Camp Shane is a CAMP, not a Hotel Spa!!!
Written: Jul 14 '03
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Pros: structure, encouragement, weight loss, behavior modification, self esteem
Cons: website photos unbalanced between girls and boys.
The Bottom Line: I highly recommend Camp Shane. They are exactly as they appear on their website.
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| uska's Full Review: Camp Shane |
Note: under "year of attendance" I had to choose 2000, since the years don't go any higher. My son is currently attending, so the year of attendance should be 2003.
My son is currently attending Camp Shane. He's now been there for 3 weeks and has lost 27 lbs. His letters and phone calls have all been upbeat and full of the friends he's made and the fun he's having. We signed our son up for the full 9 weeks, feeling that much time was necessary for him to achieve the weight loss he wanted, to learn good dietary and fitness practices and for him to have time for these things to become habit.
I've read some pretty negative reviews of Camp Shane on this site, and I simply can't understand what the gripes are all about. My son, who is the quintessential complainer, has yet to complain about any of the things I've read at this site. If he felt he wasn't getting enough to eat, he'd have been extremely vocal about it. I'd have been bombarded with letters full of complaints. Thus far, the only complaint he has is that there aren't enough co-ed sports and activities. Once I explained to him that having co-ed activities can inhibit girls and boys from trying new things for fear they'll be laughed at, he understood. Granted, it's also easier to supervise single-sex activities and as a parent of a 14 year old boy, I'm very GLAD that most of the activities are single sex.
Camp Shane takes on a huge responsibility when they take our children for an extended period. It's imperative that they supervise these children to the fullest extent, particularly the teens. From what I can tell, they seem to do an excellent job. Active and involved children don't have time to get in trouble - whatever 'trouble' may entail. Camp Shane has also made a commitment to us as parents to teach our children how to modify their behavior into healthy patterns. For those who complain that the cafeteria is at the bottom of a huge hill, or that the kids don't get enough 'free' time, I say this: If the cafeteria is at the bottom of a large hill, that means your child will develop good, strong leg and butt muscles by the time they leave the camp. If they have to go down the hill for meals, then they have to go back up it to get to their bunks or activities. It's exercise. Be thankful for it. As far as free time goes - it's because our children have had far too much free time that they have become so overweight that we send them to someone else to help them lose that weight. Free time to an overweight, inactive child means time for TV, sitting around talking, sleeping - in short doing everything BUT exercising. Camp Shane was a last-ditch effort for us. Our son wouldn't listen to us, nor would he follow our lead in nutrition or exercise. At home he ate what we ate, but he was also sneaking food. At school, we couldn't control what he ate. Camp Shane is teaching him self-discipline and the positive self-image that can result from achieving a goal. He positively glowed through the phone lines when he told me that he could fit into the smaller sized shirts I'd packed and that he had to cinch his belt in a few notches.
I found the bunks to be completely satisfactory. I certainly didn't expect them to be air-conditioned, particularly since the camp is in the mountains. Yes, they were rough, but I've seen (and stayed in) much rougher. The swimming pool was crystal clear, with clean, new pool-side furniture. The pool deck was clean as well. I didn't expect to find a spa at Camp Shane. I expected to find a facility that would give my son the complete summer camp experience and that's exactly what I found. The accommodations are far more luxurious than Boy Scout camp, they DO have hot water, which is a far cry from campsites at many beaches, and they are NOT in tents, but in enclosed bunkhouses. It's camp, folks, not the Four Seasons. It's going to feel a bit rough to our pampered children who have the best our money can buy, a room full of electronics, enough hot water to spend 30 minutes in the shower and central air conditioning. I don't think this is a bad thing. Camping is not supposed to be luxurious. It's supposed to feel rough. I'd say Camp Shane strikes a good balance between "rough" and supplying some of the comforts of home.
When we arrived, my son was greeted with a smile and clear, concise instructions as to what to do with his luggage and where his bunk was located. We met one of his counselors, who was a gracious young man between 20-25. (I'm assuming that was his age range) He appeared to have a natural affinity for children and knew just what to do to make my son feel welcome. As we left our son at his bunk, I turned around to find him surrounded by boys introducing themselves and helping him get settled.
My husband and I were impressed with the rustic charm of the camp and the grace of the directors - grace under pressure, I might add, since we were late arriving and they had a gazillion other things they were trying to coordinate.
