Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp - Twin Lake, Michigan

Brenna C.

My daughter received a scholarship for Blue Lake and raised the rest of her tuition herself.
Less than 24 hours after paying the full tuition, her grandmother died and the funeral was scheduled three months out, the exact weekend of her camp AND out of state. I called and requested a deferment and the most comically ridiculous conversation/ email exchange occurred.

I explained the situation and asked if there was any sort of deferment program available for special circumstances
Receptionist(in the snottiest voice I may have ever heard ) "we don't give refunds"
Me: "yes no that's fine, we don't want a refund. She still wants to go. We were just wondering if there was any sort of deferment options for bereaved families. "

Receptionist (now yelling) "WE DON'T OFFER REFUNDS"

it was here that I said thank you and hung up and moved to email. I sent her an email stating that I understood from her conversation that the camp doesn't offer refunds but I was asking for a deferment and if they had any sort of program for bereaved families like Interlochen does.

She called me back immediately and said, again in a very snotty voice. "What does deferment mean to you?" I replied "to delay or postpone" she cackled and said "that's not what it means."

At this point I'm crying. As someone who works with bereaved families I cannot fathom speaking to anyone this way, let alone someone who just lost a loved one. I responded to the short email chain we had created AND added the dean onto the email chain by copy and pasting Webster's dictionary's definition of the word "Defer" and almost immediately received a refund -which I appreciate but I never requested.

I think it was right of them to assume that after this first impression of their program I was not going to send any of my children to them.

Most concerning, I think, is a registrar that doesn't know the definition of the word "defer" and would speak so harshly and rudely to prospective families.

I truly hope she's been removed from any client-facing roles if not from the program completely.

My daughter earned her scholarship and raised all of her funds by herself. She was truly bummed to not be able to participate and would have most certainly continued to attend for the next few years, as well as her younger siblings.

Also I find it comical that I'm still receiving emails asking to enroll.

Mary W.

I cried so much at the choir concert. Blew away our expectations. My daughter, Faye, had a blast and the teachers made learning and singing fun. It was beautiful to hear a group of girls (that all wanted to be there) talking music to the next level at that age. Bravo to this camp for a big experience success.

Betsy F.

Have been there as a camper and as an final concert attendee. Kids love BLFAC and want to go back.

Tips. Bring a case of bottled water (especially if you're particular about how your water tastes), and bring a bin of snacks too. Also bring a wireless fan that can clip to the bunk.

Buying the "email credits" to send notes to your camper worked out well -- we sent jokes and short stories, which were shared with the whole cabin.

Rather than packing in a suitcase, we used a Rubbermaid storage tote. It worked reasonably well if you don't want to buy an actual "trunk" for camp.

Dogs can visit on the final Sunday, but they can't go in concert areas, as an FYI.

Bea B. (.

3 years now my daughter has attended. Wonderful place for kids to go to explore their musical and voice talents, taught by experienced conductors and teachers, Wonderful experience, highly recommend!

Benjamin R.

Our child had a wonderful first experience at BLFAC a few weeks ago. Came home energized about music. Made new friends. Staff was very friendly.

Tommie

I was here in 2019 before I moved. I was losing my viola because my new district did not have orchestra. It’s expensive but is extremely fun. I cried having to leave all my friends behind to go home. We always had some sort of activity to do. Though I don’t know what it was like in a regular cabin because I was on Bernstein, I still had so much fun. There was always something to do and we were never bored. I was in cabin Burch and my counselor was Alexandria, and I miss her so much! I’m so glad I had the opportunity to go there. It is funny that I got a higher scholarship for my art over my viola but it doesn’t matter as they had minors and I took the art minor. 10/10 would recommend and I wish I could go back.

Dane P.

A great summer camp experience. Cabins, food/cafeteria, and trails right out of the vintage parent trap movie. Add to that a great experience of the arts (theatre, band, art...). There are different sessions that you can register for. The setting is gorgeous with wildlife sightings. Some.of the most talented teachers from around the country. Very diverse group.of students and teachers. Highly recommend.

Shannon R.

My daughter was granted a scholarship through a school audition and we were fortunate enough to fill in the gaps for her to go. I am so glad she had the opportunity to participate this year and we look forward to making this a yearly trip for her!
At drop off, everyone was friendly and made the kids feel welcome and as a parent, I immediately knew my daughter would have a blast even though she can be an introvert at times.
We were able to send emails, and the councilor did allow her to call home after a rough second day of homesickness (she is only 12 and this was her first time away for a long period so far away!).
No news was good news and we picked her up today and she was surrounded by so many new friends and has a lot of great things to say about her experience.
I was absolutely blown away by the final performance. These kids had twelve days to learn and perfect six pieces of challenging music. The excellent instructors and clinicians turned these kids into professionals.
The work these kids turned out was fantastic and more finely tuned than the three or four pieces band students showcase after an entire semester of school classes.
I just want to thank everyone at the camp for giving these kids such an awesome education and experience.
As I initially stated, my daughter was given a merit based scholarship, so I encourage everyone to donate to their scholarship funds so more students can share in this amazing program!
See you next year!