A Peak Inside Teen Winter Weekend

We all know Teen Winter Weekend (TWW) is supposed to be a weekend away from the parents but here you will be able to catch a glimpse inside what REALLY went down up at Raintree Ranch! It may have only been a couple days but these kiddos did some major work. From social media branding, values, smart goals, and how to effectively use a planner we had a weekend filled from beginning to end.

Friday night kicked off with dinner and almost immediately following the cabin was filled laughter, conversation, music, and sharing. One of the fan favorite card games Uno brought on intense competition, there was Seinfeld and Friends trivia battles, a Mancala dynasty was established and there were some new games added to the camp traditions.  It was evident, as soon as we saw the teens step off the bus, they were ready to pick up their friendships right where they had left them last Feb. and it was beautiful and fun to watch. Campers and counselors alike played and mingled well into the freezing cold of the night before we had to make our way back to our own cabins.

Saturday morning we followed breakfast with two breakout sessions: 1. social media and branding and 2. identifying personal values.
Everyone was able to participate for over an hour in each session.

Yoda and Madrid took the lead on providing guidance on how to brand ourselves and maximize the use of our social media platforms to best serve us and what we are trying to accomplish. Part of this awareness was realizing that every conversation and interaction that we are having helps to mold our image and brand.

On the other side of the cabin J-Logg and Scrappy facilitated the process of establishing personal values. Each teen had to sift through over 80 values and identify their top 5. I know this might sound like an easy task because most of us are under the impression we are fully aware of what matters most. The truth is, many things matter a lot, so to narrow down and identify our top five can be extremely challenging. Everyone did a beautiful job of going through the process and really paid attention to what this process was bringing up for them. It is safe to say that all of the counselors were impressed with the depth of insight and ability the teens showed throughout these morning activities. 

Some of the best stories were shared while sharing meals in community with one another; catching up on the latest events and sharing what we were excited for this year. Raintree also does a wonderful job of making delicious meals and accommodating everyone in attendance. 


Our afternoon session took an in depth look at how to set up SMART goals. These are the same SMART goals we posted on the blog to kick off 2019. One of the best ways to check in with ourselves on our goals and progress is to use the SMART goal strategy. We took time to have each teen identify one goal they would like to work on and had them break it down step by step. Each camper shared within a small group what their goal was and many were eager to share their goals in big group as well. That cabin was filled with incredible ideas and brainstorming! There is nothing more beautiful than watching people talk about something the love and are passionate about. 

We were also excited to announce that Passion Planner had donated a brand new, 2019 planner for each camper and counselor who was in attendance. Many campers wrote down the SMART goals steps directly into the planner so they would have an easy reference throughout the year. The planners are incredibly detailed and encourage campers and counselors to become organized and detailed oriented as they prepare to become effective and efficient leaders. This will come in handy as we are preparing to re-launch our Junior Council and will need our teens to remain well balanced as they pick up volunteering, camp, school, sports, work, and family time.

Overall the weekend was jam packed! Everyone spent the afternoon down at Camp Marston making candles, playing soccer, practicing their archery skills, and enjoying hot coco conversations. We ended the night with a movie and camp fire and woke up to beautiful snow that was just enough to make snowmen and have a snow ball fight. The Seany Foundation and all of our counselors are excited to see our campers grow and look forward to watching their ongoing development. Their talents are endless and we are thankful that YOU the parents share your loved ones with us. We are also grateful that your loved ones share parts of themselves with us year after year.

Until next year....