CAMPER LOGISTICS
please note, we have not yet updated these to reflect 2017 information! Please check back after April 1! Thank you!
We hope this helps you plan your trip to Family Camp!
This note contains:
- Links to Camp Surveys that we'd like you to fill out before July 15!
- Links to Important Camp Documents for you to Download and Bring To Camp
- Payment information
- Arrival Time
- Travel Information
- What to bring
- Our food philosophy and sample menu
- Camping/Sleeping info
- Request around Electronic equipment.
- Contact number for Doug and Barb.
PLEASE DOWNLOAD AND BRING THESE IMPORTANT CAMP DOCS TO CAMP:
To help us fuel you with food you love and that loves you, please go to our online Family Camper Survey and Food Preferences\ Survey, and have each family member fill out each survey ASAP. Thank you! The information from those two very short surveys will help us tremendously.
To make our first day at camp easier, please go to the Family Camp Website and print the Photo Release Form and the Medical Release Form, fill them out at home and bring them with you to camp.
PAYMENT INFORMATION
Thanks to those of you who have sent in your full payment! You've made it possible for us to move forward with ease and confidence! If you haven't paid in full, unless you've made a payment plan with Doug, would you please send the balance of your tuition NOW? It's much easier and secure for us to deal with money before camp (in the calm of our home office) than during camp (out on the Farm.).
Please make your check out to Northwest Compassionate Communication and mail to: NVC Family Camp, 11205 SW Corbin Beach Rd, #2, Vashon, WA, 98070. Please note in the 'memo' line of your check, "NVC Family Camp" Unfortunately, we can no longer accept credit cards as payment. Thank you all so much for making camp happen with your financial support!
ARRIVAL TIME
Please plan to arrive on site between 2:00 and 5 pm on Saturday, July 30th. That will give you time to arrive, get your camp set up, meet some folks & and enjoy the Scavenger Hunt before 6:00 dinner. If you arrive earlier in the day, please explore around Vashon Island until 2 pm. We'll still be getting ready for you, and not prepared to host you just yet!
Family Camp Address: 12108 SW 148th St, Vashon, WA 98070
Doug's cell 206-715-3805, Barb's cell 206-653-4264 (your hosts at camp)
TRAVEL INFO
These days, many of you probably have some kind of navigation tool to help you get here..
If you don't, you can find detailed information on our website:
Getting Here!
LOST? or other travel questions: Call Doug or Barb!
WHAT TO BRING
Weather is unpredictable in the Northwest! It can be cold and wet or hot and sunny, and can vary between those extremes, in one day. Please come prepared for your comfort in all kinds of weather! Rain does happen....heat, too!
Essential items
- TENT(s) (If you have an extra, and can bring it easily, please do, and let us know you're bringing it. We still need a few for our Chinese group)
- Tarp to put under your tent
- Sleeping bag & pad
- Pillow
- Eating gear for each family member (plate/bowl & cup, marked with your name, utensils)
- Towel
- Toiletries
- Sun Hat
- Sunglasses
- Layered clothing (be prepared!)
- A white or light colored T-shirt that you like for tie-dying and camp customizing! (one for each member of your family~*)
- Light rain jacket
- Good walking shoes and sandals
- Sunscreen
- Swimsuit
- Flashlight
- Insect repellent ( usually mosquitoes aren't a problem but if you're sensitive, better to be prepared)
- Water bottle
Optional items:
- Waterproof shoes
- Umbrella
- Earplugs for light sleepers
- Alarm clock
- Camp chairs for sitting around your camping spot
- Blanket or large towel for grass sitting
- Musical instruments (drums, anyone?)
- Hammocks
- Journal
- Allergy Support (for grass, wasps etc)
>> Please don't bring anything so precious that you would feel regret if it were lost or damaged. <<
REQUEST AROUND ELECTRONICS: Electronics, cell phones, ipads, MP3 players, Gameboys.... We struggle with this one. We know some of you want your phones and/or computers to keep your lives going. With that understanding, we are asking everyone who really doesn't need them to: Please leave electronics at home or put them away during camp. In your car maybe? Would you be willing to experiment with that strategy and see what life is like without the phone and other electronics being so ever-present? Most staff will have phones for inter-staff communication and emergencies if you need one and don't have one.
There is no wifi at camp, but there is an internet cafe a couple miles away in town.
We'll be having a community discussion about our Pre-Camp Agreements (attached), including the issue of electronics, at the beginning of camp as as well as address it during the creation of Family Agreements if needed.
OUR FOOD PHILOSOPHY AND SAMPLE MENU
Chef Jefe is planning simple, nutritious, delicious meals for all ages to nourish our bodies and spirits. We do our best to provide mostly organic, a lot of local and always healthy food, and also fit within a budget that makes it possible for people to afford camp. Like for many of you, it's a balancing act and we're not perfect.. Of course the secret ingredient in everything is Love & Gratitude....for you and for our planet.
We've planted our Family Camp garden again with lots of organic greens for big fresh salads, and we'll supplement that with other fruits and vegetables directly from our new Market Garden on the farm and from other farms on Puget Sound and Washington state. We aim to cook with a mindfulness of sugar (no or low...) and minimal processed foods. For your eating pleasure, please fill out our Food Preferences Survey asking for your food allergies and dietary preferences.
We'll have a refrigerator and cupboard dedicated to campers' special food needs. There is an excellent food market and farmer’s market on the island "just in case"!
SLEEPING AND CAMPING INFO
This is a real camping camp! Everyone brings a tent, sleeping bag, pillow & comfy mat! (Families from China, we’ll provide all of that for you!)
We’re camping on our 26 acre farm, and there are lots of fields, meadows, forests, a pond and a little stream. There are grassy areas beneath 100-year-old apple trees where you can pitch your tents. We have some new toilets, as well as hand-built cedar compost toilets, outdoor hand-washing sinks, and four beautiful private outdoor showers. We have no laundry facilities, but the town of Vashon has a new laundromat. We do have plenty of water, buckets, and rope for hand-washing and drying.
CONTACT NUMBERS FOR DOUG & BARBARA
Doug: 206-715-3805 dpdolstad@gmail.com
Barbara: 206-653-4264 barbaralarson@gmail.com
Any questions? Please call, text or email us!
We look forward to welcoming you and sharing in this very special place and experience with you.
