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Rocky River Ranch is like my second home. It is such a comfortable, fun place to be! I am planning to be here as long as possible, and want my future daughters and granddaughters to experience this camp. Rocky River has a special place in my heart, and is a big part of my life.

I can't believe this will be my second summer away from Rocky River. I'm so campsick. I find myself singing RRR songs all the time, and i wish I could be there now! Camp has meant so much to me. Thanks for such a wonderful experience.

Oh how I wish I could still be a young girl and go to RRR every summer! I truly miss those wonderful weeks of absolute fun and excitement. This camp holds a very special place in my heart and will always throughout my life. I cannot wait until the day that my newborn little girl will be able to drive through the gate and live the summer days that not only her mother lived, but her grandmother, great-grandmother, and great-great-grandmother enjoyed. I cannot wait until the day that I can tell her all about her special great-great-grandmother (we called her GG, but most knew her as Mama Knolk) that opened beautiful Rocky River Ranch and created a place for many girls to create memories from. I am truly happy to see Mama Knolk's spirit still living on. May it continue to live on the dream that she always wanted.

The truth is I would not have become the person I am today without RRR! Making decisions for classes at 7 years old (with the help of a big sister and Rue as my counselor), remembering to wear your bathing suit under your jeans so you could go from the barn to the pool without the dreaded trip back to your cabin, remembering not to sign up for your pool class right before horseback … I could go on and on. The mistakes we made there were safe and there was a support system to catch you if you fell. Later I enjoyed working with the campers younger than me. First in WE as a big sister myself and later as a CIT Mom. In 14 years I grew and strengthened my commitment to myself. I felt loved unconditionally and I formed everlasting friendships. Some of them recently re-kindled after a 15-20 year gap as if no time had passed at all. In the last year I received a letter from a former CIT that spoke of my influence on her life. How it made her a better mother and a better woman. I have saved that letter for my children to read one day. I will always feel like Skeet and Sandy helped raise me and they always saw the person I could be! I can never thank them enough for that.

I love Rocky River Ranch. It was a place I could go and feel accepted for the person I was — not the person I was expected to be. When we passed under that arch, the playing field was leveled and I was free to be myself, or even to reinvent myself! If I could ride, if I could swim, if I could do crafts or even if my only talent was spitting watermelon seeds, I was accepted!

I have said for years that RRR made me the person that I am today. Actually it wasn’t just RRR, but also the counselors that shaped my experiences and helped me be the best I could be. I learned to problem solve, lead others and to be a leader others wanted to follow. I learned to do my part and that I can do anything I decided to do. I learned to say 'I can' a lot more than 'I cannot.' I learned to co-exist with others which helps me to this day. As a young girl I learned what others around me now in their 30s still do not know. I learned to take care of and respect myself, respect others and the world around me.