[camp guy]

I can speak directly to this point. My family owned and operated camp Wyanoke in Winter Harbor until 1975.

So, the question is: I live on the Lake for the summer, why do I have to go to summer camp?

The answer is because at the camp you get many more experiences than you do living at home. Sure, water is water, and you can swim when at home, but can you take Junior Life Saving classes, Senior Life Saving Classes, Small Boat Operator classes, etc., etc. Okay, you have a reasonable large lot, but can you find 17 other people your age to play baseball with, can you find 3 others to play tennis doubles with, do you have a sailboat, several sailboats so you can have races, canoes, rowboats, etc., etc. On a rainy day do you have a crafts shop to work in, do you have the ability to watch a movie on a regular basis, who is leading and teaching you about mountain climbing, etc., etc. What about the activities you might be exposed to such as horseback riding, wrestling, boxing, gymnastics, track, archery, riflery, campcraft skills, edtc., etc.

When you live at home do you have the opportunity (!) to make your own bed, clean up after yourself and others, eat a table with 7 or 8 other men and boys and talk about the activities of the day, events happening around the country and world. At home, are you exposed to people from other lands and cultures?

The is no question that spending the summer at the Lake can be a lot of fun, but, there is also no question that being at a summer camp provides exposure to a lot of activities not normally available to someone living at home.

It is not for me to tell you which to do (although I am understandably prejudiced toward summer camp), and in a perfect world you might ought to do both.