Vista Camps

Vista Summer Camps in Hunt, Texas
Camp Rio Vista for Boys | Camp Sierra Vista for Girls
(830) 367-5353| CONTACT US

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A Note From Carl Hawkins – Updated 2/15

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carl 001

 

To: Old time, Long time, Rio Vista Alumni

From: Carl Hawkins, Owner/Director, Tired & Retired

Subject: NEED YOUR HELP!!!

 

Do you realize that Rio Vista will soon reach the prestigious old age of 100 years? Many thousands of boys and young men have matured at RV. Their camp experiences have had a positive and lasting influence on their lives. I am in the process of compiling a brief history of Rio Vista and need your help! There are so many individual stories to be told, to be shared, to be passed down and treasured. I would like to make them a part of RV History.

Here is what I am looking for:

1. Brief, humorous, moving, stories about your experiences as a camper and/or counselor.

2. How has your RV experience influenced your life?

3. I’m interested in any positive memories which you have about your time at RV.

4. Please be sure to include your name, years you attended camp, address, and cell phone number.

Addition:::::: Please be sure to add your Name, Years you were here at RV, and Tribe.

I would like to have a section of the RV History Book to include your stories. Please Help!

You can e-mail them to sarak [at] vistacamps [dot] com, fax them to 830-367-4044, or mail them to Carl Hawkins, 175 Rio Vista Rd, Ingram Texas 78025.

Thank you in advance!

Vista Press Release!

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Remember when I said you should be on the lookout for some exciting news from Vista Camps??!

Well HERE it is! We would like to formally announce that we have a new Rio Vista Camp Director! We are so excited to bring back to the team……. (drum roll please) …… Michael Hawkins!!  He has hit the ground running and is on the recruiting trail looking for the best of the best in camp counselors. As many of you know, Michael is son to the beloved Freddie and Chaille Hawkins. Michael grew up at Rio Vista, was a camper and counselor, and after working out in the “real world” for a while, is returning to his roots! We are pumped that he will be leading Rio Vista this summer with all of the amazing traditions and making it the best summer ever! He brings with him his sweet and lovable wife, Elizabeth Vinyard Hawkins, and his adorable son, Hudson. I can’t wait for you to get to know his sweet family. You are going to LOVE them!

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We are also SUPER excited and blessed and happy to welcome Diane Abbott, soon to be Diane Hawkins!! to the Vista Team! Diane has had many years in the camping industry and is going to join us in the next couple of months at her new camp home. I’ve already heard some testimony from friends and co-workers of hers that they are heartbroken to lose her but they are so excited about where the Lord is taking her. And I am just giddy that she will be here! Diane is someone that you can’t help but admire with her joy of life and her tender heart. I’ve literally got goosebumps typing this out. She will be helping in lots of areas of camp and will be Justin’s right hand girl. How sweet! We sure do have some good looking couples around here! You’re going to love Diane and her spunky little Taylor!

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So now that you are all spinning around from excitement with all the changes at Vista Camps, go out and spread some of that Vista Love!

Songs from the Vista Vault!

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If you’ve ever been a camper or counselor at Rio Vista or Sierra Vista, you know what the Vista Spirit is all about!

♫♪ The Rio Vista Spirit, it is the best! ♪ ♫

and…

♪♫ Sierra Vista, we got it all, HEY! ♪♫

But if you’ve been here for a long time, you also know “The Cat Came Back… the very next day…” and “Country Roads, take me home….”

A sweet and long-time friend just sent me 21 Pages of Vista History! I’m going to post some songs on here for you to enjoy and will post more later. Some of you will have to get some tissue, because you’ll be swept back in time… to a place where the Guadalupe was your swimming pool and Sundays meant Becky’s famous cinnamon rolls for breakfast and fried chicken for lunch! Where you felt like you were “home” in the middle of the beautiful Texas Hill Country with your 2nd family.. your Vista family! I can still remember singing some of these songs in the dining hall. I remember some of my HEROS leading the songs from the front (Susan Bernstein and Megan Ross!!) and feeling like I was on top of the world when they would grab me by the hand to have me help lead with them. It’s amazing to now be able to see the older campers loving and encouraging the young’ns the way those heroes of mine did. They have no idea what an impact they have on those precious Fort and Hawks campers. It melts my heart. MAN, I love camp! Okay, so enough about that… here are a couple Vista Oldies! Enjoy!

