Summer’s Best Two Weeks is a transformative camp experience for grades K-6th to introduce kids to a variety of sports, develop their skills, and teach them to honor God and one another in the way they compete in sports and all of life. Activities include football, basketball, soccer, hockey, ultimate Frisbee, kickball, wrestling, tumbling, crafts, trampoline, and more! Check out the details below for SB2W 2022 at Eastminster (VB-Indian River location) and pre-register a camper with the embedded google form. Keep scrolling past the form to see pictures from our local partner camps, more of the camp story, and frequently asked questions. For other camp dates and locations or high school or college students interested in being counselors, check out the SB2W Tidewater Circuit page
SB2W 2022
Ages: Rising grades K-8th
Dates: August 1-5
Times: Junior Camp (ages 5-7, rising K-2nd), 9 AM to Noon
Day Camp (ages 8-13, rising 3rd-8th), 9 AM to 4 PM
Cost: Junior Camp $60/child, Day Camp $125/child, scholarships available
Place: Eastminster Presbyterian Church, 3229 MacDonald Rd, Virginia Beach, VA 23464
“Pay Camp Deposit” button using the “Check Out” button.
THE POINT
Competition brings out the worst in many of us, kids and adults alike. We can quickly become self-centered, angry, and unreasonable. Many of us may have been told or have told our kids or others to “just be a little less competitive.” But competitiveness is woven into the fabric of our very nature. What if there was a better way? What if our competitiveness was re-directed to honor God in all of our efforts and to care more about others than ourselves? SB2W uses sports to train kids at how to win and lose, succeed and fail, in a way that honors God and respects others, following the motto: “God first, others second, I’m third.”
THE STORY
Summer’s Best Two Weeks is a camp program that began in 1966. It still operates primarily as a resident camp in Western PA, serving over 3,000 campers every summer. But it has also spawned a number of day camps operated by individual churches in New York, Pennsylvania, and Virginia.
In 2018 and 2019, two of Eastminster’s sister churches (Crosswater Presbyterian in Western Branch and Resurrection Community in Virginia Beach) began running the camp program in Hampton Roads. In 2021, Grace Chesapeake joined the fun, and this year, Eastminster Presbyterian is excited to join them by offering a one-week version of this amazing camp. Coordinated by Resurrection Community (which handles registration and payments), all the churches work together, sharing counselors and resources to offer the camp at various locations throughout the summer. To see other times and locations, visit the SB2W Tidewater Circuit Page
THE ACTIVITIES
SB2W features a wide variety of sports, including football, basketball, soccer, hockey, ultimate Frisbee, kickball, wrestling, tumbling, crafts, and trampoline. Each day, campers will learn the basics and develop skills in some of these sports, have an interactive Bible lesson on some aspect of Christian competition, and compete as a team in one of the sports. Campers are assigned to squads divided by age and gender to learn their sports and develop their skills, and they are assigned to one of two teams, Romans (red) and Galatians (blue) for team competition. These team assignments are made for life in all SB2W camps and all family members are assigned to the same team so that campers develop a strong sense of team loyalty and identity while learning to respect and honor their opponents.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
If you don’t see your question and answer here, just contact us and ask!
WHY IS IT CALLED SUMMER’S BEST TWO WEEKS?
Summer’s Best Two Weeks is a long-standing camp program that originated in Pennsylvania and still operates there as a resident camp, serving over 3000 campers each summer. The program has spread to a number of different churches that run day camp versions of either one or two weeks.
WHAT IS THE POINT OF CAMP?
The camp motto is I’m Third (God First, Others Second, I’m Third) and counselors and staff strive to embody this motto and communicate it to campers through their words and actions. The primary activity at camp is sports. We seek to introduce campers to a wide variety of sports, develop basic skills, and then push them to achieve levels of accomplishment in each sport. Through these sports, we also teach lessons from the Bible about competition: how to win and lose, succeed and fail in a way that is honoring to God and respecting of others.
WHAT ARE THE HOURS OF CAMP?
Junior Camp (ages 5-7, rising K-2nd) runs each day from 9 AM to 12 PM. Day Camp (ages 8-13, rising 3rd-8th) runs each day from 9 AM to 4 PM. Please plan to drop off between 8:45 and 9:00, so that we can start the day right at 9:00. There is an option for Junior Campers to stay full-day (until 4 PM) if that is better for them and their families.
WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN DAY CAMP AND JUNIOR CAMP?
While Day Camp and Junior Camp follow the same principles and include many of the same activities, the program details are slightly different.
Junior Camp is focused on a basic introduction to the various sports, activities, and Bible lessons with an emphasis on fun, exploration, and relationship-building.
Day Camp maintains the emphasis on fun, exploration, and relationship-building, but adds in the challenge of specific skill development goals in each activity and the aspect of intense and Godly team competition.
