Chapter Three – Emeline
Emeline
“Thank you,” I said with a soft smile.
He shut the door and walked around the front of his truck to the driver’s side.
Once he climbed in, I said, “If you’ll just drive around the barn and head south, I can show you the camp. It’s been a while since you’ve been there.”
When he smiled, I swore it lit up the entire cab of the truck.
Turning my gaze away, I looked straight ahead. “Are you happy to be back in River Falls?”
Levi started the truck, and we were on our way down the gravel road.
“I am happy, yes. Rhett loves it here. Or rather, he loves being on the farm with my mom and dad. His new favorite thing is to get up with Mom and help her feed the chickens. She’s keeping him busy, which also keeps his mind busy. ”
Nodding, I replied, “He has the love for animals like his father and grandparents, I see.”
Levi chuckled. “That he does. I had horses at our place in Denver, since we lived outside of the city and had a few acres, so I got him on a horse early on. He loves it.”
I wanted to ask if Brooke had enjoyed animals but wasn’t sure whether Levi wanted to talk about his daughter. “A boy after my own heart,” I mused. “If I remember correctly, Caroline also liked to ride.”
“English, not western. She won some events she competed in during high school, but that was about as far as her love for the sport went. She thought they smelled, and she despised having to take care of them. Brooke loved to ride as well. She was just starting to learn.”
“I almost asked if she loved animals but I wasn’t sure if you’d be willing to talk about her.”
When he glanced over at me, his eyes were so sad. “I don’t mind talking about her. I try to talk about her often around Rhett. It’s painful, but I don’t want her memory to fade.”
“I’m so sorry that happened to you all, Levi. I can’t even imagine how painful it is.”
He let out a slow breath. “It is, but life goes on. Brooke wouldn’t want us to sit around and cry all the time. She was so full of life, always had a smile on her face. I miss her energy.”
“I wish I could have met her.”
He looked at me again. More sadness. “Me too. Every time we came to town, you were never at the ranch. You would have adored Brooke, and she would have loved you and Ensley.”
“I’m sure I would have,” I said softly. “And I haven’t seen Rhett since he was like three, maybe.”
“He’s growing up fast.”
When the sadness in his voice became too much, I decided to change the subject.
“We have one summer session in June and one in July. We’re discussing the possibility of adding an additional week of camp in August, for children with special needs and their parents.
It will be a different type of camp for the trial run. Only a day camp.”
“Wow, that’s exciting. So this will be your first year to offer that camp?”
I nodded. “It will, if we can make it happen. They’ll get a fun week on the ranch, and we’ll see if this is something we’re going to be able to offer annually. We’ll have to have properly trained staff on hand, and of course, all the legal stuff that goes along with something like this.”
Levi laughed. “The legal stuff? That’s one way of putting it.”
Shrugging, I replied, “My mother takes care of all that. She’s been doing this a lot longer than I have. I guess at some point I’ll need to learn it all, but for now, she deals with the lawyers.”
He pulled around the barn, and I pointed to a small parking area. “You can park there and we’ll get out and walk around.”
He pulled up and parked. “Wow, this place has changed since I was here last.”
I smiled. “It has changed a lot. We’re still on the small side as far as camps go, but that’s how we like it, and our needs don’t require anything on a larger scale.”
“You know, when I was in Denver, I heard someone talking about the camps here at River Falls Ranch.”
Surprised, I replied, “Really? Were they saying good things?”
Levi nodded. “They were basically saying they wished you would open it up to more campers, and since you catered to the local kids first and foremost, it’s tough to get a spot.”
“Yes, we do. But there are numerous camps available across the country, including in Denver. We began our work with kids by holding a Christmas Day event for the local orphanage, as you know. That’s what first gave me the idea for the camps when I was thirteen.
We’ve grown to what you see today, and I’m proud of the work we’ve done, but my mother and grandmother are really the ones who started it all with the Christmas event.
I just added to it. Being able to help kids, give them a safe space on our ranch, has been a dream of my mother’s for as long as I can remember. ”
“Not to mention what you’ve done.”
I felt my cheeks heat. “Yes, it’s been my dream as well. Come on, I’ll show you around.”
