“Do the Right Write Thing!” — a one-of-a-kind creative writing summer program where students do the “Right Thing” through daily community service give back projects, and the “Write Thing” by daily creative writing exercises on topics covered that day through word and deed.
Examples of our program include:
• Monday – “Jump in a Book” – Bringing Books to Life for At-risk Children in Our Community
• Tuesday – “We are All the Same” — Doing Creative Arts Projects with People with Disabilities
• Wednesday – “You are My Sunshine” – Serving Meals on Wheels to the Elderly and Making Sunshine Cards to Brighten their Day
• Thursday – “Doing Good and Cleaning Up my Neighborhood” – Potomac River and Shelter Clean Up – Saving our Environment!
• Friday – “Random Acts of Kindness” – Changing our World, one Person at a Time!
This is a camp tradition and the projects have included: setting up a Happiness Station in a housing authority giving out books, Hershey kisses and hugs; giving construction workers popsicles on a hot summer day; having a luau for residents in an senior living home; writing gratitude notes for our police force and thank you posters for our firemen; having a pizza party for people experiencing homelessness, and handing out lemons and lemonade with notes to remind people, “When life hands you Lemons, Make Lemonade.”
The best way to understand our camp is through the eyes of one of our campers who sent this THANK YOU note:
Dear Rainey,
Remember that one time we bought 100 popsicles to give to construction workers, and we were disappointed to see that we were divided by a tall chain link fence?
Let’s make this a metaphor. Say the fence represents normality, doing what is expected, rules: tough and iron and inflexible but with gaping holes in it. And say the popsicles are happiness and peaceful rebellion.
And us — an army equipped with pencils and notebooks, led by a fun, ready-to-make-random-and-sudden-decisions counselor, standing in solidarity on the sidewalk– we are catalysts.
All we have to do to spread happiness is get over the fence.
And we do, at your request.
We send those popsicles soaring over the fence,
and watch the smiles spread over the faces of the workers.
We fly right past normality and spread joy.
That’s what your camp is about — getting over the fence.
Thank you. I love you.
–Sam