Aside from several afternoons of rain, this past week didn’t have much to set it apart from any other. And really, it is August in the mountains of Colorado, so the rain isn’t exceptional, either. However, here at Golden Bell, something VERY remarkable is taking place this week. The new swimming pool building is beginning to take shape! For several years, the metal structure that contained the pool had been deteriorating and the pool had been closed for a while. This year, the old building was torn down, leaving just the front part where the bathrooms were housed. The old HVAC ductwork was still visible though not in working condition. But this week, we saw a difference!
By the time the crew left yesterday, you could see a foreshadowing of what is to come.
This summer the RV park has not been very full. We’re used to that mid-week, but weekends have usually been busy. This weekend was an exception. One church congregation, Hope Chapel, took up nearly every available space. There must have been as many pedal powered vehicles as there were children, and that was a big number! Mountain bikes, tricycles of every description, small bikes with training wheels and just bikes, bikes and more bikes! I think those children are going home exhausted! To my knowledge, there were only two bicycle casualties. One little girl rode through an open RV slot and realized too late that there was a drop off at the other end. She went head-over-bicycle, but was able to get up and ride off. Another girl applied front brakes going downhill too fast and ended up in the emergency room. Just a chipped tooth, no broken bones, thank goodness. Our fellow co-host, Ted Bonner, who had been on duty all weekend until this morning, posted on Facebook that they were invited to the Hope Chapel worship service and were thanked for making the weekend a pleasant one. That’s always nice to hear.
This week has been a musical one over at the cabins and the lodge. Each year a youth orchestra camp takes over a lot of the premises. Usually I have been in the gift shop and have been unable to attend their concert but this year I wasn’t working. However, we missed it again because we had been given the wrong time. Another part of the grounds was taken up by a children’s chorale from Colorado Springs and we plan to attend their concert today.
Tonight will be our final staff and volunteers chapel for the summer. They have been very special times for us as we get to know the summer staffers better. Since the Nazarene church camps are over for the year, summer staffers are heading home to get ready for college to begin in the fall or other jobs. Bry, one of the student nurses, left yesterday and will spend a week at home before leaving for Army basic training. Several of the senior volunteers have gone, as well, and the dining room gets really quiet these days. Knowing that next year’s crowd will look very different makes us glad we have good memories of this and past years.
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