During the camp season, newsletters are released recapping all the fun and activities that occur at Purchase Day Camp. The 2003 newsletters are published courtesy of the Dragons Group, the Flamingos Group and Cindy Kenny and her computer staff. Excerpts from these newsletters can be viewed below.

Will's Return - by Amanda Martino of the Flamingos, August 2003
On July 18th when the campers were sitting on the blacktop waiting for another exciting day to start at PDC there was wrestling, which the campers didn't know about. First to come out to fight in the wrestling ring were "The Incredible Hulk" (Anthony) and "Uncle Sam" (Big Al). The Incredible Hulk was beating Uncle Sam so Uncle Sam stopped the match and called for his manager. A man came down and he had a marine uniform on. The man had a mask over his face. The campers were shouting, "Is that Will!?" Sure enough, the man took off his mask and there was Will! The campers and counselors were both screaming and running up to Will and hugging him and giving him high fives. Then Will stood by the American flag which was signed by the other marines in Will's group. Will raised the American flag while the other campers of PDC were singing the national anthem (The Star Spangled Banner). After the flag raising by Will, and the singing of the national anthem, each group returned to their regular schedule. All of the campers and counselors were glad to have Will back for so many different reasons. For now, Will is staying out of the war between the United States and Iraq. We are so happy to have Will back! Welcome back Will!

Playland Adventure - by Alyssa Conklin of the Flamingos, August 2003
On Friday, August 1st the TNT groups went on a special trip to Rye, Playland. The groups included: The Swans, Serpents, Vipers, Dragons and Flamingos. On this trip we were split into groups with counselors to enjoy the great adventures of Playland! Some of the great features included: The Dragon Coaster, Sky Flyer, Haunted Houses, The Double Shot, food and many other very exciting features. Even though it rained for awhile we still had so much fun! "It was fun and we all had a great time," claims Maria Ventura. We all loved this trip especially me and thank you Jim for letting us enjoy all of these terrific and exciting features of Rye Playland!

Purchase Idol - by Terri-Ann Gordon and Lisa DeChance of the Flamingos, August 2003
Like the new hit TV Show, American Idol, PDC decided to make their ordinary staff famous. Last week, Matt Wechsler and Tiffany Betz brought to you Purchase Idol. PDC even found their own top notch judges; Wendy from the Flamingos, Gabe from the Dragons, and Greg from the Eels.

On Monday, July 28, the competition began. There was a great turnout with lots of new faces, dances and voices. Among them were Jen and Joslyn Delancey, Team Rosenthal (Jeff, Dan and Eric), Feil Style (Nick and Greg), Lara Swersky and Nora McMahon. There was also a guest appearance from the PDC Softball Team.

Although many performed, only the best three made it to the finals, which were held on Wednesday, July 30th. The finalists were Nora McMahon (Orphan Girl), Lara Swersky (Over the Rainbow), and Feil Style (The Remix). Between these three, each had to perform and sing better than before in order to win. In the end, Feil Style won the competition.

Now that we've had a taste of this year's Purchase Idols, we can't waing until next year. Who is going to be next?

Counselor Tube Races - by Maria Ventura of the Flamingos, August 2003
During the sixth week at Purchase Day Camp we have our annual Counselor Tube Races. All the counselors who want to participate form a team. There are 4 people on a team. Each team gets a tube and they race across the pool from 3 ft. to 10 ft. Also, the teams have their own names. The Flamingos and Dragons participate in the tube races too! Although they are still campers they are also Junior Leaders training to be counselors. The winners of the Flamingos and Dragons get a plastic trophy. The counselor's trophy is a big trophy that is not plastic. The team that wins gets their name carved into the trophy. The team that won last year was "Your Mother is my Aunt." At this year's counselors tube race, the team who won for the Junior Leaders were "2 Nicks and a Chick on Top of a Mountain." The counselors who won were the "Pool Staff." Everybody had a good time at Counselor Tube Races.

