2011

After the dinner the ceremonies took place and Ricky Posner became the torch bearer for 2011. Ricky and my kids are best friends and I drove home knowing that the connections continue through generation after generation!

A very special thank you to Irene Drantch, Camp Kinder Ring director, for giving me the opportunity this summer to reconnect with camp on so many levels. It may be 40 years since I last spent a summer at camp, but I feel like it was yesterday!

Last day at Camp

Ilise and I drove up to camp on Sunday for what was to be the last visit this season. It was an incredible day filled with re-connections, nostalgia, laughs and tears! Sunday was Opening Ceremonies for the 40th Olympics Games. Every year one person who signifies what Kinder Ring is all about becomes the Torch Bearer. Nobody knows (except the 3 or 4 people who make the decision) who will receive the highest honor Kinder Ring gives every year. For the past 39 years each Torch Bearer gets invited back to camp to participate in the ceremonies. Yesterday about 20 of the torch bearers were there and Ilise and I were fortunate to be invited to the dinner honoring them. Each previous winner spoke about what Kinder Ring meant to them and I wish everybody who ever thought about sending a kid to camp could have been there. So many of the comments centered around life-long connections and friendships. As I sat there I thought about how so many of these people have touched my life. First and most significant was Mike Baran!

Mr. Baran was my Jewish school teacher 50 year ago and taught me my Bar-Mitzvah lessons. He is a holocaust survivor and talked last night about how after the horrible years of the war, he came to America seeking a new life. The Workmen's Circle (who runs the camp) took him in and helped him become a teacher. He has touched the lives of thousands including my children (who he also taught Bar-Mitzvah lessons to!)

Another winner was Steve Gutstein, the first torch bearer in 1971, my last summer at camp. Steve talked about the people in the room who he has known for his entire life, including me. As a young boy he was my counselor and one day he borrowed my basketball, which somehow got lost. Our running joke for the past 45 years is how he found it finally after all these years!

Eric Roth was another torch bearer. His connection comes when he was a counselor and groupleader and had both Andrew and Danny as his campers. Now he has 3 of his own children in camp and he is on the Board of Directors of camp, a role I had over a dozen years ago. Next was Marc Zelmoniwicz, a friend of my kids whose parents were both my friends as young children in Queens. They started dating in camp in the 70's and now all of their kids have spent all of their years at camp too. We met as young children because our parents were all good friends!

And finally was Lauren Friedlander, the teen girls groupleader this year. Lauren was my colleague on the trip to Florida and the spirit of what Kinder Ring is today!

SLEEP

Wow did I catch up on sleep last night - I crashed and slept like a baby. And good thing since I started working out with a trainer this morning. It's nice to have a guy who's my age and gets what that means!!

Heading into the city tomorrow for some meetings and lunch and coffee with work colleagues. Looking forward to seeing people and taking the day off of enjoying the summer by actually doing something semi - work related.

Heading back up to camp on Sunday for the day with Ilise!!!

The Magic Kingdom and the ride home

The last day of the trip was spent at the Magic Kingdom - the original theme park in Orlando. It's still got it even though many of the attractions are over 40 years old. It's hard not to go on It's a Small World and the Haunted House even if the thrills at some of the other parks clearly are better than these classics. Everyone had a spectacular day there even with the knowledge that we'd be leaving the park at 10 and going right to the bus for the 23 hour ride home. We left the park at 11 PM Saturday and pulled into camp at 9:30 PM Sunday night.

Along the way we encountered buffet dining in North Carolina (where the idiot at the checkout charged me the senior rate) - a savings of a whopping 49 cents - even though I clearly wasn't even close to the senior age requirement. OK, maybe I was close but he didn't know that. After spending a week with 32 15 years olds at theme parks I figured I looked much younger. Lunch was at that personal favorite - Kentucky Fried Chicken - which goes by KFC so maybe you'll forget the F stands for fried! Trust me, after you take one bite of the chicken you know its fried!

And then the big debate was if we should stop for dinner on the GSP or the NYT (for those of you not familiar with tri-state area roadways - tough). We ended up going all the way to Hopewell Junction and ordered Sunny's Chicken Parm sandwiches and pizza - the staple food for every person who has ever gone to Kinder Ring! It was just as bad last night as it was 30 years ago! But it was food and at 10 PM after sitting on a bus for 23 plus hours that was the only qualification.

After a long hot shower it was off to bed only to be awakened this morning to those wonderful words - Good morning campers, it's a beautiful Kinder Ring morning. And it was, like every Kinder Ring morning is. Breakfast in the dining room and then my trip report to Irene and it was time to come home.

I got home at about 12:30 and Ilise was waiting in the driveway for me and I couldn't have been happier to see her! Cali was at the vet because after today Cali is no longer able to have little Cali's so our reunion won't take place until tomorrow night. I'm thinking she might not be too happy to see me then but I'm going to blame her new status on Ilise. Wasn't me - I wasn't even home to take you to the vet!!!