Now, as for the meals and what I've read on this site about them. Folks, keep in mind that the camp administrators have hundreds of children to feed, three times a day. That's a lot of food and it takes a huge coordination effort to pull it off. They are going to purchase the most cost-effective food they can find, with the highest nutritional value. When I read on the website that the kids got to eat burgers and mac and cheese, my IMMEDIATE thought was: "Yep - I'll bet those are turkey burgers and that mac and cheese is fat free." It seems I was right, and I'm happy about that. We sent our son to Camp Shane to lose weight. Yes, we want him to have fun while he's doing it, but the ultimate goal is to lose weight and get healthy. You can't do that on a steady diet of beef burgers, full-fat hotdogs and full-fat mac and cheese. Beyond that, though, I've read here where people complained that the fruit wasn't quite ripe enough or that it was undercooked or that stragglers had to eat a "vegetarian" meal due to the meat entree running out. SO WHAT! It's not going to kill them, and you can bet your next paycheck that the food there is NOT undercooked. That's a risk I'll bet Camp Shane is quite unwilling to take. If a child has a problem with missing out on the meat entree, tell him to get moving and get in line sooner.
I applaud the directors of Camp Shane for providing nothing but water for these kids to drink. Milk is loaded with sugar, diet drinks inhibit weight loss through artificial sweeteners and caffeine, and juice is a HUGE culprit sugar-wise. Water is pure, the body needs a gallon a day, at least, and it's just plain good for you. And - it has no calories. It quenches thirst better than anything else, it flushes the system and it helps move waste products through very efficiently. It's also necessary to replenish the fluids lost to the high level of exercise these kids are getting. So what's the problem, folks? Why complain that the kids get nothing to drink but the beverage that is the healthiest thing for them???
On the subject of Camp Shane personnel interaction? Well, I've had nothing but positive experiences with them. They have all responded to me in a timely fashion and if they were unable to meet my requests, they gave me very good reasons why. They are prompt with email responses and the few phone calls I made prior to my son attending camp were all returned in a timely fashion. We registered our son a little late in the season, because we didn't find out about Camp Shane until after the deadline. The camp personnel were gracious and bent over backwards to work with me. I find nothing to complain about.
As for the 5 minute phone calls? Those phone calls are in place simply so that the child can touch base with mom and/or dad and hear their voices. As a society, we've become too dependant on technology for our communication. It's just as easy for us to communicate via snail mail, and it improves a child's writing skills. Believe me, if you send your child to Camp Shane, he will be involved in so many activities he won't have too much time for homesickness. Granted, children DO get homesick, particularly if they're away from home for an extended period. That's why it's essential for us, as parents, to shoulder the communication burden. Write to your kids, send them care packages, give them assurance that you're thinking about them. You don't need constant telephone communication to do that, though. I'm astonished at the parents who think their kids should be given free access to the camp phone lines anytime they want it. I can't even begin to imagine the logistics nightmare that would cause!!!
If I had to come up with one complaint about the camp (and I did have to for the 'cons' section of this review) it's that the photographers were taking pictures mostly of the girls and making little effort to spread their picture-taking camp-wide and include everyone's child. After counting over 600 pictures loaded to the Bunk1 website and realizing that only 52 of them were of the boys, I emailed the camp and complained. Within a week, there were fourteen photos of my son on the website. The camp photographers were apologetic and gracious, and they have since made a good effort to include more children in their photographs and balance the quantity of boy and girl photos.
All-in-all, I think Camp Shane is going to be one of those experiences my son looks back on as among the best of his childhood. I highly recommend this camp to anyone who has an overweight child and who needs help teaching them good habits. My son has already asked if he can go back next year. What better recommendation can you ask for?
Oh, for those of you who think $6,000 is a steep price to pay for 9 weeks of fitness camp? Think about these two things: First, what price your child's health? Second, have you any idea at all what it costs to run a place like Camp Shane??? My husband and I have a pretty good clue, and we sat down and ran some numbers up on the calculator based on what we know about food, facilities maintenance, insurance, salary and equipment costs. Based on our numbers, which were conservative, the Ettenbergs aren't making a killing off this. With that in mind, I can only applaud them for their commitment to our children.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 6,0000
Type of Camp: Other
Best Suited For: 13 to 17 years
Camper to Counselor Ratio: Fine mix of campers and counselors
Financial Aid Available: No
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Epinions.com ID:
uska
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Reviews written: 1
Trusted by: 0 members
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