After this past summer, I wrote an article about things former summer camp counselors find themselves missing once summer is over. A lot of people are able to relate to the summer camp atmosphere and its joys, along with the trying times too! Below is a list of 10 reasons why everyone should work at summer camp at one point in their life.
1. You will get to see children conquer their fears and grow even in the short time they are at camp.
I saw it all the time while working at the barn: kids would be afraid of the horses on the first day, but would usually get on anyway. By the end of the week, the fear is gone and they are loving the horses and their time at camp!
2. You will make friends that will last you a lifetime.
Camp friends are a special breed. You spend weeks on end with them in close quarters, learning from each other, supporting one another, goofing around on off time together, and making unforgettable memories together. These people will become your best friends, your bridesmaids/groomsmen, and will stick with you through thick and thin.
3. You will come home with stories and memories from the summer that your friends will hear for months.
All its takes is one song, one phrase, one... anything really can bring back a flood of camp memories. Camps are great places to make the best kinds of memories. Plus, kids say some pretty funny things.
4. You will learn a lot.
I worked at a Christian summer camp called Camp Westminster for four years, and there has not been another period in my life where I have grown in my faith the way I did at camp. Little sleep and big, long, and full days make a recipe for fertile ground indoor heart for the Lord to work. Sometimes it comes in the form of something your camper says. Sometimes its finding patience and grace in a difficult situation. Whatever it is, there is truth everywhere.
5. You get to come back the next summer and see your old campers and how they've changed and grown.
It's really neat to get to come back summer after summer and see how your campers have grown and changed. And, if your as old as I am, you get to see your campers come back as staff, and that's pretty cool too!
6. You will grow up and change.
Seeing your campers grow up and change is awesome, but know that they can see how you've changed too. Looking at the 16-year-old girl who started working at camp to the 20-year-old woman I am today is like looking at two different people. Those summers at camp have turned me into the woman I am today and have taught me so much more than I could have learned at the other jobs I applied for those summers.
7. Reunions with your camp people are the bomb.
Out come the stories, scars, and general sharing about life and how much everyone wishes they were back at camp.
8. Every week brings a new batch of campers with their own set of quirks and goofiness.
One of the best parts about camp is getting to love on the campers you get to have time with every week. It is such a joy to get to give them Bible studies, answer their questions, and see them grow spiritually. And the best part is that you know whatever fruits come from that week you spent with them are the sole work of the Lord through you. There is nothing like being used for the glory of the King.
9.The Lord sustains you.
There are days when it feels like you will collapse out of tiredness and frustration if you stay one more minute. Some weeks bring you campers that try every fiber of your nerves and patience. Those are the moments when the Lord uses you the most, because you are fully and completely dependent on Him and His strength. It is in those times you truly see how utterly desperate you are for Him and his strength. There is no other explanation for me getting through four camp summers except through His unrelenting love and strength.
10. Being tired at the end of the summer for about the next month.
it may seem like a weird thing to look forward to, but there is no better feeling than being done with camp and knowing you did a good work work for the Lord. And being very tired.
Camps are developmental places for everyone involved, staff and student. Working at a summer camp looks great on a resume too, I might add! There are plenty of camps online for you to apply to (though, of course, I am going to say you should apply to Camp Westminster)! Pick one and go for it!