The Cat Came Back
Old Mr. Johnson had troubles of his own
He had an old yellow cat that wouldn’t leave home
And he tried and he tried to give the cat away
So he gave it to a man who lived far away
But the cat came back the very next day
Yeah the cat came back
You know we thought he was a goner
But the cat came back
And he just wouldn’t stay away
So he sold him to a man who lived in LA
And he put him out to play on a busy freeway
And cars swerved to the left and the swerved to the right
And forty-seven cars piled up that night
But the cat came back the very next day
Yeah the cat came back
You know we thought he was a goner
But the cat came back
And he just wouldn’t stay away
So he sold him to a boy for a ten dollar note
And he took him to the river in his little paddleboat
And he tied him to a rock that must’ve weighed ten pounds
Next day they dragged the river for a boy who’d drowned
But the cat came back the very next day
Yeah the cat came back
You know we thought he was a goner
But the cat came back
And he just wouldn’t stay away
So he sold him to the butcher who lived down the street
And he put him in his grinder to grind him up for meat
And he ground and he ground ‘til he heard a terrible shriek
And all the meat in town tasted furry for a week
But the cat came back the very next day
Yeah the cat came back
You know we thought he was a goner
But the cat came back
And he just wouldn’t stay away

Sardines
Sardines, yeah
And pork and beans, yeah
I had a friend, yeah
Who’s in the pen, yeah
And what’d he’d do, yeah
Nobody knew, yeah
And on the roof, yeah
100 proof, yeah
And on the table, yeah
Black Label, yeah
And all you need, yeah
Is sardines, yeah
AND PORK AND BEANS, yeah
And Coca-Cola, yeah
And Grape Soda, nooooooooooooo

Fantastic Friday – A Few Favorites

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When’s the last time you and your kids had some good, messy fun together? Set aside an afternoon for the entire family to wear their oldest, grubbiest clothes and get down and dirty!

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Build a sand castle

Although the beach obviously is the ideal location for this activity, it can be done in your backyard sandbox. Be sure to add water to help mold the structure of the castle. Ask your little one to help by grabbing the wet sand and squishing it with their hands. For a fun finishing touch, decorate your castle with any leftover ribbon, flags, or toys you don’t mind getting dirty.

Make a mud pie

Plan to get sand and mud all over your clothes before this task is complete! The perfect location to build your mud pies is your sandbox. Have a few mud toys on hand like rakes, shovels, and buckets. Simply add water to the sand or dirt in your chosen area, starting with a little water and adding more as needed. When your masterpieces are complete, have the kids round up all the toys for a good rinse. Then, spray each family member with the hose before heading inside to carefully strip clothes and soak in a warm bubble bath.

Fingerpaint

Cover an outdoor bench or table with a cut up trash bag before starting. Then, place rolls of construction paper over the table and tape them down. Make your own fingerpaint with sugar, cornstarch, liquid dishwashing soap, and food coloring, or mix it up by using chocolate pudding instead!

Egg toss

Pair off your family for a traditional favorite. Give each pair an egg, and have the teams stand across from their partner in two straight lines. Start at about four feet apart. Have your leader announce when it’s time to toss. If the egg breaks, that team is out until the next round. If it doesn’t break, one partner takes a step back. Continue until only one pair remains standing with an uncracked egg. WINNER WINNER CHICKEN DINNER!

Water balloon fight

I mean, we love it at camp… might as well do it at home, too! For a (dirty) twist on your typical water balloon fight, fill the balloons with condiments before adding water. Try squeezing ketchup, mustard, and chocolate syrup in each balloon. Set the balloons in several kiddie pools, and let the games begin!

Have a burlap sack race

Find a park or large field for the perfect potato sack race. For younger children, allow both feet inside the sack or pillowcase. Teens and tweens can pair up with another child by placing one foot each inside the sack. Be prepared for grass stains after this high energy, hilarious game!

** Found all this great information on Pinterest from http://www.sheknows.com/channels/parenting **

We hope you all have a fabulous weekend! God bless and enjoy every moment!

Holiday High Five Christmas Tree – Contest!

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How did Beth and Sara spend their Monday at the Vista Camps office, you ask?

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We cut out over 400 hands, wrote every single camper and counselors’ name on them (on their tribe colors, I might add) and made a 10 foot Christmas tree out of them!

New Campers are on white and pink. Counselors are on blue and orange.

Working at my dream job is just so stressful. HA!

So for the contest…. whoever SHARES this picture between now and Thursday morning at 10:00am will be entered into a drawing for a $50 gift-certificate to the Vista Store! We will draw for the winner at 10:01 and announce ASAP. Good luck and Happy Sharing!

By the way, if you find your name on the tree, tag yourself… or just tag a hand in your tribe color bc  EVERYONE enrolled for next summer is on there! 🙂

 

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