Alice Landers, vice president of Operations & Support Services for Texas Health Harris Methodist Hospital Hurst-Euless-Bedford, kept a diary while at the retreat to share the experience. Here are her reflections:
Friday, Oct 1, 2010
10:30 am
Doing final preparations for Bluebonnet Retreat XXXIII. It’s a bittersweet time, because this will be the last one at Garrett Creek Ranch Conference Center, our venue since our third camp in the Fall of 1995.
Just wandered down to the Ambulatory Care Atrium to see if all of the camper/counselors have arrived. As I neared the atrium I could hear the sounds of meeting and greeting of old friends and friends to be. It was the sound of excitement and eager anticipation. Some were partaking of the continental breakfast that the dining services provided, some were sitting around conserving energy and some were too excited to sit still. Luggage had already been loaded onto the buses that would take everyone to the ranch in Paradise, TX
Chaplain Riddile sent us on our way with a prayer that doubled as an invocation of sorts and grace for the meal we would eat almost as soon as we got to the ranch. We loaded em up and headed em out. It’s about an hour drive from THHEB to the camp. After some wrong turns, and an unfortunate accident for our videographer, all arrived safe at the camp.
7:00 PM
Pistol Pete, the deejay, showed up on time. He was also at our very first camp. He’s setting up his gear and we’ll be ready to boogie down very soon. The button guy is here, too…very busily getting set up to make well over a hundred buttons with the likenesses of campers and counselors.
It’s great to see so many on the dance floor learning different line dances. We learned the electric slide, the hustle, the tootsie roll and some good old fashioned two-steps. Pete is playing a wide variety of music—C & W, rock, soul, blues—something for everyone.
Saturday, October 02, 2010
9:00 AM
After getting the exercise instructor settled in the Singletree room I wandered through the craft area and am greatly impressed, as usual, by the creativity of these people. I am severely craft challenged! It’s amazing what people can do with a simple white tote bag. I always pick out the campers who have a good sense of humor and tell them that since I don’t do the craft, I get to choose the best one out of the bunch and take it home with me. Campers are split into two groups – one does the craft in the morning while the other visits the resource center by the American Cancer Society and has time for exercise. Then the groups switch in the afternoon. Campers also have the option of just relaxing and enjoying nature instead.
4:00 PM
Dr. Mary Brian and Dr. Mal Turner, physicians on the medical staff at Texas Health HEB, are here for the doctor’s panel. This is where the campers can ask questions about prevention, diagnosis and treatment of cancer. Campers also have an opportunity to put questions in the “Doc in the Box” anonymously and those questions will be answered as well. This tends to be a very popular activity for the campers. Sometimes they are more comfortable asking questions of physicians that are not involved in their treatment.
7:30 PM
Casino night—we have hired a company that has been here before and they brought several blackjack tables and Texas no-limit hold ‘em tables. We told everyone that this was a western themed night and once again the creativity was shown very well in how some chose to interpret this. Everyone seemed to have fun.
Sunday, October 3, 2010
8:00 AM
Breakfast! It’s a bittersweet day for those of us who have been involved with the camp for many years. This is our last day at Garrett Creek Ranch. Several of the campers commented that they were feeling a little sad today because they have to go home.
10:30 AM
Closing ceremony time—we’ve set out the special giveaways for the campers and counselors. We’ll ask each camper to come to the front accompanied by their counselor and they may address the group to tell us what they experienced this weekend. We have boxes of tissues scattered strategically around the room, because many times when the campers share their experiences it moves most of us to tears— happy tears. They were very excited to get the special gift this time—it’s a crystal object which has been specially lasered with the Bluebonnet Retreat logon, the Garrett Creek Ranch logo and the words “Last Stand at GCR Fall 2010.” This was to commemorate the final camp at this location. They have been our partner in this endeavor for 16 ½ years and we are sad to say goodbye. We also chose to let everyone know that Sue and I will pass the torch soon and introduced them to our successors—Tammy Quattrochi and Sandra Pizana. Then we sent them to lunch.
1:15 PM
Everyone is on the bus and headed back to Texas Health HEB. Bluebonnet Retreat XXXIII is in the books. We can have a couple of months to recuperate from this one before we plan our next one at Star Brand Ranch in Kaufman, TX on April 15-17, 2011.
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