My First Time Ziplining Let me tell you a little bit about my experiences ziplining. My first time ziplining was in 2010 here at Refreshing Mountain Camp – wow, 8 years ago! Up until that point, I didn’t know too much about the camp. At the time, I was attending a youth retreat camp in…
So, when was the last time you truly took a day of rest? If you are like me, even my “days off” from work tend to be filled with running the kids here or there, catching up on the honey-do list, or a hundred other good things that legitimately need to be done, but don’t…
One of the most powerful appeals of the “Retreat Concept” is the concept of refreshment. We live our lives full of demands, things-to-do, and deadlines, so the opportunity to disengage from all the demands for a short time can have a significant impact on our emotional health. It gives us the opportunity to catch our…
When it comes to planning a retreat, whether it is a youth event, a family reunion, school outing, or just a group of friends, it’s always good to have a plan. We all know that schedules are *subject to change*, but we also know that having no schedule can lead to frustration and can rob…
These are the basic facts of being a teenager at this point in history. Today, on average children spend 5 to 6 hours a day staring at screens and they are often on two screens at once. Studies have shown that excessive screen time can lead to obesity, sleep disorders, and aggression. Few know that…
Teambuilding is like a sandwich – lots of options without a clear definition for its content (Ham? Reuben? Bologna?). Sandwiches are also delicious; though that’s beside the point of this post. Choosing a corporate teambuilding event begins by understanding the intended outcome of events. The intended outcome should be the starting point of any event…
There’s nothing quite like a good Trust Fall to establish discomfort and raise insecurities in a team. (Not familiar with the Trust Fall? There are some YouTube videos or Google images that could catch you up.) Though often associated with team building, Trust Falls have become an outdated and rarely used element for building trust…
Google is a worldwide name: founded in 1998, the company has become one of the most profitable and fastest growing search engines in the world. Google has also held the #1 slot in Fortune’s “Best Places to Work” eight of the last eleven years. How does Google accomplish these two noteworthy titles? This company titan…
Once your Refreshing Mountain retreat wraps up, you might be bit concerned that your team, family or other group members lose sight of the lessons learned during this valuable experience. Though most retreat participants emerge with newfound knowledge, wisdom and possibly even a different outlook, some will inevitably lose sight of the retreat’s lessons as…
Matt Shenk began working part time at Refreshing Mountain in 2011 as a zipline tour guide through a friend that was also a tour guide. In 2014, when he graduated from high school, Matt joined the full time staff and continued to be a tour guide but also started to work on course maintenance, general…
