Camp Zephyr Project-Week One

The RVICS men started working on Monday, February 9th here at Zephyr on our first building project. The camp needed another 22 bunk beds constructed for their new dormitory. While we were cutting 2x6's and 2x4's, the women were tasked with inspecting all the cabins and hotel rooms to create a punch list of any and all needed repairs before the camping season began. They followed that assignment by sanding the 18 "well used" bunks beds in preparation for a new coat of polyurethane.

Lumber was delivered to the camp gym and we began the process of cutting down the material to the component parts using a chop saw with a jig to keep the cuts consistent.

Once all the bunk parts were cut we started systematically assembling one bunk bed at a time. We eventually got a routine going with Steve and John assembling all the bed components together while Tom and Paul did the router/sanding finishing work.

Two of our ladies, Kathy and Karen, assisted us in painting the bottoms of the upper bunk bed panels. Stuart, the camp's retiring maintenance manager, came up with this brilliant solution to eliminate the writing that campers like to add to the bottom of the top bunk beds.. He's never had a camper come to camp with a while marker or pencil so they don't have to deal with inappropriate graffiti.

By Thursday afternoon, February 12th, we had all 22 bunk beds completed and a mess to clean up in the gym.

It's a blessing to work hard and serve the camp staff! But it wasn't all work and no play during the week. We play hard too!

Monday night after dinner we played "Mölkky", had a campfire and made popcorn.

Mölkky is a popular Finnish outdoor throwing game played by knocking over 12 numbered wooden pins (1–12) with a single throwing skittle to score exactly 50 points. It combines strategy and skill, as players must stand pins upright where they land after each throw, causing the playing area to spread.

Paul is melting the butter for the popcorn he made over our campfire after Mölkky.

Wednesday evening we were invited by the Camp Director Nathan and his wife Jade to join their family for dinner and a time of fellowship. We enjoyed a baked potato bar, home-made chili, salad and mac 'n' cheese with their four boys and one of the camp staffers.

Dessert included an ice cream bar with all the fixings!

Friday was a day to get out and explore the area so we all drove into Corpus Christi, about an hour away, to tour the U.S.S Lexington Museum.

USS Lexington (CV/CVA/CVS/CVT/AVT-16) is an Essex-class aircraft carrier built during World War II for the United States Navy. Originally intended to be named Cabot, the new aircraft carrier was renamed while under construction to commemorate the recently lost USS Lexington (CV-2), becoming the sixth U.S. Navy ship to bear the name in honor of the Battle of Lexington.

Lexington was commissioned in February 1943 and saw extensive service through the Pacific War. For much of her service, she acted as the flagship for Admiral Marc Mitscher, and led the Fast Carrier Task Force through their battles across the Pacific. She was the recipient of 11 battle stars and the Presidential Unit Citation.

Sixteen decks. A length of three New York City blocks, a displacement of more than 33,000 tons, and a flight deck big enough to hold 1,000 cars. More sleeping space than the world’s biggest hotel and the ability to produce enough electricity to power a city of 150,000 people. All of this describes the USS Lexington. It was fascinating to visit this American legend on the Bay.

Nicknamed the "Blue Ghost" by the Japanese after they discovered it was named after the prior Lexington (CV-2) that they sank at the Battle of the Coral Sea.

We spent 6 hours and still didn't see everything.

Our dinner destination after a long day of walking on the "Blue Ghost" was Snoopy's seafood restaurant on Padre Island to complete the evening.