In honor of our new counselor applications opening this
week, it is only fit that this week’s blog post be about what it is like to be
a counselor.
Each counselor is put in charge of a certain group of
campers arranged by age: 6-8, 9-11, 12-14, 15-17. They share the responsibility of looking over
their designated campers. At the
beginning of the week when the campers arrive, all the counselors are full of
energy and ready to give it their all.
By the end of the week, every counselor is still giving it their all and
full of energy, but also suppressing sleep loss and how they really shouldn’t
have any energy left but it’s coming from somewhere (If you don’t feel like
this by the end of the week, you’re doing it wrong). But for some reason, this feeling is a great
feeling.
Each day, you as a counselor will have the opportunity to
become a kid again. This may include
(but is not limited to) putting on wigs during drama, playing field games, dancing
spontaneously on the spot multiple times a day, losing your manners during meal
time, and playing Marco Polo during swim time.
Perhaps the most rewarding characteristic of being a counselor is acting
as a mentor and seeing each child interact with the others. Each night around 11 o’clock, all the
counselors meet in the lodge to talk about the lows and highs of the day. Even though every person may be dead-beat
tired by that point, when the meeting usually ends around midnight, everyone is
always ready for a late-night game of Frisbee or Basketball, putting on a
movie, assembling a puzzle, or just talking.
Even as you selflessly give of yourself for the week, I like
to think that you get more than you give.
To me, one of the best rewards I have received from Camp Kesem over the
past 2 years are the friendships I have made in that time. You won’t find harder working, fun loving,
diligent people than those at Camp Kesem BYU.
The following are blurbs from current counselors about what
Camp Kesem means to them:
“Being a counselor makes the whole year of planning worth
every minute. The kids faces light up and I love knowing that I had a small
part in that. The memories that I have from that one week inspire me for the next
51 weeks of the year. You really can't anticipate the change that this kids
will bring to your life, but I promise you it's life-changing.“ – Ginger Snap
“Being a counselor at Camp Kesem is all about being a friend.
You get to spend the whole week trying to find ways in which to make the
campers have more fun, feel more comfortable, be more excited, etc. You get to
listen to them when they talk to better get to know them and ask them questions
so they can tell you what they need to. You get to make them laugh and laugh
with them. You get to be their cheerleader and help them overcome their fears.
It really is such an amazing and unbelievable experience that will change your
life forever because you get to focus on these wonderful kids who struggle so
much and just make their week that of magic.“ – Glinda
“Being a counselor at Camp Kesem means giving up a little, but
receiving a lot. As a counselor, you give up one week of your summer. But, once
you arrive at camp, and once you interact with these awesome kids, you realize
that giving up a week of your summer was one of the best things that you could
have done. These kids are at camp to forget about their hard times at home, in
the “real-world.” They are at camp to have fun. You get to help them do that.
As a counselor, you get to be the craziest you’ve ever been, and don’t have to
worry about what other people think when you run around, scream cheers, act
like a dinosaur, or even get down on the dance floor. You also get to listen to
and learn about the amazing and brave stories these kids have, and even share
your own sometimes. Together you laugh, together you cry, together you grow,
and together, you get to forget about the world.“ – Baloo
So what are you waiting for?
Applications are open now! Sign
up for a life-changing and rewarding week this summer!
