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A word from the director…
People often ask what it is that makes Spirit Sports
Camp different from the rest. I
always find that question hard to answer because you have to experience
our camp to truly understand.
It’s not the sports nor is it the activities that make
Spirit stand-alone; it’s the overall experience. It’s
girls being girls. It’s girls being allowed to be themselves, to challenge
their potential, to move forward as athletes, but more importantly as
caring, understanding individuals. It’s girls taking the time to support
each other and believe in who they are while away from the pressures of
peers, school and society with regards to dress, popularity, gossip, looks,
smarts, boys and winning.
We teach the girls to be the best they can be while
bringing out the best in others, thus our camp motto. Watching an individual
discover what her best is, without comparing herself to others, is truly
rewarding. Seeing campers go out of their way to help a friend achieve
her goal is heartwarming.
At a recent Parent/Family Day, I had a mother share
with me something she witnessed on the fields. A group of girls who had
been in track practices during the first two weeks of camp were running
a mile for the last time with the hopes of improving their individual
times. One of the first campers to cross the finish line turned to see
the rest of the group still running. She noticed the last runner was having
a bit of trouble, and had slowed down to a near walk. Without hesitation,
she ran to the struggling camper and paced her to the finish line all
the while giving her words of encouragement, cheering her on, telling
her to believe in herself, to believe she was capable. Together the girls
crossed the line to cheers of support from their entire team. I thanked
the mother for sharing that story with me and told her that kind of behavior
is seen by the coaching staff at Spirit everyday. The girls know each
other’s goals and they reach out to help each other achieve them.
The pride I feel in these girls and their behaviors
amazes me summer after summer. I only wish their parents could somehow
witness it, for I know they would be beaming.
Spirit Sports Camp is now over 20 years old. In that
time I have delivered five children, and along with my husband have moved
from New Hampshire to Connecticut to Ohio. People continually ask me why
I spend my summers living in a dorm room with 100+ young girls knocking
at my door three states away from my home, family in tow. Sharing rewarding
experiences like this one with the campers and the staff makes me think
there isn’t anywhere I would rather be than at Spirit Sports Camp.
Margie Anderson
Spirit Sports Camp Director | 
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