Aquatica and Islands of Adventure

Two days have gone by without any updates. It's because I'm so tired I can barely keep my eyes open. This every day a different theme park gets very tiring. The last two days have been the best - the weather and the parks just keep getting better. The water park was just plain fun - water slides, floating rivers and a wave pool among other things. Islands of Adventure with Harry Potter rides and Spiderman were the best attractions I've ever been on - simply fabulous. Dinner and movies last night, Mystery Sleuth dinner tonight - the body can only take so much good time! Tomorrow we sleep in a little and then the one that started it all - The Magic Kingdom. Not even going to think about the 24 hour bus ride home after a full day at Disney. Much more to come when I am awake!

Universal - Feeling about 15 again!

Breakfast Tuesday and EPCOT

Finally, some pictures!

I've finally gotten the time to crank up the laptop to post some pictures, starting with our departure from camp Monday morning and of course, from the infamous bus trip from hell!

Amazing what a good shower can do for you

So it's now 7:30 am on Wednesday. Two hot showers and 6 hours of sleep and I'm a new man!

When we finally got to Orlando yesterday morning around 9 am we went to the hotel - not to check in but to drop off kids medicines that needed refrigeration. Good thing we did because they had no record of us coming. That would have been a much bigger issue at 10 pm when we finally got back to the hotel to check in. A few well placed phone calls though in the morning and issue resolved. I earned my pay yesterday on that one - oh wait, I'm not getting paid. But now I know why an adult chaperone is needed on these trips. The counselors are great but 36 years of corporate travel made this one seem like no big deal to resolve.

Breakfast at the Golden Corral Buffet - welcome to America. I did well with the egg white omelets but I now understand netter than ever why Ameica is overweight. Best line of the morning was when one of the kids said to me, "Eric, who the he'll eats fried chicken for breakfast?" Smart kid!

Epcot is very tired - looks the same as it did over 21 years ago on my last trip there. Alisa and I spent a delightful day finding air conditioning and eating healthy despite every attempt to shove junk down our throats.

We finally got back to the bus at 9 pm only to find one of the kids left her debit card in Japan - only about 2 miles back from where we were. She and a counselor took off to retrieve her card causing the rest of us to wait on the bus for 40 minutes all in desperate need of a shower. Best chant of the evening spontaneously begun by some funny kids on the bus -Go without her, we need a shower! I thought it wiser to wait for her - hard for me to explain how on the first day I lost a kid!

On to Universal today!!!

From a truck stop somewhere in South Carolina

It's 2:21 AM and I'm helping our bus driver fuel up the bus. Madeline DeLouisa is the driver and she might be tougher than any union official I ever sat across from at a bargaining table. Just 4 short weeks ago I was dealing with all sorts of corporate HR issues and now - trying to figure out which side to fuel up the bus and from which pump at a TA truckstop in South Carolina. There's a big wide world out here for me to discover! Did you know that with the purchase of 50 gallons you can get a free hot shower? (an $11 value here in South Carolina). We've now been on the road for 14 hours and the bus GPS system says we get to Orlando at 8:54 AM. They will make this a 23 hour trip! Oh and Rt. 95 was closed in Dillon SC right at the South of the Border complex so we got to drive right by it. For anyone over 50 who ever drove to Florida you'll get my personal favorite South of the Border sign - "go back amigo, you missed it!"

6:48 PM

Wow this is a long bus ride. About 60 miles north of Richmond and still a very long way to go. Have seen two movies and two camp yearbook videos. So much food on the bus that it's hard to not eat but I brought a bag of carrot sticks but did succumb to a serving of pringles. We'll be stopping soon for our second Interstate 95 rest stop meal. Oh joy!

12:15

Been on the road for two hours and only in NJ, passing the Meadowlands. Alisa and I are "counting the cars on the NJ Turnpike, they've all gone to look for America". Are we there yet?

Monday morning

7:45 AM - getting ready to leave - just met Jerry our bus driver for the first leg of the trip - we switch drivers in Selma Alabama tonight - seems like a long way to go with one driver. At least the bus is luxurious, not as luxury laden as a 757 which would get me to Orlando in about 3 hours but oh well. The staff gave the kids the final trip prep talk last. Ight. Best line of the night - "Everyone comes back to camp next week looking just how you look now. That means no haircuts, tattoos or piercings". Guess I won't get any then!

Off to Camp

So today is the day - I head off to camp around 3 PM today. It's Visiting Day at camp so I want to make sure I get there after all of the parents leave. Meeting with the kids tonight to discuss logistics for the trip and then tomorrow morning at 10, the bus leaves Hopewell Junction NY for the 22+ hour drive to Orlando.

Lots to come this week so stay tuned for stories and pictures!

The Teen Trip leaves next Monday

As the day is drawing closer I'm thinking to myself (and now you) what am I doing????? 22-23 hours on a bus from Hopewell Junction NY to Orlando Florida. The last time I traveled for 22 hours hours anywhere I left NJ and ended up in Thailand and Cambodia - not Orlando. And I flew business class with Ilise, not Bus class with an empty seat next to me (although I'm guessing at about 4 hours into this I'll be very grateful for that extra seat!) But enough of those negative thoughts - I'll be thinking of the words that Simon and Garfunkel sang so many years ago -

Counting the cars on the New Jersey Turnpike, they've all gone to look for America! Laughing on the bus, playing games with the faces....

