Panther Camp at Our Savior Lutheran

*COUNSELOR APPRECIATION POST*

Panther Camp is blessed to have so many dedicated, fun, caring, and talented counselors for the summer of 2026. These people undergo hours and hours of training to get ready for the summer. It may look like fun playing on the slip n slide, going on field trips, mixing up slime, playing so many games, and making friendship bracelets while they're here, but they also spend a lot of time helping campers work through problems, comforting campers who miss their parents, applying ice and band-aids, and helping campers enjoy all the activities of Panther Camp. This year's school-age group of counselors even spent time outside of work hours learning a dance to surprise the campers (and directors) at the Talent Show during Week 4.

Camp wouldn't be the same without these wonderful people pouring their time and energy into the campers. We hope the campers love their counselors just as much as we do! Some Panther Campers even grow up to be Panther Camp Counselors!

As many of our counselors only work for us during the summer season, we ask that God bless them during the school year and return at least some of them to us for another season in 2027!

A blessing for the counselors at the end of our summer:
Joshua 1:9
Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.

Week 6 has been full of Hero and Villain fun!

School age groups faced off in a color powder war! The White Oak and Black Walnut campers even got to take on the counselors for a final battle and the campers were victorious!

Superhero Party Day for River, Forest, and Meadow groups! They enjoyed a visit and some games with Batman, Wonder Woman, and Spiderman!

In Chapel today, the school age groups learned about one of the greatest Villain to Hero arcs in the Bible - Saul who was also called Paul. Through the power of the Holy Spirit, Paul was able to do many great acts of ministry for the church of Jesus Christ (who we all know is the ULTIMATE super hero!).

Verse of the week:
1 Corinthians 15:57
But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Week 5: Inventor's Lab

School age groups enjoyed a field trip to the Michigan Science Center this week as well as a week of creating their own inventions or stem toys back at camp. 👩‍🔬🧑‍🔧👨‍🏭

River, Forest, and Meadow enjoyed a Messy Day this week and have been keeping spirits up with indoor games on this smoky day.
🦆🦆🪿

Panther Campers learned all week about how God INVENTED (created) the Earth and everything in it. 🌎☀️🌙🌟
Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.
John 1:3

It was a very EVENTful week at Panther Camp!

Our verse of the week was 1 Corinthians 12:27
Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.
💒🫶❤️
We worked on teamwork and sportsmanship all week long!
We even added two extra character awards just for this week:
Priscilla and Aquila Award for Teamwork
David Award for Sportsmanship

River, Meadow, and Forest enjoyed a Field Day on Tuesday and the school age groups competed in Field Day events today! 🏆

KONA Ice visited again and that's always a hit.🍧

We ended the day today with a TEAM talent show for the school age groups. Even the counselors added a surprise group dance for the last number! (They even surprised the directors! 🙃)

What a talented TEAM of kids and campers! 🧠🕵️‍♀️👩‍🎓👩‍🎤👩‍🎨🎭🤹

Next week's school-age field trip to the Michigan Science Center has been rescheduled to WEDNESDAY, July 15th. The departure and arrival times are still the same (check the website or parent email).
If you need to change your camper's schedule so that they can go on the trip, please email Windy Carroll at [email protected] as soon as possible. Thank you!

We at Panther Camp pray that you had a restful and joyful holiday weekend! Enjoy these throwback photos of campers celebrating our country's birthday in past summers.🎆🇺🇸

This week is a big week at Panther Camp:
Meadow, Forest, and River will have a Field Day with water activities and a special treat on Tuesday!☀️

School age groups will need extra clothes or bathing suits for their Field Day on Thursday!🤸🤾‍♀️🏆
AND KONA ICE WILL BE BACK FOR ALL AGE GROUPS! 🍧🥳

Campers will engage in Team Building exercises and competitions of all kinds throughout the week:
Trivia (Tuesday)❓
Wilderness Mystery Challenge (Tuesday)🕵️‍♀️
Talent Show (Thursday)👨‍🎤
Field Day (Thursday, though we are keeping an eye on the weather)

Looking forward to Week 6 - Villains and Heroes
For your planning:
All ages will have a Dress Up day on Tuesday, July 21st.
🦸‍♀️🦸🦸‍♂️🦹‍♀️🦹🦹‍♂️🥷
They can wear a super hero or villain costume to camp! Please remember they will be playing outside as usual. Keep costumes appropriate for camp (no toy weapons, please).

The first field trip of the summer is in the books! Campers had a great day at MSU Children's garden.

Water Day for the Early Childhood and Young 5's groups!

Today was a big day at camp!

Early Childhood and Young 5's groups had a Nature Scavenger Hunt in the Outdoor Classroom!

School age groups played the Rainbow Race in the morning, where counselors hide and the groups race to find them! Once they're found, each camper gets a colored stripe. First group to make a rainbow wins! White Oak came out on top this time.

In the afternoon, school agers played with Water Cannons outside in the sunshine. It was a GOOD DAY!