There is something about spending the summer at a sleepaway camp that allows kids and teens to connect in a way they just can’t at school. Maybe it’s the extended time they spend together or the fact that selfies and Instagram and the social media comparison epidemic is taken out of the equation at camp. Whatever the reason, campers are able to interact and build relationships on a deeper level at camp than they can at school or on sports teams at home.
One of the major reasons campers can form such strong bonds in such a short amount of time at camp is because they’re unplugged. They are not distracted by putting filters on their Instagram pictures or obsessively tracking how many likes their status update receives. Instead, they’re having real conversations and real experiences that trump scrolling through social media any day. Since their faces aren’t glued to a screen, campers can actually look at each other and talk to each other, and it re-enforces the power of human connection.
Another reason campers connect on a deeper level with other campers is because of the extended time they spend together. While kids spend a majority of their day at school, most of it is spent in the classroom, with pockets of time throughout the day where they can freely interact with their peers and work on building relationships. At summer camp, communicating and building relationships is all campers do. From the moment they wake up until “lights out” campers have two jobs: have fun and make new friends. This is why camp relationships are so strong from the get-go because campers have nothing but time to work on establishing trust and friendships with their peers.
Many campers who attend Camp Starlight are active in sports teams and clubs at home. But at home, when the game or practice is over, the team goes their separate ways. At camp, you walk off the field with your team AND your opponent and make s’mores around a campfire together. This time spent together strengthens relationships of teammates and helps establish healthy attitudes towards competition and sportsmanship.
Camp builds community because camp is a community. At school, students are usually focused on trying to find the little group that they can fit into. At camp, everyone is in the same group. Of course, individuals find their own smaller circle of friends, but at the end of the day, around the campfire, everyone is a camper. Everyone is there for the summer of their lives. Lifelong friendships are started at Camp Starlight because of the traditions, memories, and experiences they share.
It is common for campers to comment on the differences between their school friends and their camp friends. There always seems to be something a little more intimate, a little more solid in their circle of camp friends. Probably because these friendships are based on shared experiences, honest communication and quality time instead of Instagram followers and Facebook likes.
When you go to camp it’s basically Halloween all the time! At Camp Starlight, there are so many opportunities where campers can express themselves by wearing a costume! We encourage our campers to be silly, the sillier the costume the better! Whether it’s wearing a crazy outfit on your birthday or your bunk just deciding to all wear your hair in a crazy style for the day, dressing up is just a normal part of everyday camp life. A tutu has become an acceptable outfit no matter who you are. Some of the most favorite special events and evening activities involve dressing up. Campers love themed dance parties, camp plays, getting decked out in blue or white for 5 days of Olympics. Camp reminds us that you’re never too old or too cool to dress in a costume. We wish we didn’t have to wait 8 more months to dress in costumes again!
It’s easy for children to think of their entire lives in the context of their “nucleus,”’ their home, their community, their school, their family, their friends. They typically have no need to seek beyond their immediate surroundings, and their perspective of the world is seen through a restrictive lens based on where they live and the things they’ve experienced. Attending a sleepaway camp gives children and teens a way to broaden their worldview, to see themselves as a small (yet important) part of the bigger picture. Camp Starlight gets campers out of their comfort zones and allow them to catch a glimpse of how much world they have to explore.
Sixteen is not an age you would associate with a summer camp. When you think of a sixteen year old, words like “rock n roll,” “rebellion,” and “sleep in extremely late” flash like snapshots of your own teen years into your head. Teenagers typically want to get away from it all and live in the moment, but at Camp Starlight, sixteen year olds break these stereotypes as Counselor Assistants. Pushing the limits of responsibilities and taking the initiative to embrace upcoming adulthood, Counselor Assistants spend another summer at Camp Starlight in the in between stage of camper and counselor. Not yet counselor, not entirely camper, these kids enter a role entirely their own on campus and even though it is a unique role, these kids enter this sphere for a reason.
When you spend eight summers of your life at the same summer camp, you get to reflect on all the magic you’ve experienced and memories you have made at a place that is so special and unlike anywhere else. At Camp Starlight, Upper Senior campers truly get to experience every single aspect of summer camp, transitioning from summer to summer with more responsibility and more fun. Upper Seniors get to see every angle of Camp Starlight and experience every special activity, they really do it all. However, when the last night of the last summer comes, it always arrives too quickly for these Upper Seniors. Reflecting back on every summer spent at Camp Starlight, here are the things that Upper Seniors will miss most about Camp Starlight when they have to say their final goodbye.
Every day at Camp Starlight is completely different for me, I see a multitude of faces from every division and interact with campers I’ve known for five years or for five minutes. The only consistent aspect of my job is my ability to meet new people every day and that is why I know my job as the Athletic Director is the best job on campus. Whether I am overseeing Wayne County match or providing a helping hand for any athletics based evening activity, I am always on the move meeting and getting to know different campers. When campers express interest in a sport and I get to help them improve their skills, I also get to know who they are and why they are passionate about the sport. I love the relationships I get to form with the campers and when they get older and look back at these summers they won’t remember whether they won or lost a lacrosse or basketball game, they will remember the people they made relationships with, which I believe to be so cool. When I get to see these campers come back summer after summer and see how they grow in terms of skill and independence, it’s a very rewarding feeling for me. When campers that become too old for Camp Starlight but reach out before they go to college to tell me I’ve impacted their life positively, it is the most rewarding feeling. Those moments are why I know I have the best job at Camp Starlight.
Being a Lower Deb comes with more respect, responsibilities, opportunities, and freedom. We have a mascot that represents who we are, and who we can be. We have our own cheer that shows our spirit, and proves that we are powerful. We are lucky to be able to get 10 times closer with our division just from one night. Being the role models that we looked up to as a lower junior means so much. In Upper Camp, we now have the responsibility of making a younger camp sister feel happy and comfortable. We also have the privilege of having two sisters with whom we form a special bond and friendship. You learn to be a loyal bunkmate, sister, and friend. We learn to step out of our comfort zone and try new things. We wouldn’t trade this memorable experience for anything else in the world.
Throughout the day I am quite scattered around campus, some afternoons I’m launching bottle rockets in front of the Rec Hall and on other days I’m helping blow cube shaped bubbles in the Makerspace. The wide range of science based activities I get to participate in and teach to campers makes every day exciting and different which is why I believe I have the best job on camp as the Makerspace Specialist. When campers come to summer camp they want to escape school and classes, believing a science based activity is no fun and all rules, but my job as the Makerspace Specialist is to show campers how fun and interesting it can be to play with applied science. Building robots, planning science experiments, launching model rockets, blowing odd shaped bubbles, and of course making slime are all exciting activities I can share with the campers to see the fun side of science. When campers participate in these activities they get to develop a passion for science outside the classroom and I get to witness their growth and improvement over the summer which is my favorite part of my job. Nothing is more rewarding than helping a camper understand the beautiful intricacies of science and robotics and see them make connections they never thought they could make before. My specialty is very unique compared to all the different sports, music and art based activities campers have the opportunity to partake in so it’s an honor to be one of the few counselors helping campers experience a healthy and fun exposure to science. Without working with these campers all summer and sharing my love of science, my life would be so different and not as fulfilling because when camper’s make connections to science and develop a passion that is when I know all my hard work is worth it and that I have the best job at Camp Starlight.