On the first Sunday of the 2026 season, Mr. Michael talks with the camp community about the opportunities before us this season and our responsibility to seize them.

"It becomes easy to confuse comfort with happiness, but when we're too comfortable, we stop growing, and we start stagnating." In this Chapel Talk, Mr. Michael emphasizes the importance of facing adversity with resilience and fellowship, urging campers to support each other and build a collaborative community while out in the wilderness.

"None of us can see what’s ahead—not next week, not next year, not five years from now. But what we can do is take the next day, the next moment, and the next step. We can embrace the uncertainty and trust that the trail, and the people walking beside us, will guide us toward where we’re meant to go. Sometimes these steps are giant leaps, but more often than not they are small steps that don’t seem to get us any closer to our answers. Eventually though, if we keep taking these small but positive steps forward, we will emerge from the fog and everything will become clear.”

In his Week 6 Chapel Talk, Mr. Michael shares that happiness is not derived from possessions, pleasure, popularity, or power, but rather from living a virtuous life.

In the final Tree Talk of the 2025 Pasquaney season, Jack Turnage shares three suggestions for living well: learn by doing, figure out who and what you love, and use technology in moderation. He emphasizes the importance of practical experience, citing Leonardo da Vinci's approach. He shares lessons from his own experience transitioning from law to teaching, and stresses the significance of building and maintaining relationships, citing data showing increasing loneliness, especially among men. Lastly, Jack warns about the dangers of excessive technology use, including addiction and reduced focus, advocating for a balanced approach to social media.

In 1895, a 14-year-old boy named Nat embarked on a sap-collecting journey, facing challenges and eventually finding his way home. Listen to this story written by Peyton Williams as well his own reflections on the experience of retracing familiar steps but seeing them through older, clearer eyes.

In his Chapel Talk, Townely Chisholm engages campers and counselors in dialogue about learning to live together in ways that maximize happiness for everyone, and how living our lives "in earnest" can help us achieve that goal.

Clay Meredith speaks with the camper body on Tree Talk Ridge about managing anxiety and the importance of having a friend or family member to go to when times are difficult.

JET Easterly deliveres a Tree Talk on the timeless topic of being present. It is a conversation our community has been having more and more each season. In today’s fast-paced world, quiet moments are often filled with noise so quickly and effortlessly, and the importance of taking time to "stop and think" has become more valuable than ever. It is meaningful for campers to hear this message from the college-aged counsellors they so genuinely admire and enjoy.

Rich DeSalvo talks about the meaning of stewardship, and encourages the camper body to take responsibility for their community and one another through small acts of service.