We got out and walked down the path. “That cabin over there, behind the trees? That’s Ensley’s place. She wanted to be closer to the barn since she’s our farrier.”
“Does she only work here on the ranch?”
“No, she works all over the River Falls area and beyond. It took some convincing for a few ranchers that a woman could do just as good a job as a man, but she won them over.”
“I’m not surprised Ensley was up to the task. She’s been out to prove herself since she was little, when she used to challenge me and Caden to races. She was always so sure she’d win, and I remember us laughing about it.”
“Did she win?” I asked, giving him a smirk.
“She blew us out of the water. And I actually started slow the first time, thinking I’d be a gentleman and give her a head start. Big mistake that was.”
I chuckled. “Yep, that was a mistake.”
We walked a bit more. “Here are the cabins the kids stay in. There’s a counselor assigned to each cabin, who stays with the kids at all times.
They sleep in there with the kids as well, but in a separate little bedroom.
We’ve had the same group of counselors come back for the last few years.
They have to be at least sixteen and complete a training course, which we cover the cost of.
They also learn CPR and basic first aid. ”
“Do they have any training for kids who might have…issues?”
I paused to face him. “Mental or physical?”
He shrugged. “Both.”
“They’re trained on what to look for if they suspect abuse, or if the camper might be in crisis, but they’re kids themselves, keep in mind.
We do have one certified counselor who volunteers for each camp.
She’s from Denver. We don’t actually offer that type of counseling here at the camp, but we do find it helpful to have someone available in case we face an issue.
“Ninety-nine percent of the kids at the camps are local, and around eighty percent of those come from the orphanage. The rest are from low-income families. The kids from River Falls Haven are divided between the two camp sessions, to give them a chance to meet kids outside of the orphanage. They don’t have to pay for camp, of course; it’s offered free of charge to anyone living at River Falls Haven.
We’re able to do that through the rodeo fundraisers we do, as well as the charity dinner we host each year.
We make most of our donations through those two events. ”
We started to walk again, and I stopped at the largest building.
“This is camp headquarters. The building is relatively new, having been constructed just three years ago. It’s where the kitchen is, the dining hall, and the living room.”
“Living room?”
I nodded as I opened the door. “Yep! It’s exactly what it sounds like.
A common place for the kids to hang out together.
I wanted this to feel like a home as much as possible, not just like a rec center or anything like that.
It was more for the kids from River Haven.
The orphanage is actually pretty nice, but it doesn’t exactly have a homey feel. ”
We walked past long rows of tables where the kids ate.
I showed him the kitchen, which housed two industrial stoves, two huge sinks, two dishwashers, and a large industrial refrigerator.
“Before we had this area, we mainly had food brought in each day for the campers. That got to be pretty pricey, and my father did the numbers and said we’d end up saving more money by having it all done onsite. ”
“Who does all the cooking?”
“My mother, grandmother, and several volunteers, some of whom are the mothers and fathers of the kids. They like giving back as much as they can.”
He looked around and smiled. “This is impressive, Em.”
Feeling a sense of pride and embarrassment at the compliment from him, I simply nodded and headed out of the kitchen.
I wasn’t sure why I felt embarrassed, though.
Maybe it was because it was Levi. We walked into a huge open room with exposed log beams and walls, featuring a giant wood fireplace at the opposite end.
Several sofas, chairs, and beanbags were scattered throughout the space.
“The loft up there,” I said, pointing, “holds a pool table, a foosball table, a card table, and a Ping-Pong table.”
“Wow! That sounds like fun.”
Someone walked out of one of the three bathrooms to our right.
“Hi, Charlotte,” I called out as I waved.
“Hey there, Emeline. We’ve pretty much cleaned up everything. I just need to stock the bathrooms, and when we get closer, narrow down the menus for each week.”
“Charlotte, this is Levi Tucker. He’s Caden’s best friend and pretty much part of the family. His father is the local veterinarian.”
Charlotte reached out her hand. “Charlotte Hastings. I’m the camp steward.”
“Camp steward?” Levi asked.
“She’s in charge of budgeting, shopping, and getting the daily menus in place. She also prepares all the snacks for the kids. Plus, she gets all the cabins ready and cleaned, as well as the main building.”
Levi’s eyes went wide. “Whoa. That’s a lot.”