David Tyrun. The winner of our essay contest “Why I Love America” was Madyson Rokiki.
The “Hal Shurtleff Award” given to a staffer went to Mrs. Sapphire Gimenez who did an outstanding job as recreational director, and The “Willie Soon” Award given to an instructor went to Mr. Alex Newman.
Friday after breakfast, we picked up, cleaned up, packed up and headed home. Next year’s camp will be held at the same venue Sunday July 11 to Friday July 16,2027. For more information, please visit our website http://www.campconstitution.net
A link to a playlist on YouTube containing our classes and activities:
And a link to photos of the camp: https://s3.amazonaws.com/camppictures/2026/index.html
We wish to thank all of those who helped make this camp possible with their generosity, support, and prayers.
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