|
Do you have the right stuff?
Camp isn’t for everyone. You have to put your needs behind the children’s and the camp’s, and that isn’t something everyone is able to do, or able to be happy doing.
Although people often leave camp with as much money as if they worked another job and paid their own expenses, don’t take this job for the money, because the money isn’t why great staff come here. You could certainly earn more money in many other jobs. In coming here, you must be dedicated, have an open heart and mind, be very patient, and demonstrate an uncommon degree of responsibility in everything you do. Caring, Honesty, Respect, and Responsibility all speak well to your soul.
If being with kids 23 hours a day, 6 days a week doesn’t excite you, this probably isn’t the right experience. We expect you to pace yourself, know when you need sleep, and work as consistently at the end of the summer as in the beginning. We expect you to be a very good big brother or sister while mixing parental responsibility with the compassion of a best friend.
During the summer, you might get oatmeal dumped on your head, get thrown in the lake, dress up like Mary Poppins or a pirate, comfort a homesick child, put cream on poison oak, work with distressed children, share in contagious laughter, and sleep under the stars every week.
As a professional role model for impressionable children, smoking isn’t possible. Smoking is hazardous to our campers’ health and we don't want a camper to learn that smoking is "cool" from his or her counselor. Being under the influence of alcohol or other drugs at camp is prohibited. We have an obligation to keep our campers safe. People under the influence of alcohol and other drugs make poor decisions and place campers at risk.
Popular is often defined by what you wear, what you know, and what you do. With the most overweight nation of children in the world, record child mental illness, and the sexualization of children and adolescents, we believe that it is difficult for children to be and love their true selves. Brittany Spears, Hillary Duff, Pokemon, Aeropostale, Miley Cyrus, Abercrombie, sitcoms, Teen Magazine, and some hit television dramas have morphed the innocence and potential of childhood into something quite different. We believe that at camp, children benefit from not thinking about what they wear, what it takes to be cool, and growing up too fast. Children benefit from thinking about canoeing, roasting marshmallows, appreciating community, enjoying true friendships, singing, wondering at the stars, and communing with nature. Thus, we leave popular culture at the door. We believe that imagination is a precious gift to be protected and not trampled by intense media bombardment.
We believe that campers benefit from doing their best work whenever possible, and not engaging in something half-heartedly. Campers benefit from taking pride in their work. Beauty in the experience occurs when children strive to have the arrow fly true, the art be artful, the drama well-rehearsed, and the dining decorum playful, yet reverent.
We believe that children learn best when they discover truths for themselves. Children thrive when they explore, create, and challenge. Feeding children answers and giving them facts deadens their thirst and hunger for what is true and possible. Play is a tool for learning, and not something given so many minutes during the day. Through play, children learn social skills, their passions, and their potential.
If after reading through our website you’re excited to be at Camp Augusta, then we will be absolutely ecstatic to talk to you! Please give us a ring, drop by, or e-mail. We’ll make the hot chocolate with marshmallows.
|