I was warned the other day that these kids like to sing - By the time we get to Baltimore they will know lyrics to Taxi, Paradise by the Dashboard Light and anything by ELO!!

When we arrive in Orlando Tuesday morning we actually go to our hotel - The Country Inn and Suites - (somehow I don't think I have platinum status there) for breakfast. We don't actually check in then but go first to EPCOT for the day. That means no room which means no shower after sitting on a bus for 22 hours or so.

And I'm not even getting paid for this.....

Testing the SMS posting feature from my iPhone

Another day at camp

Monday was another day spent at camp. I met the kids going on the trip and took a bit of a nostalgia tour of the facilities, including my cabin when I was 15 in the summer of 1967! Amazingly Cabin 41 was the spitting image of itself from 44 years ago!

I had a great meeting with Irene, the camp director. I decided that HR Executives and Camp Directors have so much in common - truth is always stranger than fiction and you can't make up the stuff that you have to deal with in any given day.

I also got to enjoy some of my own memorabilia that still exists at camp, this time from my days as Chairman of the Camp Board.

It's wonderful to know that everything looks pretty much the same.

Bye Bye Blackberry Party Pictures

July 7, 2011 - First day back to camp in season

I was excited about driving up to camp to spend the day there for the first time in many years. I wasn't sure what to expect or how much camp would have changed but I was ready to spend a great day there. As you might expect, some things were exactly the same and other things could not have been more different. I arrived on the grounds and was surprised at how quiet things seemed. Where were all the kids running around and being noisy? It turned out that I arrived in the middle of Maccabean Games, sort of like the Jewish version of Color War. I got to the office and didn't recognize any of the people there. I was warmly greeted by Ruby, the new Ass't Director who knew I was coming. In what can only be described as a coincidence of colossal proportion, I met his father-in-law three days earlier at Manny's Texas Wieners in Union NJ. (You can't make that name up). Ilise and I were at breakfast with our friends from Florida, Noni and Paul, when out from the men's room comes a man wearing a Kinder Ring shirt. I of course stopped him and got the story. These things happen to me all the time!!

Anyway, I met the ladies in the KR office only to find out that they were friends of Danny's and I was now and forever to be known as Danny's dad. As my mother said, it's the natural process of aging. In 1963 I was Bea and Artie's boy and then eventually they became known as Eric's parents. For many years Andrew and Danny were known as my kids and now I am known as their dad. (A name I am very proud to have).

Camp looked great - the grounds have never looked so good in as far back as I can remember. I toured some of the bunks - every one renovated over the winter and cleaner and fresher looking than they have been in 50 years. The lake was bright blue, the pool was sparkling and the grass was as green as ever. I bumped into some old friends and made some new ones.

The absolute highlight of the day was seeing my old Jewish school teacher from 1959 on. Mr. Baran taught me as a 9 year old and eventually taught me my Bar Mitzvah lessons. I've seen him hundreds of times over the years since he has been at camp since the 1970's. When my kids were at camp and needed bar mitzvah lessons he taught them too. My favorite story about him is that my kids always called him Mike. At camp he was Mike. As my teacher he was Mr. Baran and will always be Mr. Baran to me. I learned so much from him. In 1959 I was a 7 year old boy hearing first hand about what living in a concentration camp was like. I saw the number etched on his arm and heard the pain in his voice as he described his life, a mere 15 years earlier. I've never forgotten his words and his experiences - they have left a significant mark on me. To hug him and to spend time with him yesterday was a wonderful treat for me!

I made new friends too - the group leaders for the teen trip. They approached me and asked if I was Mr. Lange?  I set them straight right away - call me Eric. I said if you call me Mr. Lange one more time we are going to have some serious issues. They were great kids and I liked them instantly - just like the Emerging Leaders at work that I've hired over the past 8 years - smart, personable and full of potential!

Later in the date I met the only other adult going on the camp trip - one of the camp nurses, Alisa. Needless to say we were Facebook friends within about 45 seconds after meeting and will be best friends by the time we hit Baltimore!

The other thing I did was have two meals in the KR dining room. Frantic doesn't begin to describe the atmosphere there - kids everywhere at the salad bar, the fruit bar  - waiters not carrying trays over their shoulders the way I did in the summer of 1968. What's up with that? BUT, the food wasn't horrible, the bug juice was still bug juice  and I did enjoy being back in that very special dining room where for the record I NEVER DROPPED A TRAY the entire summer of 1968!!!

So enough with the words, time for the pictures from my day at camp. More to camp on my next trip back in a week or so!

The main gate on Beekman Road.

The camp grounds - looking good as ever.

Ricky running the dining room and the old banners of torchbearers.

My new friend Alisa - bus mate and fellow trouble maker and my old friend Mr. Baran - a mensch if ever there was one!