Generally, younger campers (ages 5-7, rising K-2nd grade) should participate in Junior Camp and older campers (ages 8-13, rising 3rd-8th grade) should participate in Day Camp. However, since each child is different, there is some flexibility around the boundaries. On the registration form, you can select which camp you are registering for, but please feel free to contact us if you want to discuss the specific needs of your child and which program will be best.
In addition, younger campers can register for full-day Junior Camp. Full-day Junior Camp follows the regular junior camp program until noon, but then has a more relaxed and restful afternoon (no screens, though!) This is a good option for families who need a longer camp day for parents working or have kids in both age ranges and want to only have one pick up.
While there is that full-day option for younger campers, there is not really any half-day option for older campers. Campers who are a “youngish 8” can participate in Junior Camp if they would like, but the Day Camp program does not work well with leaving at noon and would leave campers feeling frustrated and disappointed.
HOW MUCH DOES CAMP COST?
Full tuition for Day Camp is $125. Full tuition for half-day Junior Camp is $60 and full-day Junior Camp is $125. A deposit of $50/family (counts toward your total tuition) reserves your spot, with the balance due by June 1st. Scholarships are available for those with financial need, so please don’t let money be a burden that keeps you from camp! Contact us if you need a scholarship. If you would like to contribute to the scholarship fund to help more families participate in camp, you can make a designated tax-deductible contribution to Resurrection Community Church along with your own tuition payment. The $50 deposit is refundable until May 1st and any other tuition payments are refundable if camper registration is withdrawn before June 1st. After June 1st, tuition will only be refunded if the spot can be filled with another camper.
WHERE DOES CAMP TAKE PLACE?
Camp takes place at Eastminster Presbyterian Church, 3229 MacDonald Rd, Virginia Beach, VA 23464. Each day is scheduled with a mix of indoor and outdoor activities to make sure campers get plenty of outside time, but also have breaks inside with air conditioning.
WHO ARE THE COUNSELORS?
The counselors are college and high school students selected for their Christian faith, love for kids, responsibility, and maturity. Some of these counselors are members of Eastminster or other local churches, while others come to the Virginia Beach/Chesapeake to invest a significant part of their summer in leading these camps at multiple area churches.
WHAT DOES THE CAMP DAY LOOK LIKE?
Each day is a highly structured mix of team competition and individual skill development in a variety of sports and activities, including football, basketball, soccer, hockey, ultimate Frisbee, kickball, wrestling, tumbling, crafts, trampoline, and swimming. Each day also includes lunch (brought from home) and a Bible lesson focused on some aspect of what it means to live and compete in a way that honors God.
WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN SQUADS AND TEAMS?
The camp is fundamentally organized by “squads”. These squads are made up of 5-10 campers of the same age and gender (some junior camp squads may be mixed boys/girls) with their own counselors for the whole of the camp. The squad moves together through each day’s schedule of activities, Bible, lunch, etc.
In addition to their squad, each camper is assigned to a “team”, either Romans (red) or Galatians (blue). This team assignment is made for life and is consistent across any SB2W camp that a child attends. Once a Roman, always a Roman. All siblings are also assigned to the same team. In competition time and in the meets, Day Campers compete Romans vs. Galatians and the lifelong assignment of these teams develop a great sense of team loyalty and camaraderie.
What if I want More than ONE WEEK?
There are several one-week SB2W camps throughout the summer at different locations around Hampton Roads. In addition, there is a two-week camp in the Red Mill area of Virginia Beach. See the Tidewater SB2W page for more details. You can sign up for multiple camps by signing up on each individual camp’s page or by contacting Jimmy Brock, Tidewater SB2W circuit director to transfer/duplicate a registration.
HOW WILL COVID-19 AFFECT CAMP?
If Covid-19 is still an issue in August, we will follow all applicable Covid rules and best practices, while maintaining our focus on providing the best overall camp experience. The camp program is inherently based around small groupings of campers and lots of time outside, both factors that are key in Covid prevention. In 2021 we ran a “normal” camp program and did not experience any Covid outbreaks.
How are Resurrection Community Church and Eastminster Presbyterian Church connected?
Resurrection Community is a relatively new church in southern Virginia Beach, and a sister church of Eastminster. Jimmy Brock, pastor of Resurrection Community, has many years of experience with and a deep love for the SB2W camp program. He serves as the circuit director for the Tidewater SB2W circuit. Resurrection Community coordinates the hiring of college-age senior counselors to work at all three camps, as well as the training of other counselors from each local church, and the registration and payment process. That’s why registration payments are made to Resurrection Community, even though the camp is hosted by Eastminster. For more information about Resurrection Community, visit www.resurrectionvb.org
MORE QUESTIONS?
READY TO REGISTER?
Scroll back up and fill out the form!