An empty site on Thursday What does it take to set up a Camporee? Several months of preparation, and then two frantic days of activity. Turning a ranch into a little town of around 500 people happens quickly. Meeting tent, stage, sound system, toilets, trash dumpster, drinking water, laying out the placement for campsites, all before the first clubs start to arrive. And Clubs arrived, some making it in even before the gates were open.
We had 24 clubs in attendance, 9 from the greater San Antonio area, 4 from the Austin area, another 4 from the Austin/San Antonio corridor. Clubs from as far southeast as Victoria, as far west as Fredericksburg, as far north as Waco. New clubs, including Georgetown, Southeast, Austin Central, revived clubs, and of course the new Central Texas Drum Corps. All descending on little Driftwood, Texas. We had around 270 Pathfinders, nearly 200 staff, parents and additional children, the Master Guides providing security and logistics, a medical volunteer corps, and more than 50 guests for Sabbath.
All clubs arrived Friday, and with the grounds still damp, we had to limit the number of vehicles allowed on the grounds, so there was a lot of hauling gear from the parking area. But there was also a lot of teamwork among clubs, those who arrived earlier offering assistance to those arriving later, in the true spirit of Pathfindering. Perhaps not everyone got help, but it was definitely a more cooperative set up, and with clubs grouped in “tribes” matching out theme of the Exodus, there was room for fellowship and friendship from the start. Perhaps the most complicated aspect of logistics was water, some clubs bringing buckets, others with large water tanks, others with numerous gallon and 2.5 gallon jugs. This will be an area for improvement at the next camporee, certainly. By the time Friday evening program began, more than half the clubs were fully established, and most others were nearly so.
It is an impressive thing to watch an empty field turn into the outpost of the Army of God, the Pathfinders ready for spiritual fulfillment, for service and for friendship.
We had 24 clubs in attendance, 9 from the greater San Antonio area, 4 from the Austin area, another 4 from the Austin/San Antonio corridor. Clubs from as far southeast as Victoria, as far west as Fredericksburg, as far north as Waco. New clubs, including Georgetown, Southeast, Austin Central, revived clubs, and of course the new Central Texas Drum Corps. All descending on little Driftwood, Texas. We had around 270 Pathfinders, nearly 200 staff, parents and additional children, the Master Guides providing security and logistics, a medical volunteer corps, and more than 50 guests for Sabbath.
All clubs arrived Friday, and with the grounds still damp, we had to limit the number of vehicles allowed on the grounds, so there was a lot of hauling gear from the parking area. But there was also a lot of teamwork among clubs, those who arrived earlier offering assistance to those arriving later, in the true spirit of Pathfindering. Perhaps not everyone got help, but it was definitely a more cooperative set up, and with clubs grouped in “tribes” matching out theme of the Exodus, there was room for fellowship and friendship from the start. Perhaps the most complicated aspect of logistics was water, some clubs bringing buckets, others with large water tanks, others with numerous gallon and 2.5 gallon jugs. This will be an area for improvement at the next camporee, certainly. By the time Friday evening program began, more than half the clubs were fully established, and most others were nearly so.
It is an impressive thing to watch an empty field turn into the outpost of the Army of God, the Pathfinders ready for spiritual fulfillment, for service and for friendship.
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