A Long Way from Home - by Chiara Bevacqua of the Flamingos, August 2003
I have been coming to PDC for 3 years. I live in Italy and look forward to coming to this camp because it is very fun! There are many activities that I like a lot.

In Italy camps are different. There are not as many ceremonies, parties and special events. Camps in Italy are fun, but Purchase Day Camp is the best!

Sono venuta a PDC per 3 anni. Io vivo in Italia, e spero di venire a questo grest anche l'anno prossimo, perche' e' molto divertente !!?! Ci sono tante attivita' che mi piacciono molto!

I grest Italiani sono un po' diversi. Inanzi tutto non hanno tante feste e eventi speciali. I grest Italiani sono lo stesso davvero divertenti ! Ma PDC resta il migliore !?!!

The Yankee Game - by Lindsay Brown and Cristina Alves of the Flamingos, August 2003
On Fan Appreciation Day, Thursday July 24th, in the 4th week of camp, the T-N-T groups went to Yankee Stadium to see the Yankees versus the Baltimore Orioles. The game was great, although the Yankees lost 5 to 3. Also that day was "Tee-Shirt Day" at the stadium for the campers. They only distributed the shirts to kids 13 and under. The tee shirts said, "100 Years of Baseball" on them, meaning this is the 100th year for the Yankees (1903-2003). Overall, the trip was great and a lot of fun.

Flamingo Gossip - by Casey Rabin and Violet Santelia of the Flamingos, August 2003
Everyone's asking for the Flamingo's gossip about PDC. This is because the Flamingos know everything that happens in PDC. Well, we have a ton of gossip!

First off, the Flamingos just finished their dance for Theatre Day. It was so awesome! They did a dance to R-E-S-P-E-C-T which included the whole group. Then, aside from that, they did a medley that included 5 different songs from the 60's. But, instead of the whole group doing the medley, the counselors picked 6 people. They were: Terri-Ann Gordon, Violet Santelia, Kate Richenthal, Nicole Accurso, Alyssa Conklin and Stephanie Papp. The songs were I Got You Babe, Peppermint Twist, It's a Beautiful Morning, Raindrops Keep Falling on my Head and Give Me Some Loving. The Flamingos had a blast!

As far as the TNT trips, the last trip was Playland. It was a lot of fun but during the trip it was drizzling. Most of the Dragons went on the new ride, Playland Plunge. After they went on the ride they were drenched with water. None of the other groups went on it. One ride that was very popular was the Mind Scrambler. Many people won prizes. Wendy's group played many games and Wendy was thrilled when she won a soft stuffed animal. We could tell she had a great time. Today, (8/6/03) the tube races are going to take place. The TNT kids are joining it again and they're ready! The Dragons and Flamingos are leaders in training. The little kids are enjoying their company a lot! They are always happy to see them.

We think this is the best summer yet because of all the new things going on!! Until next summer, have a great year!

Cooking - by Victoria Vernali and Sabrina Paris of the Flamingos, August 2003
Week 5 of PDC we made cookies in cooking. The cookies were a big success, everyone loved them. To make these cookies on your own, the recipe for the cookies is...

• 2/3 cup shortening
• 3 cups of all purpose flour
• 2/3 cup butter or margarine, softened
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 2 eggs
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 packages (6 ounce each) semisweet chocolate pieces

Heat oven to 375 degrees. Mix thoroughly shortening, butter, eggs and vanilla. Stir in the remaining ingredients. Bake 8 to 10 minutes. Cool before removing from baking sheet.

Cranberry Orange Muffins

• 1 cup dried cranberries
• 1/4 cup fresh orange juice
• 2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon fine salt
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened (plus more for preparing muffin tin)
• 1 teaspoon grated orange zest
• 2/3 cup granulated sugar, plus 1 tablespoon for topping muffins
• 2 large eggs, at room temperature
• 1/2 cup milk