The 2010 Fortnight Summer Camp finished on July 3rd and all those involved agree: it was an incredible success!
Thirteen high school youth spent a week on beautiful Smoke Farm, just north of Arlington, Washington, learning the basics of building. Led by four talented professionals from the trades and an inspiring team of volunteer counselors, the students wielded pneumatic nail guns, electric saws, power grinders, and even the trusty hammer to construct the frame, floor and walls of a wildlife observatory 28 feet up a fir tree (read: an awesome tree house). Over the week we developed our woodworking, metalworking and construction skills to build a high-flying building unlike anything we'd encountered before.
In the construction process, we indirectly created something less tangible: a supportive and invigorating community. Suspended from the tree, tip-toeing like tight-rope walkers around the floor frame, we found friends and fellows. At 30 feet, which might as well be 300, boundaries dissolve--there is a job, there is a tree, and there are others to lend a hand! Fortnight brought together a diverse swath of people; we crossed regional, cultural, racial, linguistic, religious, and social boundaries to work together, quickly forming a crew with a sense of excitement and exploration.
We brought this energy beyond the job-site, as well: hunting down the haunted Prospector's Cabin in the woods, tracing the base of a behemoth rock wall in the quarry, building a giant bonfire on the river, hiding in a ditch during a game of Ghosts in the Graveyard in the dead of night, and dancing wildly to MGMT during late-night dish clean-up. Sometimes, the camaraderie could be found as a quiet undercurrent in conversation, card-games, or calisthenics. We came together to build an awesome tree-house, but the community and friendships we built together are far grander.
We invite you to share in the experience through the various photos, videos, and audio clips found in the Gallery page. Also, please take a moment to see all of the sponsors who helped make the project possible. Curious to know more? Visit the Old Page that was posted prior to the camp to understand our goals and philosophy.
For those of you interested in attending next year's Fortnight—stay tuned! We will have more information available in January 2011.
