I’ve been a camper for most of my life , and it has been great. So great, that for awhile I dreaded my 18th birthday because that meant that my camper days were over. The closer the year came the more sad I was because I didn’t want to say goodbye to camp. What I didn’t know then was that I never have to say goodbye to camp, because being a counselor is just as great as being a camper. I started volunteering at day camp when I was 17 and it was amazing. I was worried that it would be hard, to give up my real name and rock a camp name for once. But I was wrong, becoming a counselor was one of the easiest things I’ve ever had to do. I was glad to give all my attention to the campers and not have it be about me anymore. That is normally the issue, we get so used to being spoiled with attention as campers that we might not be able to give the spotlight to someone else when it’s our time to be in charge. However, it was my pleasure to give the campers all the attention they needed.
This camp has been there for me for so long and being able to give back and do for these campers what was done for me is honestly so wonderful. Being a part of all the behind the scenes stuff is also really cool, and it totally doesn’t kill the magic. One thing I always loved about being a camper was when you go back every year and see all your friends and counselors as if nothing had changed. When you’re a counselor, that reunion is even better. When all the campers start showing up and they run up to you all excited that you’re there, it just makes you feel so happy. You really realize the impact that you have and you can see the importance of camp, and it’s really great. My last year of camp, as a camper, all I could think about was becoming a LIT and moving into the counselor life. I was ready to be a part of this camp that I love so much in a new way. I guess starting at day camp while I was still a camper may have made the transition easier for me, but the way I feel about giving back to CR4TS I don’t think it would’ve been a problem either way. I’ll never forget my days as a camper, because they were prime, but I have so much time left to be a counselor and I couldn’t be more excited. I can’t wait to see where we can take CR4TS and I can’t wait to see all the different roles i get to take on to be a part of it. Because this camp is so important to me it was easy to say goodbye to Danielle and hello to BamBam.
Camp Makes a Difference...
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