A huge thank you to all our amazing participants, volunteers, and the fantastic staff at Collaroy Centre for making this camp such a success.
Special thanks to Alison, Alex, Christian, Saras, Maryanne, Will, Grant, and the entire Collaroy team for their contributions!
Friday
We arrived at the Collaroy Centre at 5:00 PM, greeted by warm hugs and the excited faces of our UP! Club peers. Nikki introduced the staff and volunteers and reviewed the UP! Club rules with everyone. Then, the big moment arrived—we discovered who our roommates would be for the next three days! Before we knew it, dinner was served, and we gathered around the tables, sharing a meal and chatting about our recent activities and the weekend ahead.
After dinner, the fun began! We headed to our cabins, made our beds, and got into our favorite pajamas for movie night. All the bed-making worked up an appetite, so we enjoyed a hot supper before settling in to watch The Greatest Showman.
It had been a busy afternoon, so we wrapped up early to rest up for the exciting day ahead!
Saturday
We woke up bright and early to a rainy, humid day. Some early risers joined Nikki and Alex in the common room for a morning meditation and stretch, while others slowly woke up and got ready for breakfast. Rain, hail, or shine (but not lightning!) couldn’t stop us from enjoying our outdoor activities.
While the rock climbers braved the rain, others took part in Nikki’s Self-Advocacy Workshop, My Voice, My Choice, as well as arts and crafts, board games, oval games, and a karaoke session led by peer supervisor Taylor.
Nikki then gathered the peer mentors and supervisors for a workshop on goal setting for the camp. It was fantastic working together to identify our goals and figure out how others could support us in achieving them.
After lunch, the sun peeked through (kind of), and we donned our wet gear for more fun! We took turns on the slip ‘n’ slide, trying out different moves and seeing who could go the farthest. Then, we had a blast playing dodge sponge, throwing soaked sponges at each other—it was pure joy!
After our showers, we dried off and relaxed for a cozy afternoon watching the rest of The Greatest Showman. Our arts and crafts participants kept busy all day, making friendship bracelets and creating personal vision boards. Before dinner, we all worked together to decorate the room for the evening's party.
As the sun set, our UP! Clubbers transformed into retro party-goers, wearing everything from sequins to wigs, dance shoes, and funky dresses. The costumes were so creative, with a wonderful mix of retro styles and eras coming together for a fun-filled dance party! We boogied to the Cha Cha Slide, Macarena, and had a lively dance circle. By 10:00 PM, the balloons had popped, the music stopped, and it was time for bed. We turned off the lights, ready to rest up for our final day and camp graduation.
Sunday
Sunday morning greeted us with sunshine! Most of our UP! Clubbers had packed the night before, so we had time for a refreshing morning stretch and nature walk with volunteer Alex. He took us around the Collaroy Centre grounds, pointing out local fauna and insects along the way.
We had our last breakfast together and then split into groups for the final activities of the camp. Nikki led a hybrid Coffee Club session, where UP! Clubbers presented a dramatic reading of Bel’s script, bringing lots of laughter. Some watched Mamma Mia! The Musical 2, while others enjoyed a game of basketball with volunteers Alex and Grant.
Before we knew it, it was time to celebrate everyone's unique achievements. Each person had contributed something special to the camp, and we took time to recognize those impacts with the Summer Camp graduation. Speeches followed, filled with love and gratitude for the memories we had made together. After some final goodbyes, we boarded the coach to close out Summer Paradise Camp 2024.
What an incredible weekend it was! Thank you again to everyone who made this experience so memorable. Until next year!
