SEMESTER SERIES : RACHAEL WADDELL – Ducks Fly Together
Two-Year MBA Orientation at Camp Twin Lakes:
The first thing that I considered when I found out that were traveling to Camp Twin Lakes for two days during orientation: Will we participate in trust falls? We have all heard about the team building activities that go with a trip to camp. Always a skeptic, I made an effort to come to Twin Lakes with an open mind and make a genuine effort to get to know my classmates and future best friends at a deeper level. I was not disappointed.
All 157 of my new classmates and I made the less than two hour trek to Rutledge, GA on Wednesday morning. As usual, I over packed and even brought along my new constant companion, ECON 501 (Professor Hill, I hope you read these posts. 🙂
We were assigned cabin roommates at random. Staying up late to chat with my bunkmates was a highlight of the trip.
Wednesday through Friday morning we rotated between three sections of the camp: team building, ropes course, and the farm. Each rotating team was comprised of groups from each section. We developed a cheer to differentiate ourselves among each team. “Quack, quack, quack… Ducks fly together!” became the motto of the Blue Team. We told ourselves that we would do a Quack cheer during graduation and this blog ensures we have it in writing. Everyone is now legally bound!
A highlight for my team was the ropes rotation. We learned to trust our teammates when rock climbing and encourage one another when we froze at the top of a 10 meter pole.
Camp Twin Lakes isn’t just an ordinary sleep away camp. The mission of the camp is to provide life-changing camp experiences for children with serious illnesses, disabilities, and other life challenges. Everything we did at camp, including the ropes course, a physically disabled child could do as well.
Our trip wouldn’t have been complete without helping a camp that has done so much for so many children. The newly created farm is intended to teach inner-city kids about the benefits of slow grown food. For those in a wheelchair, it is difficult to navigate a field and touch plants. The Goizueta Business School Class of 2015 created a structure where vine plants will grow upward. Kids can reach, pull, and smell tomatoes and melons. Hopefully next year’s class will return to Twin Lakes and have a picture of the completed structure and plants for